Wang Ye looked at the chopsticks broken in his hand and muttered to himself in surprise:
"When did disposable chopsticks become so brittle? Are they skimping on materials?"
He had thought these chopsticks would need some force to break because the materials used for such disposable chopsticks were quite tough, and the edges somewhat sharp. He had injured his hand by breaking such chopsticks before.
But now, breaking this chopstick felt as easy as breaking a freshly baked, still soft cookie.
Wang Ye suddenly realized that perhaps it was a side effect of his recent rapid strength growth.
Whether it was breaking a cup in his first evolution, or easily breaking disposable chopsticks this time, both were side effects of a significant increase in physical attributes and the lag in muscle memory.
"Seems like I need to be more careful in daily life from now on." Wang Ye shook his head slightly and lowered his head to eat.
He picked up a piece of beef brisket and put it in his mouth. This piece had some fat along the edge, but thanks to the chef's cooking and braising, it wasn't greasy, but aromatic and chewy instead.
The dishes he ordered were mostly meat-based, as after intense exercise, he needed to supplement proteins to promote muscle recovery and growth.
As the saying goes, three parts training, seven parts eating.
Timely nutrition replenishment after exercise, especially protein and carbohydrates, brings great positive effects to the body's recovery.
Among meats promoting muscle growth, beef is one of the best. Thus, whether for fitness enthusiasts or professional athletes, most meals contain plenty of beef.
After finishing the meal.
Wang Ye rubbed his full belly and walked back home.
He could clearly feel that with the trait appearing in the Walking Skill, the energy consumption while moving had indeed reduced a lot.
Whether walking or running, it had become quite effortless. This feeling was like shedding dozens of pounds, making his body feel light and his steps nimble.
Wang Ye walked for about fifteen minutes, returned to the community, took the elevator, and went home.
He recorded his recent ten-kilometer running data on a scrap paper and updated all his post-evolution body records.
Then he took a shower, lay in bed, and took a nap.
When he woke up, it was around 3 PM.
He made a cup of black coffee, drank it all, dispelling the sleepiness after his nap, and started following Ling Xiaolong's tutorial videos to learn Tai Chi routines.
Time slipped away like a fleeting horse.
An afternoon passed in the blink of an eye.
The sun rose and set, and the sky showed the evening glow.
Wang Ye pulled out a tissue, wiped the sweat off his cheek, and let out a long sigh, feeling refreshed.
It was as if all the turbid Qi accumulated in his body was exhaled.
He closed the Tai Chi instructional video on his phone.
Slumped on the ground.
And called up the attribute panel.
[Tai Chi lv1 (3.4%)]
After his efforts all afternoon, Wang Ye finally learned all the Tai Chi moves,
barely entering the threshold.
After entry, he clearly felt his progress speed up. The Emitting Force technique, hard to grasp when self-taught, naturally came to him.
His movements became more and more refined.
Fast progress.
This was because his system began to take effect.
As long as it's recorded by the system, he could quickly brush up the skill level to improve the Skill Level.
Wang Ye took a sip of electrolyte water, replenishing his body's energy.
Taking advantage of his warmed-up limbs, he planned to head out for a five-kilometer run.
It was just around 6 PM, the time workers were getting off work.
The park was ridiculously full of people.
Wang Ye had no choice but to go to the relatively deserted suburban roads for running.
He ran along the road under the dim streetlights, circled around half of Longjiang District, and finally returned to the community.
The mileage recorded by his watch was 7 km.
After running, his level in Running increased by 4.8%.
Since his Running reached lv2, the skill level increase after running five kilometers gradually decreased,
from 10% or so to about 5%.
The improvement from training also started to decline.
Wang Ye thought he must have escaped the so-called newbie grace period.
The later one grows, the smaller the benefits from training become, and this is true for any sport.
Even with his system, he couldn't avoid this iron rule.
When starting a new sport, the muscles can't adapt to sudden environmental changes, and they get strong very quickly, so there's noticeable progress after each training.
But when the sport reaches the professional level, every second or even millisecond of improvement requires years of accumulation.
Wang Ye considered that he's not at that level yet.
But he could already clearly feel that progress was becoming increasingly difficult.
Even with his system, it was like this. How much more grueling would it be for those who trained hard relying solely on their legs?
After Wang Ye finished his run.
He went to a self-service restaurant to have a meal.
Then, dragging his exhausted body, he returned home, took a shower, and lay down on the bed.
...
...
April 21.
Morning.
9:26
Wang Ye sat up in bed, rubbed his calves, and frowned.
He found that no matter how tired he trained the day before, the next day he wouldn't experience any muscle soreness.
Yesterday, he clearly ran almost twenty kilometers at high intensity and did Tai Chi for the whole afternoon, almost exhausting his stamina and muscles.
Even yesterday, climbing the stairs back home, he nearly collapsed due to weak legs.
But logically, today his muscles should ache terribly due to lactic acid buildup.
Yet now, he didn't feel a shred of soreness and even felt like he could run another twenty kilometers and do a hundred push-ups.
"Could it be I didn't train enough?"
Wang Ye pondered while pinching his chin: "Or perhaps my body's evolving too fast, causing muscle damage to be automatically repaired?"
Thinking it over, he felt evolution was the more reasonable explanation.
After all, apart from evolution, he couldn't think of any other method to help him recover quickly.
Wang Ye picked up his phone from the bedside,
opened the Longjiang District running enthusiasts group he joined yesterday, spent some time going through over a thousand chat records.
Most were high-tier amateur runners in the group discussing the situation of the recent Longjiang District half-marathon and preparations. A few were discussing running techniques and training methods. And a very few people were openly flirting with girls in the group, clearly having impure intentions.
He quickly browsed for about ten minutes.
And remembered the useful knowledge in the chat records.
As the young man who added him as a friend yesterday said, there indeed were quite a few active amateur-level experts in the group.
There was even a professional-level marathon runner frequently appearing in the group, sharing his daily training data and dietary methods every few hours.
And guiding group members on their questions.