pappabearbooks #424 - Chapter 423: Energy Quenching Line
#424 - Chapter 423: Energy Quenching Line
Inside the villa room.
Li Chenqiu waved his hand, storing both the Winter Night Painting and the Finishing Touch Brush into his void ring. He sat at his desk with the Ability Condensation Diagram given to him by Fu Yuesheng, turning on the desk lamp to examine it carefully.
It was a full-body meridian diagram, with acupuncture points and meridians marked, as well as a complex, irregular golden line running throughout the body.
According to Fu Yuesheng, this golden line was called the 'Energy Tempering Line'. By controlling one's ability to follow this line, one could condense their ability, making it even more powerful!
"Is the ability in my body currently in a gaseous state? Does 'condensing' it mean converting it into a liquid or even a solid?"
Li Chenqiu wondered inwardly, simultaneously manipulating Wu Zhong to slowly traverse the body according to the Energy Tempering Line's guidance.
Time ticked by, and at first, Li Chenqiu felt relaxed, with no particular sensation in his body.
But before long, Li Chenqiu clearly felt a wave of heat spreading from every corner of his body, like countless ants crawling towards Wu Zhong.
The bone-deep itching sensation was like fluff, stroking his nerves, but for Li Chenqiu, it wasn't torture and was still within his tolerance.
Soon, the ants formed from the heat arrived before Wu Zhong and, without hesitation, began to gnaw at it.
Buzz buzz buzz—
The next second, a sharp tinnitus rang in Li Chenqiu's ears, and waves of dizziness crashed against his mind.
Bang!
Li Chenqiu slammed his well-knitted hand on the desk, steadying his swaying body, and continued to advance with Wu Zhong.
But this time, every step they took was extremely difficult, with every drop of blood and every piece of flesh acting as resistance along the way.
...
Six o'clock in the morning, the sky barely lit.
"Huff~~~"
Li Chenqiu, who hadn't slept all night, opened his eyes and exhaled a long breath.
After three hours of struggle, he had successfully guided Wu Zhong through the Energy Tempering Line once.
There was no refreshing feeling as he had imagined, only deep fatigue, like dragging someone who never exercised out of bed on a cold winter night and making them run ten kilometers on the track.
"The after-effects are strong."
Li Chenqiu supported himself on the desk to sit up, staggered to the bed as if drunk, and collapsed onto it with a 'thump', staring blankly at the ceiling with a smile.
Although both his mind and body were very weak, he was happy at this moment. After completing one cycle of the Energy Tempering Line, Wu Zhong's power had indeed increased slightly.
"Twenty-four hours a day, three hours to complete one cycle, three or four cycles a day, persist for a year, and my strength… hehehe!"
Thinking of this, Li Chenqiu couldn't help but laugh. Driven by the urge to "become stronger", he immediately endured the dizziness and stood up to continue guiding Wu Zhong through the Energy Tempering Line.
Ten minutes later.
Li Chenqiu's head tilted, and he fell heavily onto the pillow, clearly passing out.
...
Ding-ling-ling—
The phone screen on the bedside table lit up, and the three words "Xiang Nanzhi" appeared at the top of the screen.
Li Chenqiu slowly lifted his heavy eyelids, groggily reached for the phone, answered the call in a half-dreaming state, and held it to his ear: "Hello—"
"Li Chenqiu, I… wait, what's wrong with you? Why does your voice sound so weak?"
"I'm fine. What do you need?" Li Chenqiu spoke slowly, one word at a time.
"…What are you doing?"
"I am… flying~~~"
"Huh?"
Xiang Nanzhi opened her mouth on the other end of the phone, a big question mark popping up in her head. She tentatively asked, "Do you know who I am?"
"You are… Cloud?"
Xiang Nanzhi's face darkened, and she slapped the receiver hard with her hand: "Are you drunk or what, you can't even recognize my voice?!"
Being shouted at by Xiang Nanzhi, Li Chenqiu's consciousness gradually left the dream and rubbed his hazy eyes, slowly sitting up.
After recovering for more than ten seconds, he finally held the phone to his ear, enduring Xiang Nanzhi's scolding, and said, "Calling me early in the morning, what important matter do you have?"
"Early in the morning? Open your clever eyes and see what time it is now!"
Li Chenqiu looked up at the clock hanging on the wall—12:16:11
"It's noon?" A look of astonishment appeared on Li Chenqiu's face.
"What did you think? I'm back at the Star Plucking Academy, I've sent you the location, come out and meet, OK?"
"OK, I'll hang up first."
After speaking, Li Chenqiu hung up the phone directly, threw the phone casually on the bed, shook his lead-filled head, and looked up at the bright sun outside the window.
"I… did I pass out?"
Li Chenqiu rubbed his head, his tone a little disbelieving.
Are the after-effects of this Energy Tempering Line so strong?!
After a simple wash, he left the room and headed for the living room.
The sound of a spatula hitting a wok came from the kitchen, it was Li Ji cooking.
Li Qingxia sat cross-legged on the sofa, eating melon seeds and watching the latest popular variety show. Hearing the movement from the stairwell, she said without turning her head, "You're awake?"
"Yeah." Li Chenqiu responded lightly and shouted towards the kitchen, "Boss, I'm going out, I won't be eating at home."
Li Ji's head poked out from the kitchen door: "You should have said so earlier, I've already cooked the food."
"Then please keep my portion, I'll heat it up when I get back."
...
Inside a luxurious private room, plates of exquisite dishes were placed on the dining table. Xiang Nanzhi crossed her legs, holding a glass of red wine, shaking it very elegantly.
"So many dishes, you're so generous!" Li Chenqiu said as he ate.
Xiang Nanzhi coughed lightly in embarrassment: "I'm treating, you're paying, we're cooperating."
Li Chenqiu's hand holding the chopsticks paused, and he looked up in astonishment.
"Eat, what are you looking at me for?"
"Eat what you ordered yourself!"
Li Chenqiu put down his chopsticks and was about to get up and leave, but Xiang Nanzhi raised her arm and pressed down, forcibly using her ability to push him back into his seat.
"Don't go, what will I do if you leave? I can't afford the meal, you can't just leave me here alone!"
"I don't have a single star point on my card right now, tell me, how am I going to pay?"
"Li Chenqiu, you're lying without even thinking, I'm online all the time, you robbed so many student cards yesterday, how can you be short of star points?"
Li Chenqiu smiled speechlessly and explained what happened last night from beginning to end.
After learning the truth, Xiang Nanzhi sat up: "We're doomed, what are we going to do now?"
"What else can we do, just owe it first, presumably with my status as the Disciplinary Chief of District One, the hotel won't make things too difficult for us." Li Chenqiu rubbed his eyebrows.
Xiang Nanzhi immediately beamed: "That's right, you're the Disciplinary Chief of the Disciplinary Law Division, how could I forget that."
Li Chenqiu looked up: "Where have you been these days, you haven't replied to my messages?"