The first experience working at the convenience store was simpler than Yinuo had imagined.
Sunday evening at six o'clock, he arrived punctually at the store entrance. The middle-aged woman was already waiting for him, and beside her stood a young man in his twenties wearing the same convenience store uniform.
"This is Xiao Li, he'll teach you the basic operations." The woman pointed at the young man, then turned to pick up her bag and prepare to leave. "I'm heading out first. You two watch the store until midnight. If you have any questions, ask Xiao Li."
Xiao Li led Yinuo behind the cash register and began explaining how to use the checkout system. Scan the product barcode, enter the amount, give change, print the receipt. The operational process wasn't complicated, and Yinuo quickly mastered the basic steps.
"There aren't many people on weekend evenings, mainly nearby residents buying some snacks and drinks." Xiao Li said. "If you encounter drunk customers, don't get into conflicts—just call the police. Same with thieves—prioritize your own safety first."
Yinuo nodded and made note of these precautions.
The first few hours were relatively calm. Customers came in sporadically, buying cigarettes, buying drinks, buying instant noodles. Yinuo completed the checkout work according to the procedures he'd learned. Xiao Li was responsible for restocking and organizing the shelves, occasionally coming over to check whether Yinuo's operations were correct.
Around nine in the evening, a middle-aged man in sportswear walked into the store. He circled between the shelves, finally taking two cans of beer and walking to the register.
"Twelve yuan." Yinuo said.
The man took out his phone to scan and pay, and the register made a notification sound. Yinuo was about to print the receipt when he suddenly felt a strange atmosphere.
The feeling was hard to describe, as if the air had suddenly acquired some kind of taut tension. Yinuo raised his head and saw the man staring at him. That gaze carried a certain scrutiny, as if evaluating something.
A few seconds later, the man picked up the beer and turned to leave. The bell on the door rang once, and his figure disappeared into the night.
Yinuo stood in place, recalling that feeling just now. It wasn't ordinary attention, but something more aggressive. He thought of the "killing intent" mentioned in the booklet. Although the situation just now was far from reaching that level, perhaps it was some similar kind of threat perception.
"What's wrong?" Xiao Li walked over from behind the shelves.
"Nothing." Yinuo shook his head. "That customer just now was a bit strange."
Xiao Li glanced outside the door: "Oh, that guy. He lives nearby, comes to buy things often. He's a bit cold, but there's no problem with him."
Yinuo didn't continue this topic. Perhaps he was too sensitive, or perhaps the training had made him more alert to the atmosphere around him. He continued standing behind the register, waiting for the next customer.
At exactly midnight, the store door closed. Xiao Li and Yinuo counted the cash in the register together. After confirming the amount was correct, the two left separately.
Yinuo walked on the road home with his backpack. The street was already very quiet. Occasionally a taxi would drive past, its headlights cutting through the night. He looked at his phone—twelve-twenty. He'd probably get home around twelve-thirty, finish washing up at twelve-forty-five, and even at the fastest would only lie down to sleep around one in the morning. Tomorrow morning he still had to get up at five to train—only four hours of sleep.
This schedule was even tighter than before, but Yinuo felt he could handle it. What mattered was that the morning training time was protected, and he could also earn an extra two hundred yuan each week.
When he returned home, his parents were already asleep. Yinuo walked into his room quietly and put the one hundred yuan he'd earned today into his drawer. He changed his clothes, washed up briefly, and lay on the bed.
In the darkness, he closed his eyes and began adjusting his breathing. Although his body was very tired, he still followed the training method, allowing his consciousness to gradually descend. His breathing became even, and the sounds around him gradually became clear. The occasional car sounds from downstairs, the night construction sounds from the distant worksite, the slight creaking of the bed frame when the neighbor next door turned over.
After about ten minutes, Yinuo felt his body enter a shallow relaxation state. This wasn't complete meditation training, just a method for quick energy recovery. He had gradually figured it out during the past month of training—through short-term consciousness descent, the body could get more effective rest.
At one-fifteen in the morning, Yinuo fell completely asleep.
The next morning at five o'clock, the alarm rang on time. Yinuo opened his eyes, feeling his head was a bit foggy, but still within the bearable range. He sat up and began today's meditation training on the bed.
For the rest of the week, Yinuo maintained the new daily rhythm. Monday through Friday attending school normally, practicing blindfolded walking by the river after school, then returning home to do homework. On weekends working at the convenience store, using daytime hours for concentrated training.
Wednesday afternoon, Yinuo encountered Chen Hao again on his way home from school.
This time it wasn't at the small park, but in a narrow alley on the necessary route home. Chen Hao and his two friends stood in the middle of the alley, clearly waiting for him.
Yinuo stopped walking, maintaining a distance of about three meters.
"Long time no see, Jin Yinuo." Chen Hao's voice carried a certain teasing tone. "I heard you got a part-time job on weekends? Where at?"
Yinuo didn't answer. He looked at the three people's positions—Chen Hao in the middle, the two friends on the left and right sides respectively, forming a semi-encircling formation. If he wanted to go around them, he would have to pass from the side, which would expose his back to one of them.
"Not talking? Then we'll walk with you for a bit." Chen Hao took a step forward.
Yinuo's body instantly entered a certain state of alertness. He could feel his heartbeat quicken, his breathing become shallow, his muscles slightly tense. This was the body's natural reaction when facing a threat, similar to the feeling when encountering obstacles during normal training, but more intense.
Chen Hao took another step forward, shortening the distance to about two meters. His two friends also moved forward simultaneously, the three slowly tightening the encirclement.
Yinuo took a deep breath, letting his breathing stabilize again. He recalled a passage from the booklet: "When facing a threat, abandon thought and let the body judge for itself. Consciousness will fear, will hesitate, will calculate gains and losses. The subconscious will only produce the optimal solution."
He closed his eyes for about one second, then opened them again.
The world around him suddenly became clear. He could hear Chen Hao's breathing, could feel the direction of wind blowing in from the alley entrance, could judge the respective positions and distances of the three people. This information formed a three-dimensional spatial model in his mind, more precise than usual.
Chen Hao saw Yinuo's action of closing and opening his eyes and frowned.
"What are you doing?"
Yinuo didn't answer. He took a step to the right, the movement smooth and natural. The friend on the right instinctively reached out wanting to block him, but Yinuo's body had already turned sideways to avoid it, passing through the gap between the two.
The entire process happened very quickly. By the time Chen Hao reacted, Yinuo had already walked out of the encirclement and was standing at the other end of the alley.
"You fucking..." Chen Hao turned around wanting to chase after him, but Yinuo had already quickened his pace and left the alley, soon disappearing around the corner.
Chen Hao stood in place, his expression dark. The two friends beside him were also somewhat bewildered, not understanding what had just happened.
"How did he suddenly get so fast?" one of them asked.
Chen Hao didn't answer. He just stared at the direction where Yinuo had disappeared, his eyes carrying a certain unease and irritation.
Yinuo didn't stop until he reached the bottom of his building. He leaned against the wall, feeling his heart still beating violently. In that instant just now, his body had indeed automatically made a judgment. Not a decision after thinking, but some more direct reaction. Seeing the gap, moving the body, completing the evasion. Throughout the entire process, consciousness was just an observer.
This was the second time his body had made the correct choice without conscious guidance.
Yinuo looked up at the sky. The sun had already begun to set in the west, orange-red light spilling onto the tops of buildings. He recalled that sentence from the booklet: subconscious recognition of killing intent, autonomous bodily evasion.
He hadn't yet fully achieved this goal, but at least he was already on the path.
Yinuo went upstairs and returned home, put down his backpack, and took out the booklet from under the bed. He turned to the explanation page for the first stage and wrote another line beside the previous notation: second autonomous reaction, successfully evaded encirclement.
As he closed the booklet, a tiny arc appeared at the corner of Yinuo's mouth.