I Became the Genius Mage of the Martial Academy

Chapter 84 : Grade-Skipping Exam (4)

‘This is crazy.’

To think I would hear such a dog-like line in a real battle.

Before I could even be flustered by Mi Tae-eul’s sudden declaration, we immediately separated from each other and drew our swords.

A situation where everyone had suddenly become an enemy. In an instant, a tense atmosphere hung in the air.

‘This is not good.’

In a free-for-all among masters, it was easy to be hit by a blind sword. And it was even more so for me, who was at a disadvantage in close combat.

I quickly rolled my head and was about to get out of my spot, but then a smug voice was heard from the top of the platform.

“The place will be limited to this training ground.”

‘That damn old man.’

I narrowed my brow. The development I had known was not like this.

Usually, the final exam, where the number of people was reduced by an even number, was a 1-on-1, but it had suddenly changed at the last minute.

It had suddenly become a free-for-all.

We alternately aimed our weapons at each other in a diamond shape, as if we were drawing a circle on a cliff.

What was needed at a time like this was not just skill, but also wits and strategy.

Just as I was about to continue my quick calculations, the tips of the blades that had been aiming at each other slowly moved and pointed to one place like a compass.

And at the end of it was me.

‘Damn it.’

Everyone is trying to keep me in check. Considering the overwhelming results I had shown in the previous exam and my unknown power, they had thought that the most threatening being was me.

‘This is the worst situation.’

It was the easiest development in a free-for-all, and the worst situation. That is, for several people to deal with one person.

The diamond formation gradually narrows, centering on me.

‘If I stay like this, I’ll be done for.’

The tips of the swords are slowly approaching.

I stepped back in time with them and opened my mouth.

“Are you scared of me?”

Although it was a provocative tone for someone at a disadvantage, now was the time to throw a gamble.

“Of course. Because I saw that sight.”

Baek Cheong, with a smiling expression, showed his agreement, making it seem as if he were solidifying the ganging-up situation.

The others also took another step towards me as if they agreed.

I did not show any sign of being anxious and calmly added.

“Then if you defeat me, the three of you will remain. What will you do then?”

“……”

Then Baek Cheong, who was silent. Before the brief silence could even fade, I continued to push them.

“Will you choose one person and attack them in the same way? Like me?”

At those words, the rest of them slowed their steps for a moment. In the end, even if they defeated me, they would have to filter out one more person among themselves.

After Zhuge Cheonwu, he himself might become the one who is eliminated. It was enough to have planted that suspicion in their minds.

I raised my tone as if I were certain.

“No. The one who attacks me first will surely be hurt. Then it might be better to aim for that person right away. Because I also have a hidden card. Even if I go down like this, I have to take at least one person with me as a companion.”

And while I was saying that, I roughly radiated the mana I had gathered in my body in all directions. So that those who were surrounding me could clearly feel it.

Swish-

A tearing qi wave echoes through the air. At that unusual airflow, the tips of their blades tremble slightly for a moment.

They had already seen my hidden card. Since I had openly scattered my energy and even warned them like this, they had no choice but to think that it would be a loss if they were to attack first.

‘Threat and anxiety, and what I have to do after that is…’

I created a sword qi form by covering my sword with mana.

“As expected, you’re hesitating. I understand, since the one who attacks first will be the one to take the fall. Well, I guess that means I’m that threatening.”

A show of self-importance that was close to arrogance. I looked back at them, who were still stopped, and put a sneer on my lips. Now, I couldn’t tell if it was because of [Arrogant Young Master] or my original personality.

“Are you afraid? Then think the other way around. If you side with me, who is the most threatening here, you can crush the other two stably without worrying about being backstabbed.”

At those words, the airflow around me stopped for a moment. Since only two were going up anyway. Then they would slowly feel it. That the moment two people teamed up, the tide of the free-for-all would turn to them.

That it might be more stable to go into a 2-on-2 situation from the beginning rather than being left alone and hunted.

‘Humans are selfish and rational animals.’

That’s why they distrust others, avoid risks, and want a more stable gain. An undeniable human nature.

I had just shown them an unstable future. And now, I had proposed a slightly more stable future, using my status as a pretext.

Then they would be swayed. Now, all that was left was a little push.

“There’s only one spot.”

I announced the limited spot with a firm tone. Only one of the three could be with me. If this were the case, the proposal would no longer be a proposal.

It was the same as a first-come, first-served sale. A matter of who would take the spot first. A situation where you didn’t know which of them would betray first. That’s why they would become anxious.

A silence continued. And in the midst of it, someone’s mouth finally opened.

“You certainly have a glib tongue, as expected of the Zhuge family.”

It was Peng Geun-u’s voice.

“But I’m not the type to give up on a prey that I’ve cornered.”

A large sword, with a surging sword qi, was aimed this way. He was a guy who had a stubborn side that matched his martial arts.

“If you were a guy who knew how to keep his promises, it might have been different.”

This was the same for Baek Cheong. It seemed he was still holding a grudge about not visiting the Huashan Sect during the vacation. They were all not easy.

‘I thought I did pretty well.’

If the flow were to pass like this, it would be dangerous. I had no choice but to take out the Daoist Scholar’s Fan that I had hidden in my bosom. And just as I was about to spit out the final line, bracing myself for the final measure.

- I’ll accept that proposal.

Along with the telepathic message, a black-stemmed sword strike rushed, aiming for Peng Geun-u’s back.

Clang-!

Peng Geun-u, who had immediately turned his body and blocked Baek Hasin’s ink-colored sword.

At the same time, I shot a fireball that I had prepared behind my back at Baek Cheong.

Slice!

Baek Cheong, who was rushing at me, cutting through the flames. It was not my illusion that a smile seemed to be on his face.

I immediately stepped on the Spirit God Steps and stepped back, separating our battlefields.

From my position, where close combat was a disadvantage, it was better to completely separate the sections rather than having a fight where our sword strikes were tangled up.

‘Did he choose the easier-to-face Peng Geun-u?’

If you were to consider it, Baek Hasin was also close to a heavy sword, so it was better in terms of compatibility to fight with Peng Geun-u’s heavy sword in a strength-on-strength match rather than Baek Cheong’s fast sword.

He was a guy who knew how to use his head, as befitting a protagonist.

‘Thanks to that, I was the one who got the short end of the stick.’

I clicked my tongue, looking at Baek Cheong’s sword, which was rushing in, stepping on the forms of the Plum Blossom Twenty-Four Sword.

The opponent, who was already implementing a part of the plum blossom with the flickering of his sword qi, while the swordsmanship of this side that was responding to it was the Six Harmonies Sword.

Even if it were a swordsmanship that had its roots in the same Huashan Sect, the other side was superior. And since even the realm was at least one level higher for Baek Cheong, there was no chance of winning in a head-on fight.

Fwoosh-

Before I knew it, Baek Cheong, who had rushed right in front of me. It was a tremendous leg strength.

‘First, I’ll take care of his mobility.’

The ground under Baek Cheong’s feet becomes slippery for a moment. The grease magic that eliminates friction had hit its mark.

Crunch-!

But as if he had known, he immediately imbued his feet with true qi and shot out, creating a crack in the ground.

“Tsk.”

I had no choice but to float the shield that had been surrounding my body in the air, in a form that was aimed at Baek Cheong.

It was to reduce his speed by placing it near the joints that were rushing, such as his abdomen or knees.

However, as if he had noticed the existence of the shield with his unique sense of qi, the tip of Baek Cheong’s sword flashed for a moment.

A splendid trajectory that was divided into several branches filled my vision like a rain of flowers. The Plum Blossom Twenty-Four Sword Art.

The shield that I had made while running away was cut down as it was.

Crash-!

The shield that was breaking into pieces like thin ice. I stepped back and lifted the Daoist Scholar’s Fan that I was holding in one hand.

‘Wind magic impart.’

And then, just before the shield exploded, I exploded the wind magic that I had compressed on the back.

Pa-a-a-ang-!

The fragments of the shield wrapped around Baek Cheong’s entire body like a grenade.

‘The power wasn’t small, but. There’s not a single scratch.’

Baek Cheong, who had wrapped his entire body with his protective qi, was shot out from the gust of wind.

I bought time, barely deflecting or blocking the Plum Blossom Twenty-Four Sword. It was thanks to the talent of [Absolute Magic]’s sense of qi and [Peerless Body] that I was able to match him somehow, but if it weren’t for that, I would have been defeated long ago.

But there is a limit to enduring with just talent.

Instinctively, it was dangerous to face Baek Cheong for more than five exchanges.

One exchange.

My wrist tingled at the series of fast sword strikes.

Two exchanges.

My shoulders, which were twisted at various angles, ached, and my sleeves were torn.

Three exchanges.

The sword path that had been changing dazzlingly in front of my eyes turned into a downward-striking heavy sword at the end. As I received it, my knees buckled for a moment from the shock.

“What are you aiming for?”

Baek Cheong, who seemed to think he had seized the victory, asked while swinging his sword.

“If you’re curious, why don’t you wait and see?”

“I don’t want to. If you really need time, how about receiving my sword a little more? Even so, it will only be for a moment.”

A tone that was added as if he were looking at a toy, as if telling me to endure a little more. That’s how short the time given to me at this moment was.

“It doesn’t matter.”

But that brief gap was enough.

I activated the magic formula that I had laid out on the floor that I had passed by until now.

Craaack-

Along the circular path that I had passed, ice spears soared. It was the activation of the magic that I had saved up until now.

“Do you think I wouldn’t know that?”

In the midst of the rushing ice thorns, Baek Cheong’s eyes narrow. His sword draws an afterimage and accelerates.

Clang-clang-clang-!

The subtlety of a fast sword is its lightness. That’s why it’s splendid.

Along the trajectory of the dazzling sword path, the ice shattered and scattered like jewel fragments.

‘A monster.’

He was coming straight at me, striking down all those many ice thorns.

A relentless gait that seemed to be saying.

That it wouldn’t last more than a few seconds.

The opponent, who seemed to have some energy left, although he looked tired from the previous exam.

On the other hand, my mana was rapidly decreasing.

“It doesn’t matter.”

I spread the fist that I was holding at him.

Flash-!

In that moment, a bright light filled the training ground.

The ice fragments that were scattering in the air and the dazzling ray of light met and lit up the area.

Since I had covered my eyes with the energy of the shadow, I could still see ahead.

Beyond it, the figure of Baek Cheong, who had closed his two eyes as if he were familiar with it, was revealed.

“Do you think I’ll fall for it again?”

He stopped in his tracks and took a stance. A momentum as if he would strike down everything that came at him, just like on the Great Maple Cliff.

Since he had seen the light magic once before, it must be his own countermeasure.

Then this time, he would try to find me with his sense of qi, not his vision.

‘That’s a mistake.’

“……?!”

In a world full of light, Baek Cheong’s brow furrows for a moment.

‘Isn’t it a bit much?’

I raised the firepower of the area, which was full of flames, and caught my breath.

Although I had prepared it in advance, I had created as many as ten fire pillars in the shape of a person around Baek Cheong.

He had no choice but to be confused.

And on top of that, I had placed shields that acted as partitions between the fire pillars.

Thanks to that, the energies clashed with each other and spewed out qi waves.

To put it metaphorically, it was as if a dolphin were trying to grasp its surroundings with its sonar in a place full of scrap metal and noise, with its two eyes closed.

A technique that was possible thanks to the assistance of the divine artifact, the Daoist Scholar’s Fan.

Of course, more skilled masters could have completely grasped the area by shooting an intangible energy in all directions like a radar wave, but it seemed Baek Cheong had not yet reached that level of realm.

Because if that were possible, he would have had to have read the airflow of the wind better and not have missed a single one.

“Even so, it’s just a petty trick!”

Baek Cheong raised his voice. But it was not a good judgment to have stopped in his tracks for the sake of caution in a state where his vision was blocked.

Because it meant that he had allowed the two things that should not be given to a mage.

That is, time and distance.

Because a mage who has secured all of that can produce an explosive firepower that is greater than anyone else.

Fwoosh-

The ten fire pillars that had been filling all directions swirled and shrank. Flames that were being honed like a javelin, one by one.

But the fire spears did not stop there and began to entangle in a spiral, as if they were being sucked up above Baek Cheong’s head.

As if each of them were a root for a huge tree trunk. I imbued it with an electric shock.

I had manifested a fusion magic. The clashing energies began to clump together while repelling each other.

And so, the spear of fire and lightning that had been compressed clumped together above Baek Cheong’s head. The disturbance of the surrounding qi waves and the talent of [Absolute Magic] made that secret and huge work possible.

‘Because in a state where all directions are surrounded, you wouldn’t normally spread your sense of qi up to the top of your head.’

And Baek Cheong was in a state where he had used all his nerves on the cliff. At the end, he was in a state where he had exhausted a lot of his nerves, being swayed by my wind magic.

That was why.

His detection was late.

In a chaotic situation where all directions were covered in flames, Baek Cheong, belatedly, sensed the energy above his head and flinched, but it was already too late.

‘Try to dodge it.’

Because the sky was already blazing with a spear made by compressing the flame lightning. The moment Baek Cheong moved, I was planning to blow away that entire range.

‘And since I’ve mixed in an electric shock, he can’t even run away.’

As long as he was holding a metal like a sword, it was the same as standing under a lightning rod with a lightning rod.

I faced Baek Cheong, who was glaring this way under the dazzlingly blazing spear of flame lightning.

‘At one time, you seemed so high up…’

Now, he felt a little small.

Baek Cheong began to put all his soul into his sword, as if he had foreseen something.

I also sweated and imbued all the mana I could into the spear of flame lightning.

As the pure mana of the third circle was completely drained, the spear of flame lightning, which had been white, began to emit a more brilliant light.

“Now let’s see the end.”

With a half-exhausted voice, the spear of flame lightning, which had been burning the sky, struck down at Baek Cheong like a thunderbolt.

(End of Chapter)