Chapter 140: Thorn Lightning Armor

After more than half an hour, Lei En climbed the cliff that Madelin had pointed out earlier.

From here he could look down over the entire breeding farm.

Lei En's Soul Eye opened to its maximum, narrowing his field to bring several square kilometers into view. After two Soul Transformations, his sight had reached a level unimaginable to ordinary people; if unobstructed, he could even see the expressions of people ten thousand meters away.

Of course, because of dust, moisture and mist in the air, under normal conditions he could see at most four to five thousand meters.

Even so, Lei En's vision was far stronger than the Element of the Eagle Eye Technique.

It could not only discern distant objects, but also magnify nearby details and provide precise, data‑driven measurements, comparable to the high‑precision instruments of his past life.

Lei En estimated that the straight‑line distance from the cliff to the demon leopard breeding farm was under three thousand meters.

He observed the cliff, which was not very steep, only a few dozen meters high, backed against a mountain ridge; from its edge he could see dozens of peaks forming a continuous range, near and far, high and low, with no end in sight.

"Hard to find!"

Lei En shook his head in sighing, yet showed no sign of discouragement.

According to Madelin, the Swift‑Shadow Thunderblade Leopard had been seen here last month; the recent weather was fine, no rain, so if luck held, some traces might remain.

Scents and the like had certainly dissipated long ago.

However, the footprints and the tufts of fur caught on vegetation should still be findable.

Lei En's gaze swept the cliff like a radar, scanning piece by piece. He missed no detail and soon found some animal‑left tufts and feathers, though none belonged to the Thunderblade Leopard.

After a dozen or so minutes.

Lei En's eyes suddenly lit up; on the inner side of the cliff he found several shallow footprints, about the size of an adult's two palms, spreading like an open plum blossom—typical of a felid.

The Thunderblade Leopard, judging by its appearance, was a felid even in his past life.

He crouched to examine closely; the prints were very faint, but from their size he judged the beast to be over four meters long and weighing well over two thousand pounds!

This matched closely the characteristics of the Swift‑Shadow Thunderblade Leopard described by Harding.

Lei En circled the footprints twice, and soon on a low branch found a strand of blue‑gray fur, fine and hollow, providing insulation—a trait of the Thunderblade Leopard.

As expected, this must be the Thunderblade Leopard's trace.

Lei En was overjoyed.

His luck was good; after more than a month he could still find clues of the Thunderblade Leopard.

He looked toward the direction the trace extended, kept moving forward, and soon discovered more fur.

The vegetation on Grey Dragon Mountain was extremely lush; the forest was low but covered almost every patch of ground, and beneath the trees grew thick shrubs and weeds. With a Thunderblade Leopard's size, any direction of movement would cause friction and shed fur.

Normally, tiny fur as fine as a blade of grass falling in the woods would be blown away by the wind and be hard for even a transcendent to notice, but Lei En was an exception.

In his eyes, even the smallest tuft appeared as clear as a banner, guiding his way.

He searched for fur while advancing through the forest.

The dense branches and grass scratched his body; a normal person would be unable to move, and even a transcendent could not speed up.

Lei En applied the Dragon Power Technique to himself, letting the branches strike as if a gentle breeze, and the entangling weeds could not hinder his stride; a light tug shredded them all.

The only drawback was his light leather armor, which soon became splattered with green sap.

"Hmm?"

After crossing a ridge, the view opened up, but Lei En lost the Thunderblade Leopard's trail.

The terrain here was relatively open, and the Leopard's fur had been blown away by the wind.

He thought for a moment; along the way he had gradually discerned the Leopard's habits. It disliked ordinary paths and preferred moving on steep terrain.

Climbing two or three hundred meters up the ridge, on a scree slope, fur appeared again.

Lei En smiled, thinking, "Just as I expected."

The sky darkened, soon turning to night, which affected Lei En little; his stamina was still ample, yet he halted and furrowed his brow.

Amid the sounds of all things, the silent forest was surrounded by beasts' roars.

The noises he made while moving were especially sharp at night, drawing the curiosity of many creatures.

All afternoon, Lei En relied on the sounds of all things to anticipate various beasts, deliberately avoiding them, and suffered no attacks.

Even without direct encounters, Lei En judged from their aura and heartbeat that most were ordinary beasts; only two or three could be called demons, fairly strong, possibly harboring an Element in their souls, yet posed little threat.

But at night, avoidance became far harder.

Lei En decided to find a place to spend the night.

Moments later, outside a rocky cave, Lei En listened to the heartbeat within—strong and powerful—but the breathing was long and steady, indicating deep sleep.

"It should be a mountain bear."

Lei En made his judgment, took the rune book from his satchel; the pages turned automatically, spiritual power surged, and a small flame appeared in his palm, expanding within two or three seconds into a fireball the size of a head.

With a casual flick, the fireball shot into the cave like a cannonball.

Boom—

A deafening blast erupted from the cave, flames burst, shaking half a hill and startling countless roaming beasts and birds.

Fortunately it was a rocky cave, so it did not collapse.

Lei En waited half a minute until the high temperature inside subsided, then entered.

The cave was seven or eight meters deep; it had been overgrown with weeds and a foul stench, all cleared by the Fireball Technique explosion. The floor was charred black, scattered with a dozen or so beast carcasses, barely recognizable as a bear in life.

The bear was blown to pieces in its sleep; it made no sound before death, and little of its body remained.

Lei En was pleased with the power of his Fireball Technique.

He picked up a half‑cooked giant bear paw, perfect for dinner; a few more roasts would finish it.

After eating the bear meat, he moved a ten‑thousand‑pound boulder to block the entrance, leaving only a small gap for air.

Only then did Lei En rest peacefully and sleep.

At dawn, after waking he meditated, replenished a Fireball Technique in the rune book, and then continued searching for Thunderblade Leopard clues.

For four or five consecutive days, Lei En searched throughout Grey Dragon Mountain.

The Thunderblade Leopard's movements are very complicated; it darts all over the mountainous region, its speed is extremely fast and it is very alert, rarely staying in the same place for long. At night it spends the night in a tree or a cave, and during the day it hunts everywhere.

Lei En almost lost the trail several times.

Fortunately, relying on his Soul Eye and Truth Willpower, he found clues and kept the chase.

He has a premonition that the Swift Shadow Thunderblade Leopard is not far from him.

"Chirp…"

A long howl came from the sky; Lei En looked up and saw a black speck a thousand meters above, a Divine‑harvest male eagle circling in the air.

Lei En instantly darted and slipped beneath the canopy.

His gaze pierced the gaps in the foliage, bringing the view closer; the eagle's form enlarged dozens of times, every detail crystal clear.

It was not large, with a wingspan under two meters, all its feathers black, only a ring of red around the eyes, pupils clear yellow, its gaze radiating great intelligence as it scanned the forest below.

"Red‑eyed Eagle!"

Lei En consulted his Monster Compendium, instantly identifying its species.

It is a powerful raptor that can fly high and fast, a typical animal companion possessing the Eagle Eye Technique Element.

Among the Ranger's advanced professions, there is a branch called Wilderness Hunter, which can form a Soul Pact with an animal companion to share Elements in their souls. Wilderness Hunters may seem unimpressive in cities, but in the wild they are among the strongest professions, especially in tracking, unmatched by anyone.

The vast majority of Wilderness Hunters tame a Red‑eyed Eagle for aerial reconnaissance.

"There is a hunter nearby."

Lei En felt a slight heaviness; at this time, appearing again in this mountain area, it was clear the other's target was likely also the Swift Shadow Thunderblade Leopard.

Harding's words were true; other transcendents must have set their sights on the Thunderblade Leopard, and not alone.

Lei En listened for a moment but heard no voices; that hunter and any possible companion were probably at a distance.

The Red‑eyed Eagle continued to circle high above, not leaving for a long time.

Lei En waited patiently for almost an hour; the Red‑eyed Eagle finally grew weary, flew to a distant spot and landed, thereby revealing the direction of the Wilderness Hunter.

"So it's over there."

Lei En thought for a moment and decided to ignore it, continuing the search for the Thunderblade Leopard.

However, he later realized this was the start of trouble. That hunter releases a Red‑eyed Eagle every hour to surveil large swaths of forest from the sky.

Lei En did not want to be detected, so each time he concealed himself until the Red‑eyed Eagle flew away.

As a result, his search efficiency dropped sharply; the whole day he covered less than ten kilometres, and the Thunderblade Leopard's tracks were often winding, making him nearly circle in place.

Having no choice, Lei En opted to move at night, putting distance between himself and that hunter.

Three days later.

Late at night, Lei En walked through a thicket, climbed a steep slope, and reached out to pluck several gray‑blue tufts of fur from a branch.

The darkness could not hinder his sight; after a careful look, his eyes changed instantly.

The tufts bore fresh marks, their bases clinging tiny skin tissue, having fallen from the Thunderblade Leopard no more than three hours ago.

Lei En was overjoyed; this meant the Swift Shadow Thunderblade Leopard had passed by only a few hours earlier.

It was deep night, and Thunderblade Leopards rarely act at night, so it was likely resting somewhere nearby.

Lei En stood on the slope, scanning around, and immediately located the most probable spot.

Going up the slope for several hundred metres, the end revealed a cliff forty metres high, not far from the summit. This mountain is one of the highest in Gray Dragon Mountain; from its top one can overlook almost half the region. The temperature was low, and the cold wind cut the face like a blade.

Lei En lowered his body and slowly climbed the steep slope.

The sounds of all things rose to the limit; countless winds and rustling trees filled his ears, along with various animals and birds hidden in nests, their heartbeats and breaths amplified in his mind, crystal clear.

After a moment, Lei En felt a jolt in his heart.

He heard a unique heartbeat, extremely strong and powerful, standing out among the animals, instantly recognizable.

It was the most powerful creature he had encountered since entering the Gray Dragon Mountain region.

He locked onto the source; the sound came from a fissure on the cliff.

Lei En looked up at the spot, over thirty metres above ground; due to the angle he could only see a patch of gray‑blue in the fissure's shadow, rhythmically pulsing with the heartbeat he heard.

"Finally found you!"

Lei En's gaze fixed on the gray‑blue—it was the head of the Swift Shadow Thunderblade Leopard; though only half a skull was visible, his Soul Eye still perceived its soul.

With a single glance, his breath halted briefly, then his heart stirred.

"Lightning Affinity!"

"All the hard work these days was not in vain; this Thunderblade Leopard has truly advanced to a Mid‑stage Beast, and its soul has cultivated the Lightning Affinity Element!"

Lei En was thrilled but made no sound, fearing to wake the Thunderblade Leopard.

He continued observing; besides Lightning Affinity, the Swift Shadow Thunderblade Leopard possessed four other Elements: 'Swift', 'Rapid Run', 'Strength', and 'Thorny Electric Armor'.

The first two agility Elements did not surprise Lei En; they are common in Thunderblade Leopards, yet its 'Swift' was Tier 3 and 'Rapid Run' Tier 2, clearly far stronger than ordinary ones.

As for the Tier‑1 'Strength' Element, Lei En paid little mind.

The most surprising was 'Thorny Electric Armor', a double‑ring Lightning spell, a rare protective Element that can only be self‑applied.

This protective spell, like many casters' shields, can block physical attacks and releases lightning when struck, counter‑attacking foes.

The more rings the Thorny Electric Armor has, the stronger the reflected lightning.

"This is a retaliatory armor!"

Lei En admired it inwardly.

The Swift Shadow Thunderblade Leopard actually had five Elements—the most he had ever seen in a demonic soul; all five were highly useful, and if merged, it would be like adding wings to a tiger.

After the excitement, Lei En found himself at a loss.

The Thunderblade Leopard was cunning; its resting spot on the cliff was hard to approach. Even if he climbed up or slid down, it would notice.

He circled several distant spots but could not find a suitable route.

He slowly slipped beneath the cliff, less than a hundred metres away, deliberately hiding in the leeward side to avoid the Thunderblade Leopard detecting his scent.

While observing in the dark, Lei En's mind raced.

From that height, if it fell, it wouldn't feel good; given its weight, it might even die outright.

Lei En gauged the distance—Fireball Technique could reach it.

He stepped out from his hiding place, exposed below the cliff, opened the rune book, activated the enchantment, and a crimson fireball immediately appeared in his hand, rapidly expanding.

As the spell formed and firelight flared, the Thunderblade Leopard on the cliff's fault line was instantly awakened.

As soon as it opened its eyes, it saw a fireball shooting toward it.

Boom!

The explosion's sound shattered the night's silence, carrying far on the wind.

The entire cliff shook, shrapnel flying, a massive figure was blown off; mid‑air it nimbly flipped, kicked off the cliff wall, and swooped down like lightning.

"What a quick reaction!"

"It actually activated Thorny Electric Armor before my Fireball Technique exploded, avoiding most of the damage, and even detected my presence."

Before Lei En's thought could settle, the Thunderblade Leopard had landed and lunged at him.

He had anticipated this; when he came out of hiding earlier, he intended to use himself as bait to lure the Thunderblade Leopard into attacking.

In terms of speed, I might not even catch the Thunderblade Leopard on horseback, but in a head‑on fight I feel no fear.

Having released the Fireball Technique, Lei En immediately continued casting.

One hand gripped the hilt of the Azure Sky Song, the other hand lifted forward, fingertips bursting forth a rainbow‑like ray, hurtling toward the charging Thunderblade Leopard.

(End of chapter)