Fighting

Each person's workbench is essentially an iron table over a meter long. Fixed to one end is a rotary vise, while the tool slot at the front holds rows of implements: hand saws, files, hammers, chisels, taps, dies, steel rulers, dividers, scribers, and vernier calipers. At the other end of the table sits a pedal-operated grinding wheel, and next to that, an anvil. This is the most basic apprentice-level workbench, and also the cheapest. I've heard that high-end workbenches come with built-in steam power modules and smelting furnaces; in the hands of a master, there isn't a thing in this world they couldn't manufacture with just one of those.

Since my mind was made up, there was no reason to hesitate. I put on my work clothes, donned my goggles, grabbed the longest piece of steel wire, and Zhang Tie quickly got to work. Because there was no specialized wire-winding board, I had to use the available tools for the job. First, I secured the steel wire and a wooden board in the vise, then positioned the mandrel and looped one end of the wire around it. After carefully winding it a few times clockwise and checking that everything was correct, I began to wind it with confidence and force. The entire task wasn't actually very difficult; in no time, Zhang Tie's first spring was nearly finished. I counted the coils, trimmed the excess on the anvil, and used the grinding wheel to smooth the two ends of the wire so they wouldn't scratch my hands. A simple cylindrical spring was successfully made. I tested it, and sure enough, it was quite elastic. With the first spring done, Zhang Tie felt a surge of spirit. The next two didn't take much effort, though forming the circular hooks at the ends took a bit of work. In the classroom, while Zhang Tie was still struggling with the chisel and the spring hooks, some people had already finished all three types of springs. Finally, the bald man walked into the classroom, answered questions for the students who raised their hands, checked everyone's three pieces of work, and then gave an extended lecture on spring tempering, closing the top ends, winding torsion springs, and manufacturing internal and external torsion arm tools. After letting everyone test their springs, three hours of the morning had just slipped away.

Lunch was eaten in the school cafeteria, which was one of the school's benefits. However, the food in the cafeteria was never very good; often, you wouldn't see a drop of oil for weeks, and it was barely enough to fill your stomach. Even so, every time it was time to eat, the surging crowd rushing toward the various cafeterias could truly startle you. It seemed to be a deliberate arrangement by the school: the cafeterias for each grade were separate, and the number of meals was fixed, but there were always fewer trays than there were students. It was like this every day, without exception. The result was that every noon, a few unlucky souls who couldn't get a tray and went hungry would collapse directly on the field during the afternoon military skills training class. Zhang Tie himself had encountered this situation twice. From then on, Zhang Tie deeply understood the first rule of survival in the Black Iron Era: do everything in your power to fill your stomach first.

The only rule in the school cafeteria was to queue; other than that, there were no rules. Therefore, if you didn't want to be one of the few people starving in the cafeteria every day, besides being able to get in line early, you needed the strength not to be bullied by others. Of course, luck was also very important.

Just like right now.

Zhang Tie was in the middle of the line. After a morning of classes, these fifteen or sixteen-year-old boys were already so hungry their chests were touching their backs. The line in the cafeteria was long, but students kept pouring in. Zhang Tie felt a bit lucky; it was a good thing he'd slipped out so fast when class ended, otherwise he would have been at the very back, and he might not have gotten a meal at all. Just as the last few students were trailing behind with miserable expressions, the people at the very front had already received their lunch and were ready to eat. Just then, the noisy cafeteria suddenly went quiet. Zhang Tie turned his head and saw Gelis and his group walking in swaggeringly. Gelis and his friends were the last to arrive at the cafeteria, but they didn't queue; instead, they walked straight to the front of the line. Seeing them approach, the faces of the few people at the front who had just received their trays turned pale instantly.

Damn, are these pieces of trash ever going to stop? They pull this stunt every single noon! Zhang Tie cursed inwardly.

"Heh, I'll have to trouble you guys today!" The swaggering Gelis and his group walked up to the students who were about to receive their lunch. While their words were polite, their demeanor was arrogant beyond compare. With their heads held high and noses in the air, they stood with arms crossed, wearing punchable, mocking smiles, looking at the pale-faced students at the front like cats watching mice.

"Damn it, so arrogant!" someone next to Zhang Tie whispered.

"If you could beat them, you could be just as arrogant and snatch other people's things, too!"

"I heard the reason Gelis has been so crazy this past month is that he passed the Level 2 Battle Soldier assessment and has already ignited two Bright Points in his body. To have such results while still in school—Seventh Middle School hasn't seen someone like that in years!"

"He's just relying on his natural size, that's his only advantage. What's so great about that? A bunch of guys with simple minds and developed limbs. Do they think they can use such childish methods to get the school's attention before graduation and earn a recommendation spot?"

"Hmph... hmph... don't be jealous. This is called being gifted. Their strength is far beyond ours; we can't afford to provoke them..."

"Who told you their old man is a big shot in the Coal and Steel Union!"

"What big shot? Pfft, isn't he just a small squad leader of the guards at someone else's house?"

"Anyone who follows a big shot is a big shot themselves!"

"If it were me, I wouldn't give it to them. Damn it, why should I!"

"Because they can beat you so badly you won't be able to get out of bed for a month after you leave the school gates. Isn't that enough?"

As the people around Zhang Tie whispered, the boys who had their trays snatched walked past with ashen, embarrassed faces. Everyone watched them; some eyes were sympathetic, others indifferent, but not a single person spoke a word of comfort. This was something you had to learn when eating at school, and it was the intention behind the school deliberately putting out fewer trays every day—everyone must fight for their own survival. If you don't fight for yourself, no one will fight for you. For those without strength, the multiple-choice questions this world gives them are always simple: either swallow your pride and struggle to survive, or end up bruised, battered, and broken. There is no third path.

As those students passed by Zhang Tie, looking at their gray, awkward expressions, Zhang Tie thought of a question: If this situation happened to me today, what would I do? If one day, those people weren't snatching a tray, but my wife—if my wife were Daina, what would I do? This final thought made Zhang Tie's heart clench. He seemed to vaguely see Teacher Daina's desperate, tear-stained face, and the young man's heart suddenly felt a dull ache.

No...

A beast-like roar erupted in the young man's heart.

The second floor of the cafeteria was the staff dining room for the school teachers. Behind the thick glass partitions, several pairs of eyes were watching the scene unfolding below.

"A Level 2 Battle Soldier. For these little guys down there, that is simply too powerful. Gelis alone could easily handle a dozen of them. At this age, Gelis's physique and strength have too much of an advantage!"

"Gelis's little group only has four people, while there are at least several hundred queuing below. The school's painstaking guidance—these little guys have only grasped half of it. They've learned to compete and fight for their own survival, but they haven't learned the other half, which is truly important for their survival: unity and cooperation..."

"That is the difference between humans and beasts. No matter how weak humans are, as long as they can unite, they are enough to defeat powerful beasts..."

"Perhaps they will understand in the future, though I suspect that's impossible for now..."

"Just wait and see. Maybe someone down there will wake up first!"

The voices behind the glass partition slowly blurred into the sound of cutlery scraping and chewing, eventually fading away...

Zhang Tie ate his lackluster lunch without tasting it, then queued up to wash his tray and utensils thoroughly at the water pipe before queuing again to return them. He felt a sense of emptiness in his heart. Teacher Daina's desperate, tear-stained face seemed to keep appearing in Zhang Tie's mind as if it were real. Walking with his head down, the young man was lost in his own thoughts. When he accidentally noticed the old leather shoes on his feet, which were severely worn and had two patches, his mood sank even lower. Finally, as he passed the Small Woods near the school, Zhang Tie realized he had been surrounded by several people.

"Were you feeling pretty smug when you played us this morning?" Before Zhang Tie could react, a fist landed heavily on his lower abdomen, nearly making him vomit the lunch he had just eaten. Zhang Tie doubled over in pain, and his entire being was instantly jolted out of the young man's melancholy thoughts. Damn, this is bad. How did I get surrounded by them? I noticed these guys looking at me with ill intent during class; how did I forget about playing them this morning? These thoughts flashed through Zhang Tie's mind like lightning.

"Beat him!" The moment that voice reached his ears, Zhang Tie, still bent over, saw a pair of feet in front of him. Without a second thought, a surge of ferocity took hold. He lunged forward, grabbed the pair of feet with both hands, and heaved with all his might. Amidst a cry of surprise, he flipped the owner of those feet onto the ground. He then pounced on him, and while the guy was still dazed, he punched him square in the nose, sending him sprawling backward. Then, he followed through with the momentum and piled on top of him...