The Martial Unity

Chapter 2422: Strategic Considerations

The Martial Sages and Masters froze as they watched the intense battle unfold. The sheer ferocity of the combat as well as the combat power that the young Masters demonstrated in this battle was beyond what they had ever seen.

They witnessed power that had been previously untouched within the Master Realm. Not only did Rui demonstrate just how strong he was when he was able to go all-out, but everybody was especially stunned by just how absurdly powerful Tokugawa Ieyasu was. Even the alliance Martial Artists stopped gloating and grew engrossed in the shocking battle that unfolded between the two powerhouses of the Master Realm. Not even they had imagined that their Martial Artist could unleash such an apocalypse with his own power!

It made the fact that Rui somehow managed to weave past that devastating Martial Art of his opponent that much more shocking. Both Martial Artists were much stronger than either side had suspected!

Sage Sera heaved a sigh, feeling less ambivalent about her defeat against him. She was actually quite proud of how close she had come to defeating him in hindsight, considering how much power he was capable of.

While the Martial Sages retained their composure, the Martial Masters were unable to contain their shock.

”That Ieyasu character is a Sage, right? He must be!”

”Just how is His Highness able to avoid an attack that is everywhere?! Thatʼs absurd!”

”I didnʼt know he was so strong…!” KʼMala exclaimed with an expression of shock.

She could hardly believe that the two Masters battling away in the center of an apocalypse were in the same Realm as her.

”These two…” Even Master Zentra seemed moved by the battle that he witnessed down below.

He shook his head with a slight sigh.

”Simply extraordinary.”

RUMBLE!!!

Rui raced around the battlefield as his mind processed an unfathomable amount of data within its confines. Each long-range Master Art that Ieyasu utilized had its own patterns that somehow managed to integrate with each other in a synergetic manner thanks to his Assimilative Convergence system of thought.

On top of that, he needed to keep track of Ieyasuʼs intent at its very inception in addition to foreseeing exactly how all the attacks would evolve.

There was very little margin for error.

There was only one right answer each time.

If he took the wrong step.

If he moved in the wrong direction.

If he made the wrong maneuver.

He would lose his life on the spot.

When using the Megamind technique, his physical Body was much more vulnerable due to the lowered supply of blood.

A single attack from Ieyasu would mean game over. Even if the power was diluted over a large amount of area, it would still pin him down for a moment, which was all Ieyasu needed to win the battle then and there.

Thus, Rui couldnʼt afford to make a single mistake even as he darted around the battlefield.

He needed to close the distance between himself and Ieyasu and take him out in combat.

Of course, he would need to go beyond all out in order to hurt Ieyasu. Even though Rui had both the predictive and SOUL models working for him, Ieyasu still had a potent mind-reading ability that had neutralized the predictive model in the past. Thus, Ruiʼs insight advantage was not as devastating as it normally was.

ʼThankfully, I have a plan to deal with just that.ʼ His eyes narrowed with ferocity as he furiously maneuvered to the peak of his abilities to avoid Ieyasuʼs destructive offensive onslaught.

Ieyasuʼs strategic considerations were very different. His expression grew grim as he pushed himself to the very limit. He began bleeding from multiple orifices in his Body while he burned his stamina relentlessly and drew energy from multiple other sources. He drained the energy from the heavens, drawing energy from the East Panamic Stream of air that drifted across the entire eastern hemisphere and had the power to reshape tectonic plates over time with its constant weathering.

He also relied on liquid convection to draw heat from within the planetʼs core. This was one the core techniques of the Nest of Terra, a Sage-level powerhouse in North Panama. On top of that, he had mastered a technique that allowed him to absorb light and other electromagnetic energy to power his own Body with. In addition, he also utilized a rather exotic form of anaerobic respiration that allowed him to generate even more energy.

Not all of them were potent, but every bit mattered when it came to getting all the power he needed to take Rui down. He truly had not expected that Rui would not only be conscious after his Apocalyptic Convergence, but would also be able to fight back to the point that he struggled to land a blast on him despite the onslaught he launched. No Master could be fast enough, strong enough, durable enough, to have lasted this long after being subjected to the kind of apocalypse that Rui was being subjected to.

Yet, Rui embodied the principle of making the right move at the right time. This was a fleeting pinnacle of combat arts that only existed in theory and, in that moment, Rui was perhaps the only person in the world who could embody it.

And yet, the endless greed in Ieyasuʼs eyes only rumbled at the sight of Rui weaving past the apocalypse of a myriad of attacks.

He wanted that power.

He wanted it more than anything else in the power.

A fierce determination flared in the depths of his eyes as his powerful gaze burned itself onto Rui. He was almost willing himself to obtain the power.

It was not an exaggeration to say that everything that had happened up until now was in the service of this ultimate objective, among others. His plan to copy the most powerful Martial Art he had ever run into in his entire life was ambitious and highly risky.

Yet, when he witnessed the power that it gave Rui, it was worth it and more. Their black eyes locked, burning with ferocious determination.

RUMBLE!!!!!

The world shook as Rui drew closer and closer amidst the avalanche of attacks that converged in his direction!

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