Chapter 7: Edge of Power
POV: Zai
I woke up, and the air was. heavy.
Not hot, not cold—just thick, like the world had compressed in around me overnight.
The system pinged before I could even sit up.
[LEVEL 4 TRIAL UNLOCKED — "Edge of Power"]
Description: Survive a simulated near-death experience. Live with system abilities.
Type: Solo | High-Risk
Reward: EXP Boost + Passive Skill Slot + Stat Synchronization Upgrade
Warning: This trial can be attempted only once.
Accept? (Y/N)
I stared at it for a long time. My heart pounded, but I was already typing Y in my mind.
This was how the system worked—it didn't wait for you to be ready. It got you ready.
[Trial Accepted – Entering Trial Dimension.]
The world went dark. I felt the earth fall out from beneath me, as if I'd just fallen out of my own body—and then…
I landed.
Not gracefully. Like, dead weight, knees slamming into metal.
My eyes snapped open.
I was on a narrow platform—a floating steel shelf with bright blue lights pulsating beneath my feet. Behind me? Nothing but open air. Below? Nothing.
Above? An endless sky that was somehow both a ceiling and a void.
[Trial Zone: EDGE STAGE – Platform Rules Engaged]
Trial Objective: Survive 90 seconds of incoming wreckage, air blasts, and shifting terrain. Don't drop off.
Bonus Objective: Successfully regain platform after being blown off once (Edge Recovery Use Required).
EXP Bonus: x1.5 if accomplished without Shielding.
"Alright," I muttered, cracking my knuckles. "Time to see what 'near-death' feels like.".
3. 2. 1. GO.
At second three, a giant metal cube fell inches from where I was standing. Sparks flew. The platform tilted.
I dodged roll left just in time.
Then a slicing wind gust came from above. It nearly blew me off—but I spun, crouched, and activated Egg Shield. The pastel shell covered me just long enough to maintain my footing.
Crack.
Gone.
One shield down.
At second twenty, flaming wreckage rained down from the darkness above. My head spun.
I chambered a Fireball and fired it at an oncoming mass to blow it up in mid-air before it hit me.
Next: a force blast dead on.
I planted my feet, waited. and—
[KO COUNTER – ACTIVATED]
A blue flash burst around me as I countered the push flawlessly, refusing to move an inch from where I stood.
Seconds ticked by. My heart was doing laps in my chest. I could barely think.
Then, at second sixty-five, catastrophe occurred.
The entire platform tilted off-balance, like a game board swept over by an annoyed kid.
I slid toward the edge—nothing to grab on to.
My foot slipped.
I fell—
[ACTIVATE EDGE RECOVERY?]
Y.
An invisible rope shot itself upwards and dragged me through the air like a grappling hook. My body somersaulted—wind shrieking in my ears—and then slam, my knees smacked into the platform again.
I rolled, stood, and charged a Charge Shot, shooting into another block trying to crush me.
[TRIAL COMPLETE – 90 SECONDS SURVIVED]
Bonus Earned: Edge Recovery Used
EXP Earned: +180
LEVEL UP!
I collapsed onto my back as the world dissolved into white around me.
[SYSTEM UPGRADE – LEVEL 4 REACHED]
Rewards:
– Passive Skill Slot Unlocked
– Skill Cooldowns decreased slightly
– EXP gain increased from combat
– Stat Sync: 10% boost to agility and perception
– Next Trial: LOCKED until Level 6
– 3 New Random Skills Incoming.
I gasped as I rematerialized in my bedroom—floor solid, air light again, heart still racing.
Then the skills fell.
[Level 4 Skill Drop]
1. Pikachu – Quick Zap (Lv. 1)
1. Pikachu – Thunder Shock (Lv. 1)
A swift electric shock from your fingertips. Briefly stuns target.
– Cooldown: 7s
– Use: Interruption, Stun, combo initiator.
2. Inkling – Paint Dash (Lv. 1)
Dash ahead with ink energy, creating a slippery trail. Minor speed boost.
– Cooldown: 9s
– Use: Evasive maneuver, escape, confusion technique.
3. Lucario – Aura Vision (Lv. 1)
Sense hostile intent within 20 ft. Glows red when danger is near.
– Passive Duration: 10s per use
– Cooldown: 20s
– Use: Combat prep, ambush detection, increased awareness.
I grinned, eyes locked on the final system message.
[Next Milestone: LEVEL 5 – "Subordinate Creation" Unlocked Upon Arrival]
Whatever that was, it was going to change everything.
Because if the system was permitting me to form CPU-style allies?
Then I wasn't just a fighter anymore.
I was a leader.