Chapter 019: Street Battle "Tokyo Hot"!

The Grand Lan Alley—a broad passage, nearly ten meters wide, its walls scrawled with graffiti, the ground littered with rubbish. There were even some dark red stains that looked like old blood. Compared to the dazzling lights of the surrounding streets, the alley’s lamps flickered dimly, casting an uneasy quiet over the place.

At the mouth of the alley appeared a youth fully armed. Hao Er stepped forward. “Are you Le Xiaotian?”

Le Xiaotian also advanced a step. “And you must be Hao Er?”

As they closed the distance, Hao Er scrutinized Le Xiaotian, then extended his right hand. “Shall we shake on it?”

Ahead lay the alley’s end—a wall about two meters high. Within the alley, there were only eight people.

After taking stock of his surroundings, Le Xiaotian shook Hao Er’s hand. “Tell me, shouldn’t your boss Hao show me a bit more respect? How is it that only eight people have come?”

With an awkward smile, Hao Er replied, “Truthfully, I respect you for not calling the police or running away. The eight of us here aren’t Hao’s top enforcers—we don’t know any dance martial arts, and we didn’t bring dance weapons. But I am a Black Belt in Dominator Boxing. My skills are decent, at least.”

At that, the other seven introduced themselves in turn.

“Hao Yi, ordinary man, Red Belt in Dominator Boxing.”

“Hao San, ordinary man, 2013 Underground Boxing King of North Sea City.”

“Hao Si, ordinary man, Eighth Dan in Single-Handed Mountain Blade.”

“Hao Wu, ordinary man, 2014 North Sea Combat Championship winner.”

“Hao Liu, ordinary man, Third Dan in Killing Techniques.”

“Hao Qi, ordinary man—ten days ago, took down ten senior agents from the Lan Kingdom.”

“Hao Ba, ordinary man—nine years ago, managed to fight three matches before losing in the last All-Star Extreme Challenge [Death Fight].”

With their introductions, Le Xiaotian understood the strength of the eight brothers before him. Contrary to common impression, Hao Yi, who could take on more than a dozen regular men, was the weakest among them. The strongest was Hao Ba. Of course, none of them had mastered dance martial arts; they couldn’t compare to Su Yun. They were simply not in the same league.

Withdrawing his hand, Le Xiaotian smiled. “Would calling the police have helped? Running isn’t in my nature. Le Xiaotian, ordinary man—proficient in Tai Chi Sword, Tai Chi Fist, Jeet Kune Do at the ideal realm of ‘Formless over Form,’ Taekwondo, Karate, Bone-Dislocating Technique, Grappling, Hong Fist, Wing Chun, Heart-Shattering Palm…”

Though the eight brothers didn’t recognize every discipline he listed, they could tell they were formidable. Clearly, Le Xiaotian was no ordinary man.

When he finished, Hao Er tried once more to persuade him. “Is there truly no room for negotiation?”

Le Xiaotian did not answer directly but instead grinned. “Have you listened to the songs I released? What did you think?”

Smiling, the eight brothers replied in unison, “Very nice, all of them.”

Le Xiaotian was skeptical. “Really?”

Hao Er explained, “If you’ve gotten used to bad music, and then suddenly hear something at your level, it’s bound to sound good.”

That gave Le Xiaotian pause. People do tire of the old and crave the new. Earth’s music, in comparison to that of the music world on Le Planet, was undeniably fresh and novel. Moreover, his song selection skills were only average—he hadn’t even brought over the truly bad songs from Earth.

With that in mind, he took out his phone. “Shall we listen to another track before we fight? This one hasn’t been released yet.”

The eight brothers all agreed. “Sure.”

Le Xiaotian scrolled through his playlist, finally choosing a dance track: “Pi-Tokyo” by EnV—a piece he personally translated as “Tokyo Heat.”

Looking at the cover art, the eight brothers were all intrigued. “The girl on this cover looks great.”

Bathed in golden sunlight, a delicate two-story pavilion stood behind her. Sixteen red lanterns hung overhead. On a quiet afternoon street, a girl in a red kimono held a crimson oil-paper umbrella. Her wooden clogs were slightly raised, as if she were glancing back at something. Her features were exquisite, her face oval, a lotus mark between her brows, her expression calm—a true beauty.

Le Xiaotian, realizing these brothers were anime fans, felt a sense of kinship. “I’ve decided: my future band members must dance ‘Tokyo Heat’ dressed in kimonos, or I won’t be satisfied.”

Hao Er chuckled. “Xiaotian, with your talent, you ought to find some goddesses to dance. Otherwise, it’s hard for ordinary folk to find beauties who can outshine the two-dimensional world.”

The other seven nodded eagerly, already picturing a troupe of goddesses performing “Tokyo Heat.”

As the four-four rhythm began, Le Xiaotian laughed. “For the goddess, I’m still considering. I’m thinking of using Lady Qianshui, Miss Tianyin, Lady Phoenix, and so on—we’ll see when the time comes.”

The eight brothers gasped in unison. “You’re really going to invite Lady Qianshui and Miss Tianyin? Don’t tease us!”

Nodding and stamping his foot, Le Xiaotian danced with abandon, pride on his face. “As long as I’m alive, I’ll see it through. My aim is to conduct the Grand God of Dance!”

The brothers gazed at him in awe. “The music and dance world of Le Planet is truly blessed—brother Xiaotian, you must keep going!”

With a sweep of his hand, Le Xiaotian declared boldly, “No problem. I’ll make sure people understand deeply why music and dance are indispensable in the human world, and even more so in the realm of extremes. I can’t do it alone—I still need to recruit eighty-eight musicians. Don’t worry.”

Excitement was evident in Hao San’s brow as he sought permission. “Brother Xiaotian, this electronic track is great, but I’d love to hear it with headphones—it feels more immersive. Is that all right?”

Seeing the hopeful looks from the others, Le Xiaotian replied matter-of-factly, “Of course. Without good speakers, headphones are the next best thing. You all have wireless Violet Tooth, right?”

Delighted, each brother produced a set of wireless Violet Tooth headphones. “Naturally!”

Like connecting to WiFi, Le Xiaotian linked all their headphones together.

In an instant, once the headphones were on, the experience changed completely.

Excitement rising, the eight brothers all began to dance.

Le Xiaotian, too, donned a pair of Deep Sea wireless headphones, immersing himself in the unique atmosphere.

Almost as one, the nine of them tapped the same beat, their boots striking the stone pavement as they danced together.

Their movements shifted rapidly—powerful, wild, yet with a touch of grace. It resembled the shuffle dance of Earth (known as Ghost Step in China—a forceful, stylish dance). All nine were martial arts masters; their command of their own bodies made their dancing even more explosive and intense.

Set to this Japanese-themed house dance—“Tokyo Heat”—they were simply electrifying.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The thunderous drums resonated, their dance moves compelling, every gesture brimming with vitality.

They slid, stomped, kicked, spun, reversed—complex moves flowed seamlessly, the dance electrifying the Grand Lan Alley!

For this dance track, they found it impossible to get enough—even after dancing it thirty times in a row!

Reluctantly removing their headphones, the nine were left slightly breathless.

As they smoked, it was finally Hao Er, looking troubled, who broke the silence. “Shall we fight now?”

Snuffing out his cigarette, Le Xiaotian stood and nodded. “It’s getting late. Let’s begin.”