For a long time, Zhang Tie had felt as though this era was pressing the breath out of him. No matter how hard he tried, he felt like a tiny leaf swept into a raging current, unable to steer the course of his own life. Everything about this era filled him with a helplessness that came from deep within. He couldn't make Teacher Daina fall in love with him, and he couldn't stop his parents from being sad. Sometimes, he even imagined terrifying scenes involving the people closest to him. In those scenes, he was just as helpless, struggling in vain, unable even to cry out.
That night, Zhang Tie slept soundly—more soundly than he had in any night he could remember. The Flawless Fruit had ignited the Divine Palace Bright Point within him, but it had also completely rekindled his hope for life.
So I could be useful, too. I'm already a Level One Battle Worker! The thought let Zhang Tie sleep in comfort and peace. The restless heart he had carried for more than a decade seemed to settle down at last.
As usual, just after six, his body clock roused him. Zhang Tie opened his eyes and stared at the pointed ceiling of the attic, feeling more energetic than ever before. Perhaps it was because he had ignited the Divine Palace Bright Point. Yesterday, his whole body had ached, but when he got up that morning, most of the soreness was gone. Only one or two spots still felt a little tender; otherwise, he was more or less fine.
"I'm already a Level One Battle Soldier!" Zhang Tie declared to the mirror. His reflection flashed him a brilliant smile, and sunshine flooded his heart. He tried a few punches and kicks in the small room and felt that he was stronger than before. It felt amazing.
He quickly got dressed, went downstairs to wash up, and lit the stove. Then he made breakfast for his family. Before his mother woke, he had already earned one Merit Value. He slurped down his porridge, and when he saw his bleary-eyed mother emerge from her room, he rushed over and kissed her cheek. "Mom, I'm off to school..." Then he dashed outside, leaving her standing there in a daze. What had gotten into that brat? Why was he so happy today?
The improvements to his physical fitness after igniting the Divine Palace Bright Point became clear on his run from home to school that morning. The walk usually took almost forty minutes, but Zhang Tie made it to school in a little over ten, running with energy to spare. He still felt somewhat tired, but it was nothing like the times he had run the same distance and ended up feeling like a dead dog.
Sure enough, Zhang Tie was the first one in his year to arrive at school again. He went to the classroom and checked that none of those guys were lying in ambush. Then he wiped down the desks for the livestock in his class once more, earning three Merit Values. After that, he dashed out to use the restroom, took a stroll around the school field and the Small Woods, and only then wandered back to class, humming a tune.
Just as he'd expected, when the livestock discovered that someone had cleaned the desks again that morning, they started gossiping. Before long, they were making it sound like a supernatural incident. Listening to them, Zhang Tie began seriously considering how he could earn Merit Values from now on. Sneaking around like this wasn't going to work much longer. He needed to find a way to do it openly—to punish evil and promote good, honor Heaven and love others, and earn the gratitude of countless living beings. As he mulled over the section about Merit Values in Castle of Black Iron, a glimmer of an idea flickered in his mind, but he couldn't quite grasp it. Just as he was scratching his head in frustration, Barry arrived.
Seeing Barry, Zhang Tie felt that yesterday's decision had been pretty damn foolish. As Tang De had said, if he'd been ruthless and decisive enough, things might have turned out completely differently.
Before Zhang Tie could greet the dead-fatty, Barry spotted him, his eyes lit up, and he smiled. Then he walked straight over, bent down, and whispered into Zhang Tie's ear, "After class, the brothers from the Airplane Brotherhood want to talk to you!"
After Barry, the other members of the Airplane Brotherhood arrived one by one: Baghdad, Doug, Sista, Shavin, and Light. Zhang Tie found it baffling that they were even friendlier to him than usual that morning. They grinned at him, showing their front teeth, and made him suspicious enough to check several times that his fly was done up.
"Teacher Daina's here!" one of the livestock in class shouted. Everyone, Zhang Tie included, crowded around the window to watch Teacher Daina's graceful figure pass below the classroom building. From above, her magnificent breasts were the most beautiful sight in the whole world to every one of the livestock.
Every classroom window along Teacher Daina's route was packed with people. The sound of people swallowing filled the air, and the teacher for first-period Natural History arrived amid a chorus of gulping.
Natural History was the most relaxing class at school. The teacher spent the whole lesson rambling about all sorts of things, from the knowledge and major historical events of the human world before the Great Cataclysm to the many mysterious legends of the Black Iron Era. Anything and everything could be squeezed into Natural History. Though the material seemed useless, it broadened Zhang Tie's horizons enormously. Nearly everything he knew about the human world before the Great Cataclysm came from that class. Some of the livestock in class weren't interested and put their heads down to sleep as soon as the lesson began, but Zhang Tie always listened with rapt attention. That day's lesson was about humanity's exploration of space before the Great Cataclysm. Back then, humans had launched machines that traveled faster than sound to explore the two moons orbiting the Kun'ang Continent. Supposedly, the expedition had made a major discovery, but the human rulers of the time never released the information, so later generations had no way of knowing what it was. Hearing such a story now felt like listening to a myth made up by humanity. Could humans really fly those metal machines all the way to the moon? Zhang Tie's thoughts soared, and he couldn't help imagining what it would be like.
When the bell rang, Barry shot Zhang Tie a meaningful look. Zhang Tie left the classroom with Barry and the others from the Airplane Brotherhood, and they went to a corner of the small garden below the building.
"Big Head, we called you down today to tell you something." Barry's expression was serious.
Were these guys planning to beat him up? It didn't seem likely. Zhang Tie was puzzled. "What is it?"
"We all disagree with your request to leave the Brotherhood yesterday!"
"Do you know what kind of trouble I've gotten into at school?" Looking at the dead-fatty's shrewd eyes, Zhang Tie decided to explain yesterday's events to him clearly.
"Didn't you just get into trouble with Gelis and the others?" Baghdad said coolly, folding his thick arms. "They were the ones who started it. If they dare mess with a brother from our Brotherhood, we'll fight them to the end!"
"Exactly!" Doug's big hand landed on Zhang Tie's shoulder. "Don't worry, brother. We're here for you. You don't have to be afraid. The Brotherhood's backing you this time. We're all glad to have a gutsy guy like you for a brother!"
"How many birds do Gelis and his buddies have between them that one of us doesn't?" Sista thrust his hips, then laid a hand on Zhang Tie's shoulder, too.
"If nothing else, we'll take them out in the dark!" Sista said craftily from beside him, and another hand joined the others on Zhang Tie.
"Getting beaten up alongside you is no big deal!" Shavin shrugged and put his hand on Zhang Tie's shoulder, too.
"That's what the Brotherhood thinks!" Barry said with a cheeky grin, placing his hand on Zhang Tie's shoulder. "Besides, I'm taking you to become a man next week. You're just starting to enjoy the benefits of brotherhood. How can you leave?"
Everyone had a hand on Zhang Tie's shoulder. At first, they'd done it unconsciously, hoping to encourage him. But when they realized that only Baghdad was still standing aside, trying to look cool, every gaze turned toward the black brother. Baghdad felt he was being a little too antisocial, so he reached out and put a hand on Zhang Tie's shoulder. And so the scene took shape: Zhang Tie in the middle, surrounded by the six other members of the Brotherhood, each with a hand on his shoulder or back. Somehow, it took on the air of a ceremony. The seven green boys suddenly felt that the moment, the gesture, the scene was sacred. Seven young hearts thudded wildly in seven chests.
You bunch of bastards who only knew how to jerk off! Zhang Tie suddenly felt a sting in his nose. In that moment, he felt filled with strength—not the strength of the Divine Palace Bright Point, but the strength of his own beating heart. Now, it seemed, there was nothing in the world he had to fear.
Gelis? He could go eat shit!
When the seven brothers returned to the classroom for the next lesson, each felt different from before. None of them could say exactly how, but they all felt stronger and more fearless. A power rising from deep within gave them the inexplicable feeling that they had someone to lean on. It was truly intoxicating...
The dead-fatty Barry was smiling, too. He could feel that after what had just happened, the Brotherhood was different. How could he put it? The feeling was fantastic. Before, its seven members had been like seven different parts tied together. But now, Barry felt as though those seven parts had just been activated and were beginning, of their own accord, to form a much stronger whole—something that put his mind at ease. Barry rubbed his chin, thinking about how everyone had placed their hands on Zhang Tie's shoulders. The more he thought about it, the more it seemed like a sacred Brotherhood ritual. If they brought in new members someday, perhaps they could use that ritual to test them...