Madman!

Chapter 65: The Great Web of Rules

After the meeting concluded, Chen Wujun left with the bag in hand, his heart burning with excitement.

In the past, he would fight tooth and nail just to snatch a few tens of thousands.

This time, his share alone was 1.2 million.

For a young man from the Walled City, this was an astronomical figure.

It was enough to buy a unit in a high-end community like Mei Foo Sun Chuen—an astronomical sum capable of lifting his family out of the Walled City entirely.

'Between the few of us, we split... 4.4 million. We handed over 5 million to the company. Counting those IOUs, Senior Sister will have at least ten million left.'

'Plus, the four loan shark companies outside the Walled City will bring in a steady stream of revenue.'

'Meanwhile, Master Xin just had to move his lips to pocket 5 million!'

'And those other gangs... they did nothing at all, yet they received twelve loan shark companies along with the corresponding market share...'

'The higher the status, the higher the income. They only need to speak to get paid... unlike us, who still have to fight with our lives on the line.'A vague realization dawned in Chen Wujun's mind.

'Master Xin, along with those gang Dragon Heads... they form the rules of the East District 9 underworld. They are both the makers and the enforcers of the rules... Even with Senior Sister's immense strength, she cannot break them.'

He suddenly realized that under this system, strength was merely an admission ticket.

Everyone had to abide by these rules.

Unless one's strength was great enough to shatter and ignore all rules completely...

This was the first time he had clearly touched and felt the existence of this invisible web.

Upon arriving at the gambling den, Chen Wujun took out eighty thousand from the bag and tossed it to Ah Fei and Curry. "One stack for each of you. Give everyone else three thousand each. Those who were injured get an extra three thousand, and full pay while they recover."

"Thanks, Brother Jun!" Ah Fei grinned immediately, turning to call the boys in from outside to distribute the cash one by one.

Chen Wujun felt good. In his current position, he finally had the power to distribute wealth.

Once the money was handed out, Chen Wujun kept Ah Fei and Curry behind. "Get me a few bank cards. I need reliable ones—preferably the kind where the person has vanished."

With such a large sum of cash on hand, he didn't feel safe leaving it anywhere. Securing bank cards was an urgent priority.

"I know a guy who can get cards. He's a gigolo who specializes in scamming prostitutes and stowaways. He has quite a few clean identities. Low-tier cards are 300, mid-tier are 1,000, and top-tier cards go for 3,000!" Curry explained.

"Brother Jun, the kind where the person has disappeared... those are the top-tier cards."

Cards on the black market were divided into three categories. The first was the most ordinary kind, which could be reported lost or frozen by the police at any time; these were only worth 300.

Mid-tier cards were opened by brokers using real identities, but the original owners were unaware of them. These remained dormant and were relatively safe for a period of time.

Top-tier cards belonged to people who had died unexpectedly or gone missing—individuals who had evaporated from the world. The card owners would never appear to report the loss.

These were expensive; a single card cost 3,000.

Chen Wujun's eyelids twitched at the price.

Three thousand for a single bank card.

Beyond what he currently dabbled in and understood, this Walled City contained a vast, gray industry touching upon every aspect of life.

As the saying goes, snakes have their paths and rats have their trails.

There was no telling how many people were links in these gray industrial chains.

"Get ten top-tier cards. I want them from major banks." Chen Wujun pulled out three stacks of bills and tossed them to Curry.

These bank cards weren't cheap, but they were necessary.

The next day, Curry brought back three cards first. Chen Wujun immediately deposited half the money.

Over the following few days, the ten cards arrived successively. Only after dispersing and depositing all the cash did Chen Wujun finally relax.

'Adding the money previously taken from the loan sharks, plus the monthly dividends from the gambling den, I now have 1.2 million left... Maybe I should buy a car... After all, I won't always be staying inside the Walled City. Aside from that, I don't know what to do with the rest. Perhaps I should find somewhere to invest, but unfortunately, I don't know anything about that...'

Back when he was in school, he had always envied the kids who were driven to and from school, especially those whose parents came to pick them up in cars.

Now that he had the means, his immediate thought was to buy a vehicle.

"Forget it. I can think about that after the duel." Chen Wujun tossed the ideas of cars and investments aside.

'My Kung Fu has reached a plateau. Training alone won't improve it much more right now; I need human punching bags.'

'I also need to train my resistance to blows! When ordinary people fight, they exchange punches and kicks, trading blows back and forth. But with martial arts experts, it's different. Whether it's New Arts or Old Arts masters, their strength is immense and their attack power is devastating. In a clash, victory or defeat is decided in just one or two hits.'

'Back then, I used drugs while constantly striking my knees and elbows against the pell. The wounds healed and grew repeatedly until the bones in my knees and elbows became like steel. If I can train the rest of my body to that level, I won't be critically injured immediately if I take a hit or two during a fight.'

'But I need to ask Master about this... I'll ask him the day after tomorrow, on Tuesday.'

With this in mind, Chen Wujun called Ah Fei. "Bring a few of the boys who represent themselves well. Wait for me at Guangming Street."

"Brother Jun, do we need to bring tools?"

"No need!"

After hanging up, Chen Wujun ate some instant noodles Ah Yue had cooked, along with some spiced beef. He then changed into a tracksuit and went downstairs. After waiting a moment at the intersection of Longjin Street and Guangming Street, he saw Ah Fei arriving with four subordinates.

"Brother Jun, what do you need us to do?"

"Nothing much, just help me train!" Chen Wujun said.

"No problem!" Hearing this, Ah Fei slapped his chest loudly, grinning. Then, remembering something, his expression suddenly looked constipated. "Brother Jun, let's agree on one thing—no hitting the crotch!"

"I still need that to carry on the family line!"

Ah Fei had a vivid memory of the day Chen Wujun crushed that New Arts expert's testicle in the gambling den.

"Don't worry!" Chen Wujun smiled, leading the group into the martial arts hall.

Senior Brother Li was still sitting in his chair drinking tea like a great Buddha; he was like this whether Chen Wujun was present or not.

However, Chen Wujun knew very well that from top to bottom, no one in his sect was benevolent.

Not his Master, not his Senior Sister, and not himself.

Everything had to be fought for and seized by one's own hand.

What about Senior Brother Li?

"Senior Brother, I brought a few people to help me practice!" Chen Wujun greeted him.

Glancing around, he saw Shu Fen wearing old clothes, sweeping the corner of the hall. Upon seeing him, she placed her hand over her chest and gave a tiny, subtle wave.

The group moved to one side. Chen Wujun said to a subordinate, "Come, hit me."

"Watch out, Brother Jun!" the subordinate warned.

He assumed a modern fighting stance and threw a punch at Chen Wujun.

Chen Wujun instantly spotted the opening under his armpit. Using the Swallow Skimming Water footwork, he ducked under the arm and slapped the man's lower back with a backhand strike.

"Keep going!" Chen Wujun ordered immediately when the subordinate stopped.

This time, the subordinate threw two probing jabs before suddenly launching a whip kick at Chen Wujun's thigh.

at the moment the kick launched, Chen Wujun stepped in, crashing into the man's guard. With a double palm strike, he shoved the man flying away, rolling across the floor like a gourd.

Chen Wujun turned to the others. "All of you, come at me together."

"Careful, Brother Jun." The subordinates could see Chen Wujun was holding back and not using full force. They formed a circle, surrounding him.

One of them kicked straight at him. Chen Wujun slid his feet, spun his body, and entered the man's guard. With a shake of his body, he threw his shoulders and arms outward, sending the man flying with just the force of his shoulders and upper arms. Simultaneously, his forearm and palm lashed out like a whip toward the subordinate's crotch, though he retracted the strike the instant it made contact.

The subordinate only saw a blur before he was sent flying.

Watching from the side, Ah Fei broke out in a cold sweat.

Chen Wujun fought too dirty; he aimed for the lower body at every opportunity.

If he hadn't pulled back in time, that subordinate's eggs would have been scrambled.

The four subordinates attacking together didn't put much pressure on Chen Wujun. It wasn't until Ah Fei joined the fray that Chen Wujun finally felt some strain.

Even though each subordinate was far weaker than him, their sheer numbers meant he had to watch his front while exposing his back—he didn't have eyes in the back of his head.

Chen Wujun focused his mind. The fine hairs on his body stood on end as he entered the state of As If Facing a Great Enemy.

His senses became extremely acute. The trajectories of the others' movements, the sound of their shoes rubbing against the floor, and even the rhythm of their breathing before they exerted force all became abnormally clear.