Chapter 55: The Sated Purifier
Lu Qiujin didn’t know why Luo Shizhen was so obsessed with “recognizing godfathers.”
However, he cautiously chose silence.
His reason told him that at a time like this, answering anything would likely lead to a mistake. Only by saying nothing would he have a chance.
Sure enough, Luo Shizhen didn’t notice Lu Qiujin’s silence. He was still immersed in the thought of “I can actually be this amazing.”
It was a pity Chu Xiao and his Big Brother weren’t here; he couldn’t share it with them.
But thinking that they would soon finish their reform and be released from confinement, the sense of regret in Luo Shizhen’s heart wasn’t that heavy.
“Lu Qiujin, give me your hand.” Luo Shizhen remembered something else.
This time, Lu Qiujin wasn’t letting his imagination run wild. After being struck several times in a row, he was afraid that if he thought elsewhere, Luo Shizhen would suddenly blurt out, “Let me see if your palm lines look like a godfather’s.”
Although he didn’t dare think more, he still obediently handed over his hand.
Luo Shizhen took Lu Qiujin’s hand and closed his eyes to feel for a moment:
“I can sense the Pollution value in your body now.”
He opened his eyes, his dark and bright eyes full of surprise. “In that case, if I keep clearing the Pollution for you, you’ll never reach the Alienation value.”
Looking at his purely joyful expression, Lu Qiujin couldn’t help but pause.
“Actually… there’s no need to waste your ability. I’ve already been checked. Even if the current Pollution value in my body accumulates for another year, it won’t reach the Alienation limit.”
Luo Shizhen shook his head. “That won’t do. If I didn’t have this ability, that would be one thing. But I’m a Purifier; I definitely have to purify you all until you’re clean.”
He finally came to his senses at this point and said seriously, “I don’t want to see you in that much pain again.”
Although the mutating Lu Qiujin had this experience and could be saved, after having the experience once, there was no need to go through the pain of Alienation and heart-cutting a second time.
Lu Qiujin froze again.
Actually, even he himself didn’t think enduring such pain was much of a deal. After all, he survived, right?
Compared to others, he was already lucky enough.
Yet the person before him said he didn’t want to see him in pain anymore.
Luo Shizhen hadn’t gone to Yongzhou for an examination yet and didn’t know the status of the ability in his body. Therefore, although he was a bit tempted to purify Lu Qiujin right now, he still held back.
“Alright, I’m leaving. Wait for me to come back.”
Lu Qiujin nodded. That face, which always appeared noble and refined, actually showed a hint of docility at this moment:
“Okay. I’ll wait for you to come back.”
Upon arriving at Yongzhou, Luo Shizhen began another series of examinations.
When he was checked at the school earlier, he was still in a deep sleep, so many items that required cooperation from the monitoring staff had to be set aside.
Now, they were all scheduled.
These examination items were numerous and complex. In the past, Awakeners who came for checks—even elders—often became irritable by the end.
Even ordinary people would get annoyed by tedious, excessive check-up content, let alone Awakeners, for whom controlling emotions was much more difficult.
But Luo Shizhen didn’t feel irritable at all. Throughout the process, he did whatever he was told to do and cooperated with every action. By the end, he was still high-spirited, showing no signs of emotional issues whatsoever.
The staff responsible for the checks were all amazed.
“I’ve worked here for several years and I’ve never seen anyone this cooperative.”
“If his Qi fluctuations weren’t still there, I’d doubt if he was an Awakener at all.”
“Yeah, and he’s an Energy User. Do Energy Users really have such good tempers?”
Chen He-an kept a constant watch on Luo Shizhen’s state, ready to call a halt the moment anything felt off.
But Luo Shizhen never gave him the chance to do so.
Seeing the boy step off the machine and look back at him, a warm smile immediately appeared on Chen He-an’s face.
Luo Shizhen smiled back and even waved happily at him through the glass window.
Chen He-an’s smile widened a bit more.
The door opened, and Luo Shizhen walked out and headed straight for Chen He-an, his expression full of reliance:
“Teacher, I’m done.”
Chen He-an stroked the boy’s head. “How was it? Are you tired?”
Luo Shizhen shook his head and patted his chest:
“Not tired! My Fifth Uncle said I’m as strong as an ox. I haven’t even done any work; how could I be tired!”
Furthermore, Luo Shizhen was someone with experience going to the hospital.
When his grandmother was ill, he had accompanied her to the county hospital for check-ups. It was also one machine after another, and every machine cost money. At that time, his grandmother would feel pained over the cost.
But now, he was using so many machines that looked very expensive for his checks, yet he didn’t have to pay a cent—Yongzhou covered all the costs.
How could he feel tired? With every additional item checked, Luo Shizhen’s feeling that he was making a profit grew.
He once again felt regret. If only his grandmother were still alive. If she knew how high his current “salary” was and that the “company” benefits were so good—not only providing food and housing but also covering all the costs for physical exams—she would definitely be very happy and relieved.
A staff member came out from the back. “The machine checks are completely finished. The report might take twenty minutes.”
Chen He-an nodded warmly. “Thank you for your hard work.”
Luo Shizhen had originally just intended to nod earnestly, but seeing his teacher speak this way, he followed suit: “Thank you. Thank you for your hard work.”
The staff member was also a bit flattered as he looked at Luo Shizhen. “It’s nothing, it’s all part of the job.”
He hadn’t forgotten the data from just now—this was an Energy User.
Luo Shizhen looked left and right. Not seeing Luo Qi, he asked Chen He-an curiously:
“Teacher, didn’t you say Luo Qi’s Gandie was coming for the experiment? Are they in another room?”
Chen He-an looked into the boy’s earnest eyes and patted his shoulder again:
“Awakeners whose Alienation value has exceeded a certain point need layer upon layer of approval if they want to go out. That’s the regulation, and it’s for the safety of both the Awakener and others. So we might have to wait a bit longer.”
An official from Yongzhou who had followed along immediately said: “I just received word that the approval has been granted. For safety’s sake, they will use the spatial transport elevator. The whole trip will take about thirty minutes.”
“Student Luo Shizhen, shall we go to the lounge to rest for a while? You must be hungry after checking for so long. I’ve had some food prepared; everyone can eat while we wait.”
Had he not mentioned it, Luo Shizhen wouldn’t have noticed that he actually wasn’t hungry.
Since he was a child, Luo Shizhen had always been prone to hunger. Even if he had just eaten a lot not long ago, he would be hungry again after a short while.
While others were “half-grown boys eating their fathers out of house and home,” he had been “eating his grandmother out of house and home” since childhood.
But his grandmother didn’t mind at all, even saying cheerfully that being able to eat was a blessing (Fuqi) and that since their Shizhen was so strong, it was only right for him to eat more than others.
She didn’t just say this to Luo Shizhen; she said it to others in the town and to his teachers as well.
Over time, everyone knew that Luo Shizhen ate more than others because of his strength and large frame.
Zhang Chuan would often proactively offer to bring Luo Shizhen delicious food from outside. Before that other male classmate went abroad, he also frequently brought food for him.
Especially during his first senior year, perhaps because of excessive brain usage—and the fact that he still couldn’t learn despite the effort—Luo Shizhen could eat so much he wished he could gnaw on the desk after a meal.
Every time class ended, the first thing he did was quickly pull out all sorts of snacks to eat.
Even the teachers knew he was prone to hunger. But since he was at an age where he was growing, and Grandma Luo often told the teachers that he had been strong and ate more than others since childhood—and that he got hungry more easily when he used a lot of strength—the teachers didn’t think much of it. Sometimes they would even bring snacks themselves for this clumsy but well-behaved student.
There was a boy in the class who tended to gain weight easily. Every time he saw Luo Shizhen, his face was full of envy and indignant grief over why he stayed fat despite his efforts to restrain himself, while Luo Shizhen wished he could eat half the cafeteria yet stubbornly refused to get fat.
But in reality, being prone to hunger was also a hassle. He always had to have snacks on hand. Sometimes if he got hungry in the middle of the night, he’d have to get up like a mouse and gnaw on things with a rustling sound.
He was fine with it himself, but because there were others in the dorm, every move Luo Shizhen made was as cautious as a thief’s, for fear of waking the others.
Sometimes he’d even get hungry in the middle of an exam. It was fine at his own school; the teachers all knew he got hungry easily and would turn a blind eye when he took out food to eat while taking the test.
But he couldn’t very well bring food out during the college entrance exam, could he? Before the exam, the homeroom teacher had given Luo Shizhen targeted training on this point. Luo Shizhen could manage to hold back from eating, but if he got hungry and had nothing to eat, his already poorly functioning brain would crash on the spot, making his results even worse.
Yet now, he hadn’t eaten for five hours and had been moving around for his checks, only drinking a bit of water midway.
And he wasn’t hungry at all!!
Luo Shizhen was incredibly amazed. He instinctively looked down and touched his stomach.
His abdomen was flat, just as before, but there wasn’t a single trace of hunger.
“Teacher, I’m not hungry.”
He looked at the two teachers in surprise. “I don’t feel hungry at all.”
The Yongzhou official on the side: ?
He’s not hungry; why use a tone that sounds like he’s discovered a new world?
But considering that Luo Shizhen was a young Awakener and an Energy User at the age where face mattered most, he also put on a cooperative expression of surprise.
Chen He-an and Sui An, however, knew what Luo Shizhen was surprised about.
Both knew Luo Shizhen was prone to hunger, but as the saying goes, he was at an age where he was growing, so it was only normal for him to get hungry easily at this time—not to mention that his high-intensity daily training meant even more consumption.
Other young Awakeners were actually more or less the same, each one a bigger eater than the last. It was just that Luo Shizhen was exceptionally so. And compared to others who simply obtained energy from food, Luo Shizhen truly loved delicious food.
When he ate something delicious, his face would be full of enjoyment and praise, making those watching wish they could join him and eat a bit more.
Ever since Luo Shizhen arrived, the sense of happiness among the chefs in the school cafeteria had practically soared.
The bag Chen He-an carried currently held a pack of snacks. He had intended to give them to Luo Shizhen when he got hungry, but the boy hadn’t asked him for them once.
Chen He-an said warmly, “Although these checks don’t count as high-intensity exercise, there is still physical consumption. Not being hungry for five hours is indeed a bit unusual.”
Sui An glanced at Luo Shizhen’s abdomen. “It might be related to devouring that Gu insect.”
Luo Shizhen didn’t know what it was related to, but it was his first time experiencing the feeling of having done a bunch of things yet still having a full stomach and a sharp mind.
Since there was nothing else to do right now, he immediately decided to make use of this great state to do something.
The Yongzhou official responsible for arranging their stay watched as Luo Shizhen sat in the lounge, took out his tablet, skillfully logged into the school’s official website, selected mock test questions, and began to work on them earnestly.
Yongzhou official: “…”
Seeing him like this, Sui An, who was leaning against the wall behind Luo Shizhen in a seemingly lazy but protective posture, cast a glance at him:
“My student is like this. You haven’t seen it before, have you?”
Yongzhou official: “…”
For a moment, he didn’t know whether to be surprised that a young Awakener could be so well-behaved, or that the Inspector and Prosecutor Sui An would talk about his student with such a hint of bragging in his tone.
Chen He-an, sitting beside Luo Shizhen, looked back. “Sui-laoshi, he is our student.”
He specifically emphasized the word “our.”
Sui An’s expression suddenly shifted. He slightly clenched his hand, and the mental threads that were arrogantly clinging to various parts of the room instantly became alert and poised, assuming an offensive posture toward the center of the lounge.
The guard outside the room also suddenly turned around, his long sword aimed at the center of the room.
—Thud.
A floor tile first let out a sound, and then was slowly, slowly moved aside by a pair of hands as white as jade.
A man with features as delicate as a painting and white hair draped down tamely slowly popped out from beneath.
Luo Shizhen heard the commotion and looked over as well. Seeing the man, he hurriedly stood up.
“Hello, Vice Principal!”
The man slowly blinked his eyes. “Hel~lo~”
The Yongzhou official had already recognized who the newcomer was. He immediately lowered his head respectfully:
“My apologies. Although it is you, I still need to check your passage authorization.”
The Vice Principal slowly held up a passage plaque, and the Yongzhou official respectfully stepped back to the other side.
The guards also retracted their long swords and continued to guard the perimeter.
Sui An still stood behind Luo Shizhen, not completely relaxing his guard just because it was the Vice Principal.
The Vice Principal didn’t look at him. “The Principal sent me to check the situation~ as a school leader, to show concern for the student~”
He then looked at Luo Shizhen. “Are you okay?”
Luo Shizhen was moved beyond measure by such concern from a school leader. With a slight blush on his face, he said:
“I’m doing very well, Vice Principal. Thank you for your concern, and thank the Principal as well.”
The white-haired man nodded. “Then~ I’m~ leav~ing~”
He extended his pale, slender hand, lightly picked up the floor tile, placed it on his head, and then slowly descended.
Once he was down, the floor tile clicked perfectly back into the floor without a trace.
As Luo Shizhen watched, he suddenly remembered: “Teacher, I think we’re on the third floor?”
If we’re on the third floor, how could the Vice Principal pop up from the floor?
Chen He-an was unfazed. “The Vice Principal can go anywhere. Don’t mind him. The Principal must be too worried, so he asked him to come and check the situation.”
Luo Shizhen felt a bit embarrassed. “I’ve really troubled the Principals.”
“It’s no trouble. They’re more than happy for you.” Chen He-an lightly pinched his cheek. “Come on, keep working on your questions. If there’s anything you don’t understand, ask Teacher.”
Luo Shizhen nodded earnestly and buried his head back into his questions.
Meanwhile, his experimental subject was looking at the medical staff who had come over to help him put on restraint straps and a bite guard. His eyes were clouded for a moment, but soon regained clarity.
The man looked at his adoptive son before him and said with difficulty, “With me looking like this… no one can save me. You… go home quickly.”
Luo Qi looked at him, his eyes full of hope:
“No, Father. This time is different from before. Maybe you really can be cured.”
The man sighed, but still cooperatively allowed himself to be pushed out. Outside, various people whose appearances were strange due to Pollution watched the scene.
“Old Luo’s son is here again.”
“His son still hasn’t given up.”
Luo Qi pushed his father forward, one step at a time.
“Father, this time, maybe things really will be different.”
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