Immortal Ice Empress: Path to Vengeance

The sun was now setting, casting an orange hue across the sky, as Elenei stood before a massive Rank 5 beast, a Terracore Goliath Bear.

'An Earth-Grade Bloodline, huh?' Elenei mused as she stared at the waking beast. 'Now, this might give me a challenge!'

She couldn't help but become excited at the thought of facing a powerful foe, one that might force her to go all out!

Roused from its slumber, the Terracore Goliath Bear slowly stood up on its hind legs, reaching a height of over 5 meters tall!

The Terracore Goliath Bear's eyes glowed with an eerie yellow light, and it emitted a low growl, warning Elenei of the imminent battle.

However, she couldn't help but feel excitement surging through her veins.

Flapping her wings, Elenei shot up to a height just above the bear's head and looked down at it arrogantly.

Her gaze seemed to say, 'What? Do you really think that just because you're big, you deserve to look down on me like that?'

Roused by the arrogance of the small creature before it, the Terracore Goliath Bear lifted its head and released a thunderous roar.

"ROOOOOOOOAAAAR!"

Elenei covered her ears with her wings, her gaze filled with irritation.

'Was that really necessary?'

With a powerful charge, the Terracore Goliath Bear lunged at Elenei, its massive paws raised, ready to strike. Elenei, unafraid and ready to test her limits, coiled her body and prepared to meet her opponent head-on.

The two creatures clashed, their powerful strikes sending shockwaves rippling through the ground. However, the bear's paw slammed into Elenei's entire body, sending her crashing into the ground!

Due to the size difference and weight behind its attack, the bear was actually able to come out on top of the exchange.

Looking down, it glanced at Elenei arrogantly before letting out another roar.

After the dust cleared, Elenei shot up from the ground, uninjured. Besides a few scrapes on her scales and some ruffled feathers, she was fine.

'You think you're the only one with power behind your attacks?' Elenei thought, a fierce grin spreading across her face. She prepared to strike by launching herself into the air with a powerful beat of her wings.

The Terracore Goliath Bear tracked her movements, its eyes narrowing as it calculated her trajectory. Elenei, sensing the bear's intention, adjusted her flight path, unpredictably darting from side to side, making it difficult for the bear to predict her movements.

With a burst of speed, Elenei charged toward the Terracore Goliath Bear from above, her talons extended and ready to strike. The bear, reacting quickly, swiped at her with its massive paw, attempting to deflect her attack. However, Elenei was prepared for this and dodged the bear's counter, stabbing her talons into its shoulder, leaving deep gashes in its flesh.

Ripping chunks of flesh out as she hopped off its body, the Terracore Goliath Bear roared in pain, swiping at Elenei in a blind fury.

Elenei swiftly retreated to the sky, narrowly avoiding the bear's frenzied attacks.

Narrowing her eyes, Elenei stared at the wound on its should, frowning slightly.

'I only caused such a small wound after using so much power? Is it because of its size, or is its bloodline better than I originally thought?'

From their initial clash, she could tell that while the bear might be a bit stronger than her, it wasn't by much. However, if that was the case, landing such a clean blow should've done more damage.

'It must be because of the size difference.' Elenei thought, remembering the times she watched those Immortal Dragons fight.

Some of them were so large that they were about the same size as a small city! Naturally, they wouldn't care about a few scrapes. In fact, even if they lost their tail, it hardly affected them.

Just their scales were over 2 meters thick. Thus, unless someone of considerable size and power approached them, everyone else was nothing more than an ant.

Now, Elenei understood what it meant to be that ant facing a giant.

'Tsk! And to think some people think size doesn't matter. What a bunch of liars!' She grumbled.

While Elenei was in the air, annoyed, the bear was busy roaring in frustration! It kept trying to hit Elenei, but she was too high up! Left with no other choice, it let out a low growl before slamming its front paws on the ground, causing it to split open!

Massive rock pillars shot up toward Elenei, attempting to impale her in mid-air, but Elenei quickly regained her senses. She dodged the rock pillars with incredible agility, her body weaving through the deadly obstacles as if she had anticipated their appearance.

As the rock pillars continued to rise, Elenei realized that the bear's Earth-Grade Bloodline wasn't just about its physical prowess but also about manipulating the earth itself.

Using her superior speed, Elenei swooped down toward the bear, dodging the remaining rock pillars with ease. She decided to target the beast's legs, aiming to limit its mobility and take away its ability to summon more earth attacks.

Elenei tucked her wings in as she neared the ground, increasing her speed even further. Just before she reached the bear, she extended her talons, slashing at the tendons in its hind legs with lethal precision. The Terracore Goliath Bear roared in agony as its legs buckled, forcing it to its knees.

Elenei didn't waste any time, immediately darting back into the sky to avoid any potential counterattacks. She watched as the bear struggled to regain its footing, its legs trembling under its enormous weight.

'Size might matter, but it also has its drawbacks,' Elenei smirked. She knew she had the upper hand with the bear's limited mobility. Circling around the beast, she looked for another opportunity to attack.

Once she found another opening, she dived back down, resuming her hit-and-run techniques. It was already a disgrace that such a beast had actually swatted her out of the sky like a fly. She wasn't going to allow such a thing to happen again.

However, the bear wasn't like the other trash she faced. It was intelligent to know its life was on the line and to try and come up with a counter.

It swung its meaty paws at Elenei, hoping to send her flying, but its movements were too compared to hers.

Ripping out more chunks of flesh, Elenei shot back into the sky before repeating this process.

Their battle was a blur of fur, scales, and claws as they darted across the ground, each trying to land a decisive blow on the other. Elenei's previous opponents had been unable to withstand her power, but this Terracore Goliath Bear was proving to be a much more challenging adversary.

As they fought, the Terracore Goliath Bear's Earth-Grade Bloodline came into play, manipulating the earth below to its advantage. Chunks of rock covered its back and feet, giving it an additional layer of protection.

With a guttural growl, the bear stomped on the ground, sending a wave of tremors in Elenei's direction. Caught off guard, Elenei struggled to maintain her balance as the earth beneath her shook violently. Seizing the opportunity, the bear charged at her, moving faster than she had anticipated.

Elenei barely had time to react, dodging the bear's attack by a hair's breadth. Her heart pounded in her chest as she realized that the bear was adapting to her tactics. She needed to come up with a new plan.

As she soared through the air, a thought struck her. 'What if I use its strength against itself?'

She knew the Terracore Goliath Bear relied heavily on its earth manipulation abilities. If she could find a way to disrupt its control, she could gain the upper hand.

Elenei darted toward the bear again, this time with a different goal. She aimed for its massive paws, the source of its earth manipulation power. She had to be careful, though; one wrong move and she could be crushed under its weight.

The bear sensed her intentions as she closed in and swiped at her with its clawed paw. Elenei, anticipating the attack, evaded it and dove straight for the other paw. Her talons pierced the bear's flesh, causing it to roar in pain.

The Terracore Goliath Bear reared up on its hind legs, attempting to slam Elenei into the ground with its full weight. However, Elenei was prepared for this. She flapped her wings and shot upward, narrowly escaping the bear's crushing force.

The ground beneath the bear shattered upon impact, and the shockwave sent debris flying in every direction. With its connection to the earth temporarily severed, the bear's earth manipulation abilities were disrupted, just as Elenei had hoped.

Seizing the opportunity, Elenei swooped down and attacked relentlessly, her talons tearing through the bear's flesh, targeting its most vulnerable spots. The bear, unable to defend itself effectively without its earth manipulation powers, suffered one devastating blow after another.

Finally, with a deep gash across its throat, the Terracore Goliath Bear collapsed to the ground, defeated. Its once terrifying roars were now reduced to weak, labored wheezes as it took its last breaths.

Elenei hovered above the fallen beast, her chest heaving from the intense battle. Despite the danger she had faced, she couldn't help but feel a sense of exhilaration. For the first time in a long time, she had encountered an opponent who had truly tested her limits.

However, she had no intention of letting the bear recover. Perhaps it was an effect of staying with Mira too long, but she preferred her prey dead over alive.

Descending onto the beast, she extended her claws and jammed them into the bear's neck, causing it to wail in pain. But Elenei ignored its cries and began tearing through its skin, digging her way into its neck.

Eventually, she reached its spine and promptly shattered it, killing the beast instantly.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, Elenei looked down at the lifeless form of the Terracore Goliath Bear.

'You should feel honored to die by my hands, for it is your blood that shall forge the stepping stones on my ascent to the pinnacle of cultivation.'

Then, without hesitation, she used her beak to pluck out a chunk of flesh and gobbled it down, instantly feeling a wave of vitality and Qi fill her body.