As the last runes of light magic faded from the air, the doors to the Combat Wing groaned open, revealing the legendary warrior-instructor, Professor Lee.
He stood tall and composed, a towering figure clad in a dark, rune-etched combat robe. His eyes scanned the students like a seasoned general assessing his battalion.
> "Time for Combat Training," he said, his voice carrying like thunder over still waters. "Today's lesson: survival under extreme pressure."
With a wave of his hand, space twisted violently, ripping open a portal into a newly-forged dimension.
FWOOOOOOM.
The sound of bending reality echoed like the cry of a dying star.
The students gasped as they stepped inside. This was no ordinary battlefield.
It was an entire universe—endless, boundless, shimmering with floating continents, swirling black holes, and gravity-defying rivers of molten stardust. Celestial winds howled in the distance. Suns burned in silence overhead, casting long, eerie shadows over the cracked cosmic terrain.
> CRACK-KOOOM!
A meteor storm erupted in the far distance, the sky streaked with red-hot fire trails and booming shockwaves.
Professor Lee's voice echoed across the expanse.
> "Muhan. Mi-cha. Step forward."
The two students did so, their boots grinding against crystal-encrusted ground that crackled with dormant energy.
Muhan stood still, eyes calm, his breath steady. His aura pulsed beneath his skin like a slumbering god.
Mi-cha tightened her gloves, her expression focused, a fierce flame in her eyes. Her aura shimmered with fiery silver light, dancing off her skin like solar flares.
The battlefield grew quiet.
Even the stars seemed to hold their breath.
WHOOMMMM.
Professor Lee's hand fell.
> "Begin!"
BANG!
They launched at each other, the air tearing with a sonic boom as both vanished from sight.
CRASH!
Their fists collided midair, the shockwave obliterating a floating continent nearby. The debris scattered like shattered glass through space.
Muhan twisted mid-flight, avoiding a crescent kick from Mi-cha that sent a shockwave through the stars behind him.
> VOOOOOM!
The very light bent from the speed of her strike.
He responded with a swift elbow, backed by raw aura.
BOOM!
Mi-cha blocked it with crossed arms, skidding backward across the dimension, kicking up sparks of condensed gravity with every step.
Muhan followed.
ZHHHHHHMMMMM!
His body blurred—breaking the light barrier—as he launched a barrage of punches, each one a sonic detonation.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Mi-cha danced between them, aura wings flaring as she took to the skies, her laughter ringing like chimes in a hurricane.
> "Is that all you've got, Muhan!?"
> "Not even close."
Muhan rose to meet her, forming a spiral sigil in one hand, raw aether swirling around his fingers.
THWOOOOOOOM!
He unleashed a twisting wave of force that split a planet in half behind Mi-cha as she narrowly dodged.
The sound of the rupture was deep—like thunder inside a black hole.
Mi-cha responded by clapping her hands together, summoning a massive arc of silver energy shaped like a blade. She hurled it with precision.
SHHRRAAANG!
It howled through space, cleaving across the battlefield. Muhan raised a glowing shield just in time—
KRAAAANG!
The impact knocked him back, craters forming under his feet as he skidded.
He grinned, brushing dust from his shoulder.
> "You've gotten strong, Mi-cha."
She grinned back, panting slightly.
> "You're still holding back, aren't you?"
Before Muhan could answer, she charged once more.
CRACK!
Their fists met again—this time igniting a burst of gravitational waves that warped the surrounding galaxies. Nearby stars flickered like candles in the wind.
The sheer force of their battle created aurora-like trails in their wake, arcs of light painting the void with streaks of violet, gold, and white.
From the edge of the field, Professor Lee watched silently, arms crossed, a slight smirk tugging at his lips.
> "This… is what elite combat looks like."
Finally, after a flurry of blazing strikes and cosmic detonations, Muhan gently caught Mi-cha's final punch, their auras swirling together in a silent maelstrom.
Time slowed.
Silence fell.
Then—
BOOOOOOMMMM!
The pocket dimension shuddered, nearly collapsing under the sheer pressure of their combined auras. Ripples of light and energy swept outward like a tsunami.
Professor Lee raised one hand.
SNAP.
In an instant, the dimension stabilized.
> "That's enough."
The two students landed gently, their breaths heavy, a quiet respect glowing in their eyes.
Mi-cha wiped sweat from her brow.
> "That was insane…"
Muhan chuckled softly.
> "You almost had me."
From the sidelines, the rest of the class stared, stunned—awestruck by the power, speed, and control displayed.
Even Professor Su-yang, who had been watching silently from outside the dimension, let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding.
> "Monsters… the both of them."