Chapter 263: Blood Panther? (1/2)

Ozul already had a place he wanted to bring Raven and Blaze to train to.

While things were rapidly changing in the Neutral Lands, he wanted to focus on training them and himself during these five years.

Both being talented, would only feel threatened if they faced anyone above their Rank.

He could very well train them himself, but he thought that they might not feel threatened enough. They would instinctively know that he wouldn't kill them, so they wouldn't put as much effort.

How would he know that those two were the most afraid while training with him? From their past experiences, they knew best how ruthless his methods could be sometimes.

Raven and Blaze didn't question their destination as Ozul led them outside the Neutral City.

.. .

Sometime later, they had already crossed the Desolate borders and moved towards that part of the continent where the Leonhard Dynasty had the most influence.

But Ozul didn't care about that as he only was going to a certain mountain range that might have what he was looking for.

If it didn't, then he would have no choice but to train these two himself. He doesn't have enough time to care about which method will be more effective.

As Ozul was thinking that, Raven and Blaze felt a certain chill pass over their body as both locked their eyes at him. They were fully aware that there weren't many times they felt this way, and when they did, it somehow ended in them praying for their lives.

A day passed, but they didn't make a stop anywhere in between and continued to fly under Ozul's lead.

It was still morning when Ozul landed near a village followed by Raven, Blaze, and Jinx.

Though Raven and Blaze were confused why they stopped only here when there had been a few better-off towns and cities on their way here. It would have been better if they took rest there instead of this shabby village which might not even have an inn for them to stay.

Only when they landed did both of them notice the bleak atmosphere around the village and the sullen expressions on everyone's face.

The air was permeated by a strange odor, but nobody in the village seemed to mind that.

The odd part was how none of the villagers cared about how someone was flying a few moments ago.

Some of the villagers had certainly noticed their presence, but it looked as if they had too much to care for and didn't have time for some cultivators.

Since they had come far away from the Neutral Lands by now, the people in the village were mostly ordinary people without Mana. A few were Fighters while there might not be a Mage here at all.

However, Raven and Blaze could feel Mana signatures of quite a few people who were at least above Rank-5!

”Isn't it just an ordinary village?” Raven muttered while looking around.

The fact that there were strong Mages present in this village and considering the depressing atmosphere around, she concluded that there might be some emergency.

Otherwise, Ozul wouldn't stop at a random village either.

'This is the village,' Ozul thought as he took a good look around.

He had heard Haley receiving a report about this village. As he was bored, he asked for more details and found out that there might be a Rank-9 Magical Beast running rampant around these parts.

The gloomy air around the village was the proof that he had come to the right place.

Those near Rank-5 Mages were probably the mercenaries sent to investigate. The Three-Eyed Strangers were already ahead in this aspect of gathering information, so he knew that whatever was happening here was caused by something above Rank-8.

There was apparently a Rank-9 Blood Panther that lived in the mountain range near the village.

The problem was that the Blood Panther demanded regular sacrifices from the villagers or threatened to destroy it completely if they didn't comply with its orders.

Or at least that is what the villagers explained.

If it was true or not, Ozul would have to see it for himself to believe.

If there really was a Rank-9 Beast here, then he would pit it against Raven and Blaze.

The duo again felt a cold wind brush past their neck as they gulped a mouthful of saliva. They were clueless about what was going on inside Ozul's head.

Instead of stopping a random passerby, Ozul went towards the tallest building in the village. Usually, the biggest structure in a small settlement like this would belong to the village head.

Judging from the appearance of the ordinary villagers, Ozul could guess that most of them weren't in their right state of mind either. They would probably exaggerate things depending on their fears.