When Genius Meets Genius

The social gathering had settled into a comfortable rhythm when a shift in the ambient energy made several Adepts turn toward the entrance. Elias felt it too—a presence approaching that carried weight beyond normal Adept cultivation.

"Oh, this should be interesting," Aldric said, a slight smile crossing his face. "That's Marcus Thornheart. If you thought your advancement was impressive, wait until you hear about him."

A man walked into the tea house with the easy confidence of someone who'd never met an obstacle he couldn't overcome. He was tall, with sharp features and dark hair that seemed to absorb light. His robes were simple but made from fabric that existed in superposition—simultaneously damaged from countless battles and pristine as if freshly made.

But it was his aura that drew attention. Even carefully suppressed, it radiated power that made some of the younger Adepts unconsciously step back.

"Marcus Thornheart," Vel'kora said quietly. "79% Infinity Law comprehension—Stage 3 Continuum. He's been an Adept for only forty-three years, but he's already deep into uncountable infinity territory. One more percent and he'd reach peak Continuum at 80%."

"Forty-three years?" Thalia added. "Most cultivators spend countless epochs just reaching Stage 2 Multiplicity at 50%. He's a genuine once-in-an-epoch genius."

"That's not all," Brennan continued, his voice carrying respect. "He's completed forty-seven Infinity Trial dungeons. Those are specialized pocket dimensions designed to push cultivators to their absolute limits. Most Adepts can't complete even one. He's cleared forty-seven."

"And," Lyria said with obvious admiration, "he once fought ten Master-level cultivators simultaneously. He didn't win—he's not that crazy—but he survived and managed to wound three of them before escaping. No other Adept has that kind of combat record."

Elias observed Marcus Thornheart with his divine sense. The man's cultivation was immaculate—perfectly balanced, no wasted energy, every technique refined to near-perfection. His Infinity Law comprehension of 79% put him deep into the third stage: Continuum, the realm of uncountable infinity.

More importantly, his combat experience was evident in how he moved. Every step was calculated, every gesture economical. This was someone who'd fought for his life countless times and learned from each encounter.

Marcus walked directly toward their seating area, other Adepts parting before him with respectful nods.

He stopped in front of Elias and bowed slightly—a gesture of respect between equals, not superior to inferior.

"Elias Vance," Marcus said, his voice carrying a pleasant timbre. "I've heard fascinating things about you. The Initiate who destroyed five hundred multiverses in an attack, defeated Crimson Spear Theron as an initiate, and somehow managed to wound a Master-level cultivator despite being newly ascended to Adept."

"Marcus Thornheart," Elias replied, returning the bow with exactly the same depth. "I've heard about your Infinity Trial completions and your survival against ten Masters. Impressive achievements."

Marcus smiled. "Direct and factual. I appreciate that. Most cultivators would have added flowery compliments or false modesty." He paused, then continued, "I came here specifically to meet you. There's something I want to ask."

"Ask."

"Would you be willing to spar with me? A friendly match, no stakes beyond testing ourselves against worthy opponents." Marcus's eyes gleamed with anticipation. "I've been searching for someone at the Adept level who could push me to my limits. Everyone I fight either can't withstand my techniques or holds back out of fear. But you—you defeated a Master. You won't hold back, and you won't break easily."

The tea house had gone quiet. Every conversation stopped as Adepts turned to watch this exchange.

Elias considered. A battle against someone at 79% Infinity Law comprehension—deep in Stage 3 Continuum—would provide valuable data. He could test his newly refined techniques, observe uncountable infinity Law application in real-time, and potentially gain insights that would accelerate his own advancement.

"I accept," Elias said. "Where should we fight?"

Marcus's smile widened. "The Battle Arena can provide us with a Compressed Reality Sticks—a specialized combat dimension. It'll give us space to fight without worrying about collateral damage."

"Efficient. When?"

"Now, if you're willing. I've been looking forward to this since I heard about you."

Elias stood. "Now works for me."

Vel'kora leaned forward and whispered. "Elias, are you sure? Marcus is at 79% Infinity Law—Stage 3 Continuum. That's thirty-two percent higher than your 47% Stage 2 Multiplicity. He's operating at uncountable infinity while you're still in countable infinity. The qualitative difference is enormous."

"I'm aware of the gap. I accept anyway."

"He really does optimize everything," Sera muttered to her sister-wives. "Even accepting potentially suicidal challenges."

"This is going to be legendary," Aldric said, already standing. "Everyone's coming to watch, right?"

The answer was obvious—the entire tea house was already preparing to follow them to the arena.

The Battle Arena's administration processed their request with remarkable speed. Apparently, a match between two of the most talked-about Adepts in the city was exactly the kind of event they loved to facilitate.

"Compressed Reality Stick Seven is ready," the arena coordinator announced. "It contains one thousand barren realities, each one complete but lifeless. Full power is authorized. Medical arrays and healers are on standby. May you both gain enlightenment from this exchange."

Elias and Marcus stood before the dimensional gateway that would transport them to the combat zone. Behind them, hundreds of spectators had gathered—not just from the tea house, but from across the city as word had spread with impossible speed.

Several Master-level cultivators had even arrived, their presence making the ambient pressure in the arena waiting area almost suffocating for weaker Adepts.

"Last chance to reconsider," Marcus said, though his tone suggested he hoped Elias wouldn't.

"I don't reconsider optimal decisions."

Marcus laughed. "Good. Neither do I."

They stepped through the gateway together.

The Compressed Reality Stick was vast—one thousand complete realities compressed into a stable combat dimension. Each reality was barren, containing only the fundamental structures: space-time, physical laws, dimensional frameworks. No life, no civilizations, nothing that could be accidentally destroyed.

Elias and Marcus materialized on opposite sides of a central void, with realities stretching out in all directions like a three-dimensional grid of bubble universes.

A referee appeared—an Absolute Peak Master-level cultivator whose aura alone made the nearby realities tremble. "Standard rules. Fight until one submits, falls unconscious, or is incapacitated. Killing blows are prohibited but accidents happen—resurrect yourselves if you die. The arena will handle the costs afterall its rare to see geniuses battle. Begin when ready."

The referee vanished, leaving them alone among a thousand realities.

Marcus didn't wait. He moved first, and his speed was the definition of absurd.

He crossed the distance between them—a gap that spanned fifty realities—in what appeared to be a single step. But Elias's enhanced perception caught the truth: Marcus had taken uncountably infinite steps, each one infinitesimally small, his movement technique literally embodying the Continuum stage of Infinity Law.

One step that was uncountably infinite steps, his movement continuous rather than discrete, allowing him to cross any distance as a seamless flow rather than a sequence of positions.

His fist, wreathed in compressed Infinity Law energy, thrust toward Elias's chest. The attack carried enough force to shatter dimensions, and indeed, the three realities behind Elias began cracking from the mere pressure wave preceding the strike.

Elias shifted into Probability Slipstream, his body existing along countably infinite possible paths simultaneously. Marcus's fist passed through the space where he'd been, and the resulting shockwave detonated two realities in spectacular fashion—their space-time fabric ripping apart, dimensional boundaries collapsing, the fundamental structures unraveling into component energies before dispersing into the void.

Elias reappeared behind Marcus and countered with his own strike—Quantum Strike Annihilation, refined and optimized since his last major battle.

The blow hit Marcus's hastily erected defense shield, and the collision was catastrophic. The shield was a masterwork of Continuum-stage Infinity Law application, existing in uncountably infinite states to block attacks across continuous probability spaces.

But Elias's technique, while only Stage 2 Multiplicity, was executed with perfect efficiency—using his 47% comprehension as if it were 70% through pure optimization and his hidden Quantum Law principles.

The shield cracked. The backlash destroyed five realities in a cascading chain reaction—each one's destruction triggering instabilities in its neighbors until a sphere of annihilation expanded outward before stabilizing.

Marcus flew backward, crashing through seven realities. Each passage left destruction in his wake—space-time tearing like paper, dimensional walls crumbling, the fundamental forces unbalancing and causing reality-wide implosions that collapsed into singularities before dissipating.

He stopped himself after the seventh reality, golden blood leaking from the corner of his mouth. But he was smiling.

"Excellent! That technique—you're applying Infinity Law at a level far beyond your 47% comprehension. You're making Stage 2 Multiplicity fight like advanced Stage 3 Continuum. How?"

"Efficiency optimization. Using 1% to achieve 10% effectiveness through perfect application and execution."

"Impossible. But you just did it." Marcus wiped the blood away. "My turn to show you something interesting."

He raised both hands, and the ambient energy shifted dramatically. His Infinity Law comprehension flared, no longer suppressed, and Elias felt the difference immediately.

79% Infinity Law. Deep Stage 3 Continuum. Uncountable infinity.

Marcus activated a technique that made the surrounding space scream. "Infinite Cascade Strike!"

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