Wang Ye took the clean water from the tap and washed his face.
But his hands were full of grease.
He put on his glasses and looked up at the mirror—loose hospital clothes couldn't hide his protruding beer belly, his face full of acne scars, the shiny sweat and grease on his nose, and his bloodshot eyes under the black-rimmed glasses...
And there was the high hairline that made him nervous.
Wang Ye's gaze quivered slightly, somewhat incredulous.
He's only just turned twenty-nine this year, still in the prime of life, supposed to be the most spirited time of his life.
When did he become like this?
Just by appearance, saying he's thirty-nine wouldn't be an exaggeration.
Wang Ye felt a sudden sense of realization.
Thinking back to his routine over the years.
Staying late at work until midnight, even all night, was commonplace.
Feeling hungry in the middle of the night, he'd order greasy fried chicken or grilled skewers to satisfy his appetite. These sugar-and-oil mixes became his few sources of joy and comfort in a day.
Leading to his body developing fatty liver, high blood pressure, diabetes, and various other ailments, eventually his body broke down completely, fainting in the office and being sent to the hospital by colleagues for emergency treatment.
He was in a coma for three days and nights before waking up, and the first scene upon opening his eyes was his parents sitting by the bed with worried and tired eyes.
"Working overtime like crazy, earning not much money, leaving my physical and mental health in chaos..." Wang Ye sighed, wiped his face with a tissue, and returned to the ward, lying down on the hospital bed.
"So hungry..."
Wang Ye leaned against the headboard, rubbing his swollen belly, looking at the scenery outside the window.
From the time he fainted to waking up, he estimated that he hadn't eaten for three whole days, having relied solely on a glucose drip for energy.
His parents seemed to have gone to the hospital cafeteria to get food for him.
Reportedly, according to his parents, his colleagues had visited him earlier, bringing several baskets of fruit.
Although most of those fruits were given to other patients...
Yet the leader in charge of his project hadn't even visited him once.
Moreover, just these few days in the hospital had spent all the money he had earned over the past few months.
He applied for work injury compensation, but there's a long process to go through, and getting the compensation is still a long way off...
This made Wang Ye realize, pushing himself to work overtime and boost performance only harmed his body and didn't seem to have any other effect.
"Once I get the work injury compensation, I'll take this money and go on a trip to relax."
Wang Ye murmured to himself, resting his hands behind his head.
...
[Body: 0.6 (Normal person is 1)]
[Divine: 0.4 (Normal person is 1)]
[Evolution Level: 10.0 (Normal person is 10)]
[Consistent Evolution, Evolution Level increases by one point each day.]
[Skill: Running lv1 (12%)
Walking lv4 (43%)]
"Huh..."
Wang Ye slightly lifted his half-closed eyelids, feeling like he was hallucinating.
But after rubbing his eyes, repeatedly confirming, the light screen before him still did not disappear.
Only then did he slightly furrow his brows, realizing this was not simple.
This could really be a system—upon realizing this, his groggy brain felt like it received a shot of adrenaline, with a muffled thump of blood rushing to his head.
It wasn't until a nurse came in to draw five tubes of blood that he snapped out of his dazed state.
"A personal attribute panel, a system common in novels about leveling up?"
Wang Ye stopped the bleeding by pressing a cotton swab with his right elbow, looking at the panel that no one else could see.
While thinking, he used the fingertip of his bent arm to rub the stubble on his chin, producing a fine rasping sound.
'Body' represents physical quality.
'Divine' represents responsiveness, willpower, and so on.
Then what does 'Evolution Level' mean?
Before Wang Ye could figure it out.
His parents returned from the cafeteria and entered the ward, placing the meal box they carried on the bedside table, pulling out the medical tray on the hospital bed, and arranging a white porridge bun and a boiled egg on the table.
His mother, Li Yan, instructed, "Xiao Ye, eat slowly, you've just woken up from a coma and can only eat light foods."
Though Wang Ye wasn't fond of bland food, due to hunger, he had no choice but to pick up chopsticks, take the meal box, and start gulping porridge.
Seeing Wang Ye eat well, looking much more spirited, they relaxed and said, "Since you're fine now, we'll head back first."
"Alright, just be safe on the way back, don't hesitate to spend the fare on a cab. If you lack money, tell me, I have some savings now." Wang Ye wiped his mouth with a tissue and nodded.
Throughout his three-day coma, his parents had been taking turns caring for him in the hospital.
Now they were almost fully exhausted, hence they should go back for a proper rest.
"Keep some money for yourself to find a wife."
Li Yan washed an apple for Wang Ye, handed it to him, shaking her head, blaming: "Always just work work, even the matchmaking candidate we found you, you don't meet them, I don't know what to say to you..."
"..." Wang Ye bit into the apple, remaining silent.
"By the way, the doctor advised you, once you're well enough, to go outside to get sunlight and exercise." Li Yan frowned and scolded: "Also, stop ordering those takeaway junk foods, it's unhealthy. You've grown so much and still don't let us worry less."
"Also, remember to occasionally wash and eat the fruits your colleagues gave, and if you can't finish, give them to other patients, wasting them would be a shame." His father, Wang Zhi, also reminded.
"Got it." Wang Ye nodded slightly.
After a sigh, his parents walked out of the ward.
Lying in the hospital bed, Wang Ye nibbled the apple while watching the costume drama playing on the ward TV.
On the surface, he was watching a melodramatic costume drama, but inwardly he was contemplating the system he had just awakened.
So far, he had tried several methods, but the system neither allowed him to allocate points nor to sign in.
The only two aspects that caught his attention were 'Evolution Level' and 'Skill'. But both of these required practice or time to verify.
"Sigh..."
Watching the latest costume drama playing on the TV,
Wang Ye suddenly felt a bit nauseated.
So he picked up the remote from the bedside table and turned off the TV.
Rubbing his stomach, Wang Ye realized his digestive system was feeling uncomfortable. It seemed that the food in his stomach couldn't be digested and waves of acid were rising to his throat. This was due to his long-term overindulgence, leading to stomach trouble.
Originally, after eating takeaway, he'd just have some indigestion. But after he fell seriously ill this time, all these minor ailments and symptoms erupted.
They became more severe.
"Ah… my stomach feels bloated and uncomfortable; indeed, I need to exercise a bit." Wang Ye sighed, tossed the leftover apple core into the trash bin, and got out of bed.
He put on a jacket and walked straight out of the ward.
He came to a park under the hospital.
Now, his body was extremely weak, and he couldn't run or do push-ups.
At most, he could brisk walk a little to lightly exercise.
While walking on the track in the park, he casually observed the surrounding scenery, and the many faces and stories, like old men walking their dogs, moms taking their kids for a stroll, affectionate couples, freelancers with cameras...
Ever since entering society, he rarely had such opportunities to leisurely walk in the park and enjoy the scenery.
Now, stealing half a day's leisure, experiencing the tastes of life, he had a unique insight. This made him more determined to enjoy life after recovering.
Even though he was just recovering from a serious illness and felt lethargic, it didn't stop him from sighing over life.
Wang Ye walked a few steps and started to pant lightly.
His brisk walking speed was faster than others.
His pace had completely shifted from strolling to something closer to jogging.
His whole body gradually became hotter, until he was soaked in sweat, face flushed and hot.
He exercised to practice his stamina, lose weight, and improve issues like fatty liver and high blood pressure, so of course, he should add some intensity.
However, even so, his walking speed was only slightly faster than the old men strolling with their dogs and kids.
The pedestrians nearby, seeing a fat man in a hospital gown panting hard while brisk walking on the track, couldn't help but look on in surprise.
Time passed.
Wang Ye sat on a bench at the side of the park, panting slightly.
He took out a tissue, wiped the sweat from his cheeks, unscrewed his water bottle, and took a sip of water.
He exhaled a breath of turbid air and called up his personal panel to see if there was any change.
Suddenly.
He noticed a new notification bar in his panel.
[You practiced walking and gained some insights, skill level increased by 5.5%.]
[Walking lv4 (48.5%)]
"Although it's just walking, it proves that the personal panel can indeed enhance skill levels." Wang Ye nodded in satisfaction, feeling that some walking insights in his mind also improved accordingly.
Since walking can improve skill levels,
it means that running, fighting, Martial Arts, and even Cultivation Techniques can also improve skill levels.
However, for now, aside from running and walking, he didn't have any other skills worth training.
After wiping off the sweat and resting briefly, Wang Ye returned to the hospital.
Since he had just awakened from a three-day coma, his vitality was naturally lacking.
Coupled with years of sedentary overtime work, his muscles had severely atrophied.
Now, after just half an hour of exercise, his physical strength had reached its limit.
Back in the ward, Wang Ye took a shower to rinse off the stinky sweat, then munched on a few apples his colleague had brought.
After a few bites, feeling less hungry, he fell into a deep sleep.
In his dreams.
Wang Ye dreamt of returning to when he was eighteen. At that time, he loved sports and often went to the track or gym to exercise, which gave him a good physique, and he received many love letters from female classmates.
His ex-girlfriend was also someone he had met back then.
However, not long after entering society, the two broke up because of various trivial matters.
He didn't know how long had passed in the dream.
...
The next morning.
The first ray of sunlight fell on Wang Ye's eyelids.
He awoke, sat up from the white hospital bed, and rubbed his drowsy eyes.
Then he picked up the water cup from the bedside, brought it to his mouth, and prepared to moisten his lips that had dried from long sleep.
After taking a sip of water,
Wang Ye prepared to place the water cup back on the bedside.
Crash!!
Suddenly.
The bottom of the cup slammed onto the cabinet surface with a bang, the porcelain cup shattered from the shock, breaking into two pieces,
spilling water all over the floor, as the body of the cup rolled and crashed into pieces.
Wang Ye looked at the cup handle remaining in his palm, momentarily stunned.
"Did I just… break the cup…?"