Fate

Up in the treetops, however, Lister thought otherwise. Although the squad's combined attack had been very good, this Shadow Leopard had already reached the peak of level seven. The gap in strength between the squad and the magical beast was far too great. Had it been a Shadow Leopard that had only just entered level seven, that strike would have left it half-crippled, if not dead.

Just moments earlier, Lister had been passing by when he detected the disturbances of a battle here, so he had come over for a look and watched the fight unfold from a tree. The reason he watched such a low-level battle was that he recognized three members of the group as the three people he had seen when he passed through here before, so he stayed to watch.

Below the tree, everyone stared at the cloud of dust, waiting for it to clear so they could see whether the magical beast had been killed.

But before the dust cleared, a black figure flashed out and appeared before Wang Lufei.

None of them could react in time. Seeing the dark figure coming at him, Wang Lufei could only hold his blade across his body, with no time to do anything else. A cold gleam flashed, and one swipe of the Shadow Leopard's claw not only knocked his broadsword away but also tore three wounds across his chest, so deep that bone showed. The force of the swipe sent Wang Lufei tumbling backward.

"Lufei!"

The other four were filled with grief and fury at this sudden turn of events. Zhang Suolong and Wu Sanji slashed at the Shadow Leopard, and Zhang Suolong shouted.

"I'll fight you to the death!"

But the Shadow Leopard paid the two of them no mind. It turned and swept its tail sideways, sending both of them flying, then strolled toward the two female mages, Nana and Binbin. Watching the magical beast slowly approach, the two mages were so frightened that they could not even chant their spells, their eyes filled with terror.

The Shadow Leopard seemed to particularly enjoy this process. It slowly walked up to the two mages and, looking at the pair who had given up resisting, opened its gaping maw, ready to savor this feast.

Faced with the gaping maw now upon them and the bloody stench coming from within, Nana and Binbin closed their eyes. Tears spilled uncontrollably, and they began to cry.

At that moment, Nana and Binbin felt that time was passing both quickly and slowly. Quickly, because they had never expected to lose so soon. Slowly, because they had already had their eyes closed for a little while, yet neither of them had died in the Shadow Leopard's jaws.

Before long, they opened their eyes. Instead of the Shadow Leopard's gaping maw, they saw a young man dressed in red pinning it beneath his foot. The Shadow Leopard that had seemed invincible a moment ago could no longer move at all. Like a dead dog, it lay under his foot. The man was none other than Lister.

"Don't just stand there staring, you two. Go check on your friends."

Lister spoke to the pair with a smile.

The two were still in a daze. Only after hearing Lister's words did they nod and go check the other three's injuries. Nana woke Zhang Suolong and Wu Sanji, who had been knocked unconscious. Fortunately, they had only coughed up some blood, and once awake, they could get up and walk over to Lister on their own. Wang Lufei was in a much worse state and staggered over with Binbin's support.

Seeing Wang Lufei approach, Nana also stepped forward to support him and said:

"Lufei, this gentleman saved us. Are you all right?"

"Yes. Luckily, I had Binbin's Holy Armor of Earth Protection. I won't die just yet."

Wang Lufei answered, then spoke weakly to Lister:

"Greetings, sir. My name is Monkey D. Luffy, and these two on the left are Roronoa Zhang Zoro and Vinsmoke Wu Sanji, along with Nico Robin and Nana. Thank you for saving us."

Lister nodded and said:

"Yes. There was no other reason I saved you. Consider yourself lucky. I suppose we were fated to meet. This is already the second time I've seen you in the Magical Beast Forest."

"The second time? Sir, have you seen me before?"

Wang Lufei looked at Lister and asked in puzzlement.

"Yes. When I passed through here a few years ago, I saw you, you, and you hunting magical beasts on the outskirts. I never expected to run into you again on my way back."

Lister pointed to Wang Lufei, Zhang Suolong, and Nana as he spoke. The three were very surprised to hear this. They had never expected that this gentleman had encountered them several years ago and had intervened to save them because he felt they were fated to meet. For a moment, they felt very fortunate.

"Then we truly are very fortunate, and we're truly grateful to you. If you ever have any use for me, please say the word. My Monchi Family still carries some weight in Yagor Province. If you wouldn't mind, sir, I'd like to invite you to nearby Black Jade City. It's famous for its fine wine and beautiful people, and my father serves as its city lord. That would also let us properly entertain you and thank you for saving our lives."

Wang Lufei expressed his thanks again.

Lister, however, said to Wang Lufei:

"What kind of talk is that? Did I save you for a reward? What sort of person do you take me for?"

With that, he stamped his foot angrily onto the Shadow Leopard's head. The magical beast had still had a breath left in it, but now it was thoroughly dead.

Wang Lufei hurried to explain:

"Sir, that wasn't what I meant."

"Say no more. Lead the way!"

With that, Lister stepped off the Shadow Leopard and looked at everyone.

"Sir!"

Wang Lufei had still been about to explain, only to register Lister's last words. He immediately changed what he was going to say:

"Suolong, hurry and show our guest the way!"