5 Chapter 5: Dream Butterfly_1

Having crossed over so many years ago, Xu Yang had thoroughly familiarized himself with his golden finger.

To develop a skill was simple, just one word—do!

As long as one persisted, year in and year out, even the most trivial of tasks could forge a skill, create a trait, and grant one the power to turn the decrepit into the miraculous.

But this doing came with requirements; one must complete all aspects of a task. Only then can one say they have "done" something. It was through this accumulated effort that a skill could be cultivated.

Take breathing as an example, one must complete the actions of "inhaling" and "exhaling" for it to count as one breath.

Therefore, only by "doing" can one cultivate a skill; there is no scenario where "not doing" also counts as doing.

What does "not doing" mean?

Continuing with the example of breathing, if breathing can generate a skill, what about not breathing? Can that generate a skill?

Or not eating, not drinking water, not sleeping, not cultivating—can these reverse "not doing" actions generate a skill?

Clearly not.

Xu Yang was certain of this. In order to conceal his robust Qi Blood and avoid suspicion, he had not married for many years, even spreading a fabricated rumor about having an injury to his manhood to avoid taking a wife, having children, and he had never once visited even the half-concealed brothels.

In doing so, for these many decades, he certainly didn't develop any "abstinence from visiting prostitutes" type of skill.

Not even a skill like "celibacy" had surfaced.

Thus, Xu Yang was sure that one couldn't cultivate a skill from "not doing."

One had to earnestly do something, complete it, and with continuous effort, it would crystallize into a skill on the Attribute Panel.

And this doing had its conditions; it was not enough for one to subjectively feel they had done something—it had to be truly completed.

For instance, with martial arts, when his memory first recovered, Xu Yang thought to combine the knowledge from before his transmigration with the Attribute Panel—perhaps through Tai Chi Fist, military boxing, calisthenics, etc., to see if he could cultivate any martial skills.

It resulted in nothing.

Xu Yang guessed that this was likely because the punches he threw were not systematic. In the system's judgement, what he was doing wasn't practicing any Fist Skill at all, but rather flailing his limbs randomly, which naturally wouldn't generate any "Fist Skill," but at most something like "waving hands" or "physical exercise."

Although exercise could enhance his combat ability, it was time-consuming and inefficient, far less practical than quietly swinging a sword at night, so he simply gave it up and chose to swing a sword, thus cultivating the "chopping" skill.

But a single chopping skill clearly wasn't enough; Xu Yang needed a more formidable combat ability, such as learning a legitimate martial art.

Yet, Xu Yang didn't have access to any martial arts now!

There was no choice but to settle for less, to continue doing things with destructive power, like throwing stones, which then could forge the "Flying Stone."

From this point, extensions like flying knives, Flying Swords, and Flying Tridents could also possess some attack power and lethality.

But could these things take on a Martial Artist?

Xu Yang wasn't sure.

Through observation and experimentation, the Skill Traits generated on the Attribute Panel indeed had the power to turn the decrepit into the miraculous; some could even be considered Divine Skills or spells, beyond the scope of mortals.

Take Flying Stone as an example; if Xu Yang's Flying Stone skill developed a "Never Miss" trait, then his Flying Stone would indeed never miss, hitting the target with 100% accuracy, even if the opponent used extraordinary evasion techniques, flying to the heavens or burrowing into the earth, they couldn't escape his "Never Miss" Flying Stone.

But guaranteeing a hit was one thing; dealing damage after the hit was another matter entirely, which still depended on the effect of the Skill Traits.

So, Xu Yang was uncertain if he could cultivate skills and traits with substantial lethality to face the upcoming array of hidden dangers and threats.

Thus, after much thought, he still didn't have any effective plan or solution.

However, Xu Yang wasn't anxious. His decades of steadfast concealment had greatly honed his patience. Although the current situation was somewhat tricky, it wasn't at the level of a true life-and-death crisis, and it certainly could not throw him into disarray.

If no solution presented itself, then he would let be. When the time came, a path would unfold before the mountain, and the bridge would straighten out once the boat arrived. There would always be a way.

Harboring this mindset, Xu Yang indulged in another pot of delicious river delicacy porridge and then comfortably fell asleep fully clothed.

Sleep (Calms the Mind, Nourishes Life, Strengthens the Body, Reduces Illness, Prolongs Life)

The traits of sleep need no elaboration. Calming the mind affects one's spirit; nourishing life cultivates the Essence, benefiting the body. With additional benefits like strengthening the body, reducing illness, and prolonging life, Xu Yang's robust physique was largely nurtured by sleep, with the other half attributed to his diet.

Eat well, sleep well, and the body naturally flourishes!

Beyond strengthening the body and extending life, the skill of sleep also had a hidden advantage—being able to sleep whenever desired, falling asleep the moment one closed their eyes, forever free from the troubles of insomnia.

Xu Yang slumbered dressed as he was, his consciousness sinking into a warm, calming ocean. In his hazy state, he saw skyscrapers, bustling traffic, as if he had crossed back again, returning to that glittering modern city to resume a monotonous life of mindless routine.

Was it real or false, good or bad?

Xu Yang couldn't say, caught between sleep and wakefulness, his dreams inverted, lost in that hallucinatory world.

In this state, after an indeterminate amount of time, every image was erased, dissolving into darkness.

Then, that darkness was pierced by flickering lights, the sound of water, the wind, and the calls of Fish Eagles, along with the familiar fishy scent rushing into his senses, rousing the slumbering him back to reality.