Only after completing his entire self-imposed training regimen would Starlight seek out a quiet spot to sit peacefully, savoring the passage of time with the patience of an old man.
For him, the canopy of the towering tree near the valley entrance was an irreplaceable sanctuary. He often climbed to the very top alone, gazing out at the vast world beyond.
Starlight knew that the entire valley was gently enveloped in an invisible barrier. From the outside, all that could be seen was a stretch of lush forest and steep rock walls, which was why no outsiders had ever stumbled upon this place in all these years.
An afternoon slipped away unnoticed, and as the sun gradually sank in the west, it brought a cool evening breeze to the valley along with a touch of comfort.
Just as he was enjoying this leisure time, a sudden, hurried rustling came from below, sounding particularly jarring in the tranquil valley.
Hearing the noise, he immediately leaped down from the treetop. Usually, sounds like this were made by larger animals, and because of the barrier, such creatures rarely appeared within the valley.
Amidst a gentle breeze, Starlight landed steadily on the ground, his gaze sharp as he looked toward the swaying bushes nearby. After a violent shaking, a massive wild boar burst from the woods, weighing at least several hundred pounds.
“Huh? A wild boar? Looks like meat’s on the menu tonight!” Starlight thought with a surge of joy upon seeing the animal.
Although Carlos would leave for a few days every so often to purchase food and supplies from nearby towns, it didn't change the fact that resources were scarce in the valley.
Starlight, who usually subsisted on rabbits and birds, felt no panic in the face of this behemoth. Instead, a flicker of excitement danced in his eyes as he condensed a sharp wind blade in his palm, ready for action.
Seeing the wild boar charging straight at him, Starlight prepared to deliver a fatal blow to his prey.
However, to his surprise, the boar seemed to ignore his presence entirely, maintaining its speed as it lunged toward him almost frantically.
“What’s going on?” Starlight’s movements were agile as he stepped aside, easily dodging the boar’s heavy collision. At the same time, the wind blade in his hand shot out like an arrow from a bow, striking the boar’s neck with precision.
The wind blade easily sliced through the boar’s artery, and a spray of hot blood erupted instantly. The boar seemed to have all its strength drained away as it crashed heavily to the ground. After a few twitches, it moved no more.
“Why was that so easy?” Doubt rose in Starlight’s heart as he slowly approached the fallen boar, pondering the situation.
Such a massive prey shouldn't have fallen so easily. Was it playing dead, preparing for a final counterattack?
However, when he reached the boar’s massive body, he found that it truly had no breath left. In a spot he hadn't noticed before, a massive claw mark was emblazoned on the boar’s back, standing out prominently.
It turned out that before encountering him, the boar had been chased by something and was already severely injured. His strike had merely been the final straw that broke the camel’s back.
Starlight carefully examined the massive wound, which was at least dozens of centimeters deep, and a chill rose in his heart. To inflict such a terrifying wound, the owner of those claws must be enormous, perhaps several meters long.
Just as he was about to crouch down to inspect the boar’s carcass further, a needle-like prickling sensation suddenly came from the back of his neck, making his hair stand on end.
A sense of crisis surged like a tide. Without time to think, Starlight relied on his instincts and immediately rolled forward, narrowly dodging a fierce, chilling wind that lunged from behind.
After rolling several times on the ground, Starlight finally stabilized his stance.
He looked up to see a massive, pitch-black leopard-like creature standing by the boar’s carcass. The spot where he had just been standing had been struck by a massive claw, leaving a deep pit dozens of centimeters wide.
Starlight felt a secret wave of relief. If not for that subconscious evasion, his head would likely have been smashed into countless pieces by now.
While thinking this, he narrowed his eyes and carefully observed the attacker.
This was definitely no ordinary beast; it was some kind of magical beast, a creature mentioned only in books.
Soon, a description he had read in a certain book about this leopard surfaced in his mind:
“Shadow Leopard, a high-tier magical beast. It possesses incredible speed and an extremely tough hide, with excellent resistance to wind and dark elements. In the night or in dark environments, it can merge into the surrounding shadows. It enjoys toying with its prey during ambushes until they are dead.”
The book also specifically emphasized that this was absolutely not a prey suitable for a solo hunt... and encountering such a formidable foe for his first meeting with a magical beast undoubtedly made Starlight nervous.
But he did not lose his composure, because a voice seemed to be shouting deep within him that the creature before him was not an invincible opponent.
The Shadow Leopard was looking down at the large pit beneath its feet, seemingly wondering why its perfect ambush had failed to hit the tiny human in front of it.
Starlight lowered his stance slightly, silently beginning to gather mana in his palm.
Just as he threw a fireball at it, the Shadow Leopard recovered from its brief surprise. Its body blurred, turning into a wisp of black smoke as it instantly vanished from the spot.
The fireball missed and exploded upon contact with the ground, unleashing a massive force disproportionate to its size. It instantly scorched several square meters of earth, and even the wild boar’s carcass was blasted until it was charred on the outside and tender on the inside.
However, no matter how powerful an attack was, it was meaningless if it couldn't hit the target.
Starlight immediately leaped away from his position with the boost of a wind field. In the next second, he saw the massive figure lunge from the shadow of a tree behind him, pouncing on the spot where he had been standing just a moment ago.
“So fast! My eyes can't keep up!” After witnessing the Shadow Leopard’s ghost-like movements, Starlight realized he couldn't predict its trajectory with his naked eyes alone.
But that strike also allowed him to discover the key. Whenever the Shadow Leopard merged into or emerged from the shadows, it was accompanied by a subtle ripple of dark elements.
It was precisely this subtle anomaly that had allowed him to dodge that most fatal initial attack.
Without a special affinity for dark elements, it would be impossible to detect its movements. Fortunately, Starlight possessed exactly that ability, allowing him to keenly capture the Shadow Leopard’s every move.
Failing its strike, the Shadow Leopard immediately merged back into the surrounding shadows, unaware that its figure was already being fully tracked by Starlight while he was still in mid-air.
“Over here!” Starlight used the summoned wind field to twist his body in the air, throwing a fireball toward the shadow of a tree trunk beside him.
Almost simultaneously, the Shadow Leopard lunged from the shadow of the trunk, colliding head-on with the incoming fireball.
“Roar!”
The Shadow Leopard let out a terrified roar as the exploding flames instantly engulfed it. The entire dim forest seemed to be lit up by a brilliant firework.
Seeing his magic hit successfully, Starlight couldn't help but show a triumphant smile upon landing.
However, before that small spark of joy could fade, the Shadow Leopard charged out through the roaring flames, its massive claws aiming straight for his face.
Starlight’s pupils shrank. Disregarding all semblance of a mage’s poise, he hurriedly rolled to the side, barely avoiding the lethal strike.
Despite his agility, the Shadow Leopard’s sharp claws, which were over ten centimeters long, tore a long gash in his tunic. At the same time, his arm and cheek were scratched by gravel and branches on the ground, leaving him looking quite disheveled.
At this point, the Shadow Leopard finally became cautious. Seeing that the human before it had seen through its attacks several times, it had to stop its movements and begin observing him carefully.
“I thought the book said it had high resistance to dark and wind? Why didn't the fire do much either? Is this book even reliable!?” Starlight cursed inwardly as he saw the Shadow Leopard merely smoldering, its pitch-black fur showing no clear signs of being burned.
For a moment, neither man nor beast dared to make a move, forming a standoff in the forest.
However, a magical beast’s innate hunting instinct was hard to suppress. Before long, the Shadow Leopard suddenly lunged forward. Starlight instinctively moved to dodge, only to see it make a sharp ninety-degree turn and vanish into the surrounding woods.
Rate on N.U.
