Under One Person: The Sea Emperor Who Shattered Heaven and Earth

“Brother Jiang, that’s not fair of you. You’re acting like a woman, hesitating and looking back. I’ve seen the deaths and the scene of the three strange people from Ishikawa Ryu. There was no sign of a fight at the scene. They were directly killed by a domineering force.”

"Do you look down on our canal gang, or do you think I, Zhou Tiedan, am incompetent?"

"Come!"

"I held back just now to thank you for killing those three beasts. Now, please treat me with respect!"

"There's no need to hold back against me. Fifth Master and Master Bai are right there. Even if I can't withstand them, I believe they can protect me as well."

Jiang Zhen snapped out of his daze, looked at Zhou Tiedan who was clearly furious, let out a long sigh, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Brother Zhou is right. Then let's take this seriously."

He then looked around at the people in his surroundings.

"It's not that I'm arrogant, but please be prepared." Jiang Zhen's words greatly aroused the interest of the supernatural beings present.

After speaking, Jiang Zhen's eyes narrowed, and he took a step back to create distance between himself and Zhou Tiedan. His right fist was once again surrounded by white light. He straddled a horse, twisted his waist, and pulled his right fist to the left side, his muscles bulging.

"What are they doing?"

"A punching stance I've never seen before."

Why throw a punch from so far away from Lao Zhou?

People around Jiang Zhen were talking amongst themselves as they watched his actions.

Ignoring the surrounding conversations, he threw a powerful horizontal punch directly into the void in front of him.

"Air...quake!"

Snap! Snap!

Under the watchful eyes of all the extraordinary individuals in the Hall of Righteousness, the air... shattered.

Yes, without any embellishment. At the point where Jiang Zhen's fist made contact, several visible white cracks suddenly appeared in the void, as if the space itself were a fragile piece of glass.

Chapter 7 A Punch That Shocked Everyone

In that instant, the air inside the martial arts hall seemed to solidify into a physical form, only to be forcibly shattered by an extremely tyrannical force.

"Click-clack—click-clack—click-clack—"

A crisp cracking sound reverberated deep within everyone's eardrums. It wasn't wood breaking or porcelain shattering, but rather the very fabric of space itself groaning. In front of Jiang Zhen's unremarkable right fist, several white cracks, extending nearly two meters, appeared abruptly in mid-air like a spiderweb on ice.

Zhou Tiedan's previously bold and curious expression, eager to see Jiang Zhen's trump card, froze in that instant.

As the person closest to Jiang Zhen, what he felt was not the force of the punch, but an indescribable "sense of being stripped away," even surpassing the threat of death. The dark blue protective Qi that he was so proud of and had nurtured for decades melted and disintegrated silently the moment it touched the white crack, just like snow melting under the blazing sun.

"not good!!!"

Zhou Tiedan let out a distorted roar. In this life-or-death situation, he didn't care about his image at all. He suddenly exploded two balls of Qi with his feet and leaned back desperately. At the same time, the four remaining iron balls at his waist and sides rushed out, trying to gain a chance.

But it didn't work.

The shockwaves that erupted from behind the white crack were purely physical rhythms; they ignored the flow of Qi and acted directly on the deepest layer of matter.

boom--!!!

A deafening rumble of thunder echoed throughout the entire branch headquarters, the tremendous sound reverberating in all directions.

A semi-transparent shockwave, visible to the naked eye, swept out in a fan shape. The four iron shells that were hit first only lasted for a moment in the air before being twisted and deformed by the high-frequency resonance, and finally shattered into scrap metal fragments the size of fingernails, which scattered in all directions.

Jiang Zhen's punch wasn't aimed at Zhou Tiedan; it was merely within the attack's range. Like a kite with a broken string caught in a hurricane, Zhou was struck head-on by the shockwave. Although he concentrated all his Qi in his chest at the last moment, the force of the shock still penetrated his Iron Arm Technique and struck his internal organs.

"puff--!!!"

He coughed up a mouthful of thick blood.

Just as Zhou Tiedan was about to be completely crushed by this force powerful enough to split mountains and shatter rocks, Master Feng, who was sitting in the back, made a move.

"Brother Jiang, stop! Brothers, join forces to block him!"

Master Feng's expression changed drastically. He originally thought that Jiang Zhen was just strong and had strange innate abilities, but that was all. However, the destructive power shown by this punch had completely exceeded his expectations. This was simply a moving natural disaster!

Master Feng was the first to spring up from his chair, blocking Zhou Tiedan's path, and striding forward like a collapsing mountain. He pushed out with both palms, and a powerful, almost tangible "mountain-splitting force" surged forth, transforming into a wall of air several feet thick.

At the same time, Bai Fu, who had been sitting as still as a mountain, finally moved. He slammed his paper fan shut and slashed it in the air. A stream of azure energy flowed like a dragon, working in conjunction with Feng Wuye's energy barrier to try to guide the terrifying shockwave to both sides.

"Charge!!!"

The dozens of extraordinary individuals inside the martial arts hall also came to their senses and unleashed their inner energy. Some used one hand to support themselves on the ground to stabilize the foundation, while others used both palms to press against the backs of their companions in front of them. All their energy merged together, forming a visible, colorful barrier in the center of the martial arts hall.

Even so, when the shockwave struck the barrier, everyone's face turned deathly pale at the same time.

"Buzzing—"

The barrier trembled violently. The blue brick floor beneath their feet crumbled inch by inch, turning into dust that filled the sky.

"Ha...get me...press it down!!!"

Master Feng's eyes widened, veins bulged on his forehead, and the floor tiles beneath his feet could no longer withstand the pressure, his legs sinking deep into the ground up to his knees.

Finally, after a stalemate of about three breaths, the overwhelming shockwave slowly dissipated.

As the dust settled, the scene inside the martial arts hall made everyone gasp in shock.

The once flat training ground now features a fan-shaped pit extending over ten meters long and half a foot deep from Jiang Zhen's feet. The soil inside the pit appears as if it had been plowed, as fine as powder.

The weapon racks on both sides had long since turned into wood chips, and the surrounding mahogany beams and pillars were covered with fine, knife-carved vibration patterns, and the walls on all four sides were covered with cracks.

Zhou Tiedan lay at the bottom of the pit. Although he was still breathing, he had already passed out. His arm, which he had practiced Iron Arm Kung Fu for twenty years, was twisted at a strange angle. Even though he managed to release the force in time, the bone was still cracked.

As the instigator of all this, Jiang Zhen was standing at the beginning of the pit, panting heavily.

His right arm became extremely swollen and red again, and you could even see tiny beads of blood on his skin due to the excessive recoil, and you could feel the bones cracking. The destructive power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit was indeed unparalleled, but his body now felt like a wooden handle wielding a giant hammer weighing ten thousand pounds, smashing his enemy while also on the verge of breaking apart himself.

Jiang Zhen sighed inwardly, "This is my current limit. Fortunately, he hasn't actually been picking up trash to eat in the past six months and has been training himself in the most difficult and basic way. Otherwise, if it were me six months ago, I'm afraid my whole arm would have exploded if I had thrown this punch."

"Master Jiang... this, this is a congenital superpower?" A superhuman slumped on the ground, looking at the almost ruined martial arts hall, muttering to himself.

Master Feng pulled his leg out of the pit, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and looked at Jiang Zhen with a gaze that was no longer just admiration, but also a deep sense of awe.

"Bai Fu... what do you think?" Fifth Master Feng's voice was a little hoarse.

Several of the fan in Bai Fu's hand had broken. He looked down at his still slightly trembling hands and said with a wry smile, "This kind of power... ignores defenses and tears through space. This isn't a superpower; it's clearly God giving the world a cold shiver. Fifth Master, this time, our dock has truly picked up a god of death."

He turned to look at Jiang Zhen, his tone grave: "Brother Jiang, never use this kind of move in the concession unless absolutely necessary."

Before Master Feng could finish speaking, a chaotic sound came from outside.

"Good heavens, what was that loud noise just now?"

"I just felt the ground shake; could it be that an earth dragon has stirred up?"

He quickly sent out those who could stand to appease the situation, then turned back to look at Jiang Zhen.

Jiang Zhen had caught his breath by then. Ignoring the excruciating pain in his right arm, he felt a wave of hunger washing over him.

"Fifth Master, Brother Zhou's injury..."

"Don't worry." Fifth Master Feng strode over, first taking out a life-saving pill and stuffing it into Zhou Tiedan's mouth, then patting his shoulders and back rhythmically until he spat out a mouthful of black blood. "Old Zhou is tough and resilient, he'll be fine in a few months. He trusts me so much, if I really let him get crippled in front of me, I'd lose face big time. Your punch... it woke up us old bones."

Then he looked intently at Jiang Zhen.

"Brother Jiang, your move today has completely shocked us. I just discussed it with Bai Fu. I am the head of this branch and he is the deputy head. So from now on, you are the third head. No one will dare to disobey you today. All the resources in this branch can be used to help you advance further!"

Master Feng saw in Jiang Zhen a possibility he had never dared to even imagine before: unifying the entire canal gang. A unified canal gang, spreading across the five lakes and four seas with only one voice, what a terrifying monster that would be on this land. For this, he was willing to spare no expense.

It's time for him to do something about hoarding rare goods.

Jiang Zhen gave a wry smile: "Thank you for your kind words, Fifth Master, but the side effects are too great. Look at my arm... I'm afraid it will take a long time to heal."

"Don't worry!"

"Although we don't really have any profound techniques, after all, although our Cao Gang is large, and can be said to be the largest gang in terms of numbers, each branch is in charge of its own affairs, and there is no systematic inheritance. To put it bluntly, the extraordinary people in the Cao Gang are basically scattered individuals or from small families."

Immediately, Master Feng's expression changed from embarrassment to confidence, "But compared to medicinal herbs, money, and various resources, those wealthy families can't compare to us."

Then, Fifth Master Feng waved his hand and shouted to those around him, "Little Li! Go! Bring out the best wound medicine hidden in the gang! And buy me five fat sheep! No, ten! The martial arts hall is closed today, so everyone keep what you just saw to yourselves! If anyone dares to utter a single word, I'll personally send him to feed the fish in the Huangpu River!"

Chapter 8 The Figure of the Higanbana Ninja

The night at Shiliupu Wharf always carries a lingering fishy and damp smell, but tonight, the atmosphere in the backyard of the canal gang has changed.

It was an intense, almost overwhelming medicinal aroma, mixed with the enticing fragrance of meat fat.

The incident at the martial arts hall was swiftly suppressed by Fifth Master Feng, who publicly claimed that the gang was testing new gunpowder and had disturbed the foundation. However, everyone within the branch knew that they had a formidable "Third Master Jiang" who was not to be trifled with.

At this moment, Jiang Zhen was sitting in front of a specially made brass pot, holding a sizzling lamb leg in his hand, tearing into it without any regard for appearances. Behind him, on the open ground, were seven neatly stacked lamb skeletons, cleaned clean.

"Glug—"

Xiao Li, who was standing by, swallowed hard. He had never seen anyone eat so much in his life. It wasn't eating; it was like filling a bottomless pit with fuel. Every time Jiang Zhen swallowed a bite of meat, the faint vibrations around his body would become a little more steady, and his right arm, which was originally as red as a branding iron, visibly shrunk in size during this almost frenzied eating.

"Is this the price?"

Bai Fu was still waving his paper fan, which had several broken frames, sitting on a stone bench. His tone was somewhat wistful. "Ignoring the defense of Qi and tearing through the void, such a near-miraculous method must have consumed an astronomical amount of physical energy. Brother Jiang, if you had that kind of appetite during a famine, you could probably eat half of Suzhou into poverty."

Jiang Zhen swallowed the last bite of mutton, casually tossed the bone aside, and let out a long sigh. The weakness that came from overexertion, the feeling that seemed to make his very soul tremble, was finally suppressed at this moment.

"The side effects were indeed severe, but at least... I've recovered." Jiang Zhen looked at his right hand, his fingertips trembling slightly, and a faint buzzing sound filled the air. "Master Bai, where's Fifth Master?"

"Fifth Master has gone to open the gang's private treasury. Now that you've been appointed as the 'Third Master,' he won't be stingy with you. Besides the medicinal herbs you need, he's also asking around for better body-refining methods. He said that the Canal Gang is a large organization, but its core resources are indeed inferior to those of the powerful families. However, he can find you the most abundant resources."

As Bai Fu was speaking, a series of hurried yet rhythmic footsteps came from outside the door.

It wasn't Master Feng who came in, but Liu Wei (Manager Liu), who was wearing a long gown and smiling like a roly-poly toy.

"Oh dear, Brother Jiang, no, I should call you Third Master Jiang now."

As soon as Liu Wei entered, his shrewd little eyes swept over the sheep skeleton on the ground, and his eyelids twitched involuntarily. He cupped his hands in greeting and found a seat to sit down. "That punch of yours really made me run my legs off. Now the entire police station in Shiliupu is searching for news of the earth dragon turning over, and those foreigners in the concession have even dragged several geology professors out of bed."

After letting out a burp, Jiang Zhen said, "Manager Liu is well-informed. He's not here at this hour just to ask me for some mutton, is he?"

Liu Wei gave a wry smile and lowered his voice: "Third Master Jiang, I run 'Jianghu Xiaozhan' and I can hear everything that's happening in the city. I've come to deliver a bell... oops, I'm delivering an air raid siren."

He took out a neatly folded intelligence report from his pocket, placed it on the stone table, and lightly tapped it with his fingertip.

"Although the Ishikawa school was crippled by your punch, the 'Hiraiyama Ninja Clan' behind them couldn't sit still. They sent a guy named 'Tetsume' across the sea. This guy is an anomaly among the ninja clan. He doesn't practice ninjutsu, but specializes in a kind of external evil art called 'Gangri-ra.' It is said that he can tear tigers and leopards apart alive, and his skin is as thick as steel plates."

Jiang Zhen stopped wiping his hands: "Hirasan... Gangliluo?" Hiirasan, a familiar name. He didn't expect to have their presence so early.

Just then, Master Feng burst through the door in a flurry of activity, followed by four burly men carrying a large iron box.

"Liu Wei? You old codger have a sharp nose, wanting to do business again?" Master Feng waved his hand, signaling the burly man to put down the box. "Perfect, you can take a look."