Lyren wanted to continue with his findings but he retracted his mind's eye and frowned.
He had subconsciously ignored stares boring down on him but when he realized about their existence, he looked around and he was surprised by the number of beasts that surrounded him.
They ranged in the numbers of twenties and they were not taking a step closer.
He could not help but wonder why they were surrounding him but as he thought more about it, he realized that he had drawn so much Elyria and it was possible that this had attracted the beasts thinking that a treasure was about to be born.
This was the only explanation and as he thought of the reason that none of the beasts were attacking, his eyes subconsciously landed on the corpse of the black panther.
He realized they were all scared of this beast and it was only rightful that its killer to be more terrifying than the creature itself.
They all had curious gazes and it was obvious that the panther was the overlord of the region. This made him the rightful overlord but since he was not going to remain, it was highly likely a fight was going to occur.
Lyren felt the fresh morning dew when he moved his feet and he stood up with the sword on his hand. He felt that his body had gotten lighter and that his eyes had gained more clarity.
He swinged his hands several times and the joints were pretty loose which was a good sign that he had increased his agility. He swung his wrist and he felt like he could perform the first sword even faster now.
He tried to recall the place where he had left the horns and hooves and after scratching his head for over a minute, he picked a direction and when he walked between the beasts
They let him through with none of them trying to look at him directly. Even if he had no cultivation, their instincts screamed at them that they could not afford to attack the human and they had gotten this strong by their instinct. There was no way it was wrong.
Lyren left the beasts and he was barely gone when he heard clashes and screeches and roars coming behind him. Talk about impatience…
He decided to come back later after the fight was over and check out for any spoils of war. He had even forgotten the black panther's core but he was going to come back for it.
Lyren finally reached where it had all started and his treasures were still in position. He picked them and tied them on his waist again.
He had achieved more than he had expected and the entrance ceremony was the following day. He was not in a hurry to go back and having broken through, he had to consolidate the eighth stage first.
He climbed on top of the trees and slowly headed towards where the battle royale was taking place.
As he got closer, he could smell the blood which reminded him his sense of smell had also improved. His ears caught onto the clashes and painful screeches and roars.
His eyes could see clearer even from a distance which did not alert the fighting beasts.
He finally heard a clear view and he decided to have some entertainment. But what made him shocked was how many casualties there were.
He was sure that all these were strong beasts on par with the black panther but for them to have dwindled each other to half the number in such a little time was very shocking.
The law of the jungle was survival for the fittest and this was a clear showcase. There were around five beasts which were already dead and there were trails of blood heading away from the scene.
Obviously, some of them would give up after they were badly injured. He observed and there were four beasts that were being ganged up on and it was obvious that they were the dark horses.
They were a spotted tiger, an ostrich, a tortoise and a crow.
They seemed to hold on their own against the match up of almost five to one. They had injured several attacking beasts and few were dead.
The attacking beasts were slowly losing their morale as they kept accumulating injuries while barely doing any harm. Only the ostrich was taking more injuries than the other three. The crow actually did not have any injuries at all.
It had sharp talons and a hard beak that was able to tear through the skin of these attacking beasts. It did not bother using its element which showed how and easy time it was having. It had red eyes but its pupils were black.
The tiger only had one injury and it was only just a small slash on its stomach. It had the most kills with four beasts already dead. It appeared that it was going to finish first.
The remaining three beasts were getting slower and fear filled their eyes and it was obvious that any time soon, they were going to lower their tails and run.
The ostrich had taken the most damage and its neck had scratches and many of its feathers were littered on the grass. Still, it was able to utilize its neck and it came as a sling.The beasts around it were having a hard time evading as they took more whips and they too had the urge to escape.
The tortoise was actually the one with the least kills and whoever had said that tortoises were slow had an explanation for Lyren. The tortoise did not coop itself in its shell as many would expect. Instead, it was showing dominance.
It's one step appeared so slow but in the next instant, it was already behind the beasts attacking it. It would then then attack by pushing its paws forward and a beast would go flying. This bred fear to it and the beasts were having thoughts of running away.
Those that escaped did not go far as they had to know who was the winner. They watched the battle from afar and in no time, all beasts had either escaped injured or died.
The observing beasts increased further and even those that were weaker were making an appearance.
Lyren was observing from the top of a tree and he was most intrigued by the tortoise. It had not killed any beast but he had a feeling that it was the most lethal creature in the four.
After the battle royale, the four faced each other and they all appeared to have the same thoughts. Gang up on one another.
***
Hunters were having a hard time because the beasts were nowhere to be seen. They could all guess that an overlord had died and it was going to be a fruitless day as the beasts had to acknowledge the king after he was crowned.
They did not dare go take a look because they knew they knew that they had no chance. The beasts would attack any human that came closer to the battlefield.
They all had the same thoughts and they started heading back and wait for the entrance ceremony.
***
The four beasts were quick to make a decision and they ganged up on the ostrich. The ostrich definitely had an ugly expression as it tried to defend itself.
It actually had some skill as it was able to hold on its own for a few minutes before it took more damage and it fled leaving behind more feathers.
The next creature that was ganged up on was the tiger which also had an ugly look. It appeared they were attacking the injured first.
The battle dragged on for around half an hour and the tiger started taking damage. It roared as it swiped its claws but to no avail. The tortoise had the audacity to go into its shell which the tiger could not dent and the crow just flew higher.
It did not take long before it had wounds all over and even a leg was broken. It was clobbered by the two until it dragged itself away or else it would be killed. And it was finally the final showdown as the two last standing beasts faced each other.
One hovering in the air and the other peeking its head slightly from its shell.