The Martial Unity

Rui's eyes widened as he read through the Beggar Sage's account of the Divine Doctor's life.

This was not what he expected.

"…The Divine Doctor, the Beggar Sage, and the Psycher conquered death together?" Rui whispered, stunned.

The Beggar Sage did not specify the mechanics of the soul transferring, which Rui expected. Functional immortality was sought after even more than the power of prophecy. Any information regarding it was priceless.

He continued reading on through the account of the Divine Doctor.

Once he grew immortal, the Divine Doctor spent his days looking for greater and greater hurdles to cure.

He had already cured death.

Now, he sought to cure diseases and conditions worse than death.

He spent his days traveling across all of human civilization in search of medical conditions and patients that could challenge his transcendent medical prowess.

At the moment, according to the Beggar Sage, the Divine Doctor was undertaking the greatest challenge that ever existed. The greatest challenge that would ever exist. The greatest challenge possible. A feat worthy of the gods should he successfully overcome.

He was in the Beast Domain, pursuing the diagnosis for this particular patient.

There were many more details, but they weren't nearly as important.

'So basically, the Divine Doctor is to medicine what I am to my Martial Path,' Rui mused, realizing that they might have more in common than he had considered.

He frowned as he read the next sentence

[PS: This is extra information that you might find interesting, but you'll owe me one if you want to read it, and trust me, I'll know if you choose to. This information is tangentially related to this topic and particularly relevant to you, so consider it. Oh, and my favor is not going to be unreasonable. It's actually quite easy for you, but it is something only you can do.]

Rui scowled at the message from the Beggar Sage that came after the life story of the Divine Doctor.

Information relevant to him?

He narrowed his eyes. The Beggar's Sect could be sneaky, but it did not lie through its teeth when it came to the information it sold. Credibility and reputation were priceless in the intelligence community. If there was even a hint of deception in the information it sold, then its credibility would go down the drain, and it would lose a lot of business.

"Fine." He muttered before continuing on.

Their many combined efforts, led by the Divine Doctor, to gain immortality yielded fruit.

It worked.

They had become immortal, living on from long before the Age of Martial Art, before the longevity potions of humanity were created, until the modern day.

The question that had begged them after they gained immortality was what they ought to do with the method of immortality.

Keep it to themselves?

It was tempting, but they had decided not to.

They were not the only ones worthy of immortality. Albeit very minutely few, there were others who were like them, gifted in mind with the power to change humanity forever. They kept their eyes out for such individuals.

Gifted geniuses with extraordinary minds.

The Scrier.

The Astromind.

The Esoterist.

They bestowed the gift of immortality upon each of them, allowing them to spread their gifts across humanity forever.

The Beggar Sage created the Beggar Sect that would allow him to find and locate geniuses of mind around the world, marking them as potential candidates for immortality to approach when they came to the end of their lifespan.

Unbeknownst to him, one of the chosen candidates was…

special.

The Martial.

She was a genius of combat, able to defeat countless hoards of men all by her lonesome. Armed or unarmed, gangs, and even small armies. She was able to come away victorious against all of them.

She redefined what was possible to be accomplished by a single person.

The Beggar Sage, impressed by her combat prowess, decided to bestow the gift of immortality on her.

Unbeknownst to him, this decision would change humanity forever.

The Martial, to whom he granted immortality, was none other than the first Martial Apprentice of human civilization.

Rui's eyes widened with shock as he shook in his seat.

"What?!" He stared at the words with unadulterated bewilderment.

The first Martial Apprentice of humanity?

As far as he was aware, the identity of such a person was entirely unknown. The identity of the first Martial Squire that triggered the dawn of the Age of Martial Art was known, but Martial Apprentices existed at least a century before the Age of Martial Art.

Due to the poorly written records from an era six hundred years ago, it was impossible to know exactly which Martial Apprentice was the first Martial Apprentice of humanity.

Now, however, Rui knew exactly who it was.

Not only that.

The revelation that the Beggar Sage was ultimately responsible for triggering the Age of Martial Art was shocking!

Yet, what was to come shocked him even more!

[You, Rui Quarrier Silas Kandria, may be worthy of immortality as judged by none other than me, one of the three keepers of immortality. You are undoubtedly a powerful candidate for the title of sage.]

Rui stared at the hand-written words of the Beggar Sage as the air tingled under the weight of his mental turmoil.

His breathing grew heavy as his mind furiously pored at the words of the Beggar Sage.

[Of course, don't get it twisted; I say 'immortality,' but it does not mean you are unable to die. If you die in combat or are murdered, that's game over. What it is is longevity. In your case, you are a Martial Artist and have access to longevity potions, so you won't need me any time soon. But one day, centuries from now, you will. Your lifespan will one day deplete, and when it does, you better hope that I deem you worthy of a new life]

Rui struggled to maintain his composure as the Beggar Sage casually revealed life-altering information to him.