The Ursus Glacialis was a beast out of a nightmare; its power and ferocity were unparalleled to anything else the group had encountered up to that point.
It came at them with an alarming speed, seemingly concentrating solely on Alexia as it approached.
The mere sight of the enormous Thaid charging toward her was sufficient to stop her in her tracks, and fear immediately took hold of her heart.
The woman fired some mana arrows at the beast, but the thaid had built ice shields to protect itself.
Marcus was about to reach out and grab Alexia when a flash of blue light suddenly engulfed him.
He covered himself with his mana shield and pushed Alexia away to protect her. Alexia had been rescued just in time.
As the creature lunged at them, its massive paw colliding with the mana shield, the impact was strong enough to send Marcus flying.
The force of the blow threw him through the air like a rag doll and caused him to land 20 meters away in a spray of snow.
Marcus grunted in pain as he crashed into the snow, the wind knocked out of him as the shield wasn't completely enough to protect him, and that shattered as soon as the beast's paw made contact.
After that, there was complete silence, and the only sound that could be heard was the rapid intake of breath among the group as they watched Marcus's body slide across the snowy terrain.
Still within the beast's range, Alexia watched in horror as Marcus was thrown back.
Her breath caught in her throat as she felt a tightness in her chest from the pounding of her heart.
The Ursus Glacialis towered over her, its ice-blue eyes shining menacingly in the dim light as if it were enjoying a delicious meal.
The woman was immobile because she had become frozen solid.
"Move!" Fear had gripped the group to paralysis, but Garrett's voice cut through it like a knife.
It was a single, powerful command that snapped them back into action.
The members of the group found that their bodies were responding almost before their minds had finished processing the order, giving the impression that they had just woken up from a nightmare.
Erik responded immediately to Garrett's call by jumping into action. After a brief moment, the ground surface beneath the enormous Ursus Glacialis began to undulate, and soon after, an army of thick vines emerged from it.
They twisted and turned, snaking their way up towards the creature with a life of their own in a matter of seconds.
The thick vines wrapped themselves around the enormous Thaid, entangling its limbs and wrapping themselves around its body.
They squeezed together, digging into the creature's thick fur, which caused it to let out a piercing scream of surprise and rage.
The Ursus Glacialis fought valiantly against its chains, and its enormous strength shone through as it strained against the vines holding it captive.
"I can't keep it trapped for long!" Erik yelled over the growls and roars that the entrapped Ursus Glacialis was making.
His voice was cracking, an unmistakable indication of the enormous effort he was putting forth to keep the creature immobile.
As it struggled against the vines, the beast flailed wildly, and ice and snow flew around. The beast sent ice projectiles to the team, who avoided them as best as possible.
Every twitch and every growl sent a shiver of fear through the group. Even though it was bitterly cold all around them, Erik's face became covered in beads of sweat.
He did not have enough mana to keep the thaid trapped for long, and the neural links for the Plant Master brain crystal power did not significantly reduce the amount of mana required to use the power.
However, using Nathaniel's brain crystal power alone was akin to suicide.
Even though he had more neural links than before, they were not enough to allow him to compete on an even playing field with a beast with such strong brain crystal power and 800 energy points without using multiple powers simultaneously.
At the same time, he couldn't use his other powers in front of the group, or that would create an even more complex situation if they managed to survive, and he doubted that even if he did so, it would be enough.
The most effective method would be to increase his strength by utilizing the power of the Xeridon Anteris brain crystal; however, the more strength he gained and the more mana he would consume.
At best, he could fight the monster on equal ground in terms of strength; however, the beast possessed an elemental brain crystal power that enabled him to attack from a greater distance and fight melee against a beast already that strong, plus its power would be difficult.
His hands trembled slightly as he focused all his energy on maintaining his hold over the beast.
His eyes, usually full of life and determination, were filled with apprehension and intense concentration.
Holding the beast at bay, he felt his mana ebbing away, and each passing second seemed like an eternity.
On the other hand, he was aware that he could not fail. Not right now. He needed to buy the team time to give them a chance.
For the time being, his willpower was the only thing keeping them safe from the dangerous Ursus Glacialis.
As Erik kept the beast restrained, the others didn't hesitate. Ava rushed towards Marcus to see if he was still alive; Garrett, meanwhile, was at the beast's in an instant, attacking it in a vain attempt to redirect its focus on him and wounding it now that it was trapped.
He channeled mana through his neural links and coiled his blade in the sharp wind, increasing its attack power significantly.
Alexia sprang to her feet with lightning speed and focused on the enormous beast.
The atmosphere appeared still as she conjured a sharp arrow made of mana.
The energy throbbed along her arms and fed into the arrow, which now shone with a menacing and brilliant radiance.
She pulled the string back quickly and then let the arrow go, aiming it directly at the beast's eye as she did so.
On the other hand, the Ursus Glacialis, demonstrating its mastery over its cryomancy abilities, quickly conjured an ice shield to protect itself.
The arrow penetrated the shield, causing ice fragments to fly off in all directions. The beast struck back almost immediately after it was provoked.
A swift motion of its paw sent a volley of long shards that resembled icicles hurtling through the air, each one a lethal projectile directed at Alexia.
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