After thinking for a while, Chen Chong suddenly came up with a speculation. He immediately returned to the bed and assumed a meditative posture to clear his mind and focus. He quickly entered a meditative state and circulated the newly formed true energy in his body.
After about an hour of calculation, Chen Chong quickly stopped and immediately focused his thoughts on the main god. He received a feedback:
[Manifestation Power Reserve]: 1150 units.
It had increased by 2 units silently.
Just as he expected!
Chen Chong was filled with joy. He still hadn't fully understood the specific principles behind the growth of manifestation power. He only knew that his manifestation power would increase to varying degrees when he experienced intense mental reactions due to pain or when electric energy flowed through his body during electric shock experiments.
And now, he had discovered another way to increase his manifestation power - through mental meditation and practicing the "Ultimate Boundless Qi Gong". Judging from the speed at which his manifestation power increased by 34 points after nearly eight hours of meditation, this method was quite efficient!
Without relying on the main god fragments, he could increase his manifestation power simply through meditation and cultivation. This was an important discovery that greatly alleviated Chen Chong's urgent situation.
"If that's the case, I don't need to worry anymore. I only need 340 more units, and when I reach 1500 manifestation power, I can fully translate the 'Indestructible Diamond Technique' and the 'Pneumatic Cannon Fist'!"
Chen Chong opened his eyes, feeling excited:
"And there's also the 'Bone Cleansing and Marrow Nourishing Pill'! This item can eliminate impurities from the body and improve physique and aptitude. It should be effective for me too. Once I accumulate more manifestation power, I'll exchange it as well!"
Chen Chong felt a surge of excitement, realizing that the current situation didn't seem as difficult as he had imagined.
Rustle...
Just then, in the silence of the night outside the window, a sudden burst of noisy voices could be heard, bringing him back to reality.
Chen Chong quickly walked to the window and looked outside. It was late at night, and there were no electric lights in the room, not even wires. In the entire Crimson Land, except for the dim streetlights on a few main roads, most of the low houses and residences were shrouded in darkness. From his second-floor view, he could vaguely see a dense crowd of people emerging from somewhere and walking shoulder to shoulder on the streets, entering one dilapidated house after another, like a large group of worker ants returning home.
"These should be the laborers from various factories returning," Chen Chong realized that these people were survivors who worked hard for the Blood General in order to have a meal. The fact that they were getting off work so late at night meant they had to work for over ten hours every day for the Blood General's factory! They lost any free time and had to work for the Blood General as soon as they opened their eyes, except for sleeping!
Looking up, he glanced in the direction of the Blood General's luxurious mansion, where the lights seemed to be on, forming a sharp contrast to the dark and dilapidated buildings in the territory. There was clearly electricity supply in this territory, but the lowest level of survivors apparently didn't have the qualification to use it.
The noise grew closer, and soon Chen Chong saw groups of people pouring into the two-story building he was in. Then, there were footsteps and clamor on both the first and second floors. The overseers shouted angrily:
"Why are you making noise? You still have energy! Go back to your rooms and sleep! Whoever can't get up on time tomorrow will taste my whip!"
The crowd came and went quickly, and soon the dense crowd of people disappeared like worker ants returning to their nests, leaving the entire territory quiet again.
"I wonder who my roommate is?"
There were still faint footsteps in the corridor. Chen Chong returned to his bed, remembering the gloating looks the two overseers had when they brought him to this room. He became cautious.
He also noticed something strange - all the workers finished work, yet there were footsteps and clamor in the corridor and the other side of the first floor, but where he was, it remained silent as if no one lived on his side of the building!
Clatter, clatter...
Just as Chen Chong was thinking about this, footsteps sounded in the dark corridor, seeming to approach his room.
Then, with a creak, the door was pushed open. Chen Chong turned to face the newcomer with an expressionless face.
Standing at the doorway was a thin and skinny young man, wearing a dirty and torn leather vest, with an unremarkable appearance. After realizing that Chen Chong was in the room, the man's eyes widened in surprise and with a strange look.
"Who are you?"
In the darkness, the thin man's voice was hoarse and cautious as he looked at Chen Chong and asked.
"Didn't the overseer tell you?" Chen Chong glanced at his roommate using the faint moonlight. He felt a bit strange and casually replied, "I'm new here and was arranged to live here. My name is Chen Chong, and what's your name?"
He originally thought that the person living in this room would be someone fierce and terrifying. He believed that this Yinhu had placed him here to give him a scare. However, after seeing his mysterious roommate, Chen Chong realized that not only was he not an awakened, but he also looked weak and frail, as if a gust of wind could blow him away. This was completely beyond his expectations.
"I'm..."
However, the thin man at the door remained silent for a moment and didn't reveal his name. Then, as if he hadn't heard Chen Chong's words, he walked straight into the room, lay down on the bed on the other side, wrapped himself in a thin blanket made of unknown animal fur, faced the wall, and completely ignored Chen Chong.
Huh?
Seeing his roommate's strange reaction, Chen Chong frowned and asked again, "Is there only the two of us living on this side of the corridor? It seems like no one is living next to our room. What's the reason behind this?"
But the only response he received was the back of his roommate's head hidden under the half-blanket.
"This person... is a bit strange."
In the darkness, Chen Chong squinted his eyes, observing his roommate for a moment, and then withdrew his gaze.
In this absurd and dark world, there were all kinds of people. His roommate seemed to belong to the introverted and silent type. Since the other party had no intention of communicating with him, he naturally had no plan to approach him either.
In fact, if his roommate remained silent and uncommunicative without any curiosity, it would only bring benefits to Chen Chong.
After thinking for a while, Chen Chong didn't intend to lie down and sleep. This was because after practicing for a long time during the day, he found that during the meditation practice of the "Ultimate Boundless Qi Gong", both his mind and body entered a state of nurturing and relaxation. He didn't need to sleep at all.
For him, meditation practice was the best way to rest!
It has to be said that at such a quiet and late hour, Chen Chong's efficiency in entering the meditative state was even faster. The time it took to enter the meditative state was at least halved compared to during the day. Once he entered the meditative state, Chen Chong guided the strand of weak true energy to circulate through his body, feeling it grow slightly each time it circulated along the meridians...
Time passed bit by bit, and Chen Chong's mind was fully immersed in the spiritual realm of cultivation. The circulation of true energy through his body gradually became instinctual.
However, after an unknown amount of time, as Chen Chong completely immersed himself in practice, his spiritual senses suddenly alerted him with a sense of danger! It was like an instinctive reaction to a threat, and he immediately opened his eyes!
As soon as Chen Chong opened his eyes, he saw that the thin man who should have been sound asleep on the opposite side had already sat up. His eyes were emitting a faint green light, and he was staring at Chen Chong intently.
In the darkness, there was silence. Chen Chong locked eyes with the eerie and faintly glowing eyeballs of the other person. He felt no trace of human emotion in them, only a sense of indescribable cruelty and hunger. It was as if he was facing a starved beast that had been hungry for a long time. The man saw Chen Chong not as a living person, but as a juicy piece of meat, sending shivers down one's spine.
However, Chen Chong felt no fear. He stared straight into the pair of ghastly green eyes and asked, one word at a time, "What are you looking at?"
As Chen Chong spoke, the man's eyes, like ghostly flames, remained fixed on him without blinking. His Adam's apple rolled as if swallowing saliva, and a hoarse voice came from his throat, "Meat... meat..."
Then, he unsteadily stood up from the bed, his face covered in eerie blue veins. His pale complexion and green eyes, combined with the darkness, made him look like a demon crawling out of hell. As he stared intently at Chen Chong, he unknowingly murmured, "Meat... hungry... hungry..."
Chen Chong lost all patience and said fiercely, "Stop pretending to be supernatural, damn you!"
Boom!
Like lightning, Chen Chong leaped from the bed and landed a heavy punch directly on the thin man's chest, causing him to fly off the ground and crash forcefully into the wall behind him. With a loud "thud," the bed beneath them was shattered.
After taking the Super God Water, Chen Chong's strength had reached the limit of an ordinary person, equivalent to the strength of a heavyweight boxer. A regular person would lose their fighting ability and wouldn't even be able to crawl after being hit by such a punch.
However, the moment the thin man collapsed the bed, Chen Chong's brows furrowed. Because the man who had just taken a punch from him seemed like an insensitive monster. In less than two seconds, he slowly climbed out of the broken wood!
It was as if Chen Chong's powerful punch that could have caused bone fractures had no effect at all. Hunching over, his mouth drooling, his green eyes devoid of consciousness, he continued to stare fixedly at Chen Chong. From his throat came chilling syllables, "Meat, meat... hungry..."
Then, the thin man opened his mouth, revealing a set of sharp teeth, and lunged towards Chen Chong like a zombie!
Unconscious, acting on instinct, and impervious to pain?
Faced with this terrifying scene that could drive anyone crazy, an unfathomable grin appeared on Chen Chong's face. He took a step forward, twisted his waist, and confronted the thin man's attack head-on, delivering a kick!
Bang!
The thin man's frail body was once again kicked flying and crashed into the wall by the window. Dust fell as the impact shook the air. He then fell to the ground.
"Meat, meat, meat..."
The thin man, like an insensible monster, propped himself up with both arms and tried to stand up again.
Step!
But before he could get up again, Chen Chong's figure ghosted beside him. He stomped heavily on the man's back with one foot, exerting immense pressure. The thin man weakly lay on the ground, blood spurting from his mouth!
"Playing Resident Evil with me?"
In the darkness, Chen Chong's eyes burned with indescribable ferocity. He pulled out a tactical knife he carried with him and said fiercely, "You brought this upon yourself, don't blame me!"
Then, Chen Chong bent down abruptly, grabbed the thin man's hair with one hand, and held the shiny blade with the other. He mercilessly slashed at the man's exposed neck!
...
One minute ago.
Two supervisors stood bored at the stairwell on the second floor, occasionally glancing towards the darkest part of the hallway as they chatted in hushed voices.
"Do you think that guy will wet his pants from fright tonight?"
"I'm not sure. The madman doesn't seem to go berserk every day. There might not be a show tonight."
"Damn it, does that mean we have to keep an eye on him every night if the madman doesn't go crazy today?"
The madman wasn't originally called the madman; he was a blacksmith at the ironworks. He had good skills and was considered a rare talent in the territory. The madman was unremarkable in appearance and always kept to himself. He endured hardships and seldom spoke more than ten sentences a day, never getting into conflicts with anyone.
However, despite all this, he was despised and feared by everyone in the dormitory building. Not a single laborer wanted to share a room with him, even if it meant being whipped!
The reason no one wanted to room with the madman was because one night, a laborer who had shared a room with him was bitten alive in his sleep, his throat torn apart, and his body mutilated. When the intense smell of blood was discovered in the morning, they found the madman covered in blood, still sound asleep, with half of his face gnawed away!
What terrified everyone even more was that when the madman woke up, he did not admit to being a cannibal. Even under severe torture, he refused to confess. It was later discovered that the madman suffered from an extremely rare form of cannibalism, which only occurred when he sleepwalked at night. In this state, the madman felt no pain and had no consciousness. He fully transformed into a terrifying cannibalistic beast, treating anyone near him as food!
Since then, the name "madman" had spread.
After the incident, because the victim was just an ordinary laborer and the madman's skills were valuable, the Lord Tiger only severely whipped him and starved him for a few days before releasing him. However, his room was moved to the deepest part of the second floor, separate from the other laborers. Only the madman lived in the four rooms on that side of the second-floor corridor. The other laborers had to move out of that half of the corridor and squeeze into one room.
And now, the madman finally had a roommate again — Chen Chong, who was new and knew nothing.
Thinking about the cannibalistic madman in his dream, one of the supervisors shivered.
"There's no way around it. The captain ordered us to keep an eye on him. Plus, that kid has connections with Blood General. We can only endure a bit of suffering, or we won't have a good future."
"Yeah, but since this kid is an Awakened, even if he falls asleep, he won't be easily killed by the madman, right?"
"That's not necessarily true. The madman becomes an insensible monster without feeling pain when he goes berserk. If he bites someone's throat off like the poor soul last time, even I wouldn't be able to save him. Being an Awakened won't help."
"You're right. But this kid is really lucky. I wish I were an Awakened too."
"Give it a rest. Who wouldn't want..."
Thud!
A muffled bang accompanied by the sound of splintering wood suddenly came from deep within the corridor, interrupting their conversation. The two supervisors' faces changed, and a sense of unease washed over them. They quickly pulled out their iron rods and flashlights from their waists and hurried to the room where the madman and Chen Chong were.
During their approach, they heard more loud impacts. But when they reached the door, all the sounds mysteriously disappeared, leaving only silence. The two exchanged glances, swallowed nervously, and then boldly kicked the door open!
An extremely strong smell of blood immediately hit them in the face.
Then, with their flashlights shining, the two fearless supervisors took in the scene in the room, causing their scalps to tingle!
In the dimly lit room, the strong stench of blood permeated the air, making people nauseous. A large pool of crimson blood rapidly spread, flowing beneath their feet.
And Chen Chong stood upright beside a headless corpse, covered in blood. In his hand, he held a round and shiny object, with liquid dripping continuously from the broken part.
It was the head of the madman, with its eyes wide open and a fierce expression on its face!
At this moment, Chen Chong turned his face towards the two supervisors. He stared at them while holding the madman's head, revealing a sinister grin under the flashlight's beam.
"What's the matter with you two?"
The two supervisors' bodies went cold, and they choked on their breath.