Chapter 290: Final Strike - 1
"FUCK!!!" Leon cursed, his voice raw. He had been a step away from defeating Leo, and now his soul gave out.
With whatever time he had left, he tightened his grip around Leoâs neck. If he wanted to win, he couldnât let Leo slip out of his clutches.
Crack!
A bone audibly snapped in Leoâs neck, but it was as if it made no difference. Leo continued to resist.
The audience went wild at the sight. After all the destruction, all the high-output attacks they had unleashed, it had come down to something as primal as strangulation.
The entire arena lay in ruinsâcracked ground, chunks of land missing, uneven mounds and deep depressions. And at the very centre of it all, two men rolled on the ground, trying to kill each other.
Tarun couldnât help but feel astonished at the sheer intensity of their battle. With their level of strength, both of them could easily be placed among the highest-ranking students of the 3th term of the previous generation.
"Both of them have a minimum of Pseudo 4-star strength... and Iâm pretty sure that black-haired boy is even touching Low 4-star. Is this even possible?" he muttered, disbelief evident. "From what Iâve heard, only the other two imperial prince and princesses have that level of strength... and that too because the Emperor showered them with benefits. This kid built everything on his ownâin 3 freaking months?"
Even he couldnât believe the data he had gone through multiple times.
"Damn..."
Back in the professorâs cabin, even Katherine was astonished.
"Never in my life did I think someone from the outskirts could be this talented... and I thought Lily was gifted."
She turned toward Brant.
"Dear, trust me. That girl is a monster of talent. But this boy... he can be called an absolute beast. They truly are a match made in heaven."
"At first, I thought no one would be a match for Lily, and that she would have to settle for someone weaker. Turns out, I was wrong. Looks like I need to prepare Lily so that she is suitable for him. No wonder she has that crazy side of her."
Brant frowned slightly, confused.
"Crazy side? What are you talking about?"
Katherine laughed softly.
"Haha, you wonât understand. Just be carefulâdonât try to harm that boy. Otherwise, even I canât guarantee your safety in the future. Matter of fact, donât even let that thought exist around her."
Brant raised a brow, amused.
"That crazy?"
The other professors around them murmured in hushed tones.
"Damn... can fresher students really be this strong?"
"I thought I was strong in my academy days..."
"That Leo boyâI want him as my student."
"Fuck you, Iâm taking him."
"Huh? What did you say, motherfucker?"
"Why are you all fixated on Leo? Even though Leon is obviously better. Soul fusion under twenty? I want him as my student."
"Yeah, but Leo is actually on equal footing, if not stronger than Leon, even without soul fusion."
"Yeah! Me too. I didnât achieve soul fusion until my final years as an Assistant Professor. Elts shares his tutelage!" Another said excitedly, ignoring the comment of equal footing with soul fusion.
Some select professors looked at the blabbering individuals, bewildered.
"Yeah, go ahead... and then die by that personâs hand."
"What?"
"Whoâs going to tell him?" one professor said, glancing around with a mocking smile. But when his eyes met Katherine, cold sweat made him lower his gaze.
Whatever he said, he wasnât supposed to be revealed. And this comment made his value in holding secrets decrease. From the next moment, sensitive informations will not be conveyed to that particular professor.
The others simply shook their heads, as if they already knew something those eager professor didnât.
"But what is his main element?" one of them asked, drawing everyoneâs attention.
"Weâve seen him use Wood, Earth... there was fire tooâmaybe heat. Then that purple flame... poison. And lastly, that weird stealth technique. Iâm pretty sure there was some space element involved."
"So many elements... and thereâs even the physical aspectâhis aura."
"Hasnât he been taught that having beasts of varying abilities will ultimately make him weaker?"
"Yeah. He wonât be able to build a proper arsenal for any one element. And having multiple skills of the same element gives you leewayâit basically lets you manipulate the element freely with low mana cost. And he is doing the opposite, setting himself up for a downfall."
"With so many different skills, he must have at least 3 or even 4 beasts. How many can he even contract?"
"Even if we assume the best from the outskirtsâa Super Rare soulâhe could theoretically tame 13 beasts. But we all know thatâs impossible. Even with the best soul enhancement techniques, he might reach 6... maybe 7 beasts by the time he hits 7-star."
"Thatâs only 3 extra beasts. And with a Super Rare soul, you can copy 4 skills from eachâbut realistically, you only manage 2. So thatâs 6 extra skills. Thatâs not viable if he wants to become truly strong."
Another professor nodded.
"Exactly. Even if he focuses on one element from now onâsay, woodâheâll barely gain 6 additional skills. Thatâs not enough to freely manipulate the element. Heâll end up weak if he doesnât get proper guidance soon."
Once a person tames beasts of a similar element and copies their skills, they accumulate multiple abilities of the same type. The more aligned the skills are, the easier it becomes to manipulate that element.
For example, if someone has multiple fire-element beasts, they might copy skills like:
Fireball, Fire Tornado, Flame Thrower, Flame Burst, Flame Lance, Flame Cage...
Now, if they try to combine two skillsâsay, Flame Burst and Flame Lanceâthey can create a Flame Lance that explodes on impact: a Burst Lance. Itâs easy to do so with slight concentration. And since these are copied skills rather than pure manipulation, the mana cost stays low.
If the same effect were created purely through a single fire manipulation skill, the mana cost would be higher.
Thatâs not to say manipulation skills are always inefficient. The high cost comes from the need to construct mana pathways and channels in real time during battle. It requires focus, and even the slightest variation in those pathways demands additional mana to stabilise and connect them.
But if someone masters this processâif shaping pathways becomes second natureâthe mana cost naturally decreases. But reaching that level takes time, patience, and years of training.
Skills, on the other hand, come with built-in pathwaysâlike water(mana) flowing through predetermined pipelines. Theyâre faster, easier, and donât require years of refinement. Though merging two skills can still be tricky, as it requires overlapping and adjusting those pathways.
Thatâs where manipulation skills shineâthey make such combinations smoother.
This is precisely why Professor Lu has been searching for a beast with a fire manipulation ability.
And this is also why having multiple beasts of the same element is considered optimal.
Be a master of oneâand you can defeat a jack of all trades by overwhelming them.