I Can Only Cultivate In A Game

Reed wiped sweat from his brow and readjusted his stance. "I still have a few tricks up my sleeve."

He activated [Flame Crescent], a powerful horizontal slash imbued with searing flame, and sent it surging toward Victor.

The air exploded with heat as the fiery arc blazed across the stage.

Victor sidestepped smoothly and the flame barely kissed the hem of his shirt.

He retaliated immediately... closing the gap with wind dash.

With a burst of wind, he appeared before Reed in the blink of an eye.

Reed swung high to intercept but Victor had predicted it.

*CLANG!*

Victor raised his blade and parried effortlessly, causing a gust of wind to generate from the impact which rippled outward.

Reed's eyes widened. 'Fuck he's fast!'

Victor's blade then came down in a diagonal arc, crashing into Reed's guard with such force that he was forced back several feet.

He dug his feet into the ground and used both hands to steady his sword while gasping slightly.

"Are you sure you're not a mind reader?" Reed grunted.

Victor smiled faintly. "Nope. Just good instincts."

He could sense the rhythm of Reed's movements.

Not because of magic, or qi sight since Victor didn't even have that.

But his control over qi enhanced his senses to an unnatural level. His breathing matched Reed's, his heartbeat synchronized to the tempo of the battle, and every swing Reed made felt like an echo in a song Victor already knew the lyrics to.

Not to mention that he was way faster than Reed.

Another exchange of blows followed.

Reed fought with determination, chaining [Phantom Step] into [Iron Fang], managing to scrape Victor's shoulder a little but the blade didn't even draw blood.

Victor didn't flinch. Instead, he backed up and exhaled.

"Sorry, Reed," Victor voiced and took a new stance.

His sword chimed softly as green wind-like patterns began to spiral around the blade.

Reed's eyes widened. "What is that—"

Reed didn't recognize this warrior skill... Because it wasn't a warrior skill.

"Gale Strike."

Victor's blade gleamed as wind energy coalesced around it.

The moment he swung forward, a wave of compressed air erupted from the edge.

It was like watching the wrath of a miniature storm. The wind spiraled in a vortex, speeding toward Reed like a beast unleashed.

Reed's eyes narrowed.

He activated [Earthen Anchor], planting himself into the ground and raising his sword defensively.

The attack struck.

*BOOM!*

The entire stage trembled as the wind howled violently.

Dust and debris flew across the field, and spectators in the front row instinctively shielded their faces.

Reed was sent flying backward like a ragdoll. His body flipped midair before crashing into the boundary wall of the arena with a painful thud.

Silence fell.

And then cheers erupted.

"VICTOR!"

"THAT WAS CRAZY!"

"What warrior skill was that?!"

"Bro, Reed got folded!"

Victor stood in the center of the stage, still holding his sword in one hand. He didn't look smug. In fact, he looked… disturbed?

The instructor stepped forward to check on Reed. "He's alright," the man announced while helping the groaning warrior to his feet. "Just a few bruises."

Reed stumbled forward, shaking his head. He looked at Victor with a defeated smirk. "You really didn't hold back, huh?"

Victor reached out and helped him steady himself. "You told me not to."

But internally Victor knew he still held back a lot out of fear. He was scared of seriously injuring his peers especially friends.

Reed laughed and winced. "Yeah, yeah. Remind me never to spar with you again."

The two clasped wrists in a show of brotherhood, and the crowd applauded their sportsmanship.

From the sidelines, Selene watched with a proud smile.

Danny whispered beside her, "Victor is really something else now, huh?"

Selene eyes remained locked on Victor as she replied with a soft hnm. "He's only getting started."

And above, the holographic board updated.

Victor Revenant — Winner.

Only two Warriors remained now.

It would soon be time for the final battle.

The instructors announced a break before the final battle to let the last two warriors catch their breathe.

Spectators swarmed around Victor's seating position bombarding him with questions but no one dared to get close to Elyra.

Her cold gaze was enough to send a thousand demons fleeing.

"You sure you can win against her?" A fellow female warrior questioned from the sides.

"We'll find out," Victor chuckled.

"You will lose terribly sucker," A masculine voice rang out from the west isle as a group of students walked past.

"Derek..." Danny muttered upon recognizing the one leading them.

"He will win!" Selene yelled back.

Derek paused briefly, resulting in all his underlings coming to a stop as well.

"You're delusional if you think he'll win against that monster. Hahaha I would have loved to witness his defeat myself but I have better things to do," Derek stated before resuming his walk out of the arena.

Victor only glanced at him and then chuckled.

"I guess we'll see about that..."

About an hour later, the final match was announced.

"Final Match: Victor Revenant versus Elyra Vorn!"

A hush spread across the crowd before erupting into chaos. Cheers, gasps, murmurs, and frantic whispers echoed across the arena.

The atmosphere was charged with anticipation as two of the strongest warrior competitors stepped forward.

Victor walked calmly toward the stage with his sheathed sword resting lightly at his hip.

His eyes were steady, not betraying a single shred of doubt. Reed and Danny hollered from the sidelines.

"You'd better win, dammit!" Reed shouted. "Win for me!"

Victor raised a thumb in their direction.

Opposite him, Elyra Vorn stepped forward with mana swirling visibly around her.

Her long white uniform jacket fluttered in the faint breeze that accompanied her every step.

The blade in her hand tinged with an energy that could only be described as dangerous.

As the two faced each other, their gazes locked.

"Don't expect me to go easy on you just because you helped me before," Elyra voiced quietly with a focused gaze.

Victor smirked and nodded. "Wouldn't dream of it."

Without another word, he took a long breath.

He had held back in every match before this—every single one.

But not this time...

This time, he was facing an S Ranked warrior.

Golden veins of qi burst around him, invisible to the mana-sensitive spectators but undeniably felt by all.

The ground vibrated faintly. Elyra narrowed her eyes at the strange force surrounding him. It didn't feel like mana but what else could it be? Sheer intensity? Whatever it was... it was strong. Very strong.

Instructor Elric raised his hand. "Begin!"

In that instant, the terrain transformed...

Rubble, shattered pillars, and a fragmented colosseum stretched out around them.

It had turned into a simulation of a long-forgotten battlefield.

They both moved instantly and arrived before each other with their blades raised.

Clang!

The sound of their clash shook the entire arena as their swords met in a sharp, ear-piercing shriek of force colliding.

The shockwave blasted outward, rattling the bones of everyone nearby.

Elyra slid ten feet backward with her heels digging into the ground.

Victor remained where he stood.

"I thought you said you weren't going to go easy on me," he said coolly as the wind whipping through his black and white hair.

In Elyra's mind, she muttered, 'I wasn't.'

She charged forward again while swinging with power.

Her blade glowed as a warrior skill activated causing mana to surge like tendrils of light around her wrist.

Victor's eyes focused as he swung his blade diagonally to meet hers.

Clang!

He deflected the strike with a burst of qi and then twisted smoothly like a stream of wind with his sword outstretched.

He struck with a spinning force and then followed up with a bunch of swings that made Elyra go on defensive.

Sparks danced in the air with every contact.

Their blades blurred as they clashed repeatedly.

The spectators couldn't even follow the movements.

"What the hell—are they even human?"

"I didn't know a first year could fight like that!"

"I can't even see them—what is going on?!"

Selene stood with her fists clenched. "Come on, Victor…"

Elyra stepped back and dashed to the left, flanking him with impossibly elegant footwork.

Her blade curved with speed that cracked the air, and yet Victor tilted slightly causing the edge of her strike to miss him by mere centimeters.

He didn't parry... he just evaded.

He stepped in her arm range and thrust his elbow forward but Elyra ducked.

Her sword came from below, aiming at his ribs.

Victor jumped and flipped forward in midair, parrying the strike with the base of his blade.

He landed behind her and gathered qi around his blade.

He activated Gale Strike at this moment, causing wind to coiled tightly around his sword in a spiraling dance.

Elyra leapt back just in time as Victor swung his blade forward but the blast from the swing split the ground between them.

She narrowed her eyes and created a mana shield around her arms, absorbing some of the aftermath.

Victor wasn't done.

"Let's raise the stakes."

He drew in a breath and closed his eyes for a fraction of a second.

His qi roared to life, flaring from his body like an unseen inferno.

Elyra felt it. Even though she couldn't see qi, she felt the intensity...

'Did he just power up again?'

Her eyes widened as Victor vanished in less than the blink of an eye.

One second, Victor was yards away... And the next... he was right in front of her.