Chapter 32: Warm-up (TEOTW)
The sunlight near noon was exceptionally bright with a hint of warmth. In the training ground, two people were engaged in a fight, occasionally making collision sounds, breaking the quiet atmosphere of the training base.
Jing Xia, feeling embarrassed and angry, covered his face and sat down beside the training ground. On top of his head, his chubby black-haired companion seemed to sense his owner's distress and shame, covering it's face with it's paw to hide it's foolish actions.
After licking its chubby paw, the companion looked curiously at a few people nearby, blinking its small green eyes.
Ji Chuancheng slowly withdrew his gaze from Jing Xia and continued to look down at Professor Qi, asking, "So, you're saying that although the mutated rose is only a D-grade mutation, it has almost C-grade strength?"
Professor Qi sighed and nodded, "Yes. We found it when clearing out Zone 76, and at that time, its cell mutation level was estimated to be around D-grade. But recently, we noticed a rapid increase in its strength, so we can't delay any longer and have to dissect it for research."
"I suggested it." Qi Yang said without hiding the amusement in his tone, raising his hand, "I studied its leaf cell slices for two days and found that its cell growth rate in sulfide solution is very fast, even showing a trend of surpassing C-grade. So, I decided to dissect it directly."
Ji Chuancheng glanced at him lightly and said, "Looks like you're doing well."
At his words, Qi Yang paused for a moment then smiled and shrugged, "Not bad. When I was cutting off the mutated rose's flower head just now, I found some things in the center of its stamen..."
After waiting for a long time without seeing those people finish their conversation, Jing Xia, sitting in the cool shade of the building, simply propped his chin up and stared at them. He felt extremely awkward thinking about the foolish things he had said earlier.
He had only cut off Xiao Yu's head, not... Qi Yang's.
It was so embarrassing!!!
As the sun shifted, the shadows of the two small buildings gradually shifted, exposing Jing Xia completely to the bright and gentle sunlight. He was idly using a small stream of water to clean a dark stain on the ground when suddenly he felt the light blocked, casting him into shadow.
"Let's go." A low, hoarse voice sounded.
Jing Xia looked up to see Ji Chuancheng looking down at him. Because of the backlighting, his figure looked somewhat blurry, even his black hair was distinct.
"Done talking?"
Brushing off the dust on his butt, Jing Xia stood up and looked into the distance, seeing Professor Qi and Qi Yang walking away harmoniously, their figures getting smaller and smaller until they were blocked by someone.
Ji Chuancheng stepped aside expressionlessly to block Jing Xia's view, nodding. "Yeah, their business has nothing to do with us. Let's start with some warm-up training first, like running 10,000 meters."
Upon hearing this number, Jing Xia, who was about to ask more questions, was completely thrown off. He exclaimed, "10,000 meters?! A'Chuan, I haven't undergone any training with this body yet, and suddenly starting with 10,000 meters seems a bit..."
Ji Chuancheng furrowed his brow, "15,000 meters?"
"!" Jing Xia's hair stood on end, "You can't treat me according to your standards! Even though my body has improved a lot due to evolution, starting with..."
"I'll make it 20,000 meters." Ji Chuancheng calmly interrupted the young man's frantic words, pausing for a moment before adding, "As a warm-up."
"..."
Running five laps around the training base, approximately 2,000 meters per lap, was definitely a challenge for Jing Xia at this stage. When he reached the fourth lap, he was almost exhausted, wishing he could crawl faster on the ground. The only benefit was being able to replenish water anytime, avoiding dehydration.
After stumbling and finally completing the five laps, Jing Xia collapsed on the ground, unable to move with his arms propped up.
Seeing this, Ji Chuancheng continued to run past him as if nothing had happened. His figure was agile, his face unchanged and there was only a bit of sweat on his forehead as his speed remained unchanged.
"It's the eighth lap!"
Someone who had gathered around shouted excitedly. Jing Xia, unable to move, looked up to see that a dozen or so evolved individuals had already gathered around. Among them, a muscular man with a crew cut squatted down, smiling and asking him, "Are you Major Ji's friend? Hello, I'm Chen Ge, formerly from the 80th Regiment of S City."
Fortunately, Jing Xia recovered quickly. He stood up, shook hands with Chen Ge, and smiled, "Hello, I'm Jing Xia. It's quite rare to see an evolved individual from a military unit in S City Base. I'm sure Achuan will be happy to see you."
The burly man scratched his head and smiled, "I was just a regular infantryman in the team before. Major Ji wouldn't know me. But I'm glad to see Major Ji. There are very few of us military background evolved individuals in the team. I know of fewer than twenty."
Jing Xia nodded understandingly. Just as he was about to say something to comfort the somewhat lonely man in front of him, he heard a cry of astonishment and alarm nearby.
"4... 45 minutes! 20,000 meters!!!"
Jing Xia looked over and saw Ji Chuancheng wiping the sweat from his forehead and neck with a white towel, walking towards him. Even Ji Chuancheng, in such a long run, had expended a tremendous amount of energy and was slightly out of breath.
People who had gathered around to watch were shocked to see this unfamiliar face, making way for him.
This person didn't use abilities, just seemed to be running effortlessly, yet easily broke the world record before the apocalypse, even coming close to the records of evolved individuals in S City Base after the apocalypse.
Ji Chuancheng ignored the surprised looks around him, walking straight to Jing Xia and stopping.
"Water."
He handed an empty cup to Jing Xia, who covered the cup with his palm and soon heard the sound of water filling it. Ji Chuanxheng tilted his head back and drank a large gulp, the faint redness on his face fading away.
As people dispersed, leaving only Jing Xia and a few others on the smooth plastic track, Ji Chuancheng turned his head to look at Chen Ge nearby.
At the moment their eyes met, the tall man suddenly tightened his trousers with both hands, stood up straight, and made a salute with his right hand, fingers together, lightly touching his temple, and shouted loudly, "Major, hello! I'm Chen Ge, Deputy Platoon Leader of 3rd Platoon, 6th Company of the 80th Regiment!"
Hearing these familiar words, Ji Chuancheng's hand holding the towel paused then returned a similarly standard and beautiful military salute. Although not wearing a uniform, their solemn and serious expressions created a dignified atmosphere that Jing Xia felt he couldn't intervene in.
Half an hour later, Chen Ge excitedly led Ji Chuancheng and Jing Xia into the training area. Instead of taking them to the individual training area, Chen Ge headed straight for the competition zone, saying as he walked, "Major, I'm the only one here at the training area today. Everyone else is either on cleaning duty or assisting in experiments at the research institute. They didn't expect you to visit today. They'll definitely come to see you in a few days."
Ji Chuancheng had already put on his coat and nodded, "You have strength-type abilities?"
Chen Ge was taken aback, "Yes... Major, how did you know?"
Jing Xia immediately chimed in with a smile, "He probably also knows your ability value. Let me guess..." Jing Xia looked Chen Ge up and down, focusing on his sturdy muscles, and guessed, "It's probably 170?"
Chen Ge blushed and smiled, "Not that much, my abilities are not high. Compared to other brothers in the army, I'm relatively weak, with only 159."
Jing Xia was momentarily stunned but quickly changed the subject. Fortunately, Chen Ge was a thick-skinned guy and didn't pay much attention to these minor issues. He enthusiastically introduced Ji Chuancheng and Jing Xia to some of the facilities at the training base, filling in for Professor Qi's absence due to unexpected matters.
The competition zone occupied about three-quarters of the entire training base, with high-intensity barbed wire dividing it into two sections. One side had two evolvers practicing and honing their skills, while the other side showcased battles between humans and mutant beasts.
Jing Xia lingered for a while on the three-meter-tall mutant tiger-striped orchid, slightly surprised by its swift movements. As he shifted his gaze to the other side of the competition area, his eyes widened suddenly.
In the spacious competition area, two individuals were agilely running, dodging attacks. Deep blue ice cones suddenly rose from the ground, while another person jumped up as if the air had lifted them, soaring about three to four meters off the ground to evade an attack.
Not long after the jump, three sharp ice arrows swiftly flew towards him. The youth's eyes widened in fear, as if he was about to make a defensive move but then the three ice arrows shattered in mid-air about half a meter away from him, turning into a pile of broken ice.
"Sorry, Xiao Shang, did I scare you just now?" Wu Jiqing hurried over anxiously, concernedly saying, "I think it's better if I don't spar with you in the future, it's too dangerous."
Su Weishang smiled gently, shaking his head, "It's alright, Jiqing, you didn't scare me at all. Don't worry."
"Xiao Shang, as long as you're okay..."
Although they were about twenty meters apart, due to evolved bodies and enhanced hearing, Jing Xia could hear all these cheesy words, giving him goosebumps all over. He had never felt so unlucky as he did now, bumping into this couple wherever he went...
Weird.
Chen Ge naturally didn't notice Jing Xia's discomfort. He furrowed his rugged brows and said, "These two are Wu Jiqing and Su Weishang, they are quite famous in the S City Base. Especially Wu Jiqing, his ice-type ability is currently the highest in the entire S City Base, with an ability value of 280." He paused abruptly, as if remembering something suddenly, "By the way, Major, since you just arrived, I don't know what your ability is..."
"Fire-type ability," Ji Chuancheng paused, then continued, "Ability value 265."
Chen Ge was taken aback for a moment, then nodded without saying more.
Listening to Ji Chuancheng's calm and composed voice in his ear, Jing Xia looked at the two people not far away. It seemed that Su Weishang was the first to notice Jing Xia's group, his smile stiffening for a moment before quickly recovering. He waved his hand in greeting to Jing Xia, then walked over with Wu Jiqing.
Jing Xia frowned, looking away unhappily.
In his previous life, the highest ability value evolver in the S City Base was Wu Jiqing. His initial ability value was astonishingly 280, even becoming the main force on the human side during the later three beast tides.
At first, Jing Xia was happy for Wu Jiqing, but later on... he couldn't help feeling a bit uncomfortable.
Perhaps it was because Wu Jiqing favored Su Weishang too much. Clearly, they had grown up together as childhood friends, and Jing Xia even felt a bit biased towards Ji Chuancheng in his heart. Especially when he saw Wu Jiqing looking down on the latter because of his higher ability value, Jing Xia couldn't help but feel angry.
What's the use of having a high ability value?!
Comprehensive strength is the key!
"Hmph!" Jing Xia glanced at Ji Chuancheng gloomily then turned his head abruptly.
Ji Chuancheng: "?"
Little Black Ball fully understood his owner's tsundere and stubborn mentality, cheerfully grabbing Jing Xia's hair and giving it a tug, "Jijiji!!! Jijiji!!! Jijiji!!!”
Chapter 32: Warm-up (TEOTW)
The sunlight near noon was exceptionally bright with a hint of warmth. In the training ground, two people were engaged in a fight, occasionally making collision sounds, breaking the quiet atmosphere of the training base.
Jing Xia, feeling embarrassed and angry, covered his face and sat down beside the training ground. On top of his head, his chubby black-haired companion seemed to sense his owner's distress and shame, covering it's face with it's paw to hide it's foolish actions.
After licking its chubby paw, the companion looked curiously at a few people nearby, blinking its small green eyes.
Ji Chuancheng slowly withdrew his gaze from Jing Xia and continued to look down at Professor Qi, asking, "So, you're saying that although the mutated rose is only a D-grade mutation, it has almost C-grade strength?"
Professor Qi sighed and nodded, "Yes. We found it when clearing out Zone 76, and at that time, its cell mutation level was estimated to be around D-grade. But recently, we noticed a rapid increase in its strength, so we can't delay any longer and have to dissect it for research."
"I suggested it." Qi Yang said without hiding the amusement in his tone, raising his hand, "I studied its leaf cell slices for two days and found that its cell growth rate in sulfide solution is very fast, even showing a trend of surpassing C-grade. So, I decided to dissect it directly."
Ji Chuancheng glanced at him lightly and said, "Looks like you're doing well."
At his words, Qi Yang paused for a moment then smiled and shrugged, "Not bad. When I was cutting off the mutated rose's flower head just now, I found some things in the center of its stamen..."
After waiting for a long time without seeing those people finish their conversation, Jing Xia, sitting in the cool shade of the building, simply propped his chin up and stared at them. He felt extremely awkward thinking about the foolish things he had said earlier.
He had only cut off Xiao Yu's head, not... Qi Yang's.
It was so embarrassing!!!
As the sun shifted, the shadows of the two small buildings gradually shifted, exposing Jing Xia completely to the bright and gentle sunlight. He was idly using a small stream of water to clean a dark stain on the ground when suddenly he felt the light blocked, casting him into shadow.
"Let's go." A low, hoarse voice sounded.
Jing Xia looked up to see Ji Chuancheng looking down at him. Because of the backlighting, his figure looked somewhat blurry, even his black hair was distinct.
"Done talking?"
Brushing off the dust on his butt, Jing Xia stood up and looked into the distance, seeing Professor Qi and Qi Yang walking away harmoniously, their figures getting smaller and smaller until they were blocked by someone.
Ji Chuancheng stepped aside expressionlessly to block Jing Xia's view, nodding. "Yeah, their business has nothing to do with us. Let's start with some warm-up training first, like running 10,000 meters."
Upon hearing this number, Jing Xia, who was about to ask more questions, was completely thrown off. He exclaimed, "10,000 meters?! A'Chuan, I haven't undergone any training with this body yet, and suddenly starting with 10,000 meters seems a bit..."
Ji Chuancheng furrowed his brow, "15,000 meters?"
"!" Jing Xia's hair stood on end, "You can't treat me according to your standards! Even though my body has improved a lot due to evolution, starting with..."
"I'll make it 20,000 meters." Ji Chuancheng calmly interrupted the young man's frantic words, pausing for a moment before adding, "As a warm-up."
"..."
Running five laps around the training base, approximately 2,000 meters per lap, was definitely a challenge for Jing Xia at this stage. When he reached the fourth lap, he was almost exhausted, wishing he could crawl faster on the ground. The only benefit was being able to replenish water anytime, avoiding dehydration.
After stumbling and finally completing the five laps, Jing Xia collapsed on the ground, unable to move with his arms propped up.
Seeing this, Ji Chuancheng continued to run past him as if nothing had happened. His figure was agile, his face unchanged and there was only a bit of sweat on his forehead as his speed remained unchanged.
"It's the eighth lap!"
Someone who had gathered around shouted excitedly. Jing Xia, unable to move, looked up to see that a dozen or so evolved individuals had already gathered around. Among them, a muscular man with a crew cut squatted down, smiling and asking him, "Are you Major Ji's friend? Hello, I'm Chen Ge, formerly from the 80th Regiment of S City."
Fortunately, Jing Xia recovered quickly. He stood up, shook hands with Chen Ge, and smiled, "Hello, I'm Jing Xia. It's quite rare to see an evolved individual from a military unit in S City Base. I'm sure Achuan will be happy to see you."
The burly man scratched his head and smiled, "I was just a regular infantryman in the team before. Major Ji wouldn't know me. But I'm glad to see Major Ji. There are very few of us military background evolved individuals in the team. I know of fewer than twenty."
Jing Xia nodded understandingly. Just as he was about to say something to comfort the somewhat lonely man in front of him, he heard a cry of astonishment and alarm nearby.
"4... 45 minutes! 20,000 meters!!!"
Jing Xia looked over and saw Ji Chuancheng wiping the sweat from his forehead and neck with a white towel, walking towards him. Even Ji Chuancheng, in such a long run, had expended a tremendous amount of energy and was slightly out of breath.
People who had gathered around to watch were shocked to see this unfamiliar face, making way for him.
This person didn't use abilities, just seemed to be running effortlessly, yet easily broke the world record before the apocalypse, even coming close to the records of evolved individuals in S City Base after the apocalypse.
Ji Chuancheng ignored the surprised looks around him, walking straight to Jing Xia and stopping.
"Water."
He handed an empty cup to Jing Xia, who covered the cup with his palm and soon heard the sound of water filling it. Ji Chuanxheng tilted his head back and drank a large gulp, the faint redness on his face fading away.
As people dispersed, leaving only Jing Xia and a few others on the smooth plastic track, Ji Chuancheng turned his head to look at Chen Ge nearby.
At the moment their eyes met, the tall man suddenly tightened his trousers with both hands, stood up straight, and made a salute with his right hand, fingers together, lightly touching his temple, and shouted loudly, "Major, hello! I'm Chen Ge, Deputy Platoon Leader of 3rd Platoon, 6th Company of the 80th Regiment!"
Hearing these familiar words, Ji Chuancheng's hand holding the towel paused then returned a similarly standard and beautiful military salute. Although not wearing a uniform, their solemn and serious expressions created a dignified atmosphere that Jing Xia felt he couldn't intervene in.
Half an hour later, Chen Ge excitedly led Ji Chuancheng and Jing Xia into the training area. Instead of taking them to the individual training area, Chen Ge headed straight for the competition zone, saying as he walked, "Major, I'm the only one here at the training area today. Everyone else is either on cleaning duty or assisting in experiments at the research institute. They didn't expect you to visit today. They'll definitely come to see you in a few days."
Ji Chuancheng had already put on his coat and nodded, "You have strength-type abilities?"
Chen Ge was taken aback, "Yes... Major, how did you know?"
Jing Xia immediately chimed in with a smile, "He probably also knows your ability value. Let me guess..." Jing Xia looked Chen Ge up and down, focusing on his sturdy muscles, and guessed, "It's probably 170?"
Chen Ge blushed and smiled, "Not that much, my abilities are not high. Compared to other brothers in the army, I'm relatively weak, with only 159."
Jing Xia was momentarily stunned but quickly changed the subject. Fortunately, Chen Ge was a thick-skinned guy and didn't pay much attention to these minor issues. He enthusiastically introduced Ji Chuancheng and Jing Xia to some of the facilities at the training base, filling in for Professor Qi's absence due to unexpected matters.
The competition zone occupied about three-quarters of the entire training base, with high-intensity barbed wire dividing it into two sections. One side had two evolvers practicing and honing their skills, while the other side showcased battles between humans and mutant beasts.
Jing Xia lingered for a while on the three-meter-tall mutant tiger-striped orchid, slightly surprised by its swift movements. As he shifted his gaze to the other side of the competition area, his eyes widened suddenly.
In the spacious competition area, two individuals were agilely running, dodging attacks. Deep blue ice cones suddenly rose from the ground, while another person jumped up as if the air had lifted them, soaring about three to four meters off the ground to evade an attack.
Not long after the jump, three sharp ice arrows swiftly flew towards him. The youth's eyes widened in fear, as if he was about to make a defensive move but then the three ice arrows shattered in mid-air about half a meter away from him, turning into a pile of broken ice.
"Sorry, Xiao Shang, did I scare you just now?" Wu Jiqing hurried over anxiously, concernedly saying, "I think it's better if I don't spar with you in the future, it's too dangerous."
Su Weishang smiled gently, shaking his head, "It's alright, Jiqing, you didn't scare me at all. Don't worry."
"Xiao Shang, as long as you're okay..."
Although they were about twenty meters apart, due to evolved bodies and enhanced hearing, Jing Xia could hear all these cheesy words, giving him goosebumps all over. He had never felt so unlucky as he did now, bumping into this couple wherever he went...
Weird.
Chen Ge naturally didn't notice Jing Xia's discomfort. He furrowed his rugged brows and said, "These two are Wu Jiqing and Su Weishang, they are quite famous in the S City Base. Especially Wu Jiqing, his ice-type ability is currently the highest in the entire S City Base, with an ability value of 280." He paused abruptly, as if remembering something suddenly, "By the way, Major, since you just arrived, I don't know what your ability is..."
"Fire-type ability," Ji Chuancheng paused, then continued, "Ability value 265."
Chen Ge was taken aback for a moment, then nodded without saying more.
Listening to Ji Chuancheng's calm and composed voice in his ear, Jing Xia looked at the two people not far away. It seemed that Su Weishang was the first to notice Jing Xia's group, his smile stiffening for a moment before quickly recovering. He waved his hand in greeting to Jing Xia, then walked over with Wu Jiqing.
Jing Xia frowned, looking away unhappily.
In his previous life, the highest ability value evolver in the S City Base was Wu Jiqing. His initial ability value was astonishingly 280, even becoming the main force on the human side during the later three beast tides.
At first, Jing Xia was happy for Wu Jiqing, but later on... he couldn't help feeling a bit uncomfortable.
Perhaps it was because Wu Jiqing favored Su Weishang too much. Clearly, they had grown up together as childhood friends, and Jing Xia even felt a bit biased towards Ji Chuancheng in his heart. Especially when he saw Wu Jiqing looking down on the latter because of his higher ability value, Jing Xia couldn't help but feel angry.
What's the use of having a high ability value?!
Comprehensive strength is the key!
"Hmph!" Jing Xia glanced at Ji Chuancheng gloomily then turned his head abruptly.
Ji Chuancheng: "?"
Little Black Ball fully understood his owner's tsundere and stubborn mentality, cheerfully grabbing Jing Xia's hair and giving it a tug, "Jijiji!!! Jijiji!!! Jijiji!!!”
