Chapter 147: Strong

Chapter 147: Strong

"Strong! I can only use a single word to describe him—strong. Heitu's fists are powerful enough to crush solid steel, yet he blocked them with effortless ease. Such strength... I'm afraid it is not inferior to Heitu's in the slightest."

Heitu let out a low grunt, and a terrifying surge of vital energy instantly erupted from him. That astonishing vital energy rolled forward like a fierce tiger descending from the mountain, bearing down with an aura that was truly terrifying.

Shen An's hand moved with lightning speed, wielding the dark iron sword, which hummed violently as it slashed forward with a blinding velocity and an oppressive, overwhelming sharpness.

Only a moment later, the sword struck Heitu's arm, cutting a deep gash from which fresh blood began to trickle, shocking Heitu to his core.

His physical body had long since been tempered to an extraordinary degree of resilience, yet he never expected he would still be injured by a single sword strike from his opponent.

"Your sword... Why is your sword so powerful?" Heitu asked.

Beneath the arena.

"What? Heitu is actually losing? How can this be? Given Heitu's incredible strength, why is he being defeated?" someone cried out in astonishment.

"He really is strong. This level of power is simply terrifying."

"Is that the Earl from the Grandmaster Council? Hehe, not bad, not bad at all. With this kind of strength, even Heitu is completely no match for him."

"As expected of someone valued by Zhou Hong, the master of the Limitless Martial Arts Dojo."

Heitu bowed to Shen An, realizing that he had indeed been far too arrogant earlier. He said to Shen An, "Forgive me, my lord Earl. It was I who was overly showy. I thought I could hold my own against you, but after actually fighting you, I finally understand that your strength is genuinely and overwhelmingly formidable."

Shen An's expression remained unchanged as he stood quietly in his spot, completely serene.

At that moment, Zhou Hong, the master of the Limitless Martial Arts Dojo, stepped forward to Shen An and said, "Since you have successfully defeated Heitu, this manual for the Tremor Fist now belongs to you."

With that, Zhou Hong produced the manual for the Tremor Fist. It was a book covered in intricate, precise patterns, looking exceptionally refined and sophisticated.

Shen An flipped through a few pages and quickly realized that the Tremor Fist manual was profoundly ingenious.

"As expected of something that tier-three Awakeners dream of obtaining. I'll take this," Shen An said.

The master of the Limitless Martial Arts Dojo smiled slightly, swept his gaze across the crowd, and announced, "If anyone objects to this decision, step forward. If anyone believes they can defeat the Earl of the Grandmaster Council, step forward as well. The Earl is right before you now; you are entirely welcome to challenge him."

When Zhou Hong made this declaration, not a single person dared to step forward and issue a genuine challenge.

This was because Shen An had already demonstrated his formidable strength—a terrifying might that was absolute and impossible for ordinary people to rival.

"I believe that Lord Earl is indeed qualified to obtain the Tremor Fist. What do you all think?"

"Since he was able to defeat Heitu, he naturally has the qualifications to acquire the Tremor Fist. That is beyond any doubt."

"He is truly qualified to win the Tremor Fist!"

"However, precious though the Tremor Fist may be, it is not something one can master casually. Will he really be able to successfully cultivate the Tremor Fist as he wishes?"

Shen An left the Limitless Martial Arts Dojo carrying the Tremor Fist manual. Though he had originally come to the dojo to train, now that he had secured the Tremor Fist, he could hardly wait to begin practicing it.

As for the matter of further elevating his overall strength, that could temporarily be set aside.

Amidst the envious gazes of the crowd, Shen An departed from the Limitless Martial Arts Dojo, while the onlookers unanimously agreed that he fully deserved the Tremor Fist.

"The Tremor Fist... just like that, it's been taken away by him. For someone as young as him to acquire the Tremor Fist is simply incredible."

"Not only did he defeat Heitu, but he is also an Earl recognized by the Grandmaster Council. Just how many legends surround this young man?"

"This young man is practically a myth, an unadulterated legendary figure."

"Terrifying. Truly, utterly terrifying."

"When will I ever reach his level?"

"Stop dreaming. Reaching a level like his requires a terrifying innate talent. Without such a terrifying gift, it is utterly impossible to attain that height."

...

The crowd chattered and discussed among themselves, but Shen An had already traveled far away.

Deep in the barren mountains on the outskirts of Silver City, fierce demonic beasts frequently roamed the area. Yet Shen An paid them no mind at all; he had come here solely to cultivate the Tremor Fist, and those demonic beasts were completely beneath his notice.

"Let me see where I should begin practicing," Shen An muttered, finding an open patch of ground before opening the Tremor Fist manual to study it.

"As expected of a manual that makes tier-three Awakeners lose sleep in longing, the secrets hidden within this text are terrifyingly profound," Shen An continued.

An ordinary person would undoubtedly find it difficult to unravel the mysteries hidden inside, but Shen An was different. At a single glance, he grasped the core essence of the Tremor Fist's cultivation methods.

By his estimation, it should take only a few hours for him to master the Tremor Fist and unleash its first-layer force.

A faint smile curved the corner of Shen An's lips as he channeled his vital energy toward his fist. The terrifying vital energy gathered at the peak of his strike, exploding outward in a sudden punch that carried an astonishing, incomparable force.

It was truly an exceptionally terrifying punch.

As this punch slammed heavily against the trunk of a tree before him, the trunk merely shuddered slightly without falling over.

"When I executed the Tremor Fist, the destructive power of my punch actually decreased? How can this be? It seems there are still some subtleties I haven't fully comprehended yet. I must master the essence as quickly as possible," Shen An murmured to himself.

Continuing to flip through the records in the Tremor Fist manual, the corners of his mouth curved upward once more as a fresh realization dawned on him.

"Ah, exactly. This is it. My punch is capable of unleashing unimaginable power; the reason it failed to produce an astonishing impact earlier was simply because I hadn't grasped the precise technique," Shen An said.

Immediately afterward, Shen An once again regulated his vital energy, this time concentrating it onto a single infinitesimal point before unleashing the full force of his vital energy in an instant. This time, his strike became vastly more powerful.

*Bang!* The tree trunk in front of him snapped, instantly fractured by the force.

A smile tugged at the corner of Shen An's lips. The power of this punch was indeed impressive, but even so, it still fell short of the level the Tremor Fist was truly capable of achieving.

"No, the Tremor Fist should possess an even greater might than this. Merely doing this is not enough," Shen An remarked.

Three hours later, Shen An stood within a canyon, his fists faintly radiating a terrifying surge of vital energy. It was likely that even a late-stage tier-three Awakener would find it extremely difficult to endure such a blow.

After several hours of rigorous practice, he had finally grasped the ultimate essence of the Tremor Fist.

"Now that I have comprehended all the essential subtleties of the Tremor Fist, hehe... let me test its true might," Shen An said as he walked up to a massive boulder.