The Martial Unity

The beasts and monsters bowed before Rui as they sensed his extraordinary presence, offering their respects to the King of Beasts. Rui gazed at them with deep eyes, feeling the weight of the gesture.

He had almost forgotten his status within beastkind in the Panama Continent. There was also the fact that he was the new king of sea monsters as well. Before he even realized it, he had amassed tremendous authority over vast and powerful domains of life.

His attention returned to the prostrating beasts and monsters in the vast expanse as he marveled at what he saw.

Countless beasts and monsters coexisted within the Garden of Salvation. They coexisted in an impossible proximity to each other. Could a dragon right next to a phoenix and a leviathan live in peace and harmony under normal circumstances?

Absolutely not.

And yet, within the Garden of Salvation, they existed next to each other in peace and harmony.

It was only possible because of the Elder Tree that not only enforced peace and harmony with its tremendous power, but also adaptively evolved heaven and earth itself to become a paradise for each species, no matter where they stood.

His gaze shifted to the titanic tree whose roots spanned a mountain range. From within its trunk emerged esoteric shine, reflecting the tremendous amount of high-grade esoteric substances that were spread across its biology.

It has been a while. The Elder Tree greeted Rui. You have… changed. You have changed a lot.

Rui’s expression softened. “I replaced half of my biology with that of the former Supreme Commander of the Evolutionary Army. I have evolved as a lifeform.”

That would explain the radical changes your very existence seems to have undergone. The Elder Tree mused. The Panama Continent is safe under your protection as long as you finally and truly accept that responsibility.

Those words made Rui’s expression darken.

“I wish it were safe under my protection, but… recent events have proven otherwise.”

That is because you run away from responsibility. The Elder Tree spoke straight into his mind knowingly. You run away from your responsibility as King of Beasts. You abandoned the sea monsters you took command of. Then you abandoned your own homeland when it needed you the most. You despise the responsibilities and burdens that you perceive as shackles, and you do everything in your power to avoid them. In fact, the first time we met many, many years ago, when you were merely a Martial Senior, it was because you were running away from the responsibilities of the throne.

Rui wasn’t fond of how transparent he was to the Elder Tree. The man dissected the most prominent trend of his life and saw right through him, literally and metaphorically.

“I have changed.” Rui’s ethereal eyes sharpened. “I… am not going to run away from my responsibilities this time.”

He felt like that was a pretty good commitment, even if quite late. Still, much to his surprise, the Elder Tree disapproved of those words.

The problem never was with your unwillingness to bear burdens and shackles, the Elder Tree wisely told him. Nobody likes burdens and shackles; it is the nature of life to avoid burdens and shackles.

Rui furrowed his eyebrows. “That admission undermines your reproach, does it not?”

No, it does not. The problem is not that you avoid shackles and burdens. The problem is that you think responsibility is no more than a burden. No more than a shackle. No more than chains that limit your potential and limit your potential for growth. You think responsibility will impede your so-called Project Water. The Elder Tree wisely whispered in his mind. That is why you will continue to suffer. Your loss this time was not due to your irrational behavior, not truly. The true root of the recent sequence of tragedies is your unwillingness to accept the responsibilities that life has demanded of you. You are the son of the Emperor of Harmony. The Void Prince of the Kandrian Empire. You are the guardian of Panamic Civilization. The spiritual leader of Martial Artists. The King of Beasts. The Emperor of Sea Monsters. The deity of the Virodhabhasa Faith and the Faith of Dawn. And also… You are Marked, perhaps a reflection of the greatest responsibility of all.

Rui could feel his shoulders tighten and his body harden under the weight of all that responsibility. He had ignored all of them over his life. One by one, he had subconsciously minimized them and thrown them to the back of his mind.

Yet, the combination of the jolt with the death of his father had opened his eyes forcefully. The words of the Elder Tree forced him to confront all of the responsibilities he had rejected and the consequences thereof.

You have even avoided responsibility in your personal life. The Elder Tree mused knowingly. You have a lover for a mate. And yet, you refuse to start a family with her. For not even the love, affection, and fulfillment you stand to gain from one is enough to overcome your phobia of responsibility and your fear that it will shackle you.

“Huff… huff…” His breathing grew a little labored as he felt a profound weight weighing down on his heart.

He did not deny the Elder Tree’s words.

He couldn’t.

As someone who possessed the Enlightenment of Self, he knew that the Elder Tree’s words were the truth.

In many ways, Rui Quarrier possessed more courage than any other Martial Artist in the world. He braved the unknown more than anybody else, he subjected himself to more peril than anybody else, and he fought against more than anybody else. He was the bravest man he knew.

And yet, deep, deep down inside, he was also the biggest coward he knew. He feared responsibilities that even ordinary men and women accepted.

That is because they do not fear responsibility. The Elder Tree read his mind cleanly. They do not believe that responsibilities are shackles and chains. They do not believe that responsibilities will hold them back, unlike a certain someone.

“Am I wrong?” His ethereal eyes sharpened. “Responsibilities… will they not impede Project Water? Will they not impede the ambition that I have harbored across different lives? Responsibilities take time away from my training and combat. They make me rusty. They make me weak. Responsibilities are shackles and burdens; is this not the absolute truth?”

His question hung in the air as he waited for an answer from the wise Elder Tree.