37: Shadow Panther

Half a year later, on a winter day, the sea breeze carried swirling snowflakes, scattering them leisurely across the forest.

Flakes of snow passed through the mist, landing on the roof of a wood and stone Wizard's Hut.

The former Wizard Shack had been upgraded to a sturdier Wizard's Hut.

The range of this mist had expanded considerably, becoming a forbidden area that most animals in the forest dared not enter.

The walls inside and outside the Wizard's Hut were covered with runes.

Inside the hut, by the fireplace, I sat on a wooden chair I had made myself, eating freshly fried, tender bird eggs.

To my left, Black Little Leopard was sprawled on the floor, eating fresh meat I had taken from the system space.

Black Little Leopard was the little female leopard I had adopted half a year ago.

At that time, she was still an ugly purple little girl with sparse fur, but now, her black fur shimmered with a charming luster under the glow of the fireplace.

I opened the system attribute panel, and besides my attributes and the Dragon King’s, a new Animal Companion attribute panel had surprisingly appeared today.

Animal Companion: This Animal Companion is the orphan entrusted to Ryan by the Shadow Leopard of the forest before its death. It was raised by Ryan.

Species: Shadow Leopard (Cub)

Name: Black Little Leopard

Age: 6 months

Gender: Female

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Level: 1

Defense Rating: 20

Hit Points: 3

Magic Resistance: 10%

Attributes: Strength 2, Dexterity 3, Intelligence 5, Spirit 1, Perception 3, Vitality 5, Charisma 3

Skills: Athletics 3, Perception 3

Movement Speed: 2

Block: 0

Toughness: 1

Attack Methods:

- Claw Attack (Damage: 1d2)

- Bite (Damage: Strength + 1d2)

Talent Skills:

- Submerge into Shadow Plane (Success Rate 10%)

Languages: Leopard (Learning), Ancient common language (Learning), elvish (Learning), Dog (Learning)

The reason this attribute panel only appeared today, I suspect, is because Black Little Leopard awakened her talent skill this morning.

She unintentionally and briefly entered the Shadow Plane, and when she followed me out of the bedroom, she surprisingly passed through the wall from inside the bedroom.

Her mother was a magical beast, and I had never felt anything unusual about Black Little Leopard until this morning.

Half a year ago, after her mother died in battle, as I was cleaning the battlefield, a female Wild Dog came from outside the mist, carrying her dead cub.

Her child had been crushed by a falling branch during the previous day's storm.

Later, I used the “Animal Communication” spell and learned from her that, heartbroken, she had felt the call of the Mother of Nature that day and came here seeking a way to find release.

Coincidentally, I had a hungry leopard cub in my hut, so I would bring the cub out every day to let it drink the Wild Dog's milk.

Later, I built a doghouse for the female dog outside the fence, within the mist, and opened a passage for her to go out into the mist.

Not only did this female Wild Dog settle down, but she also brought her mate over.

I would occasionally feed them some food, and now the two Wild Dogs have given birth to a new litter of pups.

Previously, the Wild Dogs to the east didn't come to my side much, but ever since these two “foodies” settled down, their Wild Dog relatives would visit from time to time, and they would also help me drive away other wild beasts that intruded nearby.

This forced me to hunt in more distant places.

When I went hunting, several Wild Dogs would always come to help me.

I was also happy about it; after all, with them around, I was much safer than when I went out alone, at least I didn't have to worry about Dire Wolf trouble.

If it weren't for the protection of the mist, traps, and defensive force fields, I would never have been able to kill so many Dire Wolves.

In the wild, I would be no match for them at all.

If it weren't for the protection of the Dragon King and these Wild Dogs, I wouldn't dare to hunt far away.

Black Little Leopard grew incredibly fast in the past six months; her current size has already caught up to the female Wild Dog that fed her milk.

Although her limbs are still short and cute, she is already showing signs of her future agile posture.

In the autumn, I consciously began to train Black Little Leopard to hunt, making her exchange the prey she caught for a wider variety of food from me.

So, even though she is still small, her hunting skills are already quite impressive.

Her slow progress in language is entirely my fault.

I could teach her Leopard for a maximum of ten minutes each day, and usually, I communicated most with the Professor in Ancient common language and elvish, and also the Dog language her dog mother taught her.

This child completely mixed them up, resulting in her not being fluent in any language now.

After the big battle half a year ago, I found a place to bury Black Little Leopard's mother.

When Black Little Leopard grew a bit older, I would sometimes take her to the grave to visit and tell her stories about her mother.

In addition, I also gained a lot of supplies.

Dire Wolf meat was collected in my system space, and more than half of it is still uneaten. The system's built-in preservation function ensures that whenever I take out food, it is as fresh as when it was put in.

The Dire Wolf King's two tusks were made into two magical short swords by me.

Vampiric Dire Wolf King's Tusks: These are two short swords made from the tusks of the Vampiric Dire Wolf King; they are longer and larger than ordinary daggers.

The tips of the tusks are incredibly sharp, and the blades sometimes emit a faint red glow.

When Ryan obtained them, he felt the magical power attached to them. He cut strips from the Vampiric Dire Wolf King's broken wolf hide and wrapped them around the base of the tusks as hilts, with several coils of the Vampiric Dire Wolf King's wolf sinews also wrapped inside.

The other end of the wolf sinews can be looped around the wrist; when Ryan throws the short sword, the wolf sinews can extend up to 30 feet long.

Therefore, this pair of short swords can also be considered ranged weapons. After being thrown, they can return to Ryan's hand.

The craftsmanship of this pair of short swords is quite crude, but it does not hinder their powerful magical performance.

Data:

Zero-level Hit Bonus: +2

Damage: 2d8+1 (Piercing, Slashing)

Equipped Combat Abilities:

- Each short sword has a 10% chance to trigger vampirism when striking a target, draining 1 to 3 hit points from the target and restoring 1 to 3 hit points to the wielder.

When both short swords strike the target simultaneously, there is a 30% chance to trigger vampirism, draining 2 to 8 hit points from the target and restoring 2 to 8 hit points to the wielder.

If the wielder's hit points are full, it will additionally generate up to 10 temporary hit points for the wielder, lasting a maximum of 1 minute.

When the wielder takes damage, it is first deducted from the temporary hit points.

Weapon Speed: 2

Weapon Proficiency Category: Short Sword, Throwing Blade

Usage Category: One-handed, Two-handed

Requirement: Strength 4

Weight: 2

...

I really liked this pair of short swords, and combining them with the swordsmanship my teachers taught me before, I practiced with them very skillfully within half a year.

Also, the Dire Wolf King's lightning-scorched hide was made into a crude leather armor by me.

Dire Wolf King Leather Armor +2: When Ryan obtained the lightning-scorched hide of the Vampiric Dire Wolf King, he felt the magical power attached to it. Ryan made a leather armor from the still intact parts.

This full-body armor was painted dark green, providing camouflage for the wearer when moving in the wild.

The craftsmanship of this leather armor is quite crude, but it does not hinder its powerful magical performance.

Data:

Defense Rating: 4 (6 against piercing and ranged attacks)

Equipped Abilities:

- Lightning Resistance: +25%

- Poison Resistance: +15%

- Shadow Hide: +10%

Requirement: Strength 3

Weight: 3

...

Dire Wolf King Bone Flute: This is a bone flute made from a section of the Vampiric Dire Wolf King's bone.

When you blow it, the Dire Wolf King's howl will faintly emanate. There is a chance to dispel mist and illusions in the surrounding environment, as well as awaken hypnotized or charmed creatures.

Data:

Has a 50% chance to dispel mist and illusions within a 10-foot radius, and awaken hypnotized or charmed creatures.

...

And in the past six months, I have made great progress by diligently practicing martial arts every day, researching hunter's techniques, sensing the breath of nature, learning languages with the Sphere Professor, studying the notes left by my six teachers, and learning magic knowledge.

Now, the system attribute panel shows that I have become a Level 3 Hunter and a Level 1 Mage.