Chapter 12: Zhu Xiaotian's Plea for Help

Inside Tianxiao's dantian, the mutated substances accumulated in the pancreas of the tearing wolf continued to release intense heat, radiating outward.

Tianxiao gritted his teeth, enduring the pain.

Although his physical body and mind, including Qinglong, were constantly warning him to stop and rest, his eyes only grew sharper and more focused.

True cultivation, he realized, only began once one joined the Earth's military forces.

It was only after entering the Earth Military that he understood: this was the true beginning of cultivation.

When a person reaches their physical and mental limits, their body becomes like a container, constantly being stretched, gradually expanding bit by bit. Through painstaking perseverance, the body learns to endure more, becoming stronger.

The longer one persists, the greater the rewards.

Especially after consuming the mutated pancreas of a ferocious beast, the pancreas continued to release nourishing substances, stimulating his body to enhance his physical strength and infusing his system with more biological energy.

At times like this, willpower became paramount.

The stronger the willpower, the faster one could rise.

After running three kilometers at high intensity, the data on the instruments next to Tianxiao displayed the following:

Muscle Strength: 10.3

Muscle Response Flexibility: 10

Biological Energy: 103 (first breakthrough of 100)

First use of the adenoid, yielding remarkable results.

The extreme training methods of the Earth Military, combined with the stimulating effects of the adenoid, pushed Tianxiao beyond the average physical capabilities of an adult.

Five minutes passed…

The air in the training room was thick with sweat and the smell of alcohol.

Tianxiao, reeking of alcohol, was leaving wet footprints on the floor beneath him.

He kept going!!

Tianxiao mechanically continued to exert force.

His body had long since reached its limit.

Yet the heat emanating from his dantian continued to surge, persistently stimulating his body, providing a faint but crucial support to keep him going as his strength gradually waned.

Just when he had been running for 25 minutes, the elevator doors on the fifteenth floor opened, and Chen Wuling stepped out, stopping across from him.

Chen Wuling glanced at the numbers on the nearby instrument, then looked at Tianxiao, who was still relentlessly pushing forward, veins popping on his forehead. "Don't torture yourself over a woman. It's not worth it."

"I'm... fine..." Tianxiao struggled to maintain his breath and rhythm, squeezing the words out between clenched teeth.

"Stubborn mule," Chen Wuling shook his head.

In his eyes, Tianxiao was clearly troubled by love, wounded by it.

"I have some good news..."

Chen Wuling changed the subject, saying:

"Boss has decided to personally pitch in 200,000 for you to get a civilian chip. He wants you to join the security team early. We'll be comrades fighting side by side from now on."

Tianxiao's eyes widened in surprise.

"Don't be too shocked. Boss values talent. Once you start earning commissions, you'll have to pay it back. By the way, let me tell you about some logistics... When I go on patrol tomorrow, I'll pass by... you can meet me then."

"Yes!"

Tianxiao didn't refuse, slowing down his pace to a stop. He said calmly, "Don't worry, I'll repay Boss for his kindness."

"Mm."

Chen Wuling exchanged contact information with Tianxiao and turned to leave.

A smile appeared on Tianxiao's face.

Coming to the fifteenth floor for a weight training run had turned out to be two birds with one stone.

Accumulating 200,000 was easy, but doing it without drawing suspicion was difficult.

Time was pressing. He wasn't planning on slowly mining for it.

With only three years, every second counted.

The Zixiao Mine in Zone G46 was not something he planned to exploit early—because the cost of cultivation was immense.

From H2 to H3 required millions;

From H3 to H4, each step would cost millions.

Breaking through from H9 to G1 would require tens of millions just to upgrade the chips.

The hardest part of the physical breakthrough was acquiring the G1 gene-enhancing needles, which were worth millions. Apart from the Earth Military, which had sufficient quotas, ordinary civilians would have to resort to the black market, sometimes paying double the price.

This was also the reason why Luo Fei had not managed to break through to G1 for so long.

Therefore...

He needed to make the most of the money from the Zixiao Mine and use it wisely.

That meant taking advantage of Luo Fei's resources.

As expected, Luo Fei fell into the trap.

The investment would pay off for him.

Among the eight people Tianxiao encountered, three of them were unfamiliar. In a short time, these three would die in an accident during a transport mission.

Luo Fei's team of eight would shrink to five, and his influence in the security team would gradually be overtaken by Wu Hao until Luo Fei decided to take drastic action.

Since Tianxiao would soon join the security team, he would find a way to save those three people.

This was what they called "exchanging favors."

After Chen Wuling left, Tianxiao took a brief rest before heading back up to the thirty-sixth floor.

He was hungry!

Time to eat some more.

This time, he was more relaxed, directly roasting meat, devouring it with grease on his lips, before heading back down to continue training.

The adenoid's effects hadn't worn off yet.

Under this intensity of training, the adenoid could last anywhere from half a day to a full day, providing the effects equivalent to a gene-enhancing needle.

However, this time, he didn't let the instruments display his physical data.

An hour passed…

According to Qinglong's monitoring, Tianxiao's muscle strength had reached 11.3, his muscle response flexibility rose to 11.0, and his biological energy had climbed to 122.

Strong!

Taking a short break, preparing to continue, Qinglong reminded him that a new message had come in.

The sender was Zhu Xiaotian.

The content was shocking:

"Help me!"

Just two short words.

Tianxiao frowned deeply.

It was happening...

After removing the harness, he quickly took the elevator back to the thirty-sixth floor.

Luo Fei and his group had already dispersed, leaving only Chen Wuling behind to clean up.

Chen Wuling was grilling meat at the barbecue stand. When he saw Tianxiao emerge from the elevator, he smiled. "What's up? Hungry again? Here, take some..."

"Chen, help me track someone," Tianxiao interrupted, showing him the text message.

Chen Wuling immediately put the meat down.

"No problem. Name, number?"

"Number 3520, Zhu Xiaotian," Tianxiao quickly added, "If all goes as expected, it was Gao Chong from the Tower who did this."

"…"

A cold glint flashed in Chen Wuling's eyes. "That b*st*rd again! I've been wanting to deal with him for a while! I have a rough idea of where he might be. Follow me!"

As a security personnel, Chen Wuling was more familiar with the darker side of the base.

They hurriedly entered the elevator, one in front, the other behind.

Inside, Chen Wuling couldn't resist asking, "I know this Zhu Xiaotian, she's new, pretty, and seems to be close with your ex-girlfriend. What's going on? You're pretty concerned about her, huh? Going after your ex's best friend, huh?"

"…"

Chen Wuling misunderstood.

But Tianxiao couldn't explain that he was only interested in Zhu Xiaotian's abilities, so he had to take the blame.

"Heh, don't be embarrassed. I get it. Just make sure you take the lead on this one. It's a classic 'hero saves the beauty' thing—best if you do it yourself," Chen Wuling chuckled, clearly an experienced hand.