Extreme Power System

Name: Gabriel

Cultivation Level: 7th Layer of Qi Condensation

Power Boost: 173/1,000

Staring at the system interface, Gabriel sighed. "Maybe gathering 1,000 Power Boost points isn't as easy as I thought."

Despite wasting half an hour with Julia and slapping Vincent a few times, the so-called emotional value—or shock value, or whatever it was—still wasn't anywhere near enough to unlock his first power boost.

"I need something truly shocking! Something witnessed by as many people as possible… Hmm, the fighting arena might be my best option!"

The Sky City Immortal Sect's fighting arena was divided into two sections: the Outer Sect Arena and the Inner Sect Arena.

The Outer Sect Arena was open to everyone—so long as they paid the entrance fee. Because of this, nobles, wealthy commoners, and even middle-class cultivators often flocked to watch the battles.

The Inner Sect Arena, however, was far more restricted. Only sect disciples were allowed as spectators. In cases where elders were training or dueling—especially when using sensitive or high-level techniques—even outer sect disciples were prohibited from watching.

Gabriel, being an outer sect disciple, was only eligible to participate in the Outer Sect Arena. Fortunately, it attracted more people, which meant more spectators… and more potential shock value!

"The matches are held on Saturdays. Today's Friday! I should go register right now!"

Without wasting another second, he turned on his heels and made his way toward the registration hall.

...

The arena wasn't far. Even at a leisurely pace, Gabriel arrived in just twenty minutes.

Sky City was vast, a metropolis teeming with life. The city and its outskirts housed a staggering thirteen million people. Yet, despite this immense population, the Sky City Immortal Sect remained an elite force, with only 25,000 outer disciples, 1,500 inner disciples, 900 deputy elders, 80 elders, and a single sect master.

In total, fewer than 30,000 cultivators belonged to the sect—barely a fraction of the city's population. The Outer Sect quarters, where most disciples resided, were relatively small. One could walk across them in just an hour.

Gabriel's residence was in the eastern sector of the Outer Sect, conveniently close to the arena. That was why he managed to reach it so quickly.

The Outer Sect Arena was massive, easily one of the largest structures within the Outer Sect. Towering walls, reinforced with spirit inscriptions, loomed overhead. It was built to withstand even the fiercest battles.

Gabriel stepped inside, registered his name, and walked out holding his first-ever arena identification card.

This would be his debut match.

Most Outer Sect disciples aimed to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm as soon as possible. Why, then, would they waste time fighting in the arena?

One word—money.

According to sect regulations, 90% of the Outer Sect Arena's earnings went directly to the participating fighters. It was one of the fastest ways for outer disciples to make a fortune.

Each ticket cost at least one spirit stone, and with over 10,000 spectators every Saturday, the earnings were significant. Spirit stones were the lifeline of cultivation—used to purchase resources, pills, and techniques—so outer disciples, often strapped for wealth, flocked to the arena.

Gabriel, though an orphan, wasn't particularly desperate for money. His A-grade talent attracted many lenders willing to invest in his future. Technically, he was thousands of spirit stones in debt, but once he broke through to Foundation Establishment, paying them back would be effortless.

For A and B-grade talents, finding financial backers was easy. Cultivation potential was a guarantee of future success, making them valuable investments.

For those of C-grade talent or lower, however, life was much harder. They couldn't afford to focus solely on cultivation. They needed money to survive, and the arena provided a surefire way to earn it.

As a result, most Outer Sect arena fighters were C-grade talent or worse.

Gabriel, however, was different. He was a well-known prodigy in the Outer Sect. His mere presence in a match would cause a stir.

"I can't wait to see their reactions," he thought, a grin forming on his lips as he made his way back to his living quarters.

With over 10,000 spectators watching, how many Power Boost points would he earn?

The thought sent a thrill of excitement through him.

...

The night passed quickly.

The next morning, Gabriel donned the finest set of 'clothing' he owned—a striking full-body suit of magical gold armor.

It had been a gift from Deputy Director Natalie a year ago. Back then, he had never worn it. It was too flashy, too eye-catching, and—most importantly—he had never been the type to fight in the first place.

But today was different.

If he wanted to maximize his shock value, then standing out was the best strategy.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

A sudden knock at the door interrupted his thoughts.

Gabriel was already prepared to leave for the arena, so he grabbed his things and went to open it.

Standing outside was a familiar face.

"Julia? How are you?"

Ding! Power Boost Points +1!

Gabriel blinked. "Hmm? I thought I already drained her value yesterday!"

Yesterday, he had squeezed every last point out of her before leaving. But now… she was generating points again?

"It seems points are rechargeable!"

This was excellent news. If he could only extract points from people once, gathering 1,000 points would be a nightmare. But now?

Now, he could drain them, wait for them to recharge, and drain them again.

As Gabriel stood there, pleased with his discovery, Julia finally snapped out of her daze.

"Umm… Your armor is so pretty!" she said, her voice carrying a hint of admiration.

"Thanks," Gabriel replied casually.

Julia hesitated before speaking again. "Can we talk?"

Gabriel locked the door to his living quarters before responding. Each room had a built-in magic formation that insulated sound, but the physical doors remained the greatest deterrents against theft and intrusion.

While theft was rare in the Outer Sect, it wasn't unheard of. Being cautious never hurt.

"I'm heading to the arena. We can talk while we walk," Gabriel said, glancing at her. He didn't mind keeping her around a little longer—especially if there were still more points to squeeze out of her.

Julia looked surprised. "The arena? Gabriel… are you short on money?"

To her, there was only one reason why someone would willingly fight in the arena—desperation for spirit stones.

Before Gabriel could answer, Julia reached into her spatial bag and pulled out sixteen spiritual stones, each the size of a pea. These were low-grade spiritual stones, the most common currency among Outer Sect disciples.

"Please, Gabriel, take them," she said, holding out all she had.

Gabriel stared at her, momentarily stunned.

"Is she insane?"

He knew Julia had a crush on him, but giving away all of her spiritual stones? That was beyond foolish—especially when she needed them more than anyone.

However, he didn't outright refuse. Instead, he took just one from her hand and smiled.

"Thank you, Julia. When I break through to Foundation Establishment, I'll repay you a hundred times over."

He meant it.

Though there was no chance he would fall in love with her, she seemed like a genuinely kind person—someone worth befriending.

Ding! Power Boost Points +1!

Gabriel's gaze flickered toward Julia's sparkling eyes. She was clearly overjoyed that he had accepted her help.

"But… can I really be 'just friends' with her?" he wondered.

As if unaware of his internal conflict, Julia eagerly suggested, "We should go train again tomorrow!"

Hearing this, Gabriel felt a headache coming on.

"I don't have time to waste on this," he thought.

Still, he didn't want to shut her down completely, so he quickly changed the subject.

"We'll figure that out later. For now, let's go to the arena. I'm fighting today, and I expect you to cheer for me! It'd be great if the whole crowd shouted my name!"

Julia immediately brightened. "Of course! I'll cheer for you with everything I have!"

She wasn't the least bit worried about his safety.

The arena had deputy elders serving as referees, whose job was to intervene before a fight got too dangerous. In reality, the death rate in the arena was extremely low.

After all, Outer Sect disciples were still members of the Sky City Immortal Sect. Their protection was the sect's responsibility.

Sky City Sect was known as a righteous path sect, meaning it took the well-being of its disciples seriously. Even those who failed to reach Foundation Establishment had paths available to them.

Those who couldn't break through had two choices:

Become a mortal servant employed by the sect.

Leave the sect and live as an ordinary person.

Surprisingly, those who left before qualifying for the Inner Sect weren't punished. In fact, the sect even gave them a one-spiritual-stone pension per year—a form of compensation for the years they had spent cultivating.

Additionally, if a mortal servant ever broke through to Foundation Establishment, even after the age of twenty-five, they would be reinstated as a deputy elder of the Outer Sect.

In short, anyone who joined the sect was guaranteed a smooth life, even if they failed to advance in cultivation.

A sect this benevolent would, of course, never allow its disciples to die in the arena.

...

Gabriel continued chatting with Julia as they walked. He managed to squeeze a few more Power Boost points from her, but it was minimal—she had already been milked dry for now.

It would take time before she "recharged" again.

After half an hour, they finally reached the arena.

Gabriel and Julia parted ways—she headed to the spectator section, while he entered the contestant area.

The real battle was about to begin.

...

"Our first match is between—The Ghost and The Swordwoman!"

The loudspeaker's announcement sent a wave of excitement through the massive crowd.

More than 12,000 spectators erupted into cheers, some jumping up and down in anticipation.

Two figures stepped onto the arena.

The first was a woman clad in silver armor, her gleaming sword gripped tightly in her left hand.

Her opponent was a man draped in black robes, standing eerily still. Unlike the swordwoman, he carried no weapon at all.

At first glance, it looked as though she could easily cut him down.

But, of course, things were never that simple.

The loudspeaker crackled to life once more.

"Both of these fighters are at the 6th Layer of Qi Condensation and have brilliant records! Get ready for an exciting match!"

The majority of the crowd cheered for The Swordwoman, but a smaller faction loudly supported The Ghost. Both were famous fighters, so there was no need for an introduction.

"Begin!"

The battle started in an instant.

The Swordwoman wasted no time, slashing her blade toward her opponent with incredible speed.

The shining arc of silver light shot toward The Ghost—yet it passed straight through him!

A collective gasp rippled through the audience.

Meanwhile, The Ghost retaliated.

He pointed a single finger at The Swordwoman. A bolt of lightning erupted from his hand, crackling with power as it shot toward her.

She was prepared.

With a swift motion, she raised her sword, and the lightning dispersed against its blade.

At first, this seemed impossible to Gabriel.

From an Earthly perspective, dodging lightning—or blocking it with a sword—should be unthinkable.

But this wasn't Earth.

This was a cultivation world—where the impossible was reality.

After the first exchange, both fighters paused, carefully analyzing each other for openings.

Then, The Ghost moved.

With a single step, he crossed more than 50 feet in an instant, reaching toward The Swordwoman's body.

Everyone in the audience held their breath.

It was common knowledge among his fans—if The Ghost touches his opponent, he wins.

Anyone who came into direct contact with him would be instantly incapacitated.

The Swordwoman knew this.

And she was ready.

Just as he was about to reach her, she activated her trump card—Skydeath!

With a powerful leap, she soared more than 20 feet into the air, channeling a massive amount of energy into her next strike.

Boom!

She brought her sword down like a divine executioner, slamming it toward The Ghost's position.

The Ghost tried to dodge—but failed.

The sword struck him mid-movement.

Most of its energy phased through his intangible form, but not all of it.

His technique had limits—and this attack was too strong to fully evade.

A spray of blood followed.

A deep gash appeared on his left arm, dangerously close to the bone.

The Swordwoman landed, her stance firm and poised, ready to unleash another powerful technique.

Seeing this, The Ghost's expression shifted.

Reaching into his robes, he pulled out a small white flag and waved it in surrender.

"Swordwoman wins!"

The loudspeaker's voice boomed across the arena, making the crowd erupt in cheers.

Both fighters bowed to the audience before stepping off the stage.

Many spectators hadn't been able to fully grasp what had just happened—the match had ended faster than expected.

Fortunately, numerous magic cameras had recorded everything in slow motion, replaying it on the massive stadium monitors for everyone to see.

The audience buzzed with discussions about the battle.

"Swordwoman was just a terrible matchup for Ghost!" someone commented.

Hearing this, Julia, who wasn't a fan of the arena yet, tilted her head in curiosity.

"Why?" she asked.

She knew that Gabriel enjoyed these matches, and if she was going to talk with him about them later, she wanted to understand more.

The woman who had made the comment turned to Julia and explained:

"It's obvious! Most attacks just pass through Ghost's body without harming him. But Swordwoman's attacks? They're too sharp!"

She sighed before continuing.

"And on top of that, as a sword cultivator, she has a high resistance to lightning—Ghost's main form of attack. He was completely unlucky!"

Her disappointed tone made it clear—she was one of Ghost's fans.

This woman was a noble lady without cultivation talent, but she was a regular attendee of the outer sect arena. Every week, she purchased VIP front-row seats for a hefty price of five spirit stones per hour.

Julia purchased a front-row seat for one spirit stone. As a disciple of the sect, she enjoyed a few perks here and there.

She nodded in understanding, absorbing the information.

"I should buy a book about the arena's fighters. If I'm going to talk about this with Gabriel later, I need to know something about the competitors."

As she made a mental note to do so, the loudspeaker crackled again.

"Our next match! On the right, we have—Golden Man! And on the left, Ice Beast! Both are at the 7th Level of Qi Condensation!"

The audience murmured in confusion.

"Golden Man? Who is that? Is he new?"

The noblewoman, still reeling from Ghost's defeat, frowned in bewilderment.

Then, she caught sight of Gabriel's entrance.

A man clad in dazzling, pure-gold armor stepped onto the stage, shining like a divine warrior descended from the heavens.

Gasps echoed throughout the stadium.

It was impossible to ignore him—the sheer radiance of his golden armor made him the most eye-catching figure in the entire arena.

...

As he stepped onto the battlefield, Gabriel grinned.

His ears were filled with the constant chimes of his system.

"Ding! Powerboost points +1!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +3!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +2!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +5!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +1!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +1!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +1!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +2!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +3!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +1!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +1!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +1!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +2!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +6!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +1!"

"Ding! Powerboost points +1!"

"Ding! Powerboost…"

"I'm going to get rich!"

Gabriel barely suppressed his excitement as he turned his gaze toward his opponent.

Across from him stood Ice Beast—a man clad in pure white robes, his body emanating a cold mist.

The air around him froze the ground beneath his feet, his presence as chilling as a winter storm.

The crowd held their breath in anticipation.

Then—

"Begin!"

The loudspeaker boomed.

The battle had begun.