The Wakandan temple looked completely different in style from the technologically advanced skyscrapers above ground.
Located deep beneath the Wakandan royal city, T'Challa had led Venom-Robin through a game of hide-and-seek, sneaking all the way through the sewers before finally arriving.
The temple was constructed from several massive stones and looked like a relic from ancient times. Crude, rough patterns were etched across them, all converging directly above the temple to form the silhouette of a black panther.
"This is the safest place in all of Wakanda—bar none," T'Challa said to Venom-Robin as he stood before the Wakandan Ancestral Temple. "You don't need to stay on edge anymore."
Venom-Robin yawned and waved his hand, urging T'Challa to hurry up and speak with the ancestral spirits, and eat whatever damn herb it took to become the Black Panther.
Looking at the cynical, worldly Venom-Robin, T'Challa shook his head without a word. Even now, he couldn't quite figure out the relationship between Batman and Robin.
Partners? Mentor and protégé? Pets?
But since Batman had sent Robin to protect him before he could become the Black Panther, it meant Robin had the capability, and Batman trusted him enough.
Realizing there was no point in overthinking it, T'Challa stepped forward and entered the Wakandan temple.
The spirit of his deceased father, T'Chaka, had already been waiting within the temple for a long time.
Venom-Robin rubbed his eyes. Seeing T'Challa vanish the exact moment he stepped into the temple, he quickly rushed forward in three quick strides to see where T'Challa had gone.
But the moment Robin set foot inside, the previously mundane-looking temple instantly erupted with a purple mist. The mist gently lifted Venom-Robin's body and deposited him back outside the temple.
Refusing to give up, Robin leaped toward the temple again. But no matter how many times he tried, the purple mist inside the temple kept barring his way.
After enough attempts, Robin could vaguely discern that the so-called purple mist seemed to be just a part of a much larger entity.
Stepping back far enough to get a proper look, Venom-Robin finally realized that it was unmistakably a massive black panther crouched atop the temple. The purple mist that kept lifting him up and placing him outside was actually its paws.
Around its body, the purple mist was so dense it made its form look almost solid black, so much so that Venom-Robin couldn't even see it without looking closely.
"Hey, big cat," Venom-Robin called out to the massive black panther, looking up with his hands on his hips. "Where's T'Challa? The guy who just walked in."
The massive black panther gave Robin a lazy glance and completely ignored him.
"You don't understand English? Let me try another language." Venom-Robin switched to French. "Where did T'Challa disappear to? Does this temple lead somewhere else?"
The massive black panther still ignored Robin. However, seemingly a bit annoyed by the little pest, its long, purple panther tail silently descended from atop the temple, wrapped around Venom-Robin, and tossed him away.
"If you keep doing that, I'll call the old Batman over to beat you up," Robin threatened, bringing out his backer.
But the massive black panther remained lazily perched atop the temple, offering absolutely no response to Robin's words.
Venom-Robin sat down on the ground with a plop, looking rather frustrated as he stared intently at the massive black panther.
He noticed that the creature seemed to be some sort of "heroic spirit" guarding the Wakandan temple, rather than the Panther God itself.
Even so, when the massive black panther had wrapped its tail around him earlier, that immense yet gentle force was something even Robin's eighty tons of strength couldn't resist.
"Big cat, how long until T'Challa comes out?"
"Big cat, say something!"
"Did you never go to school?"
Learning from his previous experience, Venom-Robin played it smart this time, standing dozens of meters away from the temple as he asked his questions idly.
It wasn't until Venom-Robin casually asked, "Big cat, how long have you been guarding this place?" that the massive black panther suddenly moved.
It leaped gracefully down from the top of the temple, blocking the entrance with its colossal body.
Its tail lashed against the ground beat by beat, sharp claws snapping out from its paws as it glared intently in Venom-Robin's direction like a cat with its fur standing on end.
"You wanna fight?" Venom-Robin grew excited instantly, scrambling up from the ground.
At the same time, Venom-Robin heard Batman's voice coming through the encrypted comms:
"The Panther God is in danger!"
Before Venom-Robin had any time to think, a voice that sounded as sweet as dripping honey echoed from behind him:
"Little boy, this is no place for you to hang around."
Before the words could even fade, Venom-Robin's vision went black, and everything around him plunged into darkness.
But soon, in less than a second, the darkness vanished rapidly. Venom-Robin could once again clearly see the shimmering purple mist rising from the massive black panther, as well as the flames erupting around the temple.
"Hmm?"
The female voice gasped in mild confusion. The next second, the owner of the voice materialized right in front of Robin—it was Amora the Enchantress, the very same person who had just pulled Batman into an illusion.
The Enchantress didn't know why she couldn't pull this little black monster into an illusion, but as one of Asgard's top mages, her arsenal consisted of far more than just casting illusions.
"Little guy, look into my eyes," the Enchantress murmured, crouching down in front of Venom-Robin and cupping his face in both hands.
Robin stared blankly into those beautiful green eyes, his crimson tongue lolling out of his mouth, completely at the Enchantress's mercy.
"Roar!"
The massive purple black panther roared, leaping forward to pounce at the Enchantress.
Its long fangs gleamed with a purple light; there was no doubt that a single bite would tear the Enchantress in half.
When it was a mere meter or two away from the Enchantress, the witch freed one of the hands cupping Venom-Robin's face and lightly sliced her slender, pale finger through the air.
A tear appeared in the air following the Enchantress's motion. A flash of sharp, cold steel pierced through from the other side of the rift, hacking straight toward the massive black panther's head.
It was unmistakably a massive double-bitted battleaxe!
Mid-air, the massive black panther forcefully twisted its body to change direction, ensuring the giant axe only sliced through its tail instead of its head.
Even so, as its long purple tail brushed against the axe blade, it severed on the spot, dissolving into a cloud of purple mist.
The owner of the double-bitted axe ripped through the rift in the air, his eyes filled with a savage, tyrannical aura as he glared fixedly at the massive black panther.
He wore dark green armor, and his hairstyle sat somewhere between bald and not bald—with two strips of closely cropped hair running tight against his scalp like axe blades.
Standing a full two meters tall, he shouldered the giant axe after failing to finish off the massive black panther in one blow, looming there like a titan.
"Executioner, destroy it," the Enchantress said, turning her head toward the newcomer.
Hearing the Enchantress's command, the Executioner immediately turned to look at her. A sycophantic smile broke across his face as he spoke in a practically groveling tone:
"My Amora, I would prefer you to call me by my name, Skurge, rather than the cold title of Executioner."
"Very well, my dear Skurge. Hurry along," the Enchantress replied with an arched eyebrow, her voice soft and sweet.
"I would do anything for you, Amora," the Executioner fawned. Turning back around, his expression instantly transformed. With a murderous aura skyrocketing in his eyes, he leaped forward and lunged to slaughter the massive black panther.
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