Chapter 19: A Moment of Life and Death

“It’s a Shadow Leopard,” Zong Ling was shocked, but experience gained from countless brushes with death allowed him to rapidly retreat. Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! His snake tail pushed off with astonishing spring, leaping three times and escaping to the high branches of a distant tree.

Yet the Shadow Leopard’s gray eyes merely cast a cold glance at Zong Ling before returning their gaze to Dongbo Xueying.

It didn’t even consider the silver-haired serpent-man a threat. It was a fifth-tier magical beast renowned for its speed. To kill a Celestial Knight? One move would be more than enough! And with its powerful body… even if it stood still and allowed the Celestial Knight to slash and stab, it wouldn’t suffer a single scratch. It completely ignored Zong Ling, directing almost all its attention toward Dongbo Xueying.

This human youth in black robes… was the real threat!

Even after being ambushed by it, he had still managed to counterattack.

“Uncle Zong, stay far away. The farther, the better,” Dongbo Xueying said in a low voice.

“Xueying, be careful. The Shadow Leopard is extremely fast,” Zong Ling, from a distance, knew he couldn’t help and shouted that warning before rapidly retreating further.

Dongbo Xueying fixed his eyes on the Shadow Leopard, a grin spreading across his face. “Never thought that my first trip to the Destruction Mountains would bring me face to face with a fifth-tier magical beast.” As he spoke, his left hand tore open the two cloth straps across his chest. Clang! The weapon case on his back immediately fell to the ground, completely mangled. His outer robe was also torn, but fortunately, he had worn protective armor underneath, or that single claw strike would have seriously wounded him.

“Hoo hoo~~” The Shadow Leopard let out a low growl, slowly circling Dongbo Xueying. Its four paws had soft pads, making its steps extremely light.

Dongbo Xueying kept his eyes locked on it.

One human, one magical beast.

Each staring into the other’s eyes!

Life and death in a single moment!

“Swish! Swish!” Suddenly, the Shadow Leopard moved. It first lunged sideways, but as soon as it did, it immediately changed direction with a push off the ground, directly attacking Dongbo Xueying.

“Die!” Dongbo Xueying’s spear tip moved like a venomous snake, instantly reaching the Shadow Leopard.

The Shadow Leopard’s gray eyes never left Dongbo Xueying.

As it charged forward, its four paws remained almost constantly touching the ground, lightly and swiftly changing direction again to evade the sharp spear tip.

Again and again it lunged, again and again it changed direction.

Dongbo Xueying was completely focused on defense.

“Swish! Swish! Swish…” The Shadow Leopard became a ghostly phantom, circling Dongbo Xueying.

Dongbo Xueying was surrounded by countless spear tip illusions, with snowflakes drifting from the “Flying Snow Divine Spear” technique.

“Too fast, too fast.”

“Not enough, still not enough.” Dongbo Xueying felt his own slowness. Although his spear techniques were based on the “Dark Ice Spearplay,” known for speed, compared to the Shadow Leopard, the difference was obvious. The Shadow Leopard seemed as if leisurely strolling around him, repeatedly seeking opportunities. This speed and agility in movement was still not its limit!

The Shadow Leopard’s eyes remained calm, everything under its control.

“Boom!”

The air itself seemed to twist slightly as the Shadow Leopard suddenly accelerated, rushing straight at Dongbo Xueying.

“Now!” Dongbo Xueying’s eyes turned red. A faint crimson aura appeared around his body, clearly indicating that at this moment, Dongbo Xueying had fully unleashed his ancient bloodline.

Power surged!

“Boom!” The spinning spear tip tore through the air, carving a twisted arc as it thrust toward the Shadow Leopard.

The Shadow Leopard was alarmed.

The speed of this spear thrust completely exceeded its expectations. If it had been cautious and prepared, it could easily have dodged. But now, it had already committed itself to a full attack, closing in on Dongbo Xueying! The distance was too close, its charge too fast; there was no way to dodge.

“Roar~~~” It let out a fierce, angry roar, both front paws striking the spear simultaneously.

The spinning spear moved like a slithering great serpent.

The strike deflected most of the impact, but the spear still aimed for the Shadow Leopard’s abdomen.

The Shadow Leopard twisted its body as if it had no bones, desperately evading this deadly thrust.

“Tear!”

The spear tip scraped across the Shadow Leopard’s soft white belly, leaving a bloody gash.

Using the force from striking the spear, the Shadow Leopard immediately soared skyward, landing on a high branch of a nearby tree. A wound about two feet long appeared on its belly, but it had already forcibly closed, with a few drops of blood trickling down. Its gray eyes burned with ferocity and madness, fixed on Dongbo Xueying below.

“I didn’t kill you. You’re truly lucky,” Dongbo Xueying stared up at the Shadow Leopard, feeling a sense of regret inside. At a critical moment, he had unleashed his power, catching his opponent off guard for maximum effect. Now that the Shadow Leopard was on guard, things would become troublesome.

“Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!”

The Shadow Leopard was furious too. Suddenly, it charged downward, running straight down the tree trunk, leaping three times before rushing at Dongbo Xueying across the ground.

“Whoosh!”

A faint crimson aura rose from Dongbo Xueying’s body as he thrust his spear in a deadly strike, narrowly missing the cautious Shadow Leopard.

“Get lost!” Missing his thrust, Dongbo Xueying immediately changed from a thrust to a sweeping motion!

The spear sweep carried the power to shatter the heavens. The Shadow Leopard showed alarm too; if it were actually struck by this sweep, it would be severely wounded at best! It had no idea… Dongbo Xueying’s awakened ancient bloodline was one of strength. At this moment, the full power of this strength was channeled through the spear shaft, fully displaying his advantage.

The Shadow Leopard’s body twisted like water, its claws lightly tapping the spear shaft to gain leverage and evade.

“Boom~~~” The sweeping spear passed through, striking a nearby tree. With a thunderous boom, the tree exploded and split in two, beginning to crash down with a loud rumble.

“Die.”

Dongbo Xueying flew forward, the spear thrusting, slashing, sweeping.

Continuous attacks enveloped the Shadow Leopard, which kept retreating and dodging. Meanwhile, the surrounding mountain forest suffered. Dongbo Xueying’s spear could shatter even massive stones that required two or three people to encircle, piercing them completely! How could these trees withstand such destruction?

…

The battle raged on.

Dongbo Xueying soon noticed that he had left Uncle Zong far behind, which brought him a slight sense of relief, but anxiety grew in his heart.

Because while his power surge made it seem like he was aggressively attacking and gaining some advantage!

Whenever he tried to retreat, the Shadow Leopard immediately followed, not allowing him to escape. The Shadow Leopard was just too fast… If it wanted to keep up, Dongbo Xueying couldn’t shake it off.

“What should I do, what should I do? My stamina is rapidly depleting, and I can’t last much longer.” Under the power surge, Dongbo Xueying could feel his physical stamina draining rapidly.

Once his stamina was exhausted, his life would be over!

“Hoo hoo~~~”

The Shadow Leopard was the most experienced hunter, always searching for an opportunity.

Finally—

Dongbo Xueying’s intense stamina consumption caused his attacks to show openings. Like lightning, the Shadow Leopard suddenly lunged, almost instantly reaching Dongbo Xueying.

“Bad,” Dongbo Xueying’s heart trembled, his scalp tingling.

The threat of death came so suddenly!

“Die, die, die!” Dongbo Xueying went berserk, his eyes bloodshot. It was either kill or be killed. He poured all his strength into a desperate spear thrust.

This was his final struggle!

Like a beast fighting for its last breath, facing the sudden threat of death, Dongbo Xueying’s survival instincts were ignited.

All his strength surged, and time itself seemed to slow around him. The Shadow Leopard’s fangs were clearly visible.

“Whoosh…”

The wind from the battle brushing against his face felt so vivid.

Rustle! Rustle! The sound of his blood flowing felt like a rushing river.

Sssss~~ He could feel the strength passing through his muscles and bones…

“Strength is complete, pure as one.”

Under the threat of death, Dongbo Xueying finally broke through the barrier under his survival instincts. He felt the flow of his blood, the connection of his bones, the transmission of his muscle strength… everything was so wondrous. In that instant, all his strength was under his precise control, without a single bit wasted, no unnecessary consumption.

“Hu!”

His strength flowed like water through his body, a mastery over his own body he had never felt before.

The spear spun, piercing through the air, its speed suddenly surging!

Puchi!

The spear tip instantly pierced through the Shadow Leopard’s chest, which was filled with shock, and emerged from its back.

Gripping the spear, watching the impaled Shadow Leopard still writhing and struggling, blood flowing continuously, Dongbo Xueying stared fixedly. The Shadow Leopard was also staring at Dongbo Xueying, but now its gray eyes were filled with panic, fury, and anxiety. Its powerful vitality allowed it to struggle for nearly half a minute, blood spilling across the ground, before it finally fell silent.

With a sigh of relief, Dongbo Xueying lay on the cold snowy ground, looking at the still wide-eyed Shadow Leopard impaled beside him.

“It’s you who died, and I live!” Looking at the Shadow Leopard’s corpse, Dongbo Xueying felt a sense of relief after surviving the deadly encounter.