Return of the Mythic Bloodline

"Well, that's a formidable ability. But I think I can handle that," I said, sheathing my sword.

"Are you going to fight him tonight?" Nymeria asked, standing with Ruru.

"Yeah, I am completely recovered, so there's no need to wait around anymore," I replied, zipping up my jacket.

"So are we leaving right now?" Nymeria and Jambavan spoke in unison.

"Nah-ah-a. Jambavan, you are too injured to fight. Nymeria, your Soulforce is sealed, and Ruru isn't a fighter, so all of you are staying here," I announced, pointing at each of them.

Nymeria protested, her face filled with worry,

"But Raj—"

"Don't be stubborn, Nymeria," I scolded, cutting her short.

Her face dropped, eyes fixed on the ground. I sighed briefly, put my hand on her head, and spoke in a soft voice, "Didn't you hear what Jambavan said? What if Vyaghra attacks you while hidden? I don't want to put you in danger. So wait for me here, hmm?"

"Alright," she muttered, and turning around, continued, "This was the first time you called me by my name. I liked it."

"Are ya two really not married?" Jambavan spoke, his forehead frowning in confusion.

"Who would marry a jerk like him?" Nymeria hissed, taking fast steps away toward Ruru. She then shouted, peeking from behind Ruru, "Take care. I will be waiting for you."

Jambavan wrapped his arm around my shoulder and whispered in my ear,

"Oy, brat, she's lookin' like a wife sendin' off her husband to war. Why won't ya get married already?"

"We'll talk about that some other time," I chuckled, shrugging off his arm.

"Well then, meet you soon, guys," I shouted, waving my hand as I moved deeper into the forest.

I traveled hundreds of miles, switching between walking, running, and resting. Several nights had already passed, and for the first time since I arrived here, I felt that familiar feeling again. It was the feeling of hunger.

"Why, after all this time, am I feeling hungry now?" I mumbled, sprinting on the branches, leaping from tree to tree.

What was different this time? I scratched my head, thinking about what had led my body to feel the need for food.

"It must be that," I asserted, hitting the palm of my hand with my fist.

The only thing that had changed due to the continuous travel was that I couldn't bathe in the Amrita water anymore. Besides healing injuries, I used it daily to wash my sweaty body. Unbeknownst to me, it must have been supplying energy to my body, satisfying the need for food.

The Amrita water was truly mysterious. No wonder it's called a legendary treasure.

I switched from sprinting to walking as the scenery of the forest once again began to change.

The size of the trees was gradually getting shorter, and the forest was becoming denser. The cursed energy emitted more intensely. The trees were completely purple, with fragile branches and no leaves.

The land was completely corroded and full of desiccation cracks.

The air reeked of rotten corpses, and countless skeletons of animals lay on the ground. They must have been the beasts that foolishly entered the territory of God.

The branches were no longer walkable, so I jumped off and cautiously moved forward.

I had to remain on my toes to avoid getting hunted.

I walked for a few minutes, but I didn't hear a single noise. It was dead silence.

No living presence could be sensed in any direction.

And still,

I had a feeling that someone was constantly gazing at me. It was like having a blade at my throat—the moment I made a mistake, it would be game over.

Then, I heard the noise of a branch snapping from behind.

I instantly turned, but there was nothing—just a broken branch on the ground.

As I moved forward, I suddenly felt a sting on my hand. I raised my hand to look—there was a claw mark, and blood was dripping from it.

At that moment, I realised that the hunt had already begun.

A sharp wind breezed past my left side. I immediately looked in that direction but felt a sting on my right arm.

When I looked at the injury on the right, a cut landed on my left cheek.

He kept striking my blind spots. Whichever side I turned my focus to, he would strike the opposite side with terrifying precision.

I hadn't even felt his presence, yet he had already made dozens of shallow cuts on my body.

He was playing with me.

"Tchh, I can't let him use me as his plaything anymore," I muttered, throwing random hands into the air.

Seeing that I was getting overwhelmed with frustration, he went for a bigger attack this time, aiming for my neck.

The moment his claws touched my neck, a smirk appeared on my face as I whispered,

"Blink."

Golden electric pulses were emitted from my feet.

I vanished from my place and stood just behind him. His barely visible body began to disappear again, so without wasting a single second, I murmured,

"Lightning Bolt."

The sphere of lightning launching from my hand landed directly on his back before he could hide again.

He skidded a few feet and immediately turned, piercing stares at me from his eyes, his canines dropping saliva with every breath.

He was neither completely animal nor completely human. His face was that of a tiger, with a long beard flowing with every step, but he was standing on two legs. He had the outer appearance of a tiger, but a body structure similar to that of a human. The curse leech was situated at the top of his head, and the veins spreading from it had shackled most of his body. The curse effect on him looked even worse than what I saw on Jambavan when I first fought him.

But still, I couldn't feel much energy emitting from him. He could suppress this overwhelming power, even though the curse turned them into mindless, brute monsters.

I muttered, with a smirk on my face,

"So this is the God of Hunt and Stealth—Mystic Tiger Vyaghra."