Chapter 15 - Xue Wan

"Child, have you eaten yet?" came the gentle voice of Xue Jing's mother, Nan Jiayu, through the phone speaker.

Xue Jing smiled, put the phone on speaker mode, and placed it in the hanging basket next to the stove. "Not yet. What's up? Why are you calling me out of the blue?" he asked as he continued to busy himself in the kitchen.

In this lifetime, although his parents were often away on business trips, they never neglected to shower their two children with love and affection. They worked hard, and every penny they earned was spent on their children's well-being.

"Can't a mother call her son even if there's nothing important? Don't I have the right to hear my own son's voice?" Nan Jiayu feigned anger.

"You're right, Mom. I know I'm wrong," Xue Jing immediately conceded.

Only then did Nan Jiayu smile warmly and inquire about Xue Jing's recent situation, engaging in a lengthy chat about family matters.

"Your father and I should be coming back around New Year's. We'll bring you gifts when we return," she said.

"Also, be extra careful when going to and from school these days. Don't wander around aimlessly, and it's best to stay at home as much as possible. I just saw the news, and there's a possibility that a group of border smugglers is in Qingcheng. These people are desperados. If you notice anything unusual, stay away from them at all costs," Nan Jiayu cautioned seriously.

Xue Jing immediately realized that this was the real reason for her phone call.

"Don't worry, Mom. I know what to do. If I come across anything, I'll run faster than a dog," he reassured her.

"That's good," Nan Jiayu said, sounding relieved. She then seemed to suddenly remember something and asked, "By the way, have you talked to your sister recently?"

"It's been about half a month since we last spoke, but we chatted a bit on WeChat a few days ago. Why do you ask?" Xue Jing replied.

Nan Jiayu fell silent for a moment before answering, "Yesterday afternoon, Wanwan suddenly called, saying she missed your father and me."

"That's pretty normal, isn't it?" Xue Jing said, confused.

"Yes, it is normal, but I still feel that something is amiss. She's just like your father—seemingly lively and cheerful on the outside, but when it comes to facing difficulties, she prefers to keep it all to herself," Nan Jiayu explained.

"Maybe it's a mother's intuition, but I can't shake this feeling of unease. Child, when you have the time, please ask her about it. You and Wanwan have always been close since childhood, and being of the same generation, she might open up to you if there's something bothering her," she added.

Xue Jing thought about it and agreed, "Okay, Mom. Don't worry, I'll make sure to have a good talk with her."

...

After hanging up with Nan Jiayu, Xue Jing fell into deep thought.

His sister, Xue Wan, was an outgoing and beautiful person. Since childhood, she had always been a prominent figure in school, effortlessly making it onto the list of school beauties, and her academic performance had always been excellent. Although she hadn't been able to get into the Inner Ring, she had still managed to attend a top-tier university in the Outer Ring, ranking even higher than Qing University. She had always been a source of pride for the family.

However, having grown up together, Xue Jing knew that his sister wasn't as perfect as she seemed. She was lazy and would only get out of bed if forced, she cheated when playing games, and she had a terrible gambling habit, refusing to admit defeat. She would lie without hesitation and shamelessly claim that she was 'introducing her handsome younger brother' to get female classmates to treat her to meals...

But her biggest flaw, as their mother had pointed out, was her tendency to bottle things up.

Feeling concerned, Xue Jing picked up his phone, entered a number, and hovered his finger over the call button. But instead of dialing, he exited the calling interface and put the phone away.

"I'll call her later tonight," he decided.

The late hours of the night were when people often felt the most inclined to open up and confide in others.

Putting his phone away, Xue Jing returned to the kitchen and continued his culinary endeavors. He cooked a pot of rice and made three dishes, his cooking skill increasing by another 50 points.

After enjoying a hearty lunch with Cat, Xue Jing picked up the stuffed cat, who was sprawled on the floor, and carried it into his room. He sat down in his computer chair and turned on the device.

With one hand idly rubbing Cat's belly as the content cat lounged in his lap, Xue Jing used his other hand to navigate the mouse, intending to search for information about 'Power Strike'.

He opened his browser and went to a commonly used search engine website, about to type his query when his eyes suddenly flickered with interest.

Xue Jing's computer keyboard was black and quite resistant to dirt, making it difficult to spot ordinary dust and stains.

However, with his Aiming skill activated, his vision was exceptionally sharp, allowing him to notice things that would normally escape the average person's attention.

He clearly saw tiny black and white hairs wedged in the crevices of the keyboard—hairs so fine that they were nearly invisible.

'This is... cat fur?' Xue Jing realized as he subtly glanced at the cat in his arms.

'This little rascal touched my computer?'

After a moment's thought, Xue Jing decided not to make a fuss and pretended as if he hadn't noticed. He proceeded to search for information about Power Strike.

Sifting through numerous irrelevant ads and misleading information, it took him about ten minutes to find some useful information on a professional Q&A platform similar to Zhihu.

As he read intently, the cat in his lap sat up and also turned its gaze toward the webpage.

'Hmm? He's looking for martial arts information? Is he interested in martial arts training?' the cat wondered.

'These half-baked articles are written by people who pretend to be experts. They might fool some outsiders, but saying that 'practicing to a high level can lead to the development of supernatural abilities'? That's nonsense. Without taking performance-enhancing drugs or implanting foreign devices, even those so-called 'Limit Breakers' who have surpassed the boundaries are still just mortals with flesh and blood. There are no miracles in this world, only hard work and technology...'

The cat lifted its head and looked at Xue Jing's softly contoured jawline.

'If he's truly interested in martial arts... After I leave, I can introduce him to that person. It will be my way of paying rent for staying here...'

As the cat pondered, it yawned.

Having eaten its fill, drowsiness washed over it in waves.

It curled up on Xue Jing's lap, its nose filled with the boy's comforting scent, and slowly drifted into dreamland.

"..."

Xue Jing, sensing the cat's steady and prolonged breathing, indicating it was fast asleep, quietly closed the website.

He opened a search engine and typed in [hidden screen recording software]. After some consideration, he successfully downloaded a suitable screen recording application.

He set it to [auto-startup] and [auto-record], then restarted his computer to test the setup. Satisfied that it was working as intended, he shut down the machine.

After performing these tasks, Xue Jing gently picked up the cat, placed it on his bed, and quietly left the room.

...

In the 'gym', Xue Jing faced the bench press barbell on the weight bench.

This was a standard barbell, weighing twenty kilograms, with two twenty-kilogram weight plates on each side, totaling one hundred kilograms.

This was the weight he typically used for bench presses, and if he wanted to challenge his limits, he could add another twenty kilograms or so.

Xue Jing thought for a moment, then picked up two fifteen-kilogram weight plates from the yoga mat on the floor and loaded them onto the bar. He then added two five-kilogram plates.

With these adjustments, the total weight of the barbell now stood at one hundred and forty kilograms.

Xue Jing lay down on the weight bench, gripped the barbell, took a deep breath, and lifted the bar off the rack, lowering it to his chest. With a powerful push, his muscles tensed, and he lifted the weight!

The formidable one hundred and forty-kilogram barbell was slowly raised, with barely a hint of trembling during the lift, indicating that he still had strength in reserve.

After successfully lifting the weight, Xue Jing didn't stop. Instead, he continued to perform bench presses, completing a set of nine reps before placing the barbell back on the rack.

He breathed heavily, a sense of satisfaction washing over him.

"After activating 'Fighting,' my physical fitness has improved even further. Plus, the 100-plus fitness experience points I got from the fight have increased my bench press limit by about twenty to thirty kilograms."

While this weight gain might not seem like much, it's important to understand that human body training has a diminishing marginal effect.

The closer one gets to their physical limits, the harder it becomes to increase strength.

For someone who trains diligently, progressing from bench-pressing sixty kilograms to one hundred and twenty kilograms might take only two or three years. However, aiming for one hundred and forty kilograms is not a matter of effort alone; even with a decade or a lifetime of training, it might remain unattainable.

Therefore, the additional twenty to thirty kilograms in Xue Jing's bench press was a significant achievement.

Having tested his bench press, Xue Jing moved to the middle of the room, where a standing punching bag was placed. He took a deep breath, focused his gaze, and threw a punch!

"Bang!"

The sound of impact reverberated as Xue Jing's fist struck the punching bag, causing the leather surface to ripple with waves of force. One could almost see the air rippling as the heavy sandbag, weighing over three hundred jin, tilted and began to fall to the side.

Xue Jing reached out and steadied the bag with one hand, nodding in satisfaction. "Not bad."

...

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end