The Feeling of Progress

Captain Chu then picked up his mobile phone and issued a series of orders. They included doing everything possible to find a book, directing more resources to Old Ge's students, and assembling a think tank of just five people.

The five would be recruited and made to sign long-term agreements, and even have their freedom restricted. They would be allowed to learn some of the information Captain Chu had obtained from Xu Chen so they could make various decisions. A secret group like this could ensure the information did not leak out.

If the information Xu Chen shared was contaminating, then the contamination had to be carefully contained from the start.

Xu Chen had no objection to the approach. He was no expert and couldn't make valuable decisions. Causing trouble, though, might be something he could manage.

"Okay, once they've signed the agreements, have them join the conference line."

"Mm, you're all here. I'll do the talking, but you can still speak normally."

"...Here's the situation. Xu Chen told me... a supernatural being..."

"The name of the book..."

"He will bring..."

Captain Chu talked until his mouth was dry, then stopped. Xu Chen noticed that tiny droplets of water had begun to form on the room's marble floor at some point.

Has His influence already reached this extent? I wonder what will happen to the people talking to Captain Chu.

The think tank continued giving Captain Chu a detailed analysis through his headset. Suddenly, his expression changed, and he looked at Xu Chen.

Finally, he gave a quiet murmur of assent and turned off his headset.

"Well? What did your think tank say?"

Captain Chu said gravely, "I had them analyze the information you gave me. These experts were specially transferred from quite a few places. Many are outstanding members of society, and every one of them is among the best in their field. These five are no slouches, either.

"One of them is an expert criminal investigator from the Haishi Police Bureau who has solved quite a few major international cases. He thinks there's a problem with your conclusion."

"Oh? What conclusion?"

"You only seem certain that there's one supernatural being?"

Xu Chen froze. He thought it over carefully. In truth, he had only made the connection out of thin air based on something Old Ge had said. If he had to say whether there was really only one supernatural being, he couldn't be sure.

After all, there was also a formless being behind Cthulhu, and quite a few beings in that setting were more powerful than it. Besides, strictly speaking, Cthulhu was the only one he could be sure existed. After all, he had unconsciously called His name, and it had responded as well.

"I really can't be sure."

Only then did Captain Chu nod. "According to his analysis, your aphasia ensures that His name can't spread. He didn't cause that condition."

"?!"

"Based on his analysis of you, he said there seems to be a being helping you?"

"My Grandpa Yang?"

"No, a supernatural being."

"..."

In an instant, Xu Chen thought of Dean Yang's mysterious words and realized it was indeed possible. But was there anything in the Cthulhu setting that bore goodwill toward humanity?

He took out the Jade Jue and examined it. There didn't seem to be anything remarkable about it.

Still, verifying whether other supernatural beings existed wouldn't be a problem. Xu Chen looked at Captain Chu. "Give me some privacy. I know the names of other supernatural beings too. Let's see if they all exist."

Captain Chu was horrified. He grabbed Xu Chen. "Don't. One of Him is enough. We'll talk about this later."

Xu Chen looked around and agreed that this really wasn't a good place for an experiment. He nodded. "All right, we'll find another place later."

Captain Chu breathed a sigh of relief. "That detective had me use those words to test you. I didn't expect you to be so radical. I'll be straight with you: he thinks the one helping you is 'Taihao.'"

"Taihao?" Xu Chen was deeply shocked. "Why would he think that?"

"Because didn't he also display obvious supernatural power? The one afflicted by Taihao is still lying in the hospital even now."

"Huh?"

Xu Chen didn't understand. One of the Three Sovereigns showing up in the Cthulhu setting seemed out of place however he looked at it.

"Looks like you really don't know... But it's all right. He said there's another way."

"What is it?"

"Tell me His name again, and then we'll see how the two of us react. Once I know His name, I'll call it too."

Xu Chen was shocked again. "Wait, that's not right. Going by what you said, even if I tell you His name, 'Taihao' will still stop me."

"Did you forget what Dean Yang gave you?"

Xu Chen suddenly remembered. "Right! But how did he know?"

"Dean Yang told me."

"Tsk." Xu Chen nodded. "But are you sure you want me to say His name? His name is much more dangerous than what I said earlier."

"Say it."

Xu Chen held the Jade Jue in his hand and looked at Captain Chu. After hesitating for a moment, he spoke that name as though he were revealing nuclear launch codes.

"Cthulhu!"

A dark aura flashed past, and a faint trace of hostility floated and lingered overhead.

Xu Chen waited intently for that terror to descend, but in the end, nothing happened. When he looked at Captain Chu, however, he found the captain's eyes vacant, as though he had lost his soul.

Xu Chen patted Captain Chu and brought him back to his senses, but he still looked bewildered.

"Hm? Have you already told me the name?"

Xu Chen nodded.

Captain Chu scratched his head. He realized that the restriction on Xu Chen's speech was still there; it simply no longer restricted Xu Chen himself.

"Looks like it still won't work."

After leaving, Xu Chen still looked quite worried, but after thinking it over, he found there didn't seem to be anything he could do.

He could only sigh and take a taxi back to his school dormitory.

His dorm room was still empty. It seemed Song Tian's father was still undergoing treatment. Thinking of his illness, Xu Chen couldn't help feeling a little wistful.

Unfortunately, there really wasn't anything he could do to help.

When the class monitor learned that Xu Chen had returned, they gave him the handouts from the past few days.

Xu Chen looked at the many classes he had missed over the past few days and felt somewhat helpless.

A lot had happened recently, and he had fallen quite far behind in his studies. He could only hurry to catch up.

He spread out the handouts, and after reading for a few minutes, he realized something was missing from the dorm.

After thinking about it, he realized that when Song Tian had been there, the sound of him playing games had always been present. Studying while a roommate made noise playing games gave him a greater sense of fulfillment than studying in class.

Sometimes, rather than finding it annoying, he felt that the more of that noise there was, the better.

That way, the feeling of making progress at every moment would arise naturally.

He had no idea where that feeling came from.

To make up for that feeling, Xu Chen looked around the dorm, switched on the little television Song Tian had brought, tuned it to the news, and turned up the volume to make the room feel more lively.

"According to recent statistics from the health bureau, the patient burden on hospitals nationwide has surged, with patient numbers increasing year-on-year by more than..."

Listening to the news, Xu Chen nodded in satisfaction. He planned to study like this while Song Tian was away.