NOVPUBA trail of blood followed Victor and Tarkos as they fled through the frost-veiled alleys of Yinfrost City. Shouts rang out behind them as dozens of Jade Serpent Sect cultivators gave chase.
The streets cracked beneath the weight of clashing qi as the mist curled away in ribbons of ice and energy.
Victor spun and twisted his blade sharply before parrying a sword strike from a Core Formation Realm cultivator.
[ Wind Gale Has Been Activated ]
With a gust of Wind Gale, he sent the attacker careening into a frozen wall. The impact shattered the surface like glass.
Tarkos up ahead made his tattoos peel from his skin and lash out like vipers.
They wrapped around the legs of a charging disciple, yanking them off their feet before a spear of ink pierced their chest.
"No time to linger!" Victor shouted.
More were approaching from rooftops, and the street ahead was rapidly filling with enemies. "We're getting boxed in," Tarkos muttered.
Victor knew what had to be done. "Split up. I'll draw them out. You disappear into the shadows."
Tarkos gave a curt nod and vanished in a blur. Victor who was now alone, dashed down a side street, letting his qi flare for just a moment to announce his presence. The cultivators took the bait.
Victor led them out of the city, dodging techniques and blade strikes. He jumped between trees, using Wind Glide to leap high and avoid ranged attacks.
By the time he reached a cluster of boulders at the city outskirts, only seven cultivators were still on his tail.
He ducked behind a large rock while letting out visible icy breaths.
He swiftly went to the menu panel and found he log out option.
[Log Out]
His avatar turned translucent before vanishing entirely.
...
...
Victor's eyes snapped open in the real world and he immediately glanced at the time.
4:45 AM.
"Perfect timing," he muttered with a groggy but focused look.
He rose from bed and quickly got ready for Tuesday's morning routine. Camp 11 was already filled with students by the time he arrived.
Instructor Vex Rhane didn't hesitate to put them to work.
Today's drill involved rope traversal across rough metallic structures set up over simulated crevices. Berserkers blazed through, gripping thick cords with their brute strength, while Mages floated themselves across using minor levitation spells. Warriors like Victor had to rely on speed and balance.
Victor performed well despite his fatigue. Rylan chuckled as he passed him midway.
"Didn't sleep again?"
Victor gave a breathless grin. "I was busy dealing with my... training."
After the routine, they headed to lectures. The first was Tactical Theory, which focused on battlefield positioning against hybrid magical beast groups. Victor took notes while Selene doodled comical sketches of the instructor.
She never listened in class yet she seemed to do great all the time.
The second lecture, Applied Weapon Dynamics, involved demonstrations from actual awakened soldiers sparring with captured Class-7 beasts in containment barriers. Victor couldn't help but watch with interest while mentally comparing it to his fights in Ascendant Realms.
The third lecture, Combat Ethics, was a breeze. The lecturer, a short-tempered former squad leader, mostly ranted about students who abused their abilities off-duty. Victor dozed slightly but managed to nod at the right times.
Then came the fourth lecture—held in the vast Dome Arena, where all class types assembled.
The instructor stood in the center of the field with her usual calm expression. She raised her voice slightly. "Today's scenario will test teamwork, strategy, and urgency. You are to rescue civilians from a magical beast-infested danger zone. These civilians are your fellow classmates. Fail to reach them in time, and they will be considered casualties."
Danny's eyes lit up. "Let's goooo! I'm about to carry the whole rescue team."
Victor crossed his arms. "You sure? With those stubby legs?"
Selene giggled with her lollipop dancing between her fingers. Aria rolled her eyes. "I'll rescue more civilians than all of you combined."
Group assignments were randomized through the academy's digital systems.
[Team Selection Complete: Victor Revenant -> Rescuee Team]
Victor stared at the notification with dead eyes. "Seriously?"
He voiced his complaint but the Instructor simply smiled. "Sometimes, you don't get to be the hero. Learn what it means to be the one in need."
Danny laughed so hard he nearly fell over. "Good luck, buddy! Don't get eaten!"
"Yeah, yeah," Victor grumbled.
He and the other designated victims were fitted with suppression vests. These disabled their ability to manipulate mana and glowed faintly with blue runes. The vest came with a small digital chip that would teleport them out if danger came too close.
Victor was teleported to Sector 3A of the simulated forest. Branches swayed with mana-infused winds, and strange birdcalls echoed overhead. Around him were three other rescuees, all first-years as confused as him.
They found shelter in a shallow cave and waited. Roars in the distance signaled the arrival of magical beasts.
"This sucks…" Victor muttered while slumping back against the stone wall. "This really, really sucks."
One of the others who was a nervous boy named Jiro, nodded. "What if no one finds us?"
Victor smirked. "Then we get teleported and return to campus in shame. Business as usual."
And so, they waited, listening to the distant chaos of roars, footsteps, and energy clashes as their classmates raced against time to find them.
...
...
A sense of danger soon filled the air as magical beasts circled in the distance. Their snarls and guttural roars shook the earth beneath the cratered rocky terrain.
Victor sat cross-legged on a flat stone with his arms folded as he stared up at the ever-darkening sky. The simulated environment of this part of the training grounds mimicked a twilight jungle. It's ambience was unsettling.
Around him, other students wearing the same muted grey vests marked "VICTIM" waited in quiet anticipation. In theory, they were safe. If a beast got within five to ten feet, the teleportation device within the vest would activate and yank them out of harm's way. In theory.
Beside him, a girl sat on a smaller stone, fiddling with the corner of her vest.
"I hate violence," she said out of the blue with a soft and delicate voice.
Victor glanced at her. She had caramel-toned skin and short curled hair, with large glasses that clung awkwardly to her nose. "Then why are you here?"
"Hm?"
"The Academy. This place. You get punched in the face on a daily basis here. What'd you expect, cupcakes and spa days?"
She smiled sheepishly. "My parents made me apply because
I awakened even though I didn't want to. Still... I like learning about magic, not fighting."
Victor shook his head with a chuckle. "You're something else, Zara."
"You remembered my name?"
"You said it when we got dropped off. I'm not rude."
Their idle conversation came to a halt as the distant roars were punctuated by bursts of light. Explosions of fire, wind, and magic sparked through the jungle-like terrain.
Victor turned toward the noise with his eyes narrowed. "Sounds like they're getting close."
Minutes crawled by. Victor found himself growing more anxious. Their location was deep within the exercise zone, and nobody had reached them yet.
Then, the trees ahead rustled as a massive figure lumbered forward. It was a monstrous beast covered in dark-red scales and hooked tusks protruding from its jaws. Level 10, maybe 11 magical beast. Not the worst, but still terrifying.
Zara gripped Victor's sleeve. "Will it hurt? Before the vest takes us?"
Victor glanced at the beast. It growled and began advancing toward them.
"Not if it works right," he said.
Suddenly, a bolt of radiant energy slammed into the beast's face from the side causing it to stagger backward. A student in dark blue mage robes stood on a nearby hill as his hands glowed with arcane symbols.
He conjured more spells in quick succession—ice shards, lightning tendrils, fire lances. The beast writhed before collapsing after the third barrage.
"Woo!" Zara cheered. Victor clapped slowly. "Nice aim."
Before they could rise, another beast burst forth from up ahead. It was more agile and faster with glowing eyes.
The mage cast a spell which erected a barrier to absorb the charge.
The beast struck and snarled but was met with the next round of spellfire. Within moments, it too was down.
He approached the nearest group of three victims and motioned to them. "Follow. I can only safely handle three at a time."
He escorted them away and returned ten minutes later with two other teammates—
A warrior and a berserker.
They took ten more VICTIMs together with them.
Now only Victor and Zara remained.
"So close to rescue," Victor muttered. "Feels like a sitcom."
"What if they don't come back in time?" Zara asked.
Victor shrugged. "Then we become statistics."
As if summoned by irony, a colossal shape emerged from the mists. Taller than the others by a solid ten feet and covered in obsidian-like hide, its claws gouged through the dirt with every stride.
A level 14 magical beast.
Victor stood. "Now that's a boss fight."
Zara whimpered. "Are we safe?"
