The day had finally arrived. Rui felt particularly electric about this than he did a meeting with any of the princes and princesses. Compared to those psychopaths, the Martial Masters of the Martial Union had earned his respect to a far greater degree.
These were beings who had ascended human limitation in both mind and body. They had mastered body, heart, and mind and reached a truly astonishing level of power. They were so powerful that lesser beings simply weren't qualified to behold their Martial Art. Those who did would suffer damage to their mind by virtue of the force of hypnosis passively inflicted on them by the Martial Mind.
They truly earned his admiration, and today, he would be facing almost each and every single Master of the Martial Union as they would decide whether he was worthy to take a seat among them and whether his Martial Art had potential for the future.
"Nervous?" Master Ceeran smirked at Rui as they headed to the Vargard national headquarters of the Martial Union. This belongs to : ©.
"I would be lying if I was not nervous at all," Rui heaved a soft sigh. "The Martial Masters of the Martial Union are an enormous source of power for the Martial Union."
It was thanks to them that the Martial Union was feared. Each and every single one of them possessed the power to bring ruin upon entire geopolitical regions that did not have Martial Masters like the Kaddar Region or the Derschek Region. The Martial Union had nearly a hundred and ten of the hundred and fifty Martial Masters that existed in the Kandrian Empire. Of the hundred and ten, only a hundred actually regularly partook in the annual fiscal budget allocation meeting.
Masters like Master Gurren simply didn't care about it and stayed away from it altogether.
"Don't be too nervous," Master Ceeran patted him on his back. "None of them are going to try and bully you. It is generally deeply frowned upon for a Martial Master to needlessly bully Martial Artists of the Lower Realms without adequate cause or in retaliation or self-defense. Within the Martial Union and internationally."
"Well, that hasn't stopped them before," Rui replied as he thought about Master Krakule and Master Haishi. "Relax, while there are outliers for everything, the vast majority are not willing to sabotage their reputation for light reasons. It would be no different from the condemnation an adult beating up a child would receive," Master Ceeran reassured him.
Eventually, they reached the national headquarters of the Martial Union in the capital of the Kandrian Empire.
Rui inhaled sharply as he caught the incredibly vast and large branch estate. As the most important place of the Martial Union, they had not held back with its development. It was larger than the Martial Academies and the other Martial Union branches.
As they descended, Rui could see streams of Martial Artists sky-walking to and from the Martial Union. There were so many that from a distance, it looked like a small river from a distance.
Rui could sense Martial Masters among those who did descend from the sky down to the Martial Union.
Rui didn't recognize most of them. He had really only met a few dozen Martial Masters of the Martial Union.
"Oh, if it isn't the golden boy!" Master Iskan and some other Martial Masters of the Fire Sect approached Master Ceeran and Rui.
"Distinguished Masters," Rui bowed lightly with a hand on his fist in a greeting gesture in Martial etiquette.
"Cease that, my friend," Master Iskan waved him off. "The Fire Sect has decided to support you, boy. But that does not mean you are guaranteed to be voted in. If you have not earned the support of the Earth Sect and the Lightning Sect, then you will not be instated as a member of the committee."
This was a measure that was taken to ensure that sects could not easily induct members who existed solely to bring them more votes. Whoever was inducted needed to earn the approval of the Masters of the Martial Union in general.
Rui nodded. "I am aware."
"Good, then let us be on our way."
They smoothly bypassed all the security check-ins and troublesome matters, swiftly heading in as they met up with even more Martial Masters.
Master Vericita petted him lightly while Headmaster Aronian smiled warmly. Even Master Krakule gave him a curt nod.
They entered a large meeting hall deep inside the Martial Union with a thick array of seats in a circle around a central speaker's podium. Behind them were even more empty seats that Master Ceeran pointed him to.
"You are a committee nominee, which is why you shall have to sit there until you are voted in or leave if the votes are insufficient," Master Ceeran told him.
Rui nodded, obediently taking his seat as he tried ignoring the gazes and attention of various Martial Masters.
It was unnerving because he knew that each and every single one of them had the power to eviscerate him despite his greatest resistance. He was not used to feeling so disarmed in a room full of people. Every day that passed, the number of martial seniors that could defeat him in a battle was reduced.
He turned his attention back to the assembly hall. Martial Masters came in, often in groups, taking their seats.
Rui recognized more than he had expected. There were the ones that he was already acquainted and friendly with, but he also recognized some of the bodyguards of the princes and princesses that he had spoken to.
He even recognized the poison and symbiotic Martial Masters that were with Prince Raijun. They simply glanced at him momentarily before taking their seats in the assembly. The Martial Masters definitely behaved more clique-like than he was expecting, but it allowed him to get a good view of the dynamics of the various major and minor sects that would be competing for resources in the Martial Union.