The Wasteland

On a starless, moonless night, the dirt road outside the city was pitch-black.

The roar of engines shattered the silence. Four orange headlights rounded a bend, and two minivans wound their way down the dirt road, one following the other.

Chen Chong slowly furrowed his brow as the van jolted along, then suddenly opened his eyes.

That noise... Was he in a vehicle?

Heavy breathing surrounded him, and the air inside the van was foul.

He quietly shifted his eyes and made out several students from the boxing gym lying beside him, motionless as if asleep.

As he recalled what had happened before he passed out, his heart leaped into his throat.

Had he been kidnapped? Where were they taking him?

Judging by the pitch-black scene outside the window, they had probably left the city... The Wasteland?!

Chen Chong frowned deeply. To someone like him, who had never left Lichuan, or to anyone from the city, the Wasteland was synonymous with crime, chaos, and even mysterious terror.

Were Brother Leopard and the others gang members, or were they natives of the Wasteland?

Whatever the case, he couldn't go with them...

Chen Chong's thoughts raced as he tried to come up with a plan.

But his body was still weak and limp. Forget fighting Yu Feng; he probably couldn't even jump out of the van and run.

He grew anxious, his brow furrowing tighter and tighter. He wanted to see if there were any tools in the van, but the rear cargo compartment was packed with other kidnapped students like him. He couldn't see anything useful.

As his gaze shifted, Chen Chong suddenly stiffened.

A pair of deep-set eyes, level with the roof, had turned toward him from one of the middle-row seats. They were staring right at him.

"Old Yu, what are you looking at?"

Brother Leopard's voice came from the front.

That was Yu Feng... Chen Chong's heart sank. He didn't know when Yu Feng had noticed he was awake.

Just as he wondered what would happen, he heard Yu Feng's low voice:

"Nothing."

"All right. Keep an eye on our talent. This road's a fucking mess. Don't let the bumps wake them."

"I know."

He hadn't told on me?

Chen Chong was still bewildered when those eyes seemed to stare deeply at him once more, then turned away.

He was utterly confused. But now that he'd been discovered, he didn't dare make any unnecessary movements. He went on swaying with the van for hours, until the sky began to lighten and they reached a small town.

The town was full of self-built houses and shacks no more than three stories tall, shop signs with half their lettering fallen off, dazed beggars on the roadside, and rolling shutters riddled with bullet holes.

As Chen Chong looked at the dilapidated scene outside the window, like the outskirts of a city, his expression darkened.

A Settlement...

They really had brought him to a Settlement in the Wasteland.

Two huge iron gates slowly slid open.

The van turned into a factory building, then screeched to a halt in the open yard.

The burly men got out, then took portable gas canisters and sprayed a pungent gas into the van.

The students coughed in pain and gradually woke up.

Chen Chong held his breath and pretended to have just woken up too. He got out with the dazed students and looked around.

"Where are we? Is this some kind of factory?"

"Brother Leopard, did I get drunk last night? Is this where we're doing our special training?"

The short, plump man in a military-green overcoat rubbed his head and chuckled.

"Heh, you could put it that way."

He stood at the factory's main entrance. Beside him were Yu Feng, a group of burly men in leather jackets, and another young man none of them had seen before.

The man looked to be in his thirties, with a classic inverted-triangle build. In the cold wind, he wore nothing but a clean white shirt, tucked neatly into his slacks. His broad chest stretched the shirt taut, and the slacks and leather shoes made his legs look exceptionally long. At a glance, he stood over 1.85 meters tall.

He wore a gold watch, and gold-rimmed glasses sat on his square face, softening his bold features and muscular build a little. His slicked-back hair was painstakingly neat, with perhaps a bit too much pomade, glinting faintly in the dawn light.

Everyone noticed the man with his exceptional bearing. He smiled as he looked them over, and the students naturally fell quiet.

He opened his mouth, his voice clear and bright.

"Everyone, welcome to Thunder Dragon Company. I'm the company's general manager, Long Zhibin."

The students looked bewildered. They had never heard of Thunder Dragon Company or this man.

Long Zhibin continued:

"From now on, you'll live and work here. Let me give you an introduction.

"This is Thunder Dragon Communications Park. It has living quarters, an exercise area, and a work area. The building behind me is the work area, where most of you will spend the bulk of your time. It covers over two thousand square meters and has more than a hundred Xunbida-brand pager stations..."

"What are you talking about? I came here to learn boxing. Why am I supposed to work here?"

One of the students interrupted him with a frown.

Long Zhibin paused, then said:

"The company paid your fees at the boxing gym. Naturally, you'll work for the company after you've completed your training..."

"What the hell? I've only been learning for a few days, and now you want me to sell myself to you?"

The male student grew agitated and shouted:

"Let me go home! I'm done with this!"

"Sell yourself is putting it too strongly. Everyone who works at our Park does so voluntarily. You'll earn a salary, get time off, and be free to come and go. We won't force you. Of course, the company invested in your training, so you'll still have to pay a sum after your service period ends. Once you've paid, you can leave..."

"Don't give me all that! I want to go home! Take me back!"

The student grew emotional and walked out of the crowd, shouting.

Long Zhibin suddenly fell silent and simply stared at him.

As everyone around him went quiet, the student's voice gradually faded. He met Long Zhibin's gaze and suddenly shuddered.

Long Zhibin shook his head.

"That's three times now."

Brother Leopard let out a sigh and beckoned to the student with a genial smile.

"Xiao He, what's the hurry? Let's talk this out. Come here, come on."

Xiao He hesitated. Seeing Brother Leopard beckon with a gentle expression, as if calling over a younger relative, he slowly walked toward him.

Smiling, Brother Leopard pulled a steel pipe as thick as an arm from behind his back.

Xiao He was startled and stopped in his tracks.

"Brother Leopard, what... what are you going to do?"

He instinctively tried to back away, but Yu Feng stepped forward and reached out to press down on his shoulder. Xiao He found himself unable to move at all.

As Brother Leopard approached with a smile, Xiao began to tremble all over.

"Brother Leopard, Brother Leopard, let's talk this out. Don't come any closer. I... I was wrong. Don't do this, don't—ah!!!!"

The smile vanished from Brother Leopard's face, replaced by a fierce expression. Gripping the steel pipe with both hands, he swung it hard at Xiao He's knee.

Crack.

Everyone in the yard heard the crisp sound of bone breaking.

Xiao He sprang into the air, then slammed back onto the ground. Clutching his twisted knee, he rolled around, howling in pain.

Yu Feng stood by with his hands in his sleeves. Brother Leopard tossed the pipe aside, put his smile back on, and said slowly:

"From now on, don't interrupt the general manager when he's speaking."