Star Martial Era: From Mortal to Emperor

Chapter 87 The Shadow Leopard's Den: Each Member Performs Their Duties

As Leng Feng stepped into the cave, darkness instantly engulfed him.

The air inside the cave was even more humid and sticky than outside, and the stench of blood was so strong it was almost nauseating. Leng Feng's military boots made a soft, rustling sound as they stepped on the gravel, each sound echoing repeatedly between the cave walls, as if countless unseen things in the darkness were mimicking his footsteps.

He slowed his pace, lowered his stance, and held his sword horizontally in front of him. The rocks on both sides of the cave were damp, with water droplets dripping down the walls, making a crisp "drip-drip" sound. The water droplets fell to the ground, pooling into small black puddles that emitted a pungent, fishy stench.

The two crimson lights grew larger and closer.

Then, he saw it clearly.

Two shadow leopards lay one behind the other on a flat rock deep inside the cave. The one in front was larger, nearly three meters tall at the shoulder and five meters long from head to tail, its entire body covered in black fur that gleamed with a bluish sheen in the darkness. A white stripe, shaped like a lightning bolt, stood out conspicuously in the shadows on its forehead.

Fourth-tier peak Shadow Panther. Mission objective.

The one behind was slightly smaller, but still over two meters tall. It lay behind the leopard, its eyes also scarlet, and black saliva dripped from the corner of its mouth, making a "sizzling" corrosive sound as it dripped onto the rocks.

Both shadow leopards exuded a putrid stench—not the smell of ordinary ferocious beasts. Leng Feng had seen many shadow leopards on the border; they were fierce, agile, and bloodthirsty, but none of them possessed this… deathly aura. It was the smell of life force being slowly drained after being controlled by the Soul-Controlling Gu.

"roar--!"

The leopard spotted Leng Feng.

It rose from the rock, arching its back, each black hair standing on end like rows of sharp steel needles. A low growl emanated from deep within its throat; the sound wasn't loud, but it shook the cave walls, causing pebbles to fall. Its scarlet eyes were fixed on Leng Feng, pupils contracted to vertical slits, filled with savagery and murderous intent.

The second leopard also stood up, retreated behind the main leopard, bared its teeth, and black saliva dripped from between its teeth, dripping onto the ground and rising in wisps of white smoke.

Leng Feng did not hesitate any longer.

"Beast, look at the knife!"

He suddenly pushed off the ground, his body shooting out like a cannonball. His battle blade, accompanied by a whistling sound, transformed into a silver arc, aiming straight for the leopard's head. Even before the blade arrived, the aura of the blade had already left a white trail in the air.

The leopard roared and advanced instead of retreating, raising its sharp claws.

Its claws were as long as a human hand, hook-shaped, and sharp as daggers, gleaming coldly. It slammed down towards Leng Feng's head, moving so fast that it left only a black afterimage in the air.

"clang--!"

The claws and the battle blade collided heavily, producing a loud metallic clang and sparks flying everywhere.

Leng Feng felt an overwhelming force surge from the blade, as if a mountain had crashed down on it. His hand instantly split open, blood streaming down the hilt. He was jolted backward, his feet leaving deep gashes on the ground, his arm so numb he could barely grip the blade.

The Shadow Leopard at the peak of the fourth tier was even more terrifying than he had anticipated.

The main leopard missed its first attack and pounced again. Meanwhile, the secondary leopard took the opportunity to circle behind Leng Feng, opened its blood-red maw, revealing two rows of sharp fangs, and bit at his neck.

Leng Feng sensed the wind behind him, but his body was still retreating and he didn't have time to turn around.

"Ling'er, do it!" Lin Chen's voice came from the cave entrance.

"Okay!"

Su Ling'er's shout was crisp and short. Immediately afterwards, five Explosive Flame Pills flew out at the same time, drawing five red parabolas and exploding precisely in front of the two Shadow Leopards.

"boom--!"

The moment the Explosive Flame Pill exploded, the entire cave was bathed in a fiery red glow. Flames erupted in a fan shape, like a fire dragon breaking free from the pill, its massive jaws opening to engulf the two Shadow Leopards. Thick smoke billowed up, gathering into a black cloud at the cave ceiling, the pungent smell of sulfur and acrid burning filling every corner of the cave.

The shadow panthers, their vision obscured by the sudden burst of light and flames, roared in fury and pain. They shook their heads frantically, clawing wildly at the ground, sending pebbles and dust flying everywhere. The lead panther's crimson eyes blinked desperately in the thick smoke, its pupils contracting sharply, yet it could see nothing.

"Mu Yue, now's the time!"

"Trapping Beast Formation, activate!"

Su Muyue formed hand seals, pouring all her spiritual power into the array plate. Her fingers danced like butterflies, silver spiritual power threads connecting her ten fingers. These threads intertwined in the air to form a complex rune before suddenly falling to the ground.

The array patterns on the ground lit up instantly.

Silver light erupted simultaneously from the three array plates, rapidly spreading along the pre-drawn lines and instantly forming a massive silver cage, trapping the two shadow leopards within. Each bar of the cage was formed from condensed spiritual energy, gleaming with sharp barbs, one after another, densely packed, ready to slash the shadow leopards with the slightest movement.

Su Muyue's face turned pale at a visible speed, and large beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, streaming down her cheeks. Maintaining the Beast Trapping Formation required a continuous output of spiritual energy, and trapping two fourth-tier Shadow Leopards consumed a huge amount of spiritual energy. She could feel the spiritual energy in her body rapidly draining away, as if an invisible pump was drawing it out.

"roar--!"

The two shadow leopards slammed into the array patterns frantically, letting out deafening roars. The dominant leopard rammed with its head, slapped with its paws, and rammed with its body, each impact causing the entire cage to shake violently. Fine cracks appeared on the silver array patterns, like shattered glass.

Su Muyue gritted her teeth and held on desperately.

Her lips had turned purple, and her hands were trembling slightly, but she never loosened her hand seals. She felt as if her meridians were on fire, and waves of dizziness from the depletion of her spiritual energy surged up, making her vision go black.

"Chu Fan, activate the killing formation!"

"receive!"

Chu Fan formed hand seals and channeled his spiritual power into the eight array flags at the cave entrance.

The battle flags lit up simultaneously, and the golden killing formation was activated instantly.

The array patterns on the ground surged wildly like awakened golden pythons. Countless golden sword energies shot out from the array patterns, densely packed like a torrential downpour, carrying sharp whistling sounds as they pierced the air towards the two shadow leopards.

The sword energy was incredibly fast, its trajectory almost invisible to the naked eye; only streaks of golden light could be seen flashing through the darkness. Some sword energies were as straight as arrows, while others curved like snakes, piercing the Shadow Leopard's vitals from different angles—its eyes, throat, abdomen, and joints.

"Pfft—Pfft—Pfft—"

The sword energy pierced the Shadow Panther's body, producing a dull tearing sound.

Black blood gushed from the wound, splattering onto the ground with a sizzling, corrosive sound. The Shadow Leopard's fur was torn apart by the sword energy, revealing dark red muscle and white bone beneath. But the Shadow Leopard, controlled by the Soul-Controlling Gu, felt no pain at all; they didn't even let out a scream, only ramming even more frantically against the cage of the Beast-Trapping Formation.

"Lin Chen, hurry! I can't hold on much longer!"

Su Muyue's voice was already trembling with sobs. Her arms were shaking violently, and the hand seals she was forming were beginning to loosen. On the silver cage of the Beast Trapping Formation, cracks were appearing more and more numerous and larger, as if it would shatter completely at any moment.

"Leave it to me!"

Lin Chen leaped into the air.

The Star Martial Core was operating wildly within him, pushing his spiritual power to its limit. The spiritual power surged into his limbs and bones like a tidal wave, and he felt as if he were enveloped in a ball of fire, with every pore on his body radiating silver light.

The Star Sword rang out clearly in his hand, and the silver runes on its blade lit up one after another, like stars illuminating the night sky. A dazzling silver light condensed on the blade, growing brighter and brighter until it gradually transformed into a flowing galaxy.

He focused his gaze on the white stripe on the leopard's forehead. That was its weakness, and also the location of the Soul-Controlling Gu.

One sword can decide life or death.

"Star Sword Technique, Second Form—Star River Reversal!"

Lin Chen poured all his spiritual power into this sword strike, and the galaxy on the sword instantly erupted, transforming into a sky full of silver sword energy, like an inverted Milky Way cascading down from the heavens, sweeping towards the leopard's head.

Wherever the sword energy passed, the air was torn apart, emitting a sharp whistling sound. The cave walls were swept by the aftershocks of the sword energy, leaving deep and shallow scratches, and gravel fell down with a clatter.

"roar--!"

The leopard let out a desperate roar.

It tried to dodge, its four legs frantically kicking the ground, but it couldn't move an inch within the cage of the beast-trapping formation. The silver bars, as if cast in iron, held its body firmly in place. It could only watch helplessly as the sky filled with silver sword energy flew towards it, its crimson eyes now covered by the silver.

"puff--!"

The sword energy pierced through the leopard's head in an instant.

The sound wasn't loud, but everyone present heard it—it was like a needle pricking a balloon, or a knife piercing a watermelon.

The sword energy pierced through the leopard's head, entering through the white markings on its forehead and exiting from the back of its skull, leaving a fist-sized hole. The Soul-Controlling Gu was also shredded into a pulp by the sword energy, black fluid flowing from the wound, mixing with the Shadow Leopard's blood, and dripping onto the ground.

The crimson in the leopard's eyes faded at a visible rate, replaced by a deathly gray.

Its body stiffened for a moment, then collapsed heavily to the ground. The massive, three-meter-tall body slammed onto the ground with a dull thud that shook the entire cave. Its limbs twitched a few times, its claws carving deep gashes into the ground, before it remained completely still.

Su Ling'er let out a long breath, and her tense shoulders relaxed.