In barely a second, Jenny’s face would be pierced. The tip would most likely stab her eyeballs, drawing immense amounts of blood before eventually, piercing her head and digging into her brain.
Jenny’s eyes turned bloodshot, faced with a decision that concerned her life.
‘I guess it’s time,’ she muttered internally. ‘I was planning on saving it for later since I can’t use it for long, or multiple times. But it seems I am left with no choice if this dumbass bear won’t relent.’
Feeling a sense of anger, Jenny suddenly strained her heart, forcefully increasing her already concerning heart rate while circulating her mana circuits in a certain, predetermined rhythm and pattern.
She searched her mind, thinking of the concept of Yin.
The receptivity, passivity, and darkness. The cold and emptiness. The concept of Earthly Chi is merging oneself with the Earth, the mortal realm. To embrace the laws around one, and to focus on the concept of Yin.
‘Barely a second left,’ thought Jenny, her forehead drowning in sweat. Through a few techniques, she could quicken her thoughts to a superhuman level, but using it for an extended period of time was detrimental.
Boom!
A natural, glowing, emerald aura escaped Jenny’s body, encompassing the entirety of her physical existence in a seemingly refreshing coating. However, despite the external appearance, Jenny could feel her body freeze.
‘It’s cold.’
The thought lingered in her mind as her body moved subconsciously, attempting to shield itself from the approaching attack. Blue veins bulged from her body, indicating the sheer cold she was enduring.
‘It’ll stay like this until I can figure out how to use Yang Energy,’ thought Jenny, her body shivering as she extended her fist. The pillar shattered on impact due to Jenny’s cold, hard body, but it wasn’t without backlash.
Jenny’s hardened skin seemed to have shattered a bit, like the rusting of paint or the breaking of white chocolate. An intense pain rushed across her body, forcing vomit out of her body. This was the backlash of using Earth Chi.
Blood gushed out of her fist, but she couldn’t relent.
Without offering a chance to balance herself, the bear swung its claws, causing a blizzard to arise. Snow bullets and ice shards formed, while a tornado of chills brewed silently, blowing harsh winds.
The bear was immune to the cold due to its thick fur. However, Jenny could not survive such harsh conditions and was restricted greatly.
Although the bear’s attacks were not flashy, they held great power within. 𝑖𝘳𝑎.𝒸ℴ𝘮
‘Fire spells’ efficiency will be low if I use them while under the influence of Earth Chi,’ thought Jenny, rationalizing herself while maintaining a clear mind. However, that was ‘somewhat’ difficult, considering her body was literally breaking down.
Jenny rushed forward, slicing away the cold using solely her blade and Earth Chi. Her body burst into intense pain yet again, but she learned to ignore such distractions and hindrances through training.
‘I should be able to unlock Sword Aura soon if I devote myself to swordsmanship,’ thought Jenny in surprise. It seemed her talent was quite impressive.
The blizzard was neutralized within seconds, while the snow bullets and ice shards were evaded skillfully. Jenny thrust Nightshade towards the bear’s face, but an ice barrier prevented her from breaking through.
Crack!
The ice barrier shattered, flinging shards in all directions. Jenny’s eyes glowed an emerald hue, while her body suddenly entered a state of no distractions… Similar to the State Of Mushin, but much inferior.
She could still retain her thoughts, even though her body was practically moving subconsciously.
She swung Nightshade, exchanging blows with the bear as they fought skillfully, engaging in close combat while flinging spells simultaneously. ‘This bear has a dual affinity. It might get troublesome if he uses the snow to its full potential.’
‘We are of the same affinity, somewhat.’
‘So, it’s better to simply overpower it, rather than opting for a less violent approach. I cannot harness any natural advantages, other than perhaps intelligence.’
‘Still, the bear isn’t completely dumb.’
Through several months of gruesome training, Jenny’s mind was fortified beyond belief, to the point where it was difficult to hinder her train of thought. Defeating Jenny mentally had become much more difficult.
Jenny coated Nightshade with Yin Qi, rushing forward as she forged several blade waves that shot in the bear’s general direction, threatening to slice his overly thick hide. The bear extended its claw as iridescent particles gathered atop it.
Jenny’s eyes narrowed in wariness, her gaze darting from place to place in an attempt to scour the nearby area. Noticing that the bear hadn’t conjured some unknown phenomenon, she released a sigh of relief before continuing to unleash a barrage of strikes, trying to overwhelm her foe.
‘I don’t have much time left,’ thought Jenny, clenching her teeth while maintaining a stoic expression.
Her blood was on the cusp of freezing, while an unknown sense of rigidity assaulted her, disallowing her from stretching her limbs. It was as if with each passing second, her body would be frozen more and more.
As if she were to be trapped in an eternal layer of ice.
‘I need to come up with a counter for this detriment,’ Jenny muttered internally, cursing at herself while exchanging blows with the bear, awaiting the moment it decided to release a destructive strike.
She did not have to wait long.
Roar!
A deafening roar escaped the bear’s snout, following the violent shaking of the ground beneath as it seemingly cowered in fear. Debris flew in all directions, while a violent storm of raging winds brewed.
Jenny’s gaze hardened, and her hands itched as she prepared. Spreading Yin Qi into the atmosphere to gain an atmospheric advantage, Jenny condensed most of her energy into Nightshade.
‘As soon as that big, fat, thing releases its attack, I’ll follow up.’
That was her grand plan.
Suddenly, a spherical source of energy condensed near the bear’s snout, sucking in all the power from the surroundings, including Jenny’s Yin Qi.
‘What…’
Suddenly, Jenny felt a spine-chilling cold.