22: Chapter 22 The Underworld City

Chapter 22: Underworld Metropolis

"Wuyou Audiovisual Store"

Located near Cuiyuan Xincun, it was only two blocks away from Jiuchang Street.

Fang Cheng got off two stops early, exited the bus station, and then walked a few extra steps.

Soon, he spotted the inconspicuous sign with white characters on a red background, wedged between a row of eateries.

It was around 9:30 PM, and the audiovisual store had not yet closed for the night.

Through the glass sliding door, the owner could be seen chatting and laughing cheerfully with two young men whose hair was dyed yellow.

Fang Cheng stepped into the shop and looked around.

On rows of audiovisual racks, numerous dazzling discs with exquisite covers were neatly stacked.

The decoration style of this shop was very simple, or rather, it could be said there was no design at all.

Instead, the contents and style of the displayed merchandise appeared extremely unique.

At a single glance, it was filled with violent action films and television works.

"Drunken Master", "SPL: Sha Po Lang", "The Way of the Dragon", "One Man's Martial Forest"...

There were traditional kung fu films, modern cop thrillers, old movies, and the latest releases.

In addition, there were various instructional and tournament documentaries about martial arts and combat.

Clearly, the owner was an extremely veteran "kung fu fan".

"Do you know Brother Dragonwei? Before he became famous, what he learned was White Crane style kung fu..."

"The generation's Martial Saint Li Chenglong learned from a Wing Chun master, a genuine orthodox Disciple..."

The owner was relatively old, a man in his fifties who talked about various martial arts styles with the two young men, rattling them off like family treasures and speaking endlessly.

"Traditional martial arts are not bad either. The key is finding the right path, and the most important point is sincerity of heart."

"I've looked at your physiognomy and felt your bone structure. Not to mention being martial arts prodigies, at least you can be considered to have upper-middle aptitude."

"As the saying goes, true kung fu is hard to buy even for a thousand gold. Look, these ten discs were carefully selected by me. After mastering them, not to mention starring in kung fu movies, going out to mix in the underworld in the future will make taking on ten people a piece of cake."

"Is it really that magical?"

The two lean, yellow-haired youths couldn't help listening in a daze.

"Fair to old and young alike, absolutely worth the price."

Seeing them doubting, the owner immediately made solemn oaths, reaching out to point at Fang Cheng, who was lowering his head nearby looking for discs.

"Look at this young man here. He frequently comes to my place to buy discs, observes them every day, and studies diligently. After watching them, not only has he grown more handsome, but his physique has also become sturdier."

"Alright, isn't it just five hundred yuan? We'll buy it!"

The two young men scrutinized the tall and handsome Fang Cheng.

Then, quite readily, they pulled out money to buy a dozen deluxe-packaged discs.

Judging by the covers, they were all traditional martial arts instructional documentaries such as "Detailed Explanation of the Thirteen Forms of the Frolics of Five Animals" and "One Hundred Questions on Wing Chun Essentials".

"Thank you for your patronage!"

"Wishing you, Big Brother, flourishing martial fortune and ruling over the underworld of Dongdu any day now..."

Watching the two big customers out the door, the owner kept uttering auspicious words, his smile blooming like a chrysanthemum.

Seeing this, Fang Cheng then stepped forward.

"Uncle Wu, I want to find some discs about Karate. Are there any worth recommending?"

Hearing the inquiry, the smile on the owner's face instantly vanished, and he turned to look at Fang Cheng:

"There are some, but are you planning to rent or buy today?"

"Rent."

Fang Cheng answered cleanly and decisively.

The owner immediately shook his head and sighed, limping on his left leg as he walked towards the innermost audiovisual rack.

In no time, he returned to the counter, took out two Karate instructional discs with somewhat dusty covers, and handed them to Fang Cheng.

"How much?"

"That'll be 10 yuan."

"Didn't you say renting one disc for a week is 5 yuan, and two discs get a twenty percent discount?"

Hearing this, the owner couldn't help rolling his eyes and complained:

"You calculate more cunningly than a monkey! When will you ever be generous enough to let me make a bit more money off you!"

Fang Cheng smiled. After paying the deposit, he put the two discs into his messenger bag and walked out of the store.

The owner of this audiovisual store was named Wu Datong. Although his mouth was a bit venomous, he was actually quite a decent person.

It was said that he fought in combat sports matches when he was young, and later retired due to serious injuries, opening an audiovisual store here for over a decade.

The shop's name started with his surname, and at the same time carried the meaning of "meeting friends through martial arts".

Carrying his bag on his back, Fang Cheng walked down the dimly lit street.

Along the way, pedestrians did not decrease; instead, there were signs of them gathering in increasing numbers.

The reason for this abnormality...

Was simply because there was a very popular open-air night market nearby—the North Point Night Market.

It had been raining the past few days, causing many nearby residents and college students to feel cooped up and restless.

Now that they had free time, they all chose to go out shopping and relax.

A burst of dynamic music drifted over from not far away.

Fang Cheng looked up.

Under the night veil, colorful neon signs stood in a chaotic forest.

On both sides of the street ahead, stalls selling various items were set up, and a mouth-watering aroma faintly drifted over.

The desolate street during the day grew a special vitality after nightfall as the pedestrian traffic surged and people from all walks of life mixed together.

Although Jiangbei had the lowest economic level, the richness of its nightlife could rank high among the fifteen districts in the entire city.

If one had to choose a place that best represented Dongdu's "common folk culture", it would definitely be none other than this place.

There were even many out-of-town visitors who came to Dongdu for tourism and made a special trip here to experience the bustling fireworks of the worldly grassroots.

Seeing the bright lights and bustling crowds ahead, Fang Cheng's heart stirred.

No mistakes, first release, internal content, look one by one!

Remembering that Zhou Xiumei was also setting up a stall here to do business, he picked up his pace and turned into the night market.

"Storewide clearance sale, as you pass by, don't miss out, a rare opportunity..."

"Selling cheap! Branded sneakers selling cheap, over 300 yuan now going for just over 100..."

"Boboji, ah bo ah boboji, one yuan a skewer of boboji..."

Cries of hawking rose and fell, filling the ears.

The iron woks in the food stalls clattered loudly, and the smell of cooking oil mixed with the aroma of scallions and garlic drifted into the nose in waves.

On a winter night when the temperature dropped to around zero degrees, this place was nonetheless a bustling and fiery scene.

Fang Cheng strolled among the crowd, his gaze roaming as he caught sight of a familiar slender figure.

Among the vendors setting up stalls along the street, a woman wearing a white down jacket and wrapping her mouth with a scarf appeared particularly eye-catching.

Amidst the rustling cold wind, her fine hair hung down to her shoulders, and she sat upright on the steps with her knees pressed together, a red cloth blanket spread out in front of her.

Displayed on top were various small, exquisite, cartoon-styled handicrafts.

Judging that the workmanship and appearance were indeed very good, it attracted a group of uncles and young men who kept coming over to ask about prices.

Looking at her busy appearance with a faint blush on her face and raising her hand to wipe away fine sweat from her forehead, Fang Cheng smiled slightly.

It seemed Xiumei's business was not bad today.

Just as he was preparing to walk over, greet her, and lend a hand.

He saw a few ruffians giggling and squatting down in front of the stall.

"Ah Dai really wasn't wrong. Fair skin, big eyes, she really is pretty enough!"

"Little sister, why bother so hard setting up a stall to support the family? How much better would it be to follow Brother Fei and live the high life."

"Yo, she's shy. Girls this pure are too rare nowadays, I like it..."

This group of people behaved frivolously and spoke foully, clearly hoodlums from the nearby area.

Seeing this, several other customers selecting goods nearby quickly dodged away from them to avoid getting into trouble.

Zhou Xiumei frowned, lowered her head, and responded dully:

"I am not doing business with you, please go away..."

However, this pitiful appearance only made those few hoodlums stare straight with their eyes wide open.

Among them, the hoodlum called "Brother Fei" couldn't help reaching out his hand, wanting to pull off the scarf wrapped around her mouth to get a clear look at her true appearance.

Zhou Xiumei was startled, hurriedly standing up to dodge.

But the thick down jacket's sleeve was still grabbed by the other party, making it hard to break free.

She couldn't help frowning her pretty face, swinging her arms hard, and saying with slight annoyance:

"Let go, let go quickly! I'm calling the police over!"

"Hehe, the cops might not necessarily be useful here either..."

Just as several hoodlums were grinning and flirting with an innocent maiden as harmless as a little white rabbit.

Suddenly, a palm reached over and fiercely grasped Brother Fei's wrist.

"You... Ah!"

Brother Fei was stunned, just about to scold the other person when he instantly felt a bone-piercing, marrow-deep pain coming from his wrist.

Immediately afterwards, it turned into his repeated, piercing screams:

"Quick, quick, quick, let go quickly!"

Everyone looked over in surprise, only to see a young Yingjun man standing abruptly in front of Brother Fei.

The seemingly slender and delicate fingers, like rows of iron tongs, tightly gripped his wrist.

"Brother Cheng—"

Zhou Xiumei let out a pleasantly surprised shout.

Her eyes were crystal clear and sparkling, which then turned to reveal worry.