The crack of bone echoed out, sharp and ugly, followed by a low grunt that Gavalich tried hard to keep in.
It didn't work.
The pain leaked through anyway.
'shit…! They should have given me the pain-cancelling ring… not this,' Gavalich thought, his mind tightening as the pain surged again.
It started small.
White fur pushed through his skin in patches, rough at first, scattered across his arms and shoulders.
Then it spread.
Fast.
The patches connected, thickening, covering more of his body as the change forced its way through.
Then came the bones.
They shifted.
Cracked.
Moved out of place and snapped back into something new.
His spine bent slightly, then stretched. His shoulders widened. His neck jerked from side to side as the structure beneath his skin reshaped itself with a series of heavy cracks.
His vision flickered.
For a second, it blurred.
Then his eyes changed.
Color deepened. Focus sharpened.
The world looked different.
Lower.
Sharper.
Hunger edged into the corners of his senses.
His body grew larger. Taller. Muscles expanded under his skin, pushing against his clothes. For a moment, it looked like the fabric would tear apart completely.
But it didn't.
The material stretched.
Held.
The Wyndham outfit adapted, clinging tightly but not breaking, adjusting to his new size like it was made for this exact purpose.
Still—
The pain didn't stop.
It dragged on.
Every second felt longer than it should.
'Why is this taking so long…?'
To Gavalich, it felt endless.
Like his body refused to settle.
Like it wanted to keep breaking before it rebuilt.
Then—
It stopped.
Just like that.
The pain cut off, leaving behind a heavy, burning ache.
Standing there now was no longer just a man.
A full werebear stood in his place.
Massive. Covered in thick white fur. Breath heavy, shoulders rising and falling as he adjusted to the new weight of his body.
To Gavalich, it had been hell.
Slow. Painful. Dragging.
But to Clifford—
It was something else entirely.
Quick.
Clean.
From where he stood, the whole transformation had taken less than five seconds.
And now—
He had a werebear on his side.
Clifford felt it the moment the transformation settled.
The link between him and Gavalich sharpened.
Clear. Active.
Through it, he could sense the change. The weight. The surge.
'This form… it's going to burn through his qi fast,' Clifford thought, eyes narrowing slightly.
He didn't look worried.
'Good thing I'm here.'
Energy flowed steady through the link, ready to be pulled, redirected, fed where needed.
In front of them, the remaining werebears didn't hesitate.
They didn't care that Gavalich now looked like one of them.
That didn't matter.
They could feel it.
The hostility.
The intent.
And that was enough.
Gavalich moved first.
No hesitation.
He pushed off the ground, his new body reacting instantly. The snow under his feet barely slowed him down. If anything, it felt lighter now.
Familiar.
Natural.
His speed spiked.
In a blink, he closed the distance.
The werebears reacted.
They lunged forward at the same time, claws out, jaws wide.
But Gavalich was already in.
He didn't stop.
He went straight for one.
His claws swung first.
They tore across the werebear's thick hide, dragging deep lines across its body. Not clean cuts, but enough to bite in.
Then he followed through.
His snout shot forward.
His jaws opened wide—
And snapped shut around the werebear's neck.
Crunch.
The force was heavy. Raw. He locked down hard, refusing to let go.
The werebear struggled immediately, its body thrashing, claws digging into Gavalich's side as it tried to break free.
Gavalich didn't release.
He drove forward instead.
Using his weight, he slammed the beast down into the snow.
Hard.
The ground sank slightly under the impact.
Blood spilled out from the bite, thick and dark, staining the white surface as it poured from the wound.
The werebear roared, its movements growing more frantic.
Still—
Gavalich held on.
Tighter.
Stronger.
He was overpowering it.
And there was a reason for that.
Gavalich was already a stage four warrior. Even now, in this form, that fact had not changed. The difference was clear though. All his qi was being drained just to hold the transformation together. No techniques. No refined control. Just raw survival.
But strength… strength was still there.
That part could not be taken away from him.
His body moved on instinct. Heavy. Brutal. Direct.
The werebear form added weight to every movement. Power layered on power. Muscle on muscle. It wasn't clean fighting. It wasn't skilled either. It was force meeting force.
And right now, that was enough.
More than enough to crush a single werebear.
But this wasn't a fair fight.
There were too many.
They closed in from every side. No hesitation. No fear. Just hunger and rage.
Then—
Bite.
Pain shot through his side.
Another one latched onto his arm. Teeth digging deep. Flesh tearing.
Another hit his back.
Gavalich's body jerked.
"ARHROAR…!!"
The roar ripped out of him. Loud. raw. angry.
He let go of the first werebear instantly. No time to hold it down anymore.
He twisted.
Fast.
His body spun with force, dragging the one on his side along with him. Snow kicked up around his feet.
His claw shot out.
Slash.
Then another.
Two clean hits.
The werebear on his leg jerked back, releasing its bite with a pained growl.
No pause.
Gavalich moved again.
His leg drove forward.
Kick.
A heavy one.
It landed hard against the werebear's chest.
The impact sent it tumbling across the snow, rolling once… twice… before crashing to a stop.
But it still wasn't over.
Not even close.
Weight dropped on his back.
Another one.
Its jaws clamped down on his shoulder.
Deep.
Teeth sank in.
Gavalich's body stiffened.
'Not again,' he thought.
Even though the pain was duller in this form, it was still there. Still sharp enough to matter. Worse, it hit a spot Gavalich knew too well. That same place. That same bite. His body remembered.
For a split second, his movement slowed.
Bad move.
The werebear on his back dug its teeth in deeper.
Gavalich growled low in his throat. He reached back, arm twisting, claws searching for it. He almost had it—
Then the others closed in again.
No breathing room.
Claws raked across his sides.
Bites snapped at his legs.
Another hit his shoulder.
They didn't wait. They didn't think. Just attack after attack, piling pressure on him from every angle.
'shit... come on, Clifford… what are you doing?' he thought.
His hand finally caught something.
Fur.
Skin.
The werebear on his back.
He grabbed it.
Tight.
Muscles bulged as he started to pull it off—
Then—
Snap.
Another set of jaws clamped onto his arm.
Hard.
The force yanked his hand sideways, dragging both his arm and the werebear he was holding along with it.
"ARHH!"
The sound tore out of him, half roar, half pain.
Gavalich planted his feet.
He pulled back.
Harder.
Strength against strength.
The ground beneath him cracked slightly under the pressure.
He dragged the werebear biting his arm closer instead.
Closer.
Closer.
He was overpowering it.
Completely.
But the moment didn't last.
Another werebear lunged in.
Its jaws slammed right into the center of his arm.
Deep.
"ROAR!"
It was a powerful roar.
Gavalich's body tensed. Not wild this time. Focused.
His free hand clenched into a fist, not a claw.
Then—
Bang.
He drove it straight down.
The punch landed on the werebear's head.
Hard.
The skull jerked from the impact. Its jaws snapped open instantly, releasing his arm. The pressure vanished for a brief second, but not completely.
The one on his wrist was still there.
Still biting.
Still pulling.
Gavalich didn't fight it.
He let it pull him.
Forward.
His weight shifted. His footing gave way on purpose this time.
They went down together.
Snow burst around them as they hit the ground.
But Gavalich was already moving.
He opened his jaws wide.
Then bit down.
Right into the werebear's snout.
Deep.
His teeth sank in without hesitation. Flesh gave way. Bone resisted, then cracked slightly under pressure.
Dark red blood flooded into his mouth.
Hot.
Thick.
The werebear thrashed.
Then—
It let go.
Its grip on his wrist broke.
Gavalich didn't waste that moment.
His hand shot back immediately.
He grabbed the one still on his back.
That one hadn't moved. Still latched on. Still biting into his thick neck, trying to tear through muscle.
But now Gavalich had it.
Firm.
Locked.
And in that instant, something clicked.
A small detail.
Easy to miss.
But not to him.
'your bite… it's weaker,' Gavalich noticed.