The predawn whistle had barely pierced the morning mist when Tang San was jolted awake by the Soul Power Fluctuation from the training ground. He walked to the window and saw Zhao Wuji adjusting a Soul Power Suppressor glowing purple. Dai Mubai and the others were already standing beside it, with ten test Soul Guidance Pillars placed before each of them. "This morning's training is 'Soul Skill Stamina Limit.' Keep releasing your soul skills under the Soul Power Suppressor. You pass when all the Soul Guidance Pillars light up. Tang San, you go first. Set the machine to maximum strength, and you have to last twice as long as everyone else!"
Tang San slowly put on his training uniform, deliberately fastening two extra clasps while tying his Soul Guidance Waistband—releasing soul skills under Soul Power suppression taxed the meridians most heavily. Using "adjusting the waistband to prevent Soul Power leakage" as an excuse to stall would buy him a little more time. By the time he reached the machine, Dai Mubai had already finished his test. His White Tiger Fierce Light Wave had only lasted until the fifth Soul Guidance Pillar lit up. "What are you dawdling for? The machine's warm-up is almost over!" Zhao Wuji slipped a Soul Guidance Bracelet onto Tang San's wrist. It instantly glowed red, and the suppressive force pierced straight into his meridians.
Using "adjusting the waistband to prevent Soul Power leakage" as an excuse to delay the test, avoiding premature high-intensity suppression drain. Slacking Value +1, current total: 73
Tang San summoned Blue Silver Grass and deliberately lowered his soul skill's output. Under maximum suppression, the Blue Silver Grass gave off only a faint blue glow. The moment his "Bind" soul skill wrapped around a Soul Guidance Pillar, the machine siphoned away most of his Soul Power. The first pillar lit only halfway before going dark. "Tang San! Is that all the Soul Power you have? Are you useless once you're suppressed?" Zhao Wuji's whip lashed against the machine casing, sending sparks flying.
"Teacher, under maximum suppression, the meridians constrict too severely. Soul Power circulates three times slower than usual. Releasing it too quickly could strain my meridians, so I can only let it out slowly. Otherwise, I won't even last halfway." As Tang San spoke, he released his soul skill again. This time, he allowed his Soul Power to flow out in a thin stream. It took three times as long for the first Soul Guidance Pillar to light fully. "Look, I've only just found the rhythm for circulation. If I go even a little faster, my meridians start hurting. I can only keep this pace."
Using "avoiding meridian strain" as an excuse to lower output intensity and slow the stamina pace, avoiding excessive drain. Slacking Value +1, current total: 74
Half an hour passed, and Tang San had only managed to light the third Soul Guidance Pillar, nowhere near the required "twice the time." "Train for another half hour. If you still can't reach the fifth pillar, don't expect to eat today!" Zhao Wuji stood beside the machine with his arms crossed, his gaze fixed on Tang San like nails. Yet Tang San inwardly relaxed—extra training was perfect for earning more Slacking Value, and he could keep using the excuse that his "meridians were adapting to the suppression."
The morning training was a "teamwork mission." Zhao Wuji slapped a map onto the ground. "Split into two groups and gather soul herbs from the back mountain. Tang San's group can only take the most dangerous western slope, and you must gather the rarest Shadow Grass. The others only need ordinary herbs!"
The western slope was filled with steep inclines and poisonous vines. Dai Mubai's group took the smooth eastern path and quickly gathered half a basket of ordinary soul herbs. Tang San led Xiao Wu and Oscar toward the western slope, deliberately slowing their pace. With every step, he used Blue Silver Grass to scout the way—toxic vines hid in the undergrowth. "Carefully scouting ahead to avoid poisoning" could both reduce the risk of injury and waste more time.
"Tang San! Why are you moving so slowly? The others are almost done gathering!" Zhao Wuji's voice rang out from the hillside, and he waved a stalk of Shadow Grass in his hand.
"Teacher, there are too many poisonous vines on the western slope. If Blue Silver Grass scouts too quickly, it can easily get tangled. And Shadow Grass grows in rock crevices, so we have to move the stones aside slowly. If we hurry, we might pull the entire plant out by the roots." As he spoke, Tang San deliberately let Blue Silver Grass become tangled by a poisonous vine. Its leaves instantly turned black. "See? It got hit the moment I scouted too fast. We can only gather intact herbs if we go slowly."
Using "prevent poisoning + preserve the herbs intact" as an excuse to slow the gathering pace, avoiding dangerous-terrain drain. Slacking Value +1, current total: 75
During the noon break, Oscar handed him a Recovery Sausage. "Teacher Zhao was too ruthless. Those poisonous vines on the western slope nearly ruined your Blue Silver Grass." Tang San accepted the sausage, took only a small bite, then put it away—he would save it for the afternoon's drain. Eating too much now would only increase the burden on his meridians.
The afternoon training was an "extreme confrontation review." Zhao Wuji projected recordings of that morning's confrontation onto a stone wall. "Everyone, analyze your own mistakes. Tang San, you get three times as long to analyze yours, and you must identify more than five points where Soul Power was wasted!"
The others quickly finished their analyses, but Tang San deliberately watched at a crawl, his finger slowly tracing across the stone wall. "When I released my soul skill the first time, my Soul Power didn't avoid interference from the poisonous vines, wasting ten percent. When I scouted the second time, Blue Silver Grass covered too large an area and was blocked by rocks, wasting another ten percent..." He deliberately broke every "waste point" down into minute details. After half an hour, he had only analyzed three. "See? Every point of waste is hidden in the details. If I rush, I could easily miss something. Only careful analysis can find them all."
Using "breaking down details to find waste points" as an excuse to slow the review, avoiding excessive drain. Slacking Value +1, current total: 76
By the end of evening training, Tang San had not even completed half of his review. "Extra training tonight: organize your Soul Power with the Soul Power Suppressor set to its lowest intensity. If your organization speed is slower than everyone else's, the intensity will be raised again tomorrow!" Zhao Wuji's voice echoed across the training ground.
Everyone groaned, but Tang San quietly opened the system panel—76 points of Slacking Value, still 24 short of his next Soul Power Increase. He slowly walked back to the dormitory, calculating inwardly: tonight's extra training would be the perfect chance to use "the suppressor affecting the rhythm of Soul Power organization" as an excuse to slow down. Teacher Zhao's attempts to make things difficult were all excellent opportunities to earn points.
Night fell as Tang San sat beside the suppressor and began organizing his Soul Power, deliberately reducing its circulation speed to the minimum—"slow organization helps the meridians adapt to the suppressive force, while going too fast can leave hidden risks." It fit the slacking rhythm while also earning him points. He thought to himself, As long as I find the right excuses, no matter how ruthless Teacher Zhao is, I can keep walking the path to the peak of slacking.
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