"Such powerful force."

Xu Nian was pushed back a full thirty zhang before he managed to stabilize himself.

However, the recoil from his arm still left Xu Nian’s arm slightly numb.

"Be careful. The Netherworld Beast of Divine-level, its physical body has been tempered by Divine Power, extremely formidable, and very powerful," Mu Yuqing gracefully landed beside Xu Nian and said, looking at him.

Xu Nian’s expression was serious.

It was the first time he truly experienced the power of a Divine-level Demon Beast.

Fortunately, the opponent couldn’t use its own cultivation, otherwise, that strike just now would have severely injured him, if not killed him.

"This Netherworld Beast is very fast, and its whereabouts are unpredictable. We can’t use our cultivation, so we can’t lock onto its position. It’s unwise to engage in a prolonged battle," Mu Yuqing said.

Xu Nian nodded.

The speed and strength of this black panther were both formidable, and dealing with it in such a complex forest environment was no easy task.

For now, they could only choose to avoid it.

So Xu Nian and Mu Yuqing retreated further into the depths of the Asura forest.

Of course, while retreating, they remained vigilant of their surroundings.

After all, the black panther could ambush them at any moment.

Sure enough, after they had walked about three hundred meters, a dark shadow suddenly appeared in front of Xu Nian, claws in hand, fiercely swiping at him.

As the claws struck, they transformed into nine overlapping shadows, each seemingly as real as the last.

Xu Nian was greatly shocked and immediately employed the Extreme Point Stacking Principle. With a triple stack, Xu Nian’s Sword Radiance became extremely sharp.

"Buzz!"

Yet when Xu Nian’s Sword Radiance hacked into six of the shadows, he found his sharp sword slicing through mere void.

"Not good!"

Xu Nian instantly realized something was wrong, quickly forming dragon scales on the surface of his body.

Because the Supreme Dragon Robe was too eye-catching.

Both the black panther and Mu Yuqing warranted caution from Xu Nian.

"Clang!"

The claws struck Xu Nian’s dragon scales.

They left four deep claw marks on Xu Nian’s dragon scales.

The wounds were so deep they exposed Xu Nian’s blood.

"Human?"

The black panther voiced a hint of surprise and doubt in the darkness.

Mu Yuqing was also slightly surprised. She hadn’t expected Xu Nian to be human.

Since human blood and Netherworld Practitioner’s blood might look similar, in essence, it lacked that peculiar odor.

So they immediately discerned that Xu Nian truly belonged to the Human Clan.

Looking at the scar on his chest, Xu Nian also showed a trace of gravity in his eyes.

The strength of this black panther was overwhelming.

The sharpness of its claws far exceeded Xu Nian’s expectations.

His current dragon scales were already comparable to a Low Grade Divine Artifact, yet they still couldn’t block the black panther’s claws, illustrating just how sharp they truly were.

"You really are from the Human Clan?" Mu Yuqing looked at Xu Nian, surprised.

"Yes, I am from the Human Clan." Xu Nian saw no need to conceal it now.

Although he wasn’t sure if Mu Yuqing would turn against him because of this, he had no other choice at the moment.

"I see," a look of realization appeared in Mu Yuqing’s eyes.

Xu Nian showed a bit of confusion.

"I’ll handle it. You’re not its match, leave now," Mu Yuqing said.

Xu Nian was briefly stunned.

Why would Mu Yuqing want to protect him? 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Could it be just because he was from the Human Clan?

"Go quickly, don’t worry. Even though I can’t kill it, it can’t do anything to me either. Once I drive it away, I’ll come find you," Mu Yuqing continued.

"Alright, then I’ll wait for you up ahead," Xu Nian replied.

He truly was not a match for the black panther.

Mu Yuqing, also a Divine-level expert, should be able to handle it.

So Xu Nian, without hesitation, headed deeper into the Asura forest.

As Xu Nian continued forward, the black panther seemed unwilling to let go of him as prey, instantly transforming into an afterimage chasing after Xu Nian.

However, Mu Yuqing seemed to have anticipated this, and her chilly eyes suddenly turned exceedingly sharp.

The next moment, she slashed her sword towards the direction the black afterimage was pursuing.

With this slash, a desolate silence descended.

The black afterimage found its path blocked in an instant.

It knew that if it moved even slightly forward, it would be stripped of life in a flash.

A terrifying woman!

"Roar!"

The black panther let out an angry howl.

Then, it charged directly at Mu Yuqing.

Mu Yuqing gripped her Divine Sword tightly, her eyes turning intensely sharp.

The next moment, human and panther engaged in a brutal fight.

The black panther’s attack speed was remarkably fast.

Its body constantly changed into afterimages to deceive Mu Yuqing.

Meanwhile, Mu Yuqing’s swordsmanship was extraordinary too, consistently deploying Wood Attribute Devouring Principle to contend with the black panther.

For a moment, victory and defeat were hard to discern.

Even without cultivation, such battles between Divine-level experts are genuinely terrifying.

If Xu Nian were there, he would realize he had no room to intervene whatsoever.

...

Xu Nian traveled forward until he stopped by a secluded Xiaoxi.

His reconnaissance revealed that the black panther hadn’t followed.

And from behind came continuous sounds of clashes; clearly, the black panther was being held off by Mu Yuqing.

Despite this, Xu Nian was puzzled.

Why did Mu Yuqing voluntarily offer to hold off the black panther?

By logic, this was his first encounter with Mu Yuqing.

Moreover, from what that young man mentioned earlier, Mu Yuqing should be an exceptionally aloof person.

She generally wouldn’t care about others’ life and death.

There must be some secret he’s unaware of in this.

About two hours later, the sound of the battle ceased.

Xu Nian looked towards the direction of the forest.

He was unsure about the outcome of the fight.

Though unaware of Mu Yuqing’s true intentions, Xu Nian still hoped she would emerge victorious.

A few breaths later, a figure slowly emerged from the depths of the forest.

Seeing this figure, Xu Nian heaved a slight sigh of relief.

But upon noticing the numerous wounds on Mu Yuqing, his brows knit together.

Evidently, Mu Yuqing had suffered significant injuries.

Her body bore at least five claw marks.

Among them, the claw marks on her back and chest were especially deep, particularly the one on her back, nearly bone-deep.

As cultivation was sealed here, she couldn’t use it to heal her injuries.

Thus, Mu Yuqing’s injuries couldn’t heal in a short time.

But these weren’t fatal.

What truly made Mu Yuqing appear extremely weak apparently had another cause.

"Are you poisoned?" Xu Nian asked in surprise.

Mu Yuqing’s lips were pale, her breath unstable, clearly showing signs of poisoning.

Yet, poison capable of threatening a Divine-level expert couldn’t be ordinary.

"Yes, that black panther is extremely cunning. It finally used Ghost Vine venom on its claws," Mu Yuqing said.

Upon finishing, she collapsed directly.

Xu Nian was taken aback and quickly rushed to support Mu Yuqing.

"Wake up!" Xu Nian tried to wake Mu Yuqing.

But he failed.

The poison in Mu Yuqing’s body seemed to have begun invading her soul origin.