So I bet you all are wondering how our furry little friend suddenly found a shiv lodged in its eye? I bet the bear is curious too, since it's remaining eye is glaring at me with uncertainty.
Well, the answer is rather simple (if a bit boring). I simply utilized the unique ability of my cultivation technique, Universe in a Sleeve. That's right, I killed Avery for a reason, not just because he was an asshole.
While we were traveling the Tundra for those three days, I had already planned to offer someone as a sacrifice to enhance my cultivation. I'm very aware of my limits in terms of talent, so me killing someone wasn't really up for debate.
So I spent my time analyzing my companions, and came to the conclusion that Avery was the most suitable choice given the circumstances. The Captain was my ticket out of here, Carolyn was a paranoid bitch, and Bors was heavier than me by at least 10 weight classes. That left Lissa and Avery to choose from, and since Avery was a drunk he was probably the easiest to subdue.
And the results showed that my decision was correct, as I had managed to reach the first layer of my cultivation technique, and even managed to get a unique ability out of it. As for the ability, it's exactly what it sounds like.
Spatial storage in my (aura) sleeves. Sounds simple, but go a step deeper and you'll realize how terrifying this ability really is. Granted, currently the space inside is only equal to that of a cubic square meter, but it'll get bigger (( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ).
There are also a few limitations, such as not being able to take in living things, the total item input radius being 1 meter, and an inability to displace occupied space with released items.
Now, how does me having dimensional storage capabilities equate to a bear with with a bleeding eye socket? Simple. When people think of spatial storage, most choose to focus solely on the conditions of the items themselves or the amount of storage space, neglecting factors influenced by the item itself.
For example, say I throw a knife, then while it is in flight store it within my spatial storage. Where did the velocity go? Simple. it went into the storage as well. So if the item was taken in while in flight, once it is released it will still be in flight.
So I release the shiv while it is under the effects of velocity, thus making a flying projectile. So how come the bear's Astral Aura barrier didn't deflect it? The reason is rather obvious, that being the space between the Astral Aura barrier and the bear's fleshly body.
To sum it up, I got within 1 meter of the bear, then released a flying projectile from my storage space between the Astral Aura Barrier and the bear's eye, thus circumventing its defense.
Whew, that was a long tangent. Back to our current situation, the bear and I are both staring each other down. The bear is especially cautious, as its probably realized that unlike the rest of the humans here I actually have the ability to injure it. As for me, I'm just trying to recuperate.
I eventually choose to break the stalemate, taking a deep breath before launching a second projectile at the bear...only for it to miss. Realizing that I may have exhausted all of my tricks, the bear begins barreling forward again, and it takes all of my focus just to avoid getting hit by its powerful paws.
Sigh, I really don't want to prolong this fight any longer than I have to. Honestly speaking, that dagger trick was my trump card, and I was really hoping that it would pierce the thing's brain. No such luck I'm afraid. Which means that I really only have two options, wait for the bear to bleed out (super unlikely), or run. The latter is the best choice, but where would I find a distraction-
"What are you doing, hurry up and kill that thing!" Yelled a perfectly good distraction, who also happens to be named Carolyn. She followed up her yell with a hail of bullets, diverting even more attention away from me. Ah, this just keeps getting better and better.
While the bear turns towards the girl who redefined the word trigger happy, I pick up Avery's machine gun and place it in my storage, then immediately begin running towards the Captain. Before she can protest, I pick her up like a sack of potatoes and throw her over my shoulder. I then start sprinting away from Carolyn, who has just now realized that maybe antagonizing a bulletproof 450 kg beast is not the best idea.
As we run I immediately begin absorbing Spiritual Energy from the surroundings, slightly enhancing my body's physical capabilities. This is known as "inner energy," and is a skill universal to all cultivation techniques. Although the enhancement can't be considered significant (I can't block a bullet or do crazy sh*t like that), increasing my body's condition to the level of an Olympic athlete is no problem, at least for a few minutes.
This skill also happens to be how I was initially able to dodge the bear's attacks, although before then I was focusing on stamina. But now, I was exhausting as much inner energy as I could to quickly sprint away from this situation.
I hear a few screams behind me and the Captain starts banging on my back with her fists, so I come to the logical conclusion that things are not going well for Lissa and Carolyn. So sad, but that's life. Anyways, back to running.
We manage to make it a pretty far distance before the bear notices that we're gone, and by the time it begins to give chase we've already gotten a significant leg up on it. It pursues us for a while, but eating all that human meat must have caused it to get bloated or something since it eventually gives up. Which is great, since my inner energy has just about run out.
I run a few more kilometers just to make sure, then finally relax. Pausing to catch my breath, I look around and realize that we have no idea where we are. I glance at the Captain, who seems to have fainted from shock. Or exhaustion. Probably both. Well she won't be any help. Letting out a sigh, I take a second glance of the environment, then begin digging up ice. Might as well make an igloo while I'm at it.