I loaded the Mysticism panel.

As I opened the door, the aroma of stew wafted from the kitchen.

"You're back?" Her mother's voice came from the kitchen.

"Um."

He took off his coat and hung it on the hook by the door, then hurried upstairs.

Close the door and bolt it.

He went to the desk drawer and opened the innermost compartment.

The copper coin was wrapped in a small piece of linen and nestled deep inside the interlayer.

The incense burner was placed in the second drawer, with an old handkerchief as a cushion.

He first took out the copper coins and then untied the linen cloth.

There was very little ether left after the last absorption, and the copper coin was no different from an ordinary old copper coin.

He placed the copper coin in his palm and focused his mind on the control panel.

The number jumped.

0.94……0.96, and then stopped moving after jumping.

There was indeed only one coin left in the copper coin.

He held on for another ten seconds or so.

0.97, another jump, even slower, then completely silent.

He squeezed the copper coins dry and placed them on the table.

Copper coins that have lost their ether deposits look no different from ordinary scrap copper.

Its surface luster has completely faded, and if you mix it with a pile of scrap copper coins, no one can tell what it once represented.

Next up is the incense burner.

He opened the drawer and took out the small incense burner.

This incense burner is slightly larger than a copper coin; it can be held in the palm of your hand.

When I placed my palm on it, the panel reacted.

0.98, slightly faster than copper coins.

0.99, 1.00, he breathed a sigh of relief and continued to wait.

By version 1.03, the incense burner was empty.

Loosen your fingers.

1.03 points are available, that's enough.

Richard put the empty incense burner back into the drawer.

Like copper coins, the incense burner became a completely ordinary old object after losing its ether.

He did not touch the Sphinx lamp.

Version 1.03 has already exceeded the threshold of one point. There's no need to use the remaining ether in the oil lamp now; let's save it.

That lamp also has research value.

Richard sat down at the table and focused his attention entirely on the panel.

[Breathing Lv.2] Progress: 93.02%

The points are ready.

The progress bar still has one last step to go.

However, it remains to be seen whether to invest this point in advancing [Breathing]; another option is to invest in [Perception].

Whether to save it until the [Breathing] progress bar is full for further advancement, or to activate [Perception], depends on Sunday's inspiration test.

If you have enough inspiration, save it; if not, light it up and try to pass the test.

From [Breathing] to [Knowledge], and then to [Eating] and [Sleeping], there are no special prompts for each item up to Lv.2.

The real turning point is at Lv.3.

Breathing Lv.3's "Healing" and Knowledge Lv.3's "Knowledgeable" are both excellent qualities, but the prerequisites for both are not simple.

So what are the three skills—eating, sleeping, and walking—like at Lv.3?

His gaze fell on the column for available points.

Preview of advanced requirements; no points are consumed, only viewing is available.

This is a feature he has used repeatedly over the past few months.

The consciousness first focused on "eating" and then pushed it in.

A preview of the conditions will pop up in the panel.

This feature is now available. To advance to the next level, you must meet the following requirements:

Level 2 progress 100%; 1 available point; Actively ingested one portion of a clearly toxic substance, which was then completely metabolized by the body.

A smaller line of text followed below:

"Unlockable Effect Preview - Eating & Filtering: "

The body acquires significant resistance to toxins, putrefactive substances, and parasites.

The unlock conditions were much milder than he had imagined.

Slightly moldy bread, mildly toxic wild mushrooms, meat that's a few days past its expiration date, and some undercooked beans... You can find several safe-to-eat "poisonous" items in your home kitchen.

He doesn't even need to make a special trip to the pharmacy or the suburbs.

After unlocking the trait, he will at least have an extra layer of buffer against any underhanded tactics.

Moreover, he felt that since level three was for special traits, perhaps level five would be for advanced traits.

[Filter] What will the advanced version be?

How to transform toxins and harmful substances into nutrients, or even acquire the characteristics of ingesting substances?

Pulling himself out of his thoughts, he closed the preview of "Eating" and clicked on "Sleeping".

This feature is now available. To advance to the next level, you must meet the following requirements:

Level reached Lv.2, progress 100%; 1 available point; completed a full deep sleep in an unfamiliar and disadvantageous location.

"Unlockable Effect Preview - Sleeping - Wilderness Sleep:"

It allows for rapid sleep and high-quality repair in any environment, while light sleep retains awareness of danger.

He can't gather the necessary funds for this one yet.

His home in Slag Lane, his classroom in Greenwood, his guest room in Ashford—everywhere he could go was safe and comfortable.

He knew exactly when the stray cat in front of his house meowed every day, so it couldn't be described as "unfamiliar and unsettling".

He must at least leave his known safe zone.

Finally, there's walking.

This feature is now available. To advance to the next level, you must meet the following requirements:

Level 2 completed (100% progress); 1 available point; Completed one long-distance trek across two days, traversing treacherous terrain (mountains, swamps, snowfields, forests, scree slopes, etc.) without using any means of transportation.

"Unlockable Effect Preview - Walking Without Tire: "

The rate of fatigue accumulation in muscles, joints, and the cardiopulmonary system is significantly reduced, resulting in near-flat-ground walking efficiency on complex terrain.

Richard leaned back in his chair and watched for a while longer.

[Walking] is the last of his three skills to be unlocked, and he is still quite far from reaching Lv.2.

My daily commute to and from school, along with my runs near the slag heap alley, is just enough to maintain my basic fitness level.

However, the unlocking conditions are more tricky than those for "sleeping".

There are no mountains around Briston; the nearest highlands and hills are in other counties, and it takes half a day to get there by train each way.

Winter snow makes the "snowfield" readily available, but he obviously can't go out into the snowy wilderness alone for two days in winter.

If the winter break internship involves fieldwork, northern mountainous areas, or long-distance travel.

Theoretically, both the [Wild Sleep] and [Tireless] attributes can be unlocked at the same time.

Two puzzle pieces, put them together at once.

He also removed the preview of the "walking" video.

Richard took out a notebook in ancient Greek from another drawer.

Learn a little bit every day, and you'll accumulate knowledge gradually. If you want to become a scholar, mastering multiple ancient languages ​​is a fundamental skill.

The sound of bowls and plates clattering came from downstairs; my mother was calling me to dinner.

"Richard! Come down for dinner!"

"They're here!"

He closed the notebook, locked it in the drawer, and walked briskly down the stairs.

Actually, the salted beef tongue that my mother had told me to "throw away if you don't eat it soon" was a good candidate.

But there's no rush to unlock the basic condition of "eating"; we can do that when we have enough points.

Otherwise, if I get an upset stomach now, I'll be listless for at least a day or two, which will seriously affect my daily studies and practice.

………………

Briston experienced its heaviest rainfall of the winter so far.

The winter rain lashed against the windowpane with a loud crackling sound, and the drainage pipes under the eaves whistled as the wind blew in.

Richard lay in bed for a while, lost in thought, when he suddenly realized he was a little hungry.

My stomach is twisting, and there's a hand pulling me out of my abdominal cavity.

He threw back the covers, sat up, and touched his stomach.

The numbers on the panel hung quietly at the edge of my field of vision:

[Eating Lv.1] Progress: 100%

and many more.

He fixed his gaze on that line of text.

When he scanned the panel for the last time before going to bed yesterday, the progress was still at 99%.

After a good night's sleep, the percentage points were automatically filled in.

Last night before going to bed, he ate two almond cookies that Grey had given him; those two cookies probably pushed the progress bar past the finish line.

Just like when upgrading breathing, upgrading from Lv.1 to Lv.2 is free and does not cost points.

[Eating Lv.2] Progress: 0%

The changes unfolded within seconds.

The churning hunger in my stomach didn't subside; instead, it became even more intense.

Hunger in the past was vague and general; my entire abdominal cavity was screaming, "Give me food!"

The hunger I feel now is precise; my stomach is telling me what I'm lacking, how much I'm lacking, and which type to prioritize replenishing.

Protein, fat, carbohydrates, and minerals.

The four needs were broken down into four independent signals, which lined up and reported to the consciousness.

Proteins are number one, and their signals are the strongest.

During this period, he has been building muscle, and the passive strengthening of his breathing and walking has caused his body to consume building materials every day.

Warren's lunch and Grey's breakfast provided far more protein than ever before, but the body's needs grew even faster.

Supply has been chasing demand, but it has never caught up.

Fat is the second most common nutrient.

In winter, the body loses heat more quickly, and subcutaneous fat reserves are almost zero.

His body was so thin you could feel his ribs; he relied entirely on clothes and the fireplace to keep warm.

Carbohydrates and minerals are ranked lower, with a weaker signal, belonging to the "eat if you have them, don't rush if you don't" level.

Richard sat on the edge of the bed, processing these changes.

The Lv.2 eating skill is essentially like installing a nutrition management system on him.

He can now proactively control two things.

First, absorption efficiency.

Every bite of food we eat is thoroughly processed by the digestive tract to extract every last drop of usable nutrients, minimizing the loss rate.

For the average person, the digestion and absorption rate of a slice of bread is very low, and most of it is excreted along with the residue.

But his absorption efficiency is much higher than that of ordinary people.

Given limited food supplies, he can obtain the same amount of nutrition with less food.

Second, the reserve model.

If food supplies are plentiful, he can consume far more food than normal in a single meal.

The body will temporarily store excess nutrients and slowly release, digest, and distribute them over the next few hours or even a day or two.

These two capabilities are mirror images of each other.

On one hand, we should cut back on spending, eating less but eating well; on the other hand, we should increase our income, eating more and storing it.

Richard got dressed and went downstairs, where Evelyn was already sitting at the dining table.

"Why did you take so long to come down today?" she asked, chewing on a piece of bread.

"I slept a little longer."

His mother brought out his portion of fried eggs and bread from the kitchen and placed it on the table.

Richard sat down, picked up his knife and fork, and cut the fried egg.

The egg yolk wasn't fully set yet; after cutting it open, a small pool of it spilled onto the edge of the plate.

He dipped the egg yolk completely in bread and ate it, then ate two more slices of bread.

After eating, it felt like the contents of my stomach had been thrown into a well, and I was still far from reaching the bottom.

"Mom, is there any bread left?"

The sound of dishes clattering came from the kitchen: "Yes, there are two pieces left."

Give them all to me.

Evelyn stopped talking.

She turned to look at her brother, her gray eyes filled with "I knew it."

"Your appetite has been increasing lately."

Her tone was somewhat unfriendly:

"At this rate, you'll probably finish our family's entire month's bread ration by the middle of the month."

"It's not that bad." Richard took the bread his mother handed him and stuffed a big bite into his mouth.

"Besides, Warren treats you to lunch at school, and you eat dinner as usual when you come back."

She gestured the name on the table with breadcrumbs:

"You eat more in a day than your dad does."

If Evelyn knew Eastern proverbs, she would probably blurt out: "A half-grown boy can eat his father out of house and home."

Richard also knew that his appetite had been steadily increasing during this period.

The reason is simple: the passive reinforcement of breathing and walking causes the body to constantly rebuild muscle and bone density, requiring more and more fuel.

At school, Warren and Grey were there to cover everything, but at home, food expenses had to be carefully managed.

If he eats one more bite, others will have one less bite, and his mother will have to spend a few more pennies to buy groceries and bread.

"Don't worry." He took a sip of tea and swallowed the last bite of bread.

"I can control it from now on."

"Control what? Control your appetite?" Evelyn asked with a skeptical look.

But his sister only nagged him; she didn't actually argue with him about the bread.

Bread doesn't cost much; you could eat until you're stuffed and it wouldn't cost more than a few shillings.

After complaining, she got up to clear the dishes, turning back at the kitchen door to give a final word of advice:

"From now on, you can eat more bread at home and more meat at school. Anyway, Warren has money."