12. First victim of the day

After flying around 700 miles into dusk forest in about 20 minutes, since Osiris felt the need to try his current maximum speed and endurance while flying, which he felt was very fast for his current early first-order realm.

After finding out his max speed, he slowed down to a hover about a smile above the tree tops and looked around at his current surroundings which seemed to be a lot more vibrant and full of life with the help of the added mana density, and made the name dusk forest somewhat ironic

But since it seemed nobody strong enough had really taken the time to explore deeper into the forest and record the vibrancy of it, he could see why the name of the forest was dusk since only the outer area of the forest was quite dim.

Osiris couldn't imagine what the center of the forest would look like but he wouldn't risk the danger to find out since as he looked around, he found many early and mid rank second order beasts stalking around and hunting other beasts.

He could tell just by the fact that he was barely a fourth of the way to the center and seven eighths of the way from the other side of the forest, the forest was absolutely massive as well by the fact that there were already this many second order beasts roaming this far from the center.

He could only assume there were fourth or even fifth order beasts in the mana realm living within the center, which even him, with the power to take down beasts way above his level couldn't possibly take on a being in the mana realm as they were a completely different league of strength of someone in the body realm.

Of course if Osiris was in the mid or even peak third order. He might stand an even chance against someone within the early fourth order, but it would be a hard fought battle.

Focusing back onto the forest, Osiris spotted a lone mid stage second order beast which looked like a lion but a lot bigger was sunbathing on a rock in a clearing of the forest with its eyes closed, not at all afraid of the other beasts which roamed around it.

Osiris took that as being one of the stronger beasts in this part of the forest by its fearlessness and relaxed attitude.

This only made him more 'excited' you could say as he felt the need to test his early stage first order strength out against someone a complete order and sub order ahead of him.

Also by the fact that the attitude the lion had, like it was the only ruler of this world and everything else was below him, made Osiris feel the need to show it its true place.

It was almost as if Osiris's unconscious mind wouldn't allow a being in his presence to be haughty, and that he was the only being that was born to rule all.

Osiris quickly flew down and landed on the edge of the clearing about 100 feet away from the lion, his intentions clear to have a face off against the lion without any sneak attack which Osiris found to be very cowardly.

Ast soon as the ground shook from Osiris's heavy body landing on the grass, the lion perked its large head up and stared with a deadly glare at Osiris.

Feeling the first order aura around Osiris, the lion relaxed if ever so slightly, however its instincts told it that the creature before it could kill it if it didn't take it seriously.

The lion stood up and bared its teeth at Osiris before growling and roaring as loud as it could in a feat to scare Osiris away.

*roar*

However to Osiris, it only provoked him more and a subtle rage boiled up in him and his killing intent flooded out as he as well let out a blood chilling roar which even slightly stunned the lion.

*ROAR*

And Osiris immediately charged at the lion head on, intent on destroying the pride and fearlessness in the lion's eyes before brutally slaughtering it and eating it.

The lion did not fall into a daze like few first order beasts did when Osiris first hatched, and with its rich battle experience it had gone through to make it to the second order, it quickly braced itself for the devastating attack it sensed it was about to face.

When Osiris reached the lion within a couple of moments he pounced upon the lion, and with his sharp claws he dug thim into its thick leather on its side leaving deep wounds that showed the lion's ribcage somewhat.

But the lion being in the second order characterized by its increased toughness led its bones not to be broken and killed immediately like a first order beast would.

It even managed to get off a counterattack as it extended its claws as well and sent a swipe at Osiris's left shoulder, however when it struck, its claws merely slid along his shoulder leaving scratch marks along his pristine black scales and only infuriating Osiris even more by the fact that the beast dared to counter attack.

When the lion saw the mere scratch marks it left on the creature's scales that attacked it, it felt a pang of fear echo in its heart as the threat of death suddenly set in.

However Osiris wouldn't give the lion any time to think as he pinned it down below him with his right claw on its chest and the lion on its back.

The lion failed its claws around as panic began to set in, right before Osiris took the right arm of the lion into his sharp maw and ripped it off of its body.

It's important to note that Osiris did not merely bite it off with his teeth and leave a somewhat even cut.

No, he RIPPED it off as he moderately sunk his teeth into its arm and pulled with all his neck strength he could muster, tearing every flesh, bone, and muscle connecting its arm to the lions body brutally off as a small fountain of blood shot out of the now missing limb and osiris swallowed the arm whole, not bothering to chew in the slightest.

The lion cried out in absolute agony at its arm being ripped from him, and the fear of death captured its soul.

After Osiris swallowed the arm, he took his free left claw and put it over the lion's mouth to stop it from crying out before staring straight into its fearful eyes for a couple of seconds as he saw the fearful and pleading look in its eyes before he took his right claw of of the lions chest and slammed it into the lion's visible rib cage and breaking through it and grabbing the lion's heart, ripping it out and swallowing it.

This time chewing it, all while keeping eye contact with the lion as life left its eyes and its body went limp.

After the battle was over and Osiris swallowed the lion's heart, he then proceeded to bite into the lion in chunks and eventually ate the entire corpse, bones and all, and curled up onto the large rock the lion was laying on before, and began using the newfound mana he earned and cultivated.

Not afraid at all that something would bother him since he just took down the former 'king' of the area.