Chapter 86 Psychic Advancement

Chapter 86: Mental Energy Advancement

Finally, Ji Anzhi was the one who reheated the leftover food from the afternoon and put it in front of Ji Anjue.

Sticking to his rule of not talking and being an introverted kid, Ji Anjue obediently picked up his spoon to eat without a fuss.

Ji Anjue was currently too short, so he ate on the coffee table, with the four adults in the room watching quietly.

Ji Anzhi took the opportunity to introduce Ji Anjue. After the introduction, both Jian Fuxu and Lu Yan looked at Ji Anjue, their eyes filled with pity—such an adorable child, what a shame.

When Ji Anzhi mentioned Ji Anjue's gender, Jian Fuxu couldn't help but question, "Is he really a beta?"

No wonder Jian Fuxu doubted it. Due to ABO genetic factors, omegas and alphas generally have outstanding appearances. Combined with the child's exquisitely crafted looks, it was hard not to suspect he was an omega.

Ji Anzhi put the physical examination results on the table. Lu Yan and Jian Fuxu looked down and saw that the second gender column indeed stated beta.

It took them a few seconds to process that the child before them, who resembled a little sun, was a beta.

"What are the plans for the child later? Send him to kindergarten?"

Ji Anzhi replied, "No rush. He's still a bit shy around strangers. I'll keep him close for now."

That wasn't a problem; the child did seem pretty shy.

Worried the child might get uncomfortable, they dropped the subject when Ji Anjue finished eating, letting Ji Anzhi take Ji Anjue upstairs to rest.

One had health problems and was constantly sleep-deprived, while the other was a child who got sleepy easily because he was growing.

After Ji Anzhi and Ji Anjue went upstairs, the two downstairs were worried about their buddy's future.

Comments like "You haven't even caught up yet, and he's already raising a child" particularly hit a nerve with Qi Yanshen. He didn't even listen to two sentences before heading upstairs.

Back in the dormitory, the adult and child both let out a simultaneous sigh of relief.

"Phew..."

"Phew..."

With no one else in the room, Ji Anjue dropped the act and started complaining, "Oh my goodness, a chatterbox truly lives up to the name—they can talk so much! What's the human saying for this? My ears are going to fall off!"

Ji Anzhi made up the brand-new bed and said, "Remember your persona: well-behaved, sensitive, and introverted. In short, talk less."

Ji Anjue replied dismissively, "Got it, got it. Can I use your Holographic Pod? I want to go online and play for a bit."

"Sure, but look after yourself. You have a check-up in two months. Don't get me accused of child abuse. If that happens, not only will I suffer, but so will you."

Ji Anjue understood this logic—if his benefactor went to jail, who would support him? He sure wouldn't do that.

After agreeing, Ji Anjue quickly climbed into the Holographic Pod and continued using his previous account to go online. That account was keyed to mental energy, not genetics.

Ji Anzhi finished tidying the bed, ignored Ji Anjue, washed up, and turned in.

...

The Next Day

Ji Anzhi woke up early. He didn't plan to take Ji Anjue outside—too many people, too many eyes—not a good idea.

Of course, even if he wanted to bring Ji Anjue along, a glance at the big white lump sleeping soundly on the bed... forget it.

Heading to the classroom, the first class was, as usual, the core class for the Star Chart Department. Midway through, the teacher pulled him aside to gossip quietly.

He even went so far as to turn on the soundproof shield. Ji Anzhi remembered this item cost 500 credits each at the official store and was disposable.

"Classmate Ji, it's like this. I heard you have a child?"

Having anticipated that the teachers would find out, Ji Anzhi calmly replied, "Yes, an adopted child. He was nearly dead when discovered."

"So that's how it is."

The teacher had thought their Star Chart Department's best young seedling had been secretly gotten pregnant. If that were true, they would never forgive that beast!

Learning it was an adopted child, the teacher was relieved. He then advised Ji Anzhi to prioritize his studies. If the kid was too much trouble, he knew a particularly reliable nanny on Scott Star and would be happy to introduce her to Ji Anzhi, free of charge.

Ji Anzhi, of course, politely declined.

During lunch, it was the same old battlefield.

Ji Anzhi, Qi Yanshen, and Chi Yan.

The moment the three of them sat there, it seemed as if swords were clashing. Everyone gave them a wide berth to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

Chi Yan didn't know yet that Chief Ji had adopted a child. So, caught off guard when he learned that Chief Ji had adopted a four-year-old, he nearly choked.

"Cough, cough... cough... what... cough... when did this happen?"

Ji Anzhi said calmly, "Yesterday."

Chi Yan said, his expression serious, "Chief Ji, you're barely an adult. Don't you think it's strange to adopt a child at this age?"

In response, Ji Anzhi smiled brightly, his tone light yet helpless, "The child is unregistered, with no relatives. If I didn't adopt him, he'd likely end up dead on the streets or suffer inhuman treatment before long. So... I couldn't bear it."

Chi Yan fell silent. Unregistered?

Then Chief Ji's actions were understandable. If it were him, he'd probably take the kid in too.

He quickly got used to the idea that Chief Ji was now raising a child, and curiously asked for a photo. After seeing it, he said, surprised, "The child is an omega?"

This was who-knows-what-number time replying to the question about Ji Anjue's gender: "He's a beta boy."

Chi Yan was slightly surprised but accepted it well. As long as he wasn't an alpha, it was fine. He was afraid Chief Ji might raise an ungrateful wretch.

Qi·the ungrateful wretch·Chi Yan's most disliked person·Yanshen ate silently, determined to sit next to Ji Anzhi next time.

At the very least, he would drag Chi Yan to sit with him!

After finishing a tense meal, Ji Anzhi said goodbye to the other two and returned to the dormitory to see how Ji Anjue was doing.

When he got back, he saw Ji Anjue, naked, tussling with Xiaoxue.

Xiaoxue had been sleeping when they returned yesterday, but today she was full of energy. With just a glance, Ji Anzhi saw several claw marks on Ji Anjue's body.

"Don't go too far."

"Mhm, mhm, meow! Hiss!"

While replying, Ji Anjue got down on all fours, imitating Xiaoxue's arched back and bristling fur. What a little brat.

Ji Anzhi sat on the soft cushion, took out the remaining fruit from yesterday, and told Ji Anjue to settle down and get ready. If he didn't absorb it today, this fruit would be useless.

Ji Anjue collected himself, walked barefoot over to where Ji Anzhi was crouching, and pressed his forehead against Ji Anzhi's, first checking his condition.

He soothed the somewhat agitated mental energy to calm it, lest unstable advancement cause a mental energy surge.

After soothing the mental energy threads, Ji Anjue used his mental energy to construct a protective barrier, preventing fluctuations from leaking out while also guarding against sudden disturbances.

Once all the preparations were done, Ji Anjue picked up the fruit and double-checked with Ji Anzhi.

"Once we begin, it cannot be stopped. There will be discomfort, but you must not lose consciousness. Do not resist. If you resist, overreaction will trigger a mental energy surge. Understand?"

"Mm, let's begin."

The moment he finished speaking, the fruit in Ji Anjue's hand slowly rose, finally hovering between the two of them.

Ji Anjue carefully guided the liquid toward Ji Anzhi's forehead. When it was only two or three centimeters away, the liquid transformed into a pale green fluorescent light.

It probed the space between his eyebrows several times, as if confirming safety.

Once safety was confirmed, the fluorescent light began to enter his forehead, heading toward the mental energy sea.

The essence of the fruit aiding advancement is to use the vast, non-attributed mental energy of the fruit flesh to expand the mental energy sea while simultaneously strengthening the mental energy threads within, making them tougher and more robust.

First was Ji Anzhi's mental energy sea; it needed to be expanded first. This process would cause intense pain.

After all, relying on external force to enhance mental energy—how could it be easy?

Feeling deceived, Ji Anzhi really wanted to grab Ji Anjue and question him: Is this what you call discomfort? My head feels like it's about to explode—you call that discomfort?

Sensing Ji Anzhi's emotions, Ji Anjue felt less sure of himself and explained guiltily, "First time being human, no experience..."

Wracked with pain, Ji Anzhi didn't hear Ji Anjue's guilty words. Even if he had heard, he wouldn't have been able to react for a while.

Curled up on the floor, veins bulging all over his body, breathing extremely rapid, his hands clenched the bedding tightly, knuckles white.

Ji Anzhi kept Ji Anjue's words in mind, trying hard to accept the mental energy that was making his head feel like it was splitting, but unfortunately, it had little effect. Subconsciously, he resisted the danger.

Feeling the resistance, Ji Anjue panicked and frantically tried to communicate with Ji Anzhi in his mind: Don't resist, you must accept it.

At the same time, he used his own mental energy to encircle the scattered mental energy threads, soothing them.

The entire process was estimated to take half an hour. Only five minutes in, Ji Anzhi felt like he was about to pass out unconscious.

His lips bitten until they bled, Ji Anzhi didn't know how much longer he could hold on. Forget accepting that mental energy; just ensuring he didn't faint would be enough.

Ji Anjue was also a bundle of nerves beside him, afraid that Ji Anzhi might suddenly fail to hold on and lose consciousness.

As it turned out, Ji Anzhi was remarkably tough, stubbornly refusing to faint or collapse.

Although he couldn't accept the mental energy, tacking on an extra five minutes and a fifth of the fruit's mental energy was wasted, it was fine as long as he could pull through. Otherwise, all efforts would be in vain.

Sensing the progress of the mental energy sea's expansion, Ji Anjue hurriedly said, "Almost there, almost there! Hold on a little longer!"

Ji Anzhi didn't know how much longer "almost there" meant in Ji Anjue's words.

One minute? Or two?

Either way, it felt like an eternity.

The bedding beneath him was almost completely soaked, leaving a dark, wet shadow. His clothes and hair looked as if they had just been fished out of the water.

After half an hour of excruciating pain, Ji Anzhi was close to passing out.

He told himself he had held on for so long already; he couldn't let all his efforts go to waste in the last few minutes. Otherwise, all the hard work would be for nothing, or even get seriously hurt!

Finally, in a daze, feeling like he really couldn't hold on any longer, Ji Anjue's urgent voice came through in his mind: "Alright, alright! It's done! You don't have to hold on anymore!"

Like a tightly stretched string finally relaxing, the moment he let go, Ji Anzhi immediately lost consciousness, blacking out.

While unconscious, the previously constricted mental energy sea surged outward like a flood, turbulent and overwhelming.

Because the mental energy was on the verge of a riot at this point, coupled with its vast quantity, the mental energy barrier Ji Anjue had left was breached. Ji Anjue hurriedly gathered those mental energies and re-established the barrier.

Ji Anjue glanced at the unconscious Ji Anzhi with a lingering sense of dread, wiped the sweat from his brow, and sighed in relief.

Are humans this weak?

He truly hadn't expected that expanding a human's mental energy sea would be so painful. When his own mental energy expanded, it was just a bit uncomfortable—something he could endure and get through.

He thought humans would be the same, but who knew it would be like this!

Worried that Ji Anzhi would settle the score later and cut his rations, Ji Anjue tried to make it up to him out of guilt.

He used his mental energy to clean the sweat and grime from Ji Anzhi's body and went the extra mile to refine and strengthen the mental energy threads.

Originally, Ji Anjue planned to use Ji Anzhi's own mental energy for refinement, but now, to make up for it, he mostly used his own mental energy to help.

It was precisely this portion of Ji Anjue's mental energy that successfully compensated for the mental energy lost during the expansion of the mental energy sea.

After strengthening the last thread of mental energy, Ji Anjue glanced at the time—it was almost evening.

Fortunately, Ji Anzhi hadn't chosen any classes for the afternoon.

...

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On the other side of the Military Academy Star

"Are you sure you didn't sense it wrong?"

Lin Dusheng looked at Levin, who was sitting at his desk reviewing student information, feeling utterly speechless.

"Mm."

Lin Dusheng lazily sprawled on the sofa and said casually, "Stop checking. You won't find it in the records; the highest documented is SS-level."

Levin didn't give up and continued flipping through, asking along the way, "Do the first and second years not get tested for mental energy yet?"

"It's too early for the first years. Second years are scheduled for testing in tomorrow afternoon's public class."

"I'll be the substitute teacher tomorrow."

Hearing this, Lin Dusheng immediately sat up straight and asked, curious, "You're going to substitute teach? Really?"

Levin nodded.

Lin Dusheng's face fell—Levin absolutely must not go substitute teach.

What if someone, like him back in the day, is a sucker for a pretty face and falls in love at first sight, and becomes just as shamelessly persistent as I was? I'd have to take them out!

"I'll wear a full holographic disguise mask."

A single sentence made Lin Dusheng slump back into the sofa. He turned away and said, pretending not to care, "Fine then, but I'm going too when the time comes."

"Mm."

Levin's reply held a laugh, its meaning obvious.

Lin Dusheng pretended not to hear. Like it was any of his business?

Levin flipped to a particular file and stopped, giving it a close look.

After a long while, Levin asked, "Can betas also undergo a secondary spiritual development?"

There was no need to guess who Levin was referring to—aside from Ji Anzhi, there wasn't a second beta in the entire galaxy who had experienced a secondary spiritual development.

It was a while back. Lin Dusheng thought carefully before replying, "You mean that beta top student from the Star Chart Department? When his secondary spiritual development occurred, even that guy Shenmu Yi was shocked. He ran the tests himself and discovered Ji Anzhi's secondary spiritual development."

"The first beta in the galaxy to undergo a secondary spiritual development. If it weren't for the fact that the people in the Star Chart Department aren't easy to provoke, the medical and biology departments would've probably locked that student in a lab for dissection."

"But I remember one thing about that student was rather strange. Theoretically, a necessary condition for secondary spiritual development is intense external stimulation. Yet that kid showed no signs of being traumatized, and his development still hasn't stopped to this day."

Hearing this, Levin set Ji Anzhi's file aside separately.

Looks like I'll need to go check out this student myself tomorrow.

"By the way, the spiritual fluctuation I sensed earlier came from the school's side. When the time comes, compile a list. We must find that person."

"Got it, got it. And *I'm* the headmaster here."

"Then don't dump official duties on me."

"Effective immediately, you're my stand-in."