Chapter 54: Eager to Try

Outside was the dead silence of the dark night, while in Old Xu’s room, a desk lamp shone brightly, casting two intertwined shadows on the wall.

“Ah, eighteen years ago, our place here was a famously wealthy county. Back then, I was a senior engineer at the State Grid, and the line of people wanting to set me up on blind dates was so long…”

“At that time, my company leader introduced me to a distant relative of his. I went to meet her reluctantly, and hey, who knew such a burly leader would have such a lovely relative? It was a real surprise for me.”

“Then we fell in love, got married, had kids, and those days were…”

Half an hour later, as they drank and chatted, Old Xu’s face was flushed red and his neck thick with drink. He downed another cup of liquor in one gulp, looking slightly tipsy as he rambled on about his past to Chen Chong, who sat across from him:

“Then the Cataclysm came. Earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions. Animals started turning into monsters, and countless people died mysteriously without warning. In just a few days, the world changed completely.”

“The cities were gone, the government was gone, my parents were gone, my wife and child were gone too. Everything was gone. I was left all alone. If it weren’t for my fear of death, I would have gone down to join them long ago.”

“Tell me… why did things turn out this way, out of the blue?”

Chen Chong listened quietly, occasionally pouring wine for Old Xu, and shook his head:

“Maybe you could look at it from another angle. They didn’t have to struggle to survive in this perilous wasteland. In truth, they are luckier than those of us who remain alive.”

“Yeah… that’s the only way to comfort oneself.”

Old Xu secretly wiped his eyes and smiled self-deprecatingly:

“Hah, why am I even talking about all this? You must have been just a young lad back then. Surviving until now couldn’t have been any easier for you than it was for this old man. But hey, kid, you’re an Awakener now, so at least you have some choice in this world. That’s already much luckier than most survivors.”

Chen Chong blinked and smiled faintly: “We all live under Blood General’s rule; life and death aren’t decided by us. We’re pretty much in the same boat.”

Old Xu’s eyelids twitched involuntarily, and he quickly lowered his voice: “Kid, you need to say less of that sort of thing, especially don’t voice such complaints in front of others. People’s hearts are treacherous; some are just waiting to feed on others’ misery!”

“Of course, it was just idle chat.”

Chen Chong poured Old Xu more wine, changed the subject, and continued to ask questions from different angles, chatting about this and that.

From the great changes of the world in Old Xu’s youth and his struggle for survival, to the emergence of Awakeners, his encounter with Blood General, and watching Blood General step by step transform a survivor gathering place into the Crimson Territory ruled by his own brutal dictatorship, Old Xu’s rambling unveiled a bloody history before Chen Chong’s eyes.

“Blood General, he truly is terrifying…”

As cup after cup of wine went down, Old Xu’s face was flushed, and he was in a tipsy state:

“So what I’m saying is, here, the General is like the heavens. As long as you submit and demonstrate your value, you can live decently.”

Chen Chong chuckled. Seeing that the time was about right, he glanced at the desk lamp in Old Xu’s room and asked, pretending to be casual:

“Old Xu, where does your electricity here come from? Is it connected directly from the transformer box? How do you freely control the current and voltage?”

Old Xu, unsuspecting, laughed heartily: “You really are a layman. I thought you’d ask something profound. These basics are too simple. Let me tell you…”

Having finally steered the conversation to the power station, Chen Chong’s eyes burned with intensity as he committed every word Old Xu said to memory.

It had to be said that when it came to Old Xu’s area of expertise, even with his brain numbed by alcohol, he spoke clearly and in a well-organized manner, allowing Chen Chong to rapidly absorb this foundational knowledge.

The voltage generated by the power station’s generator set was around tens of thousands of volts. After being adjusted and stabilized by the transformer box, it was then transmitted via the grid to Blood General’s manor and various factories. However, for Chen Chong to connect his own flesh and blood to the electric current for cultivation training, there was another set of voltage-regulating devices and wires of suitable thickness to adjust the electricity drawn from the transformer box to a safe level.

“That’s roughly the principle. Finally, there’s still…”

As he spoke, Old Xu suddenly stood up and started rummaging through boxes and cabinets until he found a device the size of a briefcase, saying:

“This is a voltage regulator I made myself. I connected my desk lamp’s electricity through… Ah, it’s hard to explain just with words. Watch this old man give you a practical demonstration!”

Whether it was the rising drunkenness or his natural love for teaching others, Old Xu abruptly rose to his feet, picked up a tattered electric fan from the floor, along with insulated gloves and a large bundle of wires of varying thicknesses, and said casually:

“Come with me, kid!”

Chen Chong felt a surge of joy in his heart, but then he thought of something, frowned, and said: “Old Xu, haven’t you had a bit too much to drink? Don’t end up a victim of your own game and get electrocuted to death.”

Old Xu glared, his whiskers bristling with indignation: “Are you joking? This old man has dealt with electricity his entire life. I could connect wires with my eyes closed and not make a mistake!”

With that, he strode out of the room steadily, heading towards the transformer box. Seeing that although Old Xu’s face was red from drinking, his steps were steady and he didn’t seem unclear-headed, and thinking of his own grand cultivation plan, Chen Chong followed him anyway.

Arriving before the transformer box, although Old Xu reeked of alcohol, his eyes became extremely clear and alert. Wearing the insulated gloves, he opened the locked box door in one motion and said to Chen Chong like a teacher instructing a student:

“Watch carefully. Voltage, also called potential difference or electric potential difference, is defined as pointing from high potential to low potential…”

Old Xu explained in detail while selecting a thin wire, a millimeter in diameter, connected it to the transformer box, then passed the other end of the wire through the voltage regulator, and finally connected it to that tattered electric fan.

Old Xu clapped his hands and pressed the fan’s switch.

Whir…

The fan’s blades immediately started turning, bringing a hint of coolness into the sweltering space.

Chen Chong imprinted every step of Old Xu’s actions into his mind. At the same time, he watched Old Xu quickly dismantle the circuit and then take off the insulated gloves and hand them to him.

Old Xu chuckled:

“Got it memorized? If you did, then give it a try. If you can’t remember something like this, it means you’re a fool, not suited to learn this, and we’ll go back to drinking right away and not waste any more time.”

Chen Chong took the gloves. His learning ability and memory had long been developed by the Ultra Divine Water, far exceeding an ordinary person’s level. He quickly and neatly repeated the operation Old Xu had performed earlier, finally pressing the switch and making the fan spin.

Old Xu’s eyes lit up: “Kid, you’re pretty good!”

Chen Chong knew some basic electrical knowledge to begin with. Coupled with Old Xu’s explanation and demonstration, repeating it wasn’t difficult at all.

More importantly, the operating principle of [Electrotherapy] wasn’t complicated. Now, after Old Xu’s lecture and demonstration on voltage and current control, Chen Chong felt a sudden clarity in his mind and was eager to try it out!