Chapter 299: The Body In The Diamond-like State
“Guard against complaining. Guard against anger. Guard against arrogance. Guard against impatience. Guard against greed. Guard against sex. Guard against...” Patrick Pei recited the principles in his mind.
He had a strong intellect, but that didn't mean he was without emotion. A human being couldn't possibly function without sentiment. Only a fairy man could resist feelings, not a human.
However, Patrick had great restraint. He might have looked uneasy after Zen's hit, but he recovered in a relatively short amount of time, successfully calming himself down through his silent recitations.
His mind was a flat, tranquil ocean with no movement in the waters. Suddenly there appeared ripples, about to become huge waves in lieu of the disturbance. But then the waves settled down once again under Patrick's control, and peace prevailed.
“How is it possible that you have such great strength? There must be a limit to your innate superhuman power. Your strength contradicts the restrictions of nature creatures,” Patrick said seriously as he gazed at Zen.
Previously, Zen had utilized all of his strength. Most people who were witnesses to it didn't have sharp eyes like Patrick. He could see the unparalleled power in Zen.
He was correct. Zen's strength, in fact, exceeded the limits of nature creatures.
Strength could not be utilized without limitations. It required powerful muscles. If Zen had weak muscles when his body held this kind of extraordinary strength, it would not support him.
In reality, Zen's body had strengthened hundreds or even thousands of times by now. It had become a middle-grade spiritual weapon. Clearly, his body had no problem supporting his superhuman strength.
It was his best-guarded secret. But he could not tell Patrick that. So he said with a smile, “Can I choose not to tell you?”
“Of course,” Patrick said, nodding. “But I am still confident about my own strength.” Just as he said this, the golden bell vanished into the air. Golden life vitality effused out of Patrick's body, enveloping his skin. He seemed to shine, made up of pure gold.
Patrick seemed to be in a similar state as when Zen's mysterious runes had appeared on his body. But in fact, they were two different situations.
When Zen's body had begun to absorb the flame, the golden runes turned into little whirlpools.
On the other hand, Patrick was enwrapped in his golden life vitality as if he was made up of gold.
“Body in the Diamond-like State! His body is in the Diamond-like State!” one of the disciples shouted out loud.
Watching Patrick transform himself into the Body in the Diamond-like State, Rocher sighed mentally. He had just made Patrick show his strength of Acalanatha shadow, but apparently, Patrick had more tricks up his sleeve. The Body in the Diamond-like State was surely another one of his trump cards.
'Body in the Diamond-like State?' Zen wondered to himself. Looking at Patrick's golden, shining figure, Zen clenched his fist in anticipation, eager to fight him.
Zen had the body of a spiritual weapon. It was so strong that perhaps even the body of Kenneth Shi—who was the head of the Cloud Sect—was outmatched. The other people at the Cloud Sect cultivated only their life vitality. Few could practice both the life vitality and the corporeal body. It was exceedingly hard to do so, and there was a limit to human life. If a person wanted the best of both worlds, perhaps he would end up learning neither of them well enough. That way, it wasn't advisable for most people to practice both.
Strictly speaking, Zen did not cultivate both. The body refining technique was totally different from his way of 'getting hit'. Zen was not cultivating his body, instead, he was refining a weapon, namely his body.
His method of refining his body, although not a legitimate technique, was a lot more powerful in terms of the results it showed.
As Patrick exhibited the Body in the Diamond-like State, Zen didn't seem perturbed. He wasn't preparing to fight, instead, he put his Streamer Sword back into his space ring. The behavior confused the disciples in the audience.
“What is Zen doing? Did he just put his weapon away?” one disciple asked.
“I don't get it either. It doesn't make sense that he does not want to use his sword after Patrick employed the Body in the Diamond-like State. Is he admitting his defeat?” another disciple murmured.
“Does he want to fight Patrick with no weapon but his body? Zen's corporeal body is strong, but can it face the Body in the Diamond-like State successfully? What's wrong with him?” someone voiced his opinion, as astonished as the other two.
Everyone seemed to freeze with amazement.
They knew that Zen had innate superhuman strength and that his body was extraordinarily powerful. It was how Zen won the fights in the first tier of the All Peaks Competition by defeating his rivals.
Zen did have a remarkable amount of strength, but it wasn't limitless. Therefore, in the second half of the All Peaks Competition, Zen used his sword to fight the battles, without relying solely on his innate superhuman strength and his body. The audience regarded this as pragmatic and sensible.
The corporeal body could not be considered superior to one's life vitality. Facing some of the rivals who were not as strong as Jacques or Rocher, Zen could defeat them with his bodily strength alone. But now, facing Patrick in the Diamond-like State, Zen chose to not use his sword?
It came as a surprise to most disciples. They couldn't believe their eyes.
Patrick wasn't using a weapon because he was using the Body in the Diamond-life State. The golden coating on Patrick's skin was made out of life vitality. It wasn't his ordinary body at play. In this circumstance, how could Zen think he'd manage to fight without his sword? Did he not want to make it out of this alive?
At this moment, the most surprised person on the sidelines was Yan Luo.
Yan sat amidst the crowd, her eyes clinging to her brother Zen.
Having defeated so many disciples and reaching to the top, she knew Zen was strong. Yan hadn't watched Zen fight earlier, but she knew it in her heart.
She never thought her own brother could be this strong, that he could defeat so many who were on a superior level to his own.
'It would be diamond cut diamond, ' Yan told herself as she cheered for him.
'How confident he is!
Zen, I believe you. Fight!'
Yan was not sure her brother could defeat Patrick with his muscles alone. Although she believed in her brother, she still felt nervous. Her sweaty fingers clenched and unclenched themselves in her fists.
Zen and Patrick looked like two beasts from some savage land. They watched each other, staring into the other's eyes sharply. Suddenly, they rushed forward simultaneously.
Both of them ran at high speed. They used their strongest moves and neither of them could defend himself.
The two collided with each other. There seemed to be no skills involved in this; it was pure hand-to-hand combat. Watching the pair, the sheer beauty of bodily strength was not lost on the spectators.
They fought with their bare fists. The audience was thrilled; the disciples could hardly breathe.
Pow!
Bang!
Crack!
Zen didn't seem as strong as Patrick when it came to fist-fighting. Patrick had learned different kinds of refinement methods. His fist movements were complicated and involved several elements.
However, Zen was stronger when it came to his corporeal body.
The Body in the Diamond-like State could survive more strikes than Zen's body, which was a spiritual weapon. Patrick's body was also more solid and capable of defending itself, but Zen could mitigate Patrick's powerful blows by transforming them into warm currents as a way of refining his own body.
Under these circumstances, Zen was at the forefront of the battle and took advantage of it.
Moreover, he could utilize the power of the dragon scales in his body. He would not be outdone in a competition of strength. All in all, he was actually stronger than Patrick.
In each round of their fight, Patrick attacked Zen three or four times, but the latter fought back only once. His one strike was far better than the totality of Patrick's assaults.
“Ah! Zen has been hit again!” a disciple exclaimed.
“I can't watch it anymore. If I were beaten like that, I'm afraid I would have died already!” someone responded.
“It would be a mercy if you just died that easily! Don't underestimate Patrick's power. If he hits at your chest, he would be sure to leave a big hole in your body!” a third disciple corrected them.
“Zen won't be able to fight anymore if he keeps getting beaten up like this!”
What they were saying sounded reasonable. But the truth escaped them, for the situation on the arena was quite different.
Patrick had been most confident about his Body in the Diamond-like State. He had planned to use it against Zen's Streamer Sword, for he thought that would be his biggest threat.
But as it stood now, Zen wasn't using his Streamer Sword at all!
It was Zen's own choice. Patrick had no say in it.
But the results were unexpected. The more Patrick fought, the more surprised he got. He could hardly keep calm. Now, his mind was like the turbulent waters in an ocean as huge waves rolled over.
It appeared that Zen was not afraid of being beaten up.
Patrick knew how strong he was. He might not have innate superhuman strength like Zen, but he could use his life vitality to the fullest. Zen's body should not be able to resist the power in Patrick's fists.
But as Patrick watched Zen, reality contradicted his previous notions. 'How strong is Zen's body? It can't simply be measured on a scale of human physicality. He seems like a beast!' he thought.
'Dang! I shouldn't have used the Body in the Diamond-like State at all!' At this moment, Patrick seemed to have forgotten about Buddhism doctrines. He already broke a commandment out of the ten: that he must never swear, whatever the circumstance...