Chapter 36

From childhood to adulthood, Zhang Tie, who had always led a simple and even monotonous life, once again came to the Iron Thorn Combat Hall on Mingguang Street after school on Wednesday. For Zhang Tie, the Iron Thorn Combat Hall had a special significance in his life, transforming his linear existence into a triangular one. Between home and school, there was now an additional point, Tang De's grocery store being one, and the Iron Thorn Combat Hall being another. These two points almost doubled his social circle. Some people might be driven mad by such a mechanical lifestyle, but Zhang Tie had lived this way for over a decade without feeling anything was wrong. From a young age, he knew that in this world, only a few had the power to choose their own way of life. Clearly, he, born to ordinary parents in Heiyan City, did not have that right. In any era, only a few people could live a life of grandeur, freedom, and glory, while the majority, from birth to death, were like defective products on a factory assembly line, never getting a chance to see the world beyond the factory before being scrapped and melted down.

A school like the Seventh National Middle School in Heiyan City was undoubtedly one such assembly line. Most of the products from this line would eventually enter other assembly lines like the military, factories, or farms, and finally end up in the crematorium. This was the life journey of most people. If nothing unexpected happened, he might follow the same path.

In the past two days, Zhang Tie found his mind much clearer, thinking about many things he had never considered before. Unwilling to become a shoddily made product on the assembly line, he and others like Bali formed the Airplane Brotherhood, silently fighting against their fate. Similarly, to escape the assembly line, Gules worked hard at school and became a second-level warrior at a young age. Countless others, also to escape the assembly line, donned the gear of pioneers and risked their lives for an uncertain future, one after another venturing into the black unknown regions on the map, never to return.

As he stepped onto Mingguang Street, the last image in Zhang Tie's mind was of an old man he had met while working at the grocery store. The man, with completely white hair and beard, was in his twilight years but still wore the gear of a pioneer. After exchanging some items at the store, he sat by the door, holding a broken sword, smiling, drinking, and watching the sunset. After a while, he stood up, tightened his belt, and walked back to the train station, never to be seen again.

Perhaps it was the old man's peaceful and content smile in the sunset that contrasted so starkly with his circumstances that left a deep impression on Zhang Tie. At the time, he couldn't understand the strange expression on the old man's face as he sat on the ground, drinking cheap wine, and watching the sunset. But now, he vaguely understood the pride and contentment behind that smile—“I have lived my life to the fullest!”

Everyone in this era was striving. Some were working hard to become top-quality products on the assembly line to get better treatment, some were trying to escape the assembly line regardless of the risks, and others were striving to become the owners of the assembly line. Those who already owned it wanted more.

The last time he came to Mingguang Street, everything here made him feel out of place and uncomfortable. This time, as he looked at the golden and splendid street, he suddenly had a realization—his discomfort came from the natural timidity and lack of confidence of a half-finished product when facing the owners and managers of the assembly line. This was the game rule of the city. Until he could break free from the identity of an ordinary half-finished product in others' eyes, everything on this street would continue to pressure him.

He seemed to be striving to transform from an ordinary half-finished product to a high-quality one. Ha... ha... half-finished product? To hell with that. If anyone called him that, his mother would definitely disagree. In her eyes, he was the most precious treasure in the world. There were only a few people whose opinions he needed to care about. As for what others thought of him, it had nothing to do with him. Why should he pretend to be a half-finished product just to cater to their perceptions?

Thinking of how, until two years ago, his mother had only stopped calling him "treasure" after his firm protest and started calling him "Guoguo," a smile appeared on Zhang Tie's lips. Then, with a more confident and appreciative pace, he walked through the dazzling sights of Mingguang Street and arrived at No. 18, the Iron Thorn Combat Hall.

When Zhang Tie returned to the Iron Thorn Combat Hall, the four guards at the gate glanced at him and let him in without stopping him as they did last time. Zhang Tie enviously looked at the shiny full-body armor on the guards. Such armor had incredible defensive capabilities, similar to the full-body armor of a standard heavy cavalryman, weighing over 70 kilograms. Wearing such armor not only looked impressive but also proved one's strength. Those who could move freely in such armor were at least level 5. Having four level 5 warriors guarding the gate demonstrated the formidable strength of the Iron Thorn Combat Hall.

Walking through the gate and past the fountain, he returned to the reception desk. With a new understanding, Zhang Tie finally realized why Mary, the beautiful receptionist, had "praised him for his ambition" last time—a woman who was trying to escape the assembly line through her beauty and external conditions naturally didn't want to be associated with someone who was still stuck on the assembly line and had no future. His behavior towards her last time seemed a bit thuggish and excessive.

Just as a hint of regret surfaced in his mind, he turned the corner of the fountain and saw the row of distinctive beauties at the reception desk. Unlike last time when they quickly ignored him, this time, as soon as he walked in, all eyes were on him. Eighty percent of the gazes were filled with disdain and contempt, while the remaining twenty percent were curious. The women who looked at him with disdain and contempt were easy to identify; they would glare at him for a moment, then turn their heads away like a proud swan seeing a "ambitious" toad, never looking at him again. The twenty percent of curious gazes, however, watched him with a smile that was both mocking and intrigued.

Mary wasn't there? Zhang Tie scanned the beauties behind the reception desk and quickly put his right hand in his pocket to hold down the misbehaving part. The beauties were all wearing the work uniforms here—tight tops with low necklines and loose sports pants. At a glance, there were all kinds of white, soft, and undulating curves, almost making him nosebleed.

No one greeted him, and Zhang Tie didn't want to embarrass himself, so he walked past the reception desk without a word. After a few steps, he heard the whispers behind him.

"This is just a kid, how could he be as bad as you say?"

"Don't judge a book by its cover. These kids nowadays are all little devils. Mary said this guy is disgusting, even worse than the customers. He tried to molest her the first time and made lewd gestures at us!"

"Really? He doesn't seem like it!"

"Did Ona take a liking to him? You'll know if you try!"

Then came a burst of women's laughter...

Damn, Zhang Tie knew his image among these women was completely ruined.

Since it was his second visit, he didn't need to report to Manager Hans but only to Supervisor Beck. Supervisor Beck was the one Zhang Tie had met in Manager Hans's office last time. His main responsibility was to manage the level 1 customers, the rich and powerful kids, and as their human punching bags, Zhang Tie naturally fell under his jurisdiction. Perhaps due to his frequent dealings with these kids, Supervisor Beck had a habit of being overly talkative, sometimes repeating the same thing several times without realizing it.

When Zhang Tie reported to him, Supervisor Beck seemed very pleased and chattered for over half an hour in his small office, going over all the things Zhang Tie should pay attention to, such as the areas he could and couldn't go in the combat hall, the etiquette he should observe with customers, and the principles to follow during "sparring." These were all simple matters, but Supervisor Beck repeated them twice.

After half an hour, as Supervisor Beck started to repeat everything for the third time, Zhang Tie felt his head spinning and quickly interrupted.

"Um, Supervisor, I understand everything you said. Should I go take a shower, change into my uniform, and wait for the customers in the rest area?"

"Oh..." Supervisor Beck looked at the clock on the wall, then opened a drawer and threw a key with a good tag to Zhang Tie. "This is the key to your locker. You can store your personal items there. The combat hall provides two sets of training uniforms. You can change into a new one each time you come, and you can hand over the used ones to the reception desk, where someone will wash them for you. The combat hall provides a new pair of socks every week. These are all part of the benefits. Work hard, young man..."

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