Tie Liao X Shu Mu X Awakening Nen

The Shattered Iron Group's headquarters stood on the eastern side of District Thirteen's central area.

Inside the three-story fortress welded together from discarded shipping containers, Tie Liao sat on a seat made from stacked iron drums, one foot on the ammunition crate in front of him and a freshly lit cigarette between his teeth.

The red glow at its tip flickered between his half-missing teeth, casting shifting light across his scarred face.

A short, fat man sat across from him.

Shu Mu.

The captain of the Gray Rat Squad.

He sat on an old leather sofa salvaged from a junk heap. One of its legs was barely propped up with a sheet-metal shim, but he sat securely, his plump fingers interlaced over his belly.

His small eyes narrowed to slits, making him look as though he were smiling.

But those who knew him understood that the smile on his face and danger were almost one and the same.

"What's the Rust Bone Gang up to?"

Tie Liao exhaled a mouthful of smoke and got straight to the point.

Shu Mu chuckled twice and tapped his fingers on the sofa's armrest.

"That kid's recruiting."

"Recruiting?"

Tie Liao's brow furrowed.

"Dodge is dead. Shouldn't he be hiding with his tail between his legs?"

"Where'd he get the guts to recruit people?"

"He's not recruiting people like us."

Shu Mu's voice was thin and slow, with an unpleasantly cloying quality.

"He's taken in all those scavengers and scattered little gangs of three or five people scraping out a living together."

"He gives them food, drink, and territory, and makes them his vassals."

Tie Liao scoffed after hearing him out.

He took the cigarette butt from his mouth and pressed it out on the rim of the iron drum beside him, where it sizzled.

"That lot?"

"A hundred of them wouldn't be enough to stand up to one kick from me."

He raised his head, his half-missing teeth looking somewhat fierce in the dim light.

"A cornered dog will jump a wall."

"That brat thinks there's strength in numbers. In reality, those scavengers will eat his food today and bite into his flesh tomorrow."

"Traitors are the one thing Meteor City never lacks."

"When the fighting really starts, those so-called vassals will run faster than anyone."

He leaned forward, chewed the extinguished cigarette butt to pieces, and spat it on the floor.

"Wouldn't you agree, Shu Mu?"

Shu Mu didn't answer immediately.

He merely smiled with narrowed eyes, the light showing through those two slits indistinct in the dim basement.

"Does he think we can't come up with what he did?"

His voice was light, as though he were talking to himself.

"Without absolute force to keep them in line, no number of people is anything but a heap of loose sand."

"Those little gangs can join him today and join someone else tomorrow."

"The people of Meteor City don't care about gratitude."

"They care about whose fist is harder and who can keep them alive!"

He paused, his chubby fingers tapping his knee twice, as though he'd suddenly thought of something amusing.

"Tie Liao."

Tie Liao lifted his chin.

"Hmm?"

"I recently got word from Grey Elder."

Tie Liao's expression changed.

He forcefully swallowed the chewed-up bits of cigarette butt in his mouth and leaned half an inch forward in his seat.

"What did that old bastard Grey Elder say?"

The smile on Shu Mu's face deepened.

He pulled a crumpled cigarette from inside his clothes and put it between his lips. Unhurriedly, he struck a match and lit it, then took a drag before removing it from his mouth and finishing what he had to say.

"He wants us to gather our forces..."

He exhaled a cloud of blue-gray smoke.

"And attack the Rust Bone Gang together."

Tie Liao's eyes lit up for an instant.

He clenched his fist, his knuckles cracking.

"Really?"

"That's what Grey Elder said."

Shu Mu waved the cigarette between his fingers.

"He said the Rust Bone Gang has a new leader and its foundations are shaky. Now they're busy recruiting that rabble, too. They're planting landmines for themselves."

"He wants our two groups to strike together and crush that kid and his people."

"The Rust Bone Gang's territory... we'll split it between us."

Tie Liao fell silent for a moment, then the corners of his mouth slowly stretched into a grin that seemed ready to split his face.

"I've been waiting a long time for this chance."

"I didn't touch Dodge while he was alive because I didn't want Grey Elder coming after me."

"Now he's dead, and some snot-nosed brat is sitting in that chair. Why shouldn't I make a move?"

"Then it's settled."

Shu Mu stubbed out his cigarette, rose from the sofa, and brushed nonexistent dust from his backside.

"You bring your people, I'll bring mine. We strike in three days."

He paused when he reached the door and left him with one last remark without looking back.

"Grey Elder said to do it quickly."

"That kid... something seems off about him."

Tie Liao frowned and pressed him.

"Off?"

"According to our informants, the Rust Bone Gang has been unusually quiet these past few days."

"It's not how someone who's just taken over a gang should be acting."

Shu Mu turned his head, half his face buried in shadow. The light showing through his narrow eyes finally lost its smile.

"A twelve-year-old kid killed Dodge, took over the gang, then started reorganizing its operations and recruiting vassals as though nothing had happened."

"Do you think that's normal?"

Tie Liao's brow furrowed even deeper.

"So..."

"So we slap him dead before he finds his footing."

Shu Mu pushed open the door, his short, stout figure disappearing into the dim light beyond the iron door.

Wind poured through the gap in the door, making the greasy strands of hair over Tie Liao's forehead sway slightly.

He sat alone in his seat for a few seconds, then lowered his head and looked at the iron drum where he'd put out his cigarette.

A faint warmth still lingered on its rim.

"Good."

He murmured the word, the smile on his face gradually turning maniacal.

At the same time.

Northeast of the Rust Bone Gang's ruined farm, in a makeshift lodging area converted from shipping containers, the innermost room, partitioned off from the others, had been more than half cleared out.

The old wooden table that had stood in the corner had been moved outside, and a layer of clean cardboard covered the floor.

Iron Wall, Gray Beak, and Shattered Eye sat cross-legged on the cardboard, trying to sense the aura inside their bodies as Jiang Ye had taught them.

Jiang Ye stood by the window, leaning against the wall and watching them.

The three of them weren't particularly practiced, but their steps were correct.

He had used the simplest, most forceful method to open their Aura Nodes.

Just as his own Aura Nodes had been forcibly opened in the alley back then, an external force had blasted open the invisible gate within their bodies.

The method was painful and crude, but it was highly efficient, making it suitable for their situation, with no time to meditate slowly.

Iron Wall's brow was tightly furrowed, his breathing deep and heavy. Beads of sweat ran down his cheeks and dripped onto the cardboard.

Gray Beak's breathing was relatively steady. His eyelids occasionally fluttered, but he maintained his posture well overall.

By comparison, Shattered Eye's lips were pressed tightly together and his fingers trembled slightly, but he gritted his teeth and held on.

Jiang Ye observed them quietly for a while.

Gray Beak entered the state fastest, while Iron Wall and Shattered Eye were a little slower.

Still, all three had a decent foundation.

After struggling to survive in Meteor City for so many years, their experiences of escaping death were a form of tempering in themselves.

Though their bodies were rough, their perception of danger and desire to survive had been honed to the limit through countless brushes with death.

When cultivating Nen, those experiences instead became an intangible asset.

"You've already grasped the rudiments of Ten."

Jiang Ye spoke quietly, but the room was small, and all three could hear him clearly.

"For now, all you can do is use your aura to protect the surface of your bodies and barely keep your Aura Nodes closed enough to prevent aura from leaking out."

"But this is only temporary Ten."

"To truly stabilize your Ten, you'll need at least several months of continuous practice."

The three said nothing, but the rhythm of their breathing shifted slightly.

"The Four Major Principles can't be mastered in a day."

"For now, you just need to stabilize your Ten first."

After he said this, the breathing of all three gradually steadied again.

Jiang Ye watched them without saying anything more.

Some things could be taught, but more had to be worked on by oneself.

He was silent for a while, waiting until all three had calmed their breathing before changing the subject.

"Right."

He turned his head toward Iron Wall.

"What's the current state of the gang's armaments and combat tactics?"