As Maynard shouted those words, the ivory armor around his body began morphing.
It was originally like a thick suit of armor, but before Harry's eyes, the armor was changing shape, becoming thinner and sleeker. Then without warning, hundreds of razor-sharp thorns burst out in all directions. They were each three inches long, located all over his body. Larger spikes, resembling more like tusks, sprouted out of the shoulders and other joints in the armor. Five large claws unsheathed from both hands, thick and curved, like the claws of a large bear.
The transformation completed in just a few seconds, and even though Harry was in the middle of the fight, he found himself impressed. He'd never seen any cultivation technique like this, or Qi used in this manner.
"The 3rd form! It's the 3rd form!" one of Maynard's senior brothers exclaimed. It happened to be Matthew, who was eagerly waiting for Maynard to crush James.
"He's able to display the 3rd form right after entering the Qi Absorption Realm. Now, Maynard will definitely beat James," Mathias sneered.
Those from the Ivory Fist Clan knew it took many days, sometimes weeks, of practice before one could display the 3rd form. Such a fine control of Qi was only possible after breaking through the Qi Absorption Realm. Maynard already managing to achieve it meant he was a cultivation genius. He was worthy to be Patriarch's son, and the future head of the Ivory Fist Clan.
"James, are you scared now? Do you still dare to fight against me?" Maynard roared. Towering on stage in his vicious-looking armor, Maynard resembled more like a creature from a nightmare than a human. In this form, how was James supposed to fight against Maynard? Maynard could attack James all he wanted, but if James hit Maynard, wouldn't his hands get destroyed?
To everyone's astonishment, James actually began clapping. A large, mocking smile was on his face.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
"Impressive, Maynard. Very impressive. Of course, I'm talking about how thick your skin is. Not only are you shameless enough to challenge me, a Body Tempering Realm cultivator, you're even shameless enough to use an Earth Grade cultivation technique in the fight. And on top of that, you're even yelling about how you're finally strong enough to defeat me. If I were in the Qi Absorption Realm and couldn't beat a Body Tempering Realm cultivator, I would find a hole to crawl in and hide forever. But you're actually showing off in front of the whole sect. It really leaves me impressed."
"You – "
Originally Maynard stood on the stage like a mighty warrior, but those words struck right at his weak spot. James' words also brought the spectators on the scene out of their shock from seeing such an effortless transformation. What James just said was completely right.
A Qi Absorption Realm cultivator should have been able to crush a Body Tempering Realm cultivator with just a single move. Yet Maynard, at best, could only fight evenly against James, and had to bring out an Earth Grade technique to win. It truly was a very shameful matter.
And seeing James' undeterred expression –
"Could it be, James is still planning to fight against Maynard?" some people wondered.
"James, all you can do is talk tough! With this suit of armor, do you even dare to attack me? Let's see how you fight now!" Maynard yelled and rushed forwards. The 3rd Form of the Ivory Strengthening Technique shed most of the weight, so Maynard was much lighter and faster than before. It took just moments for him to reach Harry.
"You'll see in a moment," Harry calmly replied.
So what if Maynard grew some spikes on his armor? They weren't enough to stop him.
Maynard was a white blur streaking across the arena. His claws were viciously aimed at Harry's stomach, intent on sinking in and ripping his abdomen wide apart.
Harry ignored Maynard's outstretched claws, and sent a slap at his face.
Ten sharp claws dug into Harry's body, piercing his flesh for the first time. Harry grunted, and hissed in pain as 10 knives stabbed into his abdomen. But they only managed to penetrate an inch in, unable to go any further.
"What the - "
Bang!
Harry's open palm smashed into Maynard's cheek. Ten thorns pierced through his hand, but the next moment, Maynard's ivory helmet shattered into pieces, and his hand solidly connected with Maynard's face. Maynard was smacked away, falling backwards and onto the floor. Everyone saw a vivid red handprint on his cheek.
Even though Harry's flesh was extremely tough, it still had a limit. Maynard's armor could now be considered as an Earth Grade artifact, and the thorns were sharp and powerful enough to injure Harry. Combined with all the force Harry put in his slap, it was enough to send the thorns piercing through his palm.
Yet, the pain in his palm and stomach weren't even worth mentioning to him. Compared to the pain of opening his meridians, it was just a light breeze to Harry. But for Maynard, who had rarely experienced any pain in his entire life, the slap on his bare skin was agony. With the strength of Rebirthing Muscle, it was like taking a hammer right to the cheek. He howled in pain and clutched his face in excruciating pain.
Harry calmly plucked the thorns embedded in his hand out, and watched as Maynard got back up. The sight of James, hand and stomach dripping with blood, sent a scare down everyone's spine. He looked like a bloody maniac, unafraid of pain or injury, only thinking of how to attack his opponent. Compared to Maynard, James actually appeared scarier.
'Why?' Maynard frantically thought from the floor. 'Why?! Even with these claws, I still can't rip his body open? These are like Earth Grade weapons! They should have shredded his body apart!'
'And why doesn't James defend? Isn't he scared of pain? Everyone's scared of pain! Why isn't he scared of pain?'
'But most of all, how dare he? HOW DARE HE? HOW DARE HE HIT MY FACE?'
As he got back up, Maynard saw red. Being slapped in the face wasn't just physically painful, but also psychologically devastating. Physical wounds could heal over time, but this would never go away. From now on, he'd always be known as the Inner Disciple who was slapped in the face by an Outer Disciple. His reputation as the strongest in his generation would be in tatters.
The only way he could redeem it was to give James a very, very, painful death.
"James, DEATH!"
Another spiky helmet grew around his face. Maynard rushed back in, raised his arms to pound Harry -
Pow!
Harry's other hand flew through the air, smacking Maynard's other cheek. With another shattering sound, Maynard's helmet disintegrated and a second red handprint appeared on his face. Blood dripped out of both of Harry's hands.
"This – " the spectators were dumbfounded. How come it looked like James was slapping a little kid around?
Was this truly Maynard, Young Master of the Ivory Fist Clan?
They only saw James slap Maynard around, but didn't see why. Due to Maynard's anger, he got sloppy and left openings in his attacks. It was simple for Harry to exploit them, and land an attack before Maynard could.
"Before, I thought you were an idiot, and now I know it for a fact. Your thick turtle shell was the only thing protecting you from me. You were actually dumb enough to take it off," Harry mocked.
Maynard, ever the idiot, disregarded those words. He regrew another helmet and charged right back in.
"James, you – "
Smack!
Harry backhanded Maynard's face, shattering his third helmet. His right hand was torn on both sides, but he didn't care.
"ARRRRRGH, JAMES, I WANT YOU – "
Bang!
Finally, Maynard couldn't endure it any longer. His armor returned to its original appearance, spikes and claws gone, replaced by a thick shell of ivory.
He wanted to show off his progress on the Ivory Strengthening Technique, and prove he was a cultivation genius. He wanted the whole sect to see how strong he became, to see him crush James and reestablish his prestige. Instead, he was slapped in the face four times, like how a father might slap his son for misbehaving. Other than the stinging pain on his face, all Maynard could feel was endless anger.
"Haha, didn't you announce you'd defeat me? Don't tell me you can't even beat someone at the 8th level of the Body Tempering Realm?" Harry mercilessly taunted.
Of course, there was a reason to the slapping and taunting. The purpose of the slaps on the face were more to piss Maynard off than to actually injure him. A fight wasn't just limited to power and cultivation techniques. Unorthodox techniques were also supremely effective. For example, anger clouded the mind and one's judgement. The angrier Maynard was, the more likely he was to make a mistake that led to his defeat.
"You shut up! Die!" Maynard angrily howled. Immediately, the two of them leapt into battle again.
BANG! BANG!
In another instant the two of them exchanged countless blows, fist smashing into fist, neither able to overcome the other. From a distance, all one could see was a blur of motion, as a thin man evenly fought against a giant in white. But Maynard was slowly weakening, as he didn't have the Nameless Seed constantly providing energy for him. And due to Harry's taunting, he was expending his strength quicker, wasting his energy on mighty, but ineffective, blows.
Those watching the fight just stared in disbelief. Somehow, James was slowly gaining the edge over Maynard. Since when could Body Tempering Realms fight against Qi Absorption Realm cultivators? Besides, Maynard wasn't any Qi Absorption cultivator, he was the Young Master of the Ivory Fist Clan! He had access to more cultivation resources and guidance than anyone else – yet, why was he unable to beat James? Suddenly, people felt that all common sense was being broken.
Hidden within the crowd was Nelson, who watched with a feeling of dread. When he heard James was fighting Maynard, he rushed over to witness James' defeat, as if Maynard could avenge the injustices he'd suffered. Instead, the opposite was happening. As he saw James brutally fighting with his unnatural strength, he was consumed with fear and regret. It took all his strength to keep standing and not collapse in terror.
He – he actually tried to rob such a monster!
'Dammit, what was I thinking?' he thought in panic. 'Maynard, you have to win this! Better, cripple James, tear him apart, make sure he can never cultivate again! If James actually wins this fight, how am I supposed to stay in the Swan Sea Sect?'
Another group of spectators had similar thoughts. By the edge of the stage, a group of Elders were watching the fight with ugly expressions. Two of them were Elders Magnus and Miles, who had tried to prevent other Elders from rescuing James during the Beast Surge. Two more of their companions were watching alongside them. As the fighting dragged on, their expressions grew more and more unsightly.
"This boy, he cannot be allowed to live," one muttered darkly.
"Even if he's Spiritless, his physical strength is too strong. He'll affect Maynard's future development. As long as he's killed, the problem will be resolved."
"Then are you going to do it?" the third man snorted.
Of course, they all wanted James dead. And any one of them could do it. The only issue was that they couldn't escape the punishment that would come afterwards. None of them wanted to trade their life for a Spiritless Cultivator.
"Let's wait and see," another man finally said. "It will be disgraceful, but Maynard will still win this fight if he uses his Magic Spirit."
Nodding, they turned their attention back to the battle. It would be extremely disgraceful, but a victory was a victory. As long as Maynard won, people would eventually forget the details and just remember the victory. But if Maynard lost to this Outer Disciple, that would live on forever.
The violent fistfight continued for another minute, then both participants leapt back again, putting some distance between them while they caught their breath. Harry was breathing heavily, but Maynard was panting and gasping for breath. It took all his energy just to keep standing.
The ivory armor was great for defense, but it was heavy, and weighed him down. It also restricted his movements. Over the course of the battle, keeping the armor condensed and donned slowly wore Maynard out.
Because the Nameless Seed provided energy for him, Harry was still near his peak condition. He was slightly out of breath, and had a few injuries, but they didn't bother him. In contrast, Maynard was having difficulty just standing.
'Why does Maynard still use physical attacks?' Harry wondered as he caught his breath. Even as a Qi Absorption Realm cultivator, Maynard was still engaging in fistfights. Why didn't he use Qi attacks, like he had seen other Inner Disciples doing? It was like his control over external Qi was limited to around his fists –
'Oh, I see now,' Harry abruptly realized.
From the time he sent Maynard back to his clan to now, only a week and a half had passed. If Maynard spent a few days healing, then a few days cultivating, that only left a few days for him to practice his newfound abilities. With such little time, perhaps he couldn't use the full strength of the Qi Absorption Realm.
Given Maynard's rash and idiotic personality, Harry instinctively felt that was the case.
'If so, then I've won this fight,' Harry snorted. 'I just need to piss him off a bit more, and make him act irrationally. He should be at the end of the line now. All he can do now is summon his Magic Spirit.'
He didn't want to just defeat Maynard, but defeat Maynard thoroughly. The moment Maynard insulted his parents, this thought grew in his mind – that Maynard had to be crushed, and crushed in the clearest, most irrefutable way. He didn't know why he felt so vehemently about it, but he did. He wanted everyone to be convinced of Maynard's defeat, and that was only possible if Maynard used every ability at his disposal, including his Magic Spirit.
Even if Maynard summoned his Magic Spirit, Harry still had one more method deal with it.
"Come on, Maynard! Didn't you boast about beating me in one move? How many hundreds of attacks have you made now?" Harry started taunting.
But Maynard didn't respond this time, rather, he couldn't. He was staring at James like he was staring at a ghost. He'd gotten stronger, and somehow, James had gotten even stronger!
"You – gasp, you – "
"Didn't you say you weren't using your full strength? Why don't you show me your full strength then?" Harry mockingly called out.
Something seemed to snap within Maynard, and a cruel light filled his eyes as he glared at Harry.
"James, you can be proud for driving me this far. But in the end, you're still Spiritless trash! This is difference between you and me! Ivory Crushing Elephant, come out!" Maynard roared.
Behind his back, a Magic Beast began appearing. An elephant materialized, and trumpeted a loud war cry across the Dueling Hall.
Compared to the last time Harry saw this elephant, it was much larger. It seemed that not just Magic Beasts, but also beast type Magic Spirits, grew larger as they cultivated. During the recruitment event, Harry recalled that this elephant was only a bit taller than Maynard. Now, it towered over him, larger than even a fully-grown Ordinary Grade beast.
"Maynard lost," Shaun commented from the sidelines. "Did James really get this strong in the past couple days?"
"He just went from the 7th to the 8th level, right? Unbelievable. He can be proud of defeating Maynard so thoroughly."
"What do you mean Maynard lost?" one of the Outer Disciples from the Ivory Fist Clan interjected hot-headedly. "Now that he brought out his Magic Spirit, our Young Master is sure to win!"
"Hmph. Is there something wrong with you Ivory Fist Clan people? A Qi Absorption Realm cultivator has to bring out his Magic Spirit just to fight a Body Tempering Realm cultivator. Does that count as a win in your mind?"
"Exactly. It's just like James said. Maynard is shameless enough to challenge James, and you are shameless enough to praise Maynard," Sam added.
"Even if James loses now, everyone is clear as to who is truly stronger. Do you see James using a weapon, or a cultivation technique, or a Magic Spirit?"
Everyone around nodded and agreed when they heard those words. They looked at the Outer Disciple with despising expressions. Though Maynard would win now that his Magic Spirit was out, it wasn't something to be proud of. In comparison, James used nothing but his physical body to resist Maynard.
That Outer Disciple turned ugly when scolded, but didn't dare to say anything back to the Inner Disciples. And deep down, he knew they were right. There were always many aspects and phases in a fight. Of course, the outcome wasn't determined until the very end. However, along the way, one could sense how the battle was going. Whoever had to bring out their Magic Spirit first to aid in battle was indirectly admitting they were weaker.
And in this case, it was even more shameful than usual, because not only was James Spiritless, he was an entire cultivation realm lower. In terms of physical strength, Maynard was thoroughly defeated.
Meanwhile on the stage, the elephant finished forming and stamped its massive body on the stage. Each of its legs were larger than Maynard, and its large grey trunk was thicker than a tree. The massive appendage effortlessly swung back and forth, flanked by a pair of wickedly sharp and curved tusks. Every step it took sent tremors across the stage.
'It's stronger than I expected!' Harry was startled. 'This is my first time seeing a Qi Absorption Realm cultivator's Magic Spirit – it seems I underestimated it.'
He didn't expect the spirit to have grown so much larger. But despite that, he didn't feel any panic and fear. He just knew, instinctively perhaps, that he could still win this fight. It was like the Nameless Seed itself was reassuring him of this victory.
"It's over for James," some people could be heard. Nonetheless, nobody thought James truly lost. Even if he were trampled over by Maynard's Magic Spirit, there was no shame in that. James had already proven his monstrous strength, and could be proud of getting this far.
"Do you still dare to boast now, James?" Maynard sneered. "You asked for my full strength, and this is it! How can you defeat my Magic Spirit?"
"Your Magic Spirit is stronger than I expected," Harry truthfully admitted. "But it's still not enough to defeat me."
The confident look on Maynard's face vanished, and was once again replaced by rage.
"James, why won't you just obediently accept your defeat? It seems you won't be convinced until I trample you into a paste! Once my spirit crushes and cripples you, I'll take my time and teach you a lesson on what it means to offend the grand Ivory Fist Clan!"
His expression was getting crazier and crazier, more ferocious, like he was possessed. Spit flew out his mouth as he yelled abuse at Harry.
"You only have yourself to blame for this! You idiotically accepted a no-limits fight, haha! Do you know how hard I've been cultivating this last week, how much I've thought about getting my revenge? No matter how long it takes, no matter how hard your body is, I'll show you true pain! The entire sect will listen to your screams! Even if you beg for mercy, I won't show any!"
Those poisonous words were causing Harry to lose his temper. He could feel the blood in his body beginning to boil, churning and seething, just waiting for him to release his anger. His vision and thoughts were clouding over, and within his body, the Nameless Seed was begging to be activated again.
"And not just you! Do you know the consequences of attacking me? After I defeat you, my Ivory Fist Clan will send a message by extinguishing your family, your clan, all your –"
Without any considerations, he let the rage overtake him. Somehow, he knew that if he surrendered to it, he could defeat Maynard without a doubt.
"Maynard, the only one boasting is you. I've also been holding back, but your words are just too vicious. Now, I'll use all my power too. I only need one move to crush your spirit, prove your Ivory Fist Clan isn't worth a fart."
For the first time, Harry activated three of the Five Minor Accomplishments together.
Burning Blood!