Iron Curtain

"Going by the time, the people from the North Wind Consortium should already be at the police station. The first thing I did after it happened was call the North Wind Martial Arts School. Only then did I call the police."

"During that call, I made a point of telling them one thing: I killed a Fierce Martial Arts fighter, crushing him head-on."

"That matters, because it means I'm valuable to the North Wind Martial Arts School and the North Wind Consortium."

"As for checking the deceased's identity, that sort of thing is really simple for a consortium."

Duan Jun opened his mouth, as if to say something, but Xia Lin interrupted him again.

"Back to the law. Surely you know the laws here are made by the consortiums?"

"The various consortiums make up the upper ranks of this world. They've divided up all the resources and power. Take this police station, for example. The reason it can operate, the reason you get paid, and the reason you received compulsory education as a child are entirely because the consortiums funded them."

"From birth to death, you can never escape the consortiums' influence."

Duan Jun fell silent.

After a long while, he finally said haltingly, "The North Wind Consortium isn't that powerful."

"But it's still a consortium, and a member of the Supreme Committee."

Duan Jun slowly closed his eyes and said nothing.

Xia Lin continued, "As the makers of the law, the consortiums stand above it."

"And I'm useful to the North Wind Consortium, so all it takes for me to escape punishment under the law is a word from them."

"You say I killed five people... All right, I did kill five people. But so what? In North Wind's eyes, I killed a Fierce Martial Arts fighter. I can fight for them in the Savage Martial Arena, and even win. Those five people are just a number, a bunch of nameless nobodies."

"Other than you, nobody cares whether nobodies live or die."

Expressionless, Xia Lin leaned close to Duan Jun, almost pressing their faces together as he spoke.

"In a few dozen seconds, that old cop from before will open the door and tell you to take off my handcuffs. Then I'll leave with the people from the North Wind Consortium."

"I'll have a good meal, a feast more lavish than anything you may ever have seen in your life. Then I'll move into a big house hundreds of square meters in size, with a soft bed, red wine that's been left to breathe, intoxicating incense, a professional butler, a chef, attendants, and a masseur. If I feel like it, I can even find a few girls of different types to spend a boring night with."

"Not just tonight, but tomorrow, the day after, and every boring night to come."

"And after that..."

Before Xia Lin could finish, the door to the room opened.

Yang Dehai glanced at the two men in the room and said softly to Duan Jun, "Take off his handcuffs."

Then he looked at Xia Lin. "You can go."

Xia Lin had already extended his hands in front of Duan Jun.

The latest model of the Tissot series, a luxury flying car, was parked in front of the police station.

Its body was streamlined and as black as an onyx, elegant and imposing.

A man and two women stood quietly in front of the car. The man was about fifty, his hair half-gray but meticulously groomed. He wore a suit and white silk gloves, with a serious expression and a straight back. Somehow, he gave the impression of being professional and trustworthy.

The two young women behind him each had their own distinctive features.

One wore a suit and glasses, her hair swept up in a bun. The suit set off her slender curves, and the black stockings on her legs gleamed in the lights.

The other wore a maid outfit. She was petite and cute, with a loli look, but the parts that were supposed to be big were astonishingly large.

That was the scene Duan Jun saw when he walked out of the police station.

Then he saw Xia Lin walk forward, stretching lazily. The butler stepped aside and respectfully opened the rear door, while the two women helped Xia Lin into the car, as though he were half-paralyzed and needed someone to care for him personally.

Duan Jun recalled what Xia Lin had just said.

"If I feel like it, I can even find a few girls of different types to spend a boring night with."

"Every boring night..."

"Fuck! Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!!"

Duan Jun slammed his fist into a load-bearing pillar in front of the police station, leaving his hand covered in blood.

Just as the car started up, the rear window rolled down.

Xia Lin poked his head out of the window, one hand already resting on the suited woman's thigh.

Smiling broadly, he waved at Duan Jun with his other hand.

"Good night, kid."

With a whoosh, the car sped away.

Duan Jun was left alone in front of the police station, clenching his teeth.

A voice suddenly sounded beside him.

It was Yang Dehai.

"And after that... he'll sign an agreement with the North Wind Consortium."

"The agreement will probably require him to fight a certain number of matches in the Savage Martial Arena for North Wind."

Smoke drifted into Duan Jun's nose. The smell and the voice made him turn to look beside him.

Yang Dehai had lit a cigarette and was smoking as he watched the direction Xia Lin had gone.

His expression was calm as he continued.

"The agreement will specify how much money he gets for winning a match. He might even get shares in certain factories. Even if he loses, his family will receive financial support from North Wind."

"In short, win or lose, the money he gets will be more than either of us could imagine earning in a lifetime."

Duan Jun clenched his teeth harder, until he could taste rust in his mouth.

"But do you think that's a good thing?"

Yang Dehai turned to look at Duan Jun. The emotion in his eyes was hard to describe, and it made Duan Jun's heart tremble.

"No, it's a contract selling himself into bondage."

"Because the agreement will also specify that the consortium chooses his opponents and the level of Savage Martial Arena he enters. He himself has no right to choose."

"On top of that, the consortiums make private deals, deciding the outcome of a Savage Martial Arena match outside the arena. Once that happens, he can only win if the consortium lets him win. If they tell him to lose, he has to lose, or even die. Winning or losing has nothing whatsoever to do with how well he can fight."

"He'll die sooner than you, and even sooner than me, and his death will be more miserable."

Yang Dehai stubbed out his cigarette and snorted.

"I know you can't stand him, can't stand how arrogant and overbearing he is. But honestly, there's no need to get worked up over him."

"He's just a nobody too, just one of the countless people in this city, beneath this iron curtain."

"He's nothing more than merchandise whose value can be measured in credits, no different from you, me, or the people who died at his hands."

"The problem isn't him, at least not entirely."

"The problem is the rule makers at the very top. They make the rules themselves, yet they don't follow them. What's even more frightening is that no one can punish them or even hold them in check."

"The law is just for show!"

"You and I are nothing but clowns!"

Yang Dehai's tone grew increasingly forceful, deep resentment pouring out of him. But he soon took a deep breath and gave a self-mocking smile.

Yang Dehai reached out and patted Duan Jun on the shoulder, putting on a casual tone.

"All right, stop thinking about it. There's no use dwelling on it."

"Go home and get a good night's sleep. When you wake up tomorrow, forget all the rotten things that happened today. Just pretend nothing happened."

With that, Yang Dehai turned and walked away, but Duan Jun's voice rang out behind him.

"Is it always... always like this?"

There was a long silence before a voice answered, "Yes, always."

"Because this is Fierce Martial City."