Shen Xingyan was so excited by this unexpected result, which he had only fleetingly fantasized about, that he could barely restrain himself.
Studying the description of the Dragon and Elephant Fist technique, he understood where that strange sound had come from—it was the Embryonic Dragon and Elephant Soul Form, which had a 10% chance of manifesting, as stated in the technique's description.
Gazing at the attribute boost from this embryonic soul form, Shen Xingyan couldn't help but feel envious. If this anomaly were to activate in combat, his Strength, Agility, and Defense would each increase by six points. Although it was a temporary boost, for him right now, such an increase was simply enormous. In a situation where the opponents' strengths were roughly equal, the activation of the Embryonic Dragon and Elephant Soul Form could instantly change the course of the battle!
"This improvement is truly alluring; it makes me want to keep training the Dragon and Elephant Fist," Shen Xingyan muttered, shaking his head with some regret.
But he understood the reality: without the support of the Insight skill, any further progress in this area would be extremely difficult with his ordinary comprehension.
"I need to stick to the original plan and continue targeted training to improve all my physical attributes," Shen Xingyan thought.
When his emotions had calmed down a bit, he continued performing his Physique-strengthening exercises, working until noon. Resting on his bed and giving his body a brief respite, he mentally connected to his Star Map and entered the Star Source world, beginning to walk around his cultivation space.
Looking at the agricultural landscape, Shen Xingyan felt his spirit relax.
Walking up to the small skeletons and observing their work, he involuntarily glanced at the wheat plot. Thinking about the upcoming events, he began to reflect. Under normal circumstances, after using his professional skill this afternoon, all he would have to do is wait for the harvest tomorrow evening.
But to more reliably surpass the Star Source record for wheat yield, he needed, just like last time, to use his professional skill immediately before the wheat matured. If he did this, the time difference he had won over these days due to the cooldown reduction would vanish, and he would return to the skill activation time of a few days ago, which was a little vexing.
If he were to follow the normal cooldown time of his professional skill, the wheat could prematurely enter its mature stage. The result was predictable: despite the careful tending, breaking the record would be out of the question.
Faced with this problem, Shen Xingyan only hesitated briefly before making his decision.
"It's better to attempt to break the record. At this stage, the value of the cultivated crops is much lower than the reward for overcoming the Star Source record. I need to prioritize correctly. Even if I ultimately fail to break the record, my losses won't be too significant."
With these thoughts, he walked onto the wheat field, crouched down, and gently stroked the ears of grain, encouraging them with some excitement: "You have to try your best for me tomorrow! Don't let me down!"
Shen Xingyan had high hopes for this plot of wheat. After all, the two previous records had been pleasant surprises, but this was his first conscious attempt to achieve one. If this targeted effort didn't succeed, it would be a pretty strong blow to him.
Once more, carefully inspecting the field and ensuring everything was in order, he calmed down. After chatting a little with Wangcai (though the conversation was one-sided) and feeling that it was time, he returned to the real world.
…..
After lunch, he headed to the training hall for his exercises, as usual.
This time, upon payment, Shen Xingyan noticed that the administrator's attitude toward him was more friendly. Seeing Shen Xingyan come in for serious training so many days in a row, the administrator had shed her initial prejudices. After all, the temptations of the Star Source world were far stronger than those here, and the fact that he had come for serious training for so many days instead of immersing himself in virtual world fantasies was truly worthy of respect. Although she wasn't sure how long this young man could keep it up, it didn't stop her from changing her opinion of him.
Taking the timer, Shen Xingyan noticed the change in the administrator's demeanor, smiled and nodded to her, and then silently headed to the physical training zone.
The people training around him noticed Shen Xingyan's arrival and momentarily held their gaze on him. They remembered this young man who seemed to have received some kind of "stimulus" yesterday. They then returned to their own workouts, understanding the truth of this era: strength decides everything.
Choosing a spot, Shen Xingyan set the machine's difficulty level to the maximum permissible for himself and began to train methodically.
Now, with the Dragon and Elephant Fist technique at the "Advanced Stage" level, his mood had become a bit calmer. Returning to a normal state, he transitioned to his usual training regimen. Yesterday's intensity was perfectly tolerable, but in the long run, it increased the strain on his body, which wasn't very rational.
However, barely having started the training, Shen Xingyan encountered the unexpected. He had just set the difficulty level, but soon felt that the workout was not as difficult as it should have been. This surprised him, reminding him of the sensation he'd felt the last time his Strength increased.
"But I just started training. How could my Strength have increased already?"
With this question, Shen Xingyan checked his attributes and discovered that, just as he suspected, his Strength had indeed increased by one point, along with his Attack stat.
"I had anticipated that a breakthrough might occur today, given the Dragon and Elephant Fist training, improved nutrition, and other factors. A one-point increase in Strength isn't surprising, but I didn't expect it to happen this fast!"
Musing about this with some surprise, Shen Xingyan left the physical training area and headed to the agility training zone to check if a similar improvement would occur there. After all, the description of the Dragon and Elephant Fist indicated that the technique improves both Strength and Agility. If Strength had increased so quickly, Shen Xingyan assumed that under the same conditions, Agility might show a similar result.
Setting the difficulty level of the agility machine to the maximum permissible for himself, Shen Xingyan immediately began his training.