June 11, 2137.
Early morning.
Xu Tui woke up hungry.
Clanging sounds came from the kitchen, along with the hiss of steam from a steamer. Xu Tui immediately imagined piping-hot pork buns.
His mom had made them herself.
One bite.
Juices ran down his mouth.
They were so delicious he wanted to swallow his tongue along with them.
After gulping down several mouthfuls of saliva, Xu Tui didn't get up right away.
He knew very well that the buns wouldn't be ready yet.
He easily entered the state of Illusory Internal Vision.
Xu Tui looked at the white dot glowing on his left calf, feeling quite satisfied.
Suddenly, he remembered how it had felt when he activated it last night.
"My right hand hurts?"
"Holy crap, could I have activated a gene point related to hand speed, like that guy in the hall?"
"And it's my damn right hand!"
Xu Tui opened his eyes and began comparing the functions of his hands.
At that moment, his right hand did feel stronger than his left.
Without professional testing equipment, Xu Tui could only rely on how it felt.
But for most people, their right hand was stronger than their left to begin with.
His ten fingers seemed to dance across a piano.
Hand speed.
It didn't seem to have changed much.
His right hand was just a little faster than his left, still within the normal range.
His strength seemed about the same, too.
Xu Tui was baffled.
He got out of bed and tested whether anything had changed in his legs.
There was no difference.
Xu Tui was baffled again.
Where had the effects of the gene point he'd activated in his left calf last night gone?
Activating a gene point in his left calf and affecting his right hand—Xu Tui could accept that.
Even if it affected his hand speed, he could accept that too.
But he'd activated a gene point, and his basic abilities had barely changed.
That was frustrating.
Even if he was unhappy about it, Xu Tui had to accept it.
Even the scientists at the Gene Research Institute were still working to understand the diversity and complexity of genes.
He didn't have to go to school, so he could sleep in a little for once.
As he lingered in bed, Xu Tui reviewed and reflected on last night's training.
Review and reflection were useful.
Whether for studying or training.
They could help you pinpoint gaps in your knowledge and areas that needed improvement, or figure out what you needed to pay attention to.
The extreme exhaustion he'd felt before bed last night had surprised Xu Tui. It had been so overwhelming that even the hunger from his stomach cramps couldn't overcome it.
During a few days of his first-year high school winter break, his parents had been away, and Xu Tui had played games alone for two days and nights straight. He hadn't been that tired then.
And now that he thought about it, something hadn't been right when he'd passed out the night before last after forcing his way through the fifteenth gene point.
Previously, Xu Tui had thought he'd passed out after forcing his way through that fifteenth gene point because blood had sprayed from the seven orifices on his head.
But now he suddenly remembered that on June 9, the day he'd injected the Gene Liberation Potion, blood had sprayed from his seven orifices too. He'd lost even more blood then than he had when he activated the fifteenth gene point that night.
Yet he hadn't passed out.
Thinking about the extreme exhaustion he'd felt last night after slowly activating a gene point in his leg, Xu Tui suddenly realized something. Maybe he hadn't passed out the night before last because of the blood spraying from his seven orifices after activating a gene point.
It was very possible that he'd used up too much mental energy.
That was it—mental energy!
Xu Tui thought of those three words.
The term that had appeared countless times in anime had now become part of Xu Tui's life too.
If that was the case, then the exhaustion he'd felt last night after running out of mental energy was what had finally overcome his extreme hunger and made him fall asleep on the spot.
"So my ability to activate gene points on my own isn't without a cost.
"So far, besides consuming a lot of physical energy, it also uses up mental energy."
Fortunately, mental energy seemed to recover almost completely after a night's sleep.
At least Xu Tui felt completely refreshed now.
And in that extremely refreshed state, his hunger was even more terrifying.
His stomach clenched again and again.
It started growling nonstop!
Xu Tui got up.
He brushed his teeth and washed up.
When he looked in the mirror, Xu Tui suddenly froze.
The handsome, aloof guy in the mirror had cheekbones that were practically jutting out. Was this really Xu Tui, the great Xu Tui?
He was so handsome.
So aloof!
And so skinny!
Xu Tui was over 1.8 meters tall and weighed 149 pounds—a perfectly good weight.
He'd been the sort of person who looked slim in clothes and muscular without them, enough to turn heads.
But now, as Xu Tui stared at his slightly jutting cheekbones, protruding ribs, and the veins standing out on the back of his hands, he wasn't just shocked. He was horrified.
This wasn't just being skinny anymore.
He was so malnourished he was almost nothing but skin and bones!
Xu Tui jumped onto the scale as quickly as he could.
The numbers flickered for a moment.
Then they settled on 128 pounds.
"Holy crap. That's some weight loss..."
Xu Tui remembered clearly that he'd weighed 144 pounds before bed last night. For training, he'd eaten ten boiled eggs, then two big sesame flatbreads, three packets of instant noodles, and four dragon fruits.
Then he'd trained all night.
His weight had dropped from 144 pounds to 128 pounds.
Xu Tui figured that if he could spread this method around, he'd become the richest person in the world.
He'd charge a hundred yuan for every pound lost, no questions asked.
If even one in ten thousand overweight people in the world came to Xu Tui, he'd be set for life.
Unfortunately, it wouldn't be easy to promote.
Worse than that, Xu Tui had started worrying about his life.
At this rate, he didn't need to activate many more—just two or three more gene points, and he'd be so thin he'd drop dead and turn to ashes on the spot.
Feeling uneasy, he went to the kitchen. He hadn't even touched the big buns when his mother, Zhang Xiuli, let out an exaggerated shriek.
Her lips had already formed the words "Who are you?" but in the end, those words never left Zhang Xiuli's mouth.
They turned into a scream and a flurry of concern.
That was definitely a real mother.
"You've made progress, but how did you end up like this?"
"How did you get so skinny overnight?"
"W-what have you been through?"
"Jianguo!"
"Xu Jianguo, where the hell are you? Your son's about to waste away, and you're still not coming out?"
Xu Tui felt awkward listening to her.
"Waste away? Mom, can I eat a few buns first? I'm starving!"
"Here, eat quickly. They're hot."
"Mom will split them open and cool them down for you. Just eat!"
Xu Tui's sudden weight loss sent the whole family into a frenzy.
After polishing off three baskets of buns, Xu Tui felt his stomach stop cramping and began to feel much better. He slowed down and let his attention drift.
He tapped open his Personal Communication Device. A small screen appeared as he opened WeChat to check the news, his friends' posts, and whatever else.
As soon as he opened it, a trending local news story popped up.
"A Jincheng Prefecture high school senior displayed extraordinary skill at a milk tea shop, helping Special Agents from the Special Intelligence Agency capture a member of the Dawn Redemption Traitor Organization! He fully showcased the wisdom, courage, and handsomeness of Jincheng Prefecture's students!"
The comments below were full of praise and pride!
There was a photo attached.
Xu Tui stood there with one hand on his hip, shouting, while two Special Agents lunged forward in a crouch. The traitor "Long Underwear," a middle-aged man, was curled up like a cooked prawn.
"Mm, the photo makes me look heroic and righteous. Even from behind, I look handsome."
Xu Tui touched his cheek, where he could feel the bone beneath the skin, and felt quite pleased.
"It would've been perfect if they'd changed 'wise, brave, and handsome' to 'handsome, wise, and brave'!"
Xu Tui admired the news story for several minutes before swiping it away.
Another trending story appeared.
"According to a tip from a concerned citizen, yesterday afternoon a young man entered the city's All-You-Can-Eat Steakhouse and, after just one hour, had his entire bill refunded by the owner and was politely escorted out. The owner candidly stated that the restaurant would not be serving the young man again.
"In a similar incident, the city's Spicy Hotpot Buffet closed early yesterday afternoon and politely showed a young man out.
"According to a tip from a concerned citizen, the young man finished the first round of dishes all by himself in just fifteen minutes. That first round of dishes would usually last one to two hours.
"A lawyer's take: In essence, this behavior is not appropriate..."
That news article.
Then Xu Tui saw the attached photo.
It showed a tall young man, with half his face visible.
"Holy crap, isn't that Cheng Mo?"
Xu Tui stared in astonishment.
Cheng Mo really was a clever guy, going to eat at an all-you-can-eat buffet.
But those buffet owners weren't very generous.
Couldn't they let Cheng Mo eat his fill and enjoy himself for once?
Before Xu Tui had finished eating, his Personal Communication Device vibrated. Tang Ting had sent him a message.
"What are you doing?"
Xu Tui smiled. He'd just finished eating, so he started a three-way video call.
On the call, Cheng Mo's face looked even rounder.
"Which university did you apply to, Tang Ting?" Xu Tui asked.
"Huaxia Gene Military University," Tang Ting replied.
"Damn, the second-ranked Gene Evolution University in the country! You're impressive. Don't they require at least ten Gene Points for admission?
"How'd you manage that? Got some kind of shady deal going on?" Cheng Mo shouted dramatically.
"Get lost!"
Tang Ting smiled. "Want to get together for a meal sometime? We can talk about it then."
"According to the rules, we have to start heading to our schools tomorrow. The next three months will be closed training.
"Let's meet up for lunch today," Xu Tui said.
"Sounds good. How about a buffet?" Cheng Mo was the first to suggest.
"No way!"
Xu Tui and Tang Ting rejected the idea in unison, clearly having both seen the news story.
"Fine. You guys pick the place."
Cheng Mo looked a little helpless. It seemed he wouldn't get enough to eat again today.
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