Martial artists can never be ultimately insulted.

But then, Chun-Li, you came back… and the atmosphere completely changed.

"And now it's become my fault..." Chunli rolled her eyes and shook her head helplessly, saying, "This kind of transformation that stems from a misunderstanding is still a transformation, but it's ultimately like a rootless duckweed. Cultivation is ultimately about accumulating one's own abilities and experience. Forcing growth is not a good thing."

"Perhaps." Yuan Chen nodded, without refuting. Chun Li didn't press the matter further.

Although they slept under the same roof, even Yuan Chen, who often bothered Chun Li, would not disturb her too much when it came to matters of cultivation.

The reason is simple: only the intention you put into practice is truly your own.

Excessive instruction can cause wavering in those who are easily swayed, and is pure nonsense to those with a firm will—but martial arts exchanges between people are a different matter entirely.

After explaining why he had escalated the conflict, Yuan Chen stood up from his chair.

After stretching his body a little, he knelt down in front of Han Zhuli and reached out to touch the girl's head.

Subconsciously, Han Zhuli resisted, but Yuan Chen, what were you doing? He directly held Han Zhuli's head in place with both hands and then pressed a finger directly on the Baihui acupoint on the top of her head.

"Don't resist, let me see if I can treat it," Yuan Chen said.

Upon hearing Yuan Chen's words, Han Zhuli pursed her lips and stopped resisting. She stared blankly at Yuan Chen, who was looking down at her, and after hesitating for a moment, asked, "How do you want to treat me?"

"You don't need to worry about this. It's the secret of assassination techniques that my old man passed down to me. You wouldn't understand even if I explained it to you."

Yuan Chen didn't intend to describe the matter of life energy in too much detail—mainly because even Yuan Chen himself didn't understand life energy very well yet, so he simply attributed it to Lao Yuan.

Despite this evasive explanation, Yuan Chen still gave a brief overview of the life-saving therapy. To make it easier to understand, Yuan Chen simply used the 'virtual blood therapy' that Baki had come up with earlier as an example.

Upon hearing about injecting energy while striking, keeping the wound in its injured state to prevent further deterioration and cell inactivation—a technique they had never heard of before—Han Zhuli and Yizhi Yihua showed deep surprise on their faces.

Thinking this, Han Zhuli also checked her body. She mainly recalled the Type 69 bomb drop she had just experienced.

At that moment, Han Zhuli already felt something was off—such a heavy blow, yet she hadn't been killed outright. This alone left Han Zhuli feeling genuinely puzzled.

Now it seems obvious that the reason he wasn't killed was because Yuan Chen showed him mercy.

Thinking about this, Han Zhuli also remembered that she was stuck on Yuan Chen's body at the time, with her legs being stuck on her hip bones by Yuan Chen's head. Putting that aside for now, now that she thinks back, she seems to have something stuck to her face at the time.

While pondering, Han Zhuli's expression also fell, but she didn't say anything more.

After all, even if Yuan Chen fought with the intention of escalating the conflict, it was the two of them who ultimately launched the first attack.

After sensing for a moment, Yuan Chen nodded thoughtfully and looked at Han Zhuli, saying:

"You're quite lucky. The previous life-giving dish simply revitalized the necrotic nerves in your left eye. Although the subsequent anger greatly aggravated your emotions and state, causing your energy to flow back and causing your eyeball to bleed, this precisely indicates that the previously necrotic, atrophied, and diseased blood vessels in your left eye have been reopened."

Upon hearing this, Han Zhuli's only remaining eye lit up.

"However, it still needs to be nurtured slowly," Yuan Chen said. "For the time being, let's wear the eye patch and see if it helps us recover better."

"……Um."

Having learned that Yuan Chen was not an enemy, Han Zhuli quickly nodded.

Yuan Chen wasn't saying this to keep Han Zhuli hanging. Given the current extent of damage to Han Zhuli's eyeballs, even Yuan Chen could only maintain the status quo, provide conservative treatment, and see if continued activation could bring about any improvement, while preventing further deterioration that could cause the left eye to attack the right.

The main reason is that the regenerative capacity of the eye is very limited, especially since Han Zhuli's eye has been injured for a long time, and some of the tissues can be said to be completely necrotic.

Even Yuan Chen himself hasn't fully mastered life energy yet—when Yuan Chen uses it, it works well, like using the original soup to digest the original food, allowing it to exert its full effect.

However, when it comes to other people, depending on each person's physical condition, although it can nourish other people's bodies in the 'purest form of nutrition' and revitalize their physical condition, it has not yet reached the point of being able to bring the dead back to life and heal bones.

After dealing with Han Zhuli, Yuan Chen also stabilized Iori Ichika's condition.

Because he was directly handling the equipment, Yuan Chen discovered how much protective gear Iori Ichika was carrying under her seemingly casual clothes, and a look of strong disdain immediately appeared on his face.

"You're being way too protective of yourself!"

"You think the streets are an octagon?" Iori Kazuka rolled her eyes. "Armed weapons are the norm on the streets, okay!"

Somewhat speechless, the two did not dwell on the matter further.

Because she was wearing various protective gear, Iori Kazuka's strength was not as good as Han Zhuli's, but her injuries were not as serious. The reason she lost her fighting ability was mainly due to continuous concussions to her brain.

In contrast, the abdomen, which had a silicone pad, was also damaged, but overall the impact was not significant.

Through the activation of life energy, the brain quickly recovers and the stagnant blood is expelled. In just a short while, both Han Zhuli and Yizhi Yihua have clearly recovered most of their strength.

Seeing that the two were alright, Chun-Li sighed and said, "Since everything's fine, then get me properly tidied up..."

"Hehe, okay." Iori Ichika scratched his head to indicate that there was no problem. Han Zhuli also looked embarrassed and silently tidied up the tables and chairs.

Meanwhile, Chunli turned her gaze to Yuan Chen. During the brief silence, Yuan Chen's face was filled with self-righteousness—no, it should be said that he was self-righteous even though he was not in the right.

Having already learned of Yuan Chen's warlike nature, Chun Li didn't know what to say. She could only rub her temples and sigh, saying, "You... never mind, make me something to eat first. You must be hungry after fighting for so long."

As she spoke, Chunli handed the groceries she had bought to Yuan Chen.

However, Chun-Li paused as if she remembered something, glanced at Han Zhu-Li and Iori Ichika who were busy tidying up the house, and said in a low voice, "By the way, I just got news that Baroque seems to have escaped."

"They escaped?" Upon hearing this, Yuan Chen's eyes showed a hint of surprise, and he asked with some curiosity, "How did they escape?"

"A traitor who had been brainwashed by the Shadow Organization had infiltrated the escorting troops... well, maybe he was a victim."

Chun-Li had initially considered accusing him of being a spy or something, but considering the information about Vega's near-immortality, his ability to easily brainwash others, and his immense mental power, she sighed.

"After the coordinates were exposed, the remaining members of the December Squad intercepted them halfway. Although there were experts escorting them, one of the December Squad members directly summoned Vega's spiritual body, which defeated the escort convoy and took Balo away."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Chen also fell into thought.

Although the information about the December troops was relatively obscure, Yuan Chen still had some recollection of it.

As a unit, the December Force has different roles. In addition to dedicated combatants, there are communications officers, information technology officers, doctors, and psychic manipulators.

Among them, the aspect of mental strength can be considered a hidden setting in the Street Fighter series—that is, women have a greater tolerance for mental strength.

This can be seen from the fact that all the members of the December Unit, which served as Vega's backup body, were women.

Apart from the December troops, most of Vega's fellow disciples, including the prophet Rose and her disciple Menat, are women.

Although there are men, their numbers are significantly fewer, and they rarely participate in the storyline.

If Yuan Chen remembered correctly, Aprel, a member of the December Army, was also a practitioner of mental power... or rather, soul power. She was Rose's disciple and Menat's senior sister.

After his disappearance, Rose and Menat searched for a long time until they were ambushed by April during an infiltration of the Shadow Organization, and they realized that April had probably also been brainwashed by Vega.

Although Apreel was also a practitioner of mental power—or rather, soul power—as was Vega initially, they both innovated and developed their own mental power. As the creator and one of the most powerful manipulators of mental power, Vega could easily brainwash a junior.

Through the connection at the level of mental strength, Vega's mental impact appeared as a unique finishing move for members of the December Squad in the game's storyline alone.

Now it seems that, unlike in the game where summoning Vega's spirit form to crash into something and that's it, in this world, it's actually possible to bring Vega's consciousness down and have him take action personally...

Seeing Yuan Chen's calm contemplation, Chunli was somewhat surprised: "You... seem very calm? Aren't you worried?"

"...It's alright, mainly because I had some expectations." Hearing Chun-Li's question, Yuan Chen recalled what Baroque had told him when he was taken away before: "We'll meet again." So he simply said it directly.

Upon hearing Yuan Chen's words, Chun Li frowned and said, "Is that so?... And why haven't you mentioned it before?"

“Who would believe me?” Yuan Chen shrugged. “I’m not an Interpol agent. Besides, in that situation, most people would think that was just a threat Baroque made before his arrest. Without substantial evidence, no one would take it seriously even if I said it.”

Upon hearing this, Chun-Li pondered for a moment before letting out a deep sigh: "Alright... what you said might be right."

But then Chun-Li continued, "What about Baroque coming back to find you...?"

“It doesn’t matter.” Yuan Chen shook his head: “He has already lost to me once, and he will never be able to beat me again.”

Hearing Yuan Chen's calm words, Chun Li might have questioned anyone else, but considering Yuan Chen's rapid progress over this period, she nodded in agreement.

Indeed, once Yuan Chen overtakes you, it's very difficult to overtake him again.

Without continuing the small talk and confirming that there was nothing else, Chunli turned around with a bitter face and joined Han Zhuli and the others in tidying up the shop.

"It took me five hours to pack this up..."

Listening to Chun-Li's pitiful ramblings, Han Zhu-li also showed an awkward expression. On the other hand, Iori Ichika looked completely indifferent.

"Hey, we've become friends through a fight! Speaking of which, I've admired Interpol since I was a kid. Officer Chunli, look at my complaint about that..."

"Let's get started," Chunli sighed, then added, "Also, regarding Yuan Chen's identity, you'll need to sign a confidentiality agreement later."

“No problem~!” Iori Kazuka made a zipping motion with her mouth.

By the time she finished cleaning up, it was already 2 a.m. Even though she had eaten the spicy stewed beef and seafood set meal at around 9 p.m., Han Zhuli felt like she was starving and exhausted again.

Volume 1: Chapter 93 - Kim Ga-bum and Han Joo-ri

"I just ate not long ago... but why do I feel so hungry?"

Leaning on the bar counter, Han Zhuli's face was full of confusion, and her whole body exuded a listless and weak appearance.

Han Zhuli's doubts didn't even need Yuan Chen's answer; Chunli, standing nearby, casually remarked:

"It must be because of Ah Chen's life therapy, right? When activating the body, life therapy also promotes the rapid repair of the nutrients stored in your body. However, when converting the nutrients into energy for treatment, some losses will occur. But compared to the rapid recovery without side effects, it's just a matter of eating a few more bites."

"I see..." Han Zhuli nodded thoughtfully.

Meanwhile, Iori Kazuka, standing to the side, said with great interest, "Hey, doesn't that mean we can eat whatever we want without any guilt? Sounds good!"

"That's certainly one way to understand it."

Chun-Li nodded: "But that only applies to ordinary people."

The idea of ​​eating whatever you want without gaining weight is certainly tempting for ordinary people, but it's not very useful for martial artists or martial arts practitioners.

Let alone martial artists, even ordinary sumo wrestlers and sumo wrestlers consume more than 20,000 calories a day when preparing for a match.

Having a relatively more balanced physique, and in order to maintain powerful explosive force at all times, a martial artist's energy consumption and dietary needs are never trivial matters.

Putting everything else aside, Chun-Li, when she fights at full power, the heat she expends from unleashing her fighting spirit and launching a Hundred-Crack Kick might equal the total heat an ordinary person expends in a day.

In this situation, most martial artists will ensure that they have enough nutrition every day, and then their bodies will absorb these nutrients and transform them into qi, which is stored in the dantian and hair of qi. They will then strengthen themselves, fight, and unleash their qi during battle.

Thus, replenishing one's vital energy after a major battle became a daily routine for martial artists.

In daily life, a normal diet and timely replenishment of the trace amounts of energy lost are sufficient.

Even so, martial artists carry energy supplements with them at all times, and some wealthy families even arrange for a nutritionist to customize supplements to ensure that they can replenish their energy anytime, anywhere after a battle.

However, compared to Qi, which can only be used for combat enhancement... well, some powerful martial artists can also use Qi to heal and regulate their bodies.

However, the effects of this treatment and channeling are clearly insignificant compared to Yuan Chen's life energy...

Putting everything else aside, even considering Lao Yuan's understanding of Qi and traditional Chinese medicine, in terms of treatment alone, he is not as good as Yuan Chen.

Thinking this, Chunli sighed helplessly.

It's certainly a good thing that Yuan Chen possesses such powerful healing abilities. However, sometimes Chun Li can't help but wonder, if Yuan Chen didn't have such strong healing abilities, would he be a little more restrained in combat due to factors such as accumulating injuries?

But after thinking about Yuan Chen's personality carefully...

Well, even without the powerful healing ability of life energy, Yuan Chen would probably be the same as he is now. Or perhaps, this unique and magical energy, life energy, was created precisely because of Yuan Chen's thirst for battle?

After all, some powerful wills can even change the form of the body and even the soul. Yuan Chen's will is so intense that it doesn't seem impossible for him to create new energy...

While Chunli was still lost in thought, Yuan Chen placed a soup pot on the bar counter.

"Dinner's ready! It's the middle of the night, so let's keep it simple and have some oden."

"Oh, oh." Hearing this, Iori Kazuka nodded with considerable satisfaction: "Oden is indeed very good for a late-night snack—come on, let me, a local, taste how you made it!"

As he said this, Iori Kazuka also leaned her head in with great interest.

What comes into view are stainless steel compartments filled with bubbling, boiling soup. The compartments are divided in the middle; one side has a clear, rich broth, while the other is bright red and tempting with chili peppers.

As Iori Kazuka smelled the fresh scent of radish mixed with the ocean aroma of kelp, her eyes lit up.

As the head of the juvenile division's inspection team, Iori Kazuka is a regular at convenience stores, so he is naturally familiar with convenient late-night snacks like oden.

Now, with just one glance, Iori Kazuka can tell that this product is completely different from the semi-finished product from the convenience store.

The radish was cooked perfectly; although it had only been simmered for a little over an hour, it felt as if it had been floating in the soup for hours.

From pure white to a translucent jade color, every fiber visibly absorbs the broth.

Next to the radish was fried tofu, its golden skin wrinkled from soaking in the broth. Fish balls and takoyaki were squeezed together, snow-white and bouncy. Fish tofu was cut into thick slices, its surface pan-fried with tiger-skin-like char, and after being thoroughly cooked, it became fluffy and soft. The beef brisket, stripped of excess fat, was stewed until tender, and skewered with bamboo skewers along with the tendons…

"Hehehe, let me try a piece first~" Having been used to hanging out on the streets, Iori Kazuka didn't bother with formalities and simply picked up a piece of radish with her chopsticks.

For stews, the flavor of the broth is the most important element, guaranteeing the minimum quality of the entire dish. And compared to other ingredients, radish is the most simple and unpretentious.

Although it doesn't seem to have much seasoning, you can directly feel the flavor of the soup base and the way the ingredients are prepared.

She picked up a piece of radish from the plate in front of her, and with a little force, the radish was easily cut in half, releasing a rich broth. As she put a small piece into her mouth, Iori Kazuka's eyes lit up.

The radish was prepared meticulously, with the thick skin and outer fibers carefully removed. Beneath its seemingly ordinary appearance, Yuan Chen made several horizontal cuts on the side, allowing the broth to seep in along the cuts, while also adding a small spoonful of pomelo pepper.

The flavor wasn't immediately apparent upon first sip, but as you chewed, the first sensation was the sweetness of the broth, followed by the spiciness of pepper, and finally, the flavor of yuzu was absorbed by the piping hot soup. As you swallowed it, a few beads of sweat appeared on Iori Kazuka's forehead, a feeling of pure bliss.