"I need to go." Yang Ruxin let out a cry under her breath, then quickly darted into the space. In such circumstances, she wouldn’t even be able to run away, let alone climb a tree for safety, because the Black Bear could snap those thick tree trunks as thick as bowls with one swipe of its paw, and the tiger could break a tree with just one hit; their strength was astonishing.
The entire mountain seemed to be in turmoil, as if an earthquake was about to strike.
In the jungle, it was quite normal for creatures to brawl over territory. Tigers were known as the kings of the forest, but Black Bears were also extremely dominant. The clash of these two titans was surely a force to reckon with.
However, it seemed that they had already fought long enough, as both beasts appeared to be exhausted.
Suddenly, the tiger leapt up and charged at the Black Bear, which raised its paw to strike but, seemingly out of energy, it missed and was hit directly by the tiger into the rocks behind them, and both giants fell to the ground, motionless.
The forest finally began to quiet down.
The Black Bear struggled for a moment, but ultimately failed to get up, as it was bleeding from the neck, clearly having had its throat bitten through by the tiger.
Although the tiger wasn’t bleeding, it too seemed to be on its last breath.
Yang Ruxin waited a while, and after confirming that the two were genuinely motionless, she finally emerged from the space and cautiously approached them.
Just as Yang Ruxin got close, the tiger suddenly opened its eyes and gave a whimpering cry towards her.
Ruxin jumped with fright, about to retreat into the space again, but noticed that the creature wasn’t getting up to attack her. Instead, there was a pleading look in its eyes.
"This is insane, I can actually sense that it’s begging me?" mumbled Yang Ruxin to herself, but driven by curiosity, she couldn’t help but draw closer to the white giant.
Of course, there was another reason; she felt reluctant to leave the Black Bear behind. Bear meat, paws, gall, and hide were all valuable commodities.
Just as Yang Ruxin got near the big creature, it relaxed its body, then shifted slightly, revealing a patch of crimson beneath it.
"You’ve got to be kidding me," Ruxin finally realized that the tiger had a large belly and was actually a pregnant female, "But I don’t know how to deliver a baby."
The tiger, however, was in agony, whimpering in pain.
Feeling helpless, Yang Ruxin was torn between leaving the animal be, which seemed inhumane, and helping, when she didn’t know where to begin.
But eventually, moved by the tiger’s painful state, she mustered her courage, knelt down, and began to gently stroke its body, rubbing its belly to try and alleviate its suffering.
However, the cub seemed to be in the wrong position, unable to be born after much time, and losing a lot of blood.
Ruxin’s heart began to twist with worry. The strong smell of blood could attract other predators, posing a danger to both her and the tiger. What was she to do?
At that moment, the Black Bear moved slightly and even tried to get up, struggling for a long while without success.
Yang Ruxin initially got a scare, but was relieved when the Black Bear soon breathed its last. She exhaled in relief, hurriedly moved the massive creature into the space, out of sight and out of mind.
At this point, the white tiger seemed to have become feeble as well. Its fight with the Black Bear had not only exhausted it but left it injured too. If the cub wasn’t delivered soon, both might die.