Infinite Fighting

The people from the Five Elements Sect gave them a directive.

One month. Conquer Yu District and bring it under the rule of Kui District.

They could refuse. They didn’t have to do it.

But doing so would lead to only one outcome.

The leader of Kui District would be replaced. The Five Elements Sect would send someone to take over.

Running wasn’t an option. The Five Elements Sect wasn’t some local Shanli Island faction; they were a legitimate power within the Eastern Extreme Country. The resources they could mobilize were greater than one could imagine.

Besides, neither Zhang Ji nor Kratos had any intention of running.

"The winds of change are blowing on Shanli Island," Kratos said to Zhang Ji, his voice full of meaning.

"The Five Elements Sect wants to unify Shanli Island, right?" Zhang Ji asked.

"That’s right. My guess is their head disciple was exiled here, so they’ve chosen to atone for his crimes through meritorious service. By ending the chaos on Shanli Island, they’ll earn enough credit to get him cleared and off the island." The more Kratos spoke, the more certain he became of his own theory. "Yes, that must be it. Only for a reason like that would the Eastern Extreme Country’s government tacitly approve the unification of Shanli Island’s factions."

"Why not just go to the leaders of those other factions directly? Why make us do their dirty work and attack for them?" Zhang Ji didn’t quite understand.

With the Five Elements Sect’s power, they could probably make the leader of any territory surrender the moment they showed up.

"They must be under some kind of restriction," Kratos speculated.

The Five Elements Sect probably can’t act openly, which is why they have to rely on the strength of locals.

"That makes sense," Zhang Ji said with a nod.

"When do we move out? Yu District doesn’t have any real experts, just some guns," Kratos said.

"A month is a long time. Give me twenty days to prepare," Zhang Ji replied.

Kratos didn’t understand what Zhang Ji needed to prepare for, but he didn’t press the issue.

The Five Elements Sect recognized Zhang Ji now, not him.

In truth, Zhang Ji’s strength had already surpassed his own.

Although it was still called Kui District, it would soon belong completely to Zhang Ji.

.....

What Zhang Ji needed to prepare wasn’t logistics, but his own training.

He needed even greater strength.

With the medicinal baths available, he wanted to have at least two "Iron Shirt" Skill Crystals before setting out.

Inside the Limited Space, there was currently one "Iron Shirt" Skill Crystal and three Essences, which together amounted to thirteen tiers of mastery.

But Zhang Ji needed to train more.

Time flew by, and twenty days soon passed.

As Zhang Ji soaked in the medicinal bath once more, a new Skill Essence was extracted into the Limited Space.

Zhang Ji closed his eyes slightly. Within the Limited Space, one Skill Crystal and ten Skill Essences floated in the darkness.

With a flicker of his will, the ten Skill Essences intertwined and rapidly fused together.

[System Prompt: Successfully synthesized 1x "Iron Shirt" (Normal) Combat Skill Crystal.]

Now, two "Iron Shirt" Combat Skill Crystals hovered within the Limited Space.

With another thought from Zhang Ji, they vanished, pouring their power into his body.

The feeling of a water bottle being stretched to its limits returned.

His body ached and swelled slightly, but it was only temporary. Before long, Zhang Ji had completely adapted.

He stood up and examined himself in the mirror.

His once-bulging muscles hadn’t grown larger; instead, they had become slightly more compact.

He poked a finger into his abdominal muscles.

The elasticity was still there, but now it was filled with an even greater resilience.

Although his muscles had contracted, the trade-off was superior defensive strength and a higher ceiling for explosive power.

After tidying himself up, Zhang Ji ate a meal of roast duck with rice and then prepared to set out.

....

Zhang Ji was driving recklessly in a Jeep-like vehicle. Kratos was in the passenger seat, and five gun-toting underlings were in the back.

Wu Chen wasn’t here; he hadn’t been brought along this time.

The five underlings were just there for show.

On a place like Shanli Island, taking over territory was easy.

You just had to beat the person in charge into submission and force them to surrender.

Once your opponent realized they couldn’t beat you and that you held their life in your hands, they would do whatever you wanted.

It was barbaric, but it worked.

That’s what Hong Kang had done when he went after Kratos, and he even had a traitor helping him.

But Kratos hadn’t died, and he had managed to turn the tables and kill Hong Kang instead.

This wasn’t Zhang Ji’s first time driving, but it was his first time tearing through the wilderness where there were no proper roads.

They reached Yu District in less than half an hour.

The leader of Yu District was a man nicknamed "Octopus," though his actual name was Zhang Yu.

The nickname came from the exoskeleton armor he wore, which had six gun-wielding auxiliary mechanical arms on its back.

Vehicles were supposed to be inspected before entering Yu District, but Zhang Ji’s crew naturally didn’t give them the chance, bursting right through the checkpoint.

"Someone’s breaking in!"

A guard at the gate immediately relayed the message over his walkie-talkie.

In this place, communication devices like walkie-talkies were about all that worked.

Even satellite phones were forbidden.

Of course, there were exceptions.

The Five Elements Sect, for one, had the ability to transmit messages here.

That’s how Kratos had received his orders—through a communication terminal provided by the Five Elements Sect.

The layout of Yu District wasn’t any better than Kui District’s. They couldn’t drive very far before the path became impassable.

Zhang Ji, Kratos, and the others got out of the car and headed straight for a tall building in the distance.

On Shanli Island, the district leaders almost always took up residence in the tallest building available.

Everyone loves the feeling of looking down on others, especially in a chaotic place like this.

Soon, a crowd of shabbily dressed gunmen rushed out, accompanied by a few bikers from a motorcycle gang.

"Who the hell are you?" someone from the other side demanded.

"Your daddy!" Kratos shot back.

"You’re courting death!"

"RAT-A-TAT-TAT!"

Not a single word of negotiation was exchanged before both sides opened fire.

The five underlings and Kratos fired a couple of shots before diving for cover.

Zhang Ji, on the other hand, had no intention of finding cover. He simply stood his ground and returned fire.

"THWAP!"

One of the bullets struck his bulletproof vest, the impact staggering him slightly.

But it barely affected Zhang Ji.

He didn’t even feel a hint of pain.

When Zhang Ji’s bullets hit their mark, however, they claimed a life every time.

"VRRRROOOOM!"

Four motorcycles charged straight at Zhang Ji and his men.

Zhang Ji aimed at one of them and let loose a spray of bullets.

The rider was hit, and the modified motorcycle spun out of control before crashing to the side.

"BOOM!"

A bullet had hit the motorcycle’s fuel tank, and it erupted in flames.

Another biker was strafing Zhang Ji with his gun, closing the distance rapidly.

Just as the vehicle drew near, Zhang Ji sidestepped slightly and then lashed out with a powerful kick.

"SCREECH! THUD!"

Zhang Ji took aim and fired, and in the next instant, the man’s head was blown apart.

By this point, Kratos and his men had dealt with the other two motorcycles.

In a short while, all that remained of the group that had come to intercept them were a dozen corpses and one man, half-dead.

"Where’s Octopus?" Kratos demanded, hauling the survivor to his feet.

Their destination was the tall building, but what if he wasn’t there?

As it turned out, Kratos’s caution was justified.

"He’s... with his new mistress... Just give me a quick death..."

Kratos stood up and drew his pistol.

"BANG!"

...

Soon, Zhang Ji and his group confronted "Octopus."

Octopus had a large group with him. He was fully armed, and the guns on the six mechanical arms on his back were all aimed at Zhang Ji, Kratos, and their men.

"Kratos, our two districts have always minded our own business. Isn’t it a bit out of line for you to come here and kill so many of my men?" Octopus said.

"Starting today, Yu District belongs to Kui District," Zhang Ji said. "What do you think about that?"

"When did a junior get the right to interrupt while his elders are speaking?" Octopus said, dismissing Zhang Ji with a look. "Kratos, if you don’t know how to discipline your own men, do you want me to do it for you?"

Just as Kratos was about to speak, a figure beside him shot forward.

Who else could it be but Zhang Ji?

His speed was incredible, far exceeding the limits of an ordinary person.

The powerful physical attributes granted by his "Iron Shirt" technique allowed him to ignore his body’s self-preservation instincts and exert even more terrifying force.

The distance between them was less than a hundred meters, a gap Zhang Ji could cross in the time it took to speak a single sentence.

"RAT-A-TAT-TAT!"

Octopus decisively opened fire.

The bullets hammered into Zhang Ji’s body, but he didn’t even flinch.

He couldn’t even be bothered to dodge.

With twenty tiers of "Iron Shirt" mastery, he could now withstand bullets from this type of firearm head-on.

"BOOM! BANG!"

Before anyone could react, they saw Zhang Ji send Octopus flying with a single kick, smashing him into a nearby wall.

With his exoskeleton, Octopus weighed at least a hundred kilograms.

He flew a distance of about five meters.

But Zhang Ji’s kick had launched him as if he weighed nothing more than a few pounds.

By the time Octopus hit the ground, he had already stopped breathing. The indentation in his chest was extreme; the exoskeleton hadn’t been able to protect him at all.

Of course, that was also partly because his exoskeleton was a piece of junk.

"Too much damn talking," Zhang Ji said, retracting his foot. He looked at the terrified faces around him. "From now on, this place belongs to Kui District. All of you answer to Kui District. Got it?"

There was no reply. Everyone was still in a daze.

The sight of Zhang Ji tanking bullets without a scratch and then killing Octopus with a single kick was too terrifying.

"You," Zhang Ji said, pointing to a man near the front. "From now on, you’re Kui District’s representative here. Now, go and gather all the managers immediately."

"Me?" The man was stunned.

"Not satisfied? Then I’ll pick someone else."

Before the man could answer, Zhang Ji took a step forward and threw a sudden punch.

"THWACK! CRACK! SPLAT!"

The man’s head collided with Zhang Ji’s fist. His skull shattered instantly, bursting like a watermelon.

Zhang Ji looked at the next person in line. "He wasn’t willing. You’re up."

The previous punch had its intended effect. This man didn’t even dare to hesitate. "Yes... right away!"

Zhang Ji wiped his fist on the dead man’s clothes, then found a place to sit down.

Kratos came closer. "You’ve improved again?"

He had practiced "Iron Shirt" for many years himself; he knew better than anyone what that martial art was capable of.

Zhang Ji’s performance far exceeded the known limits of "Iron Shirt."

"Something like that," Zhang Ji said.

A flicker of shock showed in Kratos’s eyes.

Now, at long last, he finally understood what a true genius was.

’In one month, he mastered the ’Iron Shirt’ technique that took me nearly twenty years of arduous practice to perfect. And in another month, he broke through its limits and took it to a whole new level. A mediocre person like me is bound by the limits of a technique, unable to progress further. But geniuses aren’t. They constantly shatter limits.’

Soon, the leaders of the local industries had all arrived.

Naturally, some of them were defiant.

But after Zhang Ji tanked some more bullets and "cracked a couple more walnuts," things became much simpler.

From that point on, Yu District became a subdivision of Kui District.