The Martial Unity

There were plenty of Martial Squires, each wearing ostentatious Martial Art attire. Some of them were accompanied by Martial Artists of the Senior or the Master Realm.

"Deivon," One Martial Master addressed him the moment he arrived. "I'd heard that you actually chose to patron a contestant this year. It appears that that was not false."

She appeared to be even older than he was.

"Ria," Master Deivon replied back to her.

She turned her attention to Rui for a brief moment, before her eyebrows furrowed as she frowned.

"He…"

She turned to him with a concerned expression, Master Deivon in turn had a smug knowing smile.

This little interaction with Rui confirmed that Martial Masters had the ability to gain deeper insight into people. He was quite sure that it didn't operate on the same principles that he operated on when it came to gathering insights into people. A systematic way of gathering and processing data to gain even more data on them.

It appeared that they had some form of sixth sense that allowed them to peer deep into others. Based on her non-verbal communication, Rui could see that the two of them were able to gain insights into him that they shouldn't have been able to.

This was the same kind of thing he experienced with Headmaster Aronian as well.

He didn't think that they could explicitly gain information about his Martial Art or Path. It was quite clear that Master Deivon had been surprised by Rui's performance in the preliminary contest.

"Looks like you're serious this time," She mentioned with narrowed eyes.

"Heh," Master Deivon grinned. "You better hope you've found the best contestant to patron."

Rui wished he wouldn't draw attention to them, but it would be rude to interrupt their conversation and chastise him too.

Although Master Deivon was remarkably grounded in his ego, it would still affect his honor if he got talked back to by a Martial Squire that he was patroning. 

Rui looked around as he noticed several Martial Masters glancing at him warily. This made him extremely uncomfortable due to how much stronger they were. He could feel that each one of them was extremely powerful and could erase him with a simple gesture. It made his hair stand on edge being the object of their attention.

Thankfully Master Deivon stood by, reassuring him, the protective strength of the man was certainly quite comforting. He shot a sharp glare at all the other Martial Masters, who promptly heeded the unspoken warning.

"Hmph, don't mind them," He grumbled. "They're just jealous because they realize that they can't beat me in our little contest."

Rui smiled wryly under his mask. "And here I thought my Mind Mask technique would be enough."

"That technique is not bad," Master Deivon remarked. "But it ordinarily is only opaque to people in the same Realm. In your case, it can fool even Martial Seniors for some reason. Your imaginative power is so great that any mental image you conjure can fool Martial Artists even a Realm above you."

Master Deivon turned to him with a look of interest in his eyes. "But it's not effective against me, or my peers."

"…Damn. So you all can sense how strong I actually am?"

"We can do more than that," Master Deivon smiled with a half-smug, half-wry smile.

"…I did not anticipate Masters to have such powerful insight. It was a slight miscalculation, I shall be much more wary next time I approach one in the future."

"Hahaha!" Master Deivon laughed out loud at that. "Fear not, you have me. I may not be the most powerful or influential Master around, but I can hold my ground well against any of them."

"That's reassuring to hear," Rui replied. However, he didn't miss the subtext in the man's words. It appeared that the man already considered his relationship with Rui not to be a temporary one once the Martial Contest. 

It appeared that he was already intent on investing in Rui regardless of the outcome of the Martial Contest. Rui did not blame him for this at all, in fact, it made sense. 

Rui knew his value, especially as he was right now.

"It's starting," Master Deivon gestured, his expression growing severe, as a procession of guards took their place on the podium at the center of the colosseum.

Suddenly, everything changed.

It happened faster than Rui could even fathom, but the very world around him shifted!

The air grew immensely thick. The atmosphere froze in its place. The land rumbled beneath his feet.

Every hair on his body stood on edge. His skin shivered as chills crawled up through it. He broke out in a cold sweat as he sensed a level of power that he had never ever sensed in the entirety of his life!

"Please welcome, Her Excellency Honorable Cardinal Sage Sariawar."

Rui's eyes widened as a single figure descended from the sky.

His jaw dropped as he beheld her figure. It was as though the very sky was gently lowering her from the heavens above, prostrating in the process.

A Martial Sage.

This was the very first time in his entire life that he had actually beheld the presence of a Martial Sage.

Unlike everybody else in the colosseum, her clothes were not ostentatious. She wore a simple single cotton cloth that wrapped across her entire body.

She didn't need extravagant attire.

The aura that she released was more than anything fashion could ever hope to match. It was as though her body was glowing like she was of heavenly origin. Her very aura seemed to bend the the sky and the earth.

Instinctively, Rui bowed. 

He didn't even think.

No, that wasn't quite right.

He couldn't even think about it. He didn't have the opportunity to!

By the time he realized it, his instincts already prostrated his body, offering respect to a being that was just one Realm below Transcendence.

"Ah…" She murmured, glancing down at all those who bowed. "Rise."

The world obeyed her command.