Chapter 19: House of Violet

This sudden investigation disrupted Lei En's plans.

He didn't know whether other constables or demon-hunting squad members would come knocking later, or might be secretly watching him, so to avoid showing any flaws, he decided to stay in his apartment for a few days first.

With nothing to do, Lei En started exercising at home.

At the Extraordinary Academy, besides teaching swordsmanship and knowledge related to Extraordinaries, what the teachers did most was urge everyone to exercise and strengthen their physical fitness.

The Soul Transformation ritual tests the strength of one's Willpower, and under normal circumstances, powerful Willpower requires a powerful body to support it.

Perhaps there are a few geniuses whose bodies are weak, yet they can endure agonizing torment of the soul.

But for most ordinary people, only through years of continuous training, breaking past their physical limits time and time again, and tempering their Willpower can they increase the success rate of Soul Transformation.

The academy taught many kinds of training methods, categorized in great detail, about as complex as the fitness programs from his previous life.

Running to improve endurance, push-press training to strengthen power, several sets of combined aerobic and anaerobic movements, as well as picking up a weapon and mastering a combat style.

If you had money, you could also buy alchemical potions of various effects.

For example, Lion King's Strength potion to enhance muscle power, Muscle-Relaxing Tea to relieve fatigue, Vitality Potion to quickly restore stamina, and even Mind-Focusing Oil that slightly improves soul intensity — over a dozen kinds of potions in total. Using a full set would cost enough Gold Shields to bankrupt a minor noble family.

With long-term use of alchemical potions, even if the Soul Transformation ritual failed, one's physical fitness would still be far stronger than that of an ordinary person.

Lei En had never drunk alchemical potions. His father, Bard, was one of the wealthiest men in their hometown's small town, running a grain and oil mill, but that was only enough to cover his tuition. Alchemical potions were merely a fantasy.

However, the current Lei En no longer needed alchemical potions.

He trained with a set of stamina-draining movements in his apartment, somewhat similar to "burpees" from his previous life, linked together with several other high-difficulty movements into a full routine, like an enhanced version of bodyweight fitness.

After training for over ten minutes, Lei En was soaked from head to toe, sweating like rain, but he didn't stop. He wanted to see where his limits lay.

As the exercise continued, his phone's battery also slowly dropped.

Until more than two hours later, the battery finally dropped to only 20%. Lei En felt a wave of intense exhaustion and only then stopped. A large patch of the apartment floor was soaked with sweat, he was panting like an ox, his body steaming as if it had been boiled, his limbs sore and weak, making even standing difficult.

Amid the exhaustion, what he felt even more was a sense of clarity and refreshment!

"Such high-intensity exercise, and I kept it up for over two hours straight. With my current stamina and strength, if I went to the Olympics, I should be able to easily win dozens of gold medals!"

"What a pity, I can't go back, no way to show off in front of everyone."

Lei En shook his head in regret, humming a tune as he went to the bathroom to shower, then went downstairs to the restaurant next to the apartment for a big meal. His enormous appetite quietly astonished the shop owner.

After filling his stomach and resting for two or three hours, Lei En found his battery full again, his stamina completely recovered, as if he had undergone ample rest.

So, he began to push himself relentlessly.

He trained that same set of movements repeatedly, draining his stamina and battery, eating, recovering, then starting a new cycle.

He continued exercising like this for nearly a week.

Aside from returning to the Luo Le Hotel once during this period to take that bag of banknotes to the bank and exchange it for Gold Shields, then bringing it back and hiding it, Lei En stayed in his apartment exercising the whole time, sleeping only two or three hours a day, yet eating four or five meals, with an appetite equal to two or three people.

Such high-intensity, monotonous training produced astonishing results.

Lei En's weight increased by over ten pounds.

His physique became more proportioned and solid, the outlines of his muscles grew more defined, no longer looking somewhat gaunt as before.

The most notable improvement was in strength. He tested it simply at home: it had increased by nearly half compared to before training. He could easily lift a heavy object of about five hundred pounds and walk around freely with it. If he weren't constrained by the apartment, he could even have run with it!

Such strength was greater than that of some Extraordinary professions not known for their power.

However, this had nearly reached the limit of an ordinary person. Lei En could feel it himself — no matter how crazily he continued to train, the improvement would be minimal.

"It's time to prepare for the Soul Transformation ritual."

Lei En hadn't let down his guard during these days of training. He periodically activated the Voice of All Things, listening to sounds near the apartment, and found no one secretly watching him, nor any constables coming to his door.

This showed that Pollock from the Security Bureau indeed hadn't investigated further, at least he wouldn't be involved for the time being.

Lei En tidied up, put on a brand-new set of clothes, and looked completely refreshed.

The formal menswear popular in the Empire was somewhat similar to Western suits on Diqiu. Only nobles and wealthy figures in high society wore them regularly. A single outfit could cost half a month's wages. Ordinary commoners would rarely wear them once, only on important occasions, and normally couldn't bear to take them out.

This new outfit of his was bought at the tailor shop next to the restaurant when he went downstairs for a meal a couple of days ago.

"It really is true that clothes make the man. I was already handsome enough, but paired with this outfit and this physique, I'm practically a male model..." After showing off in front of the mirror for a while, Lei En nodded in satisfaction, stuffed several dozen Gold Shields and a stack of banknotes into his wallet, and then headed out.

Standing by the roadside, Lei En noticed that he was turning quite a few heads.

Whether men or women, after passing by him, they would often mutter a few words in low voices — nothing more than jealousy or admiration.

Lei En was secretly delighted, but he hadn't forgotten that he still bore the Mark of Strife, so he quickly raised his hand and hailed a carriage to board.

"Sir, where to?" the coachman asked respectfully.

Lei En had already decided on his destination. "To the House of Violet on Brent Street."

Brent Street was in the Silver Star District, not far from any of the three Extraordinary Academies, located among them. It was the most high-end commercial district in Longshandecheng. The entire street dealt in things related to Extraordinaries — various alchemical shops, artisan workshops, potion stores, weapons and equipment, runic knowledge, including the most precious demon souls — all of which could be bought on Brent Street.

Lei En used to stroll along Brent Street often with classmates. He had no money, so he always only looked and never bought.

Just as "the people who know luxury cars best are often the ones who can't afford them," Lei En had seen enough to understand a few things.

The various shops on Brent Street competed fiercely with one another. Every shop had a faction backing it, with myriad connections to the upper crust of Longshandecheng.

Among them was a shop established just a few years ago, called the House of Violet.

This shop's business scale wasn't large, and its fame wasn't prominent, but its reputation was excellent. The Extraordinary items it dealt in were extremely comprehensive, even slightly surpassing the largest several shops on the street. It seemed to have some mysterious background.

Lei En had entered the House of Violet a few times and had never received a cold reception, leaving him with a good impression.

The carriage soon drove out of the Los District, crossed the Feileige Lun River over a bridge, and entered the Silver Star District.

A tall tower appeared on the horizon. As the carriage advanced along the broad, clean streets, the tower drew closer and came into clearer view.

Lei En activated his Soul Eye and gazed at the tower.

It was over three hundred meters tall, its body shaped as a four-sided pillar. It was unclear what material it was built from. The overall color was predominantly white, and the building's surface was covered with scratches like patterns spread across the entire tower body, also resembling pipes with energy faintly flowing within them.

The base of the tower was dozens of meters wide, and the body gradually narrowed as it rose. It was impossible to tell how many floors it had inside. At the top, a giant eyeball-like object floated there, with blue energy continuously flowing into the eyeball from below.

Even in broad daylight, rays of light shooting outward from it could be seen, like a giant searchlight scanning across the entire Silver Star District.

"Spirit Demon Eye!"

"They say this is an Eight-Ring Spell, permanently fixed onto the Wu Shi Ta by the Duke of Silver Star. It can see very far away, detect enemies in advance, and unleash terrifying magical attacks."

Lei En adjusted the focus of his Soul Eye, wanting to see more clearly, when suddenly, the Spirit Demon Eye atop the high tower seemed to detect something and swept its gaze over.

"Holy shit, it's that sensitive?!"

Lei En reacted with lightning speed, immediately shutting off his Soul Eye.

The next second, that gaze fell upon the carriage, and an indescribable pressure bore down. The light inside the carriage brightened, illuminated thoroughly from inside and out, making Lei En's heart tremble.

The galloping carriage's speed suddenly dropped. The driver let out a shout and steadied the startled horses.

Fortunately, the Spirit Demon Eye's gaze merely swept past and did not lock onto the carriage.

"Sir, are you all right?"

The driver quickly halted the carriage and said, half-complaining and half-explaining, "The Silver Star District is fine in every way, except that eye on the tower keeps looking all over the place, scaring the horses. I've run into it three times this year already, and even overturned once—a passenger even got injured. Though His Grace the Duke compensates at full value plus an extra sum, it's still a hassle in the end. Sigh..."

Lei En still had lingering fear in his heart. Hearing the driver's words, he reassured him, "I'm fine. Let's keep going."

"All right." The carriage soon started moving again.

After that, Lei En learned his lesson and dared not look carelessly at the Spirit Demon Eye atop the Wu Shi Ta again.

Half an hour later, the carriage drove onto a very prosperous street. Vehicles came and went on the road; private cars, rarely seen normally, were everywhere here. There were not many pedestrians, but every person's attire was bright and splendid, their faces brimming with confident radiance—a stark contrast to the slums. Separated by a single river, yet like two different worlds.

On the street, one could spot the occasional one or two Transcendents passing by.

They wore all manner of equipment, carried weapons, and even had fierce beasts following at their side or serving as mounts, yet this caused no panic or commotion at all, as if people had long grown accustomed to it.

Before long, the carriage stopped in front of a shop's entrance. The driver said, "Sir, we've arrived at the House of Violet."