Following behind Yin Hu, Chen Chong walked out of the power plant and looked up at the hazy sky, letting out a long sigh of relief.
Things went much smoother than he had imagined. With the death of someone named Heizi, the power plant happened to need someone to guard the boilers and keep the fires burning at night. Chen Chong seized this opportunity and successfully took on the job.
This night shift job was far from easy compared to the daytime shift at the power plant. Since the factory stopped operating at night and the electricity consumption in the territory decreased significantly, it was still necessary to maintain power supply to General Blood's Manor. The five boilers had to be kept burning to ensure the operation of the generators. Chen Chong's job was to stay awake throughout the long night, monitor the condition of each boiler, and constantly add coal. Although it wasn't physically demanding, it was mentally exhausting.
Of course, it was still much easier compared to most jobs in other factories.
"Chen Chong, after everyone else finishes work tonight, you can go find Old Xu to report," Yin Hu said, stopping in front of Chen Chong and turning around, his expression emotionless.
"But I need to remind you that you shouldn't think this job is easy. Since you've chosen this job, you'd better do it with dedication. The power plant is like the heart of the territory. During your watch, any problems with the boilers are not allowed. If it affects the nighttime electricity supply to General Blood's Manor, it won't be as simple as enduring a whipping."
Behind General Blood's Manor were the greenhouses where spirit fruits were grown. They required sufficient lighting to simulate sunlight. If there was a power outage, they would face the punishment from General Blood himself.
"Captain Yin Hu, don't worry. Do I look like someone who seeks trouble?" Chen Chong smiled slightly in the face of Yin Hu's indifferent gaze. "General Blood treats me well, so I will naturally work diligently."
Yin Hu squinted his eyes, seemingly thinking about something. "That's good."
"Oh, by the way," Chen Chong suddenly felt a growing hunger in his stomach and casually asked, "I wonder how we handle meals in the territory? Do we eat with the other laborers?"
"How could we eat with them? Those poor bastards eat scraps. If they see what we eat, they would be **!" Yin Hu sneered and pointed with his hand. "Two hundred meters north of the warehouse, there's a cafeteria where us managers and soldiers under General Blood eat. We have two meals a day, at 12 noon and 6 pm. It's not time yet, so you'll have to wait!"
Collective supply, two meals a day? In this era of extreme scarcity of resources, that could be considered luxurious.
It was still early in the morning, and it was not yet mealtime. Chen Chong made up his mind to go back and practice while trying out the effects of the spiritual fruits. He looked up and said with a smirk, "Thank you, Captain Yin Hu. I'll head back first."
As he watched Chen Chong gradually walk away, Yin Hu squinted his eyes and waved to Wei De and Lu Kai, who were lingering outside the power plant. After they ran over, he ordered, "This kid seems a bit strange. He will be on night duty at the power plant starting today. Keep an eye on him and notify me immediately if you notice anything unusual, understood?"
Night duty? That meant staying up all night to watch this kid?
Wei De and Lu Kai felt bitter in their hearts, but they answered without hesitation, "Yes!"
Yin Hu could naturally see what his two subordinates were thinking and patted their shoulders. "I'll help you apply for an additional allocation of supplies. Don't disappoint me."
Wei De and Lu Kai's spirits immediately lifted, and they loudly said, "Captain, rest assured, we will keep a close eye on this guy!"
...
Leaving the power plant, Chen Chong walked through the dilapidated buildings in the territory with a large package on his back, contemplating.
His job at the power plant was settled, and the opportunity to come into contact with electricity was right in front of him. Now he needed to figure out how to use electrotherapy.
Electrotherapy wasn't as simple as just attaching a couple of wires to his body. It was made clear that the voltage and current flowing through the practitioner's body had to be within a safe range and could gradually increase as the practitioner's cultivation level improved. His first task was to adjust the voltage and control the output of the current. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a fun experience to be directly electrocuted by the high-voltage current at the power plant!
However, these two tasks obviously required a certain amount of electrical and electrician knowledge. Chen Chong felt ashamed to admit that besides connecting a light bulb, he knew nothing about electrical work.
"I could start with that Old Xu," Chen Chong thought to himself.
Old Xu was the supervisor of the power plant and obviously had rich experience in electrical work. It shouldn't be difficult to solve these two problems with his help.
As for the dangers involved in electrotherapy, Chen Chong was confident that he could withstand them to some extent. This was because he had endured the torment of Catherine's electric shock experiments during his time in the underground base. His willpower and resistance to electric current far surpassed that of ordinary people. As long as he carefully controlled the voltage and current flowing through his body, he could minimize the chances of accidents.
Sizzle...
Lost in thought, Chen Chong suddenly stopped in his tracks as he walked through the narrow alleyways between the dilapidated buildings.
That's because ahead and behind him, four figures suddenly appeared, blocking his path and trapping him in this narrow alley!
Chen Chong turned his head and saw that the four survivors who had intercepted him seemed to be from the territory. They varied in age and gender, but without exception, they all looked malnourished, with skinny bodies resembling skeletons.
They wore dirty tattered robes that covered their entire bodies, their faces filthy, and it was clear to see that they had some incurable disease as their faces and exposed arms were covered with terrifying ulcers, making them look extremely disgusting and barely recognizable.
The four of them tightly gripped sharp wooden spikes, their bodies trembling slightly, their chests heaving rapidly. Their hideous faces locked onto the package behind Chen Chong with a gaze filled with desire, greed, and tension.
"Do you have to show off your wealth?" Chen Chong sighed softly, flipped his palm, and held the tactical knife hanging from his waist in his hand.
Seeing Chen Chong suddenly draw a shining blade, the four survivors hesitated for a moment. Then, gritting their teeth, they simultaneously staggered forward, moving step by step towards Chen Chong in the middle, while letting out hoarse howls. The sharp wooden spikes in their hands viciously stabbed towards Chen Chong!
Just as the two attackers approached within three meters of Chen Chong, he made a move.
Chen Chong's footsteps leaped forward, and he appeared directly to the left side of the first robber in front, with a flicker, the blade in his hand effortlessly pierced the throat of the first person!
Compared to these weak and feeble robbers who were barely clinging to life, Chen Chong's speed and strength were undoubtedly unstoppable. Their dulled nerves couldn't react in time, and the survivor whose throat was pierced didn't even feel any pain at that moment.
Bang! In less than half a second, Chen Chong's arm, gripping the blade, exerted a powerful force and violently swung it, causing the body of the first person, whose throat was pierced, to crash into the side, knocking down the skinny robber who had lunged forward from behind.
Then, Chen Chong swiftly pulled out the knife, ignoring the gushing blood in the air and the fallen robber, and suddenly turned around. The blade flashed, first cutting off the sharp wooden spike that had stabbed at him from behind, then he lowered his body, narrowly avoiding another wooden spike aimed at his temple. At the same time, he pushed off with his foot and charged like a raging bull, slamming the survivor who had missed the attack into the wall, while his tactical knife plunged deeply into the opponent's heart, and then he twisted it fiercely!
At close range, the horrifying face of the survivor, who seemed to be over fifty years old, instantly lost the hysterical expression.
"Ah!"
Behind Chen Chong, the survivor whose wooden spike had been broken shouted in fear. His teeth were almost all gone, and you could see that his tongue was only half there, seemingly already cut off.
Pfft!
Unable to escape, his hoarse screams lasted only an instant before Chen Chong withdrew the tactical knife deeply embedded in the chest of the previous survivor. With one swift motion, he thrust the knife into the temple of the tongueless survivor, putting an end to all his terrified reactions.
Swoosh.
Chen Chong withdrew the knife, and the equally horrifying-faced survivor fell weakly to the ground. In just two seconds, except for the skinny robber who had been knocked down earlier, the other three almost died under Chen Chong's blade as soon as they faced him.
The glaring bloodstains quickly covered the alley, and the nauseating smell of blood lingered, making people sick. Chen Chong lifted his steps, holding the tactical knife, and walked towards the skinny survivor who had been knocked down and still hadn't gotten up.
"Please, please..."
The weak, pitiful, and fearful voice of a woman pleaded, and the last skinny survivor clung to her **, her hood fell off, revealing a face covered in ulcers, ugly and terrifying. Her eyes were full of extreme fear.
From this face, you could faintly see that she was once a young and beautiful girl, but the horrific ulcers had destroyed it all, making her look hideous. Anyone who saw her would be filled with fear.
"Please, spare me, I don't want to die..."
As Chen Chong silently and coldly approached, the ugly-faced girl completely collapsed, crouching on the ground and sobbing bitterly, like the mournful cry of a cuckoo:
"Our family hasn't eaten anything for five or six days, we're so hungry, really hungry."
"You killed my father, you killed my brother, and even my grandfather..."
"Please, let me go, please..."
"I won't live another few days..."
The weak pleas and cries of the girl echoed in the alley, touching people's heartstrings, but Chen Chong continued to approach step by step, his face hidden in the shadows.
Under the fear of death, the girl's weakened body curled up, her whole body trembling like chaff: "Please, please, please..."
Pfft!
In the next moment, Chen Chong suddenly leaned down, and the blade in his hand stabbed into the girl's heart like lightning. With a twist of the blade, all her poignant pleas froze in her eyes!
"To continue living is the real cruelty to you."
Looking closely at the ugly face of the girl, Chen Chong's eyes showed a hint of tenderness, a hint of coldness, and a hint of pity as he whispered softly:
"It must be so tiring to live like this."
"Leave, leave this place."
"In another world, there will be no more sickness and hunger."
With Chen Chong's low voice, the pitiful eyes of the girl seemed to calm down, and then all the radiance faded away.
...
The workers were already at work, and what happened in the alley ended too quickly, without drawing anyone's attention.
These four survivors plagued by illness were just one of the many scenes of life in this collapsing world. Without work, there would be no food, and they would wait for death. There are still many survivors like these, barely clinging to life and waiting for death in Blood General's domain.
Chen Chong realized that he was not capable of saving them. The only thing he could do was to help them find ultimate liberation.
Covered in the scent of blood, Chen Chong walked out of the dilapidated laborer settlement expressionless. Instead of going directly back to his residence, he went to the warehouse building to find Guo Jun, using his monthly privilege to enter the bathroom and wash himself from head to toe.
This was one of the privileges granted by Blood General to the captain-level members of the domain. Although it was only once a month, and the quota was only a few liters of water each time, being able to wash away the accumulated filth from head to toe was already a rare luxury.
He completely changed out of the prisoner's uniform and tidied his messy hair with the tactical knife. After putting on the leather clothes provided by the domain, Chen Chong carried his belongings and walked out of the warehouse building feeling refreshed.
Along the way, he occasionally encountered small groups of gang members of the domain. It seemed that they all recognized Chen Chong because the news spread quickly, but at most, they just pointed and whispered in jealousy. No one dared to cause trouble with him.
He returned to his residence unharmed and thought for a moment. He took out a fruit the size of a child's fist from his belongings and took a bite.
With a crisp sound, the provided spiritual fruit entered his mouth, it was refreshing, but besides the scent of plants, there was no other taste, making it very plain.
Chewing and swallowing the spiritual fruit quickly, Chen Chong immediately assumed the posture of the "Ultimate Boundless Qi Gong" meditation, preparing for cultivation.
The face of the girl he had ** would occasionally appear, and Chen Chong held his breath, gradually eliminating all distracting thoughts, entering a state of meditation. As the warm ultimate true energy flowed continuously around his heart, Chen Chong's melancholy mood completely relaxed.
Inhale...
Exhale...
Then, in his meditative state, Chen Chong gradually felt a faint and almost imperceptible clear energy rising from his abdomen, being absorbed by the solid ultimate true energy like drops of water merging into the sea. Not only did the flowing true energy become clearer, but its speed also increased!
"It really works!"
Chen Chong suddenly opened his eyes, shining with excitement.