"The nerves at the end of the tailbone?"
’Is it this bone in my butt?’
Chen Jue paused, stunned, then tried the Squeezing Valley Dao a couple more times. He realized he’d gotten much better at the exercise.
Not only could he contract and release at will, but the numbness he usually felt in his rear after long periods of sitting had also lessened.
Most importantly, his awareness of the entire area around his rear had become much more sensitive!
The sensation was incredible!
It felt just like playing a competitive game—the map had been covered in a fog of war, but suddenly, he’d planted a ward near his tailbone and gained vision.
The sensation was faint, but it was definitely there.
Chen Jue just hadn’t figured out the specific purpose of this strange new sensation yet.
This was because he hadn’t done any systematic, in-depth study of human anatomy or medicine.
It was quitting time, and he was supposed to go out for dinner and an activity with his colleagues. Staying at his desk to research it now wasn’t realistic, so he had to push the question to the back of his mind for the time being.
Besides, the panel had given him positive feedback. As long as continuing to practice the Horse Stance and Squeezing Valley Dao could fix his lumbar disc herniation and hemorrhoids, that was good enough for him.
...
Once they clocked out, everyone from Team Five drove to a nearby restaurant specializing in cuisine from the Western Regions.
The private room had been booked the day before. The first thing to arrive was a whole roasted lamb, followed by a variety of other dishes from the Western Regions.
The style of cooking was a bit rustic, but the ingredients were incredibly fresh—all air-freighted from their place of origin, with no gamy taste whatsoever.
Team Leader Li Mo also ordered some local wine. Everyone raised their glass in a toast to welcome their new colleague, Chen Jue.
Chen Jue didn’t act aloof. He’d been there for a week and had become a familiar face, so the atmosphere was pleasant as he ate and chatted with the group.
After eating and drinking their fill, the group headed to a large arcade in the mall to continue the night’s activities.
This group of risk-control guys were mostly tech-loving homebodies. Unlike the social butterflies from marketing or sales, most of them were like Chen Jue—not particularly skilled at socializing and not fond of noisy places like karaoke bars.
Playing arcade games, on the other hand, was a great way to build camaraderie.
They played until a little after 10:00 PM before calling it a night.
Back home, he checked the bill split in their WeChat group. It came out to just over 300 per person, which was a real bargain for an expensive place like Hang City.
...
He hired a designated driver to get back to his apartment. Seeing it was almost 11:00 PM, Chen Jue washed up to get rid of the smell of alcohol, applied ointment to his left hand, and went to bed.
The next morning, he woke to find the clouds had finally scattered. The eastern sky was already showing the first signs of sunrise against an azure backdrop.
A crisp autumn breeze blew in through a crack in the window, clearing his head instantly.
He glanced at the clock—it wasn’t even 6:00 AM. Even though he’d gotten a little less sleep last night, Chen Jue found he was full of energy, without the slightest hint of drowsiness.
Even the ache in his left hand felt significantly better.
He subconsciously glanced at the panel and, sure enough, saw a notification that he had triggered Deep Sleep in the middle of the night.
——————
[Ding~]
[Stimulated by alcohol, your blood circulation has slightly increased. Your central nervous system entered a state of mild paralysis. Your sleep quality has improved. You have completed one successful instance of Deep Sleep.]
[Constitution Attribute +0.01]
——————
’So drinking has this upside?’
Chen Jue glanced at the notification log on his panel. He never expected that a simple team dinner would yield such a surprising reward.
Thinking back, he recalled that his grandfather, when he was alive, used to enjoy a small drink with his meals. The old man would say it helped with blood circulation, stimulated his appetite, and improved his sleep.
Chen Jue used to be a smoker, but he rarely drank.
He would only have a small drink during social functions he couldn’t get out of.
After seeing the panel’s notification, he started to wonder if he should get into the habit of having a drink with dinner.
’If I could use a slight buzz to trigger Deep Sleep more often, it would be a huge boost for my body.’
’Too bad I don’t know the first thing about alcohol.’
’If only Grandpa were still alive!’
Chen Jue sighed to himself. He decided to find some time to revisit the Western Regions restaurant from last night.
They claimed the wine they sold was their own brew, transported by truck all the way from the Western Regions to Hang City. It certainly tasted different from the red wines you’d find in stores.
It was probably because the wine was so good that Chen Jue had experienced that strange, pleasant buzz without any headache, which in turn triggered the Deep Sleep.
...
Since he was feeling so energetic from waking up early, Chen Jue washed up and headed to his apartment building’s rooftop to continue his eye training.
His nearsightedness was the area where the panel had helped him achieve the most significant results so far.
Over this period, his prescription had already improved by nearly 150 degrees. He’d even been able to toss out one of the four pairs of glasses he owned.
’At this rate,’ Chen Jue estimated, ’I could be completely free of my glasses in just over two more months of practice.’
After half an hour of red light therapy and Eye Health Exercises, his Constitution Attribute rose by another 0.01. A faint warmth spread around his eyes, and his vision was noticeably clearer than before.
’Autumn in Hang City isn’t too rainy.’
’I should be able to ditch my glasses for good before New Year’s Day!’ Chen Jue thought with anticipation.
...
After finishing his eye exercises, Chen Jue went downstairs to his car, grabbed a tote bag, and packed all the props he used for shooting his videos.
It was Saturday, so he had plenty of time on his hands. He planned to take advantage of the free time and good weather to hurry up and shoot the next episode for his ’Brother of Special Skills’ series.
As for the video’s content, he had been thinking about it for two days and already had a few initial ideas.