"Brother! Brother! What happened to you?"
"Wake up, I promise I'll never intentionally annoy you again."
"Please wake up!"
"Brother! Brother... Dad! Mom! Come quickly, my brother has fainted."
Chen Shouyi opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was his sister's tear-stained face. His eyes widened with shock, and he quickly sat up from Chen Xingyue's embrace: "What happened? How did you come in?"
"Brother, did you know you just fainted?" Chen Xingyue said regretfully, tears streaming down her face.
Chen Shouyi then remembered that before merging with the "Book of Knowledge," he was standing, and after entering the space, he ended up lying horizontally.
After figuring everything out, he looked at his sister, who seemed different today, and suddenly realized she wasn't that annoying after all.
He flexed his thin arms to show his strength, saying something he didn't believe himself: "Don't say that, how could I faint? I'm in great health! It's just the first day of class, and I didn't quite adjust, feeling a bit too tired."
To emphasize his point, he added, "Basically, I was just too tired."
Instinctively, he didn't want his sister to know about the Book of Knowledge.
Unfortunately, no one believed his explanation. After his parents rushed over, the situation escalated, the restaurant quickly closed, and he was immediately taken to the hospital for a full-body examination. Naturally, they found nothing wrong, not even a trace of the Book of Knowledge.
This made Chen Shouyi completely relieved.
On the way back in the car, Chen Shouyi mumbled, "I told you I was fine, but still insisted on going to the hospital."
"Shut up!" Mrs. Chen said with a displeased expression, "How do you know you're fine? How could you faint just like that? We'll go to a big hospital in Zhonghai City next time to check again."
"I think Shou Yi is a bit malnourished. Look at how skinny he is — when I go out with him, I'm embarrassed to say I run a restaurant," said Chen Dawei, who was driving.
Chen Shouyi awkwardly touched his ribs. This incident made him realize he should never enter the Book of Knowledge during the day again.
...
It was already 8:30 when they returned to the restaurant.
At this time, it was naturally impossible to continue doing business.
The Chen siblings helped Mrs. Chen and Jiang Fen clean up, while Chen Dawei went back to the kitchen to cook a large table full of dishes.
Looking at the bowl filled with meat dishes, Chen Shouyi didn't speak and just buried his head in the food.
"This is for you!" Chen Xingyue quickly placed a piece of rib in Chen Shouyi's bowl with a slight embarrassment, turning her head to the side.
Chen Shouyi felt a bit touched, realizing his sister wasn't always that annoying.
"Siblings should get along like this. All that quarreling before was not right. Your brother is weak and doesn't do well in studies. In the future, you should help him more and not always provoke him," Mrs. Chen said, feeling gratified at the heartwarming scene between the siblings.
"Mom, I know!" Chen Xingyue said, her face blushing slightly.
Chen Shouyi's heart felt complex, unsure whether to be happy or sad, wondering if this was how useless he seemed in his mother's eyes.
But compared to his brilliant and talented sister, he did seem quite ordinary. From a young age, he never achieved any remarkable results; his last memory of receiving a certificate was back in kindergarten.
Back then, every kid got several certificates.
"Dad, Mom, I haven't told you the good news yet!" Chen Xingyue held it in for a long time before she couldn't anymore and exclaimed.
"What good news?" Chen Dawei put down his wine glass, looking expectant.
"I've been directly admitted to Beijing Martial Arts Academy!"
"What?" Mrs. Chen exclaimed with joy, "My good daughter, why didn't you say earlier? We should have gone to a nice hotel to celebrate."
"Tomorrow isn't too late," Chen Dawei said with a smile.
Nowadays, martial arts have become a trend. Even as a Martial Artist Apprentice, one can easily secure a middle-upper-class income in many martial arts training institutions and schools.
Not to mention entering the prestigious Beijing Martial Arts Academy, where a significant percentage become government-funded Martial Artists.
"Don't bother, Dad and Mom. Even if I weren't directly admitted, I'm confident I'd pass the Martial Artist Apprentice assessment this year. Let's celebrate then," Chen Xingyue said confidently.
...
The parents were filled with joy and gratification!
Chen Xingyue was beaming with excitement!
The dining table was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.
Chen Shouyi forced a smile, saying insincere words of blessing. The food that he previously found flavorful now tasted like wax.
After dinner, Chen Shouyi took a shower and returned to his bedroom.
He lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
After a while, he suddenly sat up, lost in thought for a moment, then suddenly remembered something. He quickly jumped out of bed, took a stance, and began practicing the optimized Thirty-Six Moves of Body Refining.
In twenty years, martial arts have developed rapidly, and various body refining methods have emerged. The Thirty-Six Moves of Body Refining was introduced by the Martial Arts Bureau, combining the training methods of warriors from other worlds, traditional martial arts training, Indian Yoga body refining, and human biology research, to eliminate what's inferior while keeping the superior, resulting in a standard body refining method.
Now it's the third version, proving to be more effective than the previous two versions.
Don't be deceived by his skinny figure; he is naturally slim.
In reality, his muscles are perfectly arranged, tight like intertwined steel wires, with an eight-pack that can be seen without flexing.
Compared to twenty years ago, his physical quality could easily qualify as a national first-level athlete.
For instance, his strength, though his attributes only show 10.4, he can bench press 110 kg and squat nearly 200 kg.
His 100m sprint speed is 10.20 seconds.
However, compared to the Martial Artist Apprentice assessment standards, with a male 100m sprint under 9.5 seconds and a bench press of 200 kg, he really falls short. And that's just the physical fitness. There's also the more challenging cold weapon assessment.
...
Following memory, Chen Shouyi began practicing, and after the knowledge was optimized, it became incredibly clear, like a steel imprint, engraved in his mind, as if he had practiced it countless times before.
From the initial unfamiliarity, he became more proficient on the second round, and by the third round, he executed it smoothly without much adjustment.
He quickly noticed the differences in this version optimized by the Book of Knowledge. It seemed to engage all the muscles in his body and required a lot more effort.
Originally, he could do ten rounds in one go, exhausting all his strength.
However, now he felt exhausted after just four rounds.
Furthermore, when the motion speed increased, and the positions were seamlessly connected, his body would experience a tingling sensation akin to being electrified. This feeling was quite peculiar, like a heat flow spreading throughout, warming his body.
Sweat continuously dripped from his body. As Chen Shouyi gritted his teeth and completed the fifth round, his strength was entirely depleted, and he could no longer support himself, plopping down onto the ground.
He called for the Book of Knowledge, and soon his attributes flashed in his mind.
The Thirty-Six Moves of Body Refining had progressed from (Beginner 5) to (Beginner 12), an increase of 7 points.
In the darkness, his eyes shined brightly. He couldn't help but clench his fists, only this could suppress the urge to shout out and vent.
"Now with the Book of Knowledge, I will eventually become a genius like my sister."
In the spirit of an ambitious youth, even his physical exhaustion seemed to lessen, and after resting for a while, he dragged his weary body to stand up, clenched his teeth, and practiced three more rounds until he couldn't move a finger. Only then did he lay down on the bed, too exhausted to bother showering again, and as soon as his head hit the pillow, he fell into a deep sleep.
PS: Begging for recommendations, asking for bookmarks! Everyone, please give some encouragement.