The Martial Unity

A month passed as the entirety of the Martial community grew increasingly enthused and excited for the incoming contest. They eagerly embraced the first positive event to occur in the Era of Darkness, growing excited for the participants who would be participating.

In the span of a month, many Martial Masters announced their participation. Most of them were high-grade Martial Masters who possessed enough power to be competitive even at a contest of this scale.

And yet, many didn’t. With the news of the Radiant, it was deemed to not be worth it, leaving plenty of Masters to handle the Beast Incursion. Much to the dismay of everybody, however, not even lesser Martial Artists were allowed to bear witness to the event.

Not even Martial Seniors, who could ordinarily tolerate the mental burden of Martial Embodiments, were allowed to bear witness to contest.

The reason was rather simple.

The Void Prince was the sole reason that this event could not be allowed to be witnessed by even Martial Masters. It was a well-known fact that his Martial Embodiment rendered people brain-dead with how burdensome the information load was. Such was the extraordinary power of his mind. It broke all limits and did things that were thought to be impossible. And this was just one of them. And thus, the contest had arrived.

A total of fifty-three Martial Masters had gathered in the vast Master-level battle arena that had been prepared for it. A special avenue for spectation for not just the queen but also other Sages had been prepared due to the political importance of the power. The remaining Martial Masters sat in the spectator stands, eagerly waiting for the battle to begin.

STEP

The Radiant arrived upon the battle arena with a graceful step. His golden eyes glowed with power and a glint of bloodlust.

His gaze swept over the entirety of the battle arena with a sharp glare while the other Masters averted their gaze. “Tsk.” An expression of displeasure appeared on his face.

He hadn’t found who he was looking for. And it wasn’t particularly surprising either.

In the month since his arrival, not a single person had seen him even a single time after he secluded himself in a training chamber. He had been entirely absorbed in his preparation, so much so that many began wondering if he would even show up. But he did.

CLACK

The gates to the chamber opened as it let in the final contestant.

One that drew the attention of all Martial Artists in the arena and stands.

His eyes were sharp, while his skin seemed to radiate light.

His demeanor gained a perilous edge to it while his power seemed to become more solid and certain. And thus, the full depth of it became certain to those who bore witness to it. He was a monster.

Amare smiled enthusiastically while she took her place in the stands and watched Rui take his place among the contestants.

“…And thus, all the registered contestants have arrived,” the Martial Sage designated as the invigilator announced. “Thus, we shall soon commence the Royal Solaris Contest. I shall be observing the battle for any and all violations of the rules, which shall lead to a swift disqualification of the contest on the spot. The rules are as follows…”

He went over them one time before the contest, for good measure, even as the Radiant’s sharp gaze was fixed on Rui.

And yet, Rui didn’t so much as acknowledge him, remaining where he was. “…Be mindful not to break any of these rules,” the Sage patiently explained. “And with that, we are ready to commence the contest. Please take your positions at the very edge of the battle arena.”

It wasn’t long before all Masters had their backs at the very edge of the battle arena. Queen Lianiala stood up from her throne, sweeping her gaze over the entirety of the battlefield before commencing the battle.

“BEGIN!”

RUMBLE

The world shook as fifty-four Martial Masters activated their Martial Hearts and Martial Minds. Heaven and earth were undone as dozens of Martial Embodiments emerged from the depths of their minds, dying the world in their Martial Art.

And yet, a single Embodiment consumed them all. From the depths of his mind, an endless tsunami of Water emerged, flooding the entire world and the minds of everybody around them. It was only then that they understood.

It was only then that they understood that the tales about the Void Prince were not exaggerations. In fact, they undersold just how colossal his Martial Mind actually was. They undersold just how powerful his Embodiment was. They failed to accurately convey just how oppressive his power was. Many of the spectating Martial Masters found themselves to be entirely paralyzed, unable to so much as move. Even amidst the battlefield, many of the Martial Masters found his Embodiment to be suffocating.

And yet, the true shock was yet to come. His Embodiment changed.

The Water flowed from one form to another.

It became light.

One moment, Rui had become an ocean of water that consumed the entire world.

The very next?

He became a beacon of light itself.

Light that illuminated the entire battlefield and beyond.

Nobody moved.

Nobody except the one who sought to kill him.

WHOOSH

In the blink of an eye, the Radiant appeared before Rui.

His entire body glowed with blinding light.

A single whisper escaped him.

“Die.”

VMMMM!!!

Boundless light emerged from him, threatening to erase Rui where he stood. And yet, that didn’t happen.

What did happen shook those who bore witness to it.

The light did not hurt Rui.

No.

It embraced him, curling around him in a bizarre manner before returning in the direction that it came from. VMMM!!!

BOOOM!!!

The Radiant’s eyes widened as his own power launched him flying away despite his guard. “Sorry,” a remark escaped Rui. “But I’m the strongest light bender in this battle.”

CRACKLE CRACKLE CRACKLE!!!

Bolts of lightning crackled in the air around him as Rui unleashed an immense set of lasers against his opponents.

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