40: The Hunting Game of the Shadow Panther

Outside Red River Town, on the wilderness, lush wild grass swayed with the wind, and large shadows twisted with the wind under the sunlight.

Beneath the shadows, a pair of cold eyes watched the Red River Territory residents working not far away.

Looking at the considerable number of people, a hint of excitement appeared in those cold eyes.

The shadow rippled for a moment, then returned to stillness.

The busy farmers didn't notice anything; they were working enthusiastically in the fields.

"Is it useful for the Lord to make us build irrigation channels? Didn't we just dig a gap and divert the water before?"

"Why bother building this irrigation channel?"

Most farmers didn't understand why they had to exert themselves building irrigation channels, feeling it was a useless effort.

"The Lord naturally has his reasons for doing this; how could you understand?"

"Just work hard. The Lord gives us porridge and fish, so we do whatever he tells us. Why so many questions?"

"That's true!"

Several farmers chatted while working.

"I don't know why, but for the past two days, Steward Barr has seemed jumpy, constantly looking around and telling us not to run off."

"He just wants to show off in front of the Lord. Building a beautiful irrigation channel will make the Lord happy."

"He..."

The farmer wanted to say something more, but found himself opening his mouth without making any sound.

With a thud, a head fell to the ground and rolled twice, its mouth still unconsciously agape.

A fountain of blood erupted in front of the remaining farmers, blooming into a crimson flower in the air.

Blood splattered on them, wetting their faces. The farmers stared blankly at the headless body of the person who had just been chatting.

After a brief daze, they collapsed to the ground in terror, then scrambled away from the headless corpse.

"Someone's dead!"

"Ah! Someone's dead!"

"Run!"

They tried to escape quickly, but their weak legs couldn't exert any strength, and their limbs seemed to become uncoordinated, flailing wildly.

Without warning, the head of a fleeing farmer flew off, and a flower of blood bloomed again.

The remaining few either accelerated their escape or had already fainted from fright.

The anomaly here was quickly noticed by patrolling soldiers.

Several soldiers immediately rushed over to check the situation.

"Don't go, come back."

Squad leader Chris hurriedly stopped his team members who were about to charge forward.

"Have you forgotten the Lord's orders?"

"Organize the remaining residents to evacuate from here, and send someone to inform the Lord."

Chris remembered his mission and immediately organized his squad to execute the pre-arranged plan.

The farmers busy in the fields were quickly organized and evacuated towards Red River Town. Many still didn't know what had happened.

Of the farmers initially attacked, only one remained alive, the rest having been dismembered.

The last person was also covered in bloody wounds, blood continuously gushing from the cuts. He kept crawling forward on the ground, leaving a crimson trail of struggle.

A creature, entirely black, over four meters long and nearly two meters tall, slowly emerged from the shadows, watching the struggling farmer with amusement.

This unknown creature was the Shadow Leopard that Ross had discovered at the Gnoll stronghold.

The excited Shadow Leopard continuously swung its sharp claws, leaving non-fatal wounds on the farmer. Its mood grew more joyful as it listened to the farmer's painful groans.

However, when it saw the people in the distant fields rapidly fleeing, the amusement in its eyes faded, replaced by annoyance.

With a light flick of its claws, the crawling farmer's hands were severed. Another flick, and his feet were also cut off.

In the blink of an eye, the farmer lost all four limbs, only able to writhe in pain on the spot before quickly losing all signs of life.

Stepping over the lifeless body of the farmer, the Shadow Leopard set its sights on the Guard Army soldiers of Red River Territory who were organizing the farmers' evacuation.

In the Shadow Leopard's memory, torturing human warriors to death was much more interesting than killing ordinary farmers. Farmers' lives were too fragile and their will too weak; they died before it could even play much. Human warriors were much more resilient and had a better 'taste'.

Looking at the fully armed human warriors, the Shadow Leopard licked the blood from its claws, its eyes gradually sharpening.

It was about to begin its hunt.

Chris, who had been observing the Shadow Leopard's movements, saw it glance at him a few times before disappearing from his sight.

The moment the Shadow Leopard vanished, Chris's hair stood on end, and a violent sense of crisis surged from within him, pounding at his heart.

"Go, retreat quickly, that thing is here."

Chris didn't think twice, turning and leading his squad to run towards the town. The farmers around him had already been organized and evacuated back to the town; his mission was complete.

However, their speed was clearly no match for the Shadow Leopard's. A warrior in the squad was targeted first by the Shadow Leopard.

A shadow flashed, and the warrior at the back of the team instantly fell to the ground, his calf cleanly severed.

"Damn it, so fast!"

Chris looked back at the horrific state of his subordinate, then stopped, drew his longsword, and prepared for battle.

The remaining squad members also immediately stopped and formed a circular battle formation with Chris, surrounding their injured comrade and looking around nervously.

The surroundings instantly fell silent, leaving only heavy breathing, rapid heartbeats, and the faint sound of wind. The warriors' eyes constantly swept over every corner, searching for the hidden enemy.

The shadow flashed again. There was no sound, no warning. A warrior's arm was swept by the shadow, and before he felt any pain, the arm holding his longsword had already fallen to the ground.

After seeing his arm fall, intense pain finally struck. The warrior, having lost an arm, groaned in agony, and his comrades quickly surrounded him within the circle.

A heavy killing intent enveloped Chris and the others, making their hearts sink and their minds feel oppressed. Veins bulged on their hands gripping their longswords.

The Shadow Leopard, hidden in the shadows, watched the tense human warriors who couldn't find it, wagging its tail excitedly. Licking the blood from its claws, it pondered how to proceed with the game.

A faint shadow reappeared. This time, Chris saw it.

"Watch out!"

Before he finished speaking, the warrior to his right fell to the ground, his right foot severed.

The warrior with the severed foot wildly swung his longsword, trying to attack the unknown enemy, roaring to vent his fear and anger.

"Damn it, you bastard!"

Chris could barely see the shadow, but its speed far exceeded his reaction time.

Even though he saw the trajectory of the attack, he couldn't change the outcome, which made Chris incredibly angry and frustrated.

The circular formation shrunk again. The squad, originally twelve men, now had three incapacitated, leaving nine nervously huddled together.

"Don't panic, the Lord will be here soon. Everyone, hold on!"

Chris loudly encouraged his warriors.