4: Perfect running skills
Two hours passed in a flash on Douyin.
Even while washing clothes, on the way to the cafeteria, and eating in the cafeteria, Zhang Sheng was contemplating his Talent awakening and what changes this unknown future might bring.
Back in the dorm, it was Zhang Sheng's usual workout time.
He laid out his yoga mat on the dorm floor, preparing to do a set of Push-ups.
At this moment, Zhang Sheng was thinking about how to use his Talent, and subconsciously summoned his talent panel.
Then, just as Zhang Sheng finished one push-up, a line of text suddenly popped up on the talent panel.
"Detected an executable skill—Push-ups. Do you wish to learn it?"
Zhang Sheng's heart instantly raced. Is this my Talent?
What are the effects of learning it? Should I try?
Today was May 2nd, and school wouldn't start for another three days. Zhang Sheng was the only one in the dorm.
Zhang Sheng ultimately couldn't hold back and decided to give it a try.
He made up his mind that if he felt dizzy, he would stop immediately. The worst outcome would be fainting, and he hadn't heard of anyone encountering danger anyway.
"Yes!"
As if understanding Zhang Sheng's thoughts, the Talent activated.
Instantly~
"Huh?"
No unconsciousness!
Not even dizziness!
Zhang Sheng only felt a slight fogginess in his brain, as if he had stayed up all night playing games.
"Talent: Once Certified, Forever Certified (SSS-rank)
Skill: Push-ups (Beginner 1/10)"
A line of text information appeared on the talent panel.
Zhang Sheng seemed to grasp something in that instant.
He immediately did another push-up on the yoga mat.
"Skill: Push-ups (Beginner 2/10)"
No other feelings.
"Could it be?"
Zhang Sheng did another push-up.
"Beginner 3/10"
His brain didn't get dizzy or even foggy, meaning that only when learning the skill 'Push-ups' from the talent panel was the so-called Mental Energy consumed.
Wonderful!
Simply marvelous!
An epiphany struck him. As a top student from a 985 university, Zhang Sheng quickly understood the characteristics of his Talent.
First, he summoned his talent panel, then did a push-up, and then he could use the talent panel to learn this ability.
(Beginner: 3/10) Literally, it should indicate his mastery of this skill, followed by the number of times he has completed it.
To verify his hypothesis, Zhang Sheng continued to do Push-ups.
"Beginner: 4/10"
..."Beginner: 10/10"
"Proficient: 1/100"
As he did the eleventh push-up, 'Beginner' changed to 'Proficient', and at that instant, a vast amount of knowledge flooded into Zhang Sheng's mind.
Looking back at his previous Push-ups, they were full of errors, and the muscle groups he trained were also fixed. Zhang Sheng instantly mastered the standard form for Push-ups, as well as various techniques for doing them, allowing him to train more muscle groups.
"Wonderful!"
This positive feedback was addictive.
"Push-ups! Keep going!"
Sweeping away the gloom of his breakup, Zhang Sheng continued to do Push-ups one after another.
"Proficient: 2/100"
..."Proficient: 38/100"
Slap!
Zhang Sheng lay motionless on the yoga mat, sweat having already soaked it.
Miscalculation. Although he had the talent panel's boost, he was still flesh and blood. Doing dozens of Push-ups consecutively was still a bit too much.
He usually did 20, rested for five minutes, then did another 20.
After sitting for a while and drinking some water, Zhang Sheng started doing Push-ups.
Forty minutes later, Zhang Sheng finally maxed out 'Proficient'.
"Mastery: 1/1000"
A vast amount of push-up techniques flooded into Zhang Sheng's mind. Zhang Sheng somewhat suspected that his push-up technique had now reached the level of a national coach.
Beginner required 10 times, Proficient required 100 times, and Mastery required 1000 times. Although Zhang Sheng really wanted to know what came after Mastery, his arms were sore at the moment. He usually did forty a day, but today he had severely exceeded that, not to mention the last hundred were all standard-posture Push-ups.
In the evening, when Zhang Sheng went to the cafeteria for dinner, he intentionally brought out his talent panel to observe the reactions of the surrounding students.
He could confirm that even if he displayed his talent panel, others couldn't see it.
This put his mind at ease; he didn't have to worry about others discovering his talent panel.
In the evening, some university students who had stayed behind were doing campus runs.
Zhang Sheng was no exception.
"Detected an executable skill—Running. Do you wish to learn it?"
The option to learn appeared on the talent panel again.
Although the fogginess in his brain had greatly subsided, to ensure safety, Zhang Sheng decided to try learning the new skill tomorrow.
However, what good would skills like Push-ups and Running be even if they reached Mastery?
Zhang Sheng felt a bit helpless. The only comforting thing was that it was at least much more practical than other people's Talents.
The next morning.
"Grrr!" Early in the morning, the hunger from his stomach deeply stimulated Zhang Sheng's nerves; this hunger felt almost palpable.
He had to replenish energy quickly.
Without washing up, Zhang Sheng rushed to the cafeteria at a sprint. One serving ofSteamed Vermicelli Roll wasn't enough; he ate eight eggs in a row before his stomach felt better.
His ravenous eating startled the surrounding students, who looked at him like a monster.
Full and refreshed, yesterday's fogginess had long since dissipated.
Zhang Sheng was certain that he could learn new skills today.
Summoning the talent panel and learning the Running skill was done in one go.
This time, although using the Talent still caused fogginess in his brain, it seemed to be lighter than when he learned Push-ups yesterday.
He jogged all the way from the cafeteria to the track field.
"Mastery: 324/1000"
Compared to doing Push-ups, the progress for Running was much faster. Every step he ran increased his proficiency by one point, and he had already reached the Mastery level upon arriving at the track field.
Numerous Running techniques emerged in his mind, making his Running more effortless, more scientific, and more enduring.
Along the track, Zhang Sheng continued to run.
This time, he wanted to see what level came after Mastery..."Skill: Running (Transcendent 1/100000)"
So, above Mastery was the Transcendent. A vast amount of Running knowledge flooded into Zhang Sheng's mind, and his body, like that of a highly trained athlete, instinctively entered a special Running state.
At this moment, Zhang Sheng felt he could run faster, unconsciously increasing his Running speed. While continuously Running, he instinctively adjusted his Running posture to be natural and perfect.
One lap of the track was four hundred meters. Zhang Sheng tested his speed.
"One thousand meters, 2 minutes 45 seconds."
Simply incredible!
In previous physical tests, Zhang Sheng's best time for one thousand meters was only 3 minutes 25 seconds, which was a huge improvement for him.
Having reached the Transcendent, Zhang Sheng understood that this wasn't the limit of technique, but rather his body limiting his performance.
If he possessed the physical conditioning of an athlete, surpassing Olympic track and field records would be effortless.
After challenging his maximum speed, Zhang Sheng slowed down. He wanted to see what would happen if he maxed out the Transcendent's proficiency.
Half an hour later, Zhang Sheng was soaked in sweat, but the surprise on his face was impossible to hide.
"Skill: Running (Perfected State: 100000/100000): Persisting in Running with correct posture can slowly improve your physical fitness and develop your body's potential."