126 A brush with danger 1 (1/2)

Curiosity… was oftentimes a precursor to great and inevitable danger.

Once again, the disoriented and utterly exhausted An Fei had chosen to succumb to her curiosity.

Unable to calm her heart, the young girl gave into the temptation and set out to explore the cause for the scuffling sound beyond the barrier of grass and trees.

She had walked all day long and had not heard of such incidents… until now, when the sun had descended beyond the horizon.

An Fei cautiously crept behind the trees as she waded through the sea of grass towards the source of the abnormal sound, her senses prepared to urge herself to flee at the instant she determined that there was danger. Her hands parted the dense foliage to step across with trembling limbs, her entire body attempting to minimize her presence.

As she approached, the young girl could clearly discern the source of the unnatural sound of clashing. When she finally managed to obtain a peek, An Fei couldn't be any more happier and depressed at the same instance.

Hiss!

An enormous python engaged in a rough conflict with another animal akin to a panther with black fur. The two animals intertwined with the other using their flexible bodies and limbs, each attack striking with a dense murderous aura.

Both creatures were easily twice, perhaps even triple An Fei's height when placed into proportion.

The mottled scales of ruby red, light blue, and a pale orchid on the python's skin rippled as the faint rays of astral moonlight reflected onto the panther's eyes, and the python took the opportunity to coil its body around itself, the twin fangs and tail radiating an equally powerful and deadly intent.

Roar!

The black panther snarled, balancing its weight onto its forelimbs as it crouched to minimize its striking radius. From afar, the young girl could faintly discern that the panther's tail supported a mighty spike at its tip, gleaming with a sinister aura.

…An Fei certainly regretted satisfying her curiosity, but her desperate need to secure water triumphed over her fear within a matter of seconds.

Just beyond the two animals' domineering presence, laid a gentle and tranquil stream of water. The current divided a section of the Wu Ji Forest into numerous parts, and the soft gurgling of freely flowing water could be barely heard past the indomitable filter of a python's hiss and a panther's snarls.

”I can't possibly just saunter over to take a drink, can I…” An Fei murmured with her body hidden behind the large tree, her head poking from the side to spectate the fight.

”No doubt, the two of them would instantly cease fighting to slaughter me the moment I – ”

Ting!

An earsplitting scratch of metal striking metal disrupted the young girl's thoughts, causing her to crouch onto the ground whilst covering her head. A fearful screech escaped her lips, and the girl couldn't help but tremble in fear.

…fortunately, she wasn't discovered by either of the two predators.

The panther's claws ricocheted from the glistening scales of the python, each collision producing a scattering wave of brilliant sparks and a deafening clash of metal upon metal. Both animals snarled at the other after each strike, uninjured, but certainly enraged beyond reason.

The panther's tail swept from over its head towards the python's exposed back, with two deadly claws soaring forward to serve as the vanguard. The panther opened its mouth to release a piercing roar, two pure-white canines dripping with the intent to slaughter.

Hiss!

The python flickered its tongue in distaste, the coiled muscles rippling underneath the glistening scales. Before the young girl's outstretched and dumbfounded eyes, the python's body unwound as though a highly pressurized coil seeking release.

A furious sweep of the python's tail, emboldened by the entire weight and driving momentum of its body, slammed into the panther's waist, slapping the latter directly into the earth with a tremendous impact.

The grass and trees shivered from the concussive shockwave, and numerous leaves that had just grasped their opportunity to bloom, descended onto the ground as they were forcefully stripped of their meagre vitality.

Similarly, An Fei was flung off from the tree and forced to backpedal into the ground, a dull impact coursing through her body.

Pain!

Both the black panther and the young girl released similar expressions of pain, a muffled curse and an earsplitting yowl smashing apart the remnants of the previously tranquil atmosphere of the Wu Ji Forest.

The panther leapt back onto its paws, though an acute limp could be seen around its hindlegs.