The Martial Unity

And then, it disappeared.

The flood of information.

The flood of power.

The onslaught of energy.

It disappeared as Rui shut down his Realms of power.

RUMBLE…

The world began calming down as Mother Alicia stabilized multiple tectonic plates with her gigantic roots stretching many thousands of kilometers in each direction.

She gazed at Rui with stunned amazement.

Something about him had changed.

’It’s his eyes.’

The pitch-black darkness within them bore deeper into reality than they had ever before.

Almost as if he could see things that nobody else could.

His expression was tranquil while his body language was relaxed.

Within the depths of his mind was a tapestry.

The Tapestry of Nature.

A system of thought that allowed him to behold the mind and will of nature.

It allowed him to behold the depth and breadth of nature.

It allowed him to see that he, individualistic and deathly as he was, was still a part of nature nonetheless.

Human civilization, which he thought was also exclusively detached from nature, was simply a distinctive part of nature on the Panama Continent.

This realization changed how he looked at himself and at the world around him.

’You have…’ Mother Alicia’s whisper entered his mind. ’You have borne witness to it, haven’t you?’

Her tone was knowing.

’You have borne witness to the tapestry of nature and your place within it.’

Rui’s eyes shifted to the Mother of Nature with understanding in his eyes.

He understood this lofty existence better now.

“You…” his tone was profound. “You have harmonized with nature to such an extent that you were able to seamlessly pass on your consciousness to a new, mighty vessel that is your current body. That is what the Singularity of Nature is, isn’t it?”

’…To think that your understanding of this sacred process would reach such heights,’ Mother Alicia murmured. ’Indeed. The Hymn of Mind and Soul is fundamentally a process of increasing the bandwidth between nature and our brains. Once we have reached the very limit of the information flux that is possible between nature and our elven brains, it becomes possible to transfer the sum totality of our consciousness, mind, and soul, into a new husk. And that is what you see here before you.’

A small smile emerged on Rui’s face. “That’s awesome. I truly wish to fight you, but I suppose I will have to abstain and wait. Although…”

His tone grew mysterious.

“…I don’t think I will have to wait for too long to fight a Mother of Nature.”

Mother Alicia didn’t understand what those words meant. ’Please do not go around attacking me or any of my other sisters. That will be considered an act of war and a violation of our treaty. We hate war and do not wish to be dragged into battle with battle-maniac like yourself.’

Rui chuckled. “I don’t have any intention of doing that, rest assured. More importantly…”

He gazed at his hands, closing his eyes.

“I have achieved creating a system of thought that helps me understand the will of nature.”

Within the depths of his mind in his expansive mind palace, he found himself gazing at the Tapestry of Nature. A system of thought that inputted sensory data from the environment and nature, and outputted a meaning.

It had not only embedded itself in his mind, but also in his very instincts.

“Nature is always whispering to us, and yet her voice eludes us.”

His tone was almost sorrowful.

Even as he listened, he could hear the whispers of nature.

He could hear the amazement and fear that the flora of the Forest of War harbored towards him.

He could feel their disgust for the death that saturated every inch of his body.

He could feel their curiosity towards a warrior from the Lost Continent.

“So this is what it feels like to be an elf.”

His tone was one of intrigue and curiosity. “No wonder you guys hate war so much. When you can literally hear nature screaming and each and every tree and plant is like a person, I can understand why you are extremely averse to war and conflict. In fact, I’m surprised that you elves can even train at all.”

’We grit our teeth and train our combat power even if it means the suffering and death of flora,’ Mother Alicia remarked. ’There was once a time where we refused to do even that, and we paid the price for it. Since then, we have learned the hard way that whatever suffering we spread in training is infinitesimal compared to the suffering that will spread if we don’t train. That is why we train hard, even though each second of training is agonizing and painful.’

Rui’s expression grew sympathetic.

Anybody that grew up hearing the trees scream in pain and agony would likely develop an extreme compassion for them. They would likely develop an aggressive anti-deforestation and anti-urbanization sentiment and would likely do everything in their power to protect nature.

Still, Rui had no intention of changing how he lived life at this point.

He wouldn’t wipe an eye if he had to wipe out an entire forest as a side-effect in a battle. Perhaps he would at most change his perspective on nature, something that he would need to do in the Hymn of Mind and Soul.

“Now then,” he turned towards Mother Alicia. “This solves the fundamental problem, does it not?”

’…Yes, even though I still find it hard to believe that you have managed to solve the problem to such an extent,’ she admitted with a stunned tone. ’From what I can tell, you are essentially an elf in your ability to communicate with your nature. If you are able to sense and interpret nature like an elf, then you likely qualify to pursue the Nature Path and begin working towards the Gate of Harmony. After that, you may even be able to harmonize with nature in the Hymn and eventually undergo the Singularity of Nature. Although no male in history has ever succeeded in doing that.’