The burly man's fingers slackened, and his axe dropped to the blood-soaked ground with a dull clunk.
His eyes widened.
From the tree line, a sleek, black panther emerged.
Its body shimmered with obsidian scales beneath velvet fur. Muscles rippled with each step. Glowing deep blue eyes locked onto him—unblinking.
The air grew colder.
Even at a glance, the burly man felt the crushing aura rolling off it.
"A… P-Peak Great Core Rank?" he uttered, barely above a whisper.
The beast didn't roar.
It didn't growl.
It just walked—calmly, and, deadly.
The other beasts, sensing its presence, scattered instantly—vanishing into the forest, leaving the man alone, battered and bleeding.
He gritted his teeth, reached for his axe—
"COME ON!" he roared, blood streaming down his chin.
He lifted the weapon with trembling arms, hurled it with everything he had—
But the panther vanished.
Whoosh!
A blur.
The next second—
CRUNCH!
The man's scream echoed across the clearing—
