Rapid Leveling

"Now is the final stretch of the three-lap race around the Banyan Forest!"

"Look! The Awakened Ones are sprinting like the wind—wait! It's Lord Linsey! Lord Linsey is in first place again, he's always been in first, never surpassed by anyone. He's about to cross the finish line—!!!"

In the Banyan Forest, a three-day Sports Meet is underway.

From morning to afternoon, it's a competition among ordinary people; from afternoon to evening, it's the arena for the awakened.

There are no sports like football or baseball in this world.

Moreover, these types of competitions cannot produce any results in a short period of time.

So Linsey arranged for a construction team to create a simple venue in the Banyan Forest. The goal of this first Sports Meet was to accommodate events such as long jump, high jump, long-distance running, or javelin throwing.

At this moment, the long-distance race has ended, and it is already evening of the third day.

After Linsey won her prize, she returned to the crowd amidst cheers.

He appeared excited, but inwardly he felt somewhat uneasy.

Although Linsey's physical abilities are undoubtedly the strongest in the Banyan Forest.

But considering my identity...

Winning the championship at this moment is like him being a leader participating in a football match, with everyone around him being company employees.

"Everyone, the Sports Meet officially ends tonight!"

"Afterwards, we'll all go to the town center. I'll say a few words, and then we can start the celebration banquet tonight."

Linsey shouted a command, preparing to return for her closing ceremony speech.

He quietly left after finishing all his work at the Sports Meet that night, and at the same time opened his Attribute Panel.

[Sports Racing Level: 3]

"..."

"Is this considered legitimate use of the mechanism, or malicious exploitation of a bug?"

Linsey smiled and shook her head.

His original plan was to help the [Simulation Management] module develop through the town's economic system.

But a few days ago, the children chasing and playing gave him an idea.

Back in the City of a Thousand Sails, he activated the sports module through diving and began upgrading it by hosting his own Sports Meet.

Linsey won her first sports competition, and the [Sports Racing] module was upgraded to level 2; after today's event, when Linsey became the winner with the most championships in the entire Sports Meet, it was naturally upgraded to level 3.

The two skills that are unlocked are as follows:

[Adrenaline: Players can freely control the secretion of Adrenaline. It greatly improves physical fitness in a short period of time, while eliminating the aftereffects of Adrenaline withdrawal.]

Note: Hey, did you see that runner up ahead? His speed is like he's on steroids!

[Concentrated State: When players hold their breath, their reaction speed is greatly increased, allowing them to make rapid maneuvers and think quickly in a short period of time.]

Note: Kid, bullet time!

"..."

Linsey lowered her head in thought.

These two skills naturally fit the setting of sports games.

He tried Adrenaline first.

This skill, combined with [Professional Sports] and the explosive power of Life Source Material, can even double Linsey's strength in a short period of time!

Then comes the [Concentrated State].

"Hiss--"

Linsey took a deep breath, her chest heaving, and then her pupils contracted.

In an instant.

Green leaves falling from trees; the soles of feet lifted up by humans and about to land on the gravel path; even dust particles slowly drifting in the air, reflecting the lights of the night.

The speed of all objects slowed down significantly.

Looking at it directly, it's just like a special effects scene from a movie!

In this extremely slow flow of time, Linsey tried to raise her left hand forward, following the skill description.

Snap—

Linsey succeeded.

But this seemingly ordinary action required more than 10 times the physical exertion he usually did.

The next second, Linsey's stamina was replenished by the [Eternal Imprint].

He tried to raise his right hand again.

As his physical strength rapidly depleted, his body began to warn him that he could no longer push his limits indefinitely.

"Call--"

Linsey breathed a sigh of relief and exited the "Concentrated State".

In an instant.

The fallen leaves lay on the ground, people walked normally, and the dust in the air disappeared.

The flow of time returned to normal.

"..."

"If I keep training, will I become a Stand user who can stop time?"

Linsey chuckled softly, feeling a sense of relief at the same time.

It's fortunate that I acquired this ability now.

If it were the day I first became an Awakened One...

Not to mention the physical exertion, even the cost of exceeding the time limit would probably be too much for his body to bear.

Ultimately, one's own strength is everything.

"Even with such a powerful skill, one needs basic physical fitness to use it."

Then, Linsey stretched her arms and shoulders.

The movement he just made still caused some slight discomfort in his arm, but this feeling was quickly subsiding under the restorative effect of the Life Source Material.

"If it were a regular type of Essence, the recovery speed would probably be even slower, right?"

Linsey returned to her home with joy.

He pulled out a map of the Banyan Forest and began a completely new architectural plan.

Hilude was helping to organize the data, so Linsey had to handle the architectural design work herself again.

"On the ground, in the trees... wait, should we expand the underground space as well?"

"Although it's not suitable for human habitation, it can be used as a storage room. However, in that case, the sewer system would have to be redesigned..."

Time passed slowly.

As Linsey was diligently designing the architectural map, footsteps sounded from below. Because she was so familiar with the sound, Linsey didn't need to turn around to know it was Hammer approaching.

"Hammer, you've come?"

"The Sports Meet has been going smoothly these past few days, and you've really worked hard."

"Lord Linsey," Hammer stepped forward, shaking his head somewhat ashamed, "How could my work possibly compare to yours?"

"Your wisdom is indeed unmatched. The people in the territory have been in quite good spirits these past few days, and some past conflicts have been eased. Shouldn't we hold one every month for a while...?"

Hammer clearly wanted to propose holding Sports Meet meets more frequently in the future.

Linsey shook her head, interrupting him:

"No, once a month is too frequent."

"These kinds of events need time to build up people's anticipation. In my experience, well... maybe once every six months?"

Hammer naturally had no objections, or rather, he was completely convinced:

"Yes, Lord Linsey, I will do as you command."

Hammer then described what happened during the Sports Meet.

After the report was finished, as he was about to leave the second floor of the small house, he made a special mention of it:

"Lord Linsey, you've been busy with the Sports Meet these past few days, so you might not remember the time."

"The new batch of gold ore will be delivered by the Insectoid Tribe around tomorrow, and you'll soon have enough gold coins to meet your needs!"