The Martial Unity

Her words left Rui in thought.

He felt as though she was trying to convey something deeper to him, yet he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

She eyed him knowingly before shaking her head. “All in good time, Prince.”

“…Okay? Coming back to the main point,” Rui returned to a more practical matter. “I don’t think I can be here for years. I have places to be, and I have already gone through a long period of isolated training. Not to mention, this isn’t training at all. Spending all that time simply focusing on purification will cause my battle instincts to grow rusty. I wish to avoid that.”

In addition, he looked forward to seeing more of the world and exploring different Martial philosophies that were different from the norm propagated by the Panamic Martial Federation. The Gen Temple was one such philosophy, and there was plenty more for him to explore.

Bodhisattva Maitreyi fell into thought as she considered his words. “In that case…”

She turned to him. “There is a way that you can complete the process in a month.”

Rui’s eyes lit up with immense surprise. “Wait, really, several years compressed into one month? Surely you guys don’t have a national treasure like the Kandrian Manifold, right?”

She smiled wryly. “I’m afraid we do not have something that is so convenient. But, we do have our own transcendent treasure, one that will allow you to purify yourself in a much quicker timeframe.”

“Great!” Rui grinned. “Let me use it, and in return, I will give you guys my gifts, I think that’s a pretty fair deal.”

“It is, but I’m afraid that it is not as simple as you think,” Bodhisattva Maitreyi informed him with a calm tone. “For one, it isn’t possible for just about anyone to use our national treasure. It is a powerful treasure that erodes the mind if you don’t possess the necessary drive, will, perseverance, and power. You must be a Martial Artist who has harnessed your existing potential to the fullest for you the be worthy of consuming this treasure.”

Rui’s expression grew serious. “I like to think that I satisfy all those conditions.”

“We Bodhisattvas will be the judge of that,” she remarked. “We will administer a test, one that will truly probe you as a Martial Artist in all dimensions.”

“Test?” Rui raised an eyebrow. “What kind?”

“A battle,” she replied. “Against the strongest Martial Master in the history of the Gen Temple and one of the strongest Martial Masters in all of South Panama. The Omni Martial.”

At that moment, Rui couldn’t control the intense soulborne urge to adaptively evolve. His smile widened as deep battle-lust lit up in his eyes, his desire to test his Martial Path and Art against the vaunted peak Master of the Gen Temple lit up in an inferno.

Even someone as disconnected as Rui had heard her legends.

The Omni Martial.

Said to be a prodigious genius sent by the heavens as a gift to humankind.

At the age of one hundred, she had already reached the peak of the Master Realm.

Within the Gen Temple, she was regarded as the reincarnation of the Progenitor, who once blessed the ascetics and monks of Mount Jinrae with the power of Martial Art. Said to be born with the enlightenment of the true nature of Martial Art.

Over the span of a century, she had earned the absolute and unadulterated respect and admiration of the entirety of the Martial World with her supreme feats of Martial prowess and her extraordinary Martial Art. A Martial Art regarded to be the purest Martial Art in the entire world by all those who were blessed to witness it.

Her latest feat was one that truly shook the world and had earned her as the favorite to become the youngest Sage in history.

It was said that the Bodhisattvas of the Gen Temple were away from the temple on a brief pilgrimage when the Beast Incursion commenced.

They wouldn’t make it in time.

The Gen Temple, devoid of Bodhisattvas, was all but doomed for destruction.

And yet, it never came to pass.

Because she didn’t allow it.

Reports detailed how the Omni Martial singlehandedly held back the Sage-level beasts and monsters. They spoke about how the purity of her Martial Art withstood the incarnations of impurity that were the enchanted beasts and monsters.

She held them off just long enough for Bodhisattva Maitreyi herself to return to banish the Sage-level beasts and monsters from Mount Jinrae.

“Your test will be the Omni Martial herself,” she reiterated. “We will observe with our all- seeing gaze and discern whether you are fit to consume the Panacea of Thought, the national treasure of the Gen Temple.”

“Deal,” Rui smirked. “Hell, I don’t even care about the purification process anymore. Just let me fight her.”

Bodhisattva Maitreyi threw a wry smile at the Kandrian Prince. “Do not dismiss purification so simply, young man. It is the greatest boon for someone who is so far away from attaining Nirvana as you are. Take this test seriously.”

Rui nodded with a serious expression.

He didn’t intend to fail the test.

He looked forward to fighting someone in the Master Realm who he couldn’t just steamroll effortlessly.

He also looked forward to adaptively evolving to her Martial Art, whatever it was.

“Let’s get started immediately,” Rui enthusiastically suggested.

“No, you have yet to recuperate from your travels,” Bodhisattva Maitreyi replied. “You must rest and ensure that you are at your absolute peak. We have already prepared your quarters for

you. Though…”

She smiled. “They are not luxury quarters. The concept of luxury does not exist within the Gen

Temple.”

“…Alright,” Rui heaved a soft sigh. “I suppose you are right.”

“Amitabha. Go, my child. Get some well-earned rest. We will speak more when you have woken up and have returned to your peak condition,” she gently told him.

“Gotcha, I’ll see you later then, Your Sagehood.”

She watched him depart with a hint of amusement. She, too, looked forward to battle for many reasons.