Reddened in rage, one of the two students yelled, "Stand ready! I, Rayer Sarem, shall teach you not to underestimate us!" He waved a hand and drew a sword. Then, with but a step, he tore through the air as he dashed toward Himo like a bullet.
In but a moment, his sword swung against Himo.
So fast! Himo’s eyes lit up. He drew out the violin and blocked the sword, but the impact forced him to take several steps backward.
And behind him approached a massive axe. “Don’t you forget about me!” the second student screamed.
Two invisible platforms coalesced under Himo’s feet, and he darted above. Instead of reaching the ceiling, he used the remaining charge to evade the two foes and dashed to the floor. And they are D class students? His surprise turned into a grin. He used a stacked [Hopper_x2] to dart toward the axe-wielding student, but a sword stepped in his path, forcing him to halt.
The second student threw the axe aside and splayed a hand forward. While Sarem protected him, he chanted:
"I order thee.
Combine wind and lighting by the rule of eternal attraction.
Warp gravity by the cycle of neverending chaos and turn your light into a great cyclone that shall shred the defiers!
Electrolatum!"
The area in front of him warped with light, twisting and bending until lightning took the shape of a small tornado. A powerful suction force covered the ring as the person-sized tornado charged toward Himo.
But Himo smiled. “Do you know that even tornadoes have weak points?”
“What?”
Following a short forward step, Himo crouched and jumped over the tornado. Then, he took something massive from his storage ring—a pointed log. Normally, it’s useless against strong cultivators, but… He smirked as he coalesced three invisible platforms under the trunk’s base. A loud bang exploded throughout the arena as over half the trunk got smitten into chippings. The remaining quarter crashed against the tornado, piercing the ring's stone and killing the rotation of the lightning. I can use it like this!
“Not bad.” Looking from the corner, the headmaster smiled. “I see why your brother sent you here now. But don’t break the ring please.” He held his forehead with a hand. Seeing the hole in the ring, he had a terrible feeling.
Meanwhile, abusing that Himo was in midair, the two students attacked him from opposite sides. With a sword coming from the front and an axe from the back, Himo was trapped.
Or so they thought.
He blocked the axe with the violin and, just as the sword approached him, he drew a black weapon that sent shivers to each student. The scythe. On his face grew a smirk as he blocked the sword with the handle—the sword got chipped.
“The heck!” Sarem widened his eyes. He jumped backward and gasped at the sight of his chipped blade.
Himo landed on the floor as the tip of the handle pierced the ring.
Time froze. The scythe's eye—the red dragon eye—stared at the students as its sole presence stole their breaths. An invisible, dark pressure crushed their hearts, presenting itself like an entity that couldn't be defied. As genius as they were, few of them could ignore that pressure. Many paled as their right to move was stolen from them, albeit only momentarily.
The headmaster narrowed his eyes.
And time unfroze just as quickly, for Himo had tilted the scythe and asked, "Are you ready?" Three invisible platforms coalesced under his feet.
Clutching his axe, Rehar bared his teeth. He yelled, “Come! I won’t let you step on us any longer!”
“Is that so?” Himo appeared a few meters from him. His eyes had turned cold as the hint of a smirk curled his lips upward. Pressing the handle from one side, Himo swung the scythe against Rehar.
Rehar panicked. He stepped back and stumbled. He took out a shield to block the scythe, but it was split in half before he could realize it. Just as the scythe neared to his body, a strong pull from behind saved him. “Sarem!” A glance at who it was made him smile.
And Himo used [Hopper], thus appearing before them. As the two’s faces paled, he put a hand on their torsos. He thrust away Sarem with a reversed [Hopper]. At the same time, he coalesced two platforms on Rehar’s chest. The two platforms multiplied each others’ thrust and pushed their target—the force turned Rehar into a silhouette that darted out of the ring.
The headmaster stopped him before he could crash on the stands—before he could die. In front of the crowd, he announced, “I have watched this fight. The winner is Shu Himo!” He glanced at the child as he spoke. To think he had not only one, but two cursed weapons! What kind of secrets is he hiding?
While Sarem watched dazedly at his unconscious comrade, the students stared at Himo in silence. They all imagined themselves in the place of the unconscious student. Soon, a line was formed from the students leaving the arena. Their expressions didn’t show fear, but they didn’t show the previous contempt either—they had reevaluated Himo as someone dangerous. Someone worth considering a rival.
Himo waved at Sarem and said, “As you have seen, you should remember to be a bit less arrogant the next time.” He chuckled and walked away with Phylia.
Sarem punched the floor. It’s you who’s being arrogant!
-----
Free from bothers, Himo and Phylia strolled around the academy. Eating fried squids he took from the storage, they walked through portals and portals, until they found a building whose entrance was adorned by a signboard with written “Formation Section”.
Curious as he was, he entered immediately. When he opened the door, a wave of fresh air caressed his body like a soft breeze. Surrounded by wooden planks, a green carpet led him to a counter. Behind the counter, a blond, sweet-looking angel girl fiddled with some documents.
“Welcome!” She glanced at him. “Are you here to learn how to make formations?”
Himo greeted her back and nodded.
“You can either go to the library or wait for someone to conduct a lesson. Can I see your student badge?”
“Here.” He took out the badge.
Seeing that it was a D class badge, she frowned, but then she pointed at a door at the side. “With your class, you won’t be able to get a spot to listen to a lesson. Your best bet is to read some books in the library, but you’ll only be able to access the most basic ones. Is that fine with you?”
“Yes, that’s fine. Thanks for the information.” Himo took back the badge and, followed by Phylia, walked up to the door she had pointed at. Behind it was another portal—he walked through it and found himself before a door and a sign. On the door was a red rectangle.
“To proceed, place your student badge on the scanner.”
Himo did as written and the door opened. Behind it was an enormous library. Rows upon rows of bookcases occupied a vast hall, spanning farther than Himo could see. At the very least, a few thousands of books were there. Looking around, he saw that tens of students were reading some books—some leaned on the bookcases while others sat at central desks.
“A library…” Himo smiled. “It’s been a while since I last visited one.”
[The user could just buy information from the system. The cost for the complete guide on basic formations is only 1000 BS points!]
A thousand? How can you even say ‘only’! Himo frowned. Lower your price before you talk to me again!
[Special offer: only 999 BS points for the guide!]
Get lost! He rolled his eyes and walked up to a bookcase. He took a book and sat at a desk. But when he started reading, a sound jolted him.
Ding!
[The user finally decided to study a book.]
[A new function has been revealed!]
[To unlock the new function is required to pay 25 BS points.]
Himo blinked. 25 points… He narrowed his eyes. Fine! Unlock it!
[Detracting 25 BS points…]
[Thanks for your patronage!]
[You now have 70 BS points!]
[You have unlocked a new function: Book Records!]
[Book Records: This function is divided into three uses:
1. Record the content of a book for future reading.
2. Allows memorizing instantly any chosen recorded book(price based on the book’s content).
3. Allows to master anything written in the chosen book(price based on the book’s content).]
I’d like to say "wow, this is overpowered", but I bet that the prices are so high that it’s nearly useless.
[The system is fair and just. The price for recording a book is zero—all the user needs to do is to skim through it once. As for the other two, the prices vary based on the book’s length and difficulty.]
Is that so? Himo skimmed through the book up to the last page.
[New book recorded: Entry Guide on Basic Formations.]
This has only 525 pages. So, how much is the price for using the second and third function on this?
[The price for memorizing it is 2 BS points.]
[The price for mastering it is 100 BS points.]
I knew it! You’re so greedy!
