The Martial Unity

1539 Friends

Kane felt chills when Rui described the risks. The breaking of his Martial Path? He couldn't even begin to imagine how horrifying that would be. It sounded like a fate worse than death.

Martial Artists were prepared for death. The risk of death was part of the job description. What they weren't prepared for was being permanently crippled from even wielding their Martial Path.

That, to most Martial Artists, was a fate worse than death.

The power that they had cultivated was the most important thing to most Martial Artists. It was born out of years, decades, and even centuries of hard work. The very idea of that power being stripped away was highly disturbing to say the least.

Kane heaved a sigh.

"Think about it," Rui remarked. "Don't feel pressured to accept immediately as proof of your determination or something. The fact of the matter is that risking the very root of your Martial Path is an extraordinary risk to take for anything, even if it is the power of the higher Realm. It's not an easy thing to decide upon. Think it over and then let me know."

Kane nodded, deep in thought. The two of them returned to the Kandrian Empire as quickly as they had left. Kane, expectedly, wasn't in the mood to chat. His eyes swam around in thought as he considered Rui's offer deeply.

Rui, too, did not want to distract him from what would probably end up being the most important decision of his life. Although he would love to express the story of his time apart from Kane, it wasn't nearly as important and could wait until Kane was no longer preoccupied.

"Don't sweat it, and remember; there is no wrong decision from where you stand at the moment," Rui advised Kane as the two of them bade each other farewell, parting ways. Rui wanted to give him enough free space to think about it without humoring him.

That gave Rui plenty of free time. Naturally, he returned to the orphanage to spend some more time with his loved ones, while pondering about what else he ought to have scratched off his list.

smiled as he recalled the memory of the times he spent with Fae, Nel, Hever, Dalen, and Milliana. Although he hadn't

to all of them. Thankfully, all of them happened to be within the Kandrian Empire at the time, fulfilling some domestic commissions. It

spot in the town of Hajin, six people had gathered at a spot, waiting

spotted him

with

conveyed a sense of calm maturity in place of the youth that used to characterize it.

While her progress wasn't nearly as impressive as Kane's or Rui's, she had progressed much faster than most Martial Squires,

murmured with an expression of curiosity as she eyed Rui sky-walking down. "He has a heavier

not changed all too much since when she was in the academy. She retained her diminutive stature, much to her dismay. Her temperament had remained unchanged in the past eight years. The

grin spread wide and far as he felt

He could tell.

instincts to an incredible degree, becoming a high-grade Martial Squire. His instincts told him

that didn't discourage

that only made him more

outrageous as attacking a friend we haven't seen in many years," A calm and

unlike his appearance. He fashioned a thick beard that covered the lower half of his face, adding a lot of

of them stood side by side,

after he slowly descended from the sky. Too many people meant that he couldn't move