The Martial Unity

Rui's mind had entered a comfortable bliss.

It comforted him.

Eased him.

Soothed him.

And yet, a voracious hunger consumed him.

It drove him.

Spurred him.

Frenzied him.

Two opposing forces acted on his mind.

His being.

An existential tug of war.

Perfectly balanced, as all things should be.

He felt released.

From the world.

From the shackles of the Human nature.

An endless peace surged within him.

Nothing mattered anymore.

Master Uma. Chairman Deacon. The Virodhabhasa Faith.

They ceased to exist.

Nothing mattered to him.

He was at peace.

And yet, a voracious hunger consumed him.

Hunger for victory.

For power.

Ambition.

He didn't understand.

He didn't care to.

he didn't think to.

He simply didn't think.

There was only one thing he cared for. His mind grew fixated on the opponent before him. A mighty weight pushed down on his mind at the very sight of him.

The weight of a thousand Martial Art.

No Martial Art was beyond his reach.

Everything was his.

And yet, he offered them to the void within Rui.

One by one.

The battle raged as the void consumed every single Martial Art that he had to offer.

Until there was nothing else.

Yet Rui was not satisfied.

His eyes intensified.

His hunger intensified.

RUMBLE!

The very world trembled in peril as Rui surged forward, consuming the one thing that the man had left to offer.

His life.

Endless hunger surged forward.

And yet...

WHOOSH!

The attack crashed into empty air.

One moment, Ieyasu was down on a knee.

The next moment, he was gone.

The object of his hunger disappeared.

His body felt a deep sense of peril behind him.

BADUMP!

A powerful Martial Heart blazed into life as the aura of a Martial Senior radiated across the island.

He opened his eyes, beholding Rui

A single word escaped his mouth.

"Die."

The three Martial Seniors broke out of their reverie as they raced forward, their Martial Hearts blazing into action.

Yet they were too far.

Ieyasu's attack surged forward.

And yet...

Rui's eyes blazed with hunger.

Time slowed down as his pupils dilated.

A blazingly-swift Senior-level attack was reduced to a slow lull.

A lull that threatened to end his life.

Yet Rui didn't care.

Life?

Such a thing did not matter.

He refused to run away.

He refused to cower.

Not again.

'Never again.'

A surge of emotion flushed through him.

The frustration of weakness.

The Ambition of Water.

The love of a family.

The hunger of the void.

Yet he couldn't validate any of them.

He was too weak.

Too weak to protect his family.

To fulfill his ambition.

To overcome death even as he stared it in the eyes.

A single desire radiated through the sum totality of his being.

'Power...' His eyes widened. 'Power...!'

His sanity unraveled as his mind chanted the word.

And yet, his Body roared along.

Every cell in his Body quivered as it joined the chant.

The hymn reverberated through the totality of his existence.

'Power...!'

It was his heart that roared for power.

And yet...

It was the Heart that heeded the call.

...

.....

....

BADUMP!

An ocean of power surged from deep within his body.

His heart accelerated into a tachycardia. His blood seemed to nearly incinerate, glowing with power. Glowing red lines emerged from his heart, spreading through the rest of his body.

His cells quivered as his metabolism accelerated.

Unprecedented amounts of adrenaline and endorphins poured into his blood.

His mind and body revved into a frenzy leaping into action!

He felt the root of his being ascend to a higher Realm of power.

Power of a higher Realm surged through his body as he surged forward with the might of a true Martial Senior.

The world welcomed the birth of yet another Martial Senior.

Two Martial Seniors locked eyes for the briefest microsecond.

And then locked fists.

BOOM!!!!!

A titanic clash ensued. Power beyond anything the two of them had ever experienced converged in a single impact.

RUMBLE!!

The island violently shook to the very core of its existence.

A shockwave the size of a mountain emerged from the convergence of their attacks.

It destroyed everything.

Everyone.

Or so it should have.

WHOOSH!

The three Martial Seniors managed to activate their breathing techniques in time.

Senior Xanarn generated a titanic wave of sound that canceled out the energy radiated from the epicenter of the blastwave, protecting the island.

Senior Leonil generated a power gust of wind that protected the guardians.

Senior Sarak activated a breathing technique that expelled the two infant Martial Seniors from the island a great distance away.

Yet neither of the two of them noticed.

Nothing else existed besides them.

Endless euphoria washed over them as they experienced the intoxicating power of a high Realm.

A single emotion radiated from the two baby Martial Seniors.

Pure and unadulterated satisfaction.

Yet, they weren't satisfied.

Power was useless if it didn't grant them victory.

Their eyes fixed on their opponents.

The mirror and the void surged once more.

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!!!

Titanic amounts of power surged forth from both sides.

Rui lashed out at Ieyasu with the full might of Outer Convergence, Reverberating Lance, and Vital Pressure channeled through the most powerful Flowing Canon he had ever launched in the entirety of his life.

And yet...

BOOM!!!!!

Ieyasu retaliated with a mirror image of the same attack. The mirror in his eyes reflected the void in Rui's.

The two of them lashed forth without abandon as a familiar sight took place.

Yet, a familiar outcome did not unfold.

BOOM!!!!!

Ieyasu held his ground fiercely, refusing to allow Rui to claim even the slightest edge unlike last time!

Rui narrowed his eyes.

The difference became evident.

'His Martial Heart is stronger.'

They both could feel it.

Ieyasu had gained a slight edge.

Yet it was enough to counter the slight edge that had granted Rui victory last time.

The two inhaled deeply.

The gesture created a titanic vacuum that singlehandedly affected the weather of the Kaddar Region.

THWOOM THWOOM!

Two massive tier-five Transverse Resonances surged forth, colliding with each other!

BOOM!!!!!!!