A round of 'Continuous Fire Dragon Fist' knocked the grizzly bear down, and Natsu felt much better, sitting back quietly to listen to Rhode's live commentary.
"Found it." After seeing one 'battlefield' after another, Rhode finally spotted a monster.
It bore some resemblance to Claudie's description, but not as exaggerated.
It was indeed a 'Leopard Man', somewhat similar in appearance to Rob Lucci from the neighboring pirate film set.
Only this Beast King's limbs were more robust, and its face more fierce.
The Leopard Man was gripping a wild wolf's throat with one hand, flicking its arm and slamming it to the ground, then pounding down with the other hand.
The nearby ground seemed to shake, the wild wolf's spine snapped with a crack, dying with a wail.
Such a combat style clearly indicated those 'tragedies' before were also its doing.
The Leopard Man roared in fury towards the sky, glaring with crimson eyes at the surrounding wolf pack.
The pack that had encircled it began to retreat, then turned and fled.
And where they fled was directly toward Dendrobium Village.
Hapi listened to Rhode's relay and asked, "Why does the Beast King kill those wild beasts?"
"Establishing dominance? It might have just killed the alpha wolf, now the whole pack is afraid of it." Rhode pondered, puzzled,
"Is the Beast King driving the beasts down the mountain in this manner? I thought a roar would suffice."
Natsu clenched his fist: "Whatever the case, as long as we take it down, right?"
Rhode held him back: "Wait a minute, Shadow Wolves have been discovered."
With the whole pack retreating, the three Shadow Wolves that remained stood out.
But this was part of Rhode's plan, sending Shadow Wolves not only for search but also to test the opponent's level.
The Leopard Man roared and charged at the Shadow Wolves.
The Shadow Wolves scattered tactfully, Two-headed Wolf faced the enemy head-on, ordinary wolves flanked both sides.
The two River Crabs swiftly ran away to serve as high-definition cameras from different angles.
Rhode used dual viewpoints to closely observe the Leopard Man's movements, calmly assessing the opponent's charge speed.
Not exactly fast.
The Leopard Man charged forward, relying on the height advantage, punched at the Two-headed Wolf's back, seemingly intending to resolve the fight in one move.
But the Two-headed Wolf react swiftly, pivoting sideways to dodge the punch, then immediately springing back to bite the Leopard Man's wrist.
The ordinary wolves seized the moment, lunging together to bite the Leopard Man's other arm.
Rhode wondered if two more Stone Beetles could grab its legs and be more effective.
But it wasn't that simple.
Bear in mind, the size of the Shadow Wolf is similar to a tiger, and this Leopard Man, dragging a large Shadow Wolf and two Shadow Wolves, could still run.
Moreover, it could still swing its arms, smashing the Shadow Wolves against the tree trunks separately.
Bam! Bam!
Two trees, thirty centimeters in diameter, snapped, forcing the Shadow Wolves to release their grip.
The Two-headed Wolf quickly rolled several times on the ground to gain distance, lowered its body and growled.
And the two ordinary wolves struggled to stand up shakily, likely unable to hold for long.
The Leopard Man stared at the Two-headed Wolf, raised its arm and licked it.
Its arms now bore several rows of bloody holes, the area bitten by the Two-headed Wolf was torn down to some muscle.
Despite some injuries, the simple and brutal attack had already displayed the Leopard Man's immense strength.
After licking its wounds, the Leopard Man seemed to become more ferocious, re-entering attack mode.
The Two-headed Wolf zigzagged closer to the Leopard Man, suddenly jumping, this time aiming straight for the throat.
The Leopard Man raised its right arm high, hacking heavily between the Two-headed Wolf's two heads, knocking it to the ground.
Before it could pursue, two ordinary wolves fearlessly lunged but were sent back to the Summoner's Rift with a punch each.
The Two-headed Wolf seized the chance to retreat, its paws lightly clawed the ground.
As it dug out a small pit, it leapt forward, dashed a few steps, and spun rapidly like a whirlwind, hurtling towards the opponent.
Gatsuuga!
Upon knowing the Two-headed Wolf had this skill, Rhode immediately named it.
This move carries quite the punch, he hadn't dared to try it in the Guild.
Unfortunately, the Leopard Man was even stronger, spreading its arms to clamp between the two open wolf jaws.
Part of the wolf teeth dug into the Leopard Man's hand but couldn't continue biting down.
The Leopard Man was pushed backward by the impact of this move, but ultimately suffered no serious injuries.
The ensuing scene was slightly savage, the Two-headed Wolf also sent back to the Rift to rest.
The Leopard Man seemed perplexed as to why these wolves vanished after the fight, roaring several times, continuing to search for new targets.
The Shadow Wolves were defeated, but Rhode was not discouraged, for from his observations, this leopard's strength was still far from S-Class.
Even without Natsu, if he exploded, he might take it down... wait, getting ahead of himself.
It can't be ruled out that the opponent might transform into a second stage when angered.
But it can be tried at least, just ensure a comprehensive escape plan.
Rhode conveyed his analysis to Natsu and Hapi: "That's about it, so we're heading out now. Do you need any more preparation?"
"I've been ready for ages!" Natsu jumped up, leading the climb.
No need for Rhode to guide, Natsu remembered the River Crab's scent.
During the climb, Rhode kept detailing his ambush plan and retreat plan, ambush for Natsu, retreat for Hapi, focusing on tailored teaching.
...
The climb unexpectedly encountered the wolf pack driven by the Leopard Man.
Natsu and the monsters quickly resolved the fight, Rhode and Hapi cheered on, reminding Natsu not to unleash all his power.
"You guys are so annoying." After the fight, Natsu began to complain, "Instead of talking, why not help with the fight!"
Hapi raised a hand: "Aye! We have more important tasks."
Rhode also raised a hand, imitating Hapi's tone: "Aye! We've defeated more wild wolves than you."
"You two!" Natsu grumpily sped along, hoping to quickly find the Beast King's location.
The trio bickered over a hill, continuously encountering scattered beasts jumping out but were all swiftly taken down by Natsu and Rhode.
After over an hour, they finally arrived at the spot where the Three Wolves fought the Leopard Man.
The opponent was no longer present, but not far ahead in the pine forest came a beast's roar.
Natsu glanced at Rhode, who nodded, indicating it was there.
The two River Crabs, relying on good camouflage, hid in the forest, like two green boulders, quietly providing Rhode with a clear view.
Rhode summoned two groups of Stone Beetles, one group of Beaked Birds, to assist Natsu in battle.
He himself was lifted by Hapi, flying to the tallest tree in the forest.
Honestly, being carried by Hapi in flight felt very insecure.