Chapter 22 - 21: Stone Skimming Perfection

Chen Jue discovered that ever since awakening this panel, his ambition for work had vanished without a trace.

The thought of having to clock in at the office again tomorrow, a Tuesday, didn’t bring ideas of how to get his work done. Instead, the first thing that came to mind was, surprisingly, how to slack off and play hooky.

’The company’s about to go under anyway, so what’s the damn point of being so proactive now?’

Especially since he’d recently started enjoying exercise and his body was slowly improving, he felt more and more that he had wasted the past several years.

His nine-to-six job hadn’t brought Chen Jue many blessings.

He hadn’t earned much money, he still couldn’t afford a house, and he hadn’t managed to land a single pretty girl.

Not only had the grind wrecked his body, but his passion for life had also been nearly worn flat.

’I really have to thank this Attribute panel!’

’Otherwise, my life, at almost thirty, would have truly been for nothing,’ Chen Jue thought with deep feeling.

...

After finishing his research, he bookmarked a few websites related to human anatomy, planning to study them in depth when he found the time.

Afterward, Chen Jue took a shower, changed into clean clothes, and left his complex to find something to eat.

His afternoon Darts practice had taken a lot out of him. If he didn’t grab a late-night snack now, he’d probably have trouble sleeping later.

He went to a Northeast China-style dumpling house he often frequented and ordered beef dumplings and two stir-fried dishes.

Chen Jue never skimped on food; this meal alone cost him over 80 yuan.

When the food arrived, he was tempted to wash it down with an ice-cold beer.

It was late enough to be considered a midnight snack. The air was filled with the tantalizing, smoky aroma from nearby barbecue stalls. At the outdoor tables, plenty of office workers who rented apartments nearby were enjoying a few bottles of beer.

But the thought of his hospital check-up tomorrow quickly squashed any desire to drink.

’Damn it!’

’I’m already quitting smoking, so skipping one drink is no big deal,’ Chen Jue consoled himself, glancing at his Constitution Attribute, which was already at 0.99.

He realized his self-discipline had improved tremendously over the past few days.

Never mind the unwavering commitment to his daily workouts—just look at him not smoking or drinking.

’If you added the traits "family-oriented" and "pampers his wife" to the mix, what level of super-husband would that be?’

’Too bad my looks are just a little plain.’

’And my bank balance is a little low.’

’Otherwise, I’d probably be married with a family by now, wouldn’t I?’ Chen Jue thought, recalling a few past relationships that had fizzled out.

He scrolled through his Friends Circle. Classmates, childhood friends, and colleagues his age had basically all settled down and started families. Their feeds were filled with pictures of either family dinners or outings with their kids.

Not like him, a solitary drifter, sitting dejectedly at a small table in a streetside eatery, eating a meal full of who-knows-what kind of chemical additives, with no feeling of home whatsoever.

...

That night, Chen Jue lay on the bed in his rented apartment and thought about a great many things.

He tried to plan ahead for everything, from his future employment and career prospects to the family and relationship he felt he ought to have by now.

He longed for the same happy family life his peers had, but unfortunately, as he took stock of his situation, Chen Jue realized his chances seemed slim to none.

First, there was the major hurdle of buying a house.

His current salary was only enough for a mortgage on a place in some fourth- or fifth-tier small county. As for a house in Hang City, he wasn’t sure he could keep up with the rising prices and inflation even if he worked for another ten years.

Second, there were no suitable people his age to date.

By the time they hit thirty, basically every woman he knew, whether classmates or colleagues, was already married.

And any who weren’t married yet were extremely picky and unlikely to be interested in someone in his position.

It was like an inescapable checkmate, one he couldn’t break out of through his own efforts alone.

Besides, starting a family meant facing a mortgage, car payments, and the cost of raising children. The financial pressure would be immense.

Chen Jue asked himself: was that truly the life he wanted?

The answer was clearly no.

...

Amid his chaotic thoughts, Chen Jue drifted off to sleep.

He slept soundly in two long stretches through the night.

When he woke up the next day, Chen Jue felt his Spirit was high and his body was full of vitality, so he decided not to dwell on his life plans for the time being.

He first went to the office to pick up his old phone from his junior, filed for sick leave on the DingTalk app, and then took a taxi to the nearby Second Affiliated Hospital.

It was one of Hang City’s top hospitals, and even early in the morning, it was crowded with people waiting to register for appointments.

He asked a nurse at the billing counter and was shocked to learn that a comprehensive physical exam cost over 4,000 yuan!

The worst part was that the physical wasn’t covered by insurance. Spending so much money at once made even Chen Jue—a junior manager with a decent income—feel a painful sting.

No wonder people said online that the poor couldn’t afford to get sick. Chen Jue was truly experiencing it firsthand.

Gritting his teeth, he registered for the physical.

It covered everything from a general examination, internal and surgical consultations, blood and urine samples, an ultrasound, liver and kidney function tests, a chest X-ray, an ECG, and so on.

There were so many tests that he spent nearly the entire morning running back and forth between departments.

When he finally got the report that afternoon, his mind went completely blank.

Most of the indicators on the report were good; after all, Chen Jue’s Constitution was almost at a whole number.

But aside from the frozen shoulder and lumbar disc herniation Li Chaoyun had mentioned—both common occupational hazards—Chen Jue was also diagnosed with hemorrhoids, seborrheic alopecia, appendicitis, and even a gallstone!

The other ailments weren’t so bad, as they were mostly chronic conditions.

They could all be managed with the right medication, a regular diet and sleep schedule, and a consistent exercise regimen.

But the appendicitis and the gallstone were different. A flare-up would be excruciatingly painful and could even trigger other complications. The doctor recommended that Chen Jue have them surgically removed.

With current medical technology, there weren’t many good treatment options for these two digestive diseases; surgery was the standard, one-size-fits-all solution.

The moment the doctor suggested surgery, Chen Jue refused outright.

He wasn’t even thirty yet. If he had two organs removed at such a young age, who knew how it would affect his life down the line.

If there were any side effects, it would be useless to go complaining to the hospital!

Once an organ is removed, it’s gone for good.

They weren’t like chives in a garden that would just grow back after being cut.

’Damn it!’

’I wouldn’t have known if I hadn’t checked, but one check-up reveals a whole host of problems.’

’No wonder most people don’t want to get physicals. Why go looking for misery?’

...

Chen Jue left the hospital clutching the report, feeling completely numb.

’Working in Hang City really is something else,’ he thought. ’I nearly worked myself to death.’

Both of these digestive diseases were caused by his poor diet and irregular lifestyle.

The good news was that both gallstones and appendicitis were the types of conditions that weren’t a problem as long as they didn’t flare up.

Chen Jue thought back carefully and realized he hadn’t experienced a single flare-up in the past year.

Plus, now that he had awakened the Attribute panel and his physical condition was improving, he decided to play ostrich and temporarily ignore the two diagnoses.

’If push comes to shove, I’ll just grind my Constitution up to 999. Then, even cancer cells would be obliterated, right?’

’A measly case of appendicitis and a small gallstone? They’d heal on their own in minutes, wouldn’t they?’ Chen Jue fantasized, trying to psych himself up.

He didn’t go back to the office.

Since he had already called in sick, he might as well take the whole day off.

Besides, he had a doctor’s note from the hospital. He could just upload it to DingTalk later, and not even the HR person in charge of attendance could find any fault.

He took a taxi back to Changhe District. Seeing it was still early, Chen Jue grabbed his remaining Water-Drifting Stones and went straight to Baima Lake Park.

The physical had left him feeling irritable, so he figured he could relieve some stress with Stone Skimming and raise his Skill Level in the process.

On a Tuesday evening, the park was sparsely populated.

The tourists who usually came here for camping and recreation were all at work. Very few people were playing hooky like Chen Jue.

In a fast-developing, top-tier city like Hang City, time was money.

The only people who had the leisure to stroll through the park on a weekday were either retired seniors or, presumably, landlords and the rich.

...

He found a deserted corner, composed himself, and temporarily pushed all thoughts of the physical exam to the back of his mind.

He gripped a Water-Drifting Stone and, with a powerful twist of his body, let it fly with his usual form.

With a PLINK, the Water-Drifting Stone began to TAP-TAP-TAP across the lake’s surface, skimming an impressive distance.

Watching the dense chain of splashes ripple across the water, Chen Jue felt his mood calm considerably.

’What a sight. This is seriously relaxing.’

’Though my Stone Skimming is getting to be more and more on par with those pros you see online,’ Chen Jue thought, observing carefully from the shore.

He threw a few more times with his right hand, getting a [Perfect] +5 notification each time.

Based on his observations, Chen Jue found that [Stone Skimming] had a lower technical barrier than [Darts] and could be improved much faster.

Take the online world record holder, for example. His stone-skipping technique was only marginally better than Chen Jue’s.

The man had clearly undergone professional training, however. The superior Strength in his arm, wrist, and fingers was what allowed the Water-Drifting Stone to achieve a much greater initial velocity upon hitting the water.

That was the only way to make it skip farther and more times.

’Is my Strength not high enough?’ Chen Jue wondered.

To test his theory, Chen Jue threw all of the remaining 260-odd Water-Drifting Stones from the box, leaving just one in his pocket.

He then gathered more stones from around the park to continue. He kept at it until the sky began to darken and his right hand went completely numb. His Strength Attribute had even increased by 0.01, and the [Stone Skimming] Skill Level progress bar was finally maxed out.

Just then, a brand-new, never-before-seen notification popped up on his panel:

——————

[Ding!]

[Skill Level has reached 100%. Skill Level is increasing.]

[Level 3 Stone Skimming (2000/2000) → Stone Skimming (Perfection)]

[Through your unceasing efforts, you have eliminated all technical blind spots in the low-level sport of Stone Skimming.]

[Skill Evaluation: In your hands, any suitable stone can be made to perform wonders!]

——————

’It went straight to the max?’

’Isn’t there a Level 4?’

Looking at the notification on the panel, Chen Jue felt as if his right hand had developed some kind of wondrous muscle memory.

With a slight hesitation, he picked up the last mail-ordered Water-Drifting Stone he had purposely saved.

Then, with a standard half-turn, his arm, wrist, and fingers unleashed their power in a single, fluid motion. His entire arm cracked downward like a whip, releasing the stone at a perfect 20-degree angle to the water.

The final Water-Drifting Stone let out a WHOOSH as it tore through the air. Then, with a sharp PLINK, it hit the water, bounced, and began to skim across the surface at high speed.

In the light from the park’s streetlamps, Chen Jue could clearly see the Water-Drifting Stone’s trajectory.

The long arc it traced shot all the way to the middle of the lake in a single, explosive burst!

It had traveled nearly 70 or 80 meters!

What’s more, the stone kicked up a dense, numerous trail of splashes. A quick visual estimate told him it had skipped more than 80 times, practically tying the world record.

Seeing this result, Chen Jue couldn’t stop a curse from escaping his lips: "That’s so fucking surreal!"