Pride Stalker versus Void Predator, Predator versus Alien, Rengar versus Happy Mantis—the clash between two Primal Hunters had yet to end, playing out again and again.
The mantis was no slouch either, but with Rhythm of the Hunt activated, Lianye was like a man flooded with adrenaline. Not only were his five senses heightened, but his physique and speed had also improved dramatically. Although the ODM Gear had been left on the horse, even without it, he was gradually catching up to the Flying Mantis flapping its wing covers merely by bounding through the forest.
Kha'Zix knew the forest was not its home ground, so it naturally wanted to drag the battlefield to the clearing beyond the dense woods. Thus began their first head-on pursuit.
Even within the pitch-black, shadowy forest, Lianye could still "sense" Kha'Zix's figure—the arched, agile Bug's body, its enlarged claws crackling with purple lightning, and its vicious, jagged Void Spikes.
Their outrageous speed had already created flashes of cold light like streaks of lightning. As they darted through the woods, the sound they produced was not the rustling of swaying branches, but the shrill howl of wind breaking the sound barrier. Even this pre-battle chase was filled with razor-sharp momentum.
End of Chapter.
Pursuit
-----"Are you going to do something dangerous?"
Just as Krista had vaguely feared, Lianye really was doing something "dangerous," walking along the edge of a blade.
But in Lianye's mind, the standard for deciding whether to do something was never whether it was "dangerous" or "safe." It was whether it could pique his interest and make his heart throb with irrepressible excitement.
Without a doubt, when faced with the danger signal released by the Void Predator, Lianye did not choose to retreat. Instead, he rose to the challenge and began the pursuit.
As a human, he might have been somewhat more conservative and inclined toward self-preservation. But Lianye was now both a human Summoner and the hero Pride Stalker. Therefore, it was wrong to define him simply through the mindset of a human or player, or to demand that Lianye act entirely according to Pride Stalker's iron-blooded, cold-blooded, bloodthirsty way of thinking.
So, when faced with the danger signal released by the Void Bug, Lianye became eager to try; yet at the same time, he could calm down and bluntly but earnestly send the goddess Krista back to sleep, happy to deal with a weak yet beautiful girl.
A Primal Hunter who held a tiger in his heart yet gently sniffed at roses was the best description of Lianye. He was neither Renekton, the aloof lone wanderer, nor an ordinary human youth. He could not be judged in broad strokes.
Back to the point—let us turn our gaze to the pursuit between Lianye and Kha'Zix.
"Whoosh—!" "Whoosh—!"
The Void Bug let out shrill, excited chirps as it curled its mouth into a crooked grin, revealing a row of sharp, ghastly white teeth. From the shadows, a somewhat ferocious smile surfaced on its face.
A simple chase of you chase me, and if you catch me, I'll let you heheh~~~ was far too boring. Kha'Zix intended to add some excitement to this hunt.
It still leaped high forward with its light yet agile insect body. At the same time, its two claws, which had been stretched forward in a streamlined shape, pressed outward to either side, forming enormous scythes that carved perilous arcs.
Under these circumstances, Kha'Zix slowed slightly, because neither that movement nor its body shape was suited for maintaining maximum speed. But the moment it brought down its enlarged claws, it meant it was about to take effective action.
The forest where the two Primal Hunters were racing through in pursuit was a dense primeval woodland, its trees standing in orderly ranks and towering into the clouds. If it extended the enlarged scythe blades to either side, then as it passed through the gaps between trees, the blades would inevitably sink into the lush trunks...
In that instant, the trees were sliced apart by the dark purple, lightning-charged enlarged claws as easily as paper cutouts.
Though the trunks of the primeval forest were all thick, to those sharp scythe claws that maintained speed beyond the sound barrier and leaped at breakneck pace, they were as easy to saw through as wood beneath a high-speed serrated blade.
The instantly severed trunks were all flung upward by the impact, swept into the air. It was like a carpenter shredding wood chips during work, except this was a nightmarish sight hundreds of times more spectacular.
Seeing that devastating display, Lianye could not help holding his breath.
"Damn it..."
When the airborne trunks and branches fell like a rain of trees, their target was naturally Lianye's head and body as he pursued from behind.
Forget a direct hit—with their current speed, even having his shoulder joint lightly grazed could mean life or death for an ordinary person. Just as, at extremely high relative speed, even an inconspicuous little sparrow could bring down an Airbus.
Even Lianye's beast-like recovery ability would not allow him to collapse from this, but being hindered to some extent would be unavoidable.
Slowing down—was impossible. Wouldn't that mean admitting defeat?
Before you continue