Tokyo Knights: The Odd Jobs X Files

The 1980s were the time when a "martial arts craze" swept across mainland China. Li Xin was only nine years old at the time, the age when he loved to fantasize the most. When he saw a martial arts manual, regardless of whether it was real or fake, he would naturally want to practice it. However, the manual was full of obscure and difficult-to-understand content, and it was written in classical Chinese, which he could not understand.

But it doesn't matter. Even if Li Xin can't understand it, someone else can. With his enthusiasm for becoming a martial arts master, Li Xin went to the village secretary. The village secretary was an educated man and would definitely be able to understand it.

The village secretary was indeed able to understand it. He was not only a college student who had studied abroad, but also came from a family with a strong academic tradition. His uncle was a master of Chinese classical studies. Influenced by his family environment, he was very adept at classical Chinese.

At Li Xin's request, the village secretary annotated each sentence so that even a child like Li Xin could understand it. However, the village secretary did not understand the meridians and acupoints mentioned above.

However, it didn't matter. There was a barefoot doctor in Shibali Village who had a diagram of meridians and acupoints in traditional Chinese medicine. Li Xin asked the barefoot doctor for the diagram and, together with the annotations he got from the village secretary, it seemed that mastering the martial arts was just around the corner. Then, Li Xin discovered another problem: he didn't know many characters and couldn't even recognize all the names of the martial arts manuals.

But it's still okay, if we can't recognize all the characters, we can learn!

Tempted by the divine power, Li Xin began to study diligently, not only using his own textbooks but also borrowing all the unused textbooks of a fellow villager who had already finished junior high school, and studying on his own!

The villagers noticed Li Xin's strange behavior, but no one cared. After all, he was just a child that age, and it wasn't surprising that he would do something stupid.

The village party secretary knew about the booklet. When he was annotating it, he specifically checked the entire booklet and didn't find any "dangerous actions, do not imitate" content. Instead, he saw the words "printed by Dinghao Lithographic Company, retail price two cents per copy" on the back cover, so he felt at ease letting Li Xin do whatever he wanted.

And so, while diligently studying and learning to read and write, Li Xin actually made some progress in his martial arts training. He felt a warm power flowing through his body, his strength increased, he could run faster, he could see things more clearly, and he could hear distant sounds. He became different!

Li Xin was thrilled that his dream had come true and he practiced the martial arts in the booklet even more diligently.

Oh, no, by that time he could already recognize most of the characters and knew what the martial arts in that booklet was called: "Wedding Dress Divine Skill".

Although the name is strange, it did give Li Xin a different kind of power.

Li Xin had no intention of keeping his miraculous martial arts skills a secret. He was raised in Shibali Village, and the people of Shibali Village were his family. How could Li Xin keep his family secret?

However, Li Xin wasn't entirely without selfish motives. He thought that he would practice for a few years first, and once he reached a certain level, he would teach the martial arts to the villagers. That way, even if the villagers mastered the skills, their power would be a few years weaker than his, and he would always be the most powerful. Hehe!

Li Xin felt he was really bad and felt sorry for the villagers who raised him, but not long after, he began to feel glad for his bad intentions, because he discovered that the "Wedding Dress Divine Skill" had gone out of control!

When Li Xin mastered the first level of the "Wedding Dress Divine Skill", he felt great and his body was very comfortable during practice. However, when he reached the second level, he felt a slight stinging pain in his meridians every time he practiced. But he didn't pay attention to it. Having never received any instruction and having no martial arts knowledge, Li Xin thought that this was how it was supposed to be when practicing martial arts. After all, "No pain, no gain."

However, when Li Xin reached the fourth level, the pain during practice increased dramatically, forcing him, who was quite determined to become a martial arts master, to give up further training. But by then it was too late. If he gave up, his true energy would flow in reverse, rushing into his internal organs, causing even more pain; and if he tried to dissipate his energy, he couldn't get rid of it at all.

Knowing the harmful nature of the "Wedding Dress Divine Skill," Li Xin dared not pass it on to others, nor did he dare tell anyone about the abnormality in his body. He could only silently endure it, practicing while fighting against the increasingly intense pain, and fantasizing that perhaps everything would be alright when he reached the end of the practice.

When Li Xin turned eighteen, the "Wedding Dress Divine Skill" broke through to the seventh level. Li Xin's beautiful fantasy was finally shattered. The pain brought to him by the "Wedding Dress Divine Skill" was further upgraded. It was no longer a question of whether he could endure the pain, but that his body began to be unable to withstand it and gradually suffered damage.

Li Xin knew that his life was already on a countdown.

Just then, Lao Liu approached Li Xin, hoping that Li Xin could go to Hong Kong with him. Li Xin thought that he was going to die soon and that he had to repay the kindness of the many villagers in Shibali Village before he died, so he agreed to go to Hong Kong with Lao Liu. However, he was delayed because he needed to apply for an ID card and passport.

The reason Li Xin was able to discover the dam breach that day was because the dam was located between Shibali Village and the neighboring village. He discovered the dam was cracked and about to collapse on his way to find Lao Liu in the neighboring village, so he quickly ran back to Shibali Village, which is how he managed to save the villagers of Shibali Village.

After getting out of bed, Li Xin walked to the wall and silently looked at the newspaper pasted on it.

The Phantom Thief Kid returns, stunning the world with his spectacular magic performance after a decade!

"The Mysterious Art Thief, 'Cat's Eye,' Succeeds Again—Just How Incompetent Is the Metropolitan Police Department?!"

The newspaper featured articles about Tokyo's two most famous phantom thieves. He posted these articles on his wall not because he was a fan of the two thieves, but because...

A reward of 500 million yen will be given for the arrest of "Kidd," and an additional 1 billion yen will be given for his capture alive and delivery to the Suzuki Zaibatsu.

A bounty of 100 million yen will be offered for the capture of "Cat's Eye," with an additional reward of one-tenth the value of each artwork recovered.

Crocodile's so-called "big business" has yet to arrive, and Li Xin doesn't know how much longer he can live. He is a very opinionated person. He didn't listen to the village chief and the village party secretary and went to Hong Kong with Lao Liu. After arriving in Hong Kong, he didn't listen to Lao Liu and stayed in the hotel. This time is no different. He won't rely on Crocodile all the time. He wants to make money on his own.

Of course, there's another reason: Crocodile's cut is too steep, and he can't bear to part with it.

"As long as we catch both of them... no, even just one of them, there will be hope for the reconstruction of the village!"

Li Xin murmured.

Chapter Five: The Fox Borrows the Tiger's Power

Shinjuku, Tokyo... no, it should be said to be the most decadent and dissolute place in the entire East Japan, and also a place where the underworld runs rampant. It is a melting pot of all sorts of people, and the rampant materialism creates a modern ukiyo-e painting.

On the brightly lit streets of Shinjuku, Crocodile, dressed in a suit and wearing brown sunglasses, had a gold watch on his wrist that was dazzling to the eye. He looked incredibly arrogant. The reason he could swagger around the bustling streets was not because the people around him were of high quality, but because Li Xin was following behind him.

Standing nearly 1.9 meters tall, with broad shoulders and a bulging chest, his pectoral muscles were so strong they could crush a person. If that were all, it wouldn't be so bad. What truly made people hesitate was the aura emanating from Li Xin that seemed capable of strangling people. His black sunglasses made it impossible to see Li Xin's eyes, but it was precisely because of this unknown that it was even more terrifying.

With such a fierce figure following behind him, even if Crocodile were ten times more arrogant, no one would dare to provoke him.

As Crocodile swaggered along, he whispered to Li Xin in Mandarin, "Xin, we're heading to the Tainan Gang's territory. The Tainan Gang is the largest Chinese gang in Shinjuku, and they have deep ties with the Triads, Tokyo's largest yakuza group. If we want to make a living here, we have to pay our respects to the Tainan Gang so we can ask them for help if anything happens in the future."

As a seasoned conman, Crocodile knew a great many people from all walks of life, and he had acquaintances not only in Hong Kong but also in Japan. It was through these acquaintances that Crocodile learned about the Tainan Gang and developed the idea of ​​making contact with them.

As the saying goes, "Even a mighty dragon can't suppress a local snake," let alone someone who isn't even a mighty dragon. Shinjuku is a mixed bag, rife with trouble and conflict. There are plenty of people here who want to take someone down or who are hated by others. It's the perfect place for Crocodile to start his business. So he's here to meet the local tyrant first and set up his business. As for why he brought Li Xin along to set up his business...

Crocodile is a native of Hong Kong and has dealt with gangs countless times. Although he has had little contact with Japanese gangs, he believes that gangs everywhere are essentially the same: they all bully the weak and fear the strong. Only by being strong enough can he prevent others from underestimating him. That's why Crocodile insists on bringing Li Xin along, because only Li Xin can give him the presence of someone who is only 1.53 meters tall.

"Ah-Xin, remember to be fierce when you see people later."

Crocodile Man reminded Li Xin.

Li Xin nodded. He was familiar with this job. When the village chief went to the neighboring village to talk to the village chief there, he always had Li Xin follow behind him.

The two soon arrived at the Formosa Club. Instead of the usual greeters or hostesses, there were two men in black suits on either side of the entrance, making it clear that the club had deep ties with the underworld. This was actually the intention behind Formosa Club's arrangement, as the club's backers were the underworld, specifically the Tainan Gang.

Crocodile Man picked up a cigar, lit it, took a puff, and blew the smoke into the face of one of the two men in black suits.

The man in the black suit had never experienced anything like this before and was completely unprepared. He was hit squarely by the fresh secondhand smoke and started coughing incessantly. At the same time, he said in shock and anger, "You're asking for it!"

This is Tainan gang territory. Everyone who comes here to spend money behaves properly. He had never been provoked like this before. He was about to slap Crocodile Brother across the face when he suddenly felt a darkness in front of him. He saw a tall figure looming in front of him. The figure behind the black sunglasses was completely inhuman, which instantly calmed the furious man in the black suit.

"Is Kao Chieh here? If so, have him come out and see me."

Crocodile Lao spoke slowly and deliberately, with a very relaxed and carefree attitude.

Kao Chieh is the leader of the Tainan gang, but few people call him by that name. He is usually respectfully called Boss Kao. When the man in the black suit saw the man, he immediately called him "Kao Chieh" and even had Boss Kao come to see him in person. The man in the black suit was unsure of Crocodile's identity and became nervous.

Crocodile Man smiled slightly, putting on airs and intimidating his opponent. Even an Oscar-winning actor couldn't pull off this kind of trick as well as him.

After telling Li Xin to step back, Crocodile Old Man kicked the man in the black suit hard, yelling at him, "I told you to go and call Gao Jie to come out and see me, didn't you hear me? Are you deaf?"

Crocodile Man had put all his strength into that kick, because the more force he used, the more it showed he wasn't afraid, and the less likely the person who was kicked would dare to retaliate. Sure enough, the man in the black suit guarding the gate not only didn't dare to retaliate, but instead scrambled inside, obviously to notify his superiors.

The remaining man in the black suit also tried to slip away, but was stopped by Crocodile.

"Stop right there! Is this how you treat your guests? Making them stand outside like this? That's incredibly rude!"

Crocodile was getting more and more carried away with his performance, making Li Xin feel a little uncomfortable.

Although Crocodile kept boasting about how powerful he was, after spending so many days with him, Li Xin had a general understanding of Crocodile's character.

He claimed to have shared drinks with high-ranking members of the Yamaguchi-gumi and to have close friendships with senior officials of the Metropolitan Police Department. However, Li Xin knew that these stories were mostly lies. Even if there was a tiny bit of truth to them, it would only amount to having a drink with a low-ranking member of the Yamaguchi-gumi or taking a bath with a junior police officer from the Metropolitan Police Department. That was all.

Even his boasted title of top assassin agent is probably fake; Li Xin might actually be his first partner in the assassin industry.

Apart from a few strands of hair on his head, even the gold watch he always flaunted was fake. His height was also fake; he always claimed to be 1.6 meters tall, but Li Xin estimated that he was only 1.53 meters tall, no more.

Even though Crocodile was full of lies, Li Xin knew very well that just half a month ago he was a simple country bumpkin who had never even left his own city. If he wanted to establish himself in the dazzling Tokyo, he needed someone to guide him.

Crocodile wasn't as formidable as he claimed, which was actually a good thing for Li Xin. He didn't intend to become some heinous super killer. Crocodile, who wasn't exactly a good person but not bad either, and had very strong survival and social skills, was exactly the kind of partner he desperately needed. So even though he guessed Crocodile's background, Li Xin pretended not to know and cooperated with Crocodile as much as possible.

Faced with Crocodile's arrogant attitude, the remaining man in the black suit wiped his sweat and led Crocodile to a private room.

Not long after, a man in a white suit with a fierce look, who looked like a villain, walked into the private room. Behind him were four or five menacing-looking men, all of whom stared at Crocodile with murderous eyes.

If you dare to act recklessly in the territory of the Tainan gang, we'll make sure you're destroyed!

Crocodile ignored these people, sat on the sofa, crossed his legs, held a wine glass in one hand, and dangled the other hand on the armrest, with his usual arrogant smile on his face.

The fierce-looking man entered the private room, ostensibly looking at Crocodile, but actually keeping an eye on Li Xin behind Crocodile, estimating Li Xin's fighting strength.

His dark face revealed no emotion, his black sunglasses exuded a coldness, and his black jacket was left unzipped, revealing his strong, iron-like chest muscles.

He's definitely someone special.

The fierce-looking man nodded secretly.

The menacing-looking man was Kao Chieh, the leader of the Tainan gang. Someone was causing trouble, and such a trivial matter shouldn't have involved Kao Chieh. He was the leader, not a handyman, and couldn't possibly manage everything. Otherwise, what would he be doing with so many people? However, the man in the black suit who came to report said that there was a rather unusual person among those causing trouble.

You should know that jobs like greeting people at the door may seem like they only require standing at the entrance and anyone can do them, but doing them well is very difficult because they require extremely sharp eyesight.

Shinjuku is a melting pot of all sorts of people, from all walks of life. The job of the two men in black suits guarding the entrance of the Treasure Island Club is to quickly discern a person's background and identity. Now that the men in black suits say that the person who came is not simple, Kao Chieh naturally became interested and came to see for himself. As a result, upon seeing him, he was indeed extraordinary.

Japan is a country where guns are prohibited. Of course, this doesn't mean that there are absolutely no guns among civilians. For powerful gangs, getting a gun is not a difficult thing. But the problem is that the cost of firing a gun is too high, especially firing a gun in Tokyo. If a scapegoat is not handed over, the police will find it difficult to let the matter rest.

Therefore, when conflicts break out in Japan, the underworld will choose to resolve disputes with cold weapons, which also makes these underworld members have an instinctive awe of people with strong fighting skills.

Although Li Xin has not yet demonstrated his combat prowess, his physique is undeniable, and even at his worst, he can't be that bad. Moreover, the subtle yet palpable aura of danger emanating from him makes the fierce-looking man wary.

So, instead of ordering his subordinates to kill Crocodile Man, the fierce-looking man introduced himself: "Kao Chieh."

"So it's Boss Gao, nice to meet you."

Crocodile stood up with a smile, extended his hand to Gao Jie, and said in Hokkien, "Crocodile, I'm from Hong Kong. I heard about Boss Gao's reputation as soon as I arrived in your esteemed place, and I admire him greatly, so I brought my brothers to pay them a visit!"

This sudden change in attitude from arrogant to obsequious made the black-suited man leading the way glare in disbelief—you weren't like this before, could you please change back?

Kao Chieh scrutinized Crocodile Man for a moment, then suddenly heard a sharp sound and saw Li Xin draw out the samurai sword that was used as decoration in the private room.

"Be careful, old man!"

Several burly men behind Gao Jie immediately stepped forward and surrounded him, while simultaneously pulling out their weapons and pointing them at Li Xin.

Crocodile was also taken aback, thinking to himself, "Brother, what are you up to?"

After Li Xin drew his katana, he didn't aim it at Gao Jie, but instead casually swung it at himself.

"Oh!"

The samurai sword struck Li Xin's chest, but the "Wedding Dress Divine Skill" automatically protected him, shattering the samurai sword into seven or eight pieces. Li Xin discarded the samurai sword, now only the hilt remained, and said in a very calm tone, "Everyone says that Japanese samurai swords are so powerful, but it turns out they're just a piece of scrap metal."

The Crocodile Master's true teaching: when you speak, try to slow down your tone and don't let any emotion show. This way, others will think you are unfathomable and won't dare to make a move easily.

Kao Chieh's men stared at Li Hsin with disbelief. One of the bolder ones squatted down, picked up a blade that had fallen to his feet, and bit it hard. Yes, it was real, not a toy knife.

Kao Chieh swallowed hard, clearly frightened by Li Xin.

He was the leader of the Tainan gang and was quite knowledgeable. He knew that there were many extraordinary people in the world with incredible abilities that ordinary people did not know about, but this was the first time he had seen one in person like this.

"Hehe, my men are unruly, please forgive them, Boss Gao."

Crocodile chuckled and reached out to Kao Chieh again. This time, Kao Chieh did not look down on Crocodile. He shook hands with Crocodile and returned a smile. However, for Kao Chieh, a man with a naturally fierce appearance, to smile was more like crying. Children under ten years old would definitely be frightened to tears, and those over ten years old would likely have nightmares.

However, Crocodile Man was very satisfied with Kao Chieh's smile, thinking it was even more beautiful than the smiles of the nightclub girls.

"Ah Xin, apologize to Boss Gao! We'll have to rely on him to make a living here!"

Crocodile Man shouted at Li Xin.

Li Xin showed no displeasure. Of course, with his dark face and sunglasses, most people couldn't tell what he was thinking. He simply said in a very calm tone, "Boss Gao, I'm a rough man and don't know the rules. I'm really sorry for disturbing you."

He didn't speak Taiwanese, so he could only answer in Mandarin. Kao Chieh understood Mandarin and nodded repeatedly, saying, "It's alright, it's alright. I have plenty of people like that under me, I'm used to it."

Crocodile Man laughed: "Oh, Boss Gao has a master like Ah Xin under his command? How about bringing him out for a sparring match with Ah Xin?"

Kao Chieh quickly shook his head and said, "No, no, no, I don't have such an expert under my command. If I did, my Tainan gang wouldn't just be operating in Shinjuku."

As he spoke, Kao Chieh thought of the Triads, one of the largest gangs in Tokyo. It seemed that the Triads had experts like Li Xin.

However, Kao Chieh did not think of using the Triads' experts to deal with Li Xin. Instead, he wondered if he could use Li Xin to fight against the Triads.

The Triads are considered the superior organization of the Tainan Gang. The Tainan Gang is able to survive in Tokyo and Shinjuku by relying on the vice president of the Triads. They are specifically responsible for solving some problems that the Triads cannot handle themselves. At the same time, most of the Tainan Gang's revenue is handed over to the Triads. Although it is not shameful to be someone's lackey for survival, it does not mean that Kaohsiung Metro is willing to do so.

So, Gao Jie's forced smile became more sincere, and he said to Crocodile, "Crocodile, to be honest, I feel an instant connection with you. If you have nothing else to do, why don't you stay and have a drink with me?"

Crocodile Man laughed heartily and immediately seized the opportunity, saying, "To be honest, I feel the same way. I felt close to you the moment I saw you, Brother Gao. Today, it's my treat, let's get drunk!"

"Brother Crocodile, that's not fair of you. This is my territory. How can I let you treat me to a meal? Are you insulting me?"

"Brother, this isn't how you do business!"

"Brother!"

"Brother!"

In the blink of an eye, Crocodile and Kao Chieh were calling each other brothers. Crocodile turned his head and secretly winked at Li Xin, which made Li Xin look stunned.

Well, for this kind of thing, only Crocodile Guy knows.

Li Xin said that he could never learn Crocodile's skills in his lifetime.

Chapter Six: Great kindness needs no words of thanks; please pay in cash. Thank you.

Crocodile and his new best friend had so much to talk about that they planned to party all night... to strengthen their bond, so he sent Li Xin back first.

This disappointed Kao Chieh somewhat. Compared to Crocodile, he actually wanted to befriend Li Xin more, and even had the idea of ​​recruiting Li Xin to his side. However, he was still unsure about Crocodile's background, so he couldn't bypass Crocodile and directly recruit Li Xin.

"Brother Ashin wants to go back, let me send someone to escort him!"