Chapter 33: Stage 3

When Chen Gu rose the next morning, he suddenly discovered that he had completed the second stage of the "Star Battle Instructor" pre-training! Another week, another stage completed. "This speed... it’s a bit astonishing," he muttered. According to Griffin Wester’s memory, the second stage for the Star Battle Instructors of the "Blue Blooded Thugs" usually took about two months on average. This timeframe also assumed the extensive use of high-tech potions to enhance their abilities. In comparison, Chen Gu’s progress in the second stage was much faster than even his own first stage. After completing this stage of training, Chen Gu’s physical fitness had already quintupled! Although this increase seemed less significant than during the first stage, all training followed this pattern: the more advanced one became, the harder it was to improve. A twofold increase was already quite remarkable. That very morning, Chen Gu immediately began the third stage, and his doubts grew: the third stage still wasn’t particularly difficult for him. Normally, at this point, one would feel they had hit a limit. A long period of consolidation would then be needed before experiencing another surge of improvement in their abilities. Yet, Chen Gu still managed to painfully complete the training—which meant he hadn’t reached his limit. The physical potential of the original body is extreme... It doesn’t seem at all like that of a middle school hacker and homebody. In the third stage, Chen Gu’s appetite soared once again. At breakfast, he realized that ordinary food could no longer satisfy his body’s needs; he needed to "add ingredients." On the way to school, Chen Gu searched for "high-nutrient synthetic food" in the car. In this era, "synthetic food" often meant cheap, a choice for the lower class. However, "high-nutrient synthetic food" was a different matter. Many companies were developing these products specifically for special groups, such as elite troops and fighting fanatics. A small piece could provide as much nutrition as several dozen pounds of ordinary food. After only a short look, Chen Gu was dazzled by the variety of products packaged with novel scientific concepts, their prices skyrocketing. As for how much more effective they actually were compared to similar products, well, only Heaven knew. As Chen Gu was hesitantly deciding which brand to buy, he suddenly received a call from Zhao Ji. "Old Chen, be careful these days," Zhao Ji warned. "I heard some news—Zhao Zhenhuai is about to take power. He’s a treacherous and ruthless man. Since you beat his son, he’s sure to seek revenge on you." Chen Gu asked, "What’s going on with you? Are you under pressure? If so, why don’t you pull your people back..." "Bullshit!" Zhao Ji cursed nonchalantly. "I’m just giving you a heads-up. At Zhao Zhenhuai’s level, he wouldn’t dare trouble me; the Tao family could teach him a lesson in minutes!" Damn, having a powerful backer is truly something. Alright, a backer *does* make one powerful. Because of the text message from Chen Jixian the day before, Chen Gu waited at the school entrance until Chen Zili arrived. Silently observing, it didn’t take long for Chen Gu to spot two individuals following behind Chen Zili, likely secret agents for his protection. The situation was now clear: previously, Chen Gu had only guessed that someone was secretly protecting Chen Zili but had never actually spotted them, indicating those people were true elites. Today, however, they’d been replaced with amateurs, easily noticed even by Chen Gu. What kind of protection could these rookies provide for Chen Zili? No wonder Chen Jixian had no choice but to speak to him. Shaking his head, Chen Gu entered the school. During this period, Great Actor Chen was evolving into a top student, with rapid improvements across all his subjects. Even though the Lubei dark web now listed him as the top gang leader—ranking even above Liu Shichan and Zhao Junzhi—he had nonetheless become the new favorite of all the teachers. Incidentally, ever since his "grandfather" had appeared, Chen Zili’s own ranking had plummeted. He was now relegated to the fourth position among the school’s delinquents. During physics class, Teacher Dai specially admonished Chen Gu, "Next week is the monthly test. Review seriously, and strive for good results!" "Of course, Teacher, I will give it my all." Teacher Dai grew increasingly fond of this star pupil. As she was leaving, she suddenly thought of her six-year-old daughter. What a pity her daughter was still too young; otherwise, recruiting him as a son-in-law wouldn’t be a bad idea. During the afternoon physical tactics class, Chen Gu consulted Teacher Ouyang about high-nutrient synthetic food. Teacher Ouyang asked, somewhat surprised, "You already need to use this type of food?" Chen Gu didn’t dare to tell the whole truth, as it was too astonishing. "Normal food requires me to eat too much, wasting time, so I wanted to try high-nutrient food. My family... has a bit of money to spare and can afford it." Teacher Ouyang nodded. "Then that’s even better. Good high-nutrient synthetic food can greatly help improve training results. Wait a moment..." He then sent Chen Gu a website directly. "This is my comrade’s company, genuine and without all the flashy stuff." "Thank you, Teacher." The students knew a little about Teacher Ouyang: he had retired from the military due to an injury. The cybernetic enhancements on his body were military-grade, far more powerful than common civilian ones. Rumor had it he was still on the military reserve list. If the war between humanity and the Alien Insect Race reached a critical juncture, individuals like Teacher Ouyang could be conscripted at any moment. After school, Chen Gu secretly followed Chen Zili, escorting him home before letting the bodyguards turn back to his own residence. On the way, Chen Gu ordered a few servings of high-nutrient synthetic meals from that company to try out. As he entered his home, the delivery robot also arrived right on time. Chen Gu was holding the food, not yet having stored it in the fridge, when Ape’s call came: "Tomorrow is the weekend. Our arranged visit is coming up, and you better come tomorrow. I’ll be on a business trip next week." "Sure, I’ll make some arrangements." Chen Gu put the food away and gave it some more thought. He still needed to seek the opinion of his older son on this matter. Chen Gu sent a text message. Not long after, a simple and straightforward reply came: "Okay." Only then did Chen Gu call Chen Qingyu. His granddaughter was thrilled. After Chen Gu’s promise last time, she had been full of anticipation. But that day, "the old gentleman" had been driven away by her father—or so it seemed. Chen Qingyu was torn by anxiety, not daring to blame her father; the usually lively little girl had become somewhat depressed these past few days. Unexpectedly, Chen Gu asked them to visit Tengu Records over the weekend! This at least indicated that Chen Gu’s relationship with Gao Mengjiu was truly special! "YAY YAY YAY YAY!" Chen Qingyu excitedly waved her little hands and screamed. Then she suddenly remembered her father might not agree. She timidly approached her father’s study, peeking her small head around the door with a pitiable expression. "Dad..." Chen Jixian, who knew why she had come, said without looking up, "Go on then." "Yay!" Chen Qingyu jumped for joy. That night, Chen Qingyu was so excited she couldn’t sleep. One moment she was fantasizing about her talent being discovered by the famous producer Gao Mengjiu and her rapid rise to stardom. The next, she worried if she wasn’t good enough, whether she’d really have to give up her dream of singing. Then she became anxious again: Tengu Records had several stars she liked; if she met them all at once, whom should she ask for an autograph first? In the master bedroom of the villa, Chen Jixian and Xiao Jiangxia were also getting ready for bed. Chen Jixian suddenly said, "I’m on duty tomorrow. You take Zili and go with Qingyu." Xiao Jiangxia was an understanding wife. "Your duty period lasts a week... Are you worried about our safety?" she asked. Chen Jixian nodded slowly. Xiao Jiangxia forced a smile. "Don’t worry," she said, "I’ll take the children to stay at my father’s place for a while." Chen Jixian didn’t reply. In fact, he now felt that being near Chen Gu was even safer than being at his father-in-law’s house.