Starting to Gain Experience from Push-Ups Chapter 5 - 3: Prisoner’s Six Arts, Liberation of Self (Please Follow)_2
Previously on Starting to Gain Experience from Push-Ups...
His body was drenched in sweat, soaking through his undershirt completely.
He panted quietly for several seconds without a sound.
After that, he kept performing those basic but incredibly tough actions over and over.
As though the suffering from his body was completely ignored.
He focused solely on sensing the strained muscles in his arms, detecting the power inside that might alter his destiny.
[Warning! You're beginning to overuse your physical power, so please take a break soon and balance your bodily state.]
"26."
"27."
"28."
"29."
Once he hit this point, each extra rep turned into a major trial.
The torment and suffering felt just as intense as undergoing brutal punishment.
Regardless of how firm the determination, the body always imposes its natural barriers for safety.
Fang Cheng's cheeks flushed deep crimson, his gaze appearing to blaze with fire.
Am I truly hitting my breaking point?
Well then, let's.
For the final.
One extra!
"30!!"
Fang Cheng gulped down a swallow of spit, growling softly.
He hardly finished the push-up form.
Right then, the muscles in his arms began twitching uncontrollably.
In the end... they couldn't hold up his body that grew heavier by the second.
Thud.
Fang Cheng's knees smacked the ground, elbows followed suit, and he hung his head while heaving breaths.
His whole frame resembled a fish flung from the water, with arms and back totally drained, nearly crumbling to the floor in exhaustion.
Yet.
Amid the quiet shadows, Fang Cheng's expression held no trace of defeat or hurt.
On the contrary, his eyes gleamed with light, betraying hidden delight.
For the interface in front of him was swiftly illuminating and expanding.
Lines of new data appeared, scrolling steadily as they showed up.
[You've pushed your full effort into doing push-ups, gaining a profound grasp of the exercise.]
[Skill Acquired: Push-ups lv0 (0/100)]
[You've tested your boundaries, causing your body to trigger its defense response.]
[Skill Acquired: Potential Activation]
[You've activated a secret skill; employ it without delay.]
Surprisingly, it turned out not to be the expected "fitness" or "exercise," but the precise "push-ups."
This worked fine too; it at least confirmed the approach was effective.
The Prisoner's Six Arts encompass six abilities altogether, so if every one gets unlocked, the boosts from advancing levels wouldn't they multiply even more?
Fang Cheng lacked the moment to think deeply.
He spotted a fresh skill slot on the Skill Panel blinking crimson, like it could vanish anytime.
With no delay, he selected to activate it right away.
Buzz————
Suddenly, it felt like some unseen force arose from his blood.
Fang Cheng's eyes widened in surprise.
He clearly sensed that force flowing along his blood vessels, steadily pouring into his skeleton, tissues, and internal parts.
His weary form abruptly surged with vitality, as if pumped full of stimulants, coming alive in an instant.
It resembled bathing in a thermal pool, fresh from a top-tier masseuse's treatment.
All the drawbacks such as workout aches and weariness vanished entirely.
Fang Cheng lifted his arm, balled his hand, sensing the renewed power.
"Could this be Potential Activation's impact?"
This satisfying rush, akin to gaining a level in a game, sparked his nearly faded drive once more.
Fang Cheng ran his tongue over his parched, cracked lips.
Next, he rose and fetched a glass of heated water from the thermos atop the desk.
He drank it directly in big gulps.
After downing over half the glass nonstop, he used a cloth to clean the perspiration from his brow.
With his vigor back and fluids restored.
Now was the time to keep the momentum and press on with training!
"31."
"32."
"..."
"40."
"..."
"60"
" ... "
Fang Cheng counted aloud as he executed push-ups with impeccable form.
Differing from earlier, his bodily tissues appeared to have developed an instinctive recall.
Every rep sought to use the least effort, striving for the ideal execution.
Were push-ups an Olympic discipline, Fang Cheng's display now would secure his spot in the national squad's regimen without issue.
"82."
```
"83."
*Sigh*————"
Fang Cheng abruptly sensed vertigo and halted his actions.
The thrill from Potential Activation was slowly waning, and the replenished endurance neared exhaustion too.
He narrowed his gaze, watching the ongoing feed of details on the panel.
[You've finished 5 proper push-ups, experience +1]
[You've finished 5 proper push-ups, experience +1]
[You've finished 5 proper push-ups, experience +1]
......
Scrolling to the bottom, it halted at the ninth entry, with nothing further.
Following that, he checked the skill section.
[Push-ups: lv0 (9/100)]
Post-unlock, he managed over 50 straight push-ups in sequence.
Merely the final 8 failed to grant experience owing to subpar technique.
Evidently, the system's judgment proves quite rigorous.
Any sloppiness or weakness causing flawed posture won't yield experience points.
Regarding skill unlocks via limit-pushing,
Fang Cheng guessed it served more as an initial benchmark.
Similar to the "Boxing" ability, he might hasten unlocking via real fights.
Drawing parallels.
Even doing just 5 correct push-ups daily, persisting for one or two months, could reach the mark.
Still, that demands excessive time.
Right now, the lit text in the skill area had faded, and that marvelous sensation withdrew swiftly.
"Potential Activation" shifted to a locked dim status.
A brief description sat underneath.
[This skill is hidden and demands specific triggers for use]
[Cooldown left: 71:39:56]
Fang Cheng chose not to train further.
He needed to head to the club for his job today.
Having surpassed his training target already, saving strength seemed wiser.
To prevent overdoing it, which might cause tissue pulls and slow healing.
"I'll aim to unlock the next skill in three days!"
Fang Cheng's gaze sparkled faintly as he murmured.
At present, his arm tissues weren't spasming or shaking as previously, nor aching from acid buildup.
Only mild lightheadedness and a stomach rumbling nonstop.
Like he'd starved for three to four days, leaving him pale and feeble.
Fang Cheng just lay flat on the floor, relaxing and breathing steadily.
Though physically drained to the max, a strange enjoyable ache emerged.
All bottled-up bad feelings released massively through the sweaty workouts.
Beyond the window, the heavens shifted from total darkness to gradual brightness.
Daybreak had arrived.
The misted window glowed with soft radiance, like dusted in faint golden powder.
The dim interior, the aureate frame.
It evoked a holy portal from the skies opening.
Fang Cheng stirred, rose gradually, and padded shoeless to the glass.
From the highest level, his outlook stretched vast, reaching the far skyline.
The metropolis in the subtle morning glow looked unusually serene and calm.
Lamps along roads blinked off sequentially, while folks in towers slumbered on.
A sporadic vehicle horn on the avenue appeared to rouse this lively realm.
Beholding this wintry dawn vista, savoring the sun's gentle warmth on his skin,
Fang Cheng abruptly felt a surge like mounting a platform.
He couldn't resist parting his voice and bellowing:
"Ah————————————"
The cry boomed, reverberating amid structures on the dawn wind, hanging in the air long.
But it also roused nearby dwellers, sparking a barrage of complaints.
"What madman is yelling at this hour, ruining folks' rest?!"
"Hell, if I find you, you're done..."
Hearing the string of swears, Fang Cheng smirked.
For the first time across lives, he tasted the rush of powering up.
This sensation thrilled him deeply, captivating him somewhat.
No surprise fitness hooked certain people.
He'd never grasped it earlier, viewing them as self-tormenters inviting pain.
Yet now, he fully related.
No!
He comprehended it far better than them.
Fang Cheng's eyes lit up, fixed on the light azure display shimmering with morning rays.
Maybe, the panel's core purpose
Lay in training yielding experience, and experience building levels and might.
Witnessing personal progress bit by bit, ensuring no sweat drops wasted.
Thus, it's grind-intensive!
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