Chapter 65: Suspicion

After achieving Current Push, Chen Chong kept an even lower profile in the following days, rarely leaving his quarters.

After that air raid where he had put on a show of loyalty, the hidden watchers in the Territory seemed to have been withdrawn. Chen Chong no longer spotted Wei De and Lu Kai when he went to and from work.

In the days that followed, Chen Chong did not see Blood General. To avoid anyone noticing the changes in his body, he would wait until mealtime was almost over to collect his food, and he would bring it back directly to avoid running into any Awakeners in the Territory.

In fact, after achieving Current Push, Chen Chong’s appetite had grown tremendously. The small amount of food he collected twice a day was barely a drop in the bucket, leaving him in a state of hunger from morning till night. If not for the large amount of energy supplied by his nightly Electrotherapy sessions for cultivation , his progress might have regressed instead of advancing.

Not to mention its function for charging the Main God, the Electrotherapy auxiliary cultivation method was not only a shortcut to rapidly achieving Current Push, but it also greatly aided cultivation throughout the entire Current Push stage. Now, the duration Chen Chong could endure Electrotherapy each night had extended considerably, and the amount of current flowing through him each time had gradually increased, even affecting the Power Station’s electricity generation at night.

This was thanks to Chen Chong always choosing to start Electrotherapy in the latter half of the night; otherwise, Old Xu might have detected something unusual.

Besides continuing to use Electrotherapy as his primary method for cultivating the Ultimate Infinite Qigong, Chen Chong devoted even more energy to the Vajra Indestructible Divine Art. He became more and more proficient in the twenty-seven secret movements of Body Tempering Iron Body. Now, he could complete a full cycle in under three hours.

And whether it was due to achieving Current Push or the thorough body-cleansing effect of the Muscle and Marrow Cleansing Pill, Chen Chong’s progress in Body Tempering Iron Body could only be described as meteoric. Even with insufficient nutrition, the mere tempering and permeation of his True Qi caused his stature and muscles to surge rapidly.

His chest, legs, arms, and waist seemed to thicken every single day. His strong, bulging muscles gradually took on a dark, bluish-black hue, and his muscle fibers looked as if they had been forged from steel. By the seventh day after taking the Muscle and Marrow Cleansing Pill, which was also the tenth day of cultivating the Vajra Indestructible Divine Art, Chen Chong suddenly realized in shock that he had swelled into an iron-tower-like muscular man, just two or three centimeters shy of one meter ninety!

Such an obvious and rapid change was something Chen Chong had never anticipated.

…

“This art style… it feels a bit off.”

As dusk fell, having just finished his Body Tempering Iron Body training, Chen Chong held a mirror he had swiped from Old Xu, constantly scrutinizing his skin, which faintly showed a bluish-black hue, and his bulging, powerful physique. He mocked himself while feeling a sense of caution in his heart:

“The combined effect of the Muscle and Marrow Cleansing Pill and the Vajra Indestructible Divine Art is this fierce? If someone notices my changes and reports them to Blood General, it will likely be trouble.”

He was not overly concerned about the change in physique, but rather considered the potential consequences such a drastic change could bring.

Over the past ten days, Chen Chong had done his utmost to avoid contact with others. Even when he went out, he shrouded his entire body tightly. His physique could still be somewhat concealed, but his height was one thing he could not change.

Originally, this body of Chen Chong’s barely reached one meter eighty, but now it had shot up nearly ten centimeters. Old Xu had noticed his change a few days ago, but Chen Chong had casually brushed it off with a flimsy excuse about height-increasing insoles. Because he stayed indoors and rarely showed his face, apart from Old Xu, whom he saw daily, no one had yet noticed the dramatic changes in Chen Chong’s body.

However, the problem was that if his body continued to grow wildly at this rate, he would no longer be able to conceal it. Blood General would inevitably learn of it and become suspicious of the secret behind his transformation.

Given Blood General’s cruelty, cunning, and paranoia, he probably would not turn a blind eye to Chen Chong’s changes but would try every means to pry the secret out of him.

Also, Chen Chong vividly remembered the method Blood General used to control Qiao Jun—that bizarre Bloodline Gu. He might very well use it on him when the time came.

“Soldiers come, we block them; water comes, we dam it up.”

Chen Chong stared at his reflection in the mirror, his face appearing fierce and menacing due to the faint bluish-black tint, and a ferocious smile crept onto his lips:

“Right now, it’s uncertain who will win!”

He put down the mirror, turned around, and walked out of the room.

Half a month had passed since he arrived in the Crimson Territory, and today was the day for him to collect his supply rations.

…

The supply rations included not only a large amount of jerky and dry food that could somewhat ease his hunger but, more importantly, those Spiritual Fruits, which he absolutely could not give up.

Taking advantage of the dimming sky and poor visibility, Chen Chong walked out of the dormitory building and arrived at the storage building where Supply Supervisor Gu Jun was located.

After confirming his identity, Chen Chong met Gu Jun in an office, along with another person he hadn’t expected:

Supervisor Squad Captain, Yin Hu!

“Chen Chong…?”

Sitting in a chair, under the dim lamplight, Yin Hu, who had been talking with Gu Jun, visibly froze when he saw Chen Chong’s significantly taller and bulkier figure. His eyes flickered with surprise and suspicion, then he discreetly scanned Chen Chong up and down, his thoughts unknown.

Gu Jun, on the other hand, was slightly surprised to see Chen Chong, then seemed to recall something and said flatly, “You’re here to collect your own supply rations, right?”

Compared to Yin Hu, who had more contact with Chen Chong, Gu Jun had only seen Chen Chong two or three times in the Territory. Moreover, with the dim light in the room, he vaguely felt that Chen Chong seemed somewhat different from his memory but didn’t think much of it.

Chen Chong raised an eyebrow slightly, not expecting to run into Yin Hu here. He ignored him and replied:

“Yes, if I’ve counted correctly, half a month should be up by now, right?”

Flipping through the ledger’s table of contents to search, Gu Jun nodded and stood up. “You counted correctly. Wait a moment.”

As before, Gu Jun’s attitude was cold, showing no intention of making things difficult. He crisply walked out of the room to the warehouse to prepare the supplies. With Gu Jun’s departure, only Yin Hu and Chen Chong remained in the room.

Neither spoke, and the atmosphere immediately fell into an eerie silence, as if each harbored their own concerns.

Chen Chong felt full of confidence because he had been completely reborn, unlike before; while Yin Hu clearly noticed that Chen Chong’s change was too drastic compared to his memory, and suspicion grew in his heart.

After a while, Yin Hu broke the silence first, saying casually:

“Chen Chong, it feels like I haven’t seen you for a while. I forgot to ask, are you getting used to the work at the Power Station? If you’re not satisfied, I could help you switch.”

Chen Chong grinned, chuckling darkly. “I appreciate Yin Hu Captain’s kind offer, but life at the Power Station is easy. I’ll just coast along for a while longer.”

“I see…”

Yin Hu’s eyes flickered, and he offered a fake smile:

“Suit yourself, then.”

The two fell back into an eerie silence.

A few minutes later, Gu Jun appeared at the door carrying a large bundle and said to Chen Chong:

“Count it and check. If everything’s fine, leave your thumbprint and you can go.”

Chen Chong nodded, took the bundle, quickly counted the items, left his thumbprint in the ledger, and then strode away.

Yin Hu shot a subtle glance at Chen Chong’s retreating figure, a dark and unreadable light flashing in his eyes.