The Martial Unity

RUMBLE!!!!!

The singularity began growing larger and larger as it consumed more and more of heaven and earth at alarming rates. BOOOOOM BOOOOOM BOOOOOM!!!!!

A few of the Sages tried destroying it in alarm, yet their efforts only allowed the singularity to grow larger and stronger!

It consumed heaven and earth with all its fury and vengeance.

Despite being extremely small, it was already beyond their ability to destroy.

Not even Damian possessed the power to destroy this cosmic monster. He had never seen anything like it before, yet he grew deeply enamored by the destruction that it displayed. It was a pure destruction.

Purer than any other form of destruction that he had ever harnessed.

Purer than any other form of destruction that he had ever even seen.

RUMBLE!!!!!

An entire abyss began forming where there once had been a battlefield as the singularity began stripping Gaia of its surface and then proceeding to its crust bit by bit.

Bit by bit, it began consuming the very foundations beneath them faster and faster.

It was beyond their control.

It was beyond their power.

They knew that eventually, it would consume everything.

They knew that even if they evacuated from the area and returned home, it would one day grow strong enough and large enough to reach them.

Nowhere was safe.

Nothing was safe.

At that moment, the end of the world was all but nigh.

RUMBLE

And then, suddenly, they froze.

They froze as their nerves tingled.

They froze as their instincts screamed.

They froze as they felt the arrival of a greater force.

They froze as they felt the appearance of a higher power.

All of heaven and earth prostrated before him.

The very fabric of space and time bowed before him as it struggled to contain the sheer weight of his being.

The very universe acknowledged the arrival of the supreme power.

His garb was equally Martial as it was royal with the emblem of the Britannian Empire prominently embroidered on its chest.

A domineering crown sat on his head, projecting aggression and power.

“Your Majesty!”

“All hail the Transcendent Emperor!”

“Glory to Transcendent Emperor Arthur!”

The Sage Knights of the Britannian Empire expressed their sincere admiration and loyalty to the one of the thirteen pinnacles of Martial Transcendence.

A supreme zenith of Martial Art.

An unparalleled god in human form.

Yet, Transcendent Emperor Arthur did not so much as acknowledge the kneeling Sage Knights of the Britannian Empire. Nor did he pay any mind to the other Sages who regarded him with fear and awe.

No.

His eyes were fixed on the cosmic monster.

His transcendent gaze bore heavily on the singularity that grew larger and larger.

What followed shook the others where they stood.

CLASP

The Martial Sages watched with horror and awe as his arm reached out to grasp the singularity with two fingers.

A cosmic monster of unparalleled destruction and peril.

A celestial horror with endless gluttony.

Before the might of a Martial Transcendent, it was reduced to no more than a grain of sand.

No more than an insect.

An insect that one could crush with the slightest bit of exertion.

And he did.

CRACK

The Martial Sages watched with unadulterated shock as the Transcendent Emperor effortlessly crushed the singularity between his fingers.

They shook with endless awe and admiration as he casually dispelled the singularity from the face of existence itself.

They watched as he wiped out the singularity like the insect it was.

An insect that would have gone on to destroy all of Gaia, of course.

Yet, if even that cosmic monster was an insect before the might of a Martial Transcendent, then it begged the question. What were they, who had failed to stop it, before a being of this caliber?

The Kandrian Martial Artists grew apprehensive as they remembered.

They remembered that this war would not have even happened if not for Transcendent Emperor Arthur allowing it to happen.

In that moment, their pride as Martial Sages was eroded as they beheld the transcendent glory of one of the thirteen supreme Martial Artists of all of human civilization.

It was only by their grace that human civilization was free to pursue their future.

And now, it was only by his grace that they were delivered from absolute destruction.

It was only by his grace that they were salvaged from a road of no return.

Finally, his attention shifted to the dozens of Martial Sages around him. A single remark escaped him. “F̴̟̼̭̃̀͐̌̽̔̍͂̀̋̅ơ̷̧͍̬̏̆͒̃͒̎̐͘͝o̶͙̎̑͐́̊͐̾̂͘̚͠l̷̼̙̯̖̱̟̹̇͋̃̃̋̓̄͜͜ś̸̢̫͒̈́́͆̔̑͒̂̽̏̿̑̀͝.”

His voice came from the future and the past as it defied the shackles of causality, converging upon a single moment in time. “Y̴̺͘o̸̬̽u̵̜͝ ̸̝͘h̶̘͋ḁ̶͌v̵̦͊e̶̘̐ ̷̠̑t̶̫̕a̶͍̎m̴̨͋p̶͉̃ẽ̵̟r̴̪̒ḛ̵̐d̵͎͝ ̴̞͠w̶̫͘i̶̟͐t̷̪̊h̵̭̊ ̵̲̽f̷͍͗ȍ̶͓ṛ̷̚c̷̯̿é̵͕ś̴͚ ̶͚̈́b̵̦͆e̴͓̚ý̴̖o̷͖̽n̴̗̈́ḓ̶͐ ̵̦̌y̵͈̔ọ̵͋ũ̴̺r̷̲̉ ̸̣̓ċ̷̥o̸͈̎m̷̳̌p̷̳͝ȑ̸̺e̶̦͆h̸̞͝e̶̗͝ņ̴̔s̶̨̓ȉ̴͙ǒ̴̜n̸̝̎,” he whispered, “…̷̻̓ã̶̹n̷͍̂d̸̝̎ ̷̲̄e̷̯͝n̶̫̋d̵̰͊a̸̯̓n̴̺͆g̶̮̿ē̸͔r̵̢͠e̵̦̕d̷̻̕ ̴̧͘ä̷̬l̴̤̅l̵̞̃ ̵̼̓õ̶͍f̸͝ͅ ̷͈͝h̶̬̍u̶̫͋m̷̧͑à̵̼n̷̨̈́ ̸̻̐c̸̗̆i̷̫͠v̶̠̓i̶͔̓l̵̹̓i̵̩͘z̸͇̍a̴̢̓t̶̬͆i̶̛̻ó̵̻n̸̞̾.̷̻͐ ̸Ȃ̶̱ĺ̸͍l̷̯̏ ̴̼̄o̸̦̓f̴͔̀ ̴̼̚l̵̮̓i̶̡̍f̸̧̒e̶͓̊.̷̟̽ A̴̗͌ĺ̷̞l̶̻̉ ̵̗̉o̵̹̿f̷̢̒ ̷̝͛Ǵ̷̣a̵̭̋i̶̛̖ȧ̷̖”

At that moment, they each lowered their heads with a hint of guilt or shame upon his transcendent admonishment.

At that moment, it didn’t matter if he was technically an enemy.

He was still a Martial Transcendent who protected all of them despite the ongoing war.

Only one of them had the sheer madness to express bloodlust at him. “Arthur…” A maniacal grin appeared on Damian’s face. “Now that you are here…”

Pure excitement appeared in Damian’s face.

“Let us finish our battle from eighty years ago!”

The Martial Sages grew horrified as Damian did the unthinkable.

He attacked the Martial Transcendent.

“Rargh!!!” he snarled as he summoned every ounce of power and materia prima he could muster.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMM!!!!!!!

He unleashed all the destruction that he could conjure towards Transcendent Emperor Arthur as his fist flew toward him. Arthur gazed at him with a calm and composed expression as he raised his hand.

TAP

The other Martial Sages widened their eyes as the Martial Transcendent erased Damian’s attack and power.

A single finger was all it took.

Damian gritted his teeth as he pushed with all his strength, yet he couldn’t so much as budge the man’s finger.

His destruction had disappeared.

As though it had never existed in the first place.

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