16: Chapter 16: Attempting the [Rapid Recovery] Ability

At lunch, Dad came home.

His expression was calm, almost too calm, as if it were forced.

He put down his bag, washed his hands, and sat at the dining table, remaining silent throughout the entire process.

Mom served the rice and handed it to him, asking, "How did it go?"

"Laid off," Father said curtly. "Starting next month, the severance pay will be calculated based on years of service."

The dining table fell silent for a few seconds.

"How much?"

"Over sixty thousand, enough to hold us over for a while."

"Mm." Mother nodded, picked up a piece of tofu, and placed it in Father's bowl. "Eat first."

That meal was eaten in unusual silence.

There was only the sound of bowls and chopsticks clashing, the sound of chewing, and an occasional cough.

After finishing the meal, Father put down his bowl and chopsticks: "I'm going to look for work this afternoon. An old colleague said their factory is hiring maintenance workers, so I'll go check it out."

"Don't rush." Mother placed her hand on Father's shoulder. "Rest for a couple of days first. There's really no rush, Old Chen."

"I can't rest." Father stood up. "I need to find a new job before the severance pay runs out."

He picked up his bag, walked to the door, and looked back at Chen Zhen. "You study hard."

The door closed.

Mother sat at the dining table, unmoving.

Chen Zhen began to clear the bowls and chopsticks, but Mother suddenly said, "Leave it, I'll do it."

"Let me wash them."

"Go study; you don't need to worry about these things."

Chen Zhen wanted to say that it wouldn't take much time.

But he heard the exhaustion in Mother's calm voice.

So, he didn't continue, but listened to Mother, left the dishes, and returned to his room.

He sat at his desk and opened his books, but couldn't focus on a single word.

The system panel hung quietly in his field of vision, its numbers precise and indifferent.

15.56 / 100.

Still 84.44 points to go.

At the current rate, it would take about seventy days to save enough.

In seventy days, he would be able to channel Qi into his body and officially step into the Qi Refinement Stage.

Then what? What would change? Could he help his family?

He didn't know.

The System hadn't given such a distant promise.

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to concentrate.

Don't think, don't think. Focus on the present.

There was still English and Chinese this afternoon; today's tasks had to be finished.

During the afternoon study session, Chen Zhen's state reached a new level.

He was no longer just completing tasks but truly immersed in the knowledge.

When reading English, he didn't just get the questions right; he analyzed the structure of the articles and summarized the authors' viewpoints.

The efficiency rating on the system panel remained at "Excellent."

By four o'clock, all tasks were completed.

Total study gains for today: Health Dimension experience + 1.2 (experience requirement increased after leveling up), Learning Dimension experience + 18.5, Cultivation + 1.41.

Adding the 0.19 from his morning run and the 5 points from the level-up reward, he gained a total of 6.6 points of Cultivation today.

[Current total Cultivation: 16.16 / 100]

The progress was already over one-sixth.

Wait!

He suddenly thought of something.

The new ability [Rapid Recovery]—besides being usable on himself, could it also be used on others?

"Can [Rapid Recovery] be used on others?"

Chen Zhen tried asking the System to see if it would answer him.

One second... two seconds...

The System didn't move at all.

It seemed it wouldn't tell him the answer.

That was fine; he'd find out when he had a chance to test it.

Before dinner, while Mother was chopping vegetables in the kitchen, she accidentally cut her finger.

The cut wasn't deep, but it bled a little.

Chen Zhen quickly got a bandage and helped her apply it.

Let him try now to see if this ability could be used on Mom.

He concentrated, trying to mobilize that feeling of "recovery."

But it wasn't spiritual power yet; it was a vaguer ability derived from the Health Dimension.

He didn't know how to describe it.

He could only keep thinking in his heart, heal quickly, heal quickly.

"It's nothing, just a small cut."

Chen Zhen planned to wait a few minutes and have Mom take off the bandage to see if the wound had healed.

However, before he could ask, a few minutes later, Mother tore off the bandage herself to take a look.

"Huh, the bleeding stopped so quickly?"

Chen Zhen walked over to look.

A thin scab had already formed over the wound.

It felt like it had accelerated a bit, but this "bit" was tiny, tiny, tiny—as small as it could possibly be.

Chen Zhen had originally thought it would restore it completely.

At this moment, the system panel popped up a notification.

[Attempting to apply ability: Rapid Recovery (External)]

[Effect: Weak (Target recovery speed + 10%)]

[Consumption: Health Dimension experience 0.5 / minute]

[Note: Current ability is limited to self; external effect is extremely weak and consumes a lot]

As expected, but at least it had an accelerating effect, so that was okay.

It was better than having no use at all.

At dinner, Father returned. He said the maintenance job didn't work out.

The other party wanted someone under forty; Father was forty-five.

"It's okay, we'll look for something else." Mother comforted him.

"Mm." Father shoveled a mouthful of rice. "I'll go check the job market tomorrow."

After the meal, Chen Zhen went to wash the dishes.

Father sat on the sofa watching TV, but his eyes, while fixed on the screen, were unfocused.

After washing the dishes, Chen Zhen returned to his room.

He still had a reading task to do today.

But he didn't want to do this task right now.

He opened the system panel to check the status of each dimension:

Health Dimension: 26.7 / 100 (Lv.2)

Learning Dimension: 69.9 / 100 (Approaching Lv.2)

Social Dimension: 76 / 100

Skill Dimension (Cooking): 40 / 100

The Learning Dimension was about to level up.

The Social Dimension was also close.

Although he didn't want to do the reading task now, Chen Zhen kept procrastinating.

After procrastinating for an hour, he still had to drag himself up to do the task.

By ten o'clock, he finally finished the task.

Today he was reading *Decisive Moments in History*, Stefan Zweig's historical vignettes.

When reading the chapter where Columbus discovered the New World, the system panel popped up a fragment:

[Triggered thought: How individual persistence changes history]

[Obtained [Dao Follows Nature] fragment × 1]

Good, that was the fourth one.

Before sleep.

Chen Zhen stood in a spot in his room with enough space.

He began to practice standing on one leg according to the old man's words.

Five minutes on the left leg, five minutes on the right leg.

First, the left leg.

Hiss... damn.

Why did I start wobbling not long after I lifted my right leg???

Was his left leg that pathetic?

After standing for two or three minutes, his ankle started to ache.

His body swayed left and right, and when it felt like he was about to fall, he held onto the wall.

He finally finished it by holding onto the wall.

Next, he switched to his right leg.

Hey, this felt right.

The right leg was much steadier.

This was his true strength.

The difference was too obvious.

After practicing, he lay on the bed and closed his eyes.

Abdominal Breathing automatically activated, and his breath circulated slowly within his body.

The system panel displayed today's summary:

[Day 10 Completion Status]

[Health Dimension leveled up to Lv.2, gained ability [Rapid Recovery]]

[Study efficiency reached a new high]

[Attempted external ability application (weak success)]

[Total gained: Cultivation + 6.6]

[Current total Cultivation: 16.16 / 100]

[Health Dimension: 26.7 / 200]

[Learning Dimension: 69.9 / 100]

[Social Dimension: 76 / 100]

[Skill Dimension (Cooking): 40 / 100]

[Special Note: Learning Dimension is about to reach Lv.2]

[Social Dimension is about to be unlocked]

"Hoo..."

Chen Zhen fell asleep even faster today.

In his dream, he dreamed he was walking on a very long road.

Thick fog filled the air, and he couldn't see where the destination ahead was.