Chapter 78: Taking Over The Industry, Expanding Manpower
Three days later, Li Dong’s people withdrew from that half-street.
In these few days, Ah Fei also recruited some henchmen. Although they hadn’t practiced the New Technique, they were strong and brave enough to fight.
No matter what gang it was, they needed such low-level henchmen.
They couldn’t possibly let those New Technique martial artists watch the door and collect protection fees.
At the same time, Curry brought someone to Chen Wujun. He was about twenty years old, with neat short hair, looked very refined, and had bright eyes.
The clothes he wore were very cheap, but his muscles were very solid, and he didn’t look like he practiced the New Technique; his muscles were large.
His muscles looked streamlined.
The moment the other party entered, Chen Wujun’s gaze scanned him up and down, and then his eyes lit up.
‘He walks with a heavy step and bent knees, a slight stoop, and his arms are very long, hanging naturally, like a walking ape…’
‘He’s a practitioner of the Old Technique, and his movement technique looks very good… Interesting!’
“Brother Jun, what do you think of him?” Curry patted the young man’s shoulder, presenting him as a treasure.
“This guy’s skills are good. He got into a conflict and beat up several people, and he has considerable strength.”
Half a month ago, this guy got into a conflict with some pickpockets on Long Jin Street. Even when those pickpockets took out knives, he still beat them to the ground.
Therefore, when he heard that Chen Wujun was recruiting people, he specifically brought someone to inquire and found this kid.
Chen Wujun’s eyes flashed with sharp light, and malice erupted. The young man’s scalp tingled, and his body recoiled like a startled ape, arching his back.
He then realized the other party was testing him and immediately straightened up again, his gaze also appraising Chen Wujun.
The man on the chair looked even younger than himself, yet he had a Turtle Back Crane Form, his gaze was as sharp as a goshawk, and his demeanor was fierce. Just sitting there made the young man’s mind conjure the words “eagle-eyed and wolf-backed.”
“Not bad. What kind of boxing do you practice, and for how many years?” Chen Wujun’s sharpness faded, and he asked with a smile.
From his previous retreat and jump, he knew the other party’s kung fu was good; he was also an Old Technique martial artist who had reached Body Tempering.
“Tong Bei Quan passed down in my family. I’ve been practicing since I was a child!” the young man said cautiously.
“Oh? Practicing since childhood, that’s quite a while… And you’ve only just come to the Walled City?”
“Yes.”
“What did you do wrong?” Chen Wujun asked playfully.
“Speak boldly. There are all sorts of people in the Walled City, and it’s not short of a few illegal immigrants or fugitives.”
“I didn’t do anything wrong, I just smuggled myself here. I don’t have an identity, and I want to earn money,” the young man hesitated for a moment and said.
“No wrongdoing… but have you killed anyone?” Chen Wujun smiled. Earlier, when the young man was frightened by him and retreated, his killing intent had been revealed.
Chen Wujun felt that this young man was somewhat like his former self.
“Start from the bottom with me, 3,000 yuan a month. Do you want to do it?” Chen Wujun didn’t press further.
Killing someone wasn’t that big of a deal.
Sister Sha Jiu hadn’t interrogated him either.
“Okay,” the young man immediately agreed.
“But you have to give me half a month’s pay first.”
“Give him 1,500!” Chen Wujun smiled. “Curry, you’ll take care of him for now.”
“Yes, Brother Jun,” Curry said, beaming. He knew this guy was skilled.
He had brought several people to find him before, and he had tested the other party’s skills but couldn’t defeat him.
“What’s your name?” Chen Wujun suddenly asked.
“Li Wei.”
Chen Wujun nodded and let Curry take him away.
He would test his skills again in a few days. And even if his skills were good, he had to start from the bottom.
Didn’t he himself start as a low-level henchman at first, thanks to his Senior Sister’s connections?
It wasn’t until he clashed with Li Dong and killed over a dozen of them that his Senior Sister paved the way for him, allowing him to lead reinforcements and then smoothly rise to power.
In addition to this Li Wei, he had also recruited a New Technique martial artist at the Initial Construction stage named Fa Zai, whose Reinforced Reconstruction Magnetic Field had just exceeded 25%.
Elephant’s people had tried to recruit him, but because Elephant’s henchmen had cuckolded him, Ah Fei managed to recruit him instead.
This Fa Zai, like Li Wei just now, had to start from the bottom, but his starting salary was 8,000 yuan.
New Technique martial artists at the Initial Construction stage all earned 8,000 yuan before they were promoted.
Currently, Chen Wujun was very popular in the Walled City, having recruited over a dozen people in three days. Combined with Ah Fei’s men, he had about 30 people under him, including three New Technique martial artists at the Initial Construction stage.
“Brother Jun, this is the situation of that half-street,” Ah Fei said, handing over a booklet.
“Half a street, a total of 23 shops, 15 stalls, and 16 brothels…”
“How much can we collect each month?” Chen Wujun casually took the booklet and flipped through it.
“78,000!” Ah Fei replied.
Most of the shops were tailor shops, unlicensed clinics, appliance repair shops, dog meat restaurants, and convenience stores, earning 1,000-2,000 yuan per month.
Those miscellaneous stalls and noodle stalls earned 500 yuan per month.
Brothels paid 200 yuan per week, which amounted to 800 yuan per month.
Only one private dance hall and three private small to medium-sized gambling dens could earn more.
Chen Wujun calculated that with 78,000 yuan per month, if he kept half, it would be 39,000 yuan, which wasn’t even enough to support his henchmen.
Earning money still depended on the dance hall and gambling dens he took from Li Dong.
“How are those gambling dens and the dance hall doing?” Chen Wujun inquired.
“The gambling dens can generate about 150,000 yuan in net profit per month. The dance hall originally earned sixty to seventy thousand yuan per month, but Li Dong took all his people with him. The most important thing for a dance hall is the girls.”
Chen Wujun calculated that as long as the business recovered to its previous level, he could earn 110,000 to 120,000 yuan per month.
Now, with his three gambling dens, one dance hall, and the money from this half-street, he could earn about 280,000 to 290,000 yuan per month.
However, supporting his henchmen would cost 120,000 to 130,000 yuan.
After deducting expenses, he would be left with only 150,000 to 160,000 yuan per month, just enough for him to practice martial arts.
With four training posts and his eyes, he now needed over twenty Magnetic Field Crystals per month, costing over a hundred thousand yuan.
Moreover, the three gambling dens were the main source of his business. Recently, due to Li Dong’s actions, the business had declined, and he needed to find a solution quickly.
“I understand. First, recruit people for the dance hall. I’ll figure out the gambling dens.”
“Oh, right. I want to find a teacher. Help me think about where to find one,” Chen Wujun said, remembering something Sister Sha Jiu had told him.
“A teacher? What kind of teacher? For martial arts or…?” Ah Fei looked bewildered. Brother Jun and Sister Sha Jiu were fellow disciples, so why would he need to find a teacher?
“A tutor, to teach me Chinese, math, and the like! How many times have I said it before? When doing business, the most important thing is to use your brain! If you don’t study, how can you use your brain?” Chen Wujun hit Ah Fei on the back of the head with his palm.
“Go ask around. Remember, it has to be a woman. She doesn’t need to be good-looking; the important thing is that she can teach people. Do you understand?”
“Understood! I’ll have someone inquire!” Ah Fei immediately replied.
Chen Wujun had considered asking his cousin for help, as she was a high-achiever and had a master’s degree in psychology, knowing many other high-achievers.
However, he couldn’t let his cousin know about his affairs, so he could only ask Ah Fei to find someone.
…
A day later, Chen Wujun arrived at the warehouse, first practicing on the wooden stakes, then jumping down from them.
After the previous gambling battle, he had raised his spirit, energy, and mind to their peak. Winning another gambling battle had significantly improved his vision and mental state, and his personal strength had made considerable progress.
Now, practicing on these wooden stakes had little effect.
Chen Wujun stood there contemplating. If he were to insert some sharp knives below the wooden stakes, anyone who fell would be pierced through. Or, if he coated the stakes with oil, the effect would likely be better.
After a moment of thought, he walked over to the weapon rack and took out two short-handled hook scythes.
His master had mentioned it when teaching the Swimming Dragon Palm: the weapon for the Swimming Dragon Palm was the hook scythe, used for hooking, locking, slashing, and stabbing, which was precisely the fighting style of the Swimming Dragon Palm.
The technique of the Swimming Dragon Palm involved thrusting with an open palm and hooking with a returning palm, while the hidden elbow strikes also involved hooking and slashing.
Chen Wujun held the hook scythes and practiced on the ground, gaining some understanding.
He had now practiced the Swimming Dragon Palm to the upper level and had a deep understanding of it. Therefore, he didn’t need his master to teach him; he could figure out most of the techniques by practicing with the hook scythes a couple of times himself.
A moment later, Zhou Qing entered through the warehouse door.
“Demonstrate a round of your palm technique for me.”
“Yes, Master.”
Chen Wujun put the hook scythes back on the rack and then performed the Swimming Dragon Palm.
The Swimming Dragon Palm was executed with controlled opening and closing, a blend of hardness and softness. However, in Chen Wujun’s hands, it was imbued with immense power, emanating malice, and a stance that declared, “Anyone who blocks me will die.”
Zhou Qing’s eyelids twitched several times watching this.
He felt that this palm technique didn’t seem like what he had taught.
However, Zhou Qing had seen countless martial artists of all kinds, so he didn’t comment much.
He merely said, “Your kung fu has reached the upper level of Body Tempering, and you have developed your own skills.”
“To advance further, you need to practice Qi Refining.”
Chen Wujun’s eyes lit up upon hearing this. “Master, what is Qi Refining, and how is it practiced?”
“I told you before that the Old Technique divided martial arts into Manifest Force, Hidden Force, and Transforming Force before battles… After battles, it combined with the New Technique and evolved into Body Tempering, Qi Refining, and Transformation Realm, corresponding to the original divisions of the Old Technique, but not exactly the same.”
“After all, since humans discovered and utilized Magnetic Field Crystals, development has completely changed.”
“For example, the original Hidden Force: the mind and intention are in harmony, intention and qi are in harmony, usually hidden within the body, and emerge from the body when needed. It sounds mysterious, but in reality, it’s about hiding strength within the body and unleashing penetrating force. A Hidden Force master’s punch to the body might leave no external marks, but the internal organs would be injured. Like the Spiral Force I showed you before, it has a similar effect.”
Chen Wujun nodded thoughtfully.
His master had indeed shown him the Spiral Force before. He had struck a pillar with one palm, and the front of the pillar was fine, but the back shattered.
“The key to Hidden Force is to unite the mind and intention into one force,” Zhou Qing continued.
“And with the application of Magnetic Field Crystals and the development of the New Technique, Qi Refining has also changed, becoming more distinct and visible.”
Zhou Qing paused here, withholding further explanation, and said to Chen Wujun, “Extend your hand. I’ll let you feel it.”
Chen Wujun extended his hand, and Zhou Qing’s finger touched the back of Chen Wujun’s hand.
Chen Wujun immediately felt as if needles were pricking his hand, causing him to instinctively flinch.
“This is the old Hidden Force.”
Then, Zhou Qing touched Chen Wujun’s hand again.
Chen Wujun felt a pricking sensation, like needles, but at the same time, his palm became numb, as if it were no longer obeying his commands.
“This is Qi Refining.”
“Do you know the difference?”
Chen Wujun carefully recalled the sensation on the back of his hand, especially when Zhou Qing touched it the second time, making his hand numb and almost unresponsive.
Combined with his previous analysis of the New Technique from Purple Cold Steel.
Chen Wujun suddenly realized:
“Master, it’s bioelectricity!”
