379: Chapter 379 The Voyeur, a Strong Man Who Only Loves to Exercise

The ink-black color before dawn shrouded Qingshui Bay.

At the edge of the sky and sea, a sliver of fish-belly white emerged.

Everything around was still dead silent, save for the sound of the rising tide, like the breathing of a sleeping giant, rhythmic and mighty.

Splash!

A muffled sound broke the tranquility.

Fang Cheng was naked, like a red-hot branding iron, fiercely crashing into the icy seawater.

The extreme temperature difference caused the pores all over his body to contract instantly, and his scalding skin made a soft ‐hissing‐ sound in the seawater.

That chill seemed to pierce through skin and flesh straight to the bone marrow, making Fang Cheng so comfortable he almost let out a sigh.

The extreme running just now had squeezed the body's potential almost to its peak, and his body surface temperature was frighteningly high.

If he hadn't mastered the Qigong special effect of ‑Flame Breathing‑, which significantly enhanced his endurance and breathing efficiency in high-temperature environments,

with only 50 points in Physique attributes, he probably would have run at most a few hundred meters before having to stop due to physiological overload.

Of course, if Fang Cheng were willing to consume the azure True Qi in his Dantian to dissipate heat and cool down, he might have been able to last even longer.

But doing that would be like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

At this moment, the icy seawater was the best coolant.

Fang Cheng stretched his limbs and plunged headfirst into the water.

His legs swung powerfully like a fish tail, and his figure agilely shuttled beneath the waves.

A moment later, he broke through the water again, switching to a relaxed freestyle, his arms alternately stroking the water and plowing two white splashes on the sea surface.

The waves rolled in one after another, washing over his solid back.

The force was just right, like pairs of palms giving him a massage, soothing every inch of his tense muscles.

After swimming back and forth a few times, Fang Cheng's body temperature quickly returned to normal.

The abnormal crimson color on his skin caused by high-speed running also slowly faded.

Fang Cheng simply lay on his back on the water, letting his body rise and fall slightly with the waves.

Above his head was a dark gray canopy, and a few remaining stars were still stubbornly twinkling.

Beside his ears was the soft sound of water ‑swishing‑.

At this moment, the vast ocean seemed to have become a huge bathtub belonging exclusively to one person.

The whole world became incomparably peaceful.

Such a wonderful feeling reminded Fang Cheng of the days back on Yongan Island.

Back then, every time he finished his morning exercise, he would swim to his heart's content in the sea like this, enjoying the embrace of the current.

The ‑Water Breathing‑ talent was thoroughly stimulated in that exact environment.

The tide rose higher and higher.

Facing the crest of the tide and treading water, Fang Cheng looked around.

A thick fog had risen over the sea surface at some unknown point.

The white mist, damp, cold, and sticky, spread out like a boundless net.

Looking back, the beach he came from had turned into a blurry gray line.

The silhouettes of the city buildings on the shore were also faintly visible in the mist, like a mirage.

Looking further towards the outer periphery of Qingshui Bay, it was a boundless ink-colored ocean.

It seemed to lead to the end of the world, carrying a desolation and mystery far removed from the mortal realm.

The seabed terrain here was gentle; if he wanted to experience deep dives of over a hundred meters like on Yongan Island, he would have to swim forward for at least a few more kilometers.

Fang Cheng took a deep breath and plunged into the water again.

This time, he didn't surface immediately.

Underwater, his enhanced vision exerted even greater advantages.

Through the rippling seawater, swaying seaweed could be clearly seen swaying with the undercurrent.

Shoals of small fish, clad in silver scales, nimbly slid past him.

They curiously sized up this uninvited guest, yet did not dare to get too close.

All surrounding sounds were isolated by the seawater, and the whole world seemed to leave only Fang Cheng himself and these silent marine creatures.

This tranquility was wondrous and pure, like crashing into an isolated dreamland.

Fang Cheng continued diving, swimming towards deeper and darker places.

Just at this moment, a strange feeling descended without warning.

It was neither sound nor image, but rather like an ancient resonance originating from the deepest part of the ocean.

Low and distant, ignoring the barrier of the seawater, it echoed directly in his spiritual world.

This power was filled with majesty and mystery, as if the sleeping will of this ocean itself had cast a casual glance.

At the same time, the wisp of the ‑Flame of Spirituality‑ quietly burning in his mind suddenly leaped, its light and flames surging drastically.

Fang Cheng also abruptly snapped back to his senses.

Only then did he realize with a start that during that momentary trance just now, his body had subconsciously swum a very long distance forward.

Looking up, the light on the water surface had become extremely faint.

His heart tightened as he realized that the strange hallucinations from when he cultivated Meditation had appeared once again.

He immediately adjusted his posture, exerted force with his legs, and shot upward like a sailfish.

Splash!

Fang Cheng broke through the water and wiped the seawater from his face.

Gazing around, he found himself in a vast sea fog, extremely far from the beach.

He estimated it was at least two or three kilometers, almost swimming out of the range of Qingshui Bay.

‑Tut-tut-tut...‑

Not far away, a fishing boat that had set sail early in the morning to fish drove past the fog with dim yellow lights shining.

The fishermen on the boat didn't seem to notice that there was still a person in the sea.

Fang Cheng identified the direction and was about to turn around and swim back.

Out of the corner of his eye, however, he caught sight of an unusual flash of light.

On the cliff to the west of Qingshui Bay, the top of that long-abandoned white lighthouse unexpectedly had a signal light lit up.

That light wasn't very intense, but it was extremely penetrating; even the thick fog could not completely block it.

What was even stranger was that the light flickered very regularly, alternating between long and short, sometimes bright and sometimes extinguished.

It looked like it was sending a certain specific signal, or perhaps guiding the direction for ships lost in the sea fog.

Fang Cheng stopped his movements, treading water, squinted his eyes, and quietly observed.

A moment later, that light seemed to lock onto his location.

A beam of light pierced through layers of fog and shot straight toward him, like a spot of light constantly shaking on the sea surface.

This was no longer navigation; it looked more like summoning himself, or probing the situation over here.

Fang Cheng frowned slightly, and deep within his pupils, a trace of faint red light quietly emerged.

[Eagle Eye Vision] activated!

In an instant, his vision seemed to have turned into substance, possessing the power to penetrate all obstacles.

The thick fog, gloomy weather, and distant distance were no longer problems at this moment.

The location of the lighthouse was a full three to four kilometers away from him here.

Even so, the scene behind the tower top's window was still captured by him as a blurry image.

That was a standing human figure, holding a large strong-light flashlight in his hand.

The aperture of light expanded, perfectly blocking that person's face.

But relying on the ultra-strong insight of Eagle Eye Vision, Fang Cheng still managed to barely make out some of that figure's Physique and contour.

For some reason, it gave him a vague sense of familiarity.

‑What does this person want to do? A peeping tom?‑

Fang Cheng withdrew his gaze in puzzlement and turned off Eagle Eye Vision.

Pondering for a moment, he no longer paid attention to that still-flashing beam of light, but turned around and continued swimming toward the beach.

Soon, he returned to the shallow water area.

The seawater only reached his knees; he walked step by step onto the beach, kicking up clusters of splashes.

Looking back, the light emitted by the lighthouse was still persistently flickering.

Although the other party seemed to be guiding him over in this way.

Fang Cheng had no intention of accepting the invitation.

He shook the water droplets on his head, forcibly suppressed the trace of curiosity in his heart, and muttered inwardly:

‑Not going.‑

With this leisure time to play guessing games with a guy who hides his head and shows his tail,

he might as well go home early and do something more meaningful.

Before his eyes, the light blue light screen appropriately emerged.

[Back Bridge Lv2 (495 / 500)]

The skill progress bar on the panel was almost filled.

After walking ashore, Fang Cheng did not choose to run Qigong to evaporate the wet seawater on his body surface.

Instead, he directly picked up the sports jacket placed on the beach and quickly put it on.

Then he put on his shoes, put on his watch, and decisively turned around and left.

Jogging all the way, he left that still-flashing lighthouse far behind.

...

To the west of Qingshui Bay, above the cliff.

The solitary white lighthouse stood in the morning fog, its walls mottled and filled with the traces of time.

In the tower room at the top, a man wearing a black trench coat stood in front of the window.

Holding a military-grade strong-light flashlight in his hand, he was rhythmically clicking the switch.

A pair of eyes, exceptionally bright and sharp, stared closely at the beach shrouded in thick fog.

Suddenly, his brows furrowed slightly and he turned off the flashlight.

Then he picked up the high-magnification binoculars hanging around his neck and looked towards that direction again.

A figure wearing blue sportswear clearly came into view.

At this time, the other party had just walked out of the beach and was crossing the coastal highway, looking like he was getting ready to go home.

‑This guy... really doesn't have an ounce of curiosity at all?‑

Cheng Jiashu lowered the binoculars and muttered to himself, his tone carrying a trace of bitter amusement.

Today he deliberately woke up super early and holed up in this ghost place.

It was with a certain expectation, wanting to further test out that man's background.

Half a month ago, because of that mysterious anonymous note reminding him that the Noah Organization had set a trap at Chenxi Home, he was able to successfully escape a disaster.

Ever since then, Cheng Jiashu had been hiding in the apartment at Haitian Garden.

He bought that apartment last year, and after rough renovation, it had been left vacant all along.

That was just to leave himself an unknown retreat.

Even his most trusted manager, Sister Zhang, knew nothing about this matter.

In the days of hiding, he was bored to death.

Cheng Jiashu had been pondering: who on earth was that mysterious person who passed intelligence to him?

After helping him, why stood him up, causing him to stay alone in this broken lighthouse for a whole night in vain during a stormy night?

Until some time ago, in the same building, he encountered Fang Cheng.

At that moment, Cheng Jiashu was suddenly enlightened.

That mysterious person was nine times out of ten this guy who also held a grudge against the Noah Organization.

Perhaps he accidentally learned the intelligence, and accidentally guessed his identity, so he disclosed it to him.

But out of reasons of not wanting to expose himself, he thus chose this covert method.

As for standing him up...

Most likely, it was because he himself had previously played ghost-like tricks to tease him, so he deliberately used the same method to retaliate.

After figuring this out, Cheng Jiashu did not take the initiative to expose it.

Instead, he secretly and silently observed while pondering how to break the current predicament before him.

Long-term isolation from the world pushed his already unstable mental state closer and closer to the verge of collapse.

He felt like he was about to bottle up psychological problems, and only for safety considerations did he forcibly suppress his temper.

Until Officer Gao of the Special Investigation Team came knocking and proposed cooperation to deal with the Noah Organization together.

Cheng Jiashu agreed decisively with almost no hesitation.

When formulating the subsequent action plan, he naturally thought of Fang Cheng.

This man whose background and experiences were similar to his own.

If he could recruit him to join, it would undoubtedly be a powerful assistance.

But now...

Watching that figure wearing blue sportswear drifting farther and farther away, Cheng Jiashu put away the binoculars with complex eyes.

‑Could it be... that the one who leaked intelligence to me really wasn't Fang Cheng?‑

This thought only appeared for a split second before he shook his head and denied it.

That's not right.

Cheng Jiashu believed in his own judgment.

In this world, there wouldn't be so many coincidences.

‑Since you're not willing to come here to meet...‑

Cheng Jiashu's gaze flickered slightly, and an arc curved at the corners of his mouth.

‑Then I'll take the initiative and go find you instead.‑

...

Just past 7:00 in the early morning, the sky outside the window was still gloomy.

The thick fog had not completely dissipated yet, shrouding the nearby and distant buildings like a layer of thin veil.

The entire city was dyed into a blurry grayish-white tone, appearing somewhat desolate and tranquil.

Inside this apartment at Haitian Garden, however, it was a scene of bustling activity.

Fang Cheng was naked from the waist up, his bronze skin glowing with a layer of oily sweat under extreme exercise.

Using only his hands and feet as fulcrums, he arched his body high.

Around his waist on a thick special load-bearing belt, ten dark barbell plates were stacked layer upon layer, clinking.

A total load of five hundred catties was constantly shaking as his body lowered and rose.

From the erector spinae to the gluteus maximus, and then to the hamstrings, the entire posterior chain muscle group was thoroughly activated, tightened like a fully drawn steel cable.

Every bundle of muscle fibers was clearly visible, outlining breathtaking lines.

That slender yet resilient waist and abdomen formed a contrasting sense of visual impact with the heavy iron blocks suspended upon it.

‑Whew—‑

Fang Cheng's breathing was deep and lingering, carrying a unique rhythm, merging into one with the heartbeat.

Practicing Shadow Boxing and extreme running by the sea in the early morning had long consumed a massive amount of physical strength.

Returning home, after just a slight adjustment, he immediately threw himself into a new round of self-abuse-like physical training.

But at this moment, not a trace of fatigue could be seen on Fang Cheng's face; instead, it exuded an expression of extreme excitement.

He was completely immersed in this tempering of the core muscle groups, enjoying the pleasure of muscle fibers tearing and reorganizing under extreme pressure.

Physical fatigue did not bring half a point of irritability, but instead gave birth to a nearly paranoid Focus, isolating all external interference outside.

Fitness was a Martial Artist's ultimate control and meticulous carving of his own flesh.

The light blue light screen floated in his field of vision.

The skill progress bar on it was growing slowly as he completed hundreds of standard weighted Back Bridge movements.

[Back Bridge Experience + 1]

[Back Bridge Experience + 1]

[Back Bridge Experience + 1]

...

Knock, knock, knock.

Just at this moment, an abrupt knock on the door broke the fiery training atmosphere.