Chapter Ninety-Two: Self-made
Xiang Kun finished watching the first season of One-Punch Man in one night. Looking at the sky slowly brightening outside, he felt a little emotional. It had been a long time since he had watched an anime or TV series so continuously.
Since starting work, he has had a strong sense of urgency, constantly urging himself to stay busy and not relax for a moment. Even after the mutation, this habit has not changed.
Before he was working, whenever he had free time, he would feel a strange sense of guilt, feeling that he was still far from his original goal and had not worked hard enough.
In fact, a year ago, he had already sensed that the company's path seemed to be somewhat wrong, and that its development direction seemed to be blocked by the giants, making it difficult to stand out.
But he still clung to a sliver of hope, thinking there might be a chance for things to turn around. He was unwilling to admit that all his years of dedication and effort would ultimately be in vain, unwilling to give up the motivation and hope that had sustained him for so many years, until that moment of reality truly arrived.
So when the boss, who was only two years older than him, looked haggard and dejected and told everyone that the company was finished, his mood plummeted, but it wasn't really that unexpected.
Xiang Kun let out a long sigh of relief. Perhaps he should relax a bit? In any case, for the time being, he shouldn't die.
My gaze returned to the computer screen, where episode 12 was already playing automatically from the beginning.
Looking at that bald guy on the screen, this guy is clearly a super strongman who can defeat any opponent with a single punch, but when he's not fighting monsters, what he does most often is take coupons and go to various supermarkets to buy discounted groceries...
He described himself as a "hero driven by interest," whose interest lay in being a hero, not in seeking fame, fortune, or proving his strength.
Xiang Kun knew that even though he was now, in a sense, a "superhuman" and a "stronger person," he had never thought of becoming a "superhero." After all, the environment was different, and there weren't many situations in real society where he needed to be a "superhero" to save people.
Unless he happens to encounter something and has no choice but to get involved, he won't actively seek out trouble.
Punishing crime is the job of the police. Heroes can only help a few individuals, while order is what sustains the vast majority of people.
Moreover, more than helping others, he was worried about whether he would be exposed...
Ultimately, he was still a rather selfish person.
However, he now has his own interests, namely guiding, developing, and training bodily mutations, and tracing the source of all of this.
It's both for survival and because of interest.
According to the original plan set at the beginning of this Blood Drinking Period, his training today should have been conducted at home. However, Xiang Kun changed his mind at the last minute and wanted to change the training location and program.
He took the subway and bought a ticket for the final stop.
Although there were seats available, he didn't sit down. Instead, he found a corner to stand in and began observing the passengers on the subway.
In fact, the subway train is the best place for him to train his observation skills, because it is a confined space with a large number of people, constant movement, and a certain amount of time spent on the train.
It's just that his ability to collect and process various sensory information wasn't strong enough before, so going to places like coffee shops would be relatively easier for him.
Now, his brain's processing speed for sensory information is fully capable of meeting his needs. Within the time it takes to stand here, he can easily make a simple observation and judgment of all the passengers in a carriage.
This was the route Xiang Kun used to take every day.
Looking at the figures in the carriage, heads down, looking at their phones, at the office workers, at the middle school students, Xiang Kun seemed to see his younger self in them.
And so we shuttle between study and work, moving forward towards the goals we've set in our hearts and the future we've envisioned.
Earn a lot of money through your own abilities, buy a big house, get married, have children, bring your parents to the same city to retire, provide a stable and comfortable life for your family, and gain recognition for your abilities from friends, relatives, and industry peers...
This was Xiang Kun's former hope and the direction of his efforts. Now, naturally, everything has changed. Although he has plans and arrangements, he finds it difficult to truly imagine what his future will be like.
This left him somewhat confused, but also somewhat excited.
After transferring several times on the subway, Xiang Kun originally planned to stay on the train until around 8 p. m., but he received a call from his old friend Chang Bin around 3 p. m.
"Where are you? Let's have dinner together tonight!" Chang Bin said first.
Upon hearing about dinner, Xiang Kun's first reaction was to refuse, but Chang Bin's next words made him hesitate for a moment, and then he changed his mind.
"Zicheng is back. I'll pick you up so we can go meet him. We'll have a get-together tonight; he's going to Zhijiang tomorrow and will only be staying one night."
Xiang Kun arrived at the subway station where he had arranged to meet Chang Bin. After paying the overtime fee and exiting the station, he saw Chang Bin's Volkswagen Magotan approaching in the distance. "Hurry up and get in! You can't park here!"
Xiang Kun quickly got into the passenger seat, fastening his seatbelt as he asked, "When did Zicheng get back?"
Zicheng, like Chang Bin, was also Xiang Kun's roommate. At the time, the four of them got along quite well. However, another roommate started dating a girlfriend in their freshman year and often went out for romantic getaways. In their sophomore year, he and his girlfriend rented an apartment off-campus. So, relatively speaking, Xiang Kun, Chang Bin, and Zicheng spent more time together.
Zicheng's real name Liu Chuang; "Zicheng" was a nickname given to him by Xiang Kun.
This nickname seems to have nothing to do with his name at first glance. In fact, Xiang Kun initially called him "Chuang Wang" (meaning "King of Rebellion"). However, when Liu Chuang first arrived at the school, he was a somewhat introverted and chubby boy, which didn't fit the nickname "Chuang Wang" at all. So, gradually, Li Zicheng, the name of the King of Rebellion, became his nickname.
However, Zicheng also gave Xiang Kun a nickname. When they first arrived at the dormitory, the counselor came to call them. Because the names on the dormitory member list were written by the students themselves, and Xiang Kun's handwriting was rather large and ugly, the counselor pronounced his name as "Xiang Tushen".
So Zicheng called him "Earth God," and later, he was simply called "A Tu"...
Although Chang Bin took good care of Xiang Kun, if we really had to say who his best friend was in college, it would probably be Zi Cheng.
After graduating, Zi Cheng went to the United States to study under his family's arrangement. Later, I heard that he started a business there and did very well. In addition, Xiang Kun was also busy with work, so they gradually lost contact and only occasionally chatted with each other in WeChat groups.
Chang Bin said as he drove, "He's been back for a week. He mentioned it in the group chat before he came back, didn't you see the message?"
Xiang Kun was stunned. He picked up his phone and scrolled down. Sure enough, he saw in their dormitory group chat that Zi Cheng had returned to China and mentioned that he would be passing through their city to visit them today. Chang Bin also said that he and Xiang Kun would pick him up.
Xiang Kun couldn't help but feel a little ashamed, because he had set most of his WeChat groups to "Do Not Disturb," and he had a lot of groups. He hadn't checked the messages in any of them for a while, so he only found out now that Zi Cheng had returned to China.
Thanks to the helmsman "I am the Sun", and thanks to readers "Official System Update", "Linshui Fuqin", "Huilianya", and "Reading Doesn't Increase Wisdom" for their donations.