Selene was right behind him, vaulting between swinging bars like a gymnast on crack. At one point she ran sideways across a wall while giggling.
Danny on the other hand didn't even dodge. He tanked. One trap hit him in the chest—a padded mana rod—and he just grunted, grabbed it, and snapped it off the wall.
"Is that allowed?!" the announcer shouted.
Apparently, it was. Because the crowd lost it.
The red team wasn't bad… but their lead guy got stuck trying to tightrope across a shifting beam and fell flat. Twice.
Victor hit the last pad with a backflip. Selene flipped upside down midair and tagged it with her foot.
Danny body-slammed the entire final wall.
Round 2 Results: Team Void – WIN
Round 3: Capture Node
The center of the arena lit up with a glowing platform about 6 feet in diameter. The goal was to hold the node against the enemy team for 30 seconds total. But if you got pushed off, time reset.
The buzzer blared. Chaos erupted.
Victor dashed in first, narrowly avoiding a push from one of the red-vest guys. He spun, grabbed the guy's shoulder, and flipped him using a low center-of-gravity maneuver he'd copied from a martial artist in-game.
"Gamer throw for the win!"
Selene launched herself in with a flying kick that sent another guy sprawling into the foam pit. "Off my node, punk."
Danny stepped onto the platform like a king claiming a throne. One dude tried to shoulder-tackle him.
Danny picked him up with one hand and dropped him off the platform like a sack of laundry.
Time ticked—10 seconds… 14… 19—
The tall red-vest guy screamed, "All at once!"
All three enemies charged.
Victor was caught in a push but twisted into a roll, grabbing Selene's hand to keep his balance. She gritted her teeth and spun him back in.
Then one of them sucker-punched Danny. His head tilted slightly but he slowly turned back around and grinned.
Victor jumped in front with his arms out.
Selene growled, yanked a panel off the side of the platform, and swung it like a shield, knocking one guy flat.
> Round 3 Complete: Team Void – Victory
The platform exploded in a puff of confetti and light as the crowd went wild.
Victor jumped up while pumping his fist into the air. "We did it."
Selene popped a fresh lollipop in her mouth and winked. "Told you. You just needed me."
Danny was flexing for the cheering kids. "You see that? Two at once."
Then the sore losers came creeping back while muttering accusations about cheating and using reflex enhancers.
"You're not even real athletes," one muttered.
Danny stepped forward calmly.
Then grabbed two of them—one in each hand—and lifted them off the ground like twin grocery bags.
"I'm a Berserker, fool!"
The third guy turned pale.
"W-we didn't know you were awakened!"
Victor just rubbed his temples. "Why do people always say that after the fact?"
They ran off, yelling about awakeners and legal complaints.
Selene shrugged. "Eh. Losers."
Max ran up. "That was better than pay-per-view."
Jake snapped photos. "Gonna make a victory edit. Title: 'When your friend group is cracked.'"
Victor just chuckled.
Hanging out here—with them, with her—it had been more fun than he expected.
As they walked toward the exit, Selene called out.
He glanced at her. "Yeah?"
She popped her lollipop back in and smirked. "Awakened Academy resumes in one week."
He blinked. "Oh yeah that's true..."
"Mhm." She leaned in slightly and voiced with a lower tone. "Which means... you won't be able to ghost me anymore."
Victor opened his mouth, but no words came out.
Selene winked. "See you there, handsome."
With that, she turned and walked off, swaying slightly as if on beat with the music playing in the distance.
Jake clapped Victor on the back. "Bro. You're in trouble."
Max nodded solemnly. "Two girls, one academy."
"Why are you guys acting like Amara doesn't have a whole ass boyfriend?" Victor rolled his eyes at them.
"Tsk tsk I have a feeling you're not gonna be a virgin for much longer," Danny chipped in with a teasing look while the boys laughed in the background.
Victor's next few days blurred together in a steady rhythm of discipline.
Night to morning, he logged into Ascendant Realms like clockwork. His breathing fell into sync with the Bloodline Resonance Technique and his thoughts sharpened with each circulating cycle of Void energy.
The Void Emperor Bloodline continued to increase in integration.
[Bloodline Integration +2.0%]
[Total Integration: 21.6%]
Time Elapsed: 7 hours
He broke his meditations only to exit the game briefly, handle the little routines that tethered him to the real world.
By the time two real-world days had passed over a week had flown by in-game.
Victor's stats had jumped dramatically:
< [ Victor's Cultivation System ] >
• Constitution: Primordial Chaos
• Bloodline: Void Emperor (27% Integration)
• Current Cultivation Realm: Mortal Realm
• Current Cultivation Level: Core Formation Realm (48%)
• Cultivation Technique: ( Lingyun Sword Martial Arts and more…)
• Status: Slightly Above Mediocre
• Physique Grade: Peak Bronze
• Luck: Below Average
Perks: Private Cultivation Booth (2x speed), Hidden Techniques Access
Notes: Mid-Core Formation threshold approaching.
Victor exhaled deeply as he pulled off the headset one last time after logging out.
Today… he wouldn't be playing.
Because today was Fashion Studio Day.
The high-end brand that had reached out to him was none other than Vantablade Studios—a luxury, futuristic fashion house known for combining mana-threaded fabrics with elegant cyberpunk styles.
Their clothes weren't just trendy—they were high-performance, elite-level gear worn by models, influencers, awakened icons, and tech moguls alike.
And for some wild reason, they wanted him to wear their newest line.
Victor yawned, rubbed his neck, and dragged himself to the bathroom. He brushed his teeth and splashed cold water on his face, feeling the lingering afterglow of cultivation still buzzing beneath his skin.
His muscles felt denser and tighter. The game's effects were starting to bleed into the real world again.
After his bath, he pulled on a simple black shirt and jeans, then turned to the mirror to check his reflection.
More strands of white had appeared in his hair.