Even after everything that Andrew had done, the frost wolf still lived. Its once purple eyes now glowing ominously as black veins began to shine darkly and protrude from underneath its fur. Its growl slowly got louder, as its body began swell and grow. Its muscles swelled in a grotesque manner, causing the wolf to look like it was tearing itself.
Seeing this Andrew's eyes narrowed. He had seen this phenomenon before, in fact many times too. It was a skill commonly used by Bosses, monsters who were high ranks among their own brethren, the [Berserk] skill.
This was out of any prediction that Andrew had, a low rank frost wolf this large should already have been a rarity, but one that posses the [Berserk], without being a high rank or a boss is almost unheard of.
Like its name sake when a creature activates the [Berserk] skill, their overall attack power and defense will increase dramatically, in some cases this may be an exponential increase not just twice or thrice.
However, there are two large downsides to such a skill. Firstly, the skill uses the creatures life force or vitality in compensation for its increased strength and defense. That is to say that once the skill ends, the creature will enter a state of vulnerability, where its overall abilities will decrease, and in some severe cases it may even die. Secondly, [Berserk] completely inhibits rational thought, when in such a state, friend or foe isn't discerned, the creature is only filled with an all-encompassing blood lust.
From the current state of the frost wolf, the use of [Berserk] may have most likely been its final attempt at fighting back. Once the skill ends, there was very little chance that it may survive.
This meant one thing for Andrew, it was possible to survive, but without a reliable form of attack, he has to enter a desperate struggle until the [Berserk] skill wears off.
If he dies before that, then it's game over.
The frost wolf had grown to an unprecedented size for a low-rank monster. All of a sudden it opened its jaws and let out an ear splitting howl.
ooooo
The sounds of the howl caused Andrew to grab his own ears as the howl rang out. The howl was so piercing that Andrew felt like his head was about to split apart and slice open.
When the howl finally stopped he could still hear a loud ringing in his ears. Pulling his hands a way from his ears, he found that his eardrums had been ruptured, his ears were bleeding from that howl.
However, there was another issue for Andrew, with his eardrums ruptured, he could barely hear anything, his auditory senses were lost. This would heavily affect Andrew's spatial awareness.
Finally getting a grip, Andrew swapped out his hunting rifle for his knife. Without any ammo the rifle's effectiveness is literally non-existent.
Andrew gripped his knife with his right hand, as his mind flashed through every possible way to survive.
It was too much.
Everything was going out of control, and out of expectations, a highly mutated low-rank frost wolf, one that kept changing and evolving. Andrew realized he couldn't keep up, with his current equipment and skills he had no idea what he needed to do.
No, there was no time.
Stopping his rising panic and steeling himself Andrew prepared himself, he was going to go all in, even if he were to die today, he would take this monster with him.
Andrew put both his hand over his knife, holding it downwards. The frost noticing that he was trying something looked as if it was about to pounce upwards towards him.
Taking a deep breath, Andrew stepped of the branch he was on, and dropped from the tree. Using his fall to build momentum as he fell towards the frost wolf.
The frost wolf in response pounced upwards towards Andrew as he fell. Its jaws opened wide as Andrew met the sight of countless rows of razor sharp teeth, and a jaw that could shatter bones on impact.
At the rate that the situation was changing, the frost wolf would take Andrew out before he could effectively do anything to it.
No if he wanted to have one final struggle against this monster, he had to make a bet.
As both the monster and the human rapidly moved towards each other in midair. Andrew quickly pulled his left hand off the knife leaving only his right hand to hold it. Holding out his now freed left hand in front.
Then in an instant they met.
Crunch
Crack
"AAAAAAHHHHH"
Andrew screamed as he felt pain surge through his entire body. In order to survive this encounter in mid air and hold on, he had chosen to sacrifice one of his arms. Sticking his left arm out, Andrew used his left arm as a buffer, so that the rest of his body wouldn't be bit.
The pain that Andrew felt was not unfamiliar, but without Aether, paired with his human body, it felt like hell. The pain itself was akin to thousands of spikes that went through his arm and tried to electrify him inside out.
However, Andrew didn't let the pain hinder him, instantly as if it was a reaction to his arm being bitten and crushed, Andrew brought down his right hand which held the knife and stabbed it into the injured eye of the frost wolf.
The frost wolf bit down harder, Andrew felt a cold now threatening to spread up his arm, it was being frozen by its bite.
"AAAAHHHHH"
Not willing to give in Andrew twisted his knife in the frost wolfs eye, and tried to push it deeper.
All this happened in the couple seconds when both Andrew and the frost wolf met in mid-air. In an instant both figures began to fall and plummet to the earth. Each figure locked onto the other unwilling to let go of the other, a struggle to the death.
BOOMF
They fell straight into the ground, a dust cloud kicking up from the impact and surrounding their bodies.
As the dust settled and cleared, the figure of a large frost wolf four meters long and two meters tall could be seen laying prone on the ground. It's breathing was slowing down, a final whimper was sounded as the light seemed to die in its lone purple eye.
A struggle, a desperate victory.
The frost wolf had finally died. If one looked at its head, they would notice that the knife that stabbed into its eye had pierced straight through to the skull.
Laying next to the body of frost wolf was the mangled mess that was Andrew. His left bled profusely as puncture wounds from the teeth of the monster had torn it apart. His right arm and left had been twisted and broken from the impact of the fall. His ribs were fractured, his ears were still bleeding and his head had hit the ground hard.
Even in this state if one saw Andrew right now, they would be able to see.
He was smiling.
Ding
[Welcome Blessed One]
[Congratulations for successfully being chosen and breaking you limits]
[Scanning...]
[Asessing Damage...]
[Begining Evolution...]