The city was tense, streets humming with the aftermath of Valhalla's latest victories. James Lee stood at the center of a rooftop, recruits at his back, surveying the sprawling battlefield. The system pulsed continuously, scanning for potential high-tier targets, rare skills, and strategic opportunities. One target stood above the rest: Mikey, the legendary Toman leader, whose combat prowess had become infamous across the city.
James Lee's eyes glimmered with calculated focus. The system confirmed what he had anticipated: copying Mikey's skills would unlock a new evolution, pushing him to the next level. With careful planning, he orchestrated an encounter that would allow him to face Mikey under conditions favorable for system absorption, without fully endangering his own recruits or the city.
Mikey appeared, his presence commanding. His aura alone made the streets feel smaller, the night charged with tension. James Lee stepped forward, calm and unflinching.
"Takemichi's safety, the city, and your gang's future… they all depend on this," James Lee murmured, speaking more to himself and the system than to Mikey. Then, facing the legendary fighter: "It's time we test limits, Mikey."
The clash was instantaneous. Mikey's strikes were lightning-fast, overwhelming in raw power and speed. But James Lee's system reacted perfectly. With Shadow Step, Precision Strike, Tactical Vision, and Countermaster Plus, he dodged, deflected, and analyzed each attack, mapping Mikey's techniques in real time.
Every dodge, counter, and parry fed into the system's data banks. The Copy Skill interface activated at critical moments, analyzing Mikey's ultra-fast reflexes, signature moves, and combat intuition. The first wave of skill absorption unlocked minor abilities, but as the fight escalated, James Lee triggered Full Copy Skill Mode, integrating Mikey's signature combat flow, instinctive reflexes, and ultra-fast strike sequences.
The system rewarded him immediately: UI Mode unlocked—a heightened state where perception, speed, and reaction synced seamlessly with combat intuition, allowing attacks to be anticipated before they were fully executed. Simultaneously, Mikey-style techniques—the fluid, devastating, almost effortless movements unique to his fighting—were converted into ability cards that James Lee could assign strategically to himself or his recruits.
The transformation was instantaneous. James Lee's movements became a blur, flowing with Mikey's instinctive power while enhanced by his own system perks: Tactical Mastery, Multi-Strike Combo, Leadership Aura, and the newly integrated Mikey skills. Each strike was precise, each dodge perfect, each counter lethal.
The battlefield fell silent around them, recruits and onlookers alike stunned by the fusion of power. Valhalla's dominance was no longer just strategic—it was almost untouchable. Mikey, though still formidable, now faced an opponent who had effectively integrated his own ultimate abilities, pushing James Lee to a level beyond ordinary human perception.
The system chimed: Level Up Achieved – Next Evolution: Apex Commander, reflecting the combination of raw skill, strategic mastery, and the newly acquired ultimate abilities. Ability cards streamed into his inventory: Ultra Instinct Flow, Mikey Signature Strikes, Adaptive Reflexes, and Tactical Command Amplifier.
James Lee looked down at the city from the rooftop, recruits aligned behind him. Every opponent defeated, every skill copied, every ability card unlocked, every perk mastered—Valhalla had reached a new apex of dominance, capable of not just fighting Toman but reshaping the entire city's gang hierarchy at will.
"Every fight, every skill, every recruit… everything leads to this," James Lee murmured, voice calm, cold, and resolute. "Valhalla doesn't just rise. It defines the top."