Chapter 3: Practice

Outside the window, the torrential rain tirelessly battered this unfamiliar, dangerous world. Dense raindrops smashed against the glass, creating an irritating, rhythmic PITTER-PATTER.

After checking the growth of his crops, Han Ning rubbed his still-aching waist and walked into the kitchen to take inventory of his remaining supplies.

He had scavenged a total of four bags of dried noodles from the old man next door; each bag weighed half a kilogram, and the packaging was intact. There was also half a sack of rice weighing about five kilograms, two packs of compressed biscuits, and two boxes of barbecue-flavored broad beans.

Inside the water dispenser's jug, two-thirds of the water remained—roughly over thirteen liters. Stacked beside it was an unopened case of bottled water containing twelve 500-milliliter bottles. This was his entire drinking water reserve.

"If I ration the dry food, I should be able to last for more than half a month, provided the potatoes yield a successful harvest," Han Ning reasoned aloud. Rationing was one thing, but he still needed to guarantee two meals a day. After all, he had to practice his Skills to increase his Skill Level. If he stayed hungry all day, his body would break down.

"But what about water?" At this thought, worry flickered in his eyes. With the half-full dispenser jug and the twelve bottles, he had less than twenty liters of water in total. Although the rain was pouring heavily outside, who knew if the water was safe to drink? Recalling the information from the natives about the Black Tide Water that submerged the planet, Han Ning had no immediate plans to try using the water from outside.

"It's too dangerous out there. It's best not to go out unless absolutely necessary." The lingering sharp pain in his waist and the near-death sensation of suffocation in the equipment room last night constantly reminded him that, with his meager, newly awakened abilities, facing those vicious Crocodile Lizards would mean almost certain death.

"I'll imitate the Ten-Mile Slope Sword God for now," Han Ning thought. "I'll grind my Skill Levels until the food is almost gone." Rather than rushing out to his death now, it was better to seize this temporary period of safety, using his precious food and water reserves to do everything possible to improve his strength. Strength was his only reliance for survival. His home was the safe zone of this Newbie Village.

With his goal clear, Han Ning immediately took action. He carefully put away the dried noodles, rice, and compressed biscuits, hiding them inside the kitchen cupboard. Once the supplies were properly arranged, his Cultivation began at once.

Han Ning held his breath and concentrated, standing in the middle of his relatively spacious living room.

"Vine Technique!" he shouted softly, pushing both hands forward as green light flickered in his palms. He focused his mind on a crack in the floorboards.

With a few soft POOFS, several thin, dull-colored vines struggled out of the ground. They wobbled and drooped limply—as flaccid as a bout of premature ejaculation—before rapidly withering and scattering mere seconds later.

[Vine Technique Skill Level +1, Current: 14/100]

One point of Spiritual Power was instantly consumed, and the interface displayed: [Spiritual Power: 9/10].

"Too weak..." Han Ning frowned, recalling the critical moment last night when a juvenile Crocodile Lizard had effortlessly snapped his vines. "I need more vines, and they need to be tougher and more flexible!" Panting slightly, he cast the spell again.

"Vine Technique!"

"Vine Technique!"

"Vine Technique!"

In the dim living room, Han Ning repeatedly carried out this monotonous and tedious practice. Time and time again, he attempted to summon vines, only for them to rapidly wither within seconds. With every cast, he carefully felt the trajectory of the Spiritual Power circulating within his body and the faint connection between himself and the vines. When his Spiritual Power was depleted, he returned to his bed to rest, allowing his body to recover naturally. When hunger struck, he would cook a bowl of fragrant rice, mix it with soy sauce, and eat it in large mouthfuls to maintain his body's caloric expenditure.

During his rest intervals, he didn't forget to tend to the potted potato seedlings. The potatoes were visibly growing faster, as his Accelerated Growth was primarily used on them.

[Rapid Growth Skill Level +1, Current: 4/100]

[Rapid Growth Skill Level +1, Current: 5/100]

Ten points of Spiritual Power equated to roughly seven uses of the Vine Technique and three uses of Rapid Growth. As for the Rejuvenation Technique, he temporarily shelved it.

A soft emerald light seeped into the soil. The potato seedlings grew taller at a visible rate; their leaves became plumper, and their stems grew slightly thicker. Watching them thrive, Han Ning felt even more motivated at the thought of a bountiful potato harvest.

Time quietly slipped away amidst practice and rest. The torrential rain outside the window became an eternal background noise, occasionally interspersed with the roars of monsters.

By the end of the first day, the Vine Technique's Skill Level had increased to [26/100]. The most intuitive change was that the number of summoned vines had increased by two. Their color was slightly darker, and the time it took for them to wither had been extended by a second or two. Bolstered by two uses of Rapid Growth, the potato seedlings had grown to nearly twenty centimeters tall, appearing lush and green.

The price for this was that the water level in the dispenser's jug had dropped by a small margin. He licked his somewhat chapped lips, forcefully suppressing the urge to take another sip.

The next day, Cultivation continued.

He tried to alter the way he cast the Vine Technique. Instead of aiming to summon multiple vines instantly, he focused his mind, attempting to control the exact locations where the vines appeared and the manner in which they coiled. At first, he completely failed to grasp the concept, and the vines continued to pop out randomly from the floorboard cracks. Through repeated failures and attempts, however, he gradually caught onto the feeling. It seemed to be related to his "intent" and the way he controlled the surge of Spiritual Power within his body. It was somewhat elusive, yet there were traces to follow.

Han Ning searched for that wondrous sensation over and over again. Once, three times, five times, ten times...

After twenty attempts.

When the faint Spiritual Power surged toward his palms once more, he visualized the vines bursting from the floorboards half a meter ahead and coiling upwards.

"Vine Technique!"

POOF!

Right on cue, three vines drilled out from the general area he had specified.

"It worked!" A flash of joy crossed Han Ning's eyes.

[Vine Technique Skill Level +5, Current: 31/100]

[Druid Growth Progress +1, Current: 20/100]

The third day... the fourth day... the fifth day...

The days seemed to fall into a fixed cycle: cultivating Skills, resting to recover, tending to the potatoes, and calculating the consumption of food and water. One bag of dried noodles had been eaten. The rice had also gone down by a thin layer. The water in the dispenser's jug had finally bottomed out, forcing Han Ning to start using the bottled water. Every time he twisted open a new bottle of water, his heart ached for a moment. As for taking a shower, that was completely out of the question.

After six or seven days of training, the Vine Technique's Skill Level had increased to [87/100].

The number of vines he could summon now stabilized at seven or eight. They were a deep, dark green, as thick as an adult's fingers, and possessed a tough texture that generated a faint whistling sound when they whipped through the air. The most crucial aspect was his control. He could now command the vines to emerge from a designated location with relative precision and direct them to perform simple coiling, whipping, and binding motions. His handling was becoming increasingly proficient. Although the Spiritual Power consumed with each summoning seemed to have increased slightly, the power and practicality of the spell were leagues ahead of what they used to be.

Rapid Growth had also leveled up to [30/100].

Those potato seedlings had received the best of care. With Han Ning prioritizing supplying this Skill whenever his Spiritual Power recovered even slightly, the plants had grown to half a person's height. Their dense foliage practically overflowed the flowerpots, and tiny, pale purple flower buds had begun to sprout at the tips of two of the stems.

Meanwhile, the total progress of his Druid Level had reached [62/100].