Chapter 11: Warriors from Foreign Countries
"Hot one moment, cold the next—what a laughable country."
At Narita Airport, Silkwat Jenazad, dressed in the traditional ethnic garb of his homeland and wearing a mask, stepped out of the private jet. Feeling the air that was completely different from his homeland, he made a remark utterly devoid of goodwill.
Located south of the equator, the Kingdom of Tidat has a climate entirely unlike that of Japan—it is a land without seasons, hot and rainy all year round.
The hero who saved this kingdom with his bare hands decades ago was none other than Silkwat Jenazad, the strongest warrior of Pencak Silat, also known as the "Demon Fist God"—one of the strongest martial artists in the world.
As a martial artist, Silkwat Jenazad is one of the very few who have reached the ultimate pinnacle of martial arts, a rarity in this era. Together with about a dozen other individuals who have reached this level, he formed an organization called "Darkness," which is currently the largest martial arts group in the world.
However, they are also an extreme group that advocates for old-school martial arts. The world refers to them as practitioners of "Killing Fists," and they are diametrically opposed to the rival extreme group, the "Living Fists." The two sides are like water and fire—completely incompatible.
Yet unlike the others in the organization, Silkwat Jenazad does not care about how martial arts should be passed down or preserved. What he truly desires is for the world to one day tremble before Pencak Silat.
Because of this, although he has earnestly trained many disciples without holding anything back, he has also mercilessly destroyed them not long after. The reason is simple—if he judges that a disciple cannot reach the pinnacle of Pencak Silat, he deems that person a disgrace to the art. And that is something he absolutely cannot tolerate.
His current disciple is a prince of the Kingdom of Tidat. So far, he has not yet been deemed a failure. But Silkwat Jenazad has never stopped seeking out other individuals he considers worthy—all for the sole purpose of someday cementing Pencak Silat as the world's most powerful martial art.
The reason he came to Japan this time is partly because his companions are gathering here, but more importantly, it is due to an intriguing result from the global intelligence network of their organization.
Recently, it is possible that a god may descend upon this Eastern country.
The existence of "Heretic gods" is not a secret confined only to the magical community. For martial artists of Silkwat Jenazad's caliber, it is also not a secret. In fact, martial arts masters are considered even more likely than top-tier magicians to slay such gods.
Human sorcery is largely ineffective against these deities, but martial arts are different. These refined techniques, built through the long history of human effort, can be effective even against divine beings—as long as the practitioner is strong enough.
The leader of the Chinese Holy Sect, Luo Hao, has already proven this to the world. And a few years ago, a young Italian swordsman accomplished the same feat.
Martial artists have always been the most active figures in every era. The powerful martial warriors of ancient times even became part of mythologies as heroes.
Those who stand at the pinnacle of martial arts can accomplish what the top magic users can. When power reaches such a level, the difference between them is merely the method they use.
Though called Demon Fist God and revered as a living god in the Kingdom of Tidat, Silkwat Jenazad is well aware that he is human, not divine.
Precisely because of this, it was imperative for him to come to this country before anyone else discovered the situation.
Never mind that Chinese cult leader—for even a brat from the West could do it. There's no reason he couldn't. When it comes to martial arts, Silkwat Jenazad has absolute confidence in himself.
Before that, he figured it wouldn't be bad to play around here a bit. Though Japan is not a great power, its media is highly developed, and it offers facilities to learn nearly all kinds of martial arts. It's a country where folk martial arts are quite widespread.
For Silkwat Jenazad, who views spreading the name of Pencak Silat as the one thing that matters, this country would do nicely to kill some time.
"Master, the lodging is prepared."
Behind Silkwat Jenazad stood a young man—his disciple, Raden Tidat Jihan. He, too, wore the ethnic attire of the Tidat Kingdom. In fact, all the Tidat people who followed Silkwat Jenazad dressed this way. Martial artists from the Kingdom of Tidat rarely wore modern Western clothing.
"No need. Since I'm here, I may as well have a proper look around."
Silkwat Jenazad said this, and then the group exited the airport in a grand procession. Their exotic attire naturally drew a great deal of attention.
After leaving the airport, Silkwat Jenazad left alone.
As the Demon Fist God, there was no one who could constrain his actions. Most of the time, the strongest of Pencak Silat traveled alone.
To him now, things like fame, power, money, or women held no meaning. All he cared about was the name of Pencak Silat.
When he next appeared before the public, the mask he always wore was gone. Revealed was a face that bore little trace of age—still young and handsome.
Coupled with his ethnic clothing and barefooted foreigner style, he caught the attention of many women.
Some even tried to strike up a conversation. Unfortunately, before they could act, they were surprised to find that all they could see was his back as he walked away.
Narita Airport, located in Narita City, Chiba Prefecture, is one of Japan's top international airports. But to Silkwat Jenazad, Narita City held nothing worth lingering over. On the surface, he appeared to be walking normally, but the Demon Fist God soon left for the heart of Chiba Prefecture—Chiba City.
Thanks to Japan's developed transportation system, he had no need for a guide. Nor did he need any vehicle—his feet were the strongest tool on this earth.
For martial artists like him, leg strength had surpassed the realm of human imagination. This is what made peak-level martial artists so fearsome compared to others.
Aside from their own willpower, very little in the environment or society could restrict their movements.
Soon, Silkwat Jenazad entered the bounds of Chiba City.
Compared to Narita, here there were things that could catch his interest.
Chiba City didn't have massive martial arts halls like Tokyo's Budokan, but it had many smaller dojos. Most of the world's notable martial arts styles could be found here.
Pencak Silat was no exception. Though not particularly famous in Japan, it was as well-known as Karate in Europe and the United States.
But in Japan, the art was largely unknown. Most people hadn't even heard of it. Among foreign martial arts, Chinese styles were the most numerous.
Even so, there were still one or two Pencak Silat dojos. One of them was about to welcome the strongest practitioner of the art in the world.
"Well then, let's see what this country has to offer."
Looking at the dojo in front of him, decorated in Indonesian style, Silkwat Jenazad grinned. Hiding his identity as the Demon Fist God, he walked leisurely forward, just like any ordinary foreigner.