The Martial Unity
chapter-2250

The demeanor of the retreating Martial Sages of the Sekigahara Confederate was grave and severe.

And for good reason.

Not even the Martial Sages could maintain their composure when they learned about the Dawnbringer's ability to trigger breakthroughs of his own accord and everything that had unfolded from the sole Master survivor.

"You mean to say that all this time, it was the Void Prince who was responsible for the Kandrian Empire's mass breakthroughs?" Sage Shinken gritted his teeth. "Dammit."

If this was something that was exclusive to the Dawnbringer, then it meant that it was most likely some highly exclusive technique or system of thought or a combination of the two. This meant that it most certainly wasn't something that could be executed by others.

"However, if the Dawnbringer is the sole one capable of triggering breakthroughs en masse, then he most certainly wouldn't have been deployed into a war where he could potentially die and deprive the Kandrian Empire of a powerful tool." Sage Shinken fell into thought. "Emperor Rael is too prudent a man to do something that risky and foolhardy. This can only mean that there are others who can also execute the breakthroughs."

He was wrong.

Of course, that didn't mean that his line of reasoning was foolish.

It was indeed true that Emperor Rael would rather Rui sit the war out, but he didn't voice this desire to his son because he knew that he would refuse.

He didn't request him to consider otherwise.

His son needed the war to gain some genuine experience in the Master Realm and would never want to exclude himself from it.

On top of that, Emperor Rael abstained from requesting Rui to remain within the boundaries of Kandrian territory.

Rui had done more than enough for the Kandrian Empire.

Demanding any more from him for the sake of the Empire was something that Emperor Rael was not shameless enough to do.

However, this was something that the Sekigaharan Sages were unaware of, leading them to have false assumptions about how widespread the Kandrian Empire's ability to break through to the Master Realm was.

"Regardless, we need to report this to the others." Sage Shinken gritted his teeth. "This and the fact that the Kandrian Empire has gotten its hands on seven additional Martial Sages, potentially more."

To say that the Sekigaharan Sages were thoroughly shocked by the appearance of seven new Sages on retainer within the Kandrian Empire was an understatement. If not for the fact that the Kandrian Sages were disadvantaged by the burden of protecting the Kandrian Empire and being caught off-guard by the healing they had from the Tree of Healings, there was a good chance that they would have been captured alive or killed.

"Those damn Kandrians…" Sage Shinken's voice was filled with rage. "I should have known that there was a reason that they were so willing to provoke the three Sage-level powerhouses."

"For now, let's make sure that we reach home safe and sound," another Martial

Sage among them lightly commented. "We can think about it all we want after we get home. If something were to happen to us as well on the way back home, that would be the worst possible outcome."

They would have scoffed at such a notion in the past, but after what had just happened that day itself, they simply kept their mouths shut and headed back home. None of them had recovered from the shock of having a hundred and nine Martial Masters slaughtered by a Martial Master who had broken through to the Master Realm in the middle of battle through the strange illusion that Dawnbringer had cast on the battlefield.

To say that it was a devastating blow to the Sekigahara Confederate was an understatement. It was nothing short of a catastrophe that would scar it for many centuries to come.

"The only way to heal the Sekigahara Confederate from this devastating wound is to acquire the Kandrian Empire's method of breaking Martial Artists through" Sage Shinken's eyes flashed with determination. "We will stop at nothing to get our hands on the Master Realm breakthrough that the Dawnbringer foolishly exposed to us."

"I don't think it's going to be easy." Sage Senpu heaved a sigh. "I hate to admit it, but the brat is absurdly strong for his age and youth in the Master Realm. Really, only one of us has a guaranteed chance of succeeding at capturing him alive with that forbidden technique at his disposal."

A smile appeared on Sage Shinken's face. "Ah, Senpu. You have overlooked one crucial possibility. Even if we fail to get our hands on him, we can still acquire his Martial Art. A superior copy of his Martial Art."

Sage Senpu's eyes widened as realization dawned on him. "You mean…?"

"Yes." Sage Shinken's voice was steely. "We fight fire with fire. One monstrous genius for another. The Kandrian Empire will learn that it isn't the only one with a prodigy of godly talent, the likes of which the world has never seen before."

All things considered, Sage Shinken's solution was actually quite clever. The Sekigahara Confederate didn't strictly need Rui himself if the secret to breakthroughs was hidden in his Martial Art.

Thus, if they could get someone who had the ability to copy Martial Art and improve it, then they could get their hands on what they wanted with no fuss.

"But… he left the Sekigahara Confederate many years ago, did he not?" one of the Sekigaharan Sages asked with uncertainty. "True, if I recall, he left because there was no more Martial Art in the nation worth taking for himself. Tsk, this is why I hate geniuses. God blessed them with extraordinary talent, yet they still are not satisfied."

"We must find him." Sage Shinken was determined. "We'll have to entrust those Nindo fools with the task after we scold them and make them pay for their lapses in intelligence. We're almost near the Sekigahara Confederate, so it shouldn't be too long until we reach home—!"

RUMBLE…!

The nine Martial Sages shook as they felt extraordinary energy output emerging from the direction of their homes.