Awakening of a New Skill!

"Ding! Detected that the host's current activity meets the criteria for skill generation."

"New skill generated: Eating, Beginner Realm (1/100)."

"???"

Qin Yao froze.

"No, I'm just eating a flatbread. That can generate a 'skill' I can grind proficiency for?"

But on second thought, didn't newborn infants also need to learn to eat on their own gradually through observation and imitation?

Mm, that was definitely a skill!

System Bro had it right!

So, even though the food was coarse and hard to chew, scraping his throat a little, Qin Yao still ate with great delight, taking every bite exceptionally seriously.

Every mouthful he swallowed now was not only capital for survival—it would also become the foundation of his strength!

"Eating Proficiency +4"

"Eating Proficiency +5"

"Eating..."

"Ha, interesting!

"If I only ate a tiny bit at a time and tried to swallow it hundreds or thousands of times...

"Wouldn't I be able to max out the proficiency in one meal?"

Qin Yao's eyes rolled, and he immediately put the idea into action!

He sipped a tiny bit of soup and swallowed it.

"Ding! The host's Eating proficiency is too low. Less than one whole point cannot be counted."

"Er, fine. I was hoping to exploit a bug."

Qin Yao curled his lip and simply let loose, wolfing down the food.

He ate great mouthfuls, and his proficiency rose without pause.

After washing down the last bite of coarse flatbread with rotten vegetable-leaf soup—

"Eating Proficiency +7. Current Proficiency: 103/100"

"Ding! Skill 'Eating' has increased to Entry Realm (3/300)."

"The host's efficiency in drawing nutrients from food and absorbing and converting them into personal energy has slightly increased."

"Hmm?"

Qin Yao's eyes lit up. "No wonder I'd only felt seven or eight tenths full a moment ago, yet now I don't feel hungry at all.

"This 'Eating' skill might seem a little ridiculous at first glance, but it's actually pretty good!"

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

A rapid burst of gong-striking rang out. "Back to work, back to work!"

Qin Yao laughed at himself. Sure enough, mine slaves had no such luxury as a "lunch break."

However, after the Mining skill had risen to the Lesser Achievement Realm, he could clearly feel that his physical fitness had greatly improved.

Though he was still very far from setting foot on the martial path.

His explosive power and endurance now were far greater than when he had first entered the mine!

"If merely the Lesser Achievement Realm has such an effect, what about higher realms?"

Qin Yao's heart burned.

A moment later.

The clanging sounds of mining once more echoed from Mine Tunnel No. 3 of the T-Shaped Pit.

"Mining Proficiency +9"

"Mining Proficiency +11"

"Mining..."

The Lesser Achievement Realm Mining skill gave Qin Yao a deeper understanding of how to exert force and where to strike.

Every swing of his pickaxe was precise and efficient. The chunks of ore that broke loose were larger, yet took less effort to extract.

The proficiency gained from every action was also nearly twice as much as before!

Watching the numbers constantly jump on the system panel, Qin Yao was filled with drive!

The youth's intense focus and diligence quickly caught the attention of the overseer, Li Gang.

"This kid's a bit strange, isn't he?"

Li Gang rubbed his fleshy chin, a flicker of surprise passing through his eyes. "In just one morning, he's already working more deftly than quite a few veteran mine slaves."

"Could it be... that scholars all catch on this quickly?"

Doubt was doubt, but he did not look into it further.

After all, the harder Qin Yao, this beast of burden, worked, the less Li Gang had to worry about failing to meet the required ore quota.

Qin Yao, meanwhile, paid no attention whatsoever to the looks around him, wholly immersing himself in the pleasure of grinding experience.

"Skill Mining: Lesser Achievement (158/1000)"

"Skill Mining: Lesser Achievement (295/1000)"

"Skill Mining: Lesser Achievement (476/1000)"

As his proficiency steadily rose, his pickaxe swings became ever smoother, faintly carrying a unique rhythm.

The strength in his arms, waist, abdomen, and legs worked in perfect harmony, and the iron pickaxe seemed to become an extension of his body.

Whenever shards of stone scattered, he could evade them with his increasingly nimble reactions.

The mine was dim, and the passage of time became vague.

Only the constantly flickering numbers on his status panel recorded every bit of the youth's growth.

At a certain moment—

"Mining Proficiency +12. Current Proficiency: 1002/1000"

"Ding! Skill 'Mining' has increased to Proficiency Realm (2/5000)."

"Buzz!"

At once, a warm current flowed through all four limbs and every bone in his body!

At that moment, he was like a miner chosen by heaven.

All kinds of information related to mining surged into his mind in a swarm.

Now, with a single glance, he could roughly judge where to dig for a higher ore yield, and where he would only find poor-quality waste rock.

At the same time, Qin Yao's physique became increasingly sturdy and robust!

"This iron pickaxe... got lighter again?!"

The youth's spirits surged.

If, before this, when his Mining skill was at Lesser Achievement, the iron pickaxe in his hand had felt like a somewhat thick branch...

Then now, with his Mining skill at Proficiency, when he weighed the pickaxe in his hand again, it felt like a slender willow twig.

It was as though he had inexhaustible strength throughout his body!

Qin Yao even felt that, like how overseer Li Gang had thrown Little Four, he could casually toss a man and send him flying several meters!

With a thought, he called up his status panel—

"Host: Qin Yao"

"Realm: None. A sturdily built man."

"Cultivation Method: None."

"Skills: Mining (Proficiency Realm, 2/5000); Eating (Entry Realm, 3/300)."

"Available Vouchers: 4"

"When I raised the new skill 'Eating' to the Entry Realm earlier, I gained 1 voucher. Now I've gained another one."

"From that, it seems every increase in a skill's realm can bring an increase in 'vouchers.'"

"I just don't know what these points are for."

"Grrrrumble..."

Suddenly, a violent wave of hunger struck.

"I'm so hungry!"

Qin Yao frowned and pondered inwardly, It's probably because my appetite grew after my body became stronger.

He recalled how, back in Red River County, the Qin Family members of his generation who practiced martial arts could devour a huge basin of meat and five or six steamed buns in a single meal.

As he was thinking, a fierce wind howled beside his ear—it was the whip swung by overseer Li Gang!

It turned out that Li Gang had seen Qin Yao suddenly standing there in a daze, and his eyes immediately lit up. "Heh, I've finally caught a chance to beat you!

"Mine slaves are all lowly-boned trash. If they aren't whipped properly, they won't put their full strength into their work!"

With that thought, Li Gang directly lashed out with his whip.

The sudden whistle of the whip cutting through the air made Qin Yao's ears twitch.

Instinctively, he wanted to dodge.

With his current physical condition, avoiding this whip would not have been difficult.

But reason told him that he absolutely could not dodge!

Because Qin Yao knew very clearly that his current "persona" was that of a frail scholar sent to the mines for a crime.

If a frail scholar worked well, people could still say he feared death, worked diligently, and was an honest fellow.

The loose slave uniform also effectively concealed the suddenly prominent muscle lines that had appeared after several improvements to his Mining skill.

But if a "frail scholar" could casually dodge an overseer's whipping, that would be far too heaven-defying!

It would certainly arouse suspicion.

In this sunless mine pit, where there were no human rights at all, if he drew the supervisors' suspicion, even if he did not die, he would lose a layer of skin!

Having thought it through, Qin Yao decided to take it head-on.

He clenched his teeth and tensed the muscles in his back.

The next instant—"Smack!"

The whip landed solidly across his back!

However...

It did not seem as painful as he had imagined?

Qin Yao loosened his teeth in confusion, and two words slowly surfaced in his heart: That's it?