Chapter 44 - 39: A Day’s Plan Starts in the Morning

After exercising his eyes on the roof of his apartment building, Chen Jue felt an incredible sense of clarity, as if the world had been washed clean by a fresh rain.

Not only had his vision become much clearer, but his mind also felt exceptionally relaxed and his thoughts grew sharp.

’No wonder the old saying goes that a day’s plan is made in the morning.’

’Since I started waking up early, my mind definitely isn’t as sluggish as it used to be.’

’And now that I’ve trained my eyes, the stress I used to feel has vanished. This must be what they call having clear eyes and a pure heart!’ Chen Jue smiled faintly at the rising sun.

Although he was almost thirty—an age that, according to the jokes and self-deprecating humor online, put him on the fast track to middle age—ever since awakening the attribute panel and fixing his lifestyle and chaotic sleep schedule, Chen Jue felt just like the great sun before him, cresting the city skyline, full of youthful energy and vitality.

...

Whistling and humming a tune he didn’t even recognize, Chen Jue went downstairs and headed straight for the park.

Although the [Eye Health Exercises], combined with exposure to the red light, were incredibly effective—improving his vision and even boosting his [Constitution] Attribute in just thirty minutes—he could only practice for half an hour at most each morning.

Pushing it any further would risk damaging the blood vessels and muscles around his eye sockets.

Now it was time to switch from his eyes to his body. Coincidentally, his [Tai Chi Twelve Forms] was just three hundred Skill Level points away from leveling up again, so Chen Jue planned to use his morning workout to make some progress.

But as soon as he reached the park’s main entrance, he found something strange.

He couldn’t see any sign of Wu Fang or her grandfather in the open area by the chess tables.

Chen Jue had asked around before. The grandfather and granddaughter were usually here at this time like clockwork, practicing their martial arts and the Rope Dart.

It was Saturday, too, so she didn’t have school. Not seeing them meant they must have been held up by something.

’Could it be another TV interview?’ Chen Jue wondered.

As he was wondering about this, he spotted several young men with slicked-back hair and preened faces wandering by the chess tables, looking for something.

"Can’t see anyone!"

"Didn’t the internet say Teacher Wu always does his morning practice here?"

"Some asshole must have posted a fake address to throw us off!" The young men huddled together, their loud discussion easily audible from a distance.

"Holy shit!"

’They’re taking their fandom offline?’

’Is Wu Fang really that famous now?’ Chen Jue’s expression froze.

So it turned out these young guys were all his potential online love-rivals, coming to the park to try and meet Wu Fang in person!

’These guys really have too much time on their hands.’

’Aren’t they worried someone will call the cops on them for harassment?’

Chen Jue muttered under his breath and walked deeper into the park, ignoring them completely.

With this group of pervy fans staking out the area, Wu Fang most likely wouldn’t be coming back to the park for her morning practice anytime soon.

Even if she wanted to, she’d have to wait for all this attention to die down first!

As for the message Chen Jue had sent last night, Wu Fang still hadn’t replied. He figured she’d probably turned her phone off for the weekend to block all the outside harassment.

’She’ll probably message me back when she goes to work on Monday, right?’ Chen Jue thought. In any case, he had already established a budding friendship with Wu Fang. It was a good start, so a day or two’s delay didn’t matter.

...

Arriving at the lake where he’d practiced the previous evening, Chen Jue slowly began his Tai Chi forms.

He practiced from 6:30 to just after 9:00. After nearly two and a half hours, his stomach was growling fiercely and churning with acid, and the panel finally showed a notification.

——————

[Ding!]

[Through your tireless efforts, your Skill Level has reached 100%.]

[Tai Chi Twelve Forms Lv3 → Tai Chi Twelve Forms (Perfection)]

[You have completely mastered this simplified life-nourishing art. Its twelve postures hold no more technical secrets for you; you could perform them effortlessly, even backward.]

[Friendly Reminder: This life-nourishing art may yet hold unexpected secrets. Making it whole might lead to new discoveries.]

——————

Along with the skill upgrade, Chen Jue felt an indescribable warm current spread throughout his body.

When he tried the [Tai Chi Twelve Forms] again, he found the movements came to him as if he’d been practicing them in the womb, reaching a state of effortless mastery.

Though the moves were still gentle and flowing—not like in National Martial Arts novels where a single punch could shatter a skull—when Chen Jue performed this Tai Chi, it was as if his entire body was shrouded in an ethereal aura.

He was light and ethereal, his movements fluid and graceful, filled with an aesthetic beauty!

If he took this to a wushu forms competition, he’d be a shoo-in for a gold or silver medal, definitely taking home a trophy!

’Another Perfect Skill!’

’But this friendly reminder... is it suggesting I should continue to delve deeper into Tai Chi?’ Chen Jue’s initial joy gave way to contemplation as he rubbed his chin.

As a gem of Huaxia’s Martial Arts and life-nourishing practices, Tai Chi has spawned countless branches and schools.

Chen Jue had originally learned it by mimicking the seniors in Changhe District. He only found out after looking it up online that his version was the simplified Twelve Forms promoted by the General Administration of Sport.

In addition to this most basic Twelve Forms, the General Administration of Sport had also released upgraded versions: the Twenty-Four Forms, Thirty-Six Forms, and Forty-Eight Forms.

As for the unofficial versions, styles like the Chen Clan, Yang Clan, Wudang, Zen Sect, Big Frame, Small Frame, and Old Frame were too numerous to count.

Chen Jue had no idea which was the true origin of [Tai Chi]. His only option was to find opportunities to experiment and see which ones he could activate as a Skill on his panel.

After all, this life-nourishing art had an Innate advantage when it came to raising his Attributes.

After two and a half hours of dedicated practice, Chen Jue’s [Constitution] Attribute had increased by another small amount.

What made him happiest, however, was that he had finally accumulated 0.10 free attribute points!

He opened the panel, dragged the Skill tiles for [Stone Skimming] and [Darts] together, and the [Skill Merge] option popped up again.

This time, Chen Jue didn’t hesitate and immediately hit confirm.

——————

[Ding!]

[Skill Merge successful. The experience from both skills has been fused.]

[Reshaped Skill: Hidden Weapon Throwing Lv5 (1/20,000)]

[Introduction: A Master Level throwing technique incorporating a multitude of variations. It is typically used for assassination, competition, or self-defense.]

[Stimulated by this new Skill, your mastery of all thrown Hidden Weapons has improved. The dexterity, resilience, and Strength of your hands have increased dramatically. You can now use any thrown Hidden Weapon that falls into your hands with incredible flair.]

——————

As the new Skill appeared and his 0.10 free attribute points were consumed, an unfamiliar muscle memory flooded into both of Chen Jue’s arms.

His fingers, wrists, arms, and even his shoulder joints began to grow warm, followed by a tingling numbness.

His pores opened wide and his veins bulged. The blood vessels beneath his skin began to swell, a sign of blood flowing at high speed to dissipate the intense heat.

When the strange phenomenon subsided, Chen Jue discovered that his hands had become remarkably fair and supple.

With a gentle push, all ten of his fingers could bend backward a full 180 degrees!

"Are... are these still my hands?"

Chen Jue stared, dumbfounded.

With this level of flexibility and dexterity, if he were to play the piano or video games, wouldn’t he reach the master ranks in no time?

He picked up a small stone from the ground and, using [Hidden Weapon Throwing], flung it toward a yellowing leaf on a large tree twenty meters away.

WHOOSH! The stone spun rapidly through the air, carving a peculiar arc before striking its target.

The leaf was torn in two, with only half of it left hanging from the branch!

At the same time, a "+1" notification for his [Hidden Weapon Technique] Skill Level popped up on the panel, indicating a successful throw.

!!!

’I can hit it that easily from this distance?’

’I can really hit whatever I aim at!’

Chen Jue excitedly tried a few more times, and even alternated between his left and right hands.

There wasn’t the slightest bit of hesitation or unfamiliarity!

Almost every throw was dead-on, leaving many leaves on the tree torn into jagged halves.

However, after a round of practice, Chen Jue discovered that with his current hand strength and eyesight, his maximum range for hitting small objects was about twenty meters.

Any farther than that, and not only did his hands lack the strength, but his eyes also struggled to focus.

Still, in Chen Jue’s opinion, having this level of accuracy at such a distance was already insane.

A casual throw could almost cover the length of two buses!

’In ancient times, this would at least make me a Hidden Weapon expert in the Jianghu, right?’