My Yandere Wives Keep Making Me Stronger

"You’re fast," Kaelen admitted, his voice carrying a hint of grudging respect. "But speed alone won’t save you."

Lucien didn’t reply. Instead, he ducked under a wild thrust and drove his fist toward Kaelen’s ribs.

Kaelen barely managed to twist away, the blow grazing his robes. His eyes widened slightly, and his smirk returned.

"Interesting," he said. "Very interesting."

Lucien had clearly exceeded his expectations. And Kaelen wasn’t dumb, he could tell that Lucien hadn’t even released all of his strength yet. That realization stung his pride, but it also ignited something else. Excitement.

"Let’s take it to the next level," Kaelen said, his voice dropping to a low, dangerous tone.

As he spoke, thunder and lightning erupted from his body, crackling and roaring as they took the forms of dragons, coiling around him before dispersing into the air. The ground beneath him trembled from the sheer pressure of his released power.

His spear armament became coated in the surging lightning, its golden surface now crackling with arcs of electricity. The weapon’s aura intensified, its draconic roar growing louder as its power was elevated to the next level. The air around them grew heavy, a destructive aura filling the clearing.

Lucien looked at Kaelen and nodded slightly. It seemed he wasn’t all just talk after all. His thunder element was A-Rank, not the highest in Aethelgard, but still one of the top talents.

A lightning circular rune appeared at the tip of Kaelen’s spear, with the tip at the center of the rune. Energy crackled and pulsed as the rune spun, building power.

Kaelen thrust his spear forward into the open air. From the rune burst a lightning bolt that struck at Lucien with insane speed, tearing through the air with a deafening crack.

Lucien sensed the attack and dodged, the lightning bolt narrowly missing him as it struck a tree behind him, charring it black.

Kaelen didn’t stop. Five lightning bolts charged in the air above him, all aimed at Lucien, and they shot forward with blinding speed.

Lucien saw this and immediately made his move. Thunder and lightning also streaked from his body, but his was more condensed, more controlled than Kaelen’s.

Lightning Flash.

His whole body seemed to be made of lightning rather than flesh as he transformed into a bolt of electricity, weaving through the attacks with breathtaking speed.

Speed against speed. Lightning against lightning.

Kaelen noticed the purity of Lucien’s thunder and lightning but had no time to focus on it as Lucien was charging at him with insane speed.

A large circular rune appeared on the ground below Kaelen’s feet, golden lightning pulsating within it.

Thunder Barrier.

Lightning surged out from him, infused with Originat, forming a barrier around him for protection.

Lucien saw this and didn’t stop. Instead, he moved with even more speed. As he closed in on the Thunder Barrier, he pumped Originat into his right fist, condensing thunder and lightning into it.

Thunder Fist.

He thrust his fist at the barrier with all his momentum. Kaelen, expecting the barrier to hold for at least a few minutes, watched in shock as it shattered in the blink of an eye.

The destruction caught him completely off guard.

Lucien seized the opportunity. With his left fist, he punched Kaelen squarely in the stomach, appearing before him in an instant.

Kaelen was sent flying, crashing through a tree with a sickening crack before collapsing to the ground.

After a long, tense moment, he slowly rose to his feet. But to Lucien’s surprise, no damage had been done to him. If one looked closely at where he had been punched, his clothes had been singed away, but beneath them, a glint of armor was visible. That armor had protected him from Lucien’s attack.

If not for it, he would have definitely been injured. Thinking of this made his anger surge. Someone he had once looked down upon like an insect had suddenly revealed himself to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

He decided not to hold back any longer. He circulated all of his Originat, and the aura of his cultivation, the last level of the Spirit Realm, spread outward, pressing down on everything around him.

Lucien, the main target of this pressure, showed no change in expression, as if the overwhelming aura meant nothing to him.

By now, the battle between Lucien and Kaelen had drawn a large crowd, gathered at the edge of the Crimson Vale. Most of the spectators recognized Kaelen, his reputation, his family background, his power. They whispered among themselves, shaking their heads. When they saw Lucien with his weak aura, they were certain. He shouldn’t have offended Kaelen. It seemed like this was the end for him.

Kaelen continued to release more of his strength. Thunder roared, lightning struck, and wind howled around him like a tempest given form. With the spear in his hand, he exuded an indomitable aura, a force of nature wrapped in arrogance and draconic pride.

From the spear armament, a golden dragon coiled around its length, its form wrought from crackling lightning and roaring wind. It let out a deafening dragon roar that echoed through the clearing, shaking the leaves from the trees and sending a wave of pressure across the gathered crowd.

Lucien raised his eyebrows, clearly not surprised. He had used the system to scan Kaelen long before this moment and already knew the truth. Kaelen possessed both the Thunder and Wind Origin Elements as his talents, a combination that came from his physique, the Tempest Dragon Physique. It was impressive. But not enough.

Lucien also didn’t want to be outdone. He released his own Wind Element, the air around him shifting and swirling with controlled precision. He didn’t just want to battle Kaelen, he wanted to crush him and his arrogance entirely.

Kaelen’s expression turned ugly for a moment, his confidence wavering as he realized Lucien possessed the same elemental talent. The crowd murmured in surprise, their earlier certainty crumbling.

But after a moment of thought, Kaelen’s smirk returned. This was good, he told himself. It would be even more satisfying to crush Lucien while he wielded the same power.

"You think matching my elements makes you my equal?" Kaelen spat, his voice dripping with contempt. "Let me show you the power of an A-Rank talent and a true dragon’s bloodline."

He activated his physique and draconic bloodline simultaneously. Golden scales began to surface along his arms and neck, catching the light like molten metal. A pair of curved, draconic horns sprouted from his forehead, their tips gleaming with crackling electricity. His eyes shifted, crimson fading to a predatory gold, his pupils slitting like a serpent’s. His aura intensified, the air around him growing thick with draconic pressure that made the gathered crowd take an involuntary step back.

He surged forward, his spear leading the charge, the golden dragon coiled around it roaring as he thrust toward Lucien’s heart. The air screamed in protest, lightning and wind converging around the spear’s tip.

Lucien didn’t flinch. The wind around him condensed, forming a barrier of razor-sharp currents that deflected the spear’s tip at the last moment. He sidestepped, his movements fluid and unhurried, and drove his palm toward Kaelen’s exposed side.

Kaelen twisted, his spear spinning to block the strike. The clash sent sparks flying, and the ground beneath them cracked under the strain.

"You’re strong," Kaelen admitted through gritted teeth, his golden eyes narrowing. "But strength without bloodline is meaningless."

He pulled back, lightning gathering around his spear tip once more. The golden dragon coiled tighter, its roar growing louder as it prepared to strike. The scales on his arms gleamed, and the horns on his head crackled with raw power.

"Let’s see how long you can keep up with a true dragon," Kaelen snarled, and he thrust forward again, this time with the full weight of his Tempest Dragon Physique behind the blow.

He charged at Lucien again, his spear leading the attack with lightning and wind swirling around its tip in a deadly vortex. The golden dragon coiled around the weapon roared, its form crackling with draconic energy as Kaelen closed the distance in an instant.

The spear thrust forward, aimed directly at Lucien’s chest, a strike meant to pierce through flesh and bone, to end the battle with a single, decisive blow.

But Lucien didn’t dodge.

He stood his ground, his expression calm, almost bored. As the spear tip hurtled toward him, he raised his hand, not to block, but to catch.

Time seemed to slow. The wind howled, lightning crackled, and the crowd held its breath.

Lucien’s fingers closed around the spear’s shaft, just inches from his chest. The impact sent a shockwave rippling outward, cracking the ground beneath his feet and sending debris flying. But Lucien didn’t budge. His grip was like iron, his arm steady, his gaze locked onto Kaelen’s widening eyes.

"Well," Lucien said, his voice calm and mocking, "that’s enough play for now. And you’re right, we aren’t equal."

He tightened his grip on the spear, and for the first time, Kaelen felt a tremor of genuine fear.