After the announcement, everyone in the arena stood up and applauded as the students of Military Martial Art College accepted their victory with proud smiles.
The referee raised his hand and announced, "Tomorrow morning, the second part of the College Ranking Tournament will begin. Make sure all participants are well rested"
The crowd slowly disappeared, returning to their assigned rooms.
However, the principal of Saint Helena Martial Art College remained where he was, quietly waiting.
A few minutes later, the principal of Pine Hill Martial Art College approached.
"It seems like you were waiting for me?" Pine Hill’s principal asked with a puzzled expression.
"You guessed correctly," Saint Helena’s principal replied with a smile. "Actually, I have an offer for you."
"An offer?" Pine Hill’s principal frowned. "What kind of offer?"
Saint Helena’s principal clasped his hands behind his back.
"As you’ve probably noticed, your college failed to produce any outstanding students this year. Compared to the other colleges, Pine Hill is currently ranked at the bottom."
Pine Hill’s principal frowned, clearly irritated.
"And why are you telling me this? What’s it to you?"
Saint Helena’s principal chuckled.
"From what I’ve observed, that boy from Military Martial Art College is far stronger than anyone expected. They have a high chance of taking first place in the second part as well."
He paused before continuing.
"So here’s my proposal. Why don’t our colleges form a temporary alliance? You have nothing to lose. If we work together and eliminate Military Martial Art College first, your college can at least secure a higher ranking."
The Pine Hill principal fell silent.
The yearly college rankings determined how much government funding each college would receive. Even climbing a single rank could increase a college’s annual budget by several times.
After thinking for a few moments, he nodded.
"Alright. I accept your offer."
Saint Helena’s principal smiled "As expected. I knew you were intelligent enough to understand what benefits your college."
He extended his hand.
The two principals shook hands, secretly forming an alliance against Military Martial Art College.
Meanwhile, inside the Military Martial Art College’s resting room, General Cassius entered with a wide grin.
"Good! Good! Everyone did a wonderful job today!" The students immediately stood up to greet him.
"Especially you, Aster. We only secured first place in the first part because of your performance." Aster scratched the back of his head and laughed awkwardly.
"It’s all thanks to your teaching, General. Hahaha..." General Cassius laughed along with him. However, his smile soon faded.
"Aster, come see me after dinner."
"Yes, General."
After dinner, Aster walked to General Cassius’s room.
Knock. Knock.
"Come in."
The general opened the door himself.
"You finally came. Come inside."
Aster stepped into the room.
"May I know why you called me, General?"
Without saying a word, General Cassius walked to a cabinet and took out a beautifully crafted wooden box.
He handed it to Aster.
"Open it."
Aster carefully lifted the lid.
Inside lay a crimson red sword decorated with golden engravings. The blade emitted a faint warmth, as if flames were sleeping inside it.
"A sword?"
At that moment, the system screen appeared before his eyes.
System Window
Name: Sunbreaker
Rank: A
Skill: Solar Slash
"What?" Aster’s eyes widened. "This sword actually has its own skill?"
General Cassius crossed his arms.
"I’m afraid the principal of Saint Helena is far more cunning than he appears. There’s a good chance he’ll try something behind the scenes during the second part."
"So, just in case... I’m giving this sword to you."
"W-What? You’re giving this to me?"
General Cassius nodded. "Consider it your reward for helping Military Martial Art College secure first place."
Aster carefully grabbed the sword. The instant his hand touched the hilt...
System Window
Skills
Slash Level 25
Solar Slash Level 1: Manifest 1 Solar Slash per second while holding Sunbreaker. Range 1m
Aster nearly gasped. "I gained another skill?" His heartbeat quickened.
"So I can even manifest the unique skills of weapons... That’s ridiculously overpowered."
General Cassius noticed Aster staring blankly at the sword. "Don’t you like it?"
Aster immediately shook his head. "No! I love it! Thank you very much, General!"
General smiled.
"Good. Now head back and rest. The second part lasts for two full days. You won’t get any opportunity to recover inside the forest, so restore your stamina while you still can."
"Yes, General."
Aster stored Sunbreaker inside his inventory and returned to his room. As soon as he entered, he summoned Sunbreaker again.
Holding it firmly, he thought "Solar Slash."
Whoosh!
A blazing crescent of fire shot forward. Unlike his invisible normal slash skill, this attack burns everything in its path and has a visible effect.
The fiery slash carved deep into the wall, leaving behind black scorch marks and glowing cracks. "So this is Solar Slash..."
Aster smiled.
"If I level this skill up... winning the second part will be a piece of cake."
Without wasting another second, he activated his Talent and instantly fell asleep.
His consciousness entered the Dream Realm. Just as before, he imagined Sunbreaker. The sword slowly materialized in his hands.
Aster swung it. Nothing happened. He checked the system. Only slash had activated.
"Hmm..."
After thinking for a moment, he realized something.
"Oh..."
He raised the sword again. "Solar Slash."Immediately, flames wrapped around the blade. "Oh! So I actually have to say the weapon skill’s name."
He slashed forward. A giant crescent of fire flew through the endless white world.
The system responded.
Solar Slash Lv.1 (2/1000)
Solar Slash finally went up along with the Normal Slash
"So that’s how weapon skills work."
He sighed.
"I have to say the skill name out loud... How embarrassing."
"Thankfully, my own system skills can be activated just by thinking."
Since the Dream Realm provided endless mana and stamina, Aster spent the entire night repeatedly using Solar Slash.
Again.
And again.
And again.
The next morning, Aster slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he did was check his system.
System Window
Attack: 118
Skills
Slash level 40:Manifest 5 slash per second if holding a sword. Range 115m
Solar Slash Lv.25: Manifest 5 Solar Slashes per second while holding Sunbreaker. Range 40 meters.
Seeing the results, a huge grin appeared on his face.
"Hehe..."
"Let’s take first place in the second part... and hurry back to Military College so I can finally sleep in my own bed."
Soon, every participating student gathered before a massive blue portal. The principals stood in front of the crowd. Saint Helena’s principal stepped forward.
"Listen carefully."
"This portal will transport all of you into a specially prepared forest. Every principal has worked together to populate it with monsters for this tournament."
"You already know the basic rules, so I won’t repeat them."
Meanwhile, back inside the arena, thousands of spectators had already filled the seats. A gigantic magical screen floated above the arena, allowing everyone to watch the competition live.
Back at the portal... Saint Helena’s principal continued, "Each of you has been given a wristwatch." Everyone instinctively looked down at the device on their wrists.
"It displays both your hunting points and the points of every participating college."
He paused before revealing the final rule.
"Fighting other students is allowed." The crowd immediately became restless. "If you defeat another participant, you’ll receive half of their current points."
"However, this only works the first time you defeat someone. Defeating the same person again will earn you nothing."
"Our instructors will secretly monitor the forest. If your life is truly in danger, they will intervene immediately." He looked across the hundreds of students.
"Now..."
"The second part of the College Ranking Tournament begins!"
"Good luck to all participants."
One after another, the students stepped through the glowing blue portal, disappearing into the unknown forest.