The powerful aura surging from John's body was undoubtedly the Supreme Battle Art. While it was slightly different than the aura Mark emanated, there was no mistaking it.
Mark's cold eyes stared straight at John, and his previously playful attitude was no more.
"How did you get your hands on our battle art?" Mark asked in a cold tone.
Outsiders were not permitted to cultivate this battle art, and doing so was a grave offense in the eyes of the Supreme Battle Sect.
"My father obtained it for me," John replied back. It was the truth, as his father had gotten it for him, however, he didn't know exactly how his father had managed to obtain such a secretive and powerful battle art.
"Then how did he obtain it?" Mark asked once more.
John frowned at these constant questions, and also did not like the cold tone coming from Mark.
"I don't know, and I really don't care either. If you have a problem with me using this technique, then just come at me with all your power," John replied.
"That's exactly what I'll do," Mark replied coldly. "After I defeat you, I'll drag you back to our Sect, at which point the Elders can decide on what to do with you."
John's frown turned into a slight smirk at hearing this from Mark. He began to laugh lightly.
"Haha, then come at me and see if you have the power to do so. Show me the true power of your Supreme Battle Art."
Mark's eyes narrowed even further at John's mockery. Although he knew John was strong, he was just in the Late Qi Condensation Realm. Mark, with his Half-Step Core Formation cultivation, was unsure of where John got his confidence.
Mark had been going easy in his early exchanges with John, but would now fight with his full power. His aura began to sure even more powerfully, and all the muscles on his body bulged.
Boom!
Mark stepped off the ground, shattering the earth beneath his feet as he dashed towards John. John's playful smile disappeared as he too dashed towards Mark.
Bang!
Fists collided, and both fighters were locked in a stalemate. The ground cracked beneath them from the force of the impact. Surprise appeared on Mark's face for a moment, as he was sure John would not be able to take his full force punch without losing out. However, they had been completely equal in that exchange, despite his Supreme Battle Art being more complete and powerful than John's.
'Its that strange power again!'
John felt his body grow heavier whenever he was close to Mark. He felt it once again, which slowed down the movement's of his body, although only slightly. However, this slight hindrance was enough to throw off his attack timings and power.
John suddenly went low with his body and sent a kick towards Mark's legs, aiming to knock him off balance. Mark raised his leg to block with his shin, and successfully parried the attack. Mark sent a fist towards John's ribcage, but John dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Continuous loud bangs rang out as John and Mark exchanged dozens of moves quickly. Whenever their bodies collided, it sounded as if two beams of steel were colliding. The power and durability of their bodies were shocking, and even Adam stopped inspecting the sword to watch the fight.
He knew John had a strong body, but this was his first time seeing such a display from John. For him to go face to face with a Supreme Battle Sect cultivator, who even had a higher cultivation than him, shocked him greatly.
Boom!
A punch from Mark managed to break through John's defenses, and landed on his ribcage. The force of the impact knocked him back dozens of yards, and he slightly grit his teeth from the pain of the impact before quickly dashing backwards. The earth beneath him shattered from the quick change in direction.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Continuous blows were traded once more, and slowly but surely John was beginning to get a hang of the flow of the fight. Every fight he had fought so far was against an essence cultivator, and so John's instincts were not completely honed for fighting against another body cultivator.
On the other hand, Mark had fought against his fellow disciples for many years, and was completely used to such a thing. However, his initial advantage in battle instinct was quickly diminishing, shocking him greatly. John's rate of improvement in this fight was completely monstrous, and before long, he was the one with the slight advantage in the fight.
'I'm finally getting used to that strange energy emanating from Mark. But I still can't figure out what it is exactly or how to emulate it.'
Mark's superior Supreme Battle Art, coupled with the strange energy it emitted, allowed him to fight somewhat evenly with John. John on the other hand had a much more powerful body, which allowed him to overwhelm Mark. His Immortal Asura Body was showing its true power in this fight.
Bang!
After throwing in a feint, John was able to land an unblocked kick to Mark's waist.
Mark cried out slightly in pain, as he flew backwards like a broken kite. HIs body slammed into and through a distant tree, toppling it to the ground. After a moment of recovery, Mark dashed right back into the fight, exchanging blows with John once more.
Fists, legs, knees, and heads collided repeatedly, causing brutal sounds to ring out constantly. Adam began to wince from the brutality of the fight, as blood began to freely flow from the wounds both cultivators had suffered. However, Mark's wounds were adding up much quicker, showing he was losing out as the fight went on longer.
Bang!
After throwing a punch which was blocked but threw Mark slightly off balance, John managed to land a kick to Mark's head unguarded. A slight cracking sound rang out from the kick.
Mark flew backwards like a broken kite, tumbling head over heels from the blow. His body slammed against a distant boulder and quickly came to an abrupt halt. The boulder cracked slightly from Mark's momentum.
Mark lay there motionlessly for a while before he finally regained consciousness. He groggily stood up, and shook his head several times before looking up at John. His previous cold expression was slightly softened, although he still grit his teeth from the pain of losing the battle.
"Let's go," Mark suddenly said to his fellow disciples. He looked to John once more. "Based on this battle, I can say you are worthy of our Supreme Battle Art, but that is not for me to decide. One way or another, our sect will have our Elders decide your fate."
John scoffed at such a comment. "To have that happen, you would have to defeat me and drag me back to your sect. There's no one in your sect capable of such a thing, at least not in these wastelands," John relied.
Mark's eyes furrowed, before a slight smile appeared on his face. "We'll see if you can say that once you run into our two strongest disciples. If you fight them as you are right now, you'll lose without even being able to put up a fight," Mark replied before turning away.
He knew John was stronger than him, and would be able to forcefully take the sword despite their efforts. As such, he gave up on the idea of obtaining the sword. Adam returned to John's side as they watched the Supreme Battle Sect disciples walk off further into the forest.
While the battle appeared to be a somewhat easy win for John, he had utilized the full power of his Supreme Battle Art to win. While it wasn't his full power as he had not used his Immortal Asura Transformation Art, it was still his second strongest body state. His reason for winning had been his more powerful body, and his incredibly impressive battle instincts.
If he wanted to fight the top disciples, John would have to use his full strength, such as using the Immortal Asura Transformation Art. However, he wanted to keep his trump cards secret for as long as possible.
Adam turned to John with a look of curiosity. "When the fuck did you become a body cultivator as well? Why are you focusing on both essence and body cultivation?"
John smiled as he continued to watch the other disciples leave. "That's not for you to worry about. But it seems like each of the three other sects have disciples standing at the top. I can't wait to fight them!"
For the Bloodfiend Sect, there were the Four Kings and Three Emperors. For the Divine Soul Sect, there was the Soul Sage, and now Mark had mentioned two incredibly powerful Supreme Battle Sect disciples. Such a lineup made John's blood boil, and his desire to grow stronger intensified.
'I need to reach the Core Formation Realm as soon as possible.'
After thinking of such things, John's eyes turned to the nearby sword stuck in the tree. His eyes lit up slightly.
"Now let's see exactly what we have on our hands here."