Proficiency

Myron picked up the food container and stuffed a piece of Fortified Meat into his mouth.

"David, why isn't this Level 1 Fortified Meat? The Larva's Fortified Meat is so ineffective!" he complained to David as he ate.

"Myron, you can bring your own Level 1 Fortified Meat. Don't eat my share and then complain about it!" David said irritably.

"Oh, right! I'll have my family send some Level 1 Fortified Meat over right away!" Myron said with a bright smile.

David shook his head. He could tell that Myron wanted to use this as an excuse to send over some Level 1 Fortified Meat without making David lose face.

In truth, with David's current wealth, buying some Level 1 Fortified Meat for cultivation with his Credit Points would be no problem, as long as he didn't risk exposing himself. But since Myron had offered, David could consider it payment for letting him sit in on the lesson.

Besides, it was nothing to someone like Myron, a rich second-generation official.

"David, your turn!" Gallen waited with a smile until the two of them had finished talking, then called on David.

"Yes, Uncle Gallen!" David replied with a nod.

He was already burning with anticipation, eager for Gallen's guidance.

He moved to the center of the gym and stood upright. As he began to exert himself, a trace of heat radiated from his body.

Myron didn't notice anything, but Gallen's eyes lit up. He fixed his gaze on David.

At 99% mastery of the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique, David had reached the limit of what someone who wasn't an Armored Warrior could achieve. Anyone who could advance their Body Technique to the proficient level before becoming an Armored Warrior was a monster.

Gallen had never expected to meet a boy on the verge of advancing beyond beginner-level Eighteen Forms of Body Technique in a small place like Peilan City—and that boy was his good friend's child.

"Damn you, Hans! Just how blind are you? A genius like this has only six hundred kilograms of strength because he lacks resources. If he had the resources, he'd have become an Armored Warrior long ago!" Gallen muttered to himself as he watched David begin practicing the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique. David had barely completed the first form, and Gallen was already exclaiming in disbelief.

Gallen said this because the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique were foundational. Each time one's mastery improved, one's physique improved along with it.

In Gallen's eyes, David's current situation was the result of a shortage of cultivation resources. It had forced him to practice the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique over and over, allowing his skill in the technique to outpace the growth of his physique.

Most people, however, couldn't improve their mastery of the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique. As a result, excess energy accumulated in their bodies, preventing their physiques from improving any further.

Myron was a typical example. Despite having ample resources, he had been unable to make further progress because of his limitations in the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique.

David continued practicing the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique, moving through each form slowly but steadily. Every movement brought a surge of heat, a sign that he was mobilizing a great deal of his body's capabilities. Each form consumed nearly twice as much energy as Myron's.

That was why sweat poured from David, and his strength was draining away at an alarming rate.

Starting with the tenth form, his movements grew even slower.

Gallen flashed to David's side like an apparition, moving so fast that Myron stared as if he'd just seen a ghost.

David still had enough strength to continue, but since he needed to keep his muscles and bones working in coordination, he had to slow down even more. The slower he moved, though, the harder the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique became.

The eleventh form, the twelfth, the thirteenth—by the fourteenth, the limit he had reached before, his body began to tremble. He could fail at any moment.

Just then, Gallen placed a hand on David. David felt his muscles and bones slipping beyond his control, but the force of Gallen's pat helped him coordinate them again.

He completed the fourteenth form and instinctively continued into the fifteenth.

A strange expression crossed Gallen's face. He had thought David's inability to hold on through the fourteenth form meant he had reached his limit, but clearly that wasn't the case. David was still going, moving into the fifteenth.

As soon as the fifteenth form began, David's muscles and bones again slipped beyond his control. Gallen was ready this time. Whenever David lost control, Gallen patted the affected spot, helping him continue.

The sixteenth form, the seventeenth, the eighteenth—the final form. After Gallen had patted him ten times, David finally completed the entire sequence.

The instant he finished, steam rose from David's sweat-soaked body, as if he'd just stepped out of a steam bath.

Gallen waved his hand. A force pulled the food container off the ground and into his grasp.

"David, eat up—quickly!" He opened the container and handed it to David.

David felt utterly drained. He could have swallowed a whole cow.

He didn't even bother counting the portions of Fortified Meat. He simply grabbed handfuls from the container and stuffed them into his mouth.

Fortunately, his body was incredibly strong, and his chewing was just as powerful. After a few crunches between his sturdy teeth, the Fortified Meat was swallowed.

Trickles of heat flowed from his stomach through the rest of his body, replenishing his depleted strength.

David had never tasted Fortified Meat this delicious. But soon his hands were empty, and he had eaten every last piece in the container.

"You really can eat!" Myron grumbled as he handed David his own container, which still held nine portions after he'd eaten one.

David was surprised by how much he could eat, too. He remembered there being ten portions of Fortified Meat in the container. Even with his recent increase in energy consumption, he'd only been able to use up three portions at a time.

But now he could still feel his body craving more, so he didn't hesitate. He took the container and started eating again.

Within two minutes, David had stuffed all the Fortified Meat into his stomach. Only then did he feel satisfied. Waves of heat surged from his stomach through his body, filling him with a pleasant sense of comfort.

"David, rest for a bit, then practice the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique for me again!" Gallen's expression grew even more peculiar as he made the request.

"Uncle Gallen, shouldn't David wait until the Level 1 Fortified Meat arrives before continuing?" Myron asked, looking at the two empty containers.

"It's fine. David has just broken through in his Body Technique, and that's caused his physique to improve as well," Gallen said, waving a hand.

After the thirty-nine portions of Fortified Meat from both containers had gone down, David's body had time to digest them. His weakness had long since vanished, replaced by a surge of strength throughout his entire body. He felt like he was about to burst with energy.

So when Gallen asked him to practice the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique again, David didn't need to rest. He got up and began at once.

This time, the difference was obvious. From the very first form, David felt completely at ease. Before, he'd had to consciously control his muscles and bones to coordinate with the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique. Now his muscles and bones seemed to propel the technique forward on their own.

Myron's eyes were wide as saucers. He hadn't really understood what the previous demonstration meant, but he understood perfectly well what David's performance this time represented.

A vast chasm separated beginner-level Body Technique from the proficient level. That chasm marked the difference between an Armored Warrior and an ordinary person. Only by reaching a thousand kilograms of strength and practicing with a physique three times that of an ordinary person could someone attain proficient-level Body Technique.

Thinking back to how he'd boasted to David about his advanced beginner-level Body Technique, Myron's face burned with embarrassment.

As Gallen watched David practice each form in turn, he thought about the gift he'd offered David earlier: getting Na'an University to admit him. That offer seemed like a joke now.

Anyone who could bring their Body Technique to the proficient level before becoming an Armored Warrior would be admitted to Na'an University as an exception, even if they were lacking in other areas.

It was a basic privilege afforded to geniuses. Not only Na'an University, but every other university would do everything in its power to recruit David if it learned of his current achievement.

David completed the Eighteen Forms of Body Technique. The heat from the nineteen portions of Fortified Meat he'd eaten had stopped surging through him, and he felt stronger than ever before. If Gallen and Myron hadn't been there, he would have summoned the Shadow Servant at once and had it open the Attribute Panel for him.