Chapter 38: Connected by Fate?

Chu Cheng quickly realized that he had miscalculated.

While he may have gained Captain America's experience and skills, making him a top-notch combat master in the professional arena, there was a limitation—his mind.

The problem lay in the fact that his mind and hands often had conflicting ideas. Sometimes his mind thought it knew what to do, but his hands had their own way of doing things.

Therefore, although he had Captain America's experience and skills, it was only theoretical. He lacked the physical ability to perform those flashy moves.

Fortunately, he found a shortcut to improve his physical abilities.

That shortcut was playing more games.

For him, playing games was more efficient than exercising or working out. The only issue was that it drained his virtual energy quickly. However, this problem wasn't significant. Chu Cheng recently discovered that with each increase in his gaming sessions, his physical fitness improved, and his online time became more prolonged.

The longer the online sessions, the higher the efficiency of his training. The higher the efficiency, the stronger his physical abilities became. With stronger physical abilities, he could endure for longer periods—an advantageous cycle.

In addition, he unexpectedly discovered that taking drugs actually worked.

He found a useful stimulant and brain-boosting drug called "Wei Shen Huang Capsule" at Aunt Li's pharmacy downstairs. It was said to quickly replenish energy for white-collar workers burning the midnight oil, as well as students studying late into the night. Chu Cheng bought some to try, and indeed, the results were quite impressive.

So, these days, after patrolling and gaining experience at night, he would take a pill before going to bed. Surprisingly, the effect was good. The next day, he woke up feeling refreshed and energized, making it easier to get out of bed.

Convinced of the effectiveness of the drug, Chu Cheng, after waking up, made a detour to the pharmacy. This time, he planned to stock up on several boxes and take a pill before bedtime every day.

As soon as he entered the store, he saw Aunt Li with a worried and tearful face, staring at a computer screen full of green numbers, which meant she must have incurred losses from stock trading.

Unfortunately, if these green numbers were replaced with performance records from a battle in the canyon, it would have been a thrilling comeback. But unfortunately, that wasn't possible.

Chu Cheng had dabbled in stock trading in his previous life. He felt that the stock market was like a younger brother who had reached middle age—frustratingly stagnant, but unable to do anything about it. It was like trying to use a bullwhip as a medicine to nourish, just when it started to show some improvement, it disappeared before even pulling down your pants. You would feel utterly disappointed, ready to crawl under the covers and sleep, and then it suddenly seemed to show signs of life again.

After enduring a year of torment from the volatile stock market and building his resilience through exercise, Chu Cheng finally came to a conclusion: "Cherish life, stay away from stock trading."

Seeing Aunt Li's troubled face, Chu Cheng entered the store, and immediately, she put on a smile and said, "Oh, Xiao Cheng, heading to class?"

"Yeah," Chu Cheng nodded. "Do you still have that medicine from last time? I felt the effect was pretty good, so I want to buy three more boxes."

"So soon?" Aunt Li was somewhat surprised. Although her memory wasn't great due to her age, she vaguely recalled that it hadn't been many days since Chu Cheng's last visit. Did such a big box really run out that quickly?

Using them like candy, huh? Out of concern, she reminded him, "Xiao Cheng, even though this medicine isn't toxic and doesn't have many side effects, taking too many supplements isn't good for your body. It can create an imbalance in your energy, and your body might not be able to keep up with the consumption."

Chu Cheng smiled, "Aunt Li, don't worry, I know what I'm doing. I can handle it."

But as soon as the words left his mouth, he felt like there was ambiguity. Translated, it was almost equivalent to telling Aunt Li, "Let the supplements come at me stronger. Auntie, don't worry, my body can handle it."

The neighborhood aunties loved gossip, and if this misinformation spread, wouldn't his reputation be at stake?

"Alright. You came just in time. We don't have many capsules left," Aunt Li said. "Our inventory was already low this month, and a few days ago, another young man came and bought a lot in one go. I'm not sure how many are left. Let me check for you."

Saying that, Aunt Li turned around and went to check the inventory.

So Chu Cheng leaned against the counter and waited. It didn't take long before he heard a voice at the entrance.

"Chu Cheng?"

He turned his head in the direction of the voice and was surprised to see none other than his good friend Wei Futong standing at the pharmacy entrance. Perhaps it was just his imagination, but Wei Futong's complexion didn't seem as good as when Chu Cheng saw him in the game yesterday. Chu Cheng was becoming less and less interested in knowing what he had experienced last night.

"You're here to buy medicine?" Chu Cheng asked.

"Ah? Me?" Wei Futong's expression became slightly panicked. "No, I'm not... I just happened to pass by."

Just happened to pass by and ended up inside the pharmacy?

I would have believed you if you said you got drunk and woke up in the wrong bed, but coming into a pharmacy must be muscle memory, right?

Realizing that his lie was unbelievable even to himself, Wei Futong quickly tried to come up with a strategy. But before he could figure it out, Aunt Li came out from inside, bringing a well-timed finishing blow.

"Oh, you happened to come? Hahaha, what a coincidence. You're a little late though. There were only three boxes of capsules left, and this young man bought them all just now."

Chu Cheng: ...

Wei Futong: ...

A few minutes later, the two good friends were walking side by side on the way to school.

Chu Cheng hesitated and glanced at Wei Futong. "I might not need them urgently. How about you take two boxes back?"

"It's alright, no need," Wei Futong hastily waved his hand, showing an anxious expression as if the medicine Chu Cheng had in his bag was some ferocious beast.

"Well, okay. But you don't look too well," Chu Cheng glanced at his pale face, expressing concern for his friend's well-being. "Did you stay up late last night?"

"What? Oh, no, it's... well, it was the gaming session last night," he started to say but abruptly stopped himself midway.

Chu Cheng: ?

"I mean... playing video games. Yeah, I was playing video games last night until late, so I feel a bit drained," Wei Futong confidently stated.

"Oh, I see."

Seeing through but not exposing, let hardships remain unspoken. Since he said so, Chu Cheng chose to believe his good friend's explanation.

Seemingly eager to change the topic, Wei Futong quickly shifted the focus away from himself.

"Huh, what's wrong with your leg?" Wei Futong noticed that Chu Cheng was walking a bit awkwardly.

"Oh, I was exercising at home last night and accidentally pulled a muscle," Chu Cheng said.

Wei Futong: ?

Don't try to fool me with such a lame excuse. You pulled a muscle while exercising at home?

Observing his friend's unnatural posture and glancing at the bag of capsules in his hand, Wei Futong's pupils constricted, and he suddenly felt like he had an epiphany.

Then, as he looked at Chu Cheng limping, he surprisingly felt a sense of empathy.

He had thought he was working hard enough, but he never expected his friend to be secretly working even harder. In this day and age, even not wanting to put in effort and just being lazy seemed to require effort.

Noticing the subtle change in his friend's expression, Chu Cheng vaguely guessed what he was imagining, and his face darkened.

Damn, am I the one truly devoted to gaming?

Don't lump me together with you, you slacker!

"Cough, cough."

Sensing that the topic shouldn't be pursued further, Wei Futong changed the subject once again.

Then, a hint of vitality suddenly appeared on his pale face as he exclaimed excitedly, "By the way, don't be startled when I tell you this."

He leaned in close to Chu Cheng's ear with an air of mystery, pausing for a moment to create a suspenseful atmosphere.

"I... I met Batman yesterday!"

Chu Cheng: "..."