At some point in the fight, the spectators had come to resent the two monsters that had fiercely clashed in the fight.
It couldn't be helped.
Try as they might, they were unable to look away.
Try as they might, they were unable to take their eyes off what ensued.
Try as they might, they could not bring themselves to be anything more than invisible spectators.
It was a prison.
'Free us...!'
It seemed their prayers had been heeded.
Squire Falken had begun gaining an edge even as Squire Ieyasu unleashed the might of a thousand Martial Art.
One by one, he overcame all of them.
Each time he did, he had gained a small edge on Ieyasu.
Each time he did, he had come one step closer to winning the fight.
And soon enough, the decisive moment arrived.
Not a single person had moved.
Not a single person had so much as twitched.
They couldn't so much as blink or breathe.
In just the flash of a moment, Rui surged forward with a mighty attack.
It was to be the end.
And yet...
WHOOSH!
Every single Martial Squire quivered in bone-chilling terror and shock at the miracle that unfolded in the colosseum.
Little did they know it was not the first one.
A titanic Senior-level attack surged forward towards Rui.
"Die."
What ensued happened so quickly that they were unable to bear witness to it.
One moment, his strike surged forward.
And the next?
A ground-shattering collision ensued, and the world shook as a mighty blast erupted from the epicenter.
For just the briefest moment, The guardians managed to behold the cause of the explosion before it erupted.
What they saw shook them deeper than any shockwave could.
Where there were two Martial Squires, there were now two Martial Seniors.
BOOM!!!!!
The ensuing shockwave would have killed most of them if not for Senior Xanarn and Senior Leonil.
Yet, none of them cared.
Even as the island shook, the guardians sky-walked into the air to bear witness to the battle between two newborn Martial Seniors that now took place in the distant skies.
And yet, just moments later, the weather changed.
The collision between two-tier five Transverse Resonance resulted in an even greater explosion.
The three Martial Seniors of the Floating Sect were put to the test yet again.
They flashed out of the island, their Martial Hearts burning at full power. Instantly, they had come up with a course of action.
Senior Leonil and Senior Xanarn activated their breathing techniques manipulating wind and sound respectively as they converged the section of the shockwave moving towards the island towards Senior Sarak.
Senior Sarak activated his defensive technique, preparing to withstand the weight of the incoming shockwave.
BOOM!!!
He gritted his teeth, narrowing his eyes. 'This is not the power of ordinary newborn Martial Seniors!'
Yet, he was much more experienced than any of them, or his own peers. He cleanly absorbed the power, before dispersing it in a more harmless manner.
And just when he thought he was done, a similar explosion ensued.
BOOM!!!!!!!
Rui and Ieyasu stood before each other, launching their most powerful tier five Transverse Resonance attacks.
Over and over.
Neither side had been able to gain an edge.
And yet, neither of them was able to conceal the smiles that had emerged on their faces.
The power of the Senior Realm was intoxicating. Not even the aloof detached Ieyasu was able to contain the pure mirth that he felt after obtaining the power he had been dreaming of for six years.
Yet, something had to give.
And something did.
BOOM!!!!!!!
A crucial threshold had been crossed. The brain could only handle so much blunt force trauma.
The world went dark as their consciousness dimmed.
Two lone figures plummeted from the skies.
CLASP
Senior Sarak appeared catching the two of them with a sigh of relief.
He could hardly believe that he was holding the two youngest Martial Seniors in history.
Ieyasu shattered the record by a whopping five years at the age of thirty.
For a matter of microseconds, he truly was the youngest Martial Senior in history. An incredible feat that would spread his name across the entire Martial World, and beyond.
And yet, Rui had immediately shattered his record by a margin of six years and was now the undisputed youngest Martial Senior at the absurd age of twenty-four.
In less than a millisecond, the world record had been shattered twice.
Senior Sarak was certain that such a thing had never happened before. He, and everybody else at Floating Sect, had the honor of witnessing the two most talented Martial Seniors in existence.
As a Martial Senior, he had mixed feelings. He had been considered talented when he broke through to the Senior Realm, even if he was nowhere near the record of Sage Serei, the youngest Martial Sage in existence, yet compared to the two Martial Seniors he was holding, he felt like an antiquated relic.
Each generation of Martial Artists surpassed the previous one, the world of Martial Art constantly evolved.
Better techniques. Greater insights and understanding. Better training and growth resources. Greater heritage and guidance.
Even still, there was no doubt that Rui and Ieyasu were at the very pinnacle of what the young generation of Martial Artists had to offer.
Senior Leonil and Xanarn appeared before him, deactivating their Martial Hearts.
"The guardians are fine," Senior Xanarn informed him. "They're shook, but they're fine. Many of them wanted to start training vigorously immediately. It seems that the fight truly highlighted their mediocrity. Their titles and statuses as guardians within the Floating Sect are meaningless before the pinnacle of power that they witnessed in this fight."
"That is good," Senior Sarak remarked, nodding. "I predict we will see a surge in the growth of the guardians."
"The island is fine. But I swear it was this close to breaking apart." Senior Leonil grumbled. "It is best to get some reinforcing work done to its foundation nonetheless though. Better safe than sorry."
