Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1483: Chapter 210: Precepts

“Fish Ball Qiang! Fish Ball Qiang! Are you hiding here reading comics again? Have you finished your homework? Your homeroom teacher just called me, saying you got into another fight with your classmates! Are you tired of living? Don’t you know how hard it is for us to support your schooling!”

“Don’t call me Fish Ball Qiang! My name is Wang Xiaohu! I’m the head of Dragon Tiger Gate! I’ll beat you, you old witch!”

“Pffft!! You little bastard, are you looking for trouble!! Your father was a useless fish ball seller! What else could you be if not Fish Ball Qiang! Dare to argue with me? Your wings have grown hard, huh! I’ll beat you to death, you little bastard! Making you not call me mom!”

“You’re not my mom! You’re not my mom! My mom died a long time ago! You wicked woman… Let me go! Let me go!! Aghhh—!”

…

“Arguing with your mom again? Let me see, where did you get hit? Does it still hurt? Don’t stay silent, I took the chance while your mom’s in the shower to come check on you. I have to go back soon… Here’s some food, hurry up and eat it, you didn’t eat all night, did you?”

“I don’t need you to take care of me, go away… You liar! My mom just passed away not long ago, and you found a wicked woman to beat me! Go! Go!”

“Sigh… Remember to eat something.”

Bam—!

“Don’t want your stinking fish balls! You dead fish ball seller, useless!!”

…

“You little bastard, this is for you, from now on we have nothing to do with each other! Don’t say I’m heartless… I’ve been married to this old scoundrel of your family for so long, sleeping with him every day, and taking these things is only fair! If you’re not happy about it, go to court, I’d still be justified! Don’t be ungrateful!”

“Bitch… My dad is still lying in the funeral home! And you’re already eager to run away with a man, aren’t you afraid he’ll come back for you on the seventh day?”

“Get lost! I’d slap that old scoundrel if he dared to come! Or maybe he’s such a pushover, can’t even afford a burial plot after death!”

“You…”

“Dare to hit me? Just try! Little bastard!”

…

“I’m just a worthless thing… I couldn’t even beat that bitch, are you going to laugh at me?”

The man in the coffin looked as if asleep… Dressed in a junior high school uniform, he leaned beside it, burning not spirit money, but comic books.

He remembered that the man in the coffin used to love taking him to read these comics of revenge and chivalry.

The man said: You must learn to be strong.

The man said: Be a man of integrity, and help the weak.

The man said: It doesn’t matter if others look down on you, what’s important is that you don’t look down on yourself, like Wang Xiaohu in these stories, remember the three rules in there?

He tore to that page, his actions halted… Kneeling before the brazier, he read with a sniffling voice: “Do not betray loyalty, do not commit evil deeds, do not indulge in gambling, drinking, or lavish pleasures… It’s all nonsense! Killing and arson wear gold belts; that’s how you become strong! I don’t want to be Fish Ball Qiang, I want to be the strongest!!”

The flames of the brazier suddenly flared, turning everything to ashes.

…

——”You haven’t graduated high school yet… At least go to a vocational school, right? If you don’t even have vocational training, it’s hard for us to hire you… Why don’t you check next door?”

——”Manager, give me a chance… I’ll put in a lot of effort to learn! I’m willing to do anything! I’m not afraid of hard work!”

——”Go, go, the economy’s not good, we can’t afford a master.”

…

“Flower, please don’t go, please don’t leave! I can’t live without you… Flower, stay with me, I’ll treat you better… Give me some time, I’ll make money, I’ll make a lot, a lot of money!”

“Give you time… Who’s going to give me time? A Qiang, I can’t wait… I’m sorry, a woman’s youth really is limited. When you’ve made money in the future, find someone young and pretty, forget about me.”

“Flower… don’t go, Flower! Flower!”

He chased down the highway, crying and calling, patting the car window that he was gradually unable to catch up with… The woman inside just turned her face away.

In the end, exhausted, he lay powerlessly on the highway in the heavy rain.

…

——”Hey, Fish Ball Qiang, give me ten dollars’ worth of fish balls… I’ve tried all other places, and your stall’s fish balls still taste the best!”

——”Of course, this is made with a secret family recipe, you won’t find another like it in the whole world!”

——”Haha, that’s right! Well, Brother Qiang, I wish you booming business, getting better and better!”

——”Thank you… thanks,”

… Old man, I’m back here selling fish balls, just like you, isn’t it quite useless? But, it seems like my skills haven’t gone rusty.

…

——”Fish Ball Qiang, where did you hide the biggest fish ball again? If I don’t find it today, I’m not paying and I’ll eat for free!”

——”Brother Xiaosheng, please spare me… I’m just a small business, where would I have the biggest fish ball, I already said there’s none… Please don’t shatter all my fish balls in this pot!”

——”Aha, found it! You said there wasn’t any… Just knew you were up to no good, you rascal!”

——”Give me some face, alright, Brother Xiaosheng… Don’t speak so loudly, there are other customers!”

——”You shameless rascal, what are you afraid of? Aha, Brother Xiaosheng tells you, shameless people live long, that’s how you can live a long life, sticking around like an old dog.”

——”Brother Xiaosheng…”

——”These fish balls are getting tastier, but you, you’re getting worse! Aha, I love how shameless you are, best if you keep selling fish balls here, I don’t enjoy eating elsewhere… Come on, come on, feeling good today, here’s a tip for you!”

——”Thank you, Brother Xiaosheng, thank you, Brother Xiaosheng.”

——”Just like an old dog, aha.”

…Yeah, really like an old dog, coming back here to set up shop, and as you keep going, you’re nearing your forties as an old dog.

…But, you know, people are like this, without opportunities, there are simply no opportunities, right?

…

So painful… My body feels like it’s been crushed into mush, indescribably painful… As if trapped in a dark space, Fish Ball Qiang agonized.

He had a dream, dreaming that he turned into a giant monster, surrounded by other giant monsters—these monsters were frantically tearing into him.

He struggled to resist, biting back at each monster biting him, feeling that with each monster he bit, he grew stronger and more powerful… But there were just too many monsters, too many.

It was as if he went back to the past, no matter how hard he tried, no matter how he struggled, in the end, failure awaited… there were countless examples of grassroots commoners succeeding, but none could be replicated.

The world had too many people… The population had exploded, turning even something like the survivor’s bias into an unimaginable multiplier due to the sheer number.

Indeed… I am the protagonist, I can turn the tables, I will win, it’s all just an illusion—no matter how hard you try, resources have long since been tightly grasped by those at the top.

Give up… giving up is fine, death is simply the end of all troubles, there shall be no worries after death… give up.

Fish Ball Qiang gradually closed his eyes, unwilling to move… unable to move… too tired.

Life is too exhausting.

Truly too exhausting.

“Dad, am I really useless… in my thirties already… Dad, I am really tired, I can’t hold on anymore. I…”

…

…

In the Beastfighting Arena of the Palace of Eternal Night, within the icy snow region, Da Zhe wielded the Zhan Lu Sword and came to a halt—one swipe decisively killed the two avatars of the Hunnic King Attila, and after cleaving the King of the Huns, he did not continue the pursuit.

At this moment, Da Zhe frowned, looking at the raised goatskin, observing the motionless Bullhead Beetle Void Primordial Demon, gradually feeling a sense of foreboding… No mark of the transaction being completed appeared on the goatskin.

This was Da Zhe’s first time attempting such a business transaction… It wasn’t that he hadn’t encountered it before, back then Black Soul No.18 had taken him along once, but at that time, Da Zhe was merely an observer.

He couldn’t tell if it was because the transaction still needed some time, or if Fish Ball Qiang ultimately didn’t choose to go through with it… or perhaps, what Fish Ball Qiang wanted and what he could offer were completely disproportionate, hence unable to trigger the one-time transaction contract given to him by Boss Luo.

As time ticked away… this Bullhead Beetle Void Primordial Demon not only had its eyes closed but its limbs also gradually weakened… It knelt down bit by bit until it finally lay completely on the ground.

The surrounding Void Primordial Demons swarmed continuously, incessantly tearing at its flesh… a disturbing sight.

Da Zhe opened his mouth, watching the scene before him, ultimately sighed: “Fish Ball Qiang… Brother Qiang, is this as far as it goes… Have you forgotten what you once said…”

Da Zhe shook his head. In fact, he understood from the beginning, that Fish Ball Qiang had already transformed into what he was now, losing his reason, even maintaining his Soul… but under the circumstances of lost reason, how could he clearly express what he wanted to do—after all, this was merely a one-time transaction contract, not something where Boss Luo personally came to flexibly and freely execute transactions.

“Hahahahaha! Looks like your scheming was in vain!”

At this moment, a loud, overwhelming laughter reverberated from all sides.

Da Zhe frowned and turned around, only to see a figure quickly shooting over, unmistakably the Hunnic King Attila, who he had just knocked down not long ago—At this moment, Attila’s injuries seemed to have healed, apart from tattered clothes, he appeared otherwise unscathed.

“You really have a big life.” Da Zhe snorted lightly… As he glanced at the Bullhead Beetle Void Primordial Demon once more, his eyes carried a trace of helplessness.

The Hunnic King Attila scoffed, “After slaying a god, I possess ten incarnations… Although your strike was formidable, attempting to kill this king requires far more time!”

Da Zhe shook his head: “Truly unfair… How someone like you can live better than Fish Ball Qiang.”

The Hunnic King laughed heartily at these words… he mocked, “I say, you’re a strong one who ascended from the Lower Realm… and yet you cannot see through the fundamentals of fairness or unfairness? Even if this king had led a mediocre life, I was born of noble lineage, achieving accomplishments unattainable by an entire lifetime’s efforts of others, so what of it—these are the fate bestowed upon this king! Besides, if this king were really incapable, how could I accomplish what I’ve achieved today… what? Does the effort of ordinary people seem more precious to you, and the effort of heavenly prodigies inherently worthless?”

Da Zhe picked at his ear and replied, “Sorry… I’ve always been grassroots, I was always against the wealthy, now I just want to double-standard you, bite me if you dare!”

The Hunnic King Attila’s face stiffened at these words… being overly shameless was not unheard of, there were quite a few shameless ones among the Transcendents—but someone like Da Zhe, who directly stated it, not a single one was like him.

The Hunnic King took a deep breath, suddenly shook his head… he cast a glance at the Bullhead Beetle monster lying on the ground, whose body had been torn apart by those Void Primordial Demons, and suddenly chuckled: “I originally wanted to see if this trash would undergo some special transformation after eating the Ancestral Spirit’s brain marrow. But it seems trash is still trash, unable to soar even when given the opportunity.”

Da Zhe’s eyes narrowed slightly… He said nothing, merely lifting the Zhan Lu Sword slantingly.

The Hunnic King laughed softly, shaking his head and saying, “Newbie, I acknowledge your strength… however, I don’t think there’s a need for a life-and-death struggle between us. See, this trash is what it is, since the matter is already set, why should we persist in our fight? As a strong one squeezed out from the cracks, you should understand there’s no unresolved hatred between strong ones. Our ultimate goal is to unravel the secrets of the crevice and venture to the Origin… why trouble oneself here?”

“Sorry, I’m very vengeful.” Da Zhe said coldly.

The Hunnic King let out a cold snort, “Ungrateful fool… Just a mere newbie, do you truly believe that because you’ve gained the appreciation of the Fu Xi Throne, you can act with impunity? Today, this king will make you understand, no matter your domineering in your original sub-world, here you must obediently submit to this king!”

Da Zhe did not intend to continue with verbal sparring, at this moment, as he swung the Zhan Lu Sword… The Heteromorphic Origin within his body began to pound fervently—he was still in a humanoid form, with much of his Power still latent.

The Zhan Lu Sword bore the mark of the club, he needed the Dark Soul Body to truly unleash the Power to its Limit!

At the same time, the Hunnic King Attila was also stirred into a fierce fury… Behind him, ten enormous vortexes suddenly emerged—within each vortex, different shadows emerged.

“Don’t be afraid to hear it… the name of the god I polluted with blood sacrifice!” At this moment, the Hunnic King opened his big hand wide: “The War God of Persia!”

Da Zhe sneered coldly and raised his sword, with the Zhan Lu Sword’s light shooting into the sky—he wasn’t even in the mood to wait for the Hunnic King to make a move, announcing attack names before fighting, foolish!

But just at this moment, Da Zhe’s hand suddenly trembled slightly…

“First rule: No betrayal…”

It was Fish Ball Qiang’s voice… On the ground, it moved, the voice echoed within this ice valley!