The Martial Unity

He was not accustomed to facing such a lack of certainty and clarity in what the breakthrough to the next Realm was.

Previously, when the conditions of the next Realm were explained, there was never even the slightest shred of ambiguity. Yet, this time, a Martial Sage was saying that she couldn't even actually explain in words what the conditions to the next Realm were.

"Why is the Sage Realm such a mystery when Martial Transcendents exist?" Rui raised an eyebrow. "I would have thought that the Transcendent Realm is the mystery Realm, whatever it even is."

"If the Martial Transcendents are able to shed more light on the Sage Realm to dispel the lack of clarity, then they certainly aren't interested in doing so, considering that not a single one of them has bothered to," she grumbled begrudgingly. "Aside from the great Transcendent Prophet, the lot of them mostly do nothing."

Rui wasn't surprised she mentioned that exception, considering that the Silas Clan basically worshipped the Transcendent Prophet.

Yet, he wasn't interested in pursuing the topic.

"About the so-called 'enlightenment'…" His eyebrows furrowed. "Is the breakthrough to the Sage Realm a gradual process or an instantaneous transition?"

"Most certainly the latter," she calmly informed him. "You either know who you are, or you don't. The moment you do, you will have discovered your Martial Soul and have gained the power of the Sage Realm."

"…Earlier, you said that, unlike on lower Realms, there is a strong correlation between the power level of Martial Masters and progress to the Sage Realm," Rui continued. "Does that mean all strong Martial Masters have a deeper understanding of who they are, or that those who do not are necessarily weaker?"

"The correlation is not absolute," she lightly answered. "As mentioned, power does not change; it merely reveals who you truly are. It helps one understand who they truly are, but there are other variables that sometimes cause a Martial Master to diverge from this trend, causing strong Martial Masters to have lower self-awareness or weaker Martial Artists to be closer to discovering their inner soul. An example of that would be…"

Her eyes peered deeper into his. "…Yourself. You are strong, yet you are deeply confused about who you are. Not only are you deeply confused, you are deeply distressed. Despite your power serving as a good reflection of who you are, something much deeper has muddied the water, making it difficult to see your reflection."

She closed her eyes. "I cannot imagine what could have happened in the Beast Domain of all places, but whatever you have experienced has clearly shaken you and left you confused. The less you understand who you are, the more power you will need to gain the self-understanding needed to break through to a higher Realm of power…"

"The less I understand who I am, the more power I'll need…?"

"Correct, though in your case…" She gazed at him with a hint of sympathy. "…I cannot imagine how much power you will need to finally gain the self-understanding you seek. You will need extraordinary power. You will need more power than any Martial Master in the history of Martial Art has ever needed to understand themselves. You will need to become the strongest Martial Master to have ever existed, and only then, perhaps, can you overcome the gaping abyss of self-confusion in your heart."

"…"

Rui simply stared at her for a moment before closing them. "In other words, I have an extremely poor affinity for the Sage Realm."

"…I suppose you can say that," Matriarch Nephi stirred at his words. "Though, you have the added benefit of youth and potential. Despite reaching the Master Realm, I am unable to detect the limit of your potential. That being said, your you also means less experience, so its advantages may cancel out its disadvantages in the long run. Still, your youth will mean that growing in the Master Realm will be easier for you than it is for other Martial Masters."

"…Does gaining more self-understanding make you stronger?"

"It's entirely useless until you break through," she remarked. "Martially, at least. Self-understanding will allow you to lead a more meaningful life outside of Martial Art. People who have a greater understanding of who they are tend to live life accordingly."

"…Power does not change, it merely reveals who you are, does it?" Rui murmured to himself as he considered it.

She regarded him momentarily.

"In some ways, a person is the sum totality of their choices." Her tone grew sagely. "Thus, to know every choice you would make is to know yourself. Yet, how can you know every choice you would make if you are unable to choose? Power is the ability to choose, it forces people to make choices. And those choices show them who they truly are. Those without power insist they will never abuse it, yet the moment they gain it, what happens? How many truly remain as they were before they gained power?"

Rui considered her words. "…Almost absolutely none."

"That is correct," she nodded approvingly. "Power merely unlocks the true person hidden deep inside. Those who believed they would never abuse power come to realize that they mistook weakness and inability for moral integrity. A weak man who does no harm is not a good man; he just lacks the power to be bad."

Rui stared at her, furrowing his eyebrows. "…I think I know what choices I would make."

"Oh, do you, now?" She raised an eyebrow. "Did you know you would choose your freedom as a Martial Artist over your family before a life-threatening situation forced you to choose seventeen years ago?"

Rui winced as she brought up the crucial decision he made when Chairman Deacon discovered the identity of the Voider. "…I had an inkling, but I was more agnostic about it. I only gained certainty of what choice I would make when I was forced to choose."

That choice shaped him. Or rather, it showed him what shape he was. He had learned more about what kind of person he was when he made that choice.

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