Wow! The item-dropping rate is really high!

"Awake?"

A deep, husky male voice came from nearby.

Bai E struggled to open his heavy eyelids, and the orange glow of the sunset instantly flooded his vision.

The memories before he passed out surged up—

He was supposed to be undergoing Psychic Pressure Resistance Training.

But it was only the beginning of the afternoon at that time, and now... it was already dusk?

How long had he persisted? And how long had he been unconscious?

The task completion record on the panel provided the answer—he had hung on for 35 minutes, then fell unconscious until now...

The good news was that the task was complete, Mystery Happiness +0.1.

The bad news was that he had been unconscious for way too long. Did this thing really have such severe aftereffects?

A large hand waved in front of him, and the neighboring soldier asked enthusiastically, "Hey, brother, haven't gotten over it yet?"

Bai E blinked, looking towards the owner of the moving arm, while also glimpsing from the corner of his eye the other soldiers who seemed to have been strewn across the ground originally.

They were not too particular about sleeping positions.

He wasn't the first to wake up, but he wasn't the last either, "Does this training always leave you unconscious for so long?"

The soldier waved his hand indifferently, "Hey~ it depends on the person. It's pretty good for your first time in training."

How long you're unconscious isn't a sign of strength, how you perform is what matters.

Not having skewed eyes, slurred speech, or an uncontrolled bladder was already the most impressive feat for a newcomer.

The soldier spoke with warmth, appearing incredibly friendly, "Brother, where were you selected from? I saw our big BOSS personally bring you over, not everyone gets that kind of treatment."

"From that military camp."

"I know from that military camp, only the soldiers with the best performance in their original assignments get directly transferred to our armoured battalion's mech pilot reserve. That's how all of us were chosen," the soldier said with a proud smile, "I mean your original assignment."

"Special forces squad."

"Awesome!"

"Hey? Where do you live?" Another awakened soldier leaned in, asking with curiosity and enthusiasm.

We're all natural-born, and the most important thing in controlling mechs is the close and seamless cooperation between each other; we're all brothers.

Isn't that how relationships heat up by chatting like this?

However, Bai E was taken aback, "Home?"

He shook his head, "I don't have a home..."

"How can you not have a home?" a soldier asked, not quite believing it.

"My home is in the military camp..."

"I mean outside..."

The man who spoke first pulled the other soldiers who had come over to join in the excitement, giving them a knowing look.

Not having a home... it wasn't impossible.

In this era, there were always some orphans who lost their parents at birth.

Picked up by the military camp, they directly considered the camp their home.

A pitiable background.

"No worries, buddy~ from now on, we're your brothers!" the first soldier who spoke patted Bai E's shoulder hard, "Tomorrow night is our chance to get some air. I'll take you to see my wife! She makes delicious food!"

"Oh, oh~ thank you."

"Who knows, maybe we'll end up in the same group later on. Just follow my lead then, I'll guide you."

"Oh, oh~"

Was he talking about mech piloting skills?

Bai E didn't understand any of it; at this moment, he just nodded in agreement.

"Chatter chatter chatter..."

"Oh, oh~"

"A string of nonsense..."

"Oh, oh~"

"Let's go eat!"

"Oh, oh~"

...

The new "buddy" he made was a real chatterbox, giving lectures even during meals.

Stay tuned to empire

Bai E managed to slip away from him sneakily, thinking of sneaking out of the camp.

It had been several days since he last received feedback on a task. Without topping up his daily routine for the players, it felt like ants were crawling on him.

As his attributes increased, the attributes gained from player feedback became less significant, but over time the accumulated amount was still considerable.

Not to mention he had just injected the Gene Optimization Solution, his three basic attributes had skyrocketed. If not now, when else should he let the players intensely level up for him?

However, a slim, dark figure appeared out of nowhere, blocking the path ahead.

Bai E didn't even notice when the figure had taken up position there; he instinctively stopped in his tracks as his heart skipped a beat.

"Yueying?"

Yueying turned around, her thin lips parting slightly, "Follow me."

"... Yes."

Following Yueying, Bai E felt a strange anticipation as they wound their way through the military camp at night.

Yueying rarely took the initiative to seek him out.

But if she did come looking, it usually meant there was some great news waiting for him.

Thinking of the "task" he was still burdened with on her behalf, Bai E's heart throbbed with excitement.

Finally, in a hidden corner, Yue Ying came to a stop.

Turning to face Bai E, she slightly lifted her jade-like face, and a pair of willow-leaf-shaped eyes shone brightly beneath her hood in the evening light.

"I've heard from your marshal about what you've accomplished..."

Yue Ying spoke softly, her tone filled with sincere admiration.

Even though Weslin had emphasized his own wise command, she was more concerned with the achievements of the warrior at the execution end who had created legends.

To fight head-on and defeat a high-dimensional demon with no prior experience in manipulating Spiritual Energy, even among her extraordinarily gifted Elf Race, was an exceptional feat.

"You really are remarkable..."

"'Lucky Strike' energy charge +3."

"[Current task—Yueying's recognition, progress has reached its peak. You have demonstrated your excellent strength and qualities numerous times and in all aspects before Miss Yueying of the Elf Race, earning her complete recognition. The task reward is now available, please proceed with caution...]"

"I just did what had to be done."

"What you deem necessary is precisely what many find difficult to achieve," Yueying shook her head gently, "Regardless, you've now been involved with incidents concerning high-dimensional demons, and it will be difficult to avoid them in the future.

Prime demons can resurrect and remember who it was that shattered their bodies in the material world, and if you lack the relevant abilities, you're likely to find yourself easily targeted by those cunning demons and fall into the abyss."

She didn't want to see that happen.

She didn't want to see a human hero plunge into an inescapable quagmire due to an unfamiliarity with high-dimensional demons... with Spiritual Energy.

It was this impulse that had driven her to approach Bai E of her own accord.

If humans were unwilling to teach, she would teach.

Artificials have an innate prohibition against emotion?

But half the effort is always better than none at all.

She acted according to her own desires, not weighing the comprehensive pros and cons like humans did.

The only concern was that she had never heard of humans practicing their Elf Breathing Skill.

While the Breathing Skill emphasizes mental cultivation, because the physiological structure of elves and humans is different, the basic "breathing" rhythm might also be different, and therefore, the rhythm of adjusting one's spirit might also vary.

There was no way around this; she would have to watch over him in real-time during the actual teaching process and carefully adjust for him.

"If you wish to possess some countermeasures against high-dimensional demons in future encounters, I can teach you the way to cultivate Spiritual Energy."

Under the dim night sky, Yueying's eyes glimmered like jewels.

[As expected!]

Bai E was thrilled.

He had always hoped for the Breathing Skill, and unexpectedly, he received his answer this very night, as though all good things were happening to him today.

Suppressing the urge to leap for joy, Bai E nodded seriously, "Then, I'll be in Miss Yueying's care..."

Yueying nodded, somewhat pleased with the human warrior's eagerness to learn.

Even the most willing impulse to teach needed a diligent and eager student.

From the past few lessons, she observed that this human warrior had quite an exceptional aptitude, a rarity even among her own Elf Race.

She wondered how he would fare with the completely unfamiliar Breathing Skill.

"Sit down."

With these words, Yueying assumed a seated, legs-crossed posture, demonstrating for him.

"Yes."

This was a secluded spot untouched by others and distant from the bustle of life, a quiet place that Yueying had found.

Bai E sat cross-legged and listened attentively to Yueying's voice.

"Close your eyes..."

"Slow your breathing..."

"Empty your mind..."

"Inhale~"

"Exhale~"

"[You are learning the Elf Breathing Skill...]"

"[Initiating teaching task—The Way of Breathing.]"

"[The Way of Breathing: Spiritual Energy is innate and even those who have never manifested external talents of Spiritual Energy can tap into their inner reserves. Powerful Spiritual Energy can twist reality and achieve anything, while contained Spiritual Energy can protect oneself comprehensively.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Task requirement: Follow Yueying's guidance to maintain a completion rate of ???% for 'multiple' cycles of the Breathing Skill. Task completion reward: Skill—Spiritual Power Breathing Skill.]"

"[Teaching: Breathing Skill is a completely new field for you, and you need to pay a certain price (combat experience/universal experience) to follow the other's guidance to gain mastery of the Breathing Skill. (Cost: 10 experience/min)]"

Yueying's voice continued to resonate peacefully beside his ear.

"Inhale~"

"Exhale~"

Her voice rose and fell in a strange rhythm, calm and beautiful, like a violin playing a solitary concerto in the moonlit night...

Guiding Bai E towards a state of mental tranquility and special awareness.

Moonlight crept from behind the clouds, its quiet glow like silver foil draping over the two of them.

Maintaining the deliberate breathing rhythm was undeniably challenging for Bai E. Trying to follow Yueying's rhythmic guidance made him tense instead, unable to achieve a state of ethereal calm.

Only after paying with experience points did the suffocating and bloating tension slightly ease.

"[You are using combat experience to adjust your breathing rhythm...]"

"[Current follow-through rate: 87.3%]"

"Inhale~"

"Exhale~"

Yueying's voice remained unwavering.

Of course, she knew that Bai E, being new to the practice, would have difficulty keeping up with the pace.

The Breathing Skill, after all, was a capability that only took effect once one was so familiar with it that it became instinctive.