“Behind you!” Ethan shouted, tracking its movement trail again.

The Mid-Silver general pivoted on instinct, his blade rising to intercept claws aimed at his spine.

Metal screeched against the panther’s talons as he deflected the blow by mere centimetres.

Blood sprayed across stone as the Panther’s secondary attack caught his shoulder, carving through armour like paper.

The general grunted but held his ground, forcing the beast back with a silver-wreathed counter-slash.

Something had changed.

The look in the Panther’s eyes vanished, replaced by ferocity.

‘It’s done playing with us.’

“It’s wounded!” the Low-Silver general called.

“Press the advantage!”

Ethan circled to the beast’s blind side, both daggers held in reverse grip. “Don’t get cocky. Wounded animals are the most dangerous.”

The Panther proved its point by launching itself directly at the younger general, speed and power combining in a single devastating charge. Only Ethan’s earlier warning and his reflexes saved the man as he barely twisted away from disembowelment.

Even so, claws raked across his thigh, opening a savage wound that immediately soaked his leggings crimson.

He stumbled, momentarily vulnerable.

The Panther sensed weakness and pounced.

Ethan intercepted the attack, activating his Crystal Hardening talent as he took a blow meant for his temporary ally.

The impact drove him back three steps, boots carving furrows in blood-soaked earth. Pain lanced through his chest where earlier wounds reopened, but he held firm. His regeneration was working in the background, nonstop.

“I owe you one,” the Low-Silver general gasped, regaining his footing.

Ethan didn’t waste breath on a response. The three Silver-ranks formed a loose triangle, keeping the wounded Panther at the center.

Blood matted its midnight fur, yet its silver aura showed no signs of diminishing.

‘We’ve hurt it, but not enough.’

The beast crouched low. Its silver eyes tracked each opponent as blood dripped from its wounds.

Then it did something none of them expected.

howl!

The sound rose above the battlefield, a ululating cry that silenced all other noise.

“What the—” The Mid-Silver general cut himself off as he realised what was happening.

Ten ferocious beasts detached from various skirmishes across the battlefield—massive beasts, each at the peak of Bronze rank.

They abandoned their slaughtering, moving toward the howling Panther.

“Shit!” The Low-Silver general’s face paled. “It called for assistance.”

“It’s not just calling them,” Ethan realized, watching the monsters form a protective ring around their wounded superior. “It’s commanding them.”

The Panther’s howl shifted pitch, becoming sharper, more urgent. The Bronze-rank beasts responded, spreading into a loose attack formation that cut off potential escape routes.

“So much for it being just a dumb beast,” the Mid-Silver general muttered, raising his blade to a defensive position.

Ethan reassessed their options.

Three Silver-ranks against a wounded Panther should have been manageable. Three Silver-ranks against a wounded Panther and ten Peak-Bronze escorts changed the odds dramatically.

“New plan,” he said, voice calm despite the dire circumstances. “Focus on the Panther. Ignore the others unless they directly engage. The panther can kill us, whilst they can’t. Let’s stay close to help each other when needed.”

The older general nodded grimly. “Agreed. Kill the leader, the rest may scatter.”

“Or fight harder,” his subordinate countered pessimistically.

“Either way, we don’t have a choice.” Ethan tightened his grip on his daggers. “Ready?”

Before either could respond, the Panther issued another howl—shorter, sharper. Instantly, three of the largest beasts charged the Mid-Silver general, while four more targeted the Low-Silver rank.

The remaining three headed straight for Ethan.

Divide and conquer. Smart.

The first beast reached him—a horned creature with armoured hide and vicious tusks. Ethan sidestepped its charge, scoring a deep gash along its flank as it passed.

The second and third attacked in coordinated tandem, forcing him to engage both simultaneously.

His daggers flashed, drawing blood from a scaled appendage here, severing a tendon there. But for each wound he inflicted, claws or teeth found gaps in his defence.

His Crystal Hardening protected against fatal injuries, but a dozen smaller wounds began taking their toll.

Need to end this quickly.

Across the battlefield, his temporary allies fared no better. The Mid-Silver general fought with the skill of decades, his blade a silver blur as it claimed monster after monster. Yet for each beast that fell, another pressed forward, wearing him down through sheer attrition.

The Low-Silver general had already taken a severe blow to his side, fighting on one knee as blood soaked his armor. His spear kept attackers at bay, but his movements slowed with each passing second.

And through it all, the Panther watched, silver eyes calculating, waiting for its opponents to exhaust themselves against its minions.

Clever bastard.

Ethan dispatched his third attacker with a brutal thrust to the throat, but found himself momentarily vulnerable as his blade caught in bone. A fourth beast—one that had abandoned the wounded general—leapt for his exposed back.

He sensed rather than saw the attack, twisting desperately. Claws raked down his back, Crystal Hardening preventing fatal damage, but not the pain.

Can’t keep this up forever.

The Mid-Silver general roared in pain and rage as a beast latched onto his leg, fangs piercing armor to find flesh beneath. His silver aura flared as he decapitated the creature, but the damage was done—his mobility compromised at a critical moment.

“Fall back!” Ethan shouted, disengaging from his attackers with a desperate leap. “Defensive position! Back to back!”

The three warriors formed a triangular phalanx, each covering the others’ blind spots. Blood dripped from a dozen wounds between them, their silver auras flickering with fatigue.

The monsters circled, growling and hissing as they sought weaknesses in the defensive formation. Behind them, the Panther rose, seemingly reinvigorated after taking a break.

“Any ideas?” the Low-Silver general gasped, one hand pressed against the wound in his side.

Ethan’s mind raced through options, each less promising than the last.

‘Conventional attacks wouldn’t work on this beast.’

Ethan surveyed the desperate situation, mind racing through options as the Panthers’ minions closed in. The transformation power of the Ape surged within him, eager to be unleashed.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep