Chapter 98: Further Optimization

Chapter 98: Further Optimization

As soon as Chen Shouyi returned to the hotel, he was bombarded with questions from Chen Fu, Jiang Fen, and his younger sister. When he mentioned that he was now a Security Consultant at the Xiacheng District Public Security Bureau, enjoying Section Chief-Level Treatment with a relocation allowance of 8 million yuan, they couldn’t help but be overjoyed. To avoid worrying his parents, he downplayed the role, describing it as a nominal position with no real responsibilities or risks, yet offering generous and stable benefits.

After an early lunch, Jiang Fen and Chen Fu eagerly dragged both siblings out to look at houses. Accustomed to frugality, the daily expense of 500 to 600 yuan for staying at the hotel had been gnawing at them. However, after nearly half a day of house-hunting, though they viewed several properties, they either found the locations too remote or the prices too steep.

Xiacheng District was already considered the city center, where prices generally started at 50,000 to 40,000 yuan per square meter. With his parents' savings, they couldn’t afford anything sizable, and they were clearly reluctant to spend too much of Chen Shouyi’s relocation allowance.

"Mom, forget it. Let’s stop looking. This one seems fine," Chen Shouyi said decisively, seeing that his parents were unlikely to make a decision that day.

The real estate agent, who had been somewhat indifferent, suddenly perked up and chimed in, "Mr. Chen has a good eye. The owner only bought this place a year ago. It was renovated but never lived in—originally intended as a marital home. But due to unforeseen circumstances, the owner is preparing to move abroad and decided to sell."

Chen Shouyi, still dressed in a suit, made his exact age hard to discern.

"It’s just too expensive. Can’t it be cheaper?" Jiang Fen asked, her heart aching at the cost.

The apartment was located on the fifth floor of an elevator building, with three bedrooms, one living room, one kitchen, and one bathroom, spanning 130 square meters. It also had a balcony, and the neighborhood environment was pleasant. Fully renovated and move-in ready, Jiang Fen was quite satisfied—except for the price.

"Ms. Jiang, 55,000 yuan is already the lowest price in the area. Just last week, a similar unit in this complex sold for 58,000 yuan. The owner is only offering this price because they’re in a hurry to leave the country," the agent explained persuasively.

Chen Shouyi shook his head. Negotiating with the agent was pointless; it’d be better to talk directly to the owner. He cut in, "Since the owner is preparing to go abroad, why don’t you call them over? We can discuss it in person—we’re prepared to pay in full."

Realizing his earlier remarks had eroded trust, the agent quickly tried to salvage the situation. "Of course! Once we’re downstairs, I’ll make the call right away!"

……

The owner, evidently eager to leave, eventually agreed to lower the price to 52,000 yuan per square meter. The next morning, both parties went to the housing bureau to complete the transfer procedures. After rounding off the total, the final price came to 6.75 million yuan.

Chen Shouyi insisted on paying himself, using the relocation allowance that had been deposited into his account the previous afternoon. With this 6.75 million gone, his savings took a sharp dive—from the original 8.26 million yuan, only 1.51 million remained.

……

"Finally, it’s all done!"

Chen Shouyi stepped into his new bedroom.

For an entire day, Chen Shouyi first accompanied Chen Fu and Jiang Fen to the housing bureau, then spent the afternoon running around various malls to purchase furniture, appliances, bedding, and daily necessities. Physically, he wasn’t tired, but mentally exhausted.

Still, looking at the house bought with his relocation allowance, he felt a sense of satisfaction.

Chen Shouyi released Shell Woman.

"Giant, why did you change places?" she said dejectedly.

To her, perhaps the hotel had been the best place.

"Look at this," Chen Shouyi snorted, opening the laptop on the desk and pressing the power button.

The laptop had been bought that afternoon along with other appliances—two in total, one for him and one for Chen Xingyue, already connected to the internet.

Shell Woman was puzzled at first, having only seen desktop computers at the hotel, but as the familiar startup screen appeared, her face lit up with excitement. Rubbing against Chen Shouyi’s hand, she fawned, "Great Giant, this one glows! Can we watch Bei Qi inside, right?"

Chen Shouyi glanced at her.

To watch cartoons, she really had no shame.

Deliberately ignoring her, he opened a webpage to check the news.

The moment he did, a shocking headline caught his eye:

"A massive spatial gateway in Dongni Country has fallen. The nation’s second-largest city, Wushui City, has been overrun. The Dongni government has officially requested international military aid."

What was going on?

How could a heavily guarded gateway fall?

Dongni Country’s military strength was far inferior to that of a powerhouse like the Great Xia Nation, but its defensive capabilities around the gateway should have been more than sufficient.

For the past two decades, the shadow of war had loomed over Earth. Even the poorest nations scraped together every last coin from their treasuries to arm themselves with more devastating weapons.

Take the Great Xia Nation as an example—its annual military expenditure accounted for 7% of its GDP, and even that was a decrease from previous years. A decade ago, it had once reached as high as 15%.

Chen Shouyi quickly clicked on the headline, but the article provided little information, only stating that the Great Xia Nation had responded to Dongni’s request for military aid by dispatching the South Sea Fleet.

There was no mention of the cause of the collapse or the death toll—likely still unknown.

Chen Shouyi didn’t dwell on it. After all, this was happening in a distant, unfamiliar country.

"This isn’t fun!" Shell Woman suddenly jumped onto the keyboard, shouting, "Giant, let’s watch Bei Qi!"

Snapping out of his thoughts, Chen Shouyi grabbed her and set her aside, sighing. "Fine, I’ll put it on right away!"

He quickly pulled up a cartoon, then scooped Shell Woman up and placed her on the bed, far from the laptop.

…

After settling Shell Woman, he eagerly opened his Attribute Panel.

Nearly a month had passed since his last optimization of the Thirty-Six Body Refining Techniques. By noon today, the Book of Knowledge’s Energy Accumulation had finally reached three points. If not for the day’s errands, he would have acted sooner.

Without hesitation, he selected the Meditative Self-Refinement skill for secondary optimization.

The dream descended once more.

In the dream, he sat cross-legged with his five centers facing the sky, practicing Meditative Self-Refinement over and over again. His mind grew increasingly tranquil, his meditation deepening. Gradually, he sensed an aura of extreme stillness.

Quiet. Utterly quiet.

It was as if he had sunk into the deepest layer of serenity. At the same time, the intricate network of the human body slowly unfolded before his "eyes."

Starting with faint outlines of muscle fibers, the details gradually filled in, growing richer and more vivid, then spreading further to the internal organs...

If the earlier scenes had merely been an optimized version of Meditative Self-Refinement—similar in essence but with finer details—what followed now was a refinement that delved into the microscopic.

His body seemed to expand endlessly, as if he had become a towering Giant, yet his perspective remained a full 360-degree omniscience. Slowly, he began to see the individual cells of his body...