After Li Ge left on his own, Xue Jing also walked to the bus station, ready to go home.
On the way, he opened the panel to check the gains from this time.
[You experienced a fight, Fitness Experience Points +109]
[You experienced a fight, Aiming Experience Value +50]
[You experienced a fight, felt very comfortable, Health Cultivation Experience Value +33]
[Condition met, Skill activated: fighting]
[You experienced a fight, fighting Experience Points +68]
[Fitness Lv2 (431/500)
Health Cultivation Lv1 (269/300)
Cooking Level 2 (279/500)
Running Lv3 (502/800)
Charm Art Lv2 (398/500)
Aiming Lv1 (208/300)
fighting Lv1 (68/300)]
The first thing to note was the Experience Points, his fitness skill alone had risen by over 100; usually, an hour of hard work in the gym would net him a similar amount, but now he had earned that just from a not-so-tough fight.
Aiming increased by 50 points, which likely included his use of dynamic vision during the fight and aiming while throwing punches, plus hitting Pei Youguang in the left eye with a stone, which also yielded much more than the usual training sessions.
What really made Xue Jing incredulous was that the "Health Cultivation" Experience had actually increased by more than 30 points.
A skill that previously only increased in Experience through early bedtimes and early rising was gaining Experience from a brawl?
So fighting is a Health Cultivation exercise, huh.
However, Xue Jing considered the panel's prompt of "feeling comfortable," and it made sense.
A key aspect of Health Cultivation is to maintain a good mentality, the influence of which on the body is indisputable; often there are stories of severely ill patients who miraculously recover because they maintained a very positive attitude.
After the fight, he indeed felt exceptionally clear-headed and exhilarated, with a sweeping sense of joy.
Fighting, thrilling!
"It seems I should frequently engage in things that make me happy..."
The massive gain in Experience Points, once again, confirmed that the panel didn't encourage a withdrawn lifestyle; he still needed to get out more.
Last of all was the newly activated skill—"fighting."
Xue Jing truly didn't expect to activate a skill directly linked to combat ability here.
He thought that following the videos for training during the past month was a waste of time, but all that accumulation exploded into effect at this moment.
In the quiet path, seeing that there was no one around, Xue Jing performed a high leg split, lifting his right leg, creating a vertical split in the air.
At this moment, he almost felt no pain from the stretch between his legs, a level of flexibility he never had before.
After raising his leg above his head and holding it there, he did not feel the slightest strain; his left foot alone provided a very stable, well-balanced support.
"fighting" had changed his body structure.
Human bodies subtly change due to different living habits and ways of exercising, like how the body structures of gymnasts and weightlifters are completely different.
Years of training align their body structures highly with their professions, one being light and flexible, the other sturdy and powerful.
Upon the activation of the fighting skill, Xue Jing's body had been 'specialized;' from the structure of a normal person to one 'suited for fighting.'
Beyond the basic physical enhancements, reaction speed, explosive power, flexibility, Anti-Strike, agility, fist sensation, sense of balance... every attribute related to fighting had also been enhanced to varying degrees.
"This skill has only enhanced my 'fighting ability,' it hasn't made me directly master 'fighting techniques'..."
Xue Jing pondered.
"So, it seems, just like Chinese, mathematics, and physics, techniques also fall under 'knowledge' rather than skills themselves. 'Fighting' can help me better control the techniques but can't directly instill them into me..."
"Rather than calling it 'Fighting Skills', it seems more like 'Fighting Talent'."
In fact, other skills are pretty much the same. 'Cooking' enhances his control over heat and use of cooking utensils, but it doesn't provide him recipes directly; 'Fitness' doesn't give him fitness knowledge but simply strengthens his body.
'Running', 'Aiming', 'Charm Art', 'Health Cultivation' are all the same, only enhancing his related abilities, without directly imparting knowledge.
"Anyway, I was thrilled."
Xue Jing looked pleased.
This feeling of becoming stronger is truly addictive. His body, already light as a feather from the 'Fighting' enhancement, felt even lighter.
"Going home to pet my cat."
...
After taking the bus to the street where his neighborhood was located, Xue Jing didn't go home immediately but stopped by the supermarket to buy some ingredients before returning home.
He took out his keys, turned the lock, opened the door, and found Miao Miao squatting at the entrance, seemingly waiting for him.
As soon as it saw him come in, Miao Miao immediately meowed, its tail ringed and gently swaying behind it as a greeting.
After placing his backpack and the bag of ingredients on the living room table, Xue Jing squatted down, grabbed Miao Miao's head with both hands, and started rubbing its cheeks back and forth.
"Did the little kitty want some petting, huh?"
Miao Miao initially tried to struggle but instantly succumbed to the exquisite technique and couldn't help but squint its eyes in pleasure.
"Meow~"
The feel of the cat's head was delightful. Xue Jing petted it for a while and, reluctant to stop, then gripped its cheeks with one hand and said with a smile:
"Hungry, huh?"
Despite knowing that the cat in front of him was most likely a transformed person, Xue Jing's tone inevitably softened, much like when teasing a small child.
"Meow~"
Miao Miao tried to push away with its two white-gloved paws, attempting to free itself from Xue Jing's grasp on its cheeks, but to no avail. It meowed helplessly, indicating it was indeed hungry.
Xue Jing chuckled, let the pitiful Miao Miao go, and picked up the ingredients from the table to head into the kitchen.
Miao Miao's face showed a very anthropomorphic dissatisfaction, pawing at its aching cheeks.
'Stupid humans, always so rough.''
Miao Miao, having somewhat forgotten it was not a cat, thought angrily.
It paced with feline steps to the corner leading from the living room to the kitchen and sneakily peeked at Xue Jing. Confirming he was busy, it immediately dashed into his room.
Since Xue Jing had returned so abruptly earlier, some things had been left unhandled.
Once in the room, Miao Miao jumped onto the computer desk and with difficulty moved the mouse with its paw. Using 'One-Claw Zen', it pressed the keyboard keys to clear the browsing history and then uninstalled a suspicious program, making the computer look 'as if nothing had happened.' Then it shut down the computer.
After finishing, Miao Miao sighed in relief, silently left the room, went to the living room, jumped onto the couch, curled up lazily, its paw resting on the remote control, and turned on the TV.
"... The head of the Public Security Bureau in Qingcheng, Shang Mingyang, stated that the police have confirmed the escape route of this batch of smugglers at the Intersecting Boundaries. It is very likely they will pass through Qingcheng. The bureau has now issued a yellow safety alert, urging all residents to be exceedingly cautious regarding their personal safety..."
In the kitchen, Xue Jing's phone suddenly rang.
He put down the soy sauce and soup ladle, washed his hands, wiped them on his apron, and took out his phone from his pocket.
Xue Jing checked the incoming call display, which showed a number without a name but one he remembered well.
He pressed the answer button and said, "Hello~ Mom, what's up?"
...