BADUMP
BADUMP
BADUMP
Rui's heart beat harder and harder. It was this grand revelation and had motivated his heart to work harder!
It blasted against his chest, sending mind ripples through his body, into her slender arms, through her body.
Rui just stared at her.
Yet he wasn't looking at her.
His awareness was preoccupied with other matters.
An explosion had permeated through his mind, shaking his Mind Palace and even his Martial Path!
His mind furiously processed the information he had just received with such intensity that put even computers to shame!
('No wonder!') Rui exclaimed mentally. ('The glowing circulatory system... The abrupt rise in their power from their 'base' forms... It all makes sense. They were tapping into the hidden latent well of power within the human body, no, within their Martial body. The glowing veins are simply an outcome of their heart pumping at exponentially higher rates than normal. This is tachycardia!')
Tachycardia was a state where the heart rate was greatly increased. A rush of power produced by a beating heart that was so great that it caused blood to glow, in the case of Martial Seniors and their Martial Hearts.
Rui was far from unfamiliar with the concept of human beings accomplishing feats that were otherwise impossible to them in times of crisis. The phenomenon was very well-documented in neurology.
It was actually a collection of phenomena, not just
The intense crisis causes unprecedented heart rate and levels of secretions of adrenaline, endorphins, and other hormones and agents that allowed for a human being to momentarily surpass the limits of their physicality. They exert a force that they would deeply unconsciously not exert due to the detriments it would have on their body, or due to the lacking ingredients and phenomena.
If the power was that great in normal humans, how great would it be in a super-evolved homosapien that is astronomically and categorically superior to humans in almost every aspect?
('It would be titanic!') Rui grew excited as he closed his eyes.
He replayed the mental video of the fight between Senior Ceeran and the leaders of the K'ulnen Tribe. The gigantic displays of power they exhibited were all thanks to the Martial Heart!
('That's how they are able to do things that feel like shouldn't be possible with such small comparatively small bodies!') Rui had always felt as though the power displayed by Martial Seniors didn't make sense fundamentally. Their bodies were smaller, and it wasn't as though they could undergo a second round of evolution due to already being evolved to the limit before their DNA would break under the radiation.
He had always wondered where the surplus of power emerged from, and now he finally knew.
Rui began pouring through everything he knew about the Senior Realm. Senior Ceeran had already let slip that the breakthrough was spontaneous and acute, considering that he broke through in the middle of combat.
That meant the trigger could not be something that required time and active preparation, it was inconceivable that he had time to make active preparations in a fight where he was most likely pushed to his very limits.
Rui could thus infer that the breakthrough was spontaneous and acute, but also subconscious to a certain extent, for the same reasons as above, he was in the middle of a pressing fight, and he most likely had no ability to do something that attention-intensive.
('The immediate possibility that came to my mind was that the breakthrough to the Senior Realm is the same as the conditions to humans tapping into their wells of latent power; persevering determination in grave crises but...')
But he had instantly dismissed that theory. Martial Squires subjected themselves to grave crises all the time. It was almost part of the job description. Martial Artists brushed against death and did persevere through them with determination.
Yet, the breakthrough to the Squire Realm was extremely scarce. Despite so many Martial Squires persevering through life-and-death situations with determination, very few Martial Squires broke through to the Senior Realm. Many Martial Squires died before reaching the Senior Realm despite all their desperation.
His time on the Ajanta Island had shown him that. How many challengers had died to guardians without breaking through?
('All of them,') Rui recalled Squire Saiwal's ferocious resistance, yet she did not break through.
('Conclusion; The conditions to trigger the activation of the Martial Heart are higher than it is for humans to tap into their locked latent power.') Rui realized. ('It makes sense intuitively. Greater power, greater difficulty.')
Then what was the precise condition to trigger the breakthrough to the Senior Realm?
"I know I've retained my figure, but it's rude to stare, you know."
Rui broke out of his reverie as her voice permeated through his body, grabbing his attention by force.
"Oh... I'm sorry," He averted his gaze as he realized he had been staring at her chest while lost in thought.
"It seems you were lost in excitement at this revelation," She giggled softly as her eyes fell. "Excited in more than one way."
Rui groaned as he felt an uncomfortable tightness in his groin. It was at times like this he cursed the youthfulness of his body. While his mind wanted nothing more but to explore the mysteries of the Senior Realm with his newfound understanding, it appeared that his body had other intentions.
BADUMP!
His roaring heartbeat shook the dainty hand that caressed his chest.
"Perhaps... you would like to accompany me for some time."
Rui didn't even have any willpower to resist at that moment, he felt as though he had burned a lot of mental power in just a split second furiously processing a multitude of information about the Senior Realm.
He ended up spending a few hours longer in her quarters that day. By the time he left, returning to his chamber, his thoughts were chaotic, on one hand, he was torn by his desire to return to the considerations he had prior, but on the other, the experience he had just been blessed with was an overpowering imprint, drawing away his attention from time to time.
"I need to get some damn rest." He muttered, before retiring in his own personal quarters.
