Chapter 18: The Aloof One (Please keep reading)

November 29th, Sunday early morning.

The rain was falling even harder than it had last night, showing signs of turning into a torrential downpour.

As the sky began to pale, the entire city seemed shrouded in a layer of gray mist.

The old houses on Old Factory Street felt even more damp and secluded, half-hidden behind the gloom.

Below the building, the white steam from breakfast stalls was curling upward; they were already open for business.

A man sat at a plastic table under a rain canopy, swallowing large bites of meat buns alongside his soy milk.

In the distance, one could vaguely see a small, all-night motel, its red lightbox sign having just flickered out.

Two young women, dressed in short skirts and wrapped in fur coats, stood under the eaves with weary faces, smoking to pass the time.

Some were waiting for the rain to stop; others were watching the rain fall.

Fang Cheng glanced at the street scene outside.

He promptly closed the window to prevent stray droplets from wetting the floor.

In the past, he had loved the rain.

Rainy days were perfect for staying indoors.

The rain could wash away many worries and distractions, allowing one to enjoy a moment of tranquility.

But at this moment, he sincerely hoped this wretched weather would stop soon.

Because it was seriously hindering his leveling process.

Rising early, Fang Cheng proceeded with his daily training as usual.

He started with some stretching and leg presses, followed by shadowboxing as a warm-up.

Many top-tier boxers had this habit.

For Fang Cheng, shadowboxing not only helped gain experience but also maintained his rhythm and feel, allowing him to enter a combat state at any time.

After boxing, Fang Cheng reviewed the Sanda leg techniques he had just learned yesterday.

Once all the warm-up exercises were finished, it was time for his consistent physical conditioning.

According to his adjusted training plan, Fang Cheng now needed to complete 60 Hindu push-ups, 60 pike push-ups, 180 single-leg half-squats, and 300 lying leg raises every day.

The push-up is known as the "King of Fitness," primarily training upper body strength, with various advanced variations each offering unique benefits.

Among them, the "Hindu push-up" focuses on training the deltoids and triceps.

The "pike push-up," in addition to training the upper body, helps develop the body control necessary for future handstand push-ups.

The squat is known as the "Man's Gas Station," primarily training lower body strength and the waist-hip core muscle groups.

The single-leg half-squat is the stepping stone to the single-leg squat, with a difficulty coefficient nearly twice that of a narrow-stance squat.

Leg raises belong to the "Abdominal Shredder" category, focusing on the rectus abdominis while simultaneously stretching small muscle groups in the legs and hips.

Lying leg raises are considered a standard movement of medium difficulty.

The four fitness movements had different focuses.

By practicing them in this grouped manner, he ensured that no single muscle group remained in a state of prolonged activation, which would lead to overtraining.

Furthermore, after completing each set of training, Fang Cheng would rest for about three minutes, performing relaxation and massage movements to allow the lactic acid produced by the muscles to dissipate in time.

This ensured his recovery speed and training efficiency, allowing him to stick to his daily routine as scheduled.

The *Convict Conditioning* system itself was a systematic training method based on scientific principles.

Once the "Six Arts" reached their peak, they could train almost every muscle in the entire body.

There was no need to go to a gym to buy expensive personal training courses or use those dizzying auxiliary machines.

Having trained for a long time, Fang Cheng had accumulated sufficient experience.

This level of workload was neither too high nor too low; he could basically complete it with a surplus within two hours.

However, today he encountered an unexpected setback.

The cooldown for "Potential Stimulation" had ended.

As per custom, Fang Cheng should have continued to challenge his physical limits, taking the opportunity to unlock the fourth art of Convict Conditioning: "Pull-ups."

But the terrible weather and current conditions forced him to interrupt his plan.

The book *Convict Conditioning* describes how prisoners use whatever meager conditions they have in prison to perform fitness exercises.

For example, one can rely on the iron bars of a cell door to practice pull-ups.

A normal person staying at home, conversely, lacked such conditions.

Fang Cheng had tried to grip the narrow top edge of the door frame to practice, but ultimately chose to give up.

Pull-ups require a high degree of standard posture.

For a novice to rashly attempt high-difficulty movements would not only yield poor results but also risk injury, leading to muscle strains, joint wear, or even issues with the cervical spine and lower back.

The philosophy of Convict Conditioning was to progress step-by-step, using the simplest methods to develop bodily potential rather than intentionally torturing oneself.

Besides, Fang Cheng's primary goal was to unlock the skill slots on his panel.

"If the weather were better, I could go to the nearby park; there are pull-up bars and parallel bars there..."

Seeing that the rain was getting heavier with no sign of stopping, Fang Cheng turned his gaze to the panel to check the progress of his other skills.

【Leg Raises lv0 (55/100)】

He was still far from leveling up.

Due to his relatively weak abdominal muscles, the efficiency of leg raise training was slightly lower than that of squats or push-ups.

After passing the halfway mark on the progress bar, he gained 1 point of experience for every 20 repetitions on average.

He needed to do more than 300 a day just to barely keep up with the leveling speed of his other skills.

Even if he used "Potential Stimulation" to restore his stamina to full, it was absolutely impossible for Fang Cheng to complete thousands of leg raises in one go.

Of course, he could choose higher-difficulty movement options to increase training efficiency.

However, the advanced "Hanging Leg Raises," much like pull-ups, required a pull-up bar to perform effective, standard movements.

Fang Cheng looked at another skill.

【Squats lv0 (93/100)】

The progress bar was only 7 points of experience away from completion; he was about to break through.

It was roughly the difference of doing another 65 to 75 single-leg half-squats.

He turned to look at the clock.

6:41.

It was still early, and his body had rested sufficiently.

Fang Cheng's focus sharpened, and he immediately made a decision.

"Even though it's a bit of a waste..."

"But today, I'll upgrade the squats first!"

The magic of "Potential Stimulation" lay in its effect of providing two health bars, allowing one to eliminate muscle fatigue and minor sports injuries within a short period.

If it weren't for the desire to challenge his limits and accelerate the skill unlocking process, a high-frequency, low-volume grouped training method would actually be more suitable for practicing skills and gaining experience during daily training.

Fang Cheng stepped barefoot on the floor, extending his left leg straight into the air.

His hands reached forward simultaneously to help maintain balance.

This movement was called the "single-leg half-squat," which, as the name implied, was a single-leg squat performed only halfway.

It was highly difficult for ordinary people, testing bodily balance and requiring sufficient explosive power from the thigh and abdominal muscles.

Fang Cheng tightened his core and slowly bent his knee to squat.

He continued until his body was parallel to the ground with his right thigh, meaning his right knee joint was at a 90° angle, before standing back up.

After completing one set, he rested for about three minutes.

Then, he switched to the left leg as the supporting leg and continued the repetitive practice.

【You completed 9 single-leg half-squats, Experience +1】 【You completed 9 single-leg half-squats, Experience +1】 【You completed 10 single-leg half-squats, Experience +1】 ……………… 【You completed 12 single-leg half-squats, Experience +1】

About half an hour later.

Just as Fang Cheng had estimated, when he reached the 72nd squat.

The panel flashed instantly, and a notification message surfaced before his eyes.

【Congratulations, through unremitting effort, your skill has reached Expert level】 【Squats lv1 (0/250)】

"Whew—"

Fang Cheng let out a long breath; his legs had already begun to feel sore and numb, growing increasingly heavy.

Today's workload was truly excessive.

If he didn't have sufficient recovery and physical therapy conditions, it would take at least one or two days to recover, which would inevitably disrupt his daily training plan.

Fortunately, Fang Cheng possessed the divine skill "Potential Stimulation"!

He only needed to grit his teeth and do another twenty or thirty in one breath, and he would be resurrected with full health, enjoying the top-tier service of a gold-medal technician.

As Fang Cheng continued to persevere, he diverted his mind to check the rewards gained from this upgrade.

【Reinforcement 1: 6 Free Attribute Points】

"Similar to boxing, there are two choices..."

Fang Cheng nodded with satisfaction.

However, as his gaze moved down with anticipation, he froze instantly, and his squatting motion came to a halt.

【Reinforcement 2: 1 Constitution Attribute, Skill Effect: "The Solitary Man"】 【Note: Persistent squat training has caused your testosterone secretion to become abnormal. During the effective period, your male endurance, bone, and muscle tissue repair capabilities can reach up to 3 times your Constitution attribute.】

Looking at the reinforcement options provided by the panel, Fang Cheng couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

(End of Chapter)