Zoran shook his head with a smile. He accepted the challenge of the evolved Miasma Beast because they were birds of the same feather—beings who saw adversity as an opportunity.
Although Helio and this new challenger were at the same stage of cultivation, there was a huge gap of strength and skill between them.
For the most obvious one, Helio had just advanced to the 3rd stage while this evolved Panther was nearing the end of the 3rd stage.
Helio's abysmal control of his ginormous Yi energy was evidence that he rushed his journey of cultivation, using only pills and beads to further his strength.
While this dangerous beast had a very controlled radiation of energy, evidenced by the fact that the beasts beside it weren't disoriented at all times.
Its blindingly fast speeds were also indicative of its skill compared to Helio. It used its physical body in tandem with its energy to boost its attack tremendously.
Helio didn't know how to do that. It was the reason why Zoran was able to kill a 3rd stage cultivator while only being a mortal. If Helio had mastery over his bloodred ax, then Zoran would have had a lot more trouble dealing with him. Unfortunately for Helio, he only received the ax when he advanced to the 3rd stage.
If Helio and this evolved Panther fought, there would be no challenge at all. The Miasma Beast would have torn Helio to shreds before he could even scream for help as he was hunted down by this nightmarish creature.
This creature's danger levels were at the very limit of what Zoran could handle at this very moment. But that doesn't mean he would lose.
He was not the same mortal he was back then. Now, he had the SSS-class core supplying him with both mythical pure Yi energy and Miasma.
His fighting prowess was nothing to scoff at since his Tyrannical Miasma Strike was proven to be too much for these beasts. The evolved Panther would also soon know its might.
But a large part of the danger possessed by this Panther was its mysterious skills. This was a beast he had never encountered before.
Helio's moves were the very basic techniques and artskills of the Alpha God's cultivation system, something Zoran had mastered for years and years. It was easy for Zoran to read Helio's attacks.
But he didn't know anything about the evolved Panther.
When the Panther moved to bite the head of its comrade, Zoran didn't see its movements. It didn't seem to be a product from pure speed. It looked to be an artskill.
This meant that his experience dealing with hundreds of Miasma Panthers were of no help to fighting the evolved Panther.
He didn't even think Miasma Beasts had artskills. Especially since they had no cultivation core in their bodies.
But Zoran concluded that they probably had no need for cores as they didn't need to store energy since energy was all around them. They just used the Miasma they lived in.
After Zoran and the Panther finished their assessment of each other, they moved closer.
The evolved Panther hissed at the other puma soldiers, as if warning them that interfering in this fight would only result in losing their heads.
The prideful puma soldiers meekly backed away from the Panther. The hierarchy was clear.
Zoran didn't waste any time and used his Tyrannical Miasma Strike as he raced towards his opponent.
The Panther eyed Zoran's glowing white fist with caution, but it still pounced with its hind legs exploding with speed and its forelegs showcasing its sharp talons ready to pierce through Zoran's body.
The two opposing forces met, with Zoran's bright light and the Panther's body of Miasma clashing.
The Panther lunged at Zoran, its claws aimed right at Zoran's torso. At this speed and with that sharpness, a clean hit would tear him into three parts.
But Zoran countered that with his tyrannical fist. He knew that in terms of pure firepower, his artskill would triumph any attack that the Panther could throw at him.
It looked like the Panther knew it too, but it could not abandon its attack and get the hell out of dodge.
Then, just as Zoran's tyrannical fist filled with alternating Miasma and pure Yi energy was about to enter the Evolved Panther's range, something strange happened.
The Panther's body slowly disappeared from its claws to hind legs as if it had just jumped out of a window.
Its whole body disappeared. Even Zoran was confused as to where it went and how it disappeared.
This was no mere traversal artskill. Usually, those kinds of skills were techniques used for quick dodges and sleek movements.
An example of this would be one of Alpha God's traversal artskill that used a jet of hot flame below the soles to give its user the ability to move and dodge quickly.
There was also the technique of the Terrestrial God which used the land below as a means of hidden traversal which would be useful in assassinations and escapes.
There were even teleportation skills used by most mages of the Moon God or even simple flight from the Sky God.
But all those techniques required Yi energy or Yi circles that were at the very least classified as a complex technique that was hard to master.
And all those artskills pulsed a wave of Yi energy around the user. Nobody was an exception to this, not even the Supreme Beings.
It was comparable to swimming. No matter how slow the movement was, there would always be a ripple effect on the water.
But the Panther's technique was different. There was no disturbance in the Miasma, as if the movement never even existed in the first place.
How could this be possible, Zoran thought.
But he had no luxury to ponder that question as his instincts warned him of a lethal attack about to hit behind him.
Even then, Zoran used his mastery over his own body to twist it unnaturally to the point of almost breaking his spine.
He even used the Law of Attraction to push himself out of harm's way just at the nick of time.
But the Panther was still able to land a small cut on Zoran's back, which was immediately patched up by the surrounding Miasma as if on cue.
Both Zoran and the Panther looked at each other with renewed caution. They underestimated each other.
The Panther was wondering how Zoran was able to dodge away from its surprise attack and only come out with only a scratch.
Zoran was trying to figure out how the Panther was able to appear and disappear at will.
The only conclusion he came up with was something he was hesitant to believe.
Was the Panther moving in the 4th dimension?
And at that same moment of realization, Zoran's mind began to ring with the same words that plagued him since his return. A smile broke out of his face.
Could he learn this?