Chapter 23: Pressure Control

“Controlling energons means perceiving every part of your body, then trying to control and influence it. To learn how to control energons, you must first perceive their control. The process of resisting the electric shocks earlier was, in fact, the process of perceiving energon control.”

As Zhang Heng walked, he explained the meaning of energon control to Su Xuan.
In fact, after the morning’s training, Su Xuan had a rough idea of what he might have to go through to learn it.

“Extremely strong pressure will cause the body to naturally resist. When the pressure reaches a certain level, the cells will spontaneously break down energons. What you have to do is, during the process of resisting the pressure, perceive the sensation of breaking down energons, learn how to control your abilities, how to command the energons. You probably got a bit of an understanding of these things this morning, so I think you can understand what I’m saying.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“This afternoon’s lesson is nothing like this morning’s, you know.”

The two of them walked all the way up.
After reaching the top floor, they turned into an inner corridor where there was a large metal door.

In Su Xuan’s words, he had only ever seen such a door in movies, similar to a bank vault’s security door.

Zhang Heng fumbled in his pocket and pulled out a black magnetic card, placing it on the sensor.

After the green light lit up, he turned the wheel on the door.

“Clank~~ Rrrumble~ Rrrumble.”

The door opened.

There wasn’t a sliver of light inside; it was completely dark.

Zhang Heng entered, and after a short while, the lights came on, revealing a room full of futuristic technology.

There was a huge machine placed in the center of the room, like a giant washing machine.

A transparent glass cover allowed Su Xuan to see inside.

There was a square space, two meters by two meters, surrounded by all sorts of metal components.

Below the machine seemed to be a control console, with levers, buttons, and several slots.

These elements combined reminded Su Xuan of some movies he had seen before.

“What is this?”

Su Xuan stared blankly at the huge machine before him, his heart filled with alarm.

“The Suppressor! It’s a machine that can use energons to create immense pressure, and it’s also a powerful artifact that will allow you to quickly comprehend the great art of energon control.”

Zhang Heng bared his pearly white teeth, like a ferocious big bad wolf eyeing a weak little white rabbit.

“For the next few days, you’ll be with it, until you comprehend energon control, then you’ll part ways.”

The Suppressor was one of the few pieces of modern technology that could use energons as a power source.

It was jointly created by scientists from Huaya seventy years ago.

The Suppressor was hailed as a modern military factory.

Its appearance greatly reduced the training cycle, from a year and a half down to half a year, directly cutting a year of training time.
This greatly reduced the resources consumed in training while accelerating the cultivation speed.

The market price of a Suppressor was about eight million yuan, and it was a non-sale item.

It could only be obtained through special means, such as military industry, as a gift, or on the military-controlled black market…

And this Suppressor at Jincheng was a gift.
Its silver metal shell, thick metallic texture, and full mechanical aesthetic all displayed its value.

However, this thing was not a tool for you to enjoy life, but rather a terrifying existence like a large hand that repeatedly pushes your head into the water until you learn the “Water Breathing Technique.”

Before you learn it, you will be pushed into the water countless times, experiencing the water pouring into your nasal cavity, experiencing the pain of suffocation.

But Su Xuan was not afraid.

What he feared was his dream becoming reality.

If he couldn’t quickly advance to the Initial Form, if he couldn’t enter the summer camp in a month, then the dream would no longer be just a dream.

What was pain?

Could there be anything more painful for a man than losing his little brother?

Could there be anything more painful than going from being the one who casts the spell to the one being cast upon?

Compared to that dual physical and mental pain, this was just child’s play.

“Not bad, you’re quite calm. At least you can keep a straight face.”

Zhang Heng pulled a special suit out of the control console’s drawer.

It had colorful signal wires on it, clearly meant for Su Xuan to wear.

After putting on the tight-fitting suit, Zhang Heng gestured for Su Xuan to enter the square space.

Without a word, Su Xuan immediately jumped into the not-so-spacious area.

“Connect those wires.”

Zhang Heng sat in front of the control console, his legs crossed, looking at Su Xuan with a leisurely expression as he gave the order.

The end of the suit’s data cables had plugs, and the machine had corresponding colored jacks.

It took about a minute to finally plug all of them in.

“They’re connected.”

“Alright, just stand there like that. I’m going to close the glass window.”

“Does this thing have ventilation?”

Su Xuan felt a little uneasy.

After all, this space wasn’t very large.
Even a small jump made him worry about hitting his head, making him feel very repressed.

If the glass window were closed, it would be the end of the world for someone with claustrophobia.

Although Su Xuan wasn’t claustrophobic, he still felt a bit uncomfortable.

“Don’t worry, you won’t suffocate.”

With that, he pressed a button, and the glass window slowly closed.

Then he pulled two Energy Stones from his pocket, placed them in the slots on the control console, and flipped the machine’s power switch.

“Click~”

The sound of machinery echoed, the lights turned on, and a faint vibration from the machine could be felt.

Su Xuan looked at Zhang Heng and saw him pointing to his own eyes and opening his mouth, as if signaling something.

“Close your eyes!”

As if he heard or realized it, Su Xuan closed his eyes.

The rumbling sound, the trembling of the machine, the lightless darkness after closing his eyes, and the inexplicable sense of oppression from the small space brought Su Xuan into a strange world of loneliness and sensitivity.

It was as if he had been abandoned on a remote planet, never to return to Aquamarine.

This feeling of loneliness didn’t last long before a huge pressure assailed him.
It was like carrying a two-hundred-jin fatty upstairs; the immense pressure made Su Xuan bend over slightly.

He spread his legs into a stride to support himself.

The pressure was still increasing, not just on his back, but all over his body.
He could feel that pressure, like diving into deep water.

‘Phew~~ This is no time to panic. Calm down quickly, control my breathing!’

Su Xuan noticed his trembling body and his lungs being compressed by the immense force, and he struggled to stabilize himself.

Starting with controlling his breath, every breath he took felt like it required his whole body’s effort.

Without the help of energons, under this ever-increasing pressure, he wouldn’t be able to hold on for even two minutes.

“Hmm… stabilized so quickly? Not bad, not bad!”

Zhang Heng watched the figure inside the glass cover, keeping an eye on the values on the control console.

He no longer had the nonchalant demeanor from the morning, but instead wore a solemn expression.

Operating this kind of machine required absolute focus.

He had to pay full attention to the other person’s condition.

If there was any danger or discomfort, he had to react immediately and deal with it.

If he was even half a step late in detecting danger, the person inside, though they wouldn’t die, would definitely be severely injured, possibly even having to say goodbye to the battlefield.

If Zhang Heng were to be irresponsible, it could, in a sense, be considered murder.

…