Shedding Skin

The entire transformation lasted over ten minutes before the high heat in his body gradually subsided.

By then, his status had changed to:

Strength: 126 (10) Agility: 128 (10) Physique: 135 (10) Intelligence: 123 (10) Perception: 108 (10) Willpower: 114 (10)

Aside from Willpower and Perception, which remained unchanged, the rest of his attributes had surged significantly, with some even increasing by two points.

He clenched his fist tightly, a surge of powerful strength flooding through his body.

Not only that.

His five senses had grown sharper, his thinking quicker—even the few problems from yesterday's monthly exam that he couldn't solve no matter how he tried now felt crystal clear with just a moment's thought.

Time itself seemed to slow down in his eyes.

The triple gravity, which had felt crushing before, now seemed barely heavier than Earth's. He felt he finally had some ability to protect himself.

He stood up, ready to explore this area.

Leaning on the wooden stick, he walked with uneven steps, trudging along the mountainside with difficulty.

The newly gained strength wasn't easy to control yet.

His old habits of exertion clashed severely with his now powerful body—either he used too much force or too little, nearly stumbling several times.

Fortunately, after carefully walking for over ten minutes, he slowly began to adapt.

This was a barren little island, only about one square kilometer in size.

Aside from a central peak, the surroundings were all ocean. There were no animals on the island, though in the grass, some small ant-like insects thrived and multiplied. Beyond that, no other life existed.

This let him breathe a full sigh of relief—it meant the place was quite safe.

He made a rough circuit around the mountainside, saw that it was nearly two in the morning by his estimate, and began heading back.

When he returned to Earth through the channel, his whole body felt so light he could almost float. His steps were unsteady, swaying and drifting.

He started walking slowly, then broke into a run.

He fell several times, got up, and kept running.

On the empty, deserted streets, Chen Shouyi sprinted in wild excitement, laughing as he ran. His speed grew faster and faster, like a gust of wind weaving through alleys and streets until he quickly reached home.

He opened the door, crept softly back to his bedroom.

After closing the door, he threw himself onto the bed and rolled over a few times. The day's adventure left him thrilled and exhilarated.

He let out a few silent laughs, then couldn't help opening the Status Panel again.

The increased attributes hadn't reverted, and the talent ability option was still there. Only "Natural Healing" had been replaced by "Beginner Self-Healing."

He clenched his fist; the skin of his palm creaked under the tight friction.

Everything was real.

He had truly grown stronger—stronger than he could have imagined.

Then a thought struck him, and his excitement quickly faded.

"Should I report this Space Channel?"

Chen Shouyi hesitated. From the bottom of his heart, he absolutely didn't want to. No one would.

It was said that Martial Apprentices from the Martial Arts Academy entered hidden Space Channels for training, which meant the unique environment of the Otherworld could greatly enhance a Martial Apprentice's strength.

His current attributes already exceeded the standard for a Martial Apprentice, even approaching those of a Martial Artist.

For example, the male Martial Apprentice assessment required a bench press of two hundred kilograms. Based on his attributes, he could now reach two hundred and ninety kilograms—just one step away from the Martial Artist standard of three hundred.

As for Agility, it was 0.2 points higher than Strength, fully meeting the Martial Artist standard.

Physique was his strongest attribute now, reaching an astonishing 135.

But he still hadn't passed the Martial Apprentice assessment. Even if he did, he'd have to wait over five months to enter the Martial Arts Academy.

In that time, a Space Channel open only to him held a powerful allure. He could feel that training under triple gravity would surely push his strength even further.

But an unguarded Space Channel in the middle of a city was still dangerous after all.

That night, he tossed and turned, his mind in turmoil, until he finally drifted into a dazed sleep just before dawn.

He hadn't slept long before his biological clock woke him right on time.

Even though he'd only dozed off, Chen Shouyi felt refreshed, with none of the drowsiness that came from pulling an all-nighter.

He picked up his phone to check the time, but the screen was still black. He quickly pressed the power button, and thankfully it lit up again soon—looks like the Otherworld's environment hadn't fried it.

"Hmm, only about ten minutes late."

He threw on his clothes and headed to the bathroom to wash up.

Chen Xingyue was already in there, wearing a cute Rascal Rabbit pajama set, brushing her teeth with a sleepy look.

"Morning!" Chen Shouyi greeted, then grabbed his toothbrush and started brushing too.

Chen Xingyue rinsed her mouth, spat out the white foam, and glanced at him in the mirror. Suddenly she said, "Bro, you're peeling."

"Oh, am I?" Chen Shouyi looked closely and realized it was true.

For some reason, his face had patches of old skin scattered here and there. He forgot about brushing for a moment, held the toothbrush in his mouth, grabbed one piece of dead skin, and pulled it off in front of the mirror. With a ripping sound, a large strip came away.

He froze, seeing the skin underneath was red and white, tender and soft, as delicate as a baby's.

Coming back to his senses, he noticed Chen Xingyue's stunned expression. He kept his face calm and said, "Maybe I got too much sun yesterday."

"Weren't you taking exams yesterday?" Chen Xingyue immediately questioned.

"At noon. When I washed my hands in the restroom, the faucet was too strong and wet my pants, so I dried off in the sun a bit longer." Chen Shouyi said with a straight face. He found his mind was incredibly sharp now—lies came to him without a second thought.

"Bro, that's disgusting."

Chen Xingyue's face twisted with disgust.

"Who told you to be so nosy? Besides, it wasn't even pee, just water. What's so disgusting about that? When you were in elementary school, you once had an accident because you couldn't hold it..." Chen Shouyi shot back immediately.

Seeing he was about to bring up her childhood embarrassments, Chen Xingyue's face flushed red. She snapped angrily, "Bro, if you say another word, I'll never talk to you again!"

As for her earlier suspicion, it had vanished without a trace.

Watching Chen Xingyue's flustered retreat, Chen Shouyi felt smug. This was the first time he'd won a verbal battle against his sharp-tongued little sister.

Once she was gone, he quickly closed the bathroom door, rubbed his face hard in front of the mirror, and the whole layer of skin came off.

He stared at his reflection, feeling a bit unfamiliar.

He looked somewhat handsome now—red lips, white teeth, skin so smooth and delicate it seemed it might break at a touch, like a layer of fine cream. Beneath his thick brows, a pair of dark eyes sparkled with spirit.

Compared to his former slightly dark, ordinary looks, he was practically a different person.

Looking in the mirror, Chen Shouyi felt no joy, only shock.

"How am I supposed to go out like this?"

"When Mom and Dad see me later and get suspicious, if I keep explaining it as sun exposure, will they believe me?"

He glanced at his arm, gave it a light rub, and another big piece of dead skin came off. He guessed his whole body had completely shed its skin.

He quickly stripped off his clothes, took a shower, and scrubbed all the dead skin off.

Back in his room, he sat on the bed, troubled.

How was he going to explain this?

He couldn't stay in his room forever, and even if he did, he couldn't avoid his family forever.

Then he noticed the bedroom window. An idea struck him, and he went over to open it, looking down at the alley below.

It was a small lane, about four or five meters off the ground. Chen Shouyi felt that with his current physique and strength, jumping down wouldn't hurt him. As for explanations, he'd deal with that at night.

Maybe after a day in the sun, his skin would go back to its slightly dark shade!

Watching the pedestrian ahead walk farther away and seeing no one behind, he took a few deep breaths, steeled himself, then braced his arms on the window frame and leaped down.

With a thud, Chen Shouyi landed with his knees only slightly bent, standing firm as if he'd jumped from half a meter up.

The distant pedestrian heard the noise, wondering if something had fallen from the sky, and turned back to look. But aside from a person now behind him, there was nothing else.

Chen Shouyi smiled at him, then walked near the restaurant and called out from a distance:

"Mom, I'm going out to play with some classmates. I'll be back tonight."

"Got it, be careful on the road." Mother Chen, who was mopping the floor, replied instinctively upon hearing his voice.

As soon as she said it, she felt something was off. When had that kid slipped out?

By the time she reached the door, Chen Shouyi had already vanished without a trace.