42: A thorny cloak for meritorious service

The Rushing Wolf Slash missed its mark and exploded, leaving a massive crater in its wake.

The Shadow Leopard vanished silently into the shadows.

Renn, arriving at the battlefield, was immediately met with the gruesome sight of Chris's squad. Severed limbs were scattered everywhere, and the thick scent of blood hung heavy in the air.

Renn dismounted and walked slowly toward Chris. The spooked warhorse, no longer restrained by its master, bolted into the distance, leaving Renn standing before Chris.

Looking at Chris, who was still propped up by his sword despite his heavy injuries, Renn gently supported his body and helped him sit on the ground.

"You did well, Chris."

Chris warned Renn weakly,

"Lord, be careful!"

"That magical beast is incredibly fast, and it's invisible!"

"I know. Rest well; leave the rest to me!"

"I will avenge our brothers!"

Renn's battle intent surged. Seeing his soldiers treated so cruelly by the Shadow Leopard, Renn appeared calm on the surface, but his heart was already ablaze with fury.

The Douqi within Renn surged violently. The silver-white fluctuations of Douqi stirred the surrounding winds, making the tall wild grass rustle loudly against the gale.

Hidden within the shadows, the Shadow Leopard lurked nearby, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

It watched Renn warily. The human before it possessed strength that could threaten it; it could sense that Renn was far more powerful than the prey from moments ago.

However, the Shadow Leopard still had enough confidence to hunt this opponent.

It had hunted opponents like Renn before. Though it had only happened two or three times in its hunting career, each instance had been extremely satisfying.

Moreover, if it could devour this human warrior, its strength might even progress further.

Recalling the delicious taste and the potent life energy of a Silver Rank Professional, the Shadow Leopard began to salivate.

The killing intent in the Shadow Leopard's heart grew. It hungered for strength; once it became stronger, it could return to the depths of the Black Forest to settle scores with that wretched tiger.

Killing intent spread, and the shadows began to twist!

Renn sensed an abnormality in the shadows in the corner. His mental strength far exceeded that of ordinary people, and his perception was naturally exceptionally keen.

Combined with the enhancement from the Eye of True Sight in his pocket, every rustle of grass was within Renn's perception, including the abnormality in the shadows.

However, Renn only noticed the abnormality in that patch of shadow; he couldn't pinpoint the Shadow Leopard's exact trail. His mental perception could not penetrate the shadows to investigate what lay within.

Renn feigned looking around for the Shadow Leopard while actually focusing his attention on that patch of shadow, fully prepared to attack.

He didn't take out the thorn cloak yet. The thorn cloak could only be triggered once every three days. The Shadow Leopard was too fast; he had to seize this single opportunity carefully to ensure a killing blow.

A wisp of mana quietly circulated in Renn's pocket, activating the Eye of True Sight. An invisible wave of energy radiated outward from Renn, instantly touching the abnormal shadow he had noticed.

The figure of the Shadow Leopard appeared in Renn's field of vision.

"So you really are hiding here!"

Renn gathered his strength, preparing for a thunderous strike.

On the other side, although the Shadow Leopard didn't sense the fluctuations of the Eye of True Sight, it felt as though it were being watched.

Without any hesitation, the Shadow Leopard leaped from its hiding spot into an adjacent shadow and then launched a probing attack at Renn.

A faint shadow sliced through the air. Renn only saw the Shadow Leopard's figure flash and disappear, reappearing in another shadow.

Before Renn could react, the Shadow Leopard's attack arrived.

Sharp claws emerged from the shadows, lunging toward Renn's chest.

Renn, who was prepared, moved to evade, but his speed was still a step behind. The sharp claws grazed his body.

The silver-white Douqi was torn apart by the shadow claws, which then struck the rage bear armor. Even the indestructible rage bear armor became fragile under the Shadow Leopard's claws.

The shadow flashed, leaving several clearly visible claw marks on the rage bear armor, with a faint red blood seeping through from beneath the armor.

"Has a Silver Rank Shadow Leopard's speed reached this level?"

Feeling the pain in his chest, Renn gained a direct understanding of the Shadow Leopard's speed. Compared to a Bronze Rank Shadow Leopard, the Silver Rank version was several times faster.

Renn's perception was already several times higher than that of an ordinary Silver Knight, yet even with the enhancement of the Eye of True Sight, he could only see the blurred trajectory of the Shadow Leopard's attack.

On the other side, the Shadow Leopard licked the blood from its claws, looking at Renn with a wary gaze.

Most of its attack had been avoided just now; only the tips of its claws had made contact. Furthermore, the armor on the human was unusual; although its claws had torn through it, the tips of its claws also felt a dull ache.

After that probing strike, the Shadow Leopard became even more cautious.

It moved rapidly between several shadows, jumping and switching positions. The Shadow Leopard felt that the human before it might be able to sense its location.

"Cunning beast!"

Renn cursed as he watched the Shadow Leopard constantly shifting positions.

The effect of the Eye of True Sight only lasted for half an hour and couldn't be maintained indefinitely. Fortunately, half an hour was plenty of time, and the Eye of True Sight could still be used twice more.

The Shadow Leopard's constant jumping and weaving through the shadows made it impossible for Renn to lock onto it.

Renn could only defend his position and wait for an opportunity to counterattack.

The Shadow Leopard began moving at high speed around Renn, and after a period of time, it launched another attack.

The shadow sliced through space again, and the familiar scene repeated itself.

Renn swung his sword in a counterattack, but the Shadow Leopard remained unharmed, while another wound appeared on Renn's body.

After the same scene repeated two or three times, Renn was covered in blood and appeared heavily injured. However, he did not panic, his eyes remaining calm as he scanned his surroundings, waiting for the Shadow Leopard's next attack.

His wounds were all superficial; they looked serious but hadn't reached the bone. With his strong physique, Renn could tolerate this level of injury.

Though the injuries weren't severe, the current situation was very unfavorable for Renn. He could only passively endure the Shadow Leopard's attacks. The Shadow Leopard showed no signs of stopping and seemed to have plenty of stamina. If the stalemate continued like this, Renn would undoubtedly lose.

"That's about enough!"

Renn prepared to use his trump card. He had already figured out the Shadow Leopard's attack patterns; it didn't have many tricks, its only notable trait being its extreme speed.

In the world of martial arts, only speed is invincible. Indeed, speed alone was enough to make it difficult for Renn to cope.

As soon as the Shadow Leopard finished another attack, Renn quickly pulled out the thorn cloak from his pocket and draped it over himself.

On the other side, the Shadow Leopard, having landed another blow, watched the human's actions with a hint of confusion in its eyes. It couldn't understand what he was doing.

After circling Renn a few times and finding nothing unusual, the Shadow Leopard began to gather its power.

Shadow energy accumulated on the Shadow Leopard's claws. Regardless of whether this human was making a final struggle or doing something else, it intended to use its ultimate move to completely shred him and feast on the flesh of a human powerhouse.

The shadows began to expand, and Renn immediately sensed the abnormality.

Tightening the thorn cloak around him, Renn stood ready.

The expanded shadow loomed over Renn, and claws wrapped in shadow energy lunged out from the darkness, aiming straight for Renn's heart.

Facing the shadow claws, Renn didn't dodge; instead, he took a step forward. The Shadow Leopard looked at Renn with utter incomprehension.

Is this human seeking death?

In the next moment, the Shadow Leopard understood why Renn hadn't dodged.

As the shadow claws struck the thorn cloak, mysterious magic rune instantly lit up on its grey surface, and the shadow energy was violently reflected back.

A deep, bone-deep wound instantly appeared on the Shadow Leopard's body. A large amount of blood sprayed out, and the Shadow Leopard's entire body tumbled out from the shadows.

"Rushing Wolf Slash!"

Renn quickly seized the opportunity, preparing a killing blow to finish off the Shadow Leopard once and for all.

The heavily wounded Shadow Leopard, still not understanding why it was hurt, felt an intense, fatal sense of crisis from behind. It forced its battered body to dodge Renn's attack.

The Rushing Wolf Slash grazed the Shadow Leopard's body, severing its long tail.

The Shadow Leopard let out a low growl of pain and then hurriedly fled into the distance.

"Thinking of running now?"

"Too late!"

Renn gave chase, determined to kill the Shadow Leopard. If he couldn't kill it this time, the consequences would be endless.