After buying all sorts of seasonings, Xiang Kun pushed his shopping cart toward the condiment section.
He doesn't need any beverages other than mineral water and purified water, and he needs to drink much less water now than before the mutation.
He came to buy drinks for Tang Baona and the others.
A few days ago, they made an appointment in the group chat to play cards at Xiang Kun's house on Sunday afternoon, which is tomorrow afternoon.
He initially wanted to refuse, but then he thought about how, during this time, when he went out with them—whether it was hiking, playing cards, horseback riding, or archery—it seemed like they were the ones who made the plans and chose the places. As a friend, it seemed like he was being too cold.
So he agreed, since he didn't have any secrets to hide besides raising three meat rabbits.
He doesn't have any drinks or snacks at home. He doesn't need them since he's alone, but since guests are coming, he should prepare some.
After buying drinks and snacks, Xiang Kun was pushing his shopping cart towards the checkout when he caught a glimpse of a child running from the aisle ahead. Instinctively, he pushed aside a case of bottled water on the side of the aisle.
The next second, the child had already dashed over, and his mother followed behind, calling his name and pushing the shopping cart.
Xiang Kun was momentarily stunned as he watched the mother and daughter walk past.
If he hadn't disturbed the case of bottled water, the child would definitely have tripped and fallen.
It might not seem like a big deal, but if it were someone else, they might instinctively clear away any obstacles in their path when they saw a child running towards them.
But Xiang Kun realized that the information he had just received was far more than that...
The instant before he decided to push aside the bottled water, he knew that the child had been talking to his mother about wanting to buy a remote-controlled toy car since entering the supermarket. After receiving permission, he headed straight for the toy section, and judging from the route he chose, he was obviously a regular customer of this supermarket and knew where the toy section was.
His attention and gaze were focused on the toy section, and he didn't notice the extra case of bottled water in the aisle. At his speed and direction, he would definitely trip over it.
After he trips, he will fall to the left and hit the discount section in the middle of the aisle. The goods on it will fall down, but there are no glass bottles or jars, so they won't hurt him, but the noise will still be quite loud.
There were 24 people in the area affected by the noise, including the sales assistant. They might have heard the commotion and looked over, but the girl picking out snacks behind Xiang Kun probably wouldn't turn around because she was wearing headphones and playing a fast-paced, loud Korean song, so she wouldn't have heard it.
Yes, in just that brief moment, so much information had already flooded Xiang Kun's mind.
He hadn't actually paid any special attention to the kid who was so eager to buy toys. All of this was based on a simple judgment made by his brain after he entered the supermarket, "unintentionally" by collecting information through various senses.
To use a somewhat inappropriate analogy, it's as if the brain is divided into multiple virtual machines such as Brain 1, Brain 2, and Brain 3. They have no independent consciousness, but they can cooperate with the sensory organs to collect various sensory information, perform calculations, and make simple judgments.
Brain 1 is responsible for the unruly child and his mother, Brain 2 is responsible for the sales assistant and the customers nearby, Brain 3 is responsible for...
When he encounters certain events, or when Xiang Kun's attention is drawn to relevant information, the corresponding content and information will quickly "connect" to him, allowing him to make a judgment.
Although the amount of information that can be unconsciously collected at the same time is still limited, and the judgments that can be made are also very simple, this is already a very satisfactory breakthrough for Xiang Kun.
It's important to understand that it's only been a little over two weeks since he started consciously and deliberately training in this area, just two blood-drinking periods. Of course, the targeted training in smell and hearing beforehand, and the accumulation of the ability to process large amounts of sensory information, also laid a necessary foundation.
It's fair to say that the current results have exceeded his expectations, and he's quite satisfied.
He recalled a movie he had watched in college called "Limitless," in which the protagonist took a drug called NZT, which allowed his brain to work at an overload.
At the end of the film, he predicts a car crash that will happen a few seconds later to Robert De Niro: "The truck is moving at 80 kilometers per hour, and the driver is texting. He's going to crash into a taxi 18 feet away." Because someone is waving for a taxi on the side of the road.
A few seconds later, the car accident occurred, leaving Robert De Niro completely bewildered.
He then told Robert De Niro, "I'm 50 steps ahead of you, I'm ahead of all of you."
Xiang Kun can now clearly recall most of the scenes from that movie and remember the lines from those scenes. He believes that with further training of his brain, he will be able to clearly recall everything he has ever seen, heard, or experienced.
Some parts of that movie were exaggerated, but some situations were similar to Xiang Kun's current situation. He might not be 50 steps ahead of others, but he could be 4 or 5 steps ahead. Often, being 4 or 5 steps ahead can play a decisive role. This speed refers not only to time but also to strategy.
Moreover, it is constantly evolving.
Sunday afternoon at 1:10 pm.
Tang Baona, Yang Zhen'er, and Xia Libing arrived at Xiang Kun's house as promised.
After entering, Tang Baona asked Xiang Kun to show them around, as they all knew that this was the house he had bought.
After looking around, Tang Baona frowned and asked, "Why is there so little furniture? There's not even a sofa..."
Although the house was fairly tidy and clean, there was far too little furniture and appliances, making the small house feel very empty.
"I just moved in not long ago, and I haven't had time to buy new furniture yet," Xiang Kun explained casually. Of course, the real reason was that he was still hesitating about whether to sell the house, and the furniture and appliances were of no use to him at the moment.
"Wow! What adorable rabbits!" Yang Zhen'er quickly spotted the three meat rabbits kept in the kitchen.
Tang Baona also went over and teased the rabbit with some vegetable leaves, exclaiming, "What a fat and big rabbit! How did you raise it?"
"Uh, just feed them a little more..." Xiang Kun reminded them, "Don't touch them, they'll bite."
In fact, all three rabbits were very afraid of people, and at this point they were almost huddled together.
"I never knew you kept pets, especially rabbits," Tang Baona said with a shake of her head and a smile.
Xiang Kun touched his nose, too embarrassed to say anything.
Without a sofa, the four of them naturally had to sit around the dining table in the living room.
Tang Baona said she wouldn't be playing Dou Dizhu today, but Texas Hold'em instead. She brought a box with her cards and chips.
The rule is that each person starts with 200 chips. The first person to lose all their chips must either agree to do something for each of the other three people or pay 500 yuan to one of them. The person who wins all their chips at the end can either ask the other three people to do something for each of them, or they can choose to pay 500 yuan to each of them. If multiple people lose all their chips at the same time, the same rule applies: they must agree to do something for each of the remaining people, or pay 500 yuan to each of them.
Of course, just like with the previous Truth or Dare game, the things you ask others to do can't be too outrageous.
Tang Baona and Yang Zhen'er have made it clear that if Xiang Kun loses, they will definitely make him treat them to a meal! And it can't be settled with money!
Xiang Kun said he didn't care. It's hard to say if it's playing Dou Dizhu, but if it's Texas Hold'em, his chances of winning are much higher, and he's basically unlikely to lose.