Enhancement

After returning to the Xuan Palace Building, Chen Chuan received the paperwork sent by Canglong Company. A handwritten note was attached to the document, informing him that if he did not have time this month, the hours could roll over to the next month, though they could only be deferred by a single month. Furthermore, notice had to be given in advance; otherwise, scheduling would be difficult. After thinking it over, he contacted Assistant Yin Fang directly via his boundary credential to ask how long this service of three hours of irradiation per month would last in total. Yin Fang politely told him that his current authorization was valid for a period of twelve months, and if he needed to extend the term, he could contact Section Chief Sun. Chen Chuan acknowledged this, then asked whether additional irradiation hours could be combined into one continuous session if he had more available. At present, he had recommendations from three sources: the Disposal Bureau, Cao Guixi, and Wuyi Academy, totaling three hours. Adding what Senior Sun had granted him brought the total to six hours per month. If each had to be done separately, he would have to make at least four trips a month, which was far too wasteful of his time. Yin Fang considered it and replied that this was not a major issue; Canglong Company could coordinate it for him. But he then kindly reminded him that such irradiation took a toll on the human body. Each session required a certain amount of time for recovery. Although, in theory, the longer the accumulated continuous exposure, the better the result, one still had to be as prudent as possible; spreading them out was generally best. Chen Chuan said he understood and thanked him for the response. He informed Yin Fang that he planned to go tomorrow afternoon and intended to use it alongside his Disposal Bureau quota, asking if he could arrange the schedule accordingly. Yin Fang responded promptly, saying he would make the arrangements immediately and asked him to wait a moment. A few minutes later, Yin Fang's message arrived, notifying him that there were open windows at one o'clock and six o'clock, either of which he could choose. Chen Chuan considered his options and set the time for one o'clock. A reply came back shortly, confirming the booking had been logged. With that arranged, he checked the gold card Lu Shiqi had given him. It was an anonymous platform account from which cash could be withdrawn, containing a total of thirty thousand yuan. Very good—practical and convenient. He thought that this would allow him to purchase a few more sessions of radiant light irradiation. With these resources at his disposal, he could strive to enter the third limit sooner. Not only would that elevate his status, but it should also make it easier to access higher-level secrets. After checking through this, he took out some medicine and ingested it. After every training session, these medicines were essential to better strengthen and restore his mutated tissue. Alongside that, daily breathing technique and jin training were equally indispensable. Fortunately, Instructor Wu had left behind a substantial amount of medicines spanning various types, enough to last him quite a while. While waiting for the medicinal effects to spread, he activated his boundary credential and browsed the news. Reports had finally emerged regarding the scheduled match aboard the cruise ship Rhino Horn; evidently, Canglong Company had smoothed things over with all parties involved. However, finding nothing useful in the main news, he gave it a cursory glance and switched to the fringe channels. The coverage here was far richer, even mentioning Wei Wusheng's intrusion and destruction, though without much detail. The primary focus was on the merits and drawbacks of implants versus native bodies. Scanning the comments below, he saw that many fighters believed that even though no decisive victor had emerged from the bouts, many fighters would inevitably embark on the path of implants after this. Compared to a native body, implants possessed far too many advantages: they could adapt to all manner of environments, and even damaged limbs could be replaced at any time. Yet a faction of people voiced opposition. For instance, he saw "Dancing on a Bottle Cap" speak up again, arguing that the fighter possessed a compatibility rate above ninety percent, but how many people could ever achieve such results? Moreover, all implants on the market were manufactured by corporations, meaning any maintenance or upgrade depended on corporations, requiring the regular intake of anti-alienation drugs. What was more, these implants left behind field vulnerabilities controlled by the corporations, and such loopholes could be exploited by skilled resonators. The conclusion: one must choose with utmost caution. Yet someone below mocked him: Who in Center City doesn't use implants these days? Who isn't taking drugs daily? Is there any need to worry about this? The question now isn't whether to use them, but that you must use them—it's a matter of how to use them. The commenter scathingly criticized Bottle Cap, calling people like him ill-intentioned for preventing others from enjoying the benefits of technological progress, spouting foolish, stubborn rhetoric, and acting as stumbling blocks to advancement. Bottle Cap offered no retort afterward, but a fierce debate erupted below, dozens of replies accumulating in the blink of an eye. Chen Chuan skimmed a few highlighted, insightful posts, then turned off his boundary credential, washed up in the bathroom, and went to bed. The next morning, he paid a visit to Cao Guixi at their appointed time. Cao Guixi gave him the two portions of precious paste obtained from Tiancong Baicao for this month, told him to take them after returning, and explained that only once his foundation was sufficiently formed would he formally guide him through the method to enter the third limit. The exact timing would depend on the solidity of his foundation. Once Chen Chuan could no longer feel noticeable progress himself, he could undergo another evaluation. While an evaluation was not perfectly accurate, it was undeniably a reliable and important reference. If the assessed success rate reached sixty percent or higher, he could attempt to proceed. Even so, that was not entirely safe. If he wished to go further in the future, it was best to reach seventy percent or above. Therefore, he needed to strive for every possible resource that could elevate him. Chen Chuan earnestly noted this down. After having lunch at Cao Guixi's residence, he left Mount Motie and boarded a tram bound for the Haijing Grounds. Over an hour later, he stepped off at the station. Because no tram ran directly to the Haijing Grounds, he still had to walk a distance. Furthermore, once entering this area, boundary credentials could not be used. That made little difference to him; walking gave him a chance to practice his breathing technique along the way. Along the road, however, patrol convoys passed by from time to time, occasionally pulling over to question him upon seeing him traveling alone. Another half hour later, he arrived at the Haijing Grounds. After retrieving his records in the front hall, the nearby medical staff noted that since he was unwilling to receive medicinal injections, four continuous hours of irradiation would have severe adverse effects on him. They advised splitting it into two hours per day across today and tomorrow. Chen Chuan considered it and asked if there were oral counteracting medications available. Hearing him ask this, the medical staff finally felt he was acting much more sensible. They patiently explained that oral medications existed, though their efficacy was inferior to injections. They could provide them if requested, though any medication incurred an additional fee. Chen Chuan indicated that he would take them. This way, his actions would not seem so shocking. He could use his Second Self to transfer the medicinal effects, allowing him to endure four hours or even more accumulated exposure. As for the cost, with the major expenses already covered, he saw no reason to fret over this small extra outlay. Refusing medication might draw more attention to him, which would only invite more trouble. Once the medical staff brought the medication and he ingested it, he was led by the person in charge into the irradiation hall. Starting at one in the afternoon, the session continued until five. This four-hour session gave him the distinct sensation that his muscles and bones were being continuously reinforced. In the meantime, he engaged in a hearty workout, testing out variations of jin within his blade forms, and found the experience exceedingly satisfying. When he exited, he saw someone else walking out from within as well. He had learned on his previous visit that there was more than one radiant light hall; up to three fighters could undergo irradiation simultaneously, and the quotas for the irradiation program had long been divided among various factions, so encountering other fighters was entirely normal. Surprisingly, the person emerging was a young girl of fifteen or sixteen. At that age, one had at most just begun training, yet she already qualified for radiant light irradiation. Coming to meet the girl was a man under thirty, wearing plain martial arts attire without any emblems or insignia. Seeing Chen Chuan, the man nodded politely to him. Chen Chuan nodded in return and walked out of the venue with his belongings. But before he had gone far, a horn sounded behind him. Looking back, he saw a car pull up. The window rolled down, revealing the face of that same man, who spoke politely, "Hey there, friend. I see you're walking alone and it's getting rather late. We're heading back into the city—why not ride with us? It's safer that way." Chen Chuan politely declined. "No need, but thank you." The man was not offended by the refusal. Smiling and nodding once more, he started the car and drove on. Glancing at the young girl in the back seat and noticing she seemed a bit disgruntled, he smiled and asked, "What is it? Sulking?" The girl said, "That guy back there. You offered him a ride out of kindness, brother, and he turned it down." The man chuckled. "Just over that? Isn't that completely normal? Fighters have strong boundaries. We don't know him, so there's nothing wrong with him declining. If we insist that others accept our goodwill, wouldn't that just be forcing them?" The girl thought about it and hummed in agreement. The man said, "That young man was probably a student from Wuyi Academy. Xiao Jing, if you hadn't been training with Granduncle and the others, you could have gotten into Wuyi with your talent too." "I wouldn't want to go anyway." Xiao Jing curled her lip. "Uncle says the academy has too many rules, and you have to take orders from corporations and various departments. There's no freedom at all." "Where in this world is there true freedom?" The man sighed softly. He didn't elaborate further; at his sister's age, some things were better left unknown. He said, "Speaking of Wuyi Academy, Granduncle is going to arrange a private exchange between us and some Wuyi students soon. Do you want to come?" Xiao Jing's eyes lit up, and she leaned over the back of the front seat. "Yes! I want to go, I want to go!" The man smiled. "Then I'll take you along when the time comes, so you can broaden your horizons." After taking the tram back to his dormitory, Chen Chuan tested himself that evening and found that the mutated tissue in his muscles and bones was steadily improving. Based on his previous experience, this growth would continue for at least four or five days. It felt wonderful. Come next month, when the academy's quota was added, he should be able to gain another hour. And he ought to push for a bit more from the Disposal Bureau's quota as well—the effects would be even better then. Even if he didn't compete for it, those two other trainees would surely compete with him. In his daily routine, he would need to pay closer attention to the Disposal Bureau's major assignments.