White Bird Martial Arts Hall, changing room.
Next to the last row of metal lockers, painted green.
"Crunch, crunch, crunch..."
The sounds of gnawing, chewing, and swallowing echoed from far away. It was like something out of a horror movie, where a victim passing through an alley would hear a beast tearing and chewing flesh inside, an alarmingly eerie sound.
Some students who had already changed couldn't help but take a look.
They then silently breathed a sigh of relief.
It was their classmate Bai Xiao, bare-chested and drenched in sweat, his streamlined muscles contoured and defined. One hand was holding an energy bar, the other a piece of chocolate, as he replenished his energy.
His eating was fierce; his white teeth bit down, capable of gnawing off a large chunk of the energy bar. The ravenous way he ate, it was as if he were indulging in fatty, juicy, large slices of roasted meat. He seemed to be enjoying himself greatly.
Next to the lockers, Bai Xiao seemed to notice the gaze of other students in the hallway. His eyes suddenly turned to look at them, expressionless, he raised his hand and asked,
"Do you want some?"
"Uh, no, no need..."
"I'm not hungry, I'm not hungry."
"You… you keep eating."
Several students shook their heads like ratchets.
Because.
They saw Bai Xiao's green, unblinking gaze.
And that unemotionally polite invitation.
They always felt that if they accepted at this moment, trying to compete with Bai Xiao for food, something very bad might happen next.
The crowd dispersed, leaving Bai Xiao alone by the lockers to eat.
He had been prepared, filling his backpack with many high-calorie foods, mainly chocolate and energy bars. Each of these convenient snacks could provide the body with over two hundred kilocalories of energy.
In theory.
Eating seven or eight energy bars would be enough for an adult's daily intake.
Yet Bai Xiao, in just a short amount of time, had consumed three pieces of chocolate and five energy bars. Even so, he still felt an emptiness throughout his body.
He threw the plastic wrappers into the trash can in the corner in one swift motion.
Bai Xiao wiped the crumbs from the corners of his mouth and exhaled.
Only then did he have the time to change clothes and sling the blue canvas bag over his shoulder.
With a bang, he closed the locker that was his own.
Bai Xiao slowly turned around and walked towards the exit of the martial arts hall.
His stomach was still somewhat hungry, his limbs weak.
But Bai Xiao knew that this was an illusion; his physique and power were constantly growing stronger, slowly increasing every second. The feeling of weakness was due to his cells strengthening and lacking the necessary energy and nutrients.
"At times like this, the hungrier and weaker I feel, the happier I should be! It means that my improvement this time is even greater!"
Bai Xiao bared his teeth and smiled, his confidence soaring.
Sunshine District, rental house.
After replenishing his nutrients, Bai Xiao took an unusual short nap. Around six in the afternoon, he woke up.
Outside the window was the flushed glow of the dusk and the about-to-set sun.
Bai Xiao abruptly opened his eyes and got up from the bed. Only then did he realize that he was drenched in sweat, soaking through the fresh clothes he had just changed into.
"I need to take another shower."
Bai Xiao stretched out his hands, about to take off the T-shirt he was wearing.
But he noticed that his palms were stronger, his muscles more robust. Moving his gaze upward, the muscles on his forearms were noticeably thicker, the contours wider.
He stepped directly into the bathroom and quickly took a cold shower.
After the shower, Bai Xiao rubbed his hair with a dry towel while standing in front of the bathroom mirror to closely observe the changes in his body.
A young man stood upright in the bathroom.
He had a sturdy build, long limbs, and tight muscles, exuding a sense of robust beauty. His skin was overall more bronzed, appearing far healthier than before. At a glance, this was undoubtedly the physique of someone who exercises regularly.
"I've become even stronger..."
Bai Xiao approached the mirror, where the face of a young man appeared, his features deep-set and his cheekbones rugged and angular. His sharp eyes were slightly half-closed, the pupils dark and glossy.
Was it because of his strengthened physique, combined with a diet of high-calorie, easily absorbable food, that his speed of recovering from the side effects had greatly increased?
He had thought he wouldn't fully recover until the evening.
Five minutes later, he stepped out of the bathroom.
Standing by the window, he glanced at the plants swaying in the wind within the complex.
"Let's take a look at the changes in my attributes first..."
[Character Panel]
[Name: Bai Xiao]
[Power: 11.2→11.9]
[Speed: 10.2→10.8]
[Physique: 10.7→11.3]
[Will: 11.1→11.3]
"Very good..."
Bai Xiao slowly clenched his fist, feeling the increasingly vigorous power.
The enhancement he received from achieving a minor proficiency in Fist Skill was similar to that from Sandbox boxing, though slightly less. That was because Bai Xiao's physical condition had already been elevated, and it was not so easy to make further enhancements on top of a strong base.
However, overall, the improvement in his four attributes satisfied Bai Xiao.
He snapped back to reality and poured himself a cup of water from the teacup.
After downing it in one breath, Bai Xiao went to the nightstand, opened the drawer directly, which was filled with a variety of foods for energy replenishment.
Carbohydrates, sugar, fats, proteins, minerals, vitamins...
"After the physique became stronger, the body recovers faster when skills break through. And with two potential points left, I'll add them now... all of them!"
Bai Xiao had no intention of slowing down even slightly. He planned to become stronger and more powerful within a single day by enhancing himself twice.
As for those sayings about the foundation being unstable due to rapid enhancement, yielding only an appearance without substance, Bai Xiao did not agree. He believed that strength was strength! If someone had greater power and a higher realm, they could overpower you!
Moreover, Bai Xiao's potential point breakthrough involved both physical and combat skill enhancement; there was no question of an unstable foundation.
"Sandboxing has reached a minor proficiency, next... it will be a major proficiency!"
"I wonder if Coach Zhang Hongtao has reached this level?"
Bai Xiao found a chair and sat upright with a vacant gaze.
[Skill 1: Sandboxing Minor Proficiency (101/200)]+
"Come on..."
"Dark red, it's time for you to take effect!"
The modifier suddenly popped up, and the remaining potential points dropped to zero in a flash.
When Bai Xiao opened his eyes again, the enhancement of his professional skill had been completed.
[Your profession 'Fighter' gained +11 experience]
[Your combat skill 'Sandboxing Minor Proficiency' gained +100 experience]
[Combat Skill 'Sandboxing Minor Proficiency' has been upgraded to 'Sandboxing Major Proficiency']
[Skill 2: Sandboxing Major Proficiency (1/400)]
...
As he looked at the 'Major Proficiency' tag behind his combat skill Sandboxing, his whole body suddenly relaxed. Before a sense of joy could rise from his heart, a torrential hunger and exhaustion assaulted him.
Bai Xiao's vision darkened, and he felt a slight dizziness.
Fortunately, after a moment, he recovered and began to devour his food ravenously. Everything nutritious found its way into his stomach.
By the window, under the setting sun.
A muscular, black-haired young man with sparkling eyes wolfed down his food.
Chewing on a protein bar, he muttered to himself as if gritting his teeth.
"This enhancement, it's definitely going to be powerful!!!"