The Martial Unity
chapter-2311

The Gatekeeper breathed deeply as he focused his mind on his inner body. His Martial Mind did not give him exterior senses in combat the way that other Martial Minds typically did for Masters.

Instead, it gave him the ability to sense his own body at a depth he thought impossible. It allowed him to engage in targeted training on the sub-cellular level in almost any part of his Body in almost any fashion.

It was entirely useless in combat but was nothing short of a massive trump card in his training. Just these senses alone would have been enough to revolutionize his training. Yet, the processing power of the Martial Mind allowed him to go even further beyond.

Even as he sat engaged in extremely high-level training, he could feel his Body growing stronger by the second, even if by a very minute amount.

It wouldn't be too long before his Martial Body's normal power would come to match that of the Martial Heart, allowing him to thoroughly defeat Seniors without a Martial Heart at all.

In turn, his Martial Heart alone would be enough to allow him to fight Martial Masters head-

on.

He was grateful for the manifold's existence at times like these.

There was no Martial Artist in existence who was more suited for the treasure than he was.

His Martial Mind needed time more than anything else. Time was his greatest constraint, and it would have prevented him from matching with his peers under ordinary circumstances. However, thanks to this treasure that the Void Prince had found in the Beast Domain, he was able to overcome one of his greatest shortcomings relative to others. Of course, he was also aware that the manifold merely accelerated what was to come; it did not allow him to reach greater heights than he would have otherwise; it just allowed him to sooner reach what he would always reach, and no more.

On top of that, it aged him far faster. Thus, he felt a deep pressure to make the best use of the time so that he didn't waste his own lifespan. Even with the recent influx of longevity potions that he too had consumed, it would be truly difficult to prolong his life centuries longer.

The only way he could merit more was by contributions to Martial Art or by reaching the Sage Realm.

Both of these inevitably meant more power.

That was precisely what he was doing at the moment.

He was endeavoring on what might be one of the greatest techniques of his life. A technique that radically altered his digestion system with conditioning to make it able to absorb foreign esoteric substances, automatically condition the Body to their toxicity and reactions with other substances, and then integrate them into the Body in the most effective manner possible.

He called it Body Cultivation.

It was something that would revolutionize not just his own Body, but also all of Martial Art if he succeeded.

Another technique that he had been working on developing in the long term was what he called Evolutionary Conditioning.

Ordinary conditioning relied on principles like Wolffe's Law, which stated that bones would adapt by growing thicker and denser when subjected to force and pressure. A similar principle was true for the entire body, allowing for essentially everything to be conditioned.

However, he was approaching the limits of ordinary conditioning, which was why he relied on the power of esoteric materia to further his power and propel him to Master-level combat.

"Yet, it is not my limit." His eyes opened, flaring with ambition. "I seek the power of true physical evolution."

He sought the kind of qualitative change that his body underwent in the Squire Evolution process.

Genetic Evolution.

To be able to achieve evolution similar to the Squire evolution process without its radiation limits.

He had engaged in lesser versions when he applied the principle of 'survival of the fittest' to his own cells.

But this had its limits.

Without the black box that was the element of radiation that served as the stimulus for genetic change-for change in the very fundamental blueprint of who one was-it was impossible to achieve the radical evolution that Squire Evolution gave an Apprentice.

He had already consulted the Divine Doctor, who confirmed that it wasn't impossible to achieve radical genetic change without radiation.

"No other method I know is as powerful as radiation, and they are all far more dangerous and lethal; I estimate the probability of survival to be less than one percent," the doctor had nonchalantly told the Gatekeeper. "You can try them if you want to commit suicide creatively, I suppose."

Still, he hadn't given up. The Divine Doctor was undoubtedly the greatest medical humanity, but that didn't mean he knew everything that was possible. There was a vast variety of untapped esoteric material science and other sciences that could potentially help him overcome this incredibly difficult challenge. There were potentially Martial solutions in the higher Realms that could help him with what he needed. He had consulted a variety of people on the matter in search of a potential solution, though none of them were able to help him with what he needed.

"Come to think of it..." His eyes narrowed.

There was one person he had yet to consult.

One who was perhaps the most promising of them all.

He hesitated because he was already extremely indebted to the man and didn't want to ask for a favor before he repaid the rest of his debt. Although the Void Prince was not the kind of man who cared about such things, it was a principle that the Gatekeeper adhered to deeply.

CLACK

The door opened, drawing his attention.

Out of pure coincidence, the man he was thinking about popped his head in.

"Sorry to disturb you," Rui apologized. "I want to consult you about something. Actually, it's related to what I consulted you about a year ago. Could you indulge me a bit?"

An uncharacteristic smile cracked at the edge of Sir Armstrong's mouth. "I would be relieved

to."