(Next day, Rodova Military Academy, Practical Combat Grounds)
The academy underwent a temporary shift following the Circuit Team Selections, as the training facilities — including the physical training grounds and the combat halls — were sealed off from the general student body. Access was restricted solely to the newly-formed Circuit Team, granting them the privacy to train without fear of leaking strategies or revealing their fighting styles.
"Bloody hell, boy! It's just a spar! Don't feint for my neck like that—" Hen barked as a shiver ran down his spine.
Leo, who had already been a nightmare to spar against as a Master-level warrior, was now practically untouchable since his breakthrough to Grandmaster.
Ever since the realm jump, he had elevated himself to an entirely different league, where his every technique, every movement, felt sharper, faster, and heavier — leaving Hen struggling to keep up.
However, what unsettled Hen more than his speed and improved strength of techniques was the sheer unpredictability of his blade, especially when he unleashed [Thousand Phantom Slashes].
The layered illusions that the move produced weren't just harder to read — they were downright impossible, and even a veteran like Hen struggled against them.
*Slash—*
Leo's dagger found Hen's right forearm, drawing a shallow cut.
"Bloody hell, boy," Hen grumbled, rubbing the wound. "I'm an old man whose eyes don't work like they used to. Have some damn mercy."
Yet, behind the grumbling, his eyes gleamed. The sting of the cut didn't upset him — it thrilled him.
The challenge, the pressure, the fact that Leo could force him to fight seriously even now, brought Hen genuine joy, as without missing a beat, Hen gripped his weapon tighter, as his aura flared sharply.
"Okay, I'm upping the ante by a notch, try and keep up—" Hen said, as he decided to push his body to 90% of his total strength output, as he fought Leo as seriously as he could in a spar.
Since Leo was still familiarising himself with the newfound strength of his Grandmaster body, Hen had been taking it easy on him during the spar, only gradually increasing the tempo so that he could acclimatize, however, now that Leo had drawn first blood, Hen intended to show no mercy.
*BOOM—*
The spar escalated, as Hen released a heavy cleave infused with [Heavy Mountain Breaking Slash], causing cracks to ripple through the reinforced ground.
Leo instinctively activated [Celestial Veil], a transparent barrier enveloping his body as the slash collided harmlessly against it.
*PUSH–*
The force sent him sliding backward, boots grinding against the floor — yet, remarkably, he remained uninjured, as the barrier held strong.
*Whistle–*
Hen whistled, seemingly impressed by the defence, as he said. "Tch. what a broken defence— it puts even tankers to shame"
Leo said nothing in response as he lunged forward, chaining together [Shadow Bind] to slow Hen's movement for just a heartbeat, giving him the window to dive in.
Yet Hen, ever the veteran, broke through the bind with sheer brute force, retaliating with a wide arc swing, forcing Leo to twist away at the last second.
The two exchanged a flurry of movements — Leo weaving between Hen's strikes with agility and grace, while Hen pressed harder with each swing, testing the limit of Leo's newfound strength.
Then, in a moment that caught even Hen off guard — Leo accelerated even more, I'm a sudden burst of speed, as at one moment he seemed to be ducking to dodge an attack, but in another he had already slipped past his guard entirely, as if he had teleported within a split second.
"Huh?" Hen said in panic, as his pupils constricted, however, before he could even reposition, Leo's dagger rested firmly against his chest as Hen blinked in disbelief.
"I— I lost?" he said, eyes wide in disbelief.
As only then did the realization fully struck him.
"I LOST!" Hen bellowed, bursting into laughter, the sound echoing through the empty combat hall.
His booming laughter wasn't one of embarrassment, but of pride — sheer, unfiltered pride.
As Leo stepped back, panting.
"You've grown, boy," Hen said, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead as he tried to stifle his laughter. "You're no longer some diamond in the rough. You're a goddamn treasure."
It hadn't been an overwhelming victory, it was just Leo coupling [Parallel Processing] with [Thousand Phantom Slashes] that created a moment of acceleration that changed the tempo of his movement entirely.
However, it wasn't a decisive move, but rather just a clever trick that would work against any opponent once.
But still, him being able to outmaneuver a battle-hardened veteran like Hen, even for a fleeting moment, was undoubtedly impressive, as it proved that his potential was boundless.
"I've got to tell this to the principal—" Hen said with joy, as after months of watching Leo grow firsthand, Hen couldn't help but feel responsible for the boy's development as a warrior, as although there were many tutors mentoring him in the academy, he was undoubtedly the one who had the most impact on his fighting style.
"The circuits are not ready for you boy, between you, Yang and Shen, we really can hope that Rodova will go all the way—" Hen said, as he sounded genuinely hopeful about Rodova's chances to win this year.
—----------
Slowly but surely, Leo found himself adapting to the overwhelming changes brought by his breakthrough, as techniques that once felt forced and taxing at the Master level now flowed from him with natural ease.
It wasn't just raw strength or top-end speed that had improved—those were easy to quantify. What made this advancement so profound was the subtle, yet decisive, difference it brought to every facet of combat.
His footing recovered faster, his leaps carried him higher, and his muscles coiled and snapped back into position with flawless efficiency, allowing him to regain control even when caught in awkward angles or unbalanced stances.
It wasn't something measurable with simple numbers, yet its effect on combat was monumental.
It felt as if he could no longer be caught off-guard, as even the wildest swings or the most reckless charges no longer left him vulnerable. The time it took him to regain perfect posture had been reduced to the blink of an eye, leaving no exploitable gaps for his opponents.
And this was merely one of the many advantages the Grandmaster realm had bestowed upon him.
Apart from this, it was his instincts that had grown keener, as if his body acted faster than thought, performing movements almost the instant he willed them to happen.
It was essentially an improvement in reaction time, however, it made catching him off-guard that much harder for his opponent, as Leo rarely felt surprised by a move coming his way anymore.
And finally, ever since shifting to using mana as energy for his body, his battle stamina improved drastically, as his muscles didn't fatigue as quickly, his breathing steadied faster after exchanges, and his mana no longer churned uncontrollably when pushed, but flowed calmly, like water through familiar channels.
Each of these small, immeasurable gains might have seemed trivial on their own—but together, they compounded into something terrifying.
As Leo was no longer simply stronger, he was more complete.
And that, more than anything, made him very dangerous.