The Panther King was a powerful demon slain by the Inu no Taishō decades ago. The Panther Devas hoped to revive him, but inadvertently sacrificed themselves to bring the demon back to life.
History
The Panther King's original death.
Two centuries prior to the point in the Sengoku period that Kagome broke Inuyasha's seal, the Panther Devas invaded from the west and tried to conquer the lands in the east and subject all demons to their rule. To avoid the abominable effusion of blood — both human and demon alike — the Inu no Taishō and the Panther King dueled one-on-one, with the former soundly defeating the latter to his death.
Role in the Story
The Panther King revived by the Shikon Shards.
Two hundred years later, the Panther King's followers (possibly children, it's somewhat unclear) put into play a plot to bring the Panther King back to life using shards from the Shikon Jewel. They brought his mummified corpse to a secret castle town where they planned to revive him and, from there, finish the war they began long ago.
The Panther King consuming the essences of the Devas.
After awakening from his two-century sleep, the Panther King prepared to devour the villagers to complete his restoration, only to have Inuyasha thwart him from taking his sacrifices. Impatient with their attempts to provide him with "a life and a soul", he killed Karan, Shūran, and Shunran, and devoured their essences greedily as the remaining Tōran (whom he had also tried to kill) watched on in horror. His body restored, the Panther King immediately took on Sesshōmaru and Inuyasha, the sons of his longtime rival, and proved too much for them.
The Panther King fully revived after absorbing the essences of the Devas.
After assaulting Sesshōmaru and putting Inuyasha in his place, the Panther King was undone when Sesshōmaru cleverly used Tenseiga to revive the three Panther Devas whom he had devoured to regain life. When their souls and lives returned to their bodies, the Panther King's power was drained. Inuyasha finished him off with a blow of the Wind Scar and reclaimed the jewel shards from his neck. After he died again, the Panther Devas lost all interest in war and, in light of his betrayal, vengeance on their master's behalf. What happened to his remains after this is never specified, but it's likely that the Panther Devas left its disposal to the villagers.
Powers & Abilities
The Panther King was considered to be a Daiyōkai, and was therefore quite powerful in his own right.
Claw Missiles
- Strength - The Panther King was enormous, and had strength proportionate to one his size, or greater.
- Horns - The Panther King had one horn in the center of his forehead and other such protrusions over his body. He used these to stab and batter his foes to great effect. He was shown to knock Sesshōmaru back quite a distance and actually hurt him in the process.
- Claws - The Panther King had large claws which he used to scratch and gouge his opponents. He could also launch these from his fingertips at great speed and force and generate new ones instantly, making them effective projectile weapons.
- Lightning - The Panther King could generate lightning and shoot it at his opponents. Whether this ability was one of his own or if it came from absorbing Shūran's essence is unknown.
Note: the Panther King had the power of three Shikon Jewel shards following his resurrection, so whatever power they lent to his original abilities is unclear.
Trivia
- The Panther King was one of the few characters in the series to be killed by Tenseiga's life-powers. Others include Sō'unga, and Magatsuhi.
- Despite being revived by his followers the Deva Panthers, he shows no real gratitude or honor, and ends up absorbing all except Tōran's life-forces (showing his ruthless nature).