Super Fighting Tokyo.

Akiyama Kaede let out a long breath, and with the utmost professionalism of a secretary, opened her small bag, intending to touch up her makeup before the meeting.

One of the small, sparkling mirrors, with its exquisite design, caught Maruk's attention.

"..."

Maruk stared intently, rummaged in his pocket for a long time, and finally pulled out a coin—his only pocket money—and waved it in front of Akiyama Kaede.

"I have fifty yuan here, enough for you to do whatever you want..."

Maruk asked politely and earnestly, "Excuse me, may I exchange it for your sparkly little mirror?"

Akiyama Kaede: "..."

Akiyama Kaede: "Huh?"

Although...but...no matter what, Akiyama Kaede couldn't bear to refuse such a "big" child, and finally agreed to the deal.

……

……

A dozen minutes later, Bai Mucheng and Wu Fengshui finished washing up and sat down at the table.

Clearly, during this period, Shiraki Cheng also organized his thoughts.

He smiled and looked at Akiyama Kaede, exclaiming, "The Nogi Group is truly showing their sincerity..."

Akiyama Kaede calmly retorted, "Is your use of 'full of sincerity' a compliment, or is it sarcasm?"

"..."

Bai Mucheng was silent for a moment, then smiled frankly and said, "It's a good phrase."

Akiyama Kaede breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing this, Arisa was puzzled, so Wu Fengshui patiently explained to her, "The commission from Nogi Group is to give Shiraki a chance to become a member of Kengankai."

“There is a fundamental difference between Kengan-kai members and Kengan-kai fighters.”

Wu Fengshui gestured and said, "Members with wealth and social status hire skilled fighters to compete in a 'fighting match' with stakes in mind."

"In other words, only 'members' can initiate Kengan matches, and fighters can only passively accept being hired."

"..."

Arisa thought for a moment after hearing this, "Isn't this a great reward? My brother will like it. What are you worried about, Miss Akiyama?"

"Because joining the Kengan Association is not so easy. The Nogi Group is only 'giving opportunities', which is far less direct than monetary rewards."

Wu Fengshui asked You Sha for some snacks, and while eating, he said, "To be honest, I can hardly understand this 'opportunity'—after all, the Kengan Association isn't controlled by the Nogi Group, and Shiraki Chika isn't a business owner. Is there really an opportunity to join?"

"You're right."

Akiyama Kaede nodded. "To become a member of the Kengan Association, in addition to 'wealth and social status,' one's companies also need to be 'recognized by the Kengan Association.'"

"I originally thought that this was the only way to join."

Akiyama Kaede pushed up his glasses and changed the subject, "But our company's chairman—Nogi Hideki—knows a 'shortcut'."

Its name is: Kengan Sports Challenge!

Akiyama Kaede slowly introduced:

"Becoming a member of the Kengan Association is proof of being a top-notch businessman, and for this reason, there are countless people eager to obtain the rights of membership."

"Among them, many members use the authority of the Kengan Association to wager their 'membership status' in unofficial fights, with the aim of earning money as 'challenge fees'."

"Although these unofficial competitions are only a pittance compared to official battles, occasionally some nobodies will be tempted and risk their membership status."

"As for the stakes, there's no need to worry. The referees will still be sent by the Kengan Association, and the outcome of the match is absolute."

As Qiushan Feng finished speaking, he took out a document and looked at Bai Mucheng.

"The opportunities offered to you by the Nogi Group mainly consist of 'two points'."

"Firstly, we will help you connect with other members and find opportunities to form a 'Fist of Wish Competition Challenge'."

"Secondly, we will provide you with an 'unlimited interest-free loan' to cover the challenge fee for this competition—one hundred million yen."

One hundred million yen?!

Such an astonishing amount truly startled Arisa.

As for Shiramu Cheng, he had already anticipated these events, so he wasn't too surprised.

To be fair, Nogi Group's compensation was indeed quite generous.

Compared to the perfunctory "monetary reward," the "opportunity" to become a member of the Kengan Association has significantly greater potential, and its value far exceeds the money itself!

There are three key points to seizing this opportunity, two of which have already been resolved by the Nogi Group.

First, you have to "participate" in a Kengan Sports Challenge, and the Nogi Group will help make the connection.

Secondly, a challenge fee of 100 million yen was required, which the Nogi Group had already taken care of, providing Shiraki with an "indefinite interest-free loan" of 100 million yen.

It's called a loan, but the words "indefinite" and "interest-free" practically tell Shiraki that the money is provided by the Nogi Group, and Shiraki should just remember the favor; whether he repays it or not is irrelevant.

As for the last point, the Nogi Group was powerless to help.

Shiraki Seito won this challenge.

"..."

Shiraki had to admit that Nogi Hideki, the chairman of the Nogi Group, was indeed a shrewd and capable person.

Based on the current situation, Nogi Hideki should be preparing to launch the "Kengan Deathmatch Tournament" to challenge the current chairman of the Kengan Association, "Katahara Metsudo".

As the name suggests, the more "own people" you have in the knockout stage, the better. Therefore, Nogi Hideki is currently recruiting and recruiting experts from all walks of life to join his camp.

This "challenge opportunity," along with the "indefinite interest-free loan" of up to 100 million yen, is both Nogi Hideki's way of winning over Shiraki Sei and a means of forcibly bringing the two parties closer.

"..."

Akiyama Kaede placed the loan agreement in front of Shiraki Cheng, "What do you think?"

Given such a golden opportunity, Bai Mucheng did not hesitate and immediately picked up his pen to sign.

Akiyama Kaede carefully put away his copy of the contract, then got up to take his leave.

"The date for the Kengan Arena Challenge is yet to be determined. I will contact you in advance once I have accurate information. Please prepare accordingly in the near future."

"Well, hard work."

Shiraki thanked him and, together with Yusa, saw Akiyama Kaede off.

……

……

Akiyama Kaede left the Shiraki family home and got into a car at the intersection.

In the back seat of the car, a middle-aged man in a suit with slicked-back hair—the chairman of the Nogi Group, "Nogi Hideki"—had been waiting for a long time.

Akiyama Kaede calmly gave her assessment, "That man named 'Shiraki Cheng' is not someone who can be controlled. President, do you really want to win him over?"

"It doesn't matter!"

With a cigar dangling from his mouth, Nogi Hideki waved his hand with a smile, "What we need to do now is add a lot of variables to the Kengan Association. Only with changes can we have a better chance of winning!"

"Also, be careful lately, Akiyama."

Nogi took a puff of his cigar. "According to Mr. Metsudo's investigation, a foreign criminal group seems to have its eye on the Kengan Association. It's called 'IDEAL' and may target related individuals."

Qiu Shanfeng nodded.

Nogi leaned back in his chair and sighed softly, "The business world is like a battlefield! There might be kidnappings or extortions. I'd better recruit more skilled people as soon as possible..."

Chapter Forty: Individual Consciousness

The negotiations with Akiyama Kaede went smoothly and didn't take much time.

It's only evening now, and the afterglow of the setting sun has just appeared, giving the sky a faint golden hue.

Arisa took Maruk with her and they went to play in the nearby park.

The Shiraki family's yard fell silent.

When Bai Mucheng had nothing to do, he invited Wu Fengshui to dinner. The two of them, each with a can of Coke, sat on the wall of the courtyard and watched the sunset.

Wu Fengshui, dangling his legs, tilted his head and asked, "Bai Muqin, what are your plans next?"

Shiraki Shigeaki didn't think much of it and casually replied, "Wait for Nogi Group to contact me, then I'll do my daily training, repair the dojo, wander around, and look for further ideas..."

He rambled on and on, while Wu Fengshui listened quietly beside him.

As he spoke, Bai Mucheng suddenly paused for a moment, digging deeper into his thoughts, and unconsciously clenched his fist.

“I want to know ‘what it means to be strong,’ and then—I want to become the strongest.”

Wu Fengshui had anticipated this answer.

After all, true "fighters" often share the same dream.

Although it may sound silly, even if it only happens once in a lifetime, they all dream of becoming the strongest person on earth!

"What does it mean to be powerful..."

Wu Fengshui sighed, "If you asked my older brother Wu Lei'an, that madman would probably answer something like: 'Killing you makes me stronger—'"

"If you ask other people, such as Garuda, her grandfather, other members of the Wu clan, or other fighters in the world, the answers would be different."

“I also heard the clan elder mention a giant beast nicknamed Ogre. He said that strength is strength, and everything else is impure.”

"Shiraki-chan, what are your thoughts?"

"..."

Bai Mucheng sipped his iced cola, his thoughts drifting aimlessly, and murmured, "Consciousness..."

Wu Fengshui blinked. "Hmm?"

“I always feel that ‘consciousness’ is very important to me.”