Chapter 177: Not Everything Is Impossible

At the end of the North Star Century, things aren't as easy to resolve as in other places.

Jia Ji once single-handedly stabilized the Black Bullet World, but his methods there cannot be fully applied to North Star.

First, there is population.

In the Black Bullet World, most of humanity's territory was seized by the Gasterbites, and the population was pitifully small—so small that an entire nation's people could live within a few cramped settlements enclosed by giant stone stelae.

In the North Star World, prior to the nuclear war, its overall history was nearly identical to that of normal Earth, at most with a minor mod for the Dark Fist discipline; thus, by now, the global population has reached at least six billion.

With his astonishing intellect, unmatched combat power, and the aid of the Zodiac Belt, Jia Ji enforced powerful deterrence and carried out massive purges, enabling him to rapidly alter the plight of the Cursed Children there.

But if he wants to completely reverse the tense atmosphere that has persisted in North Star since World War II—to make everyone abandon their vigilance and aggression—under such terrifying population numbers, it would be as hard as climbing to heaven.

Although after his breakthrough, Jia Ji now ranks among the top tier in North Star, save for a handful of astonishing elder masters, there are still a few fighters worldwide who stand at his level.

If he tries to copy his old tactics, he might suddenly stumble upon a hidden village called "Yuan Dou," where every inhabitant is a martial arts prodigy; even if three or five "Yuan Dou Generals" attack him together, he'd have no choice but to flee.

What if he starts killing off the ambitious elites or war fanatics among humanity's upper echelons?

That would be even harder.

Since ancient times, this world has had assassin fists, and they frequently carry out assassinations; the more they kill, the more the current human elite have developed resistance and experience against them.

Those in power, to varying degrees, have countermeasures against these dishonorable assassins—some conceal their identities and manipulate events from the shadows, others develop secret weapons or undergo biochemical enhancements; some even possess extraordinary martial arts mastery themselves.

And even more terrifying: if someone in this world has a nuclear launch button within reach, they truly will press it to detonate mushroom bombs on each other, wiping out all of humanity and rushing headlong into the wasteland era.

Even without direct threats to their lives, rulers might trigger nuclear war out of personal greed; if Jia Ji dares launch a decapitation strike, they'll gladly go down with him.

Pull one hair and the whole body moves—power structures are tangled and complex, with both cooperation and rivalry; a hasty move could trigger a chain reaction, plunging the situation into even greater chaos.

Moreover, although North Star's technological level lags behind Black Bullet in some areas, its military and weapon development boasts a level of black-tech so outrageous it defies reason—"The world has been cleansed by nuclear weapons, engulfed in nuclear flames! The seas have dried up, the earth has cracked open, and all life upon it has been utterly annihilated…"

Wait, how the hell did the seas dry up?!

Is this even possible?

It's said that after the nuclear war, viewed from outer space, the entire Earth appears as a massive, grotesque skull, with only one ocean remaining worldwide.

Regardless, consider these overpowered nuclear weapons a specialty of North Star—a dark facet of the End Dharma Era.

The excessive strength of martial artists and black-tech form a fragile mutual deterrence and balance beneath humanity's civilized facade; but any major action will shatter this equilibrium—that's why Long Quan sealed his fists and secluded himself in this tiny dojo to teach disciples, and why North and South Star avoid meddling in worldly affairs.

In other words, unless Jia Ji can detonate every nuclear warhead on Earth within seconds, or mind-control every person who might press the button in an instant, ultimate darkness will still come.

Even though his current strength has reached the point where only a direct nuclear blast to the head could kill him, faced with this mess, he can only mutter: "This is unbearable."

So before that, can he do nothing at all?

—Of course not.

On the other side of the world's last remaining ocean lies an island nation called "Shura."

It is a place cut off from the outside world; no one knows its inner details, because the "Shura" kill every invader and every defector.

But this merciless land of death is the ancestral homeland of the Three North Stars—they must return there.

Jia Ji knows something unpleasant is happening in the "Shura Nation," and to stop the tragedy, he must act quickly—sooner the better.

Previously, the Three North Stars didn't return because they lacked sufficient strength and needed to further refine themselves; now, with their current power, plus Jia Ji's return after his cultivation in another world, even the most dangerous dungeon on Earth can be stormed.

"I remember that place… sixty years ago, it was apparently called 'Chongming Island.'"

Information Jia Ji makes his return!

But unlike the world of common sense, this island of roughly twelve hundred square kilometers has, at some point, broken free from all governmental control and become a lawless zone.

All manner of cruel dark fist lineages and terrifying weapons have been dumped into the "Shura Nation" to breed monsters; warlords rise and fall, constant warfare rages, lives are as worthless as grass, until one true ruler emerges.

He plans to return with Healthy Tuoqi, Wu Hui Lao, Enhanced Ken Shi Lang, and Master Long Quan, and kick down that place's gates with full force.

"I disagree!"

Long Quan, his hair and beard now completely white, glared furiously, his palm unconsciously squeezing with force—so hard he crushed the walnut in his hand down two full circles.

He never expected that after their long separation, his third disciple Jia Ji had not only lost an arm but also dared propose that he accompany them to that country.

How could these immature disciples possibly dare go there?

It's not just a battlefield—it's a colossal trap; every step could plunge them into the abyss of death, every moment could bring them face-to-face with unimaginable foes.

Because he once entered the Shura Nation in his youth, he knows what lies within…

The legendary martial arts said to defy gods with violence—the four fists of Heaven's Emperor—

"Sacred Fist sharp as a blade, Imperial Fist bright as the sun. Divine Fist vast as heaven, Shura Fist like hell."

The Shura Nation is the land of death where the hellish martial art—the North Star Shura Fist—is passed down.

(End of Chapter)