The war ursa continued to smile madly, baring its bloody fangs at Findlay. His weapon was now history, what was he supposed to fight it with now? That ice spike served only good at further damaging already mangled flesh. Useless against bone and quite likely its resilient fur.
Findlay clenched his teeth and fists drawing blood from his fingers. He was truly enraged by the loss of his weapon but not because he was powerless without it but for sentimental reasons. That weapon was with him since creation and went through an evolution the same time he did, there was a strong bond between the two. He was emotional but unfortunately this was neither the time nor the place.
"huuuuuu" Findlay let out a restrained breath, calming his emotions before bringing up the dungeon menu. The war ursa had given him a moments reprieve so as to gloat; he'd be stupid to not utilise such a time effectively.
Though he lacked a spatial ring like Frost and Maya he had been granted the ability to retrieve things form the dungeon vault. With a few clicks a brand new battle axe roughly equal in quality and materials as the one he just lost appeared in his hands.
The process of retrieval was slower than a spatial ring and required him to use the dungeon menu thus he couldn't retrieve his spare axe mid-flight thus he had to use the ice spike earlier.
Don!
The butt of the heavy axe crashed against the ground. It was in pristine condition and at least 20% heavier than his last one. A little harder to wield but should suit his current needs perfectly. Findlay needed to breach the gap between adept and advanced axe mastery after all.
A less wieldy weapon should force him to understand the connection between him and his weapon that much more, a risk he was willing to take.
Frost had prepared a few battle axes for him, same with Khuno but with halberds. Each of which had slight differences i.e. different material makeup or weight that would suit different situations. A heavier axe in this case though slower to attack would contain more force, something that was clearly needed if he wished to cleave through the war ursa's bones.
The war ursa's gloating swiftly stopped the moment it saw the new axe and heard the heavy don as it crashed against the ground.
"Roaaaaarrr!" It roared in protest before firing off with its long range red claws however given its wounded and maddened state the accuracy wasn't quite as on point. Unfortunately this actually made dodging harder.
Findlay frowned before raising up his axe, it was time to test how it felt in battle.
"[Mountain cleave]" Findlay activated his greatest axe skill covering the weapon in a dense beam of azure energy before slashing downward within immense ferocity.
Smash!
With the added weight and the use of a skill the red claws shattered into pieces, a few fragments passed by Findlay's cheek, leaving minor scratches but with the health potion still in effect these wounds healed almost instantly.
Energy surged out from within Findlay, a light red mist covered his body filling him with intense aggression. His eyes turned a deep shade of blood red similar to the war ursa's and his muscles bulged out with snake like veins. Whereas an azure coloured energy spread out across his axe, forming a dense beam around the blade edge, greatly increasing its sharpness and crushing force.
Findlay used these skills to their upmost, putting in all he had.
As Findlay began cleaving downward time slowed and that nagging feeling returned. He subtly followed the directions given by that feeling and as a result his axe sped up and grew in force. His connection with it seemed to grow more in tune and an invisible wall started to breakdown.
His eyes released a glint along with his axe before he made contact with the ten crossed red claws sent out by the war ursa.
Boooooooommmmmmmmm!
An incredible boom reverberated through the battlefield as the axe and red claws made contact. Plumes of snow were blown away from the surrounding area and many monsters still fighting in the muddy waters couldn't help but turn their heads towards the loud explosion.
There they could see Findlay with his entire body tensed and bulging holding back the ten red claws with his battle axe. The red coloured energy and the azure energy grinded against one another with neither refusing to give in. Their fierce clash sent sparks of energy flowing out and the area around started to twist, the force involved was strong enough to affect the surrounding mana.
Findlay was breathing hard, and his feet were being gradually pushed back but his eyes revealed a mad glint, and a bright smile adorned his lips. He could feel it, the door was breaking down and he could feel the light of knowledge washing over him.
His body felt reinvigorated, and his axe became lighter, the force pressing on him from the red claws no longer felt so terrifying.
'This is advanced mastery.' He had broken through; his gambit had paid off.
Stomp!
With his newfound strength Findlay took a forceful step forward before roaring out and tensing his arm and back muscles even further.
Smash!
The terrifying red claws shattered apart revealing the vulnerable state of the war ursa.
Findlay recalled his battle axe and stared at the war ursa with a cold and calm look in his eyes. The rewards from reaching advanced axe mastery continued to wash over him. He smiled with satisfaction as new knowledge filled his mind.
"With this I should be able to break those bones of yours."