Early to bed and early to rise keeps the body strong.

Returning to his cramped rented room, Chen Jue slept more soundly than ever that night.

He even woke up naturally before seven the next morning!

Chen Jue guessed it might be due to a shift in his mindset. Previously, his life had been dominated by a monotonous routine, shuttling between work and home—he felt as though he were turning into a clock-in machine, a robot that only knew how to punch the time card.

Days blurred together in a haze; he looked forward only to finishing work, hurrying home to spend the evening scrolling on his phone or playing games.

But now, with this panel, things had changed!

A fire that had long been extinguished within him was rekindled.

He no longer thought about how to end each day as quickly as possible—he began to look forward to starting anew.

He wanted the dawn to come sooner, to pass through the long night and live more fully, to improve his stats.

He wondered if, after his attributes increased, his body—or even his life—would change.

Thus, a young man once lost in confusion suddenly found new purpose and hope.

The passion and optimism eroded by reality, bit by bit, had returned in just a few days.

“I can’t believe my depression was cured by an attribute panel!”

“No one would believe it if I told them.”

...

With hope for life rekindled, Chen Jue woke up early and considered having a cigarette to clear his mind.

But upon seeing the “Smoking is hazardous to health” warning on the pack, he hesitated, squeezed the last three Blue Liquor cigarettes in the pack, and tucked them into the inner pocket of the suit hanging on the wall.

“From now on, unless absolutely necessary, I won’t smoke.”

“I’ll set a small goal for myself—start by quitting smoking!”

He made up his mind.

After washing up and shaving his stubbly beard, he dragged his sore body out for a slow walk.

Because he had just started training at the gym the day before, his legs ached and barely moved; any vigorous movement made his thigh muscles throb.

Even the 688-yuan spa at Jingtang Hui couldn’t help!

According to Coach Li, this was normal lactic acid buildup, requiring time to metabolize.

Seasoned gym-goers wouldn’t be troubled by this; their metabolism was faster, and they’d recover in a day.

But Chen Jue hadn’t exercised for years; the body needed time to adjust.

...

In the central flowerbed of the neighborhood, many elderly folks were out early for morning exercise.

Some middle-aged women in neat uniforms danced in the square with headphones on, while a group of balding old men gathered in the pavilion playing chess.

Their retirement life was colorful and orderly, far superior to the young professionals in rented rooms who slept until noon.

Chen Jue felt a bit envious of these elderly residents of Hangzhou.

Most of them were landlords, sitting at home collecting rent, with several expropriated apartments, utterly free from financial worries.

As long as their children didn’t blindly venture into entrepreneurship, they could lie back and collect money until their final days, never lacking food or clothing.

“So, being born is truly a technical skill!” Chen Jue sighed inwardly.

He dragged his aching body around for another lap and noticed some elders practicing Tai Chi in a corner of the compound.

A small speaker played elegant, melodious background music.

Finding slow walking dull, Chen Jue watched for a while, then tried mimicking their movements, itching to do so.

He never expected that the panel would react to this traditional martial art!

——————
[Ding~]
[Movement matches requirements]
[Skill activated: Twelve Forms of Tai Chi]
——————

“This counts as a skill activation too?”

Chen Jue was stunned, staring at the panel for a while before coming to his senses.

He’d always thought the panel only recorded rare sports, but traditional martial arts were within its scope.

“Twelve Forms of Tai Chi?”

“This should be a simplified version of Tai Chi, right?” Chen Jue took out his phone to check online and confirmed his guess.

Debate circles endlessly around Tai Chi, with six theories about its origin.

There are countless styles: Chen-style, Wudang-style, Sun-style Tai Chi, and so on.

There are even subcategories: large frame, small frame, old frame.

Chen Jue was an ordinary office worker, not keen on delving into these topics—they easily made his head spin.

After learning that the Twelve Forms were a streamlined adaptation by the General Administration of Sport, he put away his phone.

His muscles were sore all over; strenuous exercise was out of the question for several days.

Coincidentally, the Twelve Forms featured gentle movements with health benefits, so Chen Jue joined the group and practiced slowly.

The elders in loose training clothes didn’t mind a stranger; they smiled and nodded at Chen Jue, regarding him with a look that said, “Young man, you have promise.” After that, they ignored him, immersed in their own world.

But Chen Jue grew more enthusiastic as he practiced, watching the panel continually display prompts for increased proficiency.

He spent an hour repeatedly performing the Twelve Forms until he broke a light sweat, and to his surprise, he easily leveled up the skill!

——————
[Ding~]
[Proficiency reached 100%, skill level increased.]
[Twelve Forms of Tai Chi Lv0 (100/100) → Lv1 (1/200)]
[You are more familiar with the movements of the Twelve Forms of Tai Chi; your execution is smoother and less prone to error.]
——————

[Ding~]
[Completed an eligible aerobic exercise]
[Free attribute point +0.01]
——————

[Ding~]
[After a period of moderate exercise, your muscle groups have been well stretched and relaxed, your metabolism has accelerated, and your muscle recovery speed has slightly improved.]
[Physique attribute +0.01]
——————

“Amazing! Even playing Tai Chi can trigger a critical hit?”

“Awesome! Truly powerful!”

Chen Jue watched the panel pop up with prompt after prompt, recalling the night he trained [Skipping Stones]. His mood soared.

If it weren’t for the group of elderly folks nearby, he might have shouted aloud in excitement.

Of course, the sudden increase in physique attribute also brought a rush of warmth.

But this warmth wasn’t limited to his hands and feet—it spread throughout his body, even his internal organs felt comfortably warm.

To prolong this sensation, Chen Jue immediately allocated the newly acquired free attribute point to [Physique].

His physique attribute rose to 0.96, and the muscle soreness eased considerably.

He glanced instinctively at the MUD-style textual attribute panel:

——————
Character: Chen Jue
Strength: 0.79
Physique: 0.96
Spirit: 1.06
Skills: [Skipping Stones Lv1 (2/200)] [Darts Lv2 (1/500)] [Twelve Forms of Tai Chi Lv1 (1/200)]
Available free attribute points: 0.00
(Character evaluation: An office drone who has awakened somewhat; your sub-health body is heading toward improvement.)
——————

“The evaluation changed!”

“My physique attribute is just a few points short of a whole number!” Chen Jue clenched his fist in delight, grinning from ear to ear.

If those elders weren’t busy practicing Tai Chi themselves, they’d probably think he was crazy.

A young man, early in the morning, standing alone and grinning foolishly—not even at his phone—must be suffering from work stress and a scrambled mind.