Chapter 3: I'm on the third layer_1

The next day.

At 6:00 a.m., he got up on time.

After spending five minutes on washing up,

Chen Gong changed into a new set of clothes and went downstairs, as the Tai Chi Association began practicing promptly at 6:30 a.m.

This was the only association Chen Gong had joined, with the sole purpose of strengthening his body.

After being admitted to Shanhe Medical University and hearing about medical professionals in their prime dying suddenly, he joined the Tai Chi Boxing Association immediately.

"Chen Gong, you're up early?"

Just as he passed by, Chen Gong heard someone greeting him. He looked up to see a man in his forties: "Liang, you're up earlier than me, aren't you?"

This 'older brother' was naturally not a student at Shanhe Medical University, but he was a long-term sponsor of the school's Tai Chi Boxing Association and one of the owners of the second-floor canteen. He had several service windows and came over to practice Tai Chi every morning, so everyone in the association recognized this generous and honest man.

Liang was an open-hearted guy who organized annual feasts for the Tai Chi Association within the school. Most crucially, the students from the school's work-study program served the meals at his windows without shaky hands.

"How can I compare with you college students? We are here to serve you. We have to get up early so that you can eat well, drink well, and make contributions to society," Hou Liang said with a smile.

"How about we do some push hands after this?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Gong immediately shook his hands and declined with a laugh. He was not good at push hands, and he practiced Tai Chi purely for health reasons: "No, no, your skills are profound. I'm just here to strengthen my body."

"But... bro, does your canteen have any plans to introduce new dishes this year?"

Upon hearing this, Hou Liang was momentarily startled: "Ah? Got a craving? These past few days I've been planning to set up a Hunan cuisine window. Why don't you come and try it out when it's ready?"

Chen Gong's eyes lit up at these words: "Will you have bullfrogs?"

Hou Liang looked at Chen Gong and said vaguely, "That's possible, but... bullfrogs are quite expensive, aren't they a bit inappropriate for students?"

"I'll have to discuss it with the kitchen staff."

Chen Gong felt he was one step closer to success.

Once he completes the system tasks in a few days, he would volunteer at Liang's place for a couple of days. Money didn't matter; the important thing was... he had to make sure that the task of killing the frogs was assigned to him.

Soon, with the arrival of several committee members of the association, everyone started practicing. There were mostly old members since the new students hadn't arrived yet, and most could perform a complete set of Tai Chi.

Chen Gong practiced seriously, but his skill was mediocre, merely at a proficient level, and he seemed to be a little short of mastering the basics.

However, today's session felt very smooth, and he felt comfortably warm throughout his body after completing the set.

As he was surprised, he suddenly heard a series of prompt sounds.

[Ding! Tai Chi has been promoted to lv1 beginner level, reward obtained: Focusing (Beginner)]

After hearing the sound, Chen Gong couldn't help but be stunned.

Tai Chi reached the beginner level?

And he even got a reward!

[Focusing (Beginner Level): The self-cultivation of Tai Chi, with long-term practice, can help gather concentration and improve focus.]

"Chen, you did well today! Your progress is obvious, and you can be considered as having entered the door," said Hou Liang, who had been practicing Tai Chi for many years and noticed the change in Chen Gong's form—it was more natural and had better technique.

Chen Gong also smiled, "Yeah, I feel different from before."

"But, Liang, having practiced Tai Chi for so long, have you noticed any effects?" he asked.

After pondering for a while, Hou Liang replied, "It seems a bit different, but not profoundly so. However, at the very least my body and energy seem better than my peers. Look at me, getting up before six doesn't tire me out."

Listening to Hou Liang's words, Chen Gong's mind was filled with many calculations and thoughts.

Compared to Hou Liang, Chen Gong was thinking about studying!

This "Focusing" could improve his concentration while studying. If he could break through to level one, wouldn't he be able to receive an effect that enhances his physical stamina and energy?

If that were the case...

The efficiency of his daily studies and the overall study time would inevitably increase a lot.

With that thought, Chen Gong became excited.

"Liang, I need to go."

Chen Gong greeted him and left in a hurry.

Hou Liang stood there, somewhat astonished. How long did it take for himself to reach the beginner level in Tai Chi?

Three years? Or five years?

Hou Liang couldn't remember, but... how long had it been for Chen Gong?!

"This kid... is not normal!"

Shaking his head, Hou Liang also stood up and left.

...

...

At 7 a.m., many people gathered outside the library, looking like they were preparing for postgraduate exams. Chen Gong mingled with the crowd and squeezed his way into the library.

Today was the first day the library had opened, and it was crowded. The postgraduate exam usually took place around mid to late December, just over three months away.

For medical students in their fifth year, who also need to intern, time is tight, and every day must be utilized.

Chen Gong also had to make good use of his time, with a class meeting scheduled for 10 a.m. in the large classroom.

Starting tomorrow, various subjects will start their classes. It would certainly be not easy to advance a subject skill to lv2 before the courses begin.

Before that, he must figure out where he currently stood, where he fell short, and then find the direction for study and breakthrough.

So, he opened up study materials for physiology and biochemistry for postgraduate exams.

He had already done the end-term mock exams during the summer, which were not very difficult, and hard to produce the desired effect.

He felt that the difficulty of these postgraduate exam papers must be higher than that of the end-term exams.

As he spoke, Chen Gong glanced at his phone, timed himself, and started answering questions.

But when he began to get into the zone, he was surprised to discover something: his focus was better than ever!

Mentally, he was extremely concentrated, and his attention reached an unprecedented level.

What was going on?

Suddenly, Chen Gong noticed that "Focusing" was glowing in his status bar!

Could this... could this be the effect of Focusing?!

It was incredibly powerful!

Far more formidable than what Liang had described.

Chen Gong couldn't help but calm his excitement and continued to tackle the questions.

Both physiology and biochemistry were difficult subjects, requiring a vast knowledge base for the medical entrance examination.

There was a saying at the university: "Physiology and biochemistry, one must fail one; it's not without reason."

Studying medicine required strong logical thinking and the hard work of rote memorization.

And indeed, this was true for physiology and biochemistry, disciplines that combined both liberal arts and sciences.

Time ticked away, second by second.

But Chen Gong was fast, under the state of Focusing, his thoughts were agile, his mind was sharp, and his efficiency and concentration in studying were at an all-time high.

At this moment, he didn't even notice a guy across from him staring intently at him with a hint of resentment in his eyes.

Yang Qingtao also came to self-study today, and although he had received verbal assurance from Professor Qin, he dared not slack off.

If he didn't get accepted due to poor written test scores, it would be a huge embarrassment!

The more critical the situation, the harder he had to work.

In fact, Yang Qingtao's fundamentals were quite solid. After all, he was a student who joined a research group in his sophomore year and had even published a national-level paper. His self-discipline and academic foundation were exceptional.

It was only September, and he had already completed his first round of reviews, now starting on the second round.

Today, he intended to do a set of real questions to test his current real level, but unexpectedly ran into an "acquaintance."

This guy was the one who made him embarrass himself in the restaurant last night, causing him to vomit all over the place.

But... was this guy also preparing for grad school?

Looking at the graduate exam materials in Chen Gong's hands, Yang Qingtao suddenly thought of something amusing.

He loved the idea of playing with someone's mental state!

So, looking at Chen Gong's materials, Yang Qingtao took out an identical set of exam papers and started working on them.

Before starting, he muttered softly, "Hmm, let's test my grasp on physiology and biochemistry, haven't reviewed yet, wonder how much I can score."

After speaking, he sneaked a peek at Chen Gong, but the latter seemed to completely ignore him.

Yang Qingtao chuckled: Pretend! Keep pretending! Continue!

Let's see how long you can keep up the act?

The graduate exam tests not only knowledge but also mentality.

Thinking of what Chen Gong did last night, Yang Qingtao felt a twinge of annoyance; he thought he should teach the guy a lesson.

He had already reviewed once, and his solid foundation ensured his scores wouldn't be low.

Once he finished, he planned to engage Chen Gong in a friendly exchange, believing the effect would be maximal.

Mulling over this, he even felt like chuckling.

Ahem!

Stay low-key, low-key.

In the midst of this, Yang Qingtao promptly began working, his speed not slow at all. After all... when there's competition, there's pressure, and with pressure comes motivation!

This set of exam papers focused purely on physiology and biochemistry, around 100 questions in total. Though they were multiple-choice questions, they included calculations.

Just when he thought he was going to breeze through, he quickly stumbled upon some tough questions.

"Huh? The impact of double-substrate enzyme reaction kinetics on enzymatic efficiency?"

"How come I've never heard of this?"

"Huh? Facilitated diffusion, too? Damn... I have no recollection of this!"

"What was I reviewing the first time around?"

"Aren't these questions a bit too difficult?"

Yang Qingtao never expected that before Chen Gong could crack, he himself was on the verge of exploding inside!

He had already reviewed once, hadn't he?

Why were these questions like reading an alien text to him?

The more he thought about it, the more Yang Qingtao's heart sank.

Because he realized that damn Chen Gong wasn't getting stuck at all, and was actually working through the questions continuously?

Witnessing this scene, Yang Qingtao gritted his teeth and continued to work!

Although the process was painful, he persisted. That bastard was definitely guessing.

Right, there's limited time in the grad exam, and he couldn't get stuck on out-of-syllabus questions, or he might not finish marking the answer sheet.

Filling in the bubbles for nearly two hundred multiple-choice questions during the exam was a major undertaking.

Good, good, learning from the experience of a competitor.

Yang Qingtao felt this round was not a loss for him, in fact, he had gained a lot.

You think we're just racing?

Heh, I'm playing on the third level!