The System is Abstract, Luckily, So Am I

After returning home, Lin Li showered and slept, waking up at noon.

After eating at the community cafeteria's Chinese buffet, he returned home to continue translating the Eight-Stage Body Forging Technique.

Time passed quickly like this. With previous accumulation, the later speed was quite fast, and the translation was nearing completion within two days.

Lin Li was originally quite pleased—this sense of conquest from getting correct answers after hard translation work—until:

"Why are there answer keys at the back!"

But Lin Li quickly realized something was wrong. He had browsed through everything at the beginning—such a large section of modern Chinese, Lin Li couldn't have missed it.

"Translation is a necessary process? After I 'comprehend' it, the answers appear to prevent me from getting details wrong?"

This technique was smarter than the system.

This was good news, so Lin Li didn't think much more about it.

Chapters one, three, five, and seven didn't require spiritual energy assistance, but the other four did.

Odd-numbered chapters formed one body forging method, even-numbered chapters formed another. Not learning chapter two wouldn't prevent starting chapter three directly after chapter one.

As for the grand vision the technique painted—if he could completely master it, even without relying on spiritual energy, his bodily functions could rapidly increase, approaching human limits.

Of course, this "human" couldn't include Hanma Yujiro.

Retsu Kaioh wouldn't work either. The image of Retsu Kaioh surviving with just a head and baby body was something Lin Li could never forget.

The spiritual energy chapters would transform his body into a shape spiritual energy liked, becoming spiritual energy's stress ball.

Increasing spiritual energy utilization efficiency—when using or absorbing spiritual energy in the future, one piece could be split into two.

For Lin Li, this was more important than super spiritual sensitivity.

After all, he was indeed 'poor.'

Although splitting zero in half was still zero.

Seeing this grand vision, Lin Li became even more passionate.

Sunday morning, Lin Li practiced with even more vigor, even doing an extra round after completing the task.

But the result was that his body's feedback was much worse than before.

His flesh was more tired, and his spirit wasn't as satisfied as before.

Lin Li thought about it—the system's arrangement for him should be the most suitable technique practice duration and length. He didn't need to gild the lily.

However, Lin Li also noticed something.

Old Zhou was really planning to steal his technique.

Disrespectful elder.

These past two days, he barely practiced tai chi, or when he did, he was just going through motions with his peripheral vision focused on Lin Li—Lin Li noticed this every time he took brief rests.

Good thing it was an old man, otherwise it would be a stalker crush.

Perhaps precisely because he was a martial artist, he could see the extraordinary nature of Eight-Stage Body Forging Technique at a glance.

He still couldn't underestimate people in this world.

Just a bit too brazen—facing Lin Li's gaze, Zhou Youwei never flinched, making eye contact with righteous dignity.

How could he steal so confidently?

But Lin Li didn't plan to change practice locations because of this.

After all, this was the martial arts junior who had completed a task with him once. Consider this feedback as his opportunity—it was hard to successfully steal the technique anyway. If he succeeded, good for him.

...

Sunday night.

Although still technically within weekend range, for Nansang Middle School students, everything was over.

So when Lin Li arrived at the classroom, everyone looked lifeless with souls separated from bodies.

Most had already sat at their desks and begun writing weekend homework they hadn't touched.

The abstract kids in the back rows weren't part of this majority.

Not because they'd finished their homework, but because they were treasuring these last dozen minutes of freedom.

"Heaven above, if I listen to 'Reverse Clock' once, can I return to the weekend?" Bai Bufan stood with Zhou Baowei on the storage cabinets at the back of the classroom, praying loudly.

"Listening once probably won't work, but if you listen for five days you can return to the weekend." Lin Li, putting down his backpack, said to Bai Bufan.

"..."

"Don't say it, really don't say it. Lin Li, you're fucking a genius at controlling time." Bai Bufan wanted to speak but hesitated, hesitated but wanted to speak, giving a thumbs up.

"Thanks. Damn, Baowei, what did you do over the weekend? Did someone absorb your yang energy?" Lin Li walked to the two, seeing Zhou Baowei's dark circles, and clicked his tongue.

"He definitely spent the weekend being a fierce terracotta warrior." Bai Bufan shrugged.

"Terracotta warriors are good, guarding Qin Shi Huang is satisfying, everyone understands, but you can't overindulge." Lin Li immediately understood Bai Bufan's meaning but still advised.

"No choice, you know Baowei's self-control. One day without being a terracotta toilet accumulates yang virtue, two days without being one accumulates yang-yang virtue." Bai Bufan sighed deeply.

"Then there's indeed no saving him." Lin Li nodded.

Zhou Baowei nearby had black lines on his forehead: "Can you two fucking not spread yellow rumors without considering the parties involved? Terrible men, I'm fucking like this just from staying up all night gaming."

Two beasts doing crosstalk, not caring about the parties involved, right?

Mainly, the girls who just came to get things from storage lockers were looking at him strangely!

"Is it Genshin Impact?"

"No."

"Great, you're still salvageable." Bai Bufan breathed a sigh of relief.

"What's wrong with you?"

"So you didn't spend the weekend as a terracotta warrior?" Lin Li asked.

"...That's another matter entirely." Zhou Baowei laughed dryly, then lowered his voice: "But have you heard? A massage parlor near our school was apparently shut down because they were secretly providing those services. I heard someone reported it."

"How do you know?"

"My brother's dating prospect who likes to travel got arrested. We found out through investigation. The matchmaker's family tree has been thoroughly cursed by my parents."

"Is that fucking traveling? That's flying nationwide!" Bai Bufan laughed.

"Yeah, my brother heard she liked the sea. Now he knows she liked the Mediterranean. She said she matured early—turns out the chairman had already formatted her properly." Zhou Baowei curled his lips. "Quite grateful to that reporting brother. Otherwise my honest brother almost became a sucker."

Lin Li smiled proudly.

He was a party to this, experienced the whole process. Bai Bufan and Zhou Baowei could rack their brains and never imagine the protagonist was right beside them.

After accomplishing the deed, brushing off his clothes and leaving, deeply hiding merit and fame—this was simply him.

"No need to thank him, this is what he should do." Lin Li smiled ethereally.

"I wasn't planning to thank him." Zhou Baowei shook his head.

Lin Li: "?"

I was just speaking casually, but you really won't thank him?

Why don't you kowtow to me a few times on behalf of your whole family?

"One thing at a time. I declare him expelled from the male gender, classified among the girlies. May he shrink ten centimeters." Zhou Baowei shook his head.

"Indeed, I estimate he spent a lot of money but was too quick, finished in one minute, got more regretful thinking about it, so he backstabbed them." Bai Bufan chuckled.

"Quick? That's dysfunction!"

The two actually began speculating about that hero with maximum malice.

Lin Li: "?"

Somewhat impolite.

Men's faces changed too quickly.

"I don't think you should have such malice toward a stranger." Lin Li shook his head. "The reporter ultimately did good. This is completely different from reporting websites or group chats."

"The reasoning is right, what he did was right, but I want to curse him." Bai Bufan nodded then shook his head.

"Why?"

"Because I have no class. My values were consolidated by Hanta." Bai Bufan declared loudly.

"..." Lin Li was speechless.

Honesty was indeed a killing move. Bai Bufan was finished for life.

"I suddenly have urgent business, gotta go." Bai Bufan's expression changed as he noticed classmates entering through the door.

"Lin Li! Hold down this dog! Damn, actually hiding back in the classroom. You understand the most dangerous place is the safest place. Good thing we came back to check." The other gaming buddies from the weekend stormed over aggressively, shouting.

"What happened?" Lin Li asked curiously.

"Hehe, I admit I played a bit problematically over the weekend, so I agreed that if you caught me before class you could give me the Arabian Goggles treatment. But sorry, class is about to start. As long as I run out the back door, all is well." Bai Bufan laughed heartily.

When people are hungry, food comes.

He was indeed the protagonist chosen by the system. Lin Li smiled with relief.

"Lin Li! Hold him down!"

"Lin Li won't betray—"

"Click."

Bai Bufan's words cut off abruptly as he turned to see Lin Li locking the back door.

Lin Li didn't look at him but said to the classmates at the front door: "I'm not very strong, afraid I can't hold him down. Locking the door is more reliable."

Bai Bufan: "?"

...

"Why do this to me?"

When Bai Bufan was head-down, legs-up, body slowly advancing toward the door frame, sadness burned in the golden pupils reflecting his upside-down best friend. Ancient bell sounds seemed to ring within his body, his eyes hiding lions that had lost everything.

"Because my values were consolidated by 'Family Guy.' Giggity, giggity, all right~~"

(End of Chapter)