Atlas of Heaven and Earth
Chapter 499: Stage

Chen Bitong also looked at Chen Chuan , gazing at the latter's bright eyes, he slowly said, "The simplest way to prove yourself can start with Drugs."

As he spoke, both Chen Bitong took out a tube-like object.

It was a transparent glass tube, and the substance inside looked like scattered, crystalline particles, displaying a blue-green hue. However, with the slightest shake, they would float and dance, very dazzling.

"This is slow-down medicine powder. If you participate in the Exploration Team, everyone will be issued this. This Drug can effectively make people lean towards the material aspect, but it will Influence Spirit.

After taking this medicine, your Senses will become dull, and within one to three hours, you won't be able to use your Spiritual Power. If you take too much, there will be many side effects, such as fatigue and listlessness, and a lack of Spirit.

For a normal Martial Artist , it might only reduce some combat power and doesn't Influence their survival, but for Imprint Monsters, this is absolutely unacceptable.

Because they are beings inclined towards Spirit, once they are restricted by such things, they lose their ability to resist.

They will definitely resist vehemently."

Saying this, the Chen Bitong who was speaking directly removed the stopper and poured the tube of medicine powder down his throat, while the newly emerged one paused, unwilling to continue.

Chen Bitong said, "If it refuses to swallow, then there's a problem."

As he said this, the other Chen Bitong gave him a cold glance, his gaze turning icy, but it quickly disappeared.

"Relying on Drugs is just one method. But there's a way to avoid this situation most of the time."

Chen Bitong said to Chen Chuan , "You are currently engaged in Spirit Cultivation, so you must remember the simplest way to condense your own beliefs and strengthen your Heart Jade.

When the Heart Jade is strong enough, unless you yourself are willing, or you give up, you won't be easily infected or assimilated by Imprint Monsters.

A pure Heart Jade, the kind of resolute and persistent Strength, can be felt by others, something an Imprint Monster can't achieve even if it occupies your consciousness."

Chen Chuan pondered for a moment and nodded.

"Also…"

Chen Bitong solemnly reminded, "After discovering a problem, you must find a way to solve it. Over seventy percent of those infected by Imprint Being cannot be saved, so in such cases, especially in the wild, don't think about how to rescue them, because you and your teammates can't afford that risk.

The infected person knows all the information and plans of you and your teammates. Even if you manage to expel the Imprint Monster in time, you can't guarantee that they haven't undergone psychological changes. If you don't make a decision early, you'll only drag yourself down. Captain Chen , you must remember this."

Chen Chuan also solemnly replied, "Master Chen , I've noted it down."

Chen Bitong nodded, "Now, I will let you experience the difference between a normal person and someone infected by an Imprint Monster. Because it completely inherits the original person's physique and memories, plus the Spirit enhancement, it will naturally exert even greater Strength than before."

Chen Chuan noticed something at this moment. He looked to the side and saw Yu Lie walking out, a hint of arrogant and unrestrained smile on his face.

However, judging from the situation, it should be a complete Simulation, because after being beaten up by him, he would never dare to show that kind of face in front of him again.

Chen Bitong said, "You fought with him just now. Now, the one standing in front of you is a Simulation of the state of being invaded by an Imprint Being . You can try to distinguish the difference between the two."

Chen Chuan raised an eyebrow and walked over.

This Yu Lie seemed to have completely inherited the original owner's temperament and style and should have no memory of the previous battle. He had no fear of him and rushed forward before he even got close.

Chen Chuan "s strategy was still the tactics he had used earlier, preparing to let the opponent grab him first and then counterattack. However, he immediately felt that this time was indeed different from before.

Yu Lie seemed to have sensed something. Despite being skilled in Seizing Technique, he actively avoided him, choosing to circle around instead of approaching.

This meant he had to change his strategy and initiate the attack himself. This time, the result was still without suspense, and he was knocked to the ground in less than half a minute.

However, to ask about the difference between the two...

Chen Bitong said from the side, "Did you notice it?"

Chen Chuan nodded, confirming, "It can anticipate my every combat intention."

Every time he attacked, the opponent seemed to be able to predict his movements in advance. After several attempts, he gave up trying to win with tactical strategies and instead directly relied on his superior Strength and Speed to defeat him.

Chen Bitong said, "Even if a Martial Artist embarks on the path of Spirit Cultivation and condenses their Thought, they will still inadvertently reveal some information.

And Imprint Being , this kind of Spirit-clinging existence, is particularly sensitive to this and can easily capture it. Coupled with the Martial Artist "s own experience and qualities, they can predict your next move.

To deal with such existences, in addition to the method you used just now, you must also try to strengthen your Spirit Cultivation. When walking in the Convergence Zone, without a strong Spirit, you can only do some protective work in the rear, but if you want to gain strategic initiative, you must always strike out instead of just defending."

Chen Chuan agreed with this statement. Like the Martial Artist "s philosophy, defense is to find an opportunity to Counterattack while protecting oneself. Without Counterattack, one can only be beaten and pose no threat to the enemy.

He thought to himself that after returning, he needed to strengthen his Spirit Cultivation.

Seeing that he had already gained some understanding, Chen Bitong didn't delve deeper and said, "Let's continue."

Chen Chuan nodded and followed.

In the following two weeks, he went to the training class every day and learned something almost every day. Moreover, these things might be used in the next training session, allowing him to deal with various complex situations.

He knew that this should be a summary of Chen Bitong "s twenty years of experience, but passing these things on to the people below so quickly felt like he was being a bit too hasty.

In these days, anyone who couldn't keep up with the pace of training would be ruthlessly eliminated.

But it was very rare for someone like Chen Chuan , who had received guidance from the beginning and had been there for almost half a month, to not be brushed off.

Even the resident personnel above noticed his situation and sent some information reports to the Ministry of Defense.

Councilor Pei also received these reports. After thinking about it, he contacted Commissioner Liang using the Boundary Token and said, "Commissioner, it seems that Chen Bitong values Captain Chen very much. This shows that our initial idea was correct. I just don't know how the higher-ups will arrange Chen Bitong next."

Commissioner Liang said, "The previous matter has not been thoroughly investigated. The higher-ups' intention is to let Chen Bitong continue to stay here on vacation, but some people have raised different opinions, believing that he shouldn't stay in Central City for too long."

Councilor Pei was stunned for a moment, "Is it… because of that matter?"

Commissioner Liang said in a deep voice, "Everything is interconnected. That gap hasn't been closed yet, and many things can't proceed according to the established process, so they can only be brought forward."

"Isn't it a bit hasty?"

"Something leaked over before. If it hadn't been so proactive, it might not have been discovered so quickly. Can we be sure that there's only this one? That would bring unpredictable changes. If this matter can be resolved smoothly, then everything will be fine. The original plan may not be able to be executed smoothly."

Councilor Pei thought for a moment and said, "Then should this matter be explained to Captain Chen ?"

Commissioner Liang said, "Find a time to mention it to him. At his level, he can know about this matter, and he should know. Besides… it's hard to say what will happen by then."

"I understand."

After Councilor Pei ended the call, his expression became serious. He looked out the window, where airship were parked at the anchor points.

Recently, more and more airship and ship have gathered in Central City, all preparing for that matter.

The situation is different this time because a gap has been broken, so unexpected changes are very likely to occur.

However, let the higher-ups worry about these things.

He turned around, took out the Radio, and began to send a message, transmitting the recent situation. After finishing, he sent a message to Chen Chuan on a secret channel, asking to meet when it was convenient for him.

Chen Chuan had just returned to his dorm from the training class. After receiving the message, he thought about it and decided to set the time for tomorrow since it was a Holiday.

He looked at the date. It was already mid-March. Wei Chang'an and the others should have arrived around this time, but he learned from a previous phone call that some Commission Company closing matters were complicated to deal with. Also, some additional Commissions were added due to personal connections, so they couldn't leave temporarily.

As for Luo Kaiyuan and Feng Xiaoqi , they felt that since they were a team, they could come together later to take care of each other, so their arrival in Central City might be postponed to April or May.

He felt that it was better to be a little later. Recently, his schedule was also very tight, and it wouldn't be easy to arrange everything properly for so many people.

At this moment, he felt a clump of Heart Jade emitting a clear light in his Spirit World.

It was obviously much firmer and brighter than last month.

In fact, under normal circumstances, Spirit Cultivation progresses relatively slowly at first, but the tempering method he had mastered was supported by daily sparring with Hong Fu .

The High Heaven Jade Core Fragment he had obtained earlier could also greatly assist Cultivation, especially in Spirit recovery, which allowed his Cultivation Speed to increase a lot.

Now, the Incense that Teacher Xue had given him was gradually losing its effectiveness, which meant that he had adapted to the current Cultivation and could enter the next stage.

So, he immediately tapped the Boundary Token and tried to contact Teacher Xue .