Jake did not have time to consider anything but the battle in front of him, not even the notification he had gotten after he escaped the collapsing space tunnel. His body was marred with wounds, and the only injury on the Panther was a single cut left with Eternal Hunger. A cut that had benefitted from Stealth Attack as he had been hidden in the folds of space.

A swipe came from the right as Jake managed to block. A follow-up from the left forced him back as the beast rapidly pushed its advantage. Lacking an arm made fighting incredibly difficult, especially considering the foe he faced.

Stronger. Faster. Every single spec of the Panther had been heightened. However, he was certain of one thing… it lacked energy. While the Panther had not fought in melee, it had used large-scale magic, especially with that final attack. Additionally, chances are it had portions of its energy reserved due to the clones, and even if it gained its stats back, that didn’t mean it also gained mana, stamina, and health.

That is the reason why it didn’t use any complex magical attacks right away, coupled with a potential adaption method. At least Jake guessed that was why as he was smashed downward by a swipe. His left arm was rapidly regenerating as he focused on his vital energy to make it happen. The holes covering his body would have to wait for later, and he managed to stop the bleeding by blocking off the wounds with the passive barrier of Arcane Awakening.

Jake fell down as the Panther charged him. A swipe sent crescent waves of dark space mana towards him, making everything vibrate. Jake stopped his fall as he stepped down on his one good leg, teleporting away. He found himself traveling further away than usual but didn’t question it as he quite frankly didn’t have the time.

The beast did not have any interest in letting him escape and teleported in pursuit. A pulse of dark mana was emitted, but Jake felt no sense of danger from it. The pulse somehow hit the fabric of space itself as several small cracks appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the airspace.

Tendrils of dark mana emerged and lashed at Jake, forcing him in specific directions. He knew the Panther planned this but was forced to comply. A spatial prison was slowly formed around him… yet he didn’t feel like it was an issue. Jake stepped down and, with no fanfare, teleported straight past the spatial lock and out of it.

This was clearly not a part of the Panther’s plan, and Jake took the chance to fire off a blast of mana to accelerate himself towards the ground. Picking up on what Jake intended, the Panther tried to stop him as it chased. Another pulse and more cracks in space appeared, sending tendrils out to stop him. Jake looked down and saw the ground half a kilometer away, tendrils blocking his path. Without hesitating, he stepped down and appeared below, once more passing any obstacles.

One Step Mile definitely upgraded, he thought as he jumped forward, dodging a blast of space mana that blasted a several-meter deep hole in the soil. Jake got below some trees and attempted to hide and give him more time. His arm was slowly regrowing, but he was no Eron and couldn’t just instantly regenerate. He needed a few minutes and fighting while healing was a bad idea. Any half-arsed attack on the regenerating arm would set him back, just wasting the vital energy.

Jake sprinted as every step hurt like hell, but he could not slow down. A pulse passed, and just as it did, he stood completely still and used Arcane Stealth to hide. It worked, as he began running again, but then suddenly a figure entered his Sphere.

The Panther ran a bit off to the side of him and would luckily pass, so as long as he stayed sti-

A second Panther entered. Then a third. And a fourth. Dozens of Panthers appeared and scouted the jungle, and Jake was in disbelief… until he finally felt their energy signatures. It was weak. Each of them was barely tangible as they scoured the greenery for him.

Rather than clones, these were illusions or mirages. At first glance and even to his sphere, they appeared real, but they were effectively just energy constructs. But even if that was the case, Jake knew they weren’t harmless… especially not with so many of them.

Even if they couldn’t hurt him – which he was certain they could – their presence alone made hiding near-impossible. They scouted around, and while Jake was confident in his Arcane Stealth when standing still, he did not believe himself infallible.

Something that was proved correct as an illusion approached. It sniffed the ground and moved past him at first but stopped just as it did. It turned around and walked towards Jake, and lifted its paw to swipe at the stable barrier covering Jake with suspicion.

Jake did not give it a chance as he stabbed forward. Eternal Hunger penetrated the illusion, and instantly the construct turned to black smoke. As he ”killed” the illusion, he felt the true body of the Panther above instantly lock in on him. It was prepared, and Jake’s sense of danger exploded as he used One Step Mile.

He teleported only fifty or so meters as even with its upgrade, he was in a jungle filled with trees and other greenery. Fifty meters would usually be good enough, but in this case, it wasn’t. The Panther had fully locked onto him, and Jake noticed a small mark left by the illusion just a moment before the beast struck.

Everything around him shimmered. Space itself seemed to contract as a tunnel was formed. The very next moment, a Panther was before him with its claw bathed in dense black energy. Jake tried to block but was sluggish from the odd movements of space. He had no time. The beast went straight for his neck to sever his head, but in the final moment, he leaned forward.

A paw smashed into his face as Jake felt bones in his neck crack, and he was only saved by the impact also knocking him back. His entire head would have been carved apart if not for the wooden mask on his face that allowed him to survive.

Jake smashed into a tree, but quickly landed as he teleported away again and fled. He didn’t think but just went in the opposite direction of the Mark indicating where the Panther was and navigated with his sphere. Using his eyes was not an option, as even if the mask had blocked the impact, the eye holes were still there. Eye holes that had allowed the dark space energy to utterly annihilate both his eyes and much of the flesh surrounding them.

His Gaze of the Apex Hunter had been removed as an option, but luckily he only needed a bit more time. Flesh wriggled as most of his left arm had reformed by now. The Panther attacked once more, and Jake was forced to face it with his right side to protect the left, resulting in him getting knocked away with yet another gash.

Without the healing earlier, he would likely be dead by now, but he held on. His skin was flaying more than before due to Arcane Awakening having been active for so long. He was in an incredibly precarious situation as the beast kept up the constant assault until finally, he was ready.

Jake blocked a blow as the Panther tried to take advantage of his weak left side. Instead of meeting no resistance or making Jake dodge, the paw impaled itself on a dagger as a newly formed arm held it, the skin being covered with scales as they fought.

When it recoiled for a moment, Jake took the chance. He stepped down and appeared several hundred meters in the air above and, with a second step, teleported to the side as he spun in the air, taking out his bow. He managed to only get a single arrow off before several figures leaped out of the jungle towards him.

It was the remaining illusions summoned earlier.

Not wanting to give them any chance, Jake’s empty eye-holes opened wide as Presence of the Malefic Viper intensified. An arcane barrier was formed that instantly exploded, destroying all the illusions. Something that proved a wise decision as all of the illusions also exploded upon destruction, functioning as Panther suicide bombers.

His primary target was still below. Jake did have the minor issue of no eyes, but he could still track it with Mark and his sphere and feel the poison ravaging its body. The Panther seemed to believe he was unable to find it as Jake felt dark magic move below, and his Sense and Mark both got obscured partly. While he could not see it, he imagined the beast had created a dark mist or something to cover itself. It appeared that it wanted to deal with some of the poison while charging up another deadly charge attack.

Sadly for the Panther, it made one mistake. While it had clearly analyzed his sphere and many of his abilities to some extent, it had failed to realize how bonkers his Perception stat truly was. The winner was clear in a battle where it tried to hide from his Mark that scaled with Perception.

Jake charged and shot an Arcane Powershot as he tore up the jungle below. The Panther was surprised and partly hit as it jumped away and teleported into the air. Jake felt some of his poison infect the beast and followed up. Curved arrows blanketed the air as he consecutively activated Splitting Arrow to try and catch out the cat.

It teleported away from most of them but was hit by a few exploding ones here and there as it seemed to have a difficult time differentiating between exploding arrows and the stable ones. The unpredictable curving didn’t help either.

Teleporting back a few more times, Jake tried to keep a distance as he attacked. The Panther chased and teleported too, trying to lock him down, but his upgraded One Step Mile seemed to primarily be about breaking through such restrictions, letting him escape again and again.

Their battle quickly moved across the sky, wayward blows tearing up the jungle below. Jake even got a kill notification at one point as an Arcane Powershot missed and struck something else. Naturally, he had no time to check it as he pressed his momentary advantage.

The Panther knew it would lose a ranged battle, so it picked up the pace. Jake felt its body suddenly burn with energy as mana impacted his body. He suddenly felt like his sphere was full of stuff… mana. It brought him back to the first time in the Forgotten Sewers rat dungeon. He reacted a bit slow when his danger sense warned him, resulting in Jake getting blasted back by a space bolt of sorts.

Adapting quickly, Jake analyzed the domain unleashed by the Panther. Shortly, he saw a cat-like figure charge him from the side, and he reacted promptly. Believing the Panther did not expect him to adapt so quickly, Jake swiftly dodged under the claw and stabbed Eternal Hunger upwards, penetrating through the head of the Panther.

Which proceeded to explode in his face.

Jake was tossed back as his right arm was filled with wounds, and his chest burned with black spatial energy. Five more figures then appeared in his sphere as the beast was back to using exploding illusions. All of them were shrouded by the domain of black mana, making Jake unable to distinguish between them.

Five charged, and Jake sent out stable arcane bolts towards each after failing to summon a barrier like before. Four dodged while one was hit and exploded. The remaining ones closed in, and Jake tried to release more attacks, only getting one before the last three were upon him.

One of them is real, Jake thought. His intuition was clear. All three of them attacked from different directions, and it was a pure matter of chance… he would think usually. Because he also felt something else that conflicted with that thought. No matter which he chose, he felt like he would be wrong.

Jake gritted his teeth and stepped down to teleport away. A Panther managed to follow him, and Jake blocked as he was sent tumbling back by what had to be the real one. Another of the three illusions then came, but Jake once more blocked as that too was real. He realized this when he tracked not only Mark of the Avaricious Hunter but also his poison. It was moving.

It can swap between them, Jake instantly realized. Likely another benefit of the domain.

An incredibly annoying ability that put Jake on the backfoot as more wounds covered his already mangled body. The Panther was not doing that well itself, poison ravaging its body and the many blows Jake had landed during some of their scuffles doing work. Jake was certain he had been right about it lacking energy. It had low health points, stamina, and mana from the get-go. Contrary to Jake, it also had no potions to swiftly regenerate a bit.

Illusions closed in once again, but this time Jake was ready. He had gotten some distance and instantly drew his bow and nocked a special arrow. He had plenty of time to condense an Arrow of the Ambitious Hunter by now, even if the stamina and mana consumption to summon it was intense.

Jake knew he had to hit as he drew his bow and charged Arcane Powershot. He had only one shot as his resources were dangerously low.

His perception of time slowed as three figures closed in, now with a cautious approach. The Panther knew this attack would be powerful, and Jake constantly felt it shift with the beast not just charging in but keeping its distance to dodge. One in three… no, lower. It would no-doubt be dodged in the final moment. So he would just have to stop that.

Gaze was out of commission, but he had one more method to lock down an opponent for a moment’s time. His presence flared as it blanketed the sky. For a moment, he pushed back some of the domain, and Jake focused everything on the illusion the Panther was currently in. Pride of the Malefic Viper was on full display as Jake attacked the psyche of the beast. He had begun to feel its desperation as it repeatedly failed to kill him and capitalized on it. Jake made it feel the full brunt of his unshakeable confidence that he would win.

It hesitated for less than half a second.

His string was released as the arrow flew forward. The Panther reacted only a moment too late as the attack sank into its body and sent it blasting back. It had done good damage, but not enough. Rather than retreat or do anything else, the Panther unhesitantly used Jake’s elation to strike.

It swapped places with a copy close to Jake and warped space as it charged, the other two illusions disappearing as the Panther dedicated all its energy to killing him. Jake was indeed taken by surprise and tried to block with his left arm. Bloodfeast Dagger was caught between two claws, and with a tug, it was ripped out of his hand and fell to the jungle below.

Striking again, Jake felt the claws sink into his newly-regenerated arm. It cut to the bone as he didn’t wait to strike back. Eternal Hunger swept in from the right and cut the leg of the Panther before it could fully separate the arm from the rest of his body.

He swung again but found his blade blocked. He retreated a few steps in the air, trying to get more distance. The Panther once more struck, and Jake swung Eternal Hunger down. Rather than dodge, the Panther angled its head and did something unexpected. It caught his sword in its mouth and bit down tight, trapping it. It then yanked its head to disarm Jake.

Jake didn’t hesitate. He simply let go of his blade and moved in closer. He jumped forward with both arms spread out and wrapped his arms around the neck of the Panther. Jake got to the top of the beast and held it tight in a neck hold as Touch of the Malefic Viper activated.

The Panther tossed his sword away as it roared. Jake refused to let go, and the Panther responded by sending itself flying downward while trying to get him off.

They both smashed into the ground, Jake taking most of the impact as the beast landed on top of him. Rather than let go, he wrapped his legs around the Panther’s body and held it tight, poison pumping into the C-grade.

Its body began burning with dark mana as Jake’s scales and passive barrier fought against it. The two wrestled on the ground as the energy invaded his body and ravaged him from within, but he refused to let go.

He was smashed into several trees as the beast roared and scrambled. The fur around his hands fell off, and the flesh began rotting. Yet no matter what the beast did, it only made Jake hold on tighter. It was a death grip that would either end when he ran out of health, or the beast did.

At least it would, but Jake had one more option. He used his head as he bit down on the neck of the Panther, pumping in his venom using his canines. At that moment, it would be difficult for an outside observer to tell who the real beast of the fight was.

Jake felt his own body losing strength as it began giving up. He knew he was soon out of time, but he had one final thing. He activated Mark of the Avaricious Hunter as the arcane charge triggered. The Panther roared in pain, and Jake let go with his hands and his mouth as the beast froze. He held up both hands as Eternal Hunger that had been tossed away earlier appeared, Jake sitting on top of the Panther holding it in both hands.

Roaring in tandem with the Panther, he stabbed down through the neck of the beast, impaling Eternal Hunger into the ground below. The beast struggled a bit as it finally fell limp to the ground, Jake collapsing on top of it as he got the notification.

Arcane Awakening finally deactivated as Jake’s broken and battered body stopped burning with energy. An insane wave of weakness invaded his mind, and for a moment, he feared his body would give in, but the tenacity of his physique was not that easily overcome.

Jake managed to form a faint smile as he was still lying on top of the Panther. He didn’t even have the energy to push himself off the corpse as he lay there covered in blood with a happy expression. He won.

Tired as fuck, Jake closed his eyes and took a well-deserved nap.