Extraordinary Realm from Persuasion System

Chapter 106: Chapter 102: What serious person keeps a diary?

Although that was the intended meaning of his actions, in the end, Liu Yi didn’t actually do it.

For one, it was because that kid Zhang Beixing was just too much of a troublemaker. If Liu Yi had really taken a belt to him, with the kid’s temperament, nine times out of ten he’d throw a tantrum and try to extort him. On the other hand, Liu Yi could also tell that Zhang Beixing spoke like that merely to help him relax and not focus so much on formalities.

Seeing Liu Yi only place his hand on his belt as a threat, Zhang Beixing knew Liu Yi understood his good intentions. So, he quickly gave Liu Yi an out. After saying a few nice things to cheer Liu Yi up, he began explaining the core of the Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade—Qi!

Liu Yi’s talent was much better than Chen Rourou’s. Of course, it might also be because he had seen and understood more. In any case, after Zhang Beixing explained the principles of ’Qi’ to him and provided some guidance, Liu Yi grasped ’Qi’ before long.

Seeing him learn so smoothly, Zhang Beixing silently withdrew the finger he had been about to poke him with and put his hand behind his back. He then waved at Chen Rourou, who was daydreaming nearby, and called her over.

Following that, he began instructing them on precisely how to perform the Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade, covering all the finer details.

He taught them straight until eight o’clock that night. Noticing it was getting late, Zhang Beixing dismissed them on the spot, saying they would continue to train the Eight Pieces of Brocade there at five o’clock daily, and they could keep coming to learn.

Upon hearing this, Liu Yi and Chen Rourou indicated their understanding and then parted ways, leaving the small grove.

Only after the two had left did Zhang Beixing look at the wooden posts just peeking above the lake’s surface. A thought struck him, and he walked over to the posts to continue practicing.

He kept at it until nine o’clock, then Zhang Beixing returned to his dorm room grumpily, took a shower, and changed his clothes.

Then, he pulled out a notebook from his desk and began to write in his diary. This was an idea he’d just had today.

As a martial artist, how could I not use a notebook to record my journey of becoming stronger?

If becoming stronger isn’t recorded, does it even count as becoming stronger?

Alright.

Actually, it was just that Zhang Beixing was simply bored.

Every time after practicing the Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade, he was full of energy and couldn’t sleep. So, to ensure a good night’s sleep, Zhang Beixing decided to fully exploit his university student trait of getting sleepy the moment he picked up a pen.

And then...

”YAAAWN...”

With a lazy yawn, Zhang Beixing, who had only written the date, let his pen swerve, and he collapsed onto the desk, sleeping very peacefully.

Zheng Jituo: ”...”

Jin Linyu: ”...”

Dong Guoning: ”Wow, I have to coax my goddess with at least a few words before she sleeps. He doesn’t even bother with that—just picks up a pen and conks out!”

The three of them teased him, then very considerately covered Zhang Beixing with a blanket to prevent him from catching a cold.

The next day, Zhang Beixing woke up groggily at his desk. Staring at his diary, which only had the date written, he fell into deep thought. Although part of him wanted to give up, based on the principle of having already started, Zhang Beixing still forced himself to muster his spirits and continue his diary entry. He wrote for many days after that.

「Several days passed.」

[May 15, 2018, Monday, clear skies. Today’s diary entry is written on the 16th because I fell asleep after just writing the opening. But no big deal. Today, I managed to improve my Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade to +3, an immense gain! I also got 5,000 yuan and five doses of a powerful restorative soup from Teacher Liu. Taking him as a teacher was really worth it! Also, I beat up Chen Rourou because that girl is too mischievous; she actually tried to hit me. This girl has a rebellious streak; she’s trouble and can’t be tolerated!]

[May 16, 2018, Tuesday, clear skies. Today’s diary entry is written in bed, so now I don’t have to worry about falling asleep halfway through. In the morning, I added two points to the Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade, bringing it up to +5. It feels like a significant gain, and I’m getting more skilled at it.

Of course, I couldn’t just add points to the Eight Pieces of Brocade; the Yue Family Combination Fist got some too, another two points. Then I regretted it because after it broke through to +10, adding points to the Yue Family Combination Fist suddenly required two Ability Points each time.

Who can afford to squander Ability Points like that! Luckily, in the afternoon, while sparring with Sophia Zhou and the others, I earned two Ability Points. Counting the Yue Family Combination Fist I practiced on the wire this morning, I got a total of 4.6 Ability Points for the day, which covered the cost of upgrading the Yue Family Combination Fist.

Then, in the afternoon, Teacher Liu actually brought over the powerful restorative soup. He said he was getting anxious seeing that I hadn’t replenished my Qi and Blood after all this time and told me to take it back, brew it, and drink it. The effect was quite good; my body warmed up right after drinking it.]

[May 17, Wednesday. I can’t be bothered to write the year. It rained today, so I stayed in the dorm exercising. After practicing the Eight Pieces of Brocade, my skin turned red, which baffled Zheng Jituo and the others; they almost carried me to the infirmary. No Ability Points earned. After seeing me write in my diary, Zheng Jituo said, ’What kind of proper person writes a diary?’ And I was like, when did I ever claim to be a proper person? Who is slandering me, this Zhang?]

[May 18, Thursday. Why am I writing in a diary every day? Such a waste of time. Decided: from now on, I’ll only write if something significant happens.]

[May 21, Sunday. After drinking the powerful restorative soup for five days, my Qi and Blood deficiency is finally gone! I, Zhang the Unstoppable, am back! You sports majors just you wait and see how I’m going to leave you all in the dust!]

[May 22, Monday. Something’s wrong, something’s damn wrong! My Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade is now at +15, but why do I feel increasingly uncomfortable as I practice it? Even when my Yue Family Combination Fist reached +20, I never had this problem. What’s going on???]

The diary entries were messy, and except for Zhang Beixing, no one else could understand them—similar to playing a game, they even included adding points. Of course, no one else could see them either, because Zhang Beixing tore them up after writing them.

Otherwise, if someone saw my diary in the future, how embarrassing would that be!

「The next day.」

May 23, Tuesday.

At six o’clock in the morning, he got out of bed.

The first thing Zhang Beixing did was to bring up his Personal Panel.

[Host: Zhang Beixing]

[Status: Spirit Full, Stamina Abundant]

Strength: 85.0

Constitution: 85.0

Spirit: 105

Ability Points: 1.8

Skills: Yue Family Combination Fist [Integration] +20, Eight Pieces of Brocade [Entry Level] +15

”...”

Looking at the System panel, the Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade was still at the [Entry Level] stage even at +15. Zhang Beixing felt increasingly that something was off.

According to his previous experience with adding points to the Yue Family Combination Fist, after raising a skill to +10, its proficiency should have switched from [Entry Level] to [Integration]. Yet reality slapped him hard across the face, telling him he’d thought too much.

Proficiency levels didn’t work like that!

Because of this, practicing the Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade these past few days had become increasingly agonizing for Zhang Beixing! It wasn’t that there were issues with the practice or that it was ineffective. Rather, he had many ideas and understandings about the Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade that could lead to positive changes. But whenever he tried to implement them, he always lacked some key element, resulting in failure. It was like having something long enough to wrap around his waist, yet it couldn’t even rise to the occasion.

”Weird, so weird!”

”What the hell is this?”

Scratching his head, Zhang Beixing racked his brain but could not find a solution. In frustration, he made a decision. He decided that until the proficiency of the Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade broke through from [Entry Level] to [Integration], he wouldn’t add any more points to it.

Because the current point additions aren’t bringing positive benefits, they’re bringing negative returns!

Damn it, the more I practice, the more uncomfortable it gets! Who could stand this?

After getting out of bed and dressing, Zhang Beixing pulled up his trousers, walked out of the bathroom, and stood on the balcony. He took a deep breath of the ’fresh’ smog, its PM2.5 levels exceeding the standard, and feeling strangely invigorated, he left.

Following his routine, he went to the small grove to practice the Northern Sect’s Eight Pieces of Brocade. He didn’t figure anything new out, but his Qi and Blood became vigorous. Afterward, he stood on the wire and began practicing the Yue Family Combination Fist.

「Half an hour later.」

With 2.3 Ability Points gained, Zhang Beixing’s Ability Points had risen from 1.8 to 4.1.

Since he had started adding points to the Yue Family Combination Fist, his proficiency with the technique had soared, and his insights had deepened. The most noticeable change was the speed at which he executed the Yue Family Combination Fist. Previously, when the Yue Family Combination Fist was only at +10, it took Zhang Beixing, at his fastest, a full hour to complete the set on the wire. But now, standing on the wire, he could smoothly execute it in just over half an hour! If he were on solid ground, it would probably take just a few minutes.

Not to mention the increase in its lethality. To this day, though Zhang Beixing still couldn’t make the wooden post explode underwater, he could at least splinter its surface. This was a significant improvement! Previously, even if he used all his strength, hitting the reinforced and compacted wooden post would only make it tremble and shake. Now he could splinter its surface underwater.

If I were to hit a person...

The lightest sentence would be several years in the clink! Zhang Beixing shivered at the thought.

He glanced at the time; it was eight o’clock. Today was Tuesday, but he didn’t have any classes in the morning. Zhang Beixing figured that by now, the PE students like Sophia Zhou should have finished their intensive training and started their regular practice.

Thus, he made his way to the sports field and ran straight into Kang Gu, who was approaching him.

”You’re here?”

”I’m here!”

”How much time do you have today?”

”About five hours, I guess!” Zhang Beixing replied after a moment’s thought.

He had classes after one o’clock in the afternoon. Although Zhang Beixing’s sparring was quite lucrative—in just a few days, he had earned almost 10,000 yuan from Kang Gu—academics were more important than making money. This concerned not only his future but also, indirectly, his well-being.

His father’s 20-centimeter diameter solid steel pipe was no joke!

If I dared to fail even one subject... it would be ’try it and die!’