Chapter 34: Bloody-Scorpion Fighter
Translator: WQL Editor: Geoffrey
Like the other horny students, Zhang Tie was also unable to control himself for the duration of the afternoon. For all the undergraduates, this biology class had become unforgettable. Some among them still couldn't believe that they had made such a promise with Miss Daina. They would never have imagined that they would have a chance to marry Miss Daina one day!
Even though the chance was slim, it was still enough for all the horny students to unexpectedly burst forth with high morale. The excitement of the students that afternoon greatly shocked the coach.
However, for the duration of the afternoon and even after he had returned from Donder's grocery store, Zhang Tie kept on thinking about two things.
The first thing was the Leakless Fruit. According to Miss Daina, the human body lost a huge amount of energy every day through urine, masturbation, sweat, and even from undigested food. Nobody could tell how much energy they contained. After thinking for a long time, Zhang Tie realized that since last week, he had not had a wet dream for five consecutive days. Usually, he would have at least three wet dreams a week. Does this mean that the life energy from the thousands of millions of sperm was absorbed by the Leakless Fruit? Neither Zhang Tie nor Miss Daina knew how much energy was contained within those sperm. The only thing she had said about this topic was that in the ancient East, there was an ancient, mysterious cultivation system that described some Qi cultivators who converted tangible sperm into powerful, intangible life energy — "Qi". This seemed to be related to the huge amount of life energy produced by the reproductive system. However, this was only one source for the Leakless Fruit. Zhang Tie recalled that his urine was much cleaner than before. Besides that, he now had a good appetite and sweated less than before when doing exercise. Were these the benefits of the Leakless Fruit?
Miss Daina mentioned that these were simply just tangible energy loss, while there was also more invisible energy loss. For example, our body was constantly releasing energy over time. Before the Catastrophe, human beings had already discovered the magnetic field and the brilliant rays circling our bodies as well as an energy called electricity that was produced in the human body every second. In contrast, the source of the most energy loss was something that could not be seen with the eye — having numerous, ever-changing disorderly opinions and thoughts. This was also known as human spiritual and mental movements. Some of those tangible spiritual and mental movements were called evidence consciousness, while the intangible movements were called sub-consciousness or over-consciousness. Miss Daina had mentioned that mental and spiritual energy was wasted during dreams or disorderly and blind conjectures. This reminded Zhang Tie that he had slept really well for the past couple of days. He was clear-minded each morning. Was the leaking mental energy absorbed and converted by the Leakless fruit?
Then what miraculous functions would the Leakless Fruit have after it absorbed all the tangible and intangible energy that leaked from his body for a whole week?
This made Zhang Tie become more expectant towards the Leakless Fruit that would be ripe within three days. Zhang Tie still couldn't figure out what "Leakless" meant. No matter what it meant, he thought that there was nothing greater than the badge of a Bloody-Scorpion Fighter.
The second thing that Zhang Tie thought about for the entire afternoon was how he could become a Bloody-Scorpion Fighter before the age of 20. This way, he would become strong and would be able to protect and marry Miss Daina. However, at the moment, Zhang Tie was not able to see even the slightest bit of chance for this to happen.
Bloody-Scorpion Fighter — Among the 5 classes of fighters, a Bloody-Scorpion Fighter was a LV 9 professional fighter that belonged to the 4th class and was authorized by the Continental Fighters Union. A Bloody-Scorpion Fighter would have ignited 34 burning points on their backbone and would have high-end fighting force that could only be awed by many people in the rest of their lives. They were even an existence that was even more powerful than the one-eyed Captain Kerlin. A 20-year old Bloody-Scorpion Fighter — what a dazzling great existence! If it wasn't that, who else could match with Goddess Miss Daina?
As for the poor boy who had not even ignited his Shrine burning point, how could he become a Bloody-Scorpion Fighter, which required 8 consecutive increase in ranks, within 5 years? This was his only chance to garner the favor of Miss Daina. This was not possible unless he was a genius...
But as he had the Castle of Black Iron and the marvelous tree, he became determined to fight for Miss Daina...
Thinking of Miss Daina's promise, Zhang's heart began to thump.
On the way back from Donder's grocery store, watching the road lamps being ignited one by one, the 15-year old boy had a stern expression. He started to envision the goal that he had never dreamt of before — to become a powerful fighter with an image of Bloody-Scorpion on his back before the age of 20.
Gulugulu… His belly started to growled once again. "I'm more like a foodie now," Zhang Tie muttered to himself as he began running home…
When he arrived at home, Zhang Tie found the gate unlocked and was even half opened. "Is there a thief?" Zhang Tie's heart started pounding. He slightly pushed open the gate and walked in quietly. Clasping onto a wooden stick that was previously hidden, he moved closer towards the entrance. Before he entered, he heard a strange voice
"I only have one daughter at the age of 20, and now she's pregnant because of your son. She no longer has any face to live. How can she get married anymore? Today, I brought her here for you to bring her into your Zhang family. If you don't admit that the baby in her belly belongs to your Zhang family, then I'll beat her to death. If you admit it, you'll have to tell this news to the neighborhood..." The voice was full of fury. At that moment, Zhang Tie heard a "pa" sound and the curses of that man, "I will beat you to death, you son of b*tch…"
A woman's cry drifted from inside. The moment Zhang Tie entered, he found the door curtain pushed aside and Boss Wang from the tailor store and his wife walked out. Boss Wang looked really infuriated when he saw Zhang Tie. Zhang Tie instantly hid his wooden stick behind him and forced a smile. "Boss Wang, don't leave so fast. Have a seat..."
"Humph, all of you Zhangs are scumbags!" The man left furiously as he hit the gate. His wife glanced over Zhang Tie carefully and followed him away with a deep sigh. Seeing them leave, Zhang Tie closed the gate and hid the wooden stick again. He then pretended to cough and walked into the guesthouse…
There were three people inside the guesthouse. Zhang Tie's dad was smoking with a frown. The smell of the poor quality tobacco spread everywhere. In normal circumstances, Zhang Tie's mom would definitely scold him; however, his mom was comforting a crying woman, whose head was lowered as she cried. Seeing this woman, Zhang Tie remembered the sound of "papapa" from his elder brother's room in the recent couple of months. Then he understood everything. Dad and mom also knew what had happened.
"Unexpectedly, my dashing elder brother stirred up some trouble now, heh… heh…"
"Your supper is in the pot. Go eat it now!" Seeing Zhang Tie come back, his mom raised her head reluctantly. She then continued to comfort that girl.
Dad also peered at Zhang Tie. Zhang Tie knew what to do. "You guys continue. I'll go eat supper!" Then he ran into the kitchen and took out the food from the pot. Although the food was simple, it was made by his mom and smelled fragrant, thus Zhang Tie engulfed it all very soon.
After eating, Zhang Tie washed the bowls and chopsticks and cleaned the kitchen to gain another point of merit value. Thinking about it happily, Zhang Tie saw his dad come over. It seemed that his dad and mom had already made the decision.
"Zhang Tie, come here. I need to talk with you…"
"What's up, dad!"
"Your elder brother, that bastard, he slept with that girl and made her pregnant" Zhang Tie's dad felt really felt reluctant when he mention that.
"Does this mean I have a sister in law now!?" Zhang Tie asked with a grimace.
"Quiet!" Zhang Tie's dad stared at him with eyes widely opened and flicked Zhang Tie's head with his fingers which made Zhang Tie spring up from the pain. "Above all, your elder brother is not at home at the moment, so that girl will live in your elder brother's room. Be polite and call her sister when you see her. Am I clear? Don't let her feel uncomfortable…"
"Uncomfortable with what? She has already entered my elder brother's room more than once already..." Zhang Tie touched his head as if he was being wronged and muttered.
"What?" Zhang Tie's dad widely opened his eyes once again.
Zhang Tie hurriedly made a wry smile. "It's nothing. When I think about how you're going to be a grandpa, I'm really happy for you!"
Before his dad had a chance to kick his butt, Zhang Tie had long run away. Zhang Tie had already thought it through while he was eating just now. According to his dad and mom's temperaments, they would never force her to have an abortion. To have an abortion would be a huge problem. Additionally, she was innocent and although she wasn't beautiful, she wasn't ugly either. They lived on the same street and almost grew up together under the watchful eyes of mom and dad. No other girl could be her match. The fault lied with his elder brother, who was too rushed and did not make sufficient preparations.
When his elder brother returned, the two families would discuss the marriage between the two. Additionally, when Zhang Tie mentioned that his dad was going to be a grandpa, although he looked furious, he couldn't conceal his excitement.
Zhang Tie didn't think of it too much. After supper, he washed his feet and brushed his teeth. Afterward, he went to the guesthouse to say goodnight to his mom and his sister-in-law before returning to his own room.
In his own room, Zhang Tie sat on the bed and started to practice in accordance to . Through a couple days of studying, he had noticed that cultivation became more effective by visualizing in accordance with before and after cultivation. If he practiced visualizing in accordance with before igniting his Shrine burning point, his spiritual energy would be slightly more condensed. If he visualized the golden abacus after cultivating and igniting the Shrine burning point, he could recover much faster. Zhang Tie felt like he has already learned the mysterious functions of .
Through a couple days of cultivation, Zhang Tie found it to be easier to enter meditation before, as it took less time now.
In the past, it would take him more than two hours to enter meditation since he felt distracted. In recent days, he would instantly enter meditation the moment he sat down and closed his eyes. He was always clear-minded now. Being "polished" by the pure spiritual energy, the Shrine burning point over the navel radiated an increasingly bright indigo flame and responded more easily to the crystal. It seemed that in a couple of months, the flame would become completely blue and would help him reach a higher level. Was all of this the result of the Leakless Fruit? Zhang Tie was not certain about it. No matter what, these were good changes. What made Zhang Tie uncomfortable was the piece of crystal that he used to cultivate. Gradually, it was unable to provide enough energy for him to cultivate. This made Zhang Tie dejected like a thirsty person who moved his mouth in front of the water faucet but found that the size of the tap was as small as a needle. The amount of water that trickled down did not meet his demand. This was rightly what the poor people faced. If Zhang Tie owned a pyramid-based crystal, he believed that his Shrine burning point would already be radiating purple flames.
After almost two hours of cultivation, Zhang Tie stood up from the bed and slightly moved his numb legs. Heaving a deep sigh, he placed the white crystal back into the crystal sand by the windowsill, so as to refill the energy. After peering over the pitch dark street which was not matched with roadside lamps, in order to ensure that nobody outside was peering in, he closed up the window again.
"What's elder brother doing now?" Zhang Tie suddenly wondered.
Before he fell asleep, Zhang Tie entered the Castle of Black Iron as usual.
——Eyes closed… Lock… Enter
It felt much easier to enter…
Opening his eyes, Zhang Tie found himself already inside.
——Handsome and Magnificent Lord, welcome to the Castle of Black Iron!
Zhang Tie casually touched the basic attributes panel.
——Castle of Black Iron
——Length: 1 Krosa
——Width: 1 Krosa
——Aura value: 7.3
——Merit value: 52
——Basic energy storage: 0.5
——Special output: void
As expected, he gained 5 more merit value points; 2 at home and 3 at school. However, the growth of spiritual energy really surprised Zhang Tie. After closing the attributes panel, Zhang Tie went to his field. Squatting down, he checked his plants carefully.
Surprisingly, he found rows of stubborn, fresh sprouts coming out of the niblets' land.
"The niblets have already sprouted." Zhang Tie instantly became excited. They sprouted three days earlier than Zhang Tie anticipated. "It seems that the soil here is suitable for the growth of plants," Zhang Tie muttered. Thinking of the increasing price of food, Zhang Tie glanced over the vacant Castle of Black Iron that spanned almost 1,000 mu1 of land. He instantly thought of a crazy idea, "Will I become rich if I plant more than 100 mu of grains and fruits here in the Castle of Black Iron…"
1 mu is equal to 666.666 m2
Chapter 35: Realization
Translator: WQL Editor: Geoffrey
Since he was young, Zhang Tie has always lived a simple and boring life that consisted only of going to school and working at Donder's grocery store. After school on Wednesday, he arrived at the Iron Thorns Fighting Club on Bright Avenue once again. For Zhang Tie, this fighting club has greatly changed his life. Through the part-time jobs at Donder's grocery store and the Iron Thorns Fighting Club, Zhang Tie could meet numerous people. Some people would have been driven mad by such a mechanical lifestyle, while Zhang Tie simply found it boring. He had already known since he was young that there were only a few people who had the power to choose their own lifestyle. Both of Zhang Tie's parents were commoners in Blackhot City, thus he was born with no such power. In any age, only a few people could live an easy and cool life with activities like riding battle horses, fighting on the battlefields, hugging beauties, and drinking alcohol. Most people could only do regular jobs before retiring, much like those defective objects on the assembly lines that would be abandoned when sent off. Most people didn't even have the time to explore and travel the world at all.
The Seventh National Middle School in Blackhot City was undoubtedly an assembly line in a workshop where most of the products would be delivered to the army, factories, and farms before being abandoned. If there were no accidents, Zhang Tie might also follow this routine. In the past couple of days, Zhang Tie found himself much more clear-minded than before. He would think about many topics that he would never have thought of or considered before. Refusing to become a bad-quality product that could not choose its own destiny on the assembly line, Barley and the others formed the Hit-Plane Brotherhood, Glaze strove to be a LV 2 fighter since a young age, and numerous people put on the uniforms of pioneers and strove for an uncertain future at the cost of their own lives. In batches, they would step into that unknown black region and never return…
When he arrived at Bright Avenue, he recalled the following image: an old man in a pioneer uniform with pure white hair and a beard buying something in a grocery store. He then sat outside the gate of the grocery store and leaned against the wall on the other side of the street. With a broken sword in hand, he smiled, drunk alcohol, and watched the sunset. After a short rest, he stood up, tightened his waist belt, and walked towards the railway station. From then on, Zhang Tie never saw him again...
Zhang Tie was deeply impressed by the stark contrast between the old man's peaceful smile and his situation. Zhang Tie could not fully understand why he smiled when he sat on the roadside ground as he drank the poor quality alcohol and watched the sunset. But that smile on his time-honored face always appeared in Zhang Tie's memory. At this moment, Zhang Tie gradually understood what the time-honored smile meant. His face displayed pride and gave off a message — I have tried to live my own way!
Everyone in this age was working hard. Some worked hard to become a superior product on the assembly line in hopes to gain higher compensation. Some worked hard to jump out from the assembly line regardless of whether they would lose their life in the process. While others worked hard to become an owner of the assembly line. And those who owned one assembly line wanted to own more!
When he was in Bright Avenue last time, everything on the street made Zhang Tie dwarfed and uncomfortable; however, when he was in Bright Avenue at this moment, seeing everything on the magnificent Avenue, Zhang Tie suddenly realized that the "uncomfortable" feeling was simply the natural fear and lack of confidence that an unfinished product felt when it saw its owner and the manager of the assembly line. This was the game rule in the Blackhot City: before you are able to rid yourself of your ordinary status as an unfinished product in the eyes of others, everything on this street would make you breathless.
"It seems that I am changing from an ordinary unfinished product to a good unfinished product! Ho… Ho… unfinished product? Motherf*cker, I should not take myself as an unfinished product! Mom would never agree on this. In her eyes, I am her most precious baby! In this world, when it comes to their opinions of me, I will solely pay attention to the opinions of three or four people and will ignore the evaluations of other people! Others' opinions have nothing to do with me, and I will never pretend to be an unfinished product that was meant to make the lives of others easier!
When he recalled that he insisted for his mom to stop calling him "baby" two years ago and to call him another nickname like "Guoguo" instead, a smile appeared on Zhang Tie's face. Then, he strode forward with candid and confident steps on Bright Avenue and arrived at Avenue Bright No.18, the place where the Iron Thorns Fighting Club was located.
The four guards outside the gate glanced over Zhang Tie and let him enter directly. Zhang Tie stared at their glittering full-body armors admirably. They owned a surprising defensive force. Being similar to the full-body armor worn by the average heavy-armored pikemen, the entire set of armor weighed more than 70 kgs. It looked magnificent and powerful. Those who could move freely in such armor were at least LV 5. For them to arrange four fighters above LV 5 on both sides of the gate, the Iron Thorns Fighting Club was terrifyingly powerful.
Entering the gate and detouring the fountain, Zhang Tie arrived at the reception desk once again. Zhang Tie also finally understood why Mary praised him as "ambitious" last time. A woman who wanted to jump out of the assembly line by depending on her external qualities, beautiful appearances for example, naturally didn't want to be related to a guy who seemed to have no bright future. Thinking about what happened last time, Zhang Tie felt like he acted like a rogue and had overreacted.
The moment he felt sorry for her, Zhang Tie saw the row of featured beauties once again. Unlike last time when he was soon ignored by them, when he entered this time, Zhang Tie found that all of them were glaring at him, 80% in contempt and the remaining 20% in curiosity. He could easily identify their contempt as they sharply gazed at Zhang Tie, much like a true swan having seen an "ambitious" toad. Those who glared at him with contempt proudly turned away their heads, raised their heads, and didn't look at Zhang Tie again, while those who were curious kept gazing at him with a faint smile.
Mary was not here? Zhang Tie glanced over the beauties behind the reception desk and hurriedly put his right hand into the pocket to press down on that relentless p*nis. The beauties were wearing uniforms that consisted of a tight sleeveless shirt with a low-opening collar and a loose pair of sporting trousers. Glancing over them, Zhang Tie saw all the white skin and plump breasts, causing him to almost have a nosebleed.
As nobody greeted him, Zhang Tie also didn't want to cause trouble, so he passed the reception desk. Several steps later, Zhang Tie heard discussions behind him.
"He's just a kid. It couldn't have been that bad!"
"You cannot judge people by their appearance. Kids these days mature early. Mary said this guy was really disgusting and even more excessive than those guests. He wanted to molest Mary the first time he saw her. Besides, he even did obscene movements to us!"
"Really? But he doesn't look like the type of person!"
"Is your heart pounding? You can go give him a try!"
Then their laughter drifted towards Zhang Tie…
"F*ck!" Zhang Tie knew that his good image had been fully destroyed among them.
This was his second time here. Naturally, Zhang Tie didn't need to report to Manager Hance's office; instead, he just needed to report to Director Beck, who was the one he had met in Manager Hance's office. His main responsibility was to take charge in greeting the LV 1 guests in the Fighting Club. In other words, he in charge of serving those rich and powerful kids. As the flesh-bag of those kids, Zhang Tie was naturally managed by him. Director Beck always spoke too many words, which might be attributed to his occupational disease. Sometimes, he would unconsciously repeat what he had said already for several times.
Seeing Zhang Tie come to report to him, Director Beck was very happy. He then murmured to Zhang Tie in his narrow office for more than half an hour. He told Zhang Tie about what he should pay attention to, such as where he could go and where he couldn't, etiquettes towards guests, and some rules that he should remember as a "training partner". Although they were all simple and trivial things, Director Beck unconsciously repeated them twice.
Half an hour later, noticing Director Beck couldn't control himself and started to repeat them for the third time, Zhang Tie felt the blood rush to his head and hurriedly opened his mouth to stop him.
"Well, Director, I've remembered everything you have said. Should I go take a bath and put on my uniform now to wait for the guests in the rest area?"
"Oh…" Looking at the clock that hung in the office, Director Beck opened a drawer and threw a key with a number plate to Zhang Tie "This is the key to your locker. Put your personal belongings inside. You have two uniforms change — the clean set will be worn when you arrive each time, while the dirty set can be handed over to the reception desk where someone will wash it for you. We will provide a new pair of socks for you every week. These are your benefits! Work hard, young man!"
Chapter 36: Come on, Baby
Translator: WQL Editor: Geoffrey
Using the memory of the paths of the fighting club, Zhang Tie took the key and entered the dressing room. As he was somewhat lost when he was here last time, he didn't clearly see the size of the fighting club. This time, he realized that the fighting club was really huge.
The sixth floor of the fighting club was more than 200m in length, and more than half of this floor was reserved for LV 1 guests. The sixth floor was mostly occupied by a public training field, which included various equipment and instruments that Zhang Tie had never seen before, as well as two standard speed testing tracks. Aside from the resting areas and the dressing rooms, the public training field was the only place where workers could stay. What Captain Kerlin had said was not out of reason. If Zhang Tie could train here when he was free, he could definitely improve his strength and physique greatly. Compared to this training field, the training field at school was like a rural field being used to dry fresh millets. Seeing those training equipment for the first time, Zhang Tie almost began to drool. Those training equipment could definitely strengthen each and every one of his muscles. In truth, given enough time, Zhang Tie was fully confident that they could make him as masculine as a sculpture and strengthen his physical traits greatly.
Aside from the public training field, there were also some independent training rooms. Director Beck had said those training rooms were matched with more advanced training equipment and were only available to guests, causing Zhang Tie to be extremely curious about the special equipment.
Zhang Tie could only use the independent staff staircases and paths from the first floor to the sixth floor, while the guests and VIPs were qualified to take the elevators, something which Zhang Tie had never seen before. Although there was no electricity in this age, that traffic tool invented by humans before the Catastrophe was still preserved. However, the driving force of elevators became steam engines and turbines that were built within the building. Additionally, each elevator was matched with a professional looking worker who wore a uniform.
From the first floor to the sixth, although sound-insulation partitions were installed, Zhang Tie could still hear the loud crashes and cries from the rooms on each floor. Some of the sounds seemed to have originated from underground, giving off a feeling that was akin to rolling thunder to those above ground. As a result, the entire staircase hummed...
The sixth floor was for LV 1 guests, the fifth floor was for LV 2 guests, and the fourth floor was for LV 3 guests. Previously, Zhang Tie didn't understand why they were arranged in this manner. When he went upstairs, he suddenly realized that the higher the level of the guests, the more powerful and destructive the training would be; therefore, they had to arrange the high-level guests on the lower floors in order to reduce the damage to the building. The training fields for guests above LV 5 were on the ground; however, Zhang Tie was not qualified to know what was installed inside those training fields.
Zhang Tie went to his locker, locker No. 613. The dressing room was linked to the bathroom, which was one of the benefits of the Fighting Club. At the very least, Zhang Tie could take a bath in the luxurious bathroom. This place would be very nice if he wasn't here solely to be beaten.
Entering the dressing room, Zhang Tie found no one else but a muscular man sitting on the bench. The muscular man was trying to apply something to the obvious wounds on his back. Feeling that this man seemed somewhat familiar, Zhang Tie recalled that it was the man who had woken him up when he had passed out last time.
Seeing Zhang Tie, the manly guy grinned and smiled simply. Raising a brown vial, he said, "Hey boy, so it's you. Come help me out!"
Zhang Tie walked over and took the vial from the man's hand; it smelt like a medicinal liquor. He didn't know what it was made of, but he knew that it was used to speed up the healing of wounds, thus Zhang Tie rubbed his hands for a while and put some of the medicinal liquor on one palm. He then evenly applied it onto the wounds.
"I almost forgot, you woke up me up last time. Really, thank you!" Zhang Tie said as he applied the medicinal liquor onto the man's back.
"It's no problem! I'm Anuo, what's your name?"
"Zhang Tie!"
"Chinese clan?"
"Yea!"
"You people from the Chinese clan aren't physically strong. I've rarely seen a Chinese training partner here!"
"That's bullsh*t. I will keep getting stronger!" Zhang Tie replied stubbornly.
"What a tough boy!�� the manly guy muttered.
After he finished applying the medicinal liquor, Zhang Tie covered the vial and gave it back to the manly guy. The man took the vial, stood up, and prepared to wear clothes. All of a sudden, he shot out a powerful punch toward Zhang Tie. Before Zhang Tie was able to respond, the fist had already arrived in front of Zhang Tie's face. The fine hair on his face could even feel a strong gust. The moment Zhang Tie thought that his head would be broken like a watermelon, the fist stopped 1 cm away from his face. Zhang Tie's face turned pale.
The manly guy didn't care for Zhang Tie's response. He simply shook his head and made three movements in front of Zhang Tie. "As a training partner, you should remember three basic movements. Firstly, when you lower your head, you should protect your head with your arms. Never expose your head to your opponent. You should respond to it unconsciously…" The manly guy demonstrated the movement twice.
"Secondly, although it is not allowed in the fighting club, if your opponent attacked your lower body, you should lift your right leg…" The manly guy patted his strong right leg. "You should never put the center of gravity of your body under your feet. That would make you react slowly; instead, you should do this..." The tough guy quickly raised his right leg and leaned to his side. "This way, your opponent's instinctive attacks will land on the muscles of your thigh and butt, which can afford to take a hit!"
"Thirdly…" The tough guy bent his body. "Make your back naturally bent to tighten the muscles. A bent back and tightened muscles can form a natural arch which can let your back stand powerful attack. This will protect your bones and guts. If you cannot avoid your opponent's attack, you should use the places on your body that can take a beating to absorb the opponent's attack. For example, your shoulders, back, chest… Am I clear, boy?"
Zhang Tie was shocked by Anuo's patience. He nodded and was slightly moved. He didn't know what to say while Anuo simply smiled. He patted Zhang Tie's shoulders. "I'm expecting you to become powerful!" He then put on his clothes and left.
Zhang Tie repeated those movements several times alone in the dressing room and slightly nodded. Then he opened his locker. There were two sets of uniforms, a clean towel, and a pair of clean socks. He instantly removed his clothes and brought the towel into the bathroom to take a comfortable hot water bath. The moment he wore his uniform and his socks, a worker came in to inform him to make preparations to serve the guest in Room No.4.
Near the dressing room was a professional equipment room. The moment Zhang Tie entered, two workers helped him put on a set of protective equipment.
"Boy, don't get knocked out this time; otherwise, we'd have to carry you back!" the man said with a smile of contempt as he helped Zhang Tie put on the complex equipment. After he finished, he patted Zhang Tie's back twice, implying that Zhang Tie could leave.
"Do you think he'll be knocked out this time?"
"I bet he will pass out within 10 minutes for 20 copper coins!"
"I bet he will pass out within 5 minutes!"
"Ok, that's the deal!"
Hearing the two bastards sneering at him, Zhang Tie gritted his teeth and decided to not pass out this time.
Entering Room No.4 like last time, Zhang Tie waited there for less than 3 minutes before the door was pushed open. Entering together with an arrogant 12-year-old kid was Mary. Seeing the cold smile on Mary's face, Zhang Tie cried out inwardly. How could she be so narrow-minded!?
The kid arrogantly glared at Zhang Tie. "Mary, is he the scumbag you told me about?"
"That's him!" The goddamned Mary nodded.
"If I knock him out, you will?" saying this, the arrogant kid gazed at Mary's plump breasts and swallowed saliva with difficulty.
Mary said nothing. She simply bent her body and showed a lecherous smile. Stretching out her tongue, she licked one of the kid's ear and murmured something as the kid began to laugh in high spirits.
Zhang Tie coldly stared at the two. Within the depths of his heart, an uncomfortable appeared when he saw Mary's lecherous smile and the arrogant kid. He didn't know if it was because of fury or desire.
"I am Zhang Tie. It's my pleasure to serve you!" Zhang Tie clasped his fist and greeted the kid monotonously in accordance to Director Beck's instructions. Meanwhile, he coldly glanced at Mary, who was staring at him pleasantly on the side.
Under the thick head protector, others could only see the pair of black eyes and the row of holes for breathing. Seeing Zhang Tie turning back as he stared at her, Mary felt savageness and a coldness that was akin to ice through that head protector. Her heart started to pound and her smile instantly froze.
"If you are smart enough, you should kneel down in front of Mary, apologize to her, and slam your face ten times. If you do that, I will let you go. I won't beat you up too fiercely!" pretending to be a man, the kid shouted.
F*ck! How could these rich kids be so disgusting!? Zhang Tie said nothing. He only bent one finger towards this kid in contempt as if he was calling a puppy or a pet. "Come on, baby!"
"I will kill you!" In a split second, the kid charged toward Zhang Tie and launched an extremely sharp kick toward Zhang Tie's stomach...
Chapter 37: It Depends on Your Attitude
Translator: WQL Editor: Geoffrey
It was an extremely fierce kick. However, Zhang Tie had long been prepared and instantly avoided it by leaning his body. As a result, the kick didn't hit him. Before he had time to rejoice, Zhang Tie noticed a punch rushing towards his chest. At this moment, Zhang Tie intended to test the kid's strength by grabbing onto his arm. A muffled sound was heard from the armored arm of Zhang Tie. He felt a strong impact on his arm, causing his arm to become numb. Being forced to take a few steps back, Zhang Tie was surprised at the strength contained within that punch. It almost matched his own strength. Zhang Tie never realized that this kid, who was two years younger than him, was so powerful. Given the strength of that punch, Zhang Tie knew that the kid was slightly more powerful than him and was slightly weaker than Bagdad.
Even then, fighting him alone, Zhang Tie was not afraid of him in the least. After all, he was a couple of years older than this kid, meaning that he at least held the advantage in height and weight. However, if he could only be beaten and not retaliate, then the result would be obvious.
Although the thick armor uniform could lessen the impacts from his enemy's attacks, it also affected Zhang Tie's agility. Several fighting moves later, Zhang Tie's response was delayed by the uniform, and as a result, the kid took this opportunity and directly kicked Zhang Tie in the chest, sending Zhang Tie through the air before landing on the ground.
Zhang Tie felt dazed and suffocated. Panting, he picked himself up from the ground after quite a while. At the same time, Zhang Tie saw Mary wiping the sweat off the kid with a towel and kissing his face while the kid still displayed an arrogant face as he drank water and glared at Zhang Tie in contempt.
"I thought you would be powerful, but you're just trash!"
Zhang Tie felt like he would lose face if he argued with such an innocent kid. Should I tell you that I'm only here to be beaten to ripen the Iron Body Fruit? You're actually here to serve me. Hah, what a nice feeling…
"Manjusaka Karma Fruit Tree, I love you!" Zhang Tie shouted inwardly…
Under the head protector, Zhang Tie forced an ironical smile. As he was focused on helping the Iron Body Fruit ripen, he didn't care about being beaten at all. After standing up, Zhang Tie slightly moved his limbs and took a few deep breaths. Besides the pain from his chest, everything else felt fine. Once again, he bent his index finger towards that kid.
"Come on, baby!"
...
The anger on the kid's face flashed instantly. He put down the bottle of water and rushed towards Zhang Tie once again. Seven or eight minutes later, Zhang Tie was sent flying by a leg-sweep and fell onto the ground miserably. It took him half a minute to pick himself back up. At this moment, the kid was already panting.
"Come on, baby!"
More than twenty minutes later, the kid broke Zhang Tie's guard and seized the opportunity to quickly throw out four or five consecutive punches towards Zhang Tie's chest. As a result, Zhang Tie was hit and was forced five steps back. Soon after, the kid shouted as he elbowed Zhang Tie's stomach using a bow step[1]. Zhang Tie directly felt blood rushing to his neck, and the vessels around his neck were painful and swollen. Aside from this, his eyes were dazed
As his stomach was soft, Zhang Tie wasn't sent flying; however, he felt as if he was stepping on a marshmallow and had to kneel down. At the same time, Zhang Tie felt a gust blowing over his ear. In a split second, he used what Anuo taught him and instinctively used his arms to protect his head.
"Bang!" The moment Zhang Tie responded, a muffled sound reverberated. At the same time, Zhang Tie felt a powerful kick and instantly fell onto the ground. He rolled several times on the ground before stopping two meters away, losing the power to move.
Once again, Zhang Tie saw the kid heavily panting and sweating all over. He was staring at Zhang Tie, who was lying on the ground. A fight like this meant a huge physical exhaustion to both the attacker and the defender.
In the Iron Thorns Fighting Club, there were only a few training partners who fully worked as flesh-bags like Zhang Tie. As training partners, besides being beaten, they were sometimes here to assist the members improve their fighting techniques. Additionally, training partners could exchange their experiences with one another. In fact, a senior training partner was a mentor who could help guests of the club improve themselves. During training, training partners could find the mistakes of the opponent, like the weaknesses of his attacks, wasted movements, problems in attack rhythms, and possible defects that might arise from mental preferences. The guests were able to benefit from these experiences and improve their fighting techniques. Golden training partners usually got along well with the experts of the fighting club and were one of the most important figures in the fighting club. As Zhang Tie was new here, he was not eligible to meet the top figures in this industry. Moreover, the opponent today was invited by a woman who was specifically here to give him trouble. Naturally, he would not show sympathy. As a result, the fight today was a little bit harder… If it was not Zhang Tie but someone else, they would have long been defeated. Even if they weren't defeated, they would still feel the obvious frustration and hopelessness that came after being beaten repeatedly by a kid.
However, lying on the ground, Zhang Tie was not thinking about that; instead, he was thinking about the kid's kick. After recovering his composure, Zhang Tie realized that he should not have covered his head with his arms to prevent from that kick, but rather he should have withstood it with his shoulders or his back, which were the places on the human body that could take the most beating. When met with an unavoidable attack, you have two choices — the positive choice was to hide or to defend, while the negative choice was to intercept the attack. With a different choice, you would face a different result. However, hiding and defending were the natural instincts of human beings. Without experience or training hard, it was impossible to alter this natural instinct in front of a life or death situation.
Thinking it through, Zhang Tie slowly picked himself up. "I have benefitted from those kicks. The Iron Body Fruit in the Castle of Black Iron should be ripe soon! Haha, I really can't wait for it. Come on! More kicks! You are working for me, but I will not pay you! I'm not mistreating him like what a boss did to a child laborer. Haha…
Different perspectives on an event may lead to completely different feelings, which would cause different attitudes and bring different results, forming different fates. At this moment, due to the existence of that small tree, Zhang Tie had a stronger mental fortitude than others, who would normally be afraid of those terrifying attacks. Though, at this moment, Zhang Tie had yet to realize this.
Zhang Tie felt like he could derive pleasure from watching others work until they're tired. Like an immortal spring in the desert, this job made him energetic, rather than feeling pessimistic and frustrated.
After Zhang Tie recovered his strength, Zhang Tie slowly picked himself up. Twisting his neck and body, Zhang Tie bent his index finger towards the kid and Mary.
"Come on, baby!"
...
Several minutes later, Zhang Tie was knocked over once again. Then he stood up again in an optimistic and absent-minded manner…
"Come on, baby!"
...
"Come on, baby!"
...
Outside the ring, Mary became increasingly frightened whenever she saw Zhang Tie constantly being knocked over and picking himself up in an absent-minded manner. It seemed that Zhang Tie was addicted to being beaten and even grew increasingly aggressive after being beaten. Besides his increasing aggression, in Mary's eyes, Zhang Tie's face gradually became more and more ferocious and looked much more stubborn than before.
...
Zhang Tie didn't know how many times he had tried to pick himself up. He felt pain all over. Finally, he was no longer able to stand. He simply sat on the ground, panting for air.
As his body was sweating all over, Zhang Tie's clothes fully stuck to his skin.His sweat had also entered his eyes, causing his eyes to become hot and blurry. Trying to wipe his sweat, Zhang Tie attempted to undo the damned head protector that almost broke his neck; however, he was unable to touch the thin string on the back of his head. At this moment, Zhang Tie even found it difficult to lift up his hand.
A bottle of water rolled towards Zhang Tie's feet. Zhang Tie reluctantly glanced at that kid, who was also threw himself onto the ground, as his face turned slightly pale. His sweaty hair stuck onto his head. The kid was drinking a bottle of water like a fish as he looked at Zhang Tie in an indescribable manner that lacked any trace of arrogance. Behind the kid, Mary was giving him a restorative massage. She didn't even look at Zhang Tie.
Zhang Tie then also took the glass bottle of water. He opened the glass lid and intended to have a drink; however, he realized that he had not even undone the head protector. As there were only several rows of holes for breathing over his mouth and he was already too weak to undo the head protector, he covered the glass lid cooly.
The two simply stared at each other as they gasped for air. After a while, that kid staggeringly picked himself up and recovered his arrogance. "Remember my name. Beneta, Andrew Beneta. I swear that I'll beat you so ferociously that you won't be able to get up next time. I won't stop until you apologize to Mary…"
The kid then left the room with Mary. Seeing Mary's back, Zhang Tie couldn't help but flirt with her. "Sister Mary, don't forget our appointment!"
Mary's back quivered, seemingly as if she would fall down...
"Are my words that powerful?" Zhang Tie intended to scratch his head curiously but found his fingers touching the thick leather layer. "F*ck! Who invented such a head protector..."
————
Bow step — a martial skill by bending your knees to form a bow for the benefit of attacking the opponent.
Chapter 38: An Inevitable Life
Translator: WQL Editor: Geoffrey
The impact of being beaten in the Iron Thorns Fighting Club on Wednesday slowly appeared on Thursday morning.
Yesterday, Zhang Tie casually took a comfortable, hot-water bath in the staff-only bathroom before returning home. Thankfully, there were only a few bruises on his body and none on his face. Therefore, Zhang Tie didn't need to worry about his bruises being discovered by his dad and mom.
After supper, Zhang Tie chatted with his dad, mom, and sister-in-law for a while. After washing his feet and brushing his teeth, Zhang Tie stealthily took two sweet potatoes and a handful of soybeans to his bedroom.
Zhang Tie then naturally began his land reclamation inside the Castle of Black Iron. Beside the sprouted niblets land and the potatoes land, Zhang Tie buried the two sweet potatoes inside the soil and sowed a row of soybeans like what he had previously done with the niblets.
When those sweet potatoes sprouted, he would need to move the sprouts into separate pits like what he had done with the potatoes. This was something that was taught in school. As for the soybeans, similar to what he had done with the niblets, he simply poked holes with the steel bar and buried them into holes one by one.
The aura value in the Castle of Black Iron kept increasing and had already broken through to 13. On Wednesday, besides those sprouting niblets, Zhang Tie had found that the casually spread grass seeds had also sprouted from the ground.
Over a day was left before the first Leakless Fruit would become ripe. On the other twig of the small tree hung a tiny silver fruit. Touching the fruit, Zhang Tie found that the fruit still had a bit less than three-quarters of progress to go before it became ripe. It seemed that the fruit would almost be ripe after another four to five beatings.
Leakless Fruit… Iron Body Fruit… Heh heh heh heh…
Finishing his cultivation as usual, Zhang Tie muttered the names of the two fruits as he fell asleep...
On Thursday morning, when Zhang Tie's biological clock passed 6:15, Zhang Tie woke up. The moment he wanted to get off the bed, his face turned pale. Dense drops of sweat appeared all over his forehead as excruciating pain could be felt all over his body. Every place where he was beaten was so painful and was almost broken, especially his two hands that were used to block kicks and punches yesterday. This phenomenon could be explained through two reasons. Firstly, this was a natural reaction from his body after suffering from external damage after a night's worth of rest. Secondly, it seemed that he truly exercised a lot yesterday; therefore, his muscles ached and felt swollen after one night's rest.
He sucked in a deep breath and slowly put on his clothes. During this process, whenever he made a slight movement, he would feel an indescribable pain.
Zhang Tie now understood that it was not that easy to be a training partner, and the Iron Body Fruit was also not that easily obtained.
Today, it took Zhang Tie twice as long to get to school from his home. Throughout the day, he moved sluggishly.
Arriving at the school gates, Zhang Tie saw the august, one-eyed man standing outside the school gate. With lowered heads, students walked past the school gate as far away from him as possible while he patted the iron stick on his other palm, producing a loud sound.
"Good boy, I heard you performed well yesterday. You didn't make me lose face!" Zhang Tie did not expect that Captain Kerlin would praise him before he greeted him.
Looking bashful, Zhang Tie forced a smile. At this moment, Zhang Tie didn't know whether he should thank or hate this one-eyed man.
Arriving at the classroom, Zhang Tie realized that the horny students weren't discussing amongst themselves about why nobody cleaned their desks and chairs. Instead, a group of his horny classmates was hiding in a neighboring classroom this morning in hopes to see the "idiot" who arrived early each morning to clean their desks and chairs. Unfortunately, they were unable to find anyone at all, thus they became boisterous.
"Motherf*cker, I have to secretly do good deeds from now on," Zhang Tie thought to himself. Since his horny classmates were so curious, he was no longer able to use this method to earn merit value points.
After acquiring the Castle of Black Iron, Zhang Tie didn't want to become the center of attention at school or the classroom, as it would be quite strange for a normal student to do good deeds so passionately for no apparent reason.
Although it was difficult for people to associate what Zhang Tie did with the merit value points from the illusory land, Zhang Tie still thought it would be considered wise to be low-key.
The morning classes proceeded as usual. Perhaps due to the fact that they would leave school forever in two weeks, the teachers taught fewer theories than before; instead, they lectured about their experiences. As a result, the students would sometimes be completely immersed within their teacher's life experiences and perceptions.
Starting next month on June 1 and ending on August 31, according to the rules held by all schools in Blackhot City, every undergraduate would have to participate in a two-month mandatory survival training. This test was a great assessment of the knowledge and abilities that the students had learned at school. As the survival training was the best test, no other test would be arranged. Consequently, those unqualified to survive in this age would be eliminated. Every year, there would be casualties among the undergraduates of Blackhot City during the survival training. Last year, five students were eliminated; four of which were dead, while the other one became a cripple. In its history, more than twenty undergraduates from the Seventh National Middle School have been eliminated during the survival training. For the horny undergraduates, the two-month survival training was seen as a coming-of-age ceremony.
It would be a coming-of-age ceremony at the cost of one's blood — and even one's life! This coming-of-age ceremony was without the protection of the high city walls of Blackhot City, implying that the horny students would encounter the most realistic situations in this age.
After two months of survival training, their days as students would come to an end. Following the survival training came a three-month holiday before most of them would be enlisted in the army to serve for a long term. Over their three-month holiday, before receiving the official notice of serving the army, a few talented individuals would have the chance to obtain the recommendation from school and would have the opportunity to learn in a more advanced place. They would directly become the elites of the age and would be backed by many huge powers and organizations. By this point in time, the direction of many people's lives would have already been fixed. The period of serving in the army was equal to the time they spent in compulsory education. It was their right to accept compulsory education and their obligation to serve the army. Eight years later, when most people finished serving the army, they would realize that they are completely different than those who had a chance to accept better education.
After the four classes in the morning, those horny undergraduates rushed into cafeteria again. Like usual, when the group of students lined up to get a dining plate, Glaze's group swaggered inside. Jumping the queue, they became the first in line after chasing away the timid and unlucky fellows at the front of the line.
Look at the way Glaze's group acted over the past few days, Zhang Tie always asked himself, "What would I do if that unlucky moment happened to me?" Within his heart, he knew the answer. Every time at lunch, he would choose a spot near the end of the line. He would try to avoid trouble; however, for a 15-year-old adolescent, this was a really hard choice.
At lunch, Fatty Barley told Zhang Tie that he would help Zhang Tie complete another coming-of-age ceremony.
"From then on, all of us, the members of the Hit-Plane Brotherhood, will no longer be virgins!" Hearing Barley's great declaration, the horny brotherhood members at the table smiled obscenely.
In truth, although Zhang Tie was dreaming a day ago about his "happy life" and the "astounding love" between him and Miss Daina in the future, hearing Barley's declaration, Zhang Tie's heart started pounding. He gradually aspired to become a real man. After a series of images came to mind, his crotch area of his trousers finally raised up like a tent. Zhang Tie then had to admit that as a member of the horny students, he was not more sensible than the other members of the Hit-Plane Brotherhood. However, Zhang Tie still considered his affection for Miss Daina sacred!
For the remainder of their lunch, the horny members of the Hit-Plane Brotherhood started to laugh at Zhang Tie's raised tent. However, as Zhang Tie has gotten used to these guys, he didn't mind it. After lunch, those guys went to play cards in the classroom, while Zhang Tie entered the small woods beside the cafeteria and sat down to cultivate . According to the book, he had to visualize the three-column abacus in a split second in order to reach the requirements of the first level. Once he reached the first level, he would instantly be able to get the computation result of the four operations within three digits.
It was still quite a distance away from reaching the requirements of the first level described by the book. Within 15 seconds, he was only able to visualize the three-column abacus, and it took him longer than 4 seconds to compute using the four operations. When he thought of the sentence on the cover of that book — After-Class Readings for Preliminary Students — Zhang Tie felt ashamed. This seemed like an ability that was mastered by preliminary students, yet he was not able to reach the first level even after so many days of practice — so ashamed!!
At that moment, it seemed that someone wanted to make him even more ashamed. Standing in front of Zhang Tie was one of Glaze's followers. While Zhang Tie was curious about his sudden appearance, the slightly gloomy guy threw a pile of dirty dining plates onto the patch of grass where Zhang Tie sat.
"Clean them and hand them over the cafeteria!" The guy threw the dining plates and left without even glancing at Zhang Tie It seemed as if he had never considered that the common looking student sitting against the tree would refuse his orders.
Gazing at the four messy plates, Zhang Tie scratched his head and felt dejected. There were always some hard choices that you had to make in life…
Chapter 39: A Bloody Case Arisen from Several Plates
Translator: WQL Editor: Geoffrey
During the training class in the afternoon, the sun shone fiercely. The instant the bell rang, the horny students instantly assembled into a matrix formation and waited for the orders of the coach, who would usually wave a flag as he stood on the commanding platform. However, nobody appeared on the commanding platform until two minutes later. During this period, every one of the horny students held their breaths. Then instead of the coach they were familiar with, the awesome one-eyed man appeared. The icy, cold Qi field around him frightened everyone beneath the commanding platform. Not knowing what was about to happen, they realized after seeing the black leather whip in his hand and began shivering.
As a semi-militarized school, extremely strict punishments would be meted out to students who didn't follow the rules. Among all punishments, the least offense punishment was running dozens of laps around the playground, while in some cases they would be whipped. However, in the worst case scenario, they would be handed over to the court of Blackhot City for judgment .
Glancing at the whip in Captain Kerlin's hand, everybody knew that someone would be ferociously whipped this time. Over the past years at school, every time the one-eyed man held a whip, some presumptuous fellow would suffer a cool public whipping.
Standing in a matrix formation under the commanding platform, Zhang Tie saw the icy expression on the one-eyed man and knew what was about to happen.
"Do you regret it?" Zhang Tie asked himself.
"F*ck!" he answered himself.
"Glaze, Sharon, Garner, and Zuhair, come out of the matrix!" Captain Kerlin shouted, causing the crowd to become bustling and shocked. Glaze? Glaze? Glaze's group?
"This is going to be a good show!" Standing next to Zhang Tie, Fatty Barley became thrilled. He touched Zhang Tie slightly with one foot.
"Yea, we're going to see some fun! Then some fun will fall upon me!" Zhang Tie thought to himself…
Under everyone's watch, the group of four, headed by Glaze, moved out from the formation as their faces turned pale. The first to walk out was Sharon, the one who had thrown the plates in front of Zhang Tie. At the same time, Sharon seemed to have realized something and turned back, seemingly as if he was looking for something in the matrix formation which Zhang Tie stood. His eyes were filled with a dangerous look.
Zhang Tie simply looked at Sharon coldly. Even now, he did not regret what he had done earlier. For others, this decision might be difficult and painful; however, for Zhang Tie, it was an easy choice. Before he made the choice, he only asked himself one question — which choice would make my parents feel proud?
In response to Captain Kerlin's call, the group of four came out from the matrix formation. The moment they stood on the platform, several law enforcement members instantly removed their leather training armor, revealing their naked upper bodies, thereby confirming everyone's previous assumption that Captain Kerlin was here to whip them.
"Captain Kerlin, I believe I have the right to know the reason!" Glaze growled as the veins on his forehead became pronounced when his arms were held back by the two law enforcement members.
"According to Article 27, each student should clean their dining plates and hand them over to the cafeteria after lunch. Violators of this rule will suffer 2 lashings. According to Article 6, each student should not purposely damage public properties. Violators of this rule will suffer 4 lashings. Glaze, Sharon, Garner, and Zuhair didn't hand over their dining plates to the cafeteria. They simply threw them into the small woods casually; therefore, they have violated the above two school rules, prompting my decision to give each of them 6 lashings! Am I clear?" The one-eyed man coldly stared at the group of four headed by Glaze. As a result, the group of four was shocked like being struck by lightning.
Standing in the matrix formation, Zhang Tie carefully observed their expressions. After Captain Kerlin finished whipping the Glaze's group, Zhang Tie realized that the three from the group of four did not stare at Sharon, but rather they glanced from time to time at the matrix formation in which Zhang Tie stood. At this moment, Zhang Tie became aware that what had happened at noon was not a coincidence; instead, it was deliberately planned by this group in an attempt to embarrass him. As they were always unruly at school and would usually find some timid fellows to wash their plates before handing them back to the cafeteria after lunch, Sharon had never expected that he would be refused this time. This explains the current situation.
Once Zhang Tie came to realize this, he became depressed, as he has always tried to be low-key at school. Without knowing it, he had offended this group.
Seeing the leather whip in Captain Kerlin's hand, the group of four turned pale. Seemingly as if he had something to add, Sharon said, "Captain Kerlin, I have something to say…"
Gazing at Sharon, who was swallowing his saliva, Captain Kerlin coldly muttered, "Go ahead!"
"After lunch, I gave our dining plates to someone else..."
"Where?"
"In the small woods next to the cafeteria!"
"How?"
"I… I placed them in front of the man!"
"In front of him? On the ground or in his hands?"
"On… On the ground!"
"Why would you place them on the ground in front of him?"
"I… I… I let him wash our plates before sending them back." Probably due to his lack of confidence in front of Captain Kerlin, despite his usual defiant attitude, he lowered his voice.
"What did that man say?"
"Nothing… he didn't say anything!" Sharon knew that Zhang Tie was in the nearby matrix and could show up at any moment to refute his lies in public; therefore, he dared not to tell any lies.
"What happened then?"
"Then…" Sharon gazed at Captain Kerlin dejectedly. "Then I left…"
"I know what you're trying to say. You're trying to say that since you threw several plates in front of him and he ignored your orders to wash the plates, he should be the one to be whipped in your place? Do you feel wronged? In your eyes, since that man refused your orders, do you feel insulted? Do you feel like he should take responsibility for what happened? If you threw your plates in front of me, does that mean I would be the man who should be whipped?" The one-eyed man's face was emotionless; however, his words made the look on Glaze's group worsen. They didn't speak again.
"What a good excuse! Unfortunately, you are not powerful enough to write your bastard logic into the laws and rules of Blackhot City!" With a cold smile on his face, he added, "Therefore, you deserve the six lashings!"
...
Afterward, all the horny students in the matrix formations began to appreciate the art of punishment by the most terrifying one-eyed man in Blackhot City. In the eyes of the students, his lashings were always the cruelest and most horrible punishment available in the Seventh National Middle School in Blackhot City. He wouldn't use too much strength until his final lashing; although it would hurt greatly, it would not wound the veins, bones, or innards. Today, all the other horny students heard 24 screams and, like eating a popsicle, felt refreshed about what had happened. Then the group of four led by Glaze was carried away from the playground by the law enforcement members of the school under the glare of the public. Unfortunately, they had passed out.
"That was motherf*cking cool!" After being oppressed by the group of four led by Glaze for so long, this was what all the horny undergraduates thought.
Although Zhang Tie still felt pain all over, after the morning break, he gritted his teeth as he finished the afternoon training.
This afternoon, there were no battle cries heard from the training ground. Compared to before, all the horny students were more lively. During the breaks, they were discussing about who was the hero. Ever since Glaze had been promoted to LV 2, he had always been unruly at school, causing nobody to dare act against him. Unexpectedly, he has encountered such an event.
With the exception of Zhang Tie and Barley, every member of the Hit-Plane Brotherhood also became excited. Zhang Tie was thinking about how Glaze's group would take revenge for the 24 lashings they had to suffer. Those bastards would definitely take revenge more ferociously.
"It looks like I won't have to worry about not having enough Iron Body Fruits later!" Zhang Tie mocked himself as he thought about it helplessly.
Fatty Barley was also not that excited; he had turned gloomy ever since he heard Sharon's words.
Every member of the Hit-Plane Brotherhood knew that Zhang Tie would stay in the small woods after lunch. As Barley was good at observing others' expression, he might have already noticed something from his expression, thus Zhang Tie felt that Barley might already know that he was the supposed "hero"…
...
After school, Zhang Tie asked the other members of the Hit-Plane Brotherhood to wait for him in the classroom for a while. He then decided to calmly declare his decision...
"What… Bighead, you want to leave our Hit-Plane Brotherhood?" Doug gazed at Zhang Tie in surprise. "Why? What's happening? We will help you be a real man next week!"
Same as Doug, Hista and Sharwin were also shocked. Bagdad was filled with anger as he clenched his fists.
"I might have been accustomed to be alone, so please respect my decision…" Forcing a smile, Zhang Tie didn't say anything as he walked out the classroom, leaving behind the members of the Hit-Plane Brotherhood in the classroom, who were blankly staring at each other.
"This bastard, I should have punched him one more time!" Bagdad fiercely punched a wall in the classroom, resulting in a few pieces of limestone falling down...
"Even though we treated him as our good brother… Pah..." Doug spat towards the door. "It seems he didn't want to be our brother at all!"
"What's wrong?" Sharwin looked at them.
"How could he be so foolish to leave our brotherhood before enjoying the coming-of-age ceremony?" Hista couldn't understand.
Leit rolled his eyes and stared at Barley, who was silent and had lowered his head, as he said nothing. Seeing Barley's actions, they all became silent as well. Then, Barley raised his head and glanced at them.
"I have already realized it back in the playground. What Bighead did has truly verified my judgment of him. You're all mistaken about him. He was leaving our brotherhood because he doesn't want to stir up trouble for us!"
"Trouble, you mean…" Sharwin seemed to have realized it.
"Bighead was that hero. He was the man who refused to wash dining plates for the Glaze's group and made them so miserable today!" Barley explained all of a sudden, shocking everyone else. "Glaze's group will definitely take revenge on him. Zhang Tie didn't want us to get involved, that's why he chose to leave!"
Barley glanced at each one of them. "Glaze's group will probably take revenge on BigHead — and it will definitely be fierce! As Bighead is one of our Brotherhood, we have to suffer the revenge together with him. As this concerns our personal interests and safety, nobody could make decisions for others; therefore, I want to hear your opinions. If we treasure Bighead as our brother, we should face revenge together with him. If not, we are all safe and can just pretend that nothing has happened. We will raise our hands to make the final decision in five minutes!"
At this point in time, every member of the Hit-Plane Brotherhood became silent
...
Five minutes later, Barley glanced at them solemnly. "Those who agree to face the revenge together with Bighead, raise your hands!"
The others looked at each other and nobody spoke.
"Well, since you're all silent, I will be the first to decide. Although Bighead broke my nose before and got me the nickname 'mucus mucilage', I feel that he is righteous, that's why..." Doug scrunched his nose. "I want to help him…"
Doug raised up his hand…
"Is Glaze, a LV 2 fighter, that great? I will surpass him sooner or later!" Bagdad cooly raised his hand as well...
"If we abandoned our brother just because of such a small problem, wouldn't that mean we would disband our brotherhood in front of bigger difficulties?" Hista spoke as he raised his hand.
"I feel like this guy always does the unexpected. I also feel like he is someone who wouldn't escape in front of a Red-scarf Burglar and would never push us into trouble, much like what he did today. He might have a solution. That's why I'm relieved to have a brother like him!" saying this, Leit shrugged his shoulders and raised his hands.
"Since all of you have decided to stand on Zhang Tie's side, there's no way I can back down now. And don't all of you feel cool today?" Sharwin smiled coyly and raised up his hand as well.
Just as everyone cast their eyes on the solemn looking Barley, he finally showed a brilliant smile and raised his hand. "If our brotherhood wants to get a foothold in Blackhot City, then Glaze's group will be our first milestone. If we don't face troubles together, how could we be called brothers? If we don't experience these trials together, how could we be called brothers?? Speaking of this, I really have to thank Bighead. I've been wanting an opportunity to test our loyalty to the Hit-Plane Brotherhood, and unexpectedly, here is the opportunity!"
The members stared at each other as their eyes gradually glittered. Through this difficult and unanimous choice, they all felt much closer to each other. Filled with bravery and confidence, each one of them felt warm all over their bodies...
"What is the slogan of our brotherhood?" seeing everybody growing more and more ambitious, Barley shouted.
"Hit the plane!" Doug exclaimed. At the same time, everybody turned and glared at him. Doug instantly felt that this joke was not appropriate and shrunk himself.
"One more time, our slogan is!" Barley shouted again.
"Anyone who gives our brothers trouble will be in trouble!" the horny students growled in unison...
Chapter 40: Plot and Rat Poison
Translator: WQL Editor: Geoffrey
Zhang Tie didn't know what had happened in the classroom after he left, as he had already walked out of the gate of the Seventh National Middle School by then.
Life was sometimes unfortunate like this:. While you're sitting under a tree in a daze, someone suddenly throws some messy plates in front of you. As a result, you have to make a choice — being an unpaid dishwasher or being beaten to death.
F*ck! The one-eyed man's words were correct: "When faced with someone, if you refuse their request, then they would feel like you insulted them." Even now, I will insult you. Let's see whether you dare to bite me or not!
The moment he went out of the school gate, Zhang Tie coincidentally encountered the one-eyed man. Naturally, as it seemed like the two had to walk on the same road for a while, he couldn't just pretend to not have seen him and pass him.
"Captain Kerlin, are you going to the fighting club?" Zhang Tie took the initiative and greeted him, as it was not a secret that Captain Kerlin was a part-time coach in the Iron Thorns Fighting Club.
Captain Kerlin knew that Zhang Tie performed well yesterday in the Fighting Club, thus he felt that Zhang Tie was manly enough as his impression of him has begun to improve. He felt like he had made the right decision. "Yea, I'm heading to the fighting club. I heard that you have another part-time job at the grocery store?"
Captain Kerlin didn't have an inkling that Zhang Tie was that "hero" nor was he interested. For Captain Kerlin, he believed that everyone should take care of themselves. Even now when the "hero" dared to stir up trouble with Glaze's group, he should be brave and face it. Besides, there were so many students at school and Captain Kerlin was not their babysitter.
Zhang Tie knew the temperament of the one-eyed man; therefore, he didn't mention what had happened at noon. Instead, he talked about something else with Captain Kerlin.
"Yea, it was introduced to me by my family. I've already worked there for a long time!"
"How do you feel about working over there?"
"The boss is kind, and I can learn a lot…"
They kept talking and walking in this manner…
When they were far away, Glaze's group appeared from behind a tree close to the school gate dejectedly. Seeing the backs of Zhang Tie and Captain Kerlin, they gritted their teeth.
"What the f*ck! That guy is walking really close with the one-eyed man. It seems that they are very close!" Sharon said dejectedly. Zhang Tie grabbed Glaze's opportunity to perform in front of Miss Daina, so Glaze wanted to take revenge on him. This explains what had happened at noon. In Glaze's mind, he should be the only star in Seventh National Middle School. This was the most critical stage that determined his future, and nobody else should be able to match him. Naturally, he thought it would be easy to bully someone weaker than him. They never thought that Zhang Tie would refuse, resulting in them suffering the darkest afternoon of their lives.
Hearing what Sharon said, everybody frowned. At the same time, from the fresh whip wounds on their backs came a sharp pain that was similar to rubbing salt in a wound, reminding them of the insults they had suffered.
"If we deal with this guy, Captain Kerlin would definitely help him. He probably refused to listen to our orders at noon because he found someone to rely on — Captain Kerlin. We'll have to plan it well before setting him up!" Garner complained loudly.
"Once he leaves school, Captain Kerlin would not find any evidence. We would have more than enough time to deal with him, humph… humph…" Zuhair sneered.
"What's your plan?" Sharon asked Zuhair.
Zuhair looked around. The others instantly felt that the plan must be terrifying. Thus, they moved back behind the tree and listened to Zuhair's plan.
"If we do this, the result would be hard to control!" Zuhair looked at Glaze and waited for his final decision.
"Won't… this be… somewhat excessive? I just want to fiercely beat him. After all, we are… classmates… and this plan might kill him!" Garner, who was obviously startled by Zuhair's scheme, staggered.
"What's wrong? Garner, you wanna back out?" Sharon stared at him coldly. "Have the wounds on your back recovered so soon?
"Garner, you are still naïve. 'Classmate' is worth nothing in this age!" Zuhair sneered.
"I… I… I mean…" Before Garner finished explaining, his neck had already been tightly gripped by one of Glaze's hand. The huge physical difference between Glaze, a LV 2 fighter, and a common student was obvious. Garner's feet were already in the air as his face gradually turned red, slowly showing a miserable expression.
"What's there to explain?" Glaze sneered. Garner found it increasingly difficult to breathe as he struggled while desperately waving his hands. Glaze then loosened his hand, resulting in Garner kneeling on the ground as he coughed heavily.
"So we've made the final decision. He will have few days to show off. During the surviving training, I will give him a lesson he'll never forget…" Glaze showed a terrifying and cruel expression. The three people by him showed obscene smiles, either sincerely or reluctantly.
So what if the result was uncontrollable? Worst case scenario, a death of a black-haired kid that nobody would care about. Deaths happened every day in Blackhot City.
Zhang Tie usually called them horny students at school because he felt that everybody his age in the Seventh National Middle School were like rutting calves; however, he never thought that there were true emotionless horny students like them.
...
When Zhang Tie entered the grocery store, he found Donder busily greeting three guests at the same time. At the sight of Zhang Tie, Donder obviously heaved a sigh of relief…
"Show them our 'powerful rat poison'…" Donder said to Zhang Tie...
Several minutes later, the three guests left. Donder then counted the gold coins with a big smile.
Zhang Tie realized that the number of magistrates and soldiers on patrol neighboring the railway station has increased since the message concerning the Red-Scarf Burglars spread. Despite the news being spread, Donder's grocery store has had more guests than before — at least 20 percent more than before. Various goods, even goods used to do bad deeds, sold well. Among the bestsellers, the 'powerful rat poison' had the highest sales volume. It was said that the 'powerful rat poison' was a raw material of the most terrifying weapon. Before the Catastrophe, anybody who was close to it would endanger their lives, even if it was just within the same room. His teachers said that it was called "radioactive substance" before the Catastrophe. It was the Catastrophe and the mysterious particle carried by the Star of God that let the "radioactive substances' lose their radioactive energy and made its basic properties change. As a result, they could no longer be used to produce the most terrifying weapons; however, its toxic property was preserved. Prior to the Catastrophe, it required people to adopt extremely sophisticated means to extract the substance, but after the Catastrophe, many people found the substance among the ores underground due to large geographic movements. The natural, virulent mineral ore was called "Monster's Store" and was extremely toxic after being ground into powder. In the history of the Blackson Human Clan Corridor, this "rat poison" was used by evil organizations to instigate malicious events that led to almost ten thousand wounded or deaths. Therefore, among the official regulations in the Blackhot City, this substance was specially regulated. In fact, for professional adventurers and pioneers who were striving to explore the land and find new places for humans to live, this substance was sharp weapon against low-level magical beasts and monsters. By putting just a bit of "rat poison" on their simple bait, it was possible to send several magical beasts to their deaths. After being simply extracted, the poison could be smeared onto weapons, making them more powerful. That was why the substance could never be completely forbidden. Although it was forbidden to sell in ordinary stores, the government of Blackhot City just kept one eye closed on it, as they could not completely forbid it.
People named it as "rat poison" so that it could be properly advertised in public. Naturally, it could be found in a grocery neighboring the railway station where passengers from all walks of life passed. Donder sold both the real "rat poison" and the so-called "rat poison" that could not only kill those rats at home but also kill those large, terrifying mutated rats outside the gates of the city. This substance was colorless and tasteless. Without using special means or reaching at least LV 10, a level where one would develop very sharp senses and would be able to use spiritual observation, no man or magical beast would be able to notice it. That's how terrifying this powerful "rat poison" was.
Ever since the curfew in Blackhot City had been imposed in hopes to protect its residents from the Red-Scarf Burglars, the sales as well as the price of the "powerful rat poison" in Donder's grocery store had increased from selling 5 to 6 vials per month at 75 silver per vial to more than 3 or 5 vials per day at 1 gold per vial. Most of the buyers were commoners. Thinking of what had happened at school today and the potential revenge, Zhang Tie became dejected…
Chapter 41: The Vicious Rule of Human Nature
Translator: WQL Editor: Geoffrey
"Boy, what's wrong with you? Why do you look so bad?" Donder didn't lay in the lounge; instead, he moved forward and asked Zhang Tie after seeing off two batches of guests as Zhang Tie closed his account book.
"F*ck! Is every fatty good at observing others?" Zhang Tie felt strange when he associated the Fatty Barley to the boss of the grocery store in front of him.
Forcing a smile, Zhang Tie poured out what had happened at school. Soon after, he finished and felt much better.
"Heh… heh…" Donder smiled obscenely and raised his thumb towards Zhang Tie. "It's really unimaginable that you are so tough! Do you regret it?"
"Motherf*cker, those bastards... I would wash plates for my friends, for the roadside beggars, but I would never do it for those bastards! Let's see if they dare to bite off my d*ck if I don't do it!" Being familiar with Donder, Zhang Tie felt natural to lose his temper in front of him. "Have you ever met motherf*ckers like them before?" Zhang Tie then asked the fatty for his suggestions and countermeasures. As Zhang Tie has already worked for him for a long time, he saw the fatty as a teacher who had taught him a lot. At the very least, Donder was much more experienced than he was.
"For cases like these, everybody has the chance to encounter people like them since there are so many defiant bastards in this world. You could just be sitting there peacefully and someone else might be aggressive towards you out of the blue. They don't feel comfortable until they have fiercely kicked your face. Encountering bastards like this, you should beat them fiercely. Do you know what mistake you made this afternoon?" Donder asked Zhang Tie.
"What mistake?"
"Since you have decided to be their opponent, you should use every possible means to deal with them. Young man, you are pretending to be tough, but inside, you are soft-hearted and hesitant!"
Hearing this, Zhang Tie's eyes widened. He had set them up so ferociously, yet Donder still called him soft-hearted and hesitant.
"Since you've become their opponent, you have to slap them ten times instead of once!" Donder criticized Zhang Tie relentlessly. "You think those bastards would thank you for only slapping them once? If I was in your position, I would quietly throw their plates into the toilet and set them up — and I would never admit to doing so! However, you simply left their plates and did nothing. You tell me, how would that one-eyed man respond if he found those plates in the toilet? What punishment would the school give them? No matter what, they were the one who threw the plates, not you. So what are you afraid of?"
Zhang Tie was stunned. He muttered to himself, "It seems that if I were to do what he suggested, Glaze's group would be accused of 'purposely stealing public property' and 'damaging the reputation of the school' to some degree. Even though there was no rule about "do not disgust others", nobody knew how hard the one-eyed man would whip them and how many days they would have to stay on the bed. Am I actually soft-hearted?"
"And here is another mistake!" Donder added.
"Another one?" Zhang Tie stared at Donder innocently.
"Since those guys have been lashed to death, their overall strength should be greatly reduced. At this moment, you should call your buddies or directly instigate people who are usually dissatisfied with Glaze's group and directly cripple them. You have to make them fear you and lose the ability to take revenge on you. Even if you crippled one of them, this disturbance would involve a large amount of people and you have yet to graduate. They were also the first to be in the wrong and had bullied so many students. That's why you would not assume all the responsibilities by yourself — many other people would defend you!"
Zhang Tie became speechless. In front of Donder, he felt as if he was as innocent as a tiny white rabbit. The boss was so confident that one of his fingers almost poked Zhang Tie's forehead. From his excitement, Donder's saliva even flew onto Zhang Tie's face. "You should know that your third mistake is unforgivable. You shouldn't have left that Hit-Plane Brotherhood without explaining your reasoning. You idiot! Why not use your buddies? Is it that fun to cut off your protection when facing danger? Even a pig is a hundred times smarter than you. The correct solution is to tell your buddies about the conflict between you and those bastards and let them help you beat those bastards to death after school. If they don't dare to do it, it would be their fault and they would feel sorry for you in the future. However, you left without any explanation. That's why you're the one in the wrong. If they don't know the reason, they might even despise you and might even turn into your enemy…" Donder was so excited that he directly poked Zhang Tie's forehead with his finger. "Whether your head had been kicked bad by a donkey or being squeezed by the door?"
Hearing Donder's analysis, Zhang Tie felt like he lost face, so much so that he wanted to bury his head in his knees. Previously, Zhang Tie thought that what he had done was great and manly; however, hearing Donder's analysis, he felt that he was truly an idiot. According to Donder's suggestions, he should have united with the other horny undergraduate students who were dissatisfied with Glaze's group, surrounding those bastards with sticks and bars in hand and beating them until they beg for forgiveness. In this way, he would even be able to cripple them directly. If they were lucky, the Hit-Plane Brotherhood could recruit new members and develop quickly. "Why didn't I realize this?" Zhang Tie felt very regretful.
Cleaning the saliva on his face, Zhang Tie stared at Donder, who had cast a contemptuous look at him. Zhang Tie became blank and scratched his head. "What should I do now?"
"What should you do? You have already missed the best opportunity. When you arrive at school tomorrow, explain why you took the initiative and left the Hit-Plane Brotherhood to the members. At the very least, you should beg for forgiveness and eliminate them as a potential risk. Then it depends on your luck. Keep one rule in mind: never think that your opponent and enemy are as kind as you, and never think that they would follow those motherf*cking ethical rules like you. In this world, human beings are the most terrifying existence, and the number of people killed by humans is much more than the number killed by alien clans. You should take care of yourself. It doesn't matter if you can't beat Glaze. You should not throw an egg against a rock. If you have more friends than him, unite your friends to beat him. If you had a high social status, use your power to control him. If you are richer than him, use your money to buy him. If you are smarter than him, set him up. If you are patient enough, wait for an opportunity to attack him. If you are shameless enough, deceive him using shameless means. For instance, kneel down in front of him and wait for their punishment. Afterward, you can join your opponents, gaining their trust and favor. At the critical moment, set them up so that they no longer have any opportunities to take revenge. You should know in which aspect you are better than him. You should use your advantage to play him to death. If you cannot match him in every aspect, just stay far away from him. This is the rule in this world. Am I clear?" Donder rarely had an opportunity to teach anyone; therefore, he seized this opportunity to shoot all his knowledge onto Zhang Tie's face like arrows shot from the steam-powered crossbows installed on the city walls of Blackhot City.
As if meeting this vicious boss for the first time, Zhang Tie stared at Donder's expression for a long while, almost causing the fatty to be irritated. Intensely nodding, he said in a shameful way, "I understand a bit!"
"Think over it carefully. On the Oriental Continent, what I said was the essence of the Vicious Rule of Human Nature — a mysterious knowledge among the Chinese clan that is used to deal with bastards and thugs!" Donder sharply winked, causing the persuasiveness of his words to weaken.
The Vicious Rule of Human Nature? It only seemed like being shameless and vicious. Does this count as mysterious knowledge? Although Zhang Tie severely doubted Donder's words, he felt Donder's words were also reasonable. "Well, I won't worry about it. I'll just go with the flow. In the worst case scenario, I would just be beaten a few times." Thinking of the first Leakless Fruit that would be ripe tonight, Zhang Tie's heart started to pound.