Chapter 103
Luo Shizhen hadn’t seen his teacher in a very long time.
Although they occasionally spoke on the phone or exchanged messages, being able to meet face-to-face again made him exceptionally happy.
This young man, who had gradually matured to the point where he could display a dependable front before his teammates, reverted completely to his naive, slightly silly state the second he stood before the instructor he trusted implicitly.
“Teacher, I’ve advanced again, and I can even solo-kill bizarres now! Also my blade… it’s just that right now I feel like I’ve overeaten a bit again.”
From 3:00 AM until now, Luo Shizhen had gone fourteen hours without a single wink of sleep.
Ever since slaying that red bizarre, they had tracked the trail of its aura all the way to the East District on foot.
Luo Shizhen had been continuously devouring pollution along the road, which left him feeling slightly lightheaded and thoroughly exhausted, yet he still insisted on sharing everything they had seen and heard along the way with his teacher.
He was exactly like a fledgling that had just left its nest for its first flight; upon spotting its parent bird, it was filled with absolute excitement, chirping continuously to recount every bit of scenery it had experienced.
As he chattered on, the exhaustion he had been suppressing finally broke through his defenses.
He was incredibly sleepy.
In truth, he had felt drowsy ever since he finished “devouring” that red bizarre.
However, at that time, Luo Shizhen had been in a state of inexplicable euphoria, craving even more delicious treats while his Qi essence practically cheered along in full support.
But now, upon seeing the instructor he trusted most, that drowsiness became entirely impossible to suppress.
His voice grew quieter and quieter, and his eyelids repeatedly drooped before forcing themselves open, only to droop again, as his weight leaned heavier and heavier into Chen He’an’s embrace.
Chen He’an remained thoroughly patient throughout, gently brushing his fingers through the boy’s hair as he responded to his every word.
If they were both ordinary humans, this scene would simply be viewed as warm and perfectly normal.
But they were both Awakeners.
Furthermore, Chen He’an was a Guardian who was quite famous in the East District for maintaining an icy demeanor and almost never interacting with anyone.
It wasn’t just Yu Qing who was staring; all across the East District, a dozen or so Guardians with incredibly sharp hearing and peak vision had fixed their gazes entirely on them.
Once they identified Luo Shizhen as a Purifier, the confusion and shock in their eyes intensified by several degrees.
Everyone knew that Energy Users were exceptionally sensitive to Qi essences. For Guardians stationed in the East District like them, attempting to book a healing session with an Energy User required a waitlist of at least three months.
And even if they managed to secure a slot, there was a high probability that their own Qi essence would be deemed too violent for the Energy User to handle, rendering treatment impossible and making the entire wait a waste of time.
Purifiers were the only type among Energy Users who actively appeared on the front lines to battle bizarres.
Yet catching a glimpse of them was no easy task. Purifiers were deployed on field missions not because they could withstand Qi essence impacts better, but purely because their abilities could only be fully utilized in active combat environments.
Eternal Day meticulously coddled the few Purifiers they had, assigning them to the most compatible veteran squads. These senior Guardians would shield the Purifier so thoroughly that other teams couldn’t even catch sight of a single strand of their hair.
Even when different squads crossed paths, the Purifier was typically ensconced deep within the center of their own formation, shielded entirely from the sight of outsiders.
Yet right now, a young Purifier who hadn’t even learned how to conceal his aura and was freely radiating his Qi essence had appeared out in the open in the East District.
In truth, the East District Guardians had completely misread the situation.
Luo Shizhen actually knew how to conceal his Qi essence’s aura, especially after encountering that Fenghuang. His Qi essence had become far more cooperative than before, remaining well-contained during ordinary combat operations.
However, right now Luo Shizhen was simply too drowsy and exhausted, and his pure joy at seeing his teacher caused his Qi essence—which he usually kept intentionally reined in—to lose all inhibitions, as if sensing its host’s profound peace of mind.
The number of Guardians deployed in the East District was vastly higher than in the South District, and their ranks were significantly superior.
The Qi essence absolutely loved this environment teeming with Awakeners.
Capitalizing on its host’s muddled state as he drifted into deep sleep, the thoroughly sated white Qi essence spread out its “roots,” nimbly and playfully wandering across the area.
Pollution! Bizarres! Guardians! These were all its favorite things!
Mine! Mine! They’re all mine!
The Qi essence was so euphoric it felt like it had returned to its ultimate comfort zone, wishing for nothing more than to swallow every bit of pollution in sight.
Unfortunately, it was already completely full. It circled around the area with a hint of regret before quickly perking back up, intending to establish its territory first.
It expanded and stretched with total abandon, acting exactly like any rookie Awakener who hadn’t mastered control over their Qi essence, attempting to possessively claim every inch of territory it could reach.
However, unlike those reckless young hotheads, it didn’t drive away the other humans within this domain.
In fact, more than two or three Guardians standing relatively close found themselves completely encircled by a friendly loop of this Purifier’s Qi essence.
Not only did it show zero fear toward the potent Qi essences radiating from their bodies, but it even tentatively nudged closer to them.
The feeling was exactly like a pack of stone-faced German Shepherds suddenly being infiltrated by a grinning Samoyed that was ecstatically rolling around without a care in the world.
Several Guardian squads who hadn’t even noticed a newcomer arriving in the East District were caught completely off guard by this sudden manifestation of Purifier Qi essence.
“What on earth is this thing?”
“This is a Qi essence?”
“It’s purifying the contamination on my weapon! Captain, come look, quick!”
The originally deathly quiet East District instantly grew bustling.
To these veteran Guardians whose Qi essences had expanded incrementally year after year, this sudden white Qi essence was as small as a tiny, harmless critter.
Yet it nimbly darted around them in circles, occasionally even attempting to playfully pounce on a bizarre, forcing a nearby senior Guardian to act quickly, using his own Qi essence to reel the little thing back.
Instead of fearing his violently potent Qi essence, the tiny critter acted as though it had just received permission, joyfully wrapping itself around his aura to offer a friendly greeting.
The Guardian, who had been frowning deeply as he sternly “scrutinized” this stray thread of white Qi essence, felt his bronzed skin turn a fraction red from the contact.
“Is this a rookie?”
It possessed absolutely zero sense of personal boundaries.
If he hadn’t dodged quickly, this Qi essence would have rubbed right against his pectoral muscles.
It was his very first time encountering such an affectionate Awakener.
The tall, slender man—who had casually discarded his jacket within his own jurisdiction to reveal tanned abdominal muscles and a solid, massive chest—felt a wave of awkward discomfort for the first time in his life.
He pulled his clothes back on while directing his Qi essence to shift its grip, carefully examining the tiny, captured wisp of white mist.
Behind him, his own majestic Qi essence—which loomed almost three stories tall—curiously bent its head down to look at this minuscule critter.
It was simply too tiny.
Looking at it, the host couldn’t even have reached twenty years of age.
“Boss!”
A squad member who rarely spoke ever since the pollution levels in his body began to climb toward the threshold walked over quickly, his eyes glittering with excitement:
“I could swear I just felt a Purifier’s aura… Huh?”
The squad member leaned in closer, trying to register this wisp of Qi essence that was roughly the size of a hamster:
“Boss, why are you holding onto it?”
The look he cast toward his captain made it seem as though he were staring at a total degenerate who was bullying the weak by detaining a Purifier’s Qi essence.
The dark-skinned man: “…”
He pulled his jacket tighter, zipping it up properly. “It slammed into me first.”
The squad member remained silent, but the look in his eyes made it perfectly clear he didn’t buy a single word.
Every Awakener wanted to get close to an Energy User, but the vast majority failed completely.
No one had ever heard of an Energy User actively slamming themselves into an Awakener.
“Boss, your pollution level hasn’t even hit the limit; why have you started talking crazy?”
The dark-skinned man: “…”
He scanned the squad member up and down.
Most Awakeners possessed excellent looks; even if they were merely plain-looking before, their features would grow increasingly handsome after awakening.
The team member before him naturally possessed a superior physique and features; in peaceful times, he could easily have become a celebrity.
He said, “Unzip your jacket.”
“Huh? Why?”
Though the squad member questioned it, his hands complied immediately, unzipping and pulling off his jacket.
The dark-skinned man directed his Qi essence to release the wisp of white mist.
His Qi essence, which usually shared flawless synchronization with him, actually hesitated, reluctant to let go. He had to consciously exert full focus to force it to release the mist.
Sure enough, the second the hamster-sized white mist gained its freedom, it zipped directly onto the squad member’s chest, happily wandering around out of pure curiosity.
The squad member: “!”
“Boss! It’s on me!”
The dark-skinned man thought: I knew it.
He had never met this Purifier, but he had already completely deduced the other party’s preferences.
He undeniably liked men with good bodies.
Completely, shamelessly lecherous.
He tightened his clothes once more, ensuring every inch of his skin was thoroughly covered before stepping back with peace of mind.
The team member felt utterly overwhelmed by the favor; this was a Purifier, after all! If he could establish a good relationship, he could shave off several months of waiting in lines in the future.
His Qi essence leaned in curiously, and the white mist crawled directly onto it, aggressively devouring a portion of the contamination.
Once sated, it showed absolutely zero attachment, taking flight along a stray thread of energy to head straight back toward Luo Shizhen’s direction.
The squad member was completely dumbfounded by this massive windfall falling from the sky.
“He purified me?”
“He actually helped me purify?”
Although it was only a partial purification, it was more than enough to give him a ray of hope.
Previously, he had worked tirelessly to secure a session with an Energy User, but his Qi essence had been deemed too violent under the influence of pollution. The second he stepped through the door, the Energy User had backed away in absolute terror.
Forget getting close; they couldn’t even stand to remain in the same room, and the Energy User hadn’t even been able to manifest their ability.
Yet right now, a Purifier had actively sidled up to help him purify?
Observing his team member’s ecstatic expression, the dark-skinned man’s stern countenance softened slightly. He offered a small smile and patted his shoulder:
“It’s good that there’s hope. It seems he takes quite a liking to you. Find out which squad he belongs to and go pay him a visit.”
He paused, adding another line:
“If he tries to do anything to you, just endure it. There’s nothing you can’t get through—remember, you still have a family.”
The squad member didn’t quite catch the underlying meaning, but that didn’t stop him from nodding cheerfully.
“I get it, Boss. I’ll definitely suck up to him properly.”
Seeing that he hadn’t understood at all, the dark-skinned man decided not to clarify.
He understood his men’s personalities perfectly. Unlike himself, the team member before him didn’t particularly place a high price on his chastity.
Forget being touched a few times to build rapport; even if he had to fully offer up his body, he would undeniably comply.
Not to mention the higher-ups at Eternal Day; after all, Energy Users could only utilize their abilities on Awakeners they shared a close bond with.
And what could cultivate a closer bond than becoming romantic partners?
Eternal Day wished for nothing more than for these Energy Users to have over a hundred partners each, so they would never have to worry about Awakeners dying of pollution ever again.
Watching his team member’s excited departure, he felt as though he was witnessing the prelude to an upcoming transactional tryst.
The dark-skinned man pulled on another heavy jacket, ensuring every inch of his skin was thoroughly concealed before completely relaxing.
In any case, he would absolutely never accept utilizing that kind of relationship to increase intimacy with an Energy User.
Even if he reached the threshold of pollution and was on the verge of mutating, he would absolutely never sell his body.
Over on the other side, completely oblivious to the fact that his reputation had been thoroughly compromised and his Qi essence had been labeled a lecherous fiend, Luo Shizhen fell into a deep, absolute sleep.
The Qi essence on his body vibrated and fluctuated continuously; anyone looking could tell that he was on the verge of advancing.
The leap from Rank 4 to Rank 5 was a critically vital advancement process. The vast majority of Awakeners endured immense strain and severe pain during this threshold.
But Luo Shizhen was uniquely fortunate—he had fallen directly asleep, bound to navigate this vital advancement threshold within a muddled, peaceful slumber.
Luo Shizhen was actually quite heavy; after all, he was tall, possessed excellent muscle mass, and ate well, so his weight was undeniably solid even if it wasn’t visible on his frame.
Yet the seemingly frail Chen He’an picked him up effortlessly.
The young Purifier caught the familiar scent of his instructor, groggily murmuring a line in his half-asleep state:
“Teacher, I want to sleep with you…”
Cradling him in his arms, Chen He’an looked down at the youth whose face was filled with complete reliance and let out a soft sigh:
“Alright. Teacher will sleep with you.”
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