155: Chapter 155 Test

When Chen Zhen opened his eyes, the light points were at eighty-seven.

He lay still and did some quick math.

From eighty-seven to one hundred, thirteen points remained.

At a rate of four to five points per day, it would take another three days.

The seedling's petals had almost all fallen off, with only the small cluster at the heart of the flower still glowing.

The new sprout had grown its first leaf; it was a tender green, very small, like a baby's palm.

He sat up.

Today was Sunday, no classes. He decided to do something else.

At nine in the morning, Chen Zhen stood in front of the appliance repair shop.

The shop was open, and the middle-aged man was crouching on the floor repairing a washing machine.

"You're here?"

Chen Zhen walked in.

"Do you still have those stickers?"

"I do. But they aren't stickers, they're talismans."

The man paused, looking up at him.

"Talisman?"

Chen Zhen pulled five advanced Conductive Talismans from his pocket and placed them on the table.

"These are more effective than the previous ones; they can save forty percent on electricity."

The man picked up a talisman and examined it over and over.

The patterns on the talisman paper were deep red, glowing faintly under the light.

"Can this thing really save electricity?"

"You'll know once you try it."

The man nodded and put the talismans away.

He took an envelope out of a drawer and pushed it over.

"This is what those relatives and friends gave last time. It's not much, take it."

Chen Zhen didn't take it.

"I said I don't want money."

The man stared at him for a few seconds.

"Then what exactly are you after?"

Chen Zhen thought for a moment.

"I'm testing the effects. Just let me know the results."

The man was taken aback, then laughed.

"Alright. I'll keep track for you."

Chen Zhen turned to leave.

The man called out to him.

"Young man, what's your name?"

"Chen Zhen."

"Chen Zhen." The man nodded, "I've got it."

After leaving the repair shop, Chen Zhen went to the Old Street again.

The Bookstore door was open, and Grandpa Wu was eating noodles behind the counter, lifting the noodles with his chopsticks and blowing on them.

"Grandpa Wu, do you have a map of North Mountain?"

Grandpa Wu put down his chopsticks and wiped his mouth.

"What kind?"

"Topographical. The more detailed, the better."

Grandpa Wu stood up and walked to the bookshelf, rummaging for a while before taking out a roll of yellowed paper.

"Hand-drawing by Old Gu. It's a topographical map of the North Mountain area, marking the locations of the rune stones."

Chen Zhen unfolded the map. The lines were very fine, and the annotations were dense.

On the main peak of North Mountain, the rune stone was halfway up the mountain, in the southeast direction.

The map also marked a dotted line extending from the foot of the mountain to the summit, with "The path I took" written next to it.

"The path Shen Zhiyuan took?"

Grandpa Wu nodded. "He took this route every time he went. He said it was the safest."

Chen Zhen rolled up the map and put it away.

"Thank you, Grandpa Wu."

Grandpa Wu waved his hand. "Go on, go on, don't hold up my noodle eating."

In the afternoon, at the Secret Base.

Chen Zhen spread the map on the table, and Zhou Rui and Shen Nian gathered around to look.

"The main peak of North Mountain is here."

Chen Zhen pointed to a circle on the map, "The rune stone is halfway up the mountain, in the southeast direction. This is the route Shen Zhiyuan took back then, from the foot of the mountain to the summit, about two hours or so."

Zhou Rui stared at the dotted line. "Is the path easy to walk?"

"I don't know. This is a path from decades ago; it might be gone by now."

Yun Xi walked over and glanced at the map.

"I've contacted Han Lie. He says he's familiar with North Mountain and can lead the way."

Chen Zhen looked up at her. "Han Lie? Isn't he at Changbai Mountain?"

"He says North Mountain isn't far from where he is; it only takes a few hours by car."

Chen Zhen thought for a moment. "Alright. Let him come."

Yun Xi nodded, took out her phone, and walked to the side to make a call.

Zhou Rui took the list out of his backpack and placed it on the table.

"Master, these are the talismans I've prepared. See if it's enough."

Chen Zhen took the list.

Sixty Attack Talismans, seventy Tracking Talismans, seventy Purification Talismans, and one hundred and fifty Protective Talismans.

Each type had its storage location and purpose marked.

"Too many. North Mountain might not require this many."

Zhou Rui shook his head. "Better safe than sorry. Just because nothing happened in West Mountain and South City doesn't mean North Mountain will be fine."

Chen Zhen looked at him. This kid was becoming more and more cautious.

"Alright. I'll listen to you."

Zhou Rui smiled and put the list away.

In the evening, Chen Zhen returned home.

His mother was cooking in the kitchen, and his father was watching the news in the living room.

He changed his shoes, entered the house, and walked to the kitchen doorway.

"Mom, I'm going out next weekend."

His mother turned and glanced at him. "Going out again? Where to?"

"North Mountain. I'm going hiking with some classmates."

His mother stared at him for a few seconds.

"Why have you been hiking so much lately?"

Chen Zhen didn't speak. His mother waited for two seconds, then sighed.

"Be careful. Come back early."

"Okay."

During dinner, his father suddenly spoke up.

"Do you still have any of those talismans?"

Chen Zhen put down his chopsticks. "What talismans?"

"The ones your mother uses. Her colleague wants some too."

Chen Zhen pulled five Calming Talismans from his pocket and handed them over.

His father took them and looked them over.

"Is this thing really useful?"

"You'll know once you try it."

His father nodded and put the talismans away.

His mother chimed in from the side.

"Old Li said his wife has been sleeping really well after using it. He wanted to buy some, and I told him I didn't want money, but he insisted on paying."

Chen Zhen thought for a moment. "Then just keep it. If there's too much, donate it to those in need."

His mother was taken aback, then laughed. "Alright. We'll do as you say."

At night, at the Secret Base. Chen Zhen sat cross-legged in the center of the array, reaching out and pressing his hand against his chest.

[east mountain jade tablet · Resonating]

[Current Progress: 89 / 100]

Four points.

He withdrew his hand and caught his breath.

Zhou Rui walked over. "Master, how much did it increase?"

"Four points."

"One point less than yesterday."

Chen Zhen nodded.

Spiritual power consumption was getting faster, and recovery was getting slower.

It wasn't a problem with the seed; it was his own problem.

After twenty consecutive days of high-intensity spiritual power infusion, his body was starting to fatigue.

"Inject less tomorrow. Take it easy."

Zhou Rui nodded. "Then I'll go prepare things for North Mountain. I'll bring more food."

He walked back to the workbench and started making a new list.

Chen Zhen closed his eyes.

Internal Vision of his Dantian.

The seed was still spinning, and the pattern was still glowing.

He felt like someone pouring water into a deep well; the bucket was small, and the well was very deep.

Pouring bucket by bucket, the water level rose very slowly, but it was rising.

He took a deep breath and opened his eyes.

Continue tomorrow.