Cassius seized the opportunity and shoved the other unopened pack of cigarettes into Brother Qiang's hand.
"Brother Qiang, you're the man. I'm Cassius, also an actor. I've got an audition in a few days that needs some action chops. Training blind by myself wasn't working, so I thought I'd come shadow you guys, maybe pick up a few tricks."
"Actor?"
A younger stuntman nearby raised an eyebrow.
"With the way you were lugging those boxes yesterday, I thought you were a new grip."
Brother Qiang lit a cigarette, took a drag, and spoke slowly.
"If you want to learn the real stuff, just watching won't cut it. Your body has to remember it."
He pointed to the center of the set.
"See those marks on the floor? When we walk through the blocking later, you follow along on the side. Watch how we coordinate our waist, legs, and core when we generate power."
"Don't be afraid to look ugly. Moves always look ugly at first."
"Got it! Thanks, Brother Qiang!"
Cassius was thrilled. The smokes were a good investment.
For the rest of the time, while the stunt team sparred in the front, he mimicked them in the back like a copycat.
When Brother Qiang executed a clean roundhouse kick, knocking a prop dagger out of the villain's hand, Cassius stared intently at every detail—the hip twist, the pivot, the leg extension. A green orb dropped.
[Physicality Attribute: Coordination +2]
Absorb!
He mimicked the move, feeling like a clumsy robot.
But as the attribute fused into him, his muscles seemed to gain a faint memory. On the next attempt, the awkwardness lessened just a tiny bit.
During a break, he approached the young stuntman, handed him water, and asked humbly:
"Bro, that side fall you just did—I noticed your shoulder hit the ground first. Is there a trick to that?"
Seeing his sincerity, the young stuntman was happy to explain. "Good eye. That's a breakfall. It's about dissipating force. If you land stiff, you get hurt. Look, like this..."
He demonstrated simply. The moment he touched the ground, his shoulder and back muscles rolled rapidly.
A grey orb dropped: [Physicality Attribute: Force Dissipation +1].
Absorb!
Cassius felt his understanding of "getting hit" deepen a layer.
He found another stuntman who specialized in ground grappling. Seeing Cassius being sweet with the cigarettes and water, the guy taught him a few simple joint locks and escapes.
Even though it was just surface-level stuff, with every earnest explanation and demonstration, grey orbs kept dropping.
[Physicality Attribute: Control +1]
[Physicality Attribute: Reaction +1]
...
Cassius was like a greedy sponge, frantically soaking up this precious, battle-tested experience you couldn't find in textbooks.
On his attribute panel, the number in the [Physicality] column was jumping up at unprecedented speed.
[Physicality: Lv0 (58/100)]
In just two days, it had almost doubled!
Although he hadn't broken through yet, he could clearly feel the changes in his body.
Before, his brain knew the move, but his body didn't.
Now, it was like his body had been injected with instinctual reactions. He was still unskilled, but at least he knew which way to push.
"Kid, you catch on quick!"
Brother Qiang nodded approvingly as he watched Cassius tirelessly practice a simple block-and-counter move.
"But your foundation is too thin. Core strength isn't there. No shortcuts for that—you gotta train!"
Cassius wiped the sweat from his face, panting.
"I know, Brother Qiang! But time is tight and the mission is heavy. I just need to learn the form to bluff my way through the audition first."
"Hollywood audition?"
Brother Qiang raised an eyebrow, then understood.
"Standard. They don't care how long you trained, as long as it looks legit on camera. Come here, I'll teach you some cheats."
Brother Qiang pulled Cassius over and taught him a few "screen fighting" tricks—moves that looked intimidating but didn't require high-level strength or fundamentals.
Like how to use angles and editing points to make a standard jab look like a heavy blow.
How to use quick footwork and turns to create the illusion of agility.
"Remember! In Hollywood, looking like you can fight is often more important than actually being able to fight!"
Brother Qiang blew a smoke ring, imparting wisdom earned from years of hustling in the industry.
"Unless you're trying to be a stunt double or a specialized action star!"
Cassius treated this advice like gold, memorizing every camera trick.
This was tailor-made for a crash-course student like him.
When work wrapped in the evening, Cassius's legs felt like they were filled with lead. Every muscle ached, but his mind was hyper-alert.
He took out his last bit of cash, wanting to treat Brother Qiang and the stunt guys to a meal, but Qiang waved him off.
"Forget it, kid. It's the thought that counts! None of us have it easy in this business."
Brother Qiang patted his shoulder.
"I can see you're willing to put in the work. Maybe we'll collaborate again. Remember! To really make it in Hollywood, just fighting isn't enough. You gotta let them see what makes you different."
Carrying a body full of exhaustion, a head full of techniques, and a skyrocketing Physicality stat, Cassius boarded the bus home.
He rubbed his sore shoulder, having just absorbed the latest [Force Dissipation] attribute.
The process was grueling, maybe even a little masochistic.
But this tangible progress made him feel incredibly grounded.
For the next few days, Cassius became the ultimate grind-lord on set.
Thanks to the opening created by two packs of Marlboros and his humble attitude, he practically lived on the Republican-era set.
Seeing that he was tough and smart, the stunt team gradually treated him as a semi-insider, giving him even more detailed pointers.
"Waist! Power comes from the waist! Don't just swing your turtle arms!"
Brother Qiang corrected Cassius as he mimicked a hook punch, slapping him on the lower back for emphasis.
Cassius grimaced, adjusting his center of gravity. His core muscles screamed in protest.
But the moment he followed the instruction—twisting his waist, driving with his shoulder, and channeling the force through—
Boom!
A green orb dropped from his own body and was instantly absorbed!
[Physicality Attribute: Core Power Generation +2]
Cassius paused, then rejoiced.
It seemed extreme focus during practice could generate attributes too!
This discovery fueled his drive even more.
He stuck to the stuntmen like glue. When they rehearsed, he shadowed them!
When they rested, he was there with water and cigarettes, asking about details he missed.
The young stuntman even started teaching him simple choreography—how to react to an opponent to make the fight look real.
"Right, right. I throw a punch, you block sideways, then grab my wrist. Yes, just like that! Be fast, be accurate!"
The young stuntman moved with Cassius as he spoke.
When Cassius successfully pulled off a fluid block-counter combo, light orbs appeared at both their feet simultaneously.
From the stuntman: [Physicality Attribute: Coordination +1].
And from Cassius himself, a blue orb dropped: [Physicality Attribute: Combo Flow +3]!
Blue Rare!
And self-generated!
Cassius suppressed the urge to roar at the sky and quickly absorbed it.
An understanding of how to transition smoothly between moves and keep kinetic energy flowing surged into his body, elevating his combat cognition to a new tier.
On his attribute panel, the XP in the [Physicality] column was stacking up like crazy:
[Physicality: Lv0 (72/100)]
[Physicality: Lv0 (85/100)]
[Physicality: Lv0 (96/100)]
...
He was just one step away from breaking through!