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Seeing these three exchangeable skills, Tang Lin finally understood what those Wish Powers were for.
The three skills seemed to have nothing worth hesitating about. Being an omnivore had no meaning; Tang Lin lived in a society where no one starved. People who claimed they ate dirt hadn't even tasted tree bark or grass roots.
As for traveling to a Different World, Tang Lin thought bringing two compressed biscuits would be enough.
The Masterly Skill didn't hold much importance either. Tang Lin didn't plan on becoming a master craftsman; he didn't even like playing with building blocks as a child. Based on this journey's experience, the craftman's skill was useless in a Giant state—melted armor from the Dwarf kingdom wasn't even enough for Tang Lin to make a hammer.
So, the only choice left was the Stone-man's Heart. Luckily, the Dwarfs were pleased with Tang Lin's service, so they gave him an extra Wish Power bonus; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to exchange for it.
The summoning compensation wasn't low, the demands were few and easy to meet, and they were willing to give generous tips. This group of Dwarfs was indeed the perfect Summoner.
Tang Lin, with a sigh, exchanged for the Stone-man's Heart skill, leaving just a hundred Wish Power.
There were no special light effects, nor a feeling of a sudden surge in strength. Instead, Tang Lin felt his body seemed to have slightly increased in weight.
He tried jumping in place, but it seemed there was no change. Soon, that heavy feeling vanished, and at the same time, Tang Lin didn't feel any change in his body.
Tang Lin began to worry whether this was a fake and faulty product and carefully looked at the description again.
"With the Earth's blessing, standing on the ground will provide a significant boost to strength and recovery."
Tang Lin seemed to understand the issue; he lived on the twelfth floor, far too distant from the Earth.
It was now two in the morning, so he couldn't go downstairs to verify the effect. He would have to wait until tomorrow.
After checking the system interface again, besides the Wish Power gains, Tang Lin also received a hundred and seventy-two Dwarf gold coins. This was specified in the contract when the Dwarfs summoned Tang Lin, costing them half of their wealth.
However, the size was still based on Different World's standards.
Over one hundred coins, each small enough to pass through the eye of a needle, adding up to who knows if it even reached one gram.
This amount of gold, even if it was pure gold, was just over three hundred bucks. Though Tang Lin was a poor student, three hundred bucks really wasn't something to get excited about.
Tang Lin took out a necklace from the drawer, with a pendant shaped like a meticulous little treasure chest that could be opened. This was a gift prepared long ago for someone but never delivered, so it was kept as a memento.
Tang Lin opened the tiny treasure chest pendant and put the coins inside, but they filled less than a third.
Although it was a bit small, this feature suggested the possibility of Plane trading; maybe there was a treasure suitable for Tang Lin the "Giant."
Locking the necklace back in the drawer, Tang Lin yawned and lay down on the bed. He should have slept long ago; after the journey, he had climbed mountains for several hours and was completely worn out.
Under the covers, Tang Lin quickly drifted into a deep sleep. He slept soundly, until ten the next morning, when he climbed out of bed.
The sound of slippers echoed through the empty house, as Tang Lin's parents had gone to work.
Tang Lin cooked himself some noodles and, after a thought, added another portion. Having exchanged for the Stone-man's Heart skill, it was like being Transformed, as novels often described, where impurities were released from the body, muscles became defined, and the appetite increased.
However, fifteen minutes later, Tang Lin poured out half the noodles and cursed, "Novels are full of lies!"
Changing clothes, Tang Lin took his phone and left the house. He wanted to see if this Stone-man's Heart was indeed a fake faulty product.
Taking the elevator downstairs, as the height decreased, Tang Lin began to feel a force slowly penetrating his body.
Exiting the elevator, he stepped out of the residential building, and when he reached the community garden, the sensation became clearer.
The ground seemed to have an ascending power lifting him, making his body feel light. The small wounds on his feet even itched as if healing at an incredible speed.
This feeling wasn't exactly pleasant; the itch on his feet made him want to scratch it. But picking his toes in the community garden was not something he wanted to ruin his image as the "model child" with.
But he couldn't simply ride the elevator home either, as the Stone-man's Heart effect weakened significantly when away from the ground. Who knew when these wounds would heal then?
So, he decided to lessen the feeling by running and test the Stone-man's Heart's strength boost in the process.
Surprisingly, the Stone-man's Heart's effect became even more apparent when running.
Each step on the ground seemed to counter his body weight with an uplifting force, propelling him forward at a faster pace. Though slightly chubby before, now he felt as light as a swallow.
Not only that, the power seeping into his body seemed to quickly restore his energy. After running three laps around the thousand-meter-long artificial lake in the community, Tang Lin was drenched in sweat, yet only barely felt fatigued.
But after walking just over ten meters, Tang Lin felt he had returned to normal, and even the tiredness quickly vanished.
Tang Lin wanted to test his limits and continued running around the artificial lake. This time, he surprisingly ran even further, managing four and a half laps before fatigue set in.
Slowing down, his depleted energy quickly restored itself. Through repeated tests, Tang Lin found his physical condition was improving rapidly, with significant increases in endurance and strength.
However, the Earth Power couldn't substitute for hydration; after running for so long, Tang Lin felt quite thirsty. Just as he was thinking about going home for a drink, he suddenly heard someone behind him panting and calling out, "Isn't this Tang Lin, and you run so well?"
Turning around, he saw what seemed like a mountain of flesh blocking his path.
It was his neighbor and classmate from the next class, not a mountain of flesh—but Ren Shan.
Ren Shan was in the same grade as Tang Lin, just that Tang Lin was in class one, while he was in class two. This guy was no ordinary person; at six foot two and weighing three hundred fifty pounds, he was just a bowl of rice away from morbid obesity.
Tang Lin looked at Ren Shan's outfit, a headband, sportswear, and an envy-inducing pair of Nike sneakers. Tang Lin recalled it was a new model worth over seven thousand a pair online.
Ren Shan's family was quite wealthy, something Tang Lin knew, but he hadn't expected them to be this well-off. Both out for a run, did Ren Shan have to be so extravagant?
Despite his envy, Tang Lin outwardly remained calm and said, "Yeah, you're out exercising too, what a coincidence."
Ren Shan, unaware he had struck Tang Lin with awe, admirably said, "I saw you ran five laps just now without even panting much. Tang Lin, are you super fit? Do you run marathons often?"
Tang Lin quickly bluffed, "Oh, not really. After finishing the college exams, I just wanted to find something to do; staying home gaming all day felt unhealthy, so I started exercising a bit. I've only been running for a little over a week. You keep at it; you won't be worse than me."
"I've been running for almost half a month, and look at my stomach." Ren Shan pinched his almost seven-month pregnant belly with a helpless expression.
He is quite a determined chubby guy to have been exercising for half a month already.
"I can hardly keep it up anymore; I haven't lost any weight at all, and my knees are killing me. Can you teach me? How can I run to get fit like you?" Ren Shan asked.
"Fit? What kind of fit?" Tang Lin asked, puzzled.
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