The Martial Unity

His gaze shifted towards the terrified civilians and their wary Martial Artist bodyguards, as he momentarily lowered himself to them.

“Your Majesty…!”

“Thank you for saving us!”

“We can finally escape!”

Rui nodded. “They held you hostage because they thought they could win, because they knew we didn’t want any of you to get hurt. We’re sure you guys should be fine from here on out, but we’ll make sure to send some aid from the Kandrian Empire.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty!”

“All hail Emperor Rui!”

“All hail the Dawnbringer!”

Rui soon teleported away as aid from the Kandrian Empire swept Longmin City, along with numerous other parties. From the press, to different organizations, and private citizens, all of them gained the opportunity to witness the outcome of the battle between the Kandrian Emperor and nearly three hundred Martial Sages. They swarmed the damaged battlefield, eagerly documenting the outcome of the battle.

Yet, not a single person could believe what they saw. They found two hundred and ninety-two Martial Sage corpses and one broken former Martial Artist left in a damaged state of mind. The Dawnbringer had fought hundreds of his peers and had utterly dominated them while simultaneously ensuring that the collateral damage was almost zero.

Three hundred Martial Sages, more than enough to utterly devastate entire tectonic plates many times over, were completely wiped out in a brief and comparatively silent battle.

The sole remaining former Martial Artist had experienced a bout of madness, completely destroying his sanity.

He balled up, hugging his legs, muttering one word over and over.

“M-Monster… monster! M-Monster….” Tried as they might to extract an account of the battle, just the very mention of Rui Quarrier caused him to become volatile.

The story spread through the Panama Continent like wildfire. The fact that Emperor Rui had become so astronomically powerful that he could utterly crush a small army of Martial Sages was terrifying to each and every single Martial Sage.

There were many Martial Sages who harbored intentions of resisting Rui and bringing about an end to his Void Order regime.

The fact that Emperor Rui had become so astronomically powerful that he could utterly crush a small army of Martial Sages was terrifying to each and every single Martial Sage.

There were many Martial Sages who harbored intentions of resisting Rui and bringing about an end to his Void Order regime.

They crushed those intentions upon hearing the horrifying power that Rui personally wielded. Nascent organizations formed around resisting the Emperor began disbanding upon the news.

The images of the Martial Sage corpses inspired fear in anybody who harbored any hostility towards Rui. The Sovereign Martial Alliance had been one of the leaders of the resistance, and the fact that they had been crushed in half an hour by the Emperor showed the sheer extent to which he was above all of them.

And then, as if to give them hope, an announcement emerged from the Kandrian Empire.

[Any Martial Sage who is able to force Emperor Rui Quarrier Silas Kandria into using his Martial Soul will be granted immunity from the Void Order regime.]

It was a slap in the face to each and every single Martial Sage in existence, but it was not one that they could even bring themselves to feel truly angry at.

Rui had fought Martial Sages as a Martial Master. And he had grown by massive leaps and bounds since then, such that he could probably effortlessly dismantle Martial Sages without his Martial Soul.

It was deeply humiliating and yet optimistic nonetheless. Reports revealed over the next few days that the Emperor actually lived up to it. Many a Martial Sage traveled to the Kandrian Empire to challenge him to battle, and the Emperor showed up, refusing to use his Martial Soul.

He won each and every single battle.

Not all the Martial Sages were weak, either.

There were plenty of Martial Sages who were more experienced and strong, but not even they could pose a problem to the Emperor. He won each and every single duel, creating spectacles that drew the attention of the entire world.

The show of dominance was so overwhelming that all remaining resistance throughout the lower Realms to the Void Order melted away as the Martial World realized the futility of resisting Rui.

He could not be resisted.

If three hundred Martial Sages taking a city hostage could not resist Emperor Rui, then all battles in the lower Realms were utterly meaningless. In a shocking show of submissions, violent gangs accepted defeat and surrendered, Martial mafias fell apart, halting all of their operations as the light of the Void Order regime dispelled their darkness.

The process was only accelerated when the news of Rui breaking Martial Paths spread through the Martial World, utterly terrifying every single Martial Artist stiff.

None of them wanted to have their Paths destroyed. The case of one of the strongest peak Martial Sages, the Gallant Fist, being reduced to the state that he was in was utterly chilling.

Martial Artists were prepared to die, without a doubt. It came with the job, and it was something they confronted the moment they decided to walk the Martial Path.

But they weren’t prepared to lose all their Martial power and their very status as a Martial Artist. It was a fate so horrifying that they would rather kill themselves, as Sage Marhan went on to do so, hanging himself in his cell.

All resistance melted away when Rui ruthlessly shattered Paths in full view of the Martial World. It was genius because it was so far from the conventional torture and punishment methods that ordinary people found it difficult to have sympathy. For they couldn’t fathom what it was like since they didn’t walk their Martial Paths. There was no blood, there was no pain, there was no physical infliction of any kind, making it easier for the entirety of society to be on his side, consolidating his regime even more.

A month passed just like that as the Panama Continent began stabilizing into a new order.

A new regime.

A new era.

Rates of Martial violence plummeted like a falling rock.

Rates of Martial destruction of life and property fell even further.

Changes that would have required years, if not decades, unfolded in days.

In just a month of the Void Order, the Panama Continent entered a new age.

They called it the Age of Prosperity.