MIGHT AS WELL BE OP Chapter 993: Gains

"It looks like you've got a lot weighing on you," Veronica's voice rang out as she pivoted to face Vega, who sat there with a pensive look on her face.

Vega let out a sigh upon hearing Veronica, drawing everyone's eyes to her; after a brief quiet, she finally said, "I just think I should've joined this spar too—a rare clash and meetup of anomalies like this doesn't come often," her voice soft and reflective as she shared her thoughts.

Nobody batted an eye at her labeling them anomalies; they just brushed it off and probed why she thought so.

"Think about it: at the start, Aura Nova clashed with Kingsley, picking up tips on her hand-to-hand fighting and spotting her own flaws, which she then honed back home," she started explaining, "Kingsley, after his defeat, polished his Law Defiance Field, and Aura Nova went up against Lucian next, snagging True Self Actualisation from him—Anthony says she's set to turn into a beast after some training rounds."

She halted for a second, like she was giving them time to piece it together and track her logic, "Then Anthony took on Lucian, and he picked up some katana insights mid-fight. After that, Anthony faced Kingsley, who's now unlocked Martial Rhythm," she stopped briefly before wrapping up firmly, "It feels like everyone's walking away with gains from this spar."

Her statement hung in the air, sparking a hush since it was true—folks were advancing in one form or another. Sure, Lucian's takeaways from facing Anthony weren't as huge as Aura Nova's True Self Actualisation or Kingsley's Martial Rhythm, but any step forward counted, and in their realm, the tiniest edge could tip the scales from victory to downfall.

Three of the five fighters had leveled up, skipping only Anthony and Aaaninja.

Though the rest now itched to jump in, they lacked the power to handle fights this intense—the ripple effects alone could shake up anyone not tough enough.

"So, Anthony, did you pick up something we missed? And Aaaninja as well?" Veronica piped up out of nowhere; better not to jump to conclusions in a setup where guesses could go wrong fast.

Anthony's bright blue eyes flicked to Veronica as he replied, "On a field like this, there's nothing for me to pick up," he stated evenly, no shift in his voice or face, and it came off as plain fact, delivered with an eerie steadiness, free of any brag.

Lips quirked around the group—wasn't Anthony basically saying they were all too feeble for him to learn from? Yeah, he'd crushed every matchup, but that jab hit harder than they'd admit.

"You know, this is exactly why Altheria sees you as full of yourself, don't you?" Vega chimed in from nearby, her mouth twitching in faint amusement at his straightforwardness.

"Her take on me doesn't bother me one bit," Anthony shot back with a casual grin; he and Altheria weren't pals—heck, they'd barely traded words—so why fuss over her view? He'd give her due respect as Aaaninja's partner, but that was it, no extras.

"Sigh, looks like we'll wait till Aaaninja stirs and see if he got anything out of it," Lucian remarked, his dark eyes sliding over to where Aaaninja hovered.

"Probably, but I doubt he did— he wrapped up his bout with Kingsley quick and only dragged it out with you, staying neck-and-neck, till you both unleashed those wild powers," Aura Nova pointed out, her logic sharp and spot-on since Aaaninja had nabbed fast wins before the big finish.

Anthony, quiet for a beat, then said, "No point speculating—he did gain something; that's why he's out cold still," he noted coolly, a subtle smile tugging at his lips.

At Anthony's words, even Zachary and Nyxss, who'd been locked on Aaaninja while counting down the ten hours, swung their looks his way—after all, what parent wouldn't wonder about their kid's strides, especially ones that soared beyond normal understanding?

"Wasn't it just mental fatigue that knocked him out?" Nyxss questioned Anthony, clinging to his earlier words as a comfort.

"Yes, mental drain did it, and for a prodigy like Aaaninja with his iron will, he should've bounced back in an hour tops," Anthony laid out steadily, lounging with a serene smile, "but he's still down because he's piecing together insights and transforming right now."

While Anthony talked, his gaze stayed glued to Aaaninja's form, catching the shifts in his psyche via his All Seeing Eyes, which laid it all bare like simple print in a kid's tale—clear as day, no veils.

"On the specifics of his change, I won't spill—everyone's powers and such are private aces up their sleeves; if he shares, great, but otherwise... not my call," Anthony concluded firmly, holding back on Aaaninja's upgrades no matter the itch to know.

As to Aaaninja's shift, it'd happened when he linked to the River Of Time to pull Lucian through, flooding his head with lore on the Authority Of Time, the Concept Of Time, the Laws Of Time, plus loads of secret insights—though that influx was short-term, just to sustain Lucian, since Aaaninja's grasp couldn't handle that might yet, not with his present command of Time.

Even so, it wasn't for nothing; if the River Of Time's wisdom was a vast wasteland, Aaaninja had snagged less than a speck of sand from it—tiny, sure, but for their stage, a lone grain from that height could spark a massive leap and reshape their path forward.

Lucian Darkheart eyed Aaaninja and breathed a chuckle, a playful smile crossing his features as his thoughts wandered to the Starborn Tournament, where Aaaninja had fallen to Anthony and hit True Enlightenment.

And here, he'd dropped to Lucian yet scored another prize. Technically, this edge didn't stem straight from the loss to Lucian but from the rescue—if not for that save, zilch would've come his way.

Still, Aaaninja struck as the sort who turned every setback into a win, be it obvious or sly, bold or tucked away.

The thought didn't faze Lucian; he just grinned at the idea of Aaaninja rising stronger—in truth, he welcomed it, since standing still scared him more than a fierce competitor.

'Gotta stay sharp,' he thought, a broad smile breaking out as he pictured tangling with this revamped Aaaninja soon.

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