Slow Soul Power Allocation Adaptation, Combat Review Steadily Accumulates Value

As the morning light filtered through the window screen, Tang San was gently injecting Soul Power into the Soul Power crystal ball beside his pillow. The crystal ball only emitted a faint blue light, just enough to maintain the appearance of "trying hard but not giving it his all." Wang Hu and the other two were gathered around the table, organizing their training notes from the previous night. Zhao Yu saw him wake up and handed him a warm sesame pancake. "Tang San, hurry up and eat. Today's morning training is on 'Soul Skill Connection and Soul Power Distribution.' Teacher Zhang said we need to control Soul Power output during continuous movements and avoid wasting it. We need to get there early to get used to the distribution rhythm."

Tang San withdrew his Soul Power, took the sesame pancake, but didn't eat it immediately. Instead, he rotated his wrist. "What's the rush? There's still about an hour until morning training. I'll wash up first. You guys go ahead and grab a spot close to the wooden stakes, so you can see the Soul Power trajectories clearly." After the three left with their sesame pancakes, he slowly nibbled on the flatbread, and even spent an extra half hour using cold water to rinse his hands while washing up – "pretending to relieve training fatigue" would both delay time and make the subsequent "slow-paced distribution" seem more reasonable. By the time he walked towards the morning training grounds, quite a few people were already practicing Soul Power control against the wooden stakes.

[Proactively delayed morning training departure, avoiding excessive early high-intensity Soul Power distribution training consumption, Slacking Value +1, current cumulative 29 points]

On the morning training grounds, several wooden boxes containing Soul Power sensing paper had been added next to the wooden stakes. Teacher Zhang held a small scale, with bamboo slips for recording Soul Power output placed beside him. "Today we're practicing Soul Skill Connection and Soul Power Distribution. You need to control the Soul Power consumption for each segment within the continuous movements of 'dodge - initiate - simulate output.' Dodging uses 10%, initiating uses 20%, and output uses 30%. The total consumption cannot exceed 60%. Everyone who completes three qualified distributions passes!" After speaking, he picked up a sensing paper and attached it to a wooden stake. "During output, if the sensing paper lights up to the halfway mark, it's up to standard. If it's too bright, it means Soul Power is being wasted."

Tang San stood at the back of the line, watching his classmates complete their movements one by one, the sensing paper just reaching the halfway mark. He pondered – Soul Power distribution training was exhausting, he needed to find a new excuse to reduce consumption. When it was his turn, he summoned the Blue Silver Grass, deliberately slowing down the Soul Power distribution rhythm by half a beat. During the dodge, he only released 5% of his Soul Power, making his movements appear somewhat stiff. When initiating, he barely released 20%, and the phantom of the Blue Silver Grass was a bit unstable. During output, he only released 20%, and the sensing paper only lit up to one-third, far from the halfway mark.

"Tang San, why is your distribution so skewed? Not enough Soul Power for dodging makes you vulnerable to injury, and not enough for output is ineffective!" Teacher Zhang walked over, still weighing the simulated Soul Power with his small scale. "Didn't I teach you the basic distribution ratio yesterday? Why are you still getting it wrong?"

"Teacher, Soul Power distribution isn't about rigidly applying a fixed ratio; it needs to adapt to one's own movement rhythm. My dodging movement is slow, so 5% Soul Power is just enough to maintain stability. When initiating, I need to adjust the toughness of the Blue Silver Grass, and 20% Soul Power is just enough to control it. If I used 30% for output, it would disrupt the previous rhythm and waste more Soul Power." Tang San pretended to diligently adjust the toughness. When he performed the movement again, the output Soul Power still only reached 20%, and the sensing paper lit up to a quarter, "See, I've just found a sense of rhythmic adaptation. I need to practice a bit longer to match the ratio and rhythm."

[Adjusted consumption ratio under the guise of "Soul Power distribution and movement rhythm adaptation," avoiding excessive consumption, Slacking Value +1, current cumulative 30 points]

Teacher Zhang didn't say anything further, merely telling him to "practice three more sets." Tang San practiced slowly, each set only allowing the sensing paper to light up between one-third and a quarter, just enough to be in a state of "adapting to the rhythm but not meeting the standard," thus avoiding extra punishment training.

After morning training ended, Xiao Wu handed him a bottle of warm water. "Tang San, you could have clearly distributed the Soul Power according to the ratio. Why did you deliberately lower the output? Teacher Zhang didn't even dare to criticize you for the sensing paper not lighting up enough."

"Distribution emphasizes rhythmic adaptation, not rigid adherence to ratios. Slow adaptation conserves Soul Power." Tang San unscrewed the cap and drank slowly. "Let's go to the cafeteria to eat. They'll definitely have vegetable buns today. If we go late, they'll be gone."

As the two walked towards the cafeteria, they encountered Yu Xiaogang. He was holding a cloth bag containing the bamboo slips of last night's practical combat records. "Tang San, come to my office after training this afternoon. I'll teach you 'Practical Combat Review and Soul Power Distribution Adjustment.' After each confrontation, you need to know where you distributed incorrectly so you can correct it next time. Wasting Soul Power in actual combat is equivalent to waiting for death."

Just as Tang San was about to make an excuse, Yu Xiaogang spoke first. "Don't tell me you're still adapting your rhythm. I've prepared simplified review tables. We'll start with one confrontation and practice. It won't take too much energy."

With no other option, Tang San nodded. "Understood, Master."

The morning's extra class was "Simulated Practical Combat Confrontation and Review." Students were paired up for low-intensity confrontations. Afterward, they had to review together "where the Soul Power distribution was wrong and where the connection was slow," focusing on the ability to "adjust movements after review." Wang Hu wanted to be paired with Tang San, but Tang San shook his head. "I just finished practicing Soul Power distribution, and my rhythm isn't stable yet. Being paired with you might disrupt your rhythm. You should find Li Qing. I'll be with Zhao Yu. His rhythm is slow, so we can cooperate well during the review."

Zhao Yu's Martial Soul was a brush, and his attack rhythm was inherently slower. During the confrontation, it allowed Tang San to adjust at a leisurely pace. When they reviewed after their confrontation, Tang San deliberately elaborated on the "Soul Power distribution errors," from the 5% Soul Power used during evasion to the 20% used during output. For each segment, he "found a reason" by saying it was "to adapt to the rhythm." The review lasted for half an hour without the movements being adjusted, and instead, Zhao Yu also slowed down his rhythm.

"Tang San, can you speed up your review? It's just a few segments, why are you taking so long?" Teacher Li, who was in charge of guiding the review, walked over, holding the review records from other groups. "Hurry up and adjust your movements. If you're any slower, you'll miss the next confrontation."

"Teacher, reviewing isn't just about finding mistakes; you need to figure out 'where the mistake is' and 'why it's a mistake.' When I used 5% Soul Power for dodging just now, it was because Zhao Yu's attacks were slow. Using 10% would have made me wait too long. When I used 20% for output, it was because his defense was weak, and 20% was enough to suppress him. Using 30% would have been a waste. If these details aren't clarified, adjusting movements will be in vain, and the same mistakes will be made next time." Tang San quickly pointed to the record on the bamboo slip. "Look, I've just clarified this detail. Adjusting the movements now will definitely be correct."

[Extended review time under the guise of "clarifying review details," avoiding additional confrontation consumption, Slacking Value +1, current cumulative 31 points]

Teacher Li didn't say anything further and turned to guide other groups. Tang San leisurely adjusted his movements with Zhao Yu. By the time they finished, the extra class was almost over. They only had time for one more confrontation, and he hadn't consumed much Soul Power.

After the extra class ended, Tang San walked towards the cafeteria. As soon as he reached the entrance, he smelled the aroma of vegetable buns. Wang Hu and the other two had already gotten their meals and were waiting for him. "Tang San, your review just now was too detailed. Teacher Li was almost rushing you."

"Review emphasizes details. If you clarify them, you'll make fewer mistakes, which is better than blindly adjusting." Tang San picked up a vegetable bun and ate it slowly. "There's still Master's guidance this afternoon. I need to conserve my energy. You guys eat quickly, don't let it get cold."

As they walked towards the cafeteria, Tang San thought to himself: Today he had accumulated 4 Slacking Value points and practiced linking related concepts during the review. Although he was under Master Yu Xiaogang's supervision, he hadn't consumed much Soul Power or energy, so it was a net gain. In the future, as long as he continued to find new excuses like "clarifying related concepts" and "detailed chain errors," his "peak slacking path" would surely progress faster.

The lights in the cafeteria were on. Tang San looked at the food in front of him and ate slowly. He knew that as long as he persisted in using new reasons like "clarifying related concepts" and "adapting rhythm for adjustment" to reduce consumption, even with the academy's additional review training and Master Yu Xiaogang's increasingly detailed Soul Power distribution guidance, his "peak slacking path" could still proceed steadily and he could become stronger step by step.