Chapter 303: I Can't End It Like This (1)
Chapter 303: I Can't End It Like This (1)
A battle of attrition.
Back then, the secret to Petrick’s victory over a higher-ranked opponent was his ability to endure until the other side exhausted their strength.
He only realized later that every Mind-Body Manifestation consumes a staggering amount of internal energy and mental fortitude.
Of course, if one could maintain the Indestructible Diamond Body indefinitely, they would be invincible under heaven.
But that is not a realm attainable by humans.
If such a thing were possible, it would already be beyond humanity—the realm of a Demigod.
Therefore, a long-drawn-out battle should favor Petrick, but…
“Take thiiiis!”
Rumble! Boom! Boom! Boom!
‘Why isn’t this man showing any signs of exhaustion?’
Since the start of the duel, the Sword Saint had maintained that Absolute defense while relentlessly pouring out Aura Blades.
Even when using the same Aura Blade, an emissive form of attack like the one the Sword Saint was currently using consumed far more energy.
And yet…
‘Why isn’t he tiring?’
Petrick wasn’t sure if a battle of attrition was truly the right answer anymore.
Granted, the mana density in this world was much higher than in the Central Plains, allowing Petrick to fight longer as well, but there was no telling how long that would last.
‘Wait. Hold on a second.’
Petrick paused.
He felt as if a crucial clue had just flashed past his mind.
What was it? Just now…
“An opening!”
It happened then.
The Sword Saint’s sharp blade bypassed Petrick’s twin sword defense and lunged inward.
For the first time, he had succeeded in penetrating Petrick’s defensive perimeter.
The moment the Sword Saint tried to dive deeper to seize the opportunity…
“Not so fast!”
Crack!
Petrick’s front kick slammed into the Sword Saint’s chest. And in that instant…
“Gah!”
A scream finally erupted from the Sword Saint’s mouth.
He staggered back a great distance, reeling, before hurriedly regaining his stance.
Petrick, who had landed the blow, was actually the one more surprised by the result.
“What? Why did the Indestructible Diamond Body…?”
It was strange.
Why did the Sword Saint’s absolute defense, which could block even an Aura Blade, falter from a single kick?
That kick wasn’t even a particularly powerful technique.
It was just an ordinary push-kick, infused with a bit of the subtle principles of force to drive the opponent back.
And yet, it worked?
An Aura Blade couldn’t pierce it, but this did?
How could that be? Wait, maybe this is…
A hypothesis began to form.
Petrick sheathed his swords.
“What are you—huff!”
The Sword Saint, about to shout at Petrick for putting away his weapons, was caught off guard.
Before he knew it, Petrick had closed the distance and slipped into his personal space.
At a range far closer than where a sword could be swung, Petrick’s fist lunged toward his heart.
“Urgh…!”
Sensing a sudden chill, the Sword Saint quickly retreated while swinging his sword.
His target was Petrick’s left arm, which was aiming for his heart.
However, the blade passed through Petrick’s hand as if it were nothing but air.
“What?”
Afterimage Step.
Petrick, having deceived the Sword Saint with a variation performed only with his arm, stepped in further and threw a punch.
One Step, One Punch.
The most basic of the basics in fist and foot techniques.
But the moment it struck the Sword Saint’s body…
BOOM!
“Aaaargh!”
The Sword Saint screamed as he was sent flying backward, tumbling across the ground.
Petrick, his fist still extended, let out a hollow laugh.
“It wasn’t the Indestructible Diamond Body after all, was it?”
He knew it the moment he struck with his bare hands.
This wasn’t the Indestructible Diamond Body.
“You just deployed Body Protection Qi at the level of the Indestructible Diamond Body. Wow… Talk about brute force. Pure ignorance.”
Body Protection Qi.
This was a technique belonging to the Transcendent Realm, not the Profound Realm.
If the Sword Saint’s Absolute was actually Body Protection Qi, then all the contradictions Petrick had felt while fighting him were resolved.
The Indestructible Diamond Body raises the user’s physical body itself to the hardness of diamond, granting near-invincible defensive power.
The skin, the eyes, the mouth—and though sadly never proven, likely even the hair—would become that way.
It sounds impossible, but making the impossible possible is exactly what the Mind-Body Manifestation of the Profound Realm does.
Then what about Body Protection Qi?
That was a lower-tier technique.
It involves creating a barrier of Qi around the body to enhance defense.
Its defensive power is far lower than the Indestructible Diamond Body, and because it focuses primarily on surface defense, it is weak against the internal strikes of the Heavy Hand Technique.
The One Step, One Punch Petrick used was an internal strike that focused the point of impact deep inside, which was why the Sword Saint had succumbed to it.
However…
Normally, Body Protection Qi isn’t powerful enough to block an Aura Blade like the Sword Saint’s had.
Even if someone at the peak of the Transcendent Realm used it, its limit was usually blocking Sword Qi.
Furthermore, it was impossible to keep it wrapped around the body at all times as the Sword Saint did.
Usually, one would maintain it at about thirty percent capacity and then fully deploy it the moment they were about to be hit.
Yet, the Sword Saint’s Body Protection Qi was strong enough for Petrick to mistake it for the Indestructible Diamond Body, and he could keep it active continuously.
Why?
The answer was simple.
Because the mana density of this world was far higher than that of the Central Plains.
“Sigh… I was so stupid. How could I forget that?”
It was a fact that had shocked him greatly as a child, but he had grown indifferent to it as he lived his life here.
Because the density of Qi was high, recovery was also fast.
Fast enough that it was fine to keep a technique that devoured internal energy—like Body Protection Qi—active at full power at all times.
“In the end, old man, you were just keeping a layer of Aura Blade wrapped over your skin the whole time you were fighting. Right?”
“……”
The Sword Saint said nothing.
However, he could not hide the shock on his face.
‘Just what is this boy…?’
The secret technique he had spent his entire life perfecting had been seen through.
He had noticed Petrick seemingly thinking and observing throughout the duel, but he had dismissed it as a futile effort.
How could it be possible to unravel an opponent’s secret technique in the middle of combat?
He had thought it the height of folly.
But if one succeeds in that "futile effort," it is no longer folly.
“You are an unbelievable monster.”
The Sword Saint had no way of knowing…
But this was originally Petrick’s specialty.
To refine the complex martial arts of the Twin Dragon Sect, how much effort had he poured into researching and deconstructing the techniques of other sects to make them his own?
The Sword Saint’s effort and achievement in discovering Body Protection Qi through self-teaching were great, but to Petrick, it was merely an application of a problem he already knew the answer to.
However, the principle behind this application was incredibly useful to Petrick as well.
“So the density of Qi is high. High enough for Body Protection Qi to be mistaken for the Indestructible Diamond Body…”
Petrick thought quietly.
Yes. Come to think of it, the Aura Blades unleashed by those who reached the 7-Star realm in this world were far larger and more powerful than the Qi of those who had just entered the Transcendent Realm in the Central Plains.
Until now, he had attributed it to the difference in the systems of martial arts they learned, but if it was a difference in Qi density…
“I was mistaken.”
The power of the martial arts Petrick performed in this world should naturally be higher.
Yet, Petrick had been executing his forms and managing his Qi based on the standards of his past life.
Like a bird that could fly higher but limited its own sky, believing it had reached the ceiling.
“……”
Petrick looked up.
The sun, already quite high, illuminated the blue sky.
In this vast and high sky, just how high could he soar?
Having realized the error of his perceived limits, Petrick raised his sword again. Then…
“Sword Saint.”
“……”
“This is my answer and my repayment to you.”
Petrick’s sword moved fluidly.
Following the trajectory of the blade, lines of pure white light were drawn.
Line connected to line.
Even though it was a form he hadn’t performed many times, Petrick’s sword was relentless.
It was a technique that could kill the user if executed incorrectly, but there was no hesitation.
Petrick was certain now.
In this world, where the density of Qi was far higher than in the Central Plains, he could do it.
There was nothing to fear.
He was simply doing what he was capable of.
All that remained was to tear down the limits he had arbitrarily imposed on himself…
‘I can do this.’
The lines Petrick drew soon became a single, massive dragon. And then…
“Oh… Ohhh?”
“It’s moving.”
“H-How?”
The onlookers were stunned.
A brilliant light dwelled in the two eyes of the dragon made of Aura, and it began to writhe and move. Finally…
“Ascend.”
The moment Petrick, who had somehow entered the center of the dragon he created, spoke quietly, the massive pure white dragon soared high into the sky.
From above, it coiled in a complex manner, looking down as if it were reigning over the entire sky.
Twin Dragons Eight Sword Styles.
Eighth Form, Ultimate Secret Art.
Dragon God’s Reign…
“No, that’s not it.”
This was not the dragon created by the Founding Patriarch.
Its form and temperament were completely different from the dragon Petrick had created in the virtual space.
This was a new form Petrick had created while surpassing his wall. A technique that should be called the unique martial art of the Radiant Dragon Hero.
Therefore, its name was…
“Radiant Dragon’s Reign.”
Yes. This felt right.
“A Radiant Dragon?”
Someone muttered.
In truth, the light dragon Petrick created differed in form from the dragons of this world.
However, everyone who saw it had the same thought.
That it was a dragon.
This was proof that Petrick had perfectly projected his mental image.
A communication of will far clearer than a hundred words.
The fact that this was possible meant Petrick’s execution of the form was that perfect.
“Is that… the Double Dragon?”
“A genius… No, he’s a monster.”
“……”
The knights could not contain their shock and admiration.
This was especially true for those who had reached high realms themselves.
And the one who gazed upon this most ecstatically was…
“Oh… Ohhhhh…”
The Sword Saint himself.
This was it.
This was the very wall he had wished to surpass.
The Sword Saint’s heart swelled as he confirmed its form clearly with his own eyes.
The outcome? There was no way he could win.
Double Dragon Petrick Schneider.
He was a true genius.
He was someone living in a completely different world that an ordinary human like himself could never understand. But…
‘I want to face it.’
He wanted to raise his sword and fight against that dragon of light. He might die.
In fact, the probability of death was high.
But he could not resist the temptation.
“Hyaaaaaaaaah!”
Rumble!
The Aura Blade on the Sword Saint’s blade surged to its absolute limit.
Five meters, ten meters, twenty meters…
As if the Sword Saint’s blade had become an endlessly erupting volcano, it spewed out a violent Aura Blade.
It wasn’t as perfectly shaped as the Overlord’s Lord of the Sword.
However, the full power of the Sword Saint, who had reached the peak of the 8-Star realm, possessed a destructive force that surpassed the Overlord’s strike.
Holding that power, the Sword Saint shouted with all his might.
“Come!”
A smile played on Petrick’s lips as he heard the Sword Saint’s cry.
“Yes. That’s how it should be.”
Seeing is believing, but experiencing it firsthand is the proper attitude a martial artist should have.
At least by his standards.
“Take this.”
The dragon of light looking down from the sky opened its maw.
And what happened in the next moment was…
BOOM!
A Radiant Breath.
A beam of destruction erupted from the dragon’s breath and engulfed the Sword Saint.
“Uwoooooooooh!”
One could tell just by looking.
Just how terrifyingly powerful this attack was.
But the Sword Saint did not retreat.
He faced the breath of the light dragon with everything he had.
Rumble!
The Sword Saint’s blade slashed at the beam of light with all its might.
It was a sword that had never failed to cut through anything since he earned the name Sword Saint. But…
“Urgh…!”
He was being pushed back.
It wasn’t for any technical reason.
He was being overwhelmed in a pure contest of power.
“Kuaaaaaagh!”
He tried his best to push it back, but the Sword Saint’s feet gradually slid backward, and his posture began to collapse. Finally…
Snap!
The Sword Saint heard it.
The sound of his sword breaking.
The sword known as a national treasure of the Empire and the finest blade on the continent had snapped.
And in the next moment…
BOOM!
The terrifying breath of light slammed into the Sword Saint.
“Grandfather!”
The moment the Sword Saint was swallowed by the Radiant Breath, a man from the Imperial Army shot forward like an arrow. It was Garcia, the Sword Saint’s grandson.
He drew his sword, his eyes bloodshot, and leaped into the sky.
“Petrick Schneideeeer!”
He was a swordsman who had reached the 7-Star realm.
The Aura Blade blooming powerfully on his sword swung toward Petrick. But…
Clang!
His Aura Blade couldn’t even pierce the scales of the light dragon surrounding Petrick.
“Tch…!”
But he did not give up and tried to swing his sword again. To him, Petrick said with indifferent eyes.
“Passed from grandfather to grandson, indeed.”
It reminded him of the Arcana finals.
Back then, the Sword Saint had lost his mind and charged in when he saw his grandson in danger.
Looking at it this way, it seemed blood truly did tell.
“Petrick, how dare you…”
As Garcia glared at him with bloodshot eyes full of hatred, Petrick spoke.
“Enough of that. Back off. We’re still in the middle of a duel, aren’t we?”
With a casual flick of Petrick’s sword, the dragon’s body writhed and swatted Garcia away.
Garcia fell toward the ground, his eyes fixed on where the Sword Saint was.
‘Still in the middle of a duel? Then…’
Where his gaze landed…
“Cough… Hack…”
There was the Sword Saint.
Though his sword was broken and he was coughing up blood while kneeling on one knee, the Sword Saint was alive.
Looking at the Sword Saint, Petrick muttered.
“To think it has this much power when I only deployed it at the 2-Star level… If I had used it at 5-Star, there wouldn’t even be a corpse left.”
Since it was his first time performing the form, he hadn’t been able to gauge it properly.
So he had adjusted the power to what he thought was a bit excessive, but it seemed to have been just right.
Petrick leaned forward slightly.
The dragon of light lowered its head, and Petrick, who was inside the dragon’s head, descended to the ground.
Stepping onto the earth, Petrick glanced at the dragon of light.
‘So, this is the Profound Realm.’
The dragon manifested from his mental image felt as if it were part of his own body.
Unlike before, he could feel a vivid connection even after stepping outside the dragon.
Furthermore, he knew.
He had finally reached the realm he never attained in his past life.
The Profound Realm.
‘Finally…’
The martial prowess of the Radiant Dragon Hero in his past life was not of the Profound Realm.
It was around the peak of the Transcendent Realm.
Many people mistook him for being in the Profound Realm, but that was only because he had fought and defeated masters of that realm despite being in the Transcendent Realm.
The uniqueness of the Twin Dragon Sect’s martial arts, which utilized two Dantians, and Petrick’s combat senses—evaluated as those of an unparalleled gambler—had made it possible.
But now was different.
He had truly ascended to the realm of the heavens above heavens.
Was he trembling from the thrill of that overwhelming emotion?
Petrick’s body shook with deep moved…
“That spotted cat is dead meat.”
…Is that really your first thought upon reaching the Profound Realm?