The Martial Unity

His Transcendent voice converged upon her from the future and the past, creating a devastating convergence of power that even she found almost impossible to withstand. It transcended past the shackles of causality, imposing itself upon the very fabric of reality.

“Nggg…” she gritted her teeth as she struggled to endure the extraordinary weight of his voice. The effort alone caused her to fall to her knees, leaving her exhausted.

Her shaken gaze returned to him as she studied the man who bore the weight of the Nest of Terra on his head.

What stunned her was that he didn’t even deploy any of his Realms of power, none that she could see. “Who… who are you?” she asked with an expression of awe and wonder.

He simply gazed at her with a hint of amusement in his eyes. “I’m not the one who needs to answer that question.”

His aged voice reached her even though his mouth didn’t move.

And yet, it was his words that struck this time. She winced at them. “I…”

“You are torn between lives,” he mused with a wise tone. “You are torn between souls. You don’t know who you are, dear Progenitor.”

Her eyes lit up with a hint of enthusiasm. “But you do! You knew about my sealed memories from just a single glance!”

“Sealed memories…” A hint of understanding emerged in his eyes. “I see. So this is his work. So this was their answer. A truly fascinating solution to overcome the greatest flaw of the ritual. Fascinating to see such a different model of inheritance. More humane. More gentle. It forsakes accruing cognition in order to erase the discordance between mind and soul. A clever solution indeed.”

She didn’t understand.

She didn’t understand a word he uttered.

And yet, she understood that he understood more than her. She drew closer to him with pleading eyes. “If you know anything about me, then please tell me everything! Help me understand who I am!”

“The path to Enlightenment of Self cannot be aided.” he gazed at her lightly. “But even if it could, I am unable to help you. I call you progenitor because I sense her within you.”

His soft eyes regarded her with nostalgic affection.

“It is as simple as that.”

She gazed at him with fascinated amazement. “So you… you knew the Progenitor?”

“Knew?” his voice grew mirthful. “I’m six hundred and fifty years old. Who do you think taught me Martial Art?”

Her eyes widened with shock. “Your teacher… was the Progenitor?!”

“Indeed,” he smiled at her. “She imparted to me, to us, what I would go on to evolve as earth-bending. She changed our world forever. This glorious civilization that rests on my head, none of it would have existed without her.”

“Wow…” a profound murmur escaped her. “That… that is amazing.”

She winced in pain as she felt a surge of unearthing memories.

A much larger than any other since her battle with Rui.

BADUMP!

Instinctively, she activated her Martial Heart and Martial Mind, experiencing a titanic surge of power and thought.

“Indeed, power reveals who one truly is.” His tone grew wise as he gazed at her knowingly. “Power is the way, dear Progenitor.”

“Nggg…!” her voice grew pained as she felt a tremendous flood of memories.

Memories that lit up in her Martial Embodiment.

Memories of her traveling to a distant land where people hid beneath the surface to hide from the monsters and beasts of the sky.

She recalled finding their little nest beneath their large village.

She recalled teaching them Martial Art.

How to move earth with raw power.

Back then, it was a crude and laughable technique, little more than kicking soil.

And yet, she recalled her most devoted disciple.

A little prepubescent boy.

He adored her teachings, following her everywhere during her stay at the Nest of Terra. He had inherited more of her teachings than any other.

“Hohoho…” The older man laughed heartily. “Ah, to witness myself as a little child from a long time ago. What a remarkable Embodiment.”

Her eyes widened with shock. “That was you?”

“Indeed, and that…” He gazed at her Embodiment with nostalgic affection, “…was you.”

“To think that someone I taught in my memories would go on to become a Martial Transcendent…” her voice grew profoundly thoughtful. “And yet…”

She heaved a sigh. “I’m still no closer to understanding how I am the way I came to be.”

His Transcendent gaze grew soft and gentle. “No one does. Not until they gain what your people call Nirvana. That is why you need power. Power to grow stronger and stronger and be confronted with choices you never once had. The decisions you make will help you understand yourself, and eventually, you shall be able to gain Nirvana.”

“Nirvana…” she muttered. “Power… I don’t know what I need to do to gain more power beyond just traveling. I feel useless in times like this.”

“If it is power you seek,” he spoke with a knowing tone. “Then I shall oblige.”

RUMBLE

The world shook.

It shook as the Shield of Gaia bore just an infinitesimal portion of his power. “My deepest regret has always been that I could never pay her back for the teachings she imparted to me. Teachings that would change my life forever. Teachings that would change the world forever.”

His Transcendent gaze fixed itself on her as he bore the extraordinary godly power within the depths of his being.

Power unlike anything she had ever felt before.

“It won’t be easy.”

His voice was severe.

“But if you are able to survive my teachings, you will gain extraordinary power.”

She gazed at him with a stiff expression. “I… I don’t train. I simply live.”

An amused smile emerged on his face. “Is that so? Very well then, I shall have you live my teachings.”

“Eh?”

“Ḯ̶͔ ̶̏͜s̴̠͌ȧ̶̲i̴͙̓d̶̝̅ ̴̮́y̷͕̍ó̸̞ǘ̴̦ ̶̞̃ẃ̶̨ȋ̸͓ĺ̷̞l̸͕͗ ̴̤̚l̷̺̈́ȋ̴̩v̷͇̍e̶̛̗ ̴͙̈́m̴̪̑y̷̘͐ ̷̜̅ t̵̳͗ḛ̸̀a̸̲͆c̴̯̓ĥ̴͎ḯ̸͙n̵̙̈g̷̹̃s̵̝̋,̸̙̂ ̸̩̿d̶͓̔e̷̪̓ä̷̩́r̴̠͂ ̶̞́ P̵͓̓r̵͇͂o̷̥̐g̵͍̽è̴͔ň̷̠i̴̡͋t̸͚͛o̷̧͠ṛ̴͠,” his incomprehensible Transcendent voice converged upon her. “I̷͖͑ ̴̄ ẅ̷̡́i̸̺̚l̴̤̋l̷̰͝ ̷͙́h̷̖̑ǎ̷̫v̵̳́e̵̹̒ ̷̝͠y̷̞̿ö̸͓́û̶̮ ̶̙͊f̸̟̊ȧ̴̠c̸̥̋ï̵̺l̷̫̽i̶̲̎t̵̼͝a̵̫̔ẗ̶̹ȅ̵̖ ̵͓̒ t̸̘̽h̶̞̏e̴̲̋ ̴̤̉r̵̳͒e̵͔͑p̴͍͌a̴̺̐y̴͖͝m̶̘̍e̵͍̔ṋ̷̽t̵͙̀ ̵͔̚ ò̸̳f̵̛̖ ̷̲̀ m̷̞̕y̴͙͠ ̵͕́ d̵̛͙ĕ̷̙b̷͍̽t̵̮̚..̸͖́ ̵̦̇ N̷̠̆ȍ̴̺w̵̗̉ ̸̻͆ t̷͓̄ḧ̸̬́ę̶̉n̸̯̎,,̸̛͉ ̶̪̌ p̶̥͂r̶̨̆e̷̢̐p̶̜͑a̷͔͠ŕ̴̟ě̷̡ ̸͉͆ y̵͍͝o̵̝͛ṵ̷̇r̵͕̕s̵̠͗e̶̩͆l̸̜̄f̷̨̋!̵͈͠!”

“Gah!”

And thus, Amare’s training at the hands of a Martial Transcendent began.

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