King of Kings in the Underworld

My name is Jiang Bei. When I was sixteen, the blind fortune-teller back home felt the bones in my hand and said, “This boy’s fate is too hard. He’ll never get anywhere by taking the proper path, but on the crooked road, he could become a true dragon.” I laughed and tossed him fifty yuan. Five years later, I was crouched in a rented room in an urban village with only eight yuan in my pocket. The landlord had been yelling at me from outside the door for half an hour, telling me to get out. But I didn’t care. In this world, the rules are made for honest people, and fools are the ones who end up in prison. The truly clever have never taken the ordinary path. I never went to college and don’t know any profound truths, but I understand one thing: the timid starve, while the bold feast. Starting today, I’ll show this city what it means to be the king of the crooked path.