After spending one experience point, Leo let out a long breath.
He glanced at the remaining six points and quickly allocated three more in one go.
A vivid stream of memories surged into his mind—it felt as if he had been practicing for an entire month.
At the same time, a stronger wave of warmth rushed through his body, like soaking in a hot spring. Every inch of him felt comfortably warm.
----------------------
Skill: Taichi Stance – Lv.1 (0%)
— Trait: Fortify Lv.1
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"Huh? A new Trait?"
Leo's eyes widened. It was obvious from the name that this one boosted Physique—was it an upgraded version of Reinforce Body?
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Trait: Fortify – Increases Physique by 2 per level
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"It really is."
Joy sparked in Leo's heart.
So his guess had been right—advanced skills offered better stat bonuses. But his smile quickly faded.
Because… it required significantly more experience points to level. In fact, the same amount spent on Primordial Stance would yield even more Physique in the end.
"Maybe there's something else I haven't discovered yet." Still, he didn't mind. With enough experience points, he'd just level both Taichi and Primordial. More Physique was always good.
No reason to choose—I'll master both.
"Two points left. Not enough to do much. Let's check the panel."
Leo opened his status with anticipation.
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Rank: None
Level: 3 (0/4)
Physique: 78
Strength: 57
Agility: 47
Clarity: 05
Stat Points: 5 (+1/day)
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Physique had increased by 4 points—the largest gain by far.
Strength and Agility had each gone up by 1 point.
Clarity, however, remained unchanged.
And his Rank was still locked.
Leo frowned. Was it because his stats weren't high enough yet? According to Uncle Zach's explanation, reaching the first stage of Body Tempering required muscle strength equal to lifting 100 kilograms. That meant at least 20 Strength points… still quite far off.
Good thing he still had 5 unspent Stat Points.
"Let's train with the bow. I'll hit Level 5 in Basic Archery tonight!"
He looked toward the distant target, determination flashing in his eyes.
Time ticked by. The others, knowing Leo was the camp's best hope, pushed themselves to help, flinging targets high into the air with all their strength.
That made every successful hit worth more in terms of skill growth—but also drained their stamina fast. In less than two hours, they were all sprawled out, exhausted.
"Sorry, Leo. We need a break," Warren panted.
Most of them had been training all day. Their stomachs were already rumbling, and throwing those heavy targets upward was no joke.
"It's fine. Really."
Leo waved it off. Two hours had passed, and his proficiency had only risen about 20%. Would he be able to finish the remaining 20% tonight?
And even if he did—how would he push past Level 5?
Relying on others to toss targets wouldn't cut it forever.
Hunting might be the better method after all.
"Kid."
Uncle Zach, looking just as worn out, walked over. "You might want to try rapid shooting."
"Rapid shooting?"
Leo blinked.
"The goal is to fire as many arrows as you can in the shortest time. You're already pretty accurate against moving targets. Training that further won't help much. But if you can shoot two or three arrows within a few seconds, your effective hit rate will skyrocket."
Leo's eyes lit up. That made sense.
When he'd shot three arrows in quick succession at the antelope earlier, his skill had jumped by nearly 10%. Normally, a hit on a moving target gave him about 6%… so what about the extra 4%?
"I get it now, Uncle Zach!"
He spun toward the targets.
One arrow loosed—bullseye.
But the proficiency gain? Barely moved. Not even 0.1%.
"What's Leo doing now?"
Zhao watched, confused.
Zach shook his head. "He's probably getting into the zone. Just keep watching."
As soon as he finished, a second arrow whistled through the air—another bullseye.
Then came the third.
Warren and the others were stunned. Leo hadn't even checked if his previous arrows hit. The moment one left the bowstring, his hand reached back for the next.
All three hit the mark.
*Thud! Thud! Thud!*
His heart pounded like a war drum. It felt just like when he fired at the antelope—but this time, he had more to give.
A fourth arrow.
His face flushed. Veins bulged on his forehead. The bow creaked as he pulled it to full draw. When he let go—it felt like release.
*Thump!*
Another bullseye.
The others were stunned into silence.
From the first arrow to the fourth… not even ten seconds had passed.
"Was that his limit?"
Even Zach was speechless.
The Wells brothers might have the strength to draw a hundred-pound bow, but not the technique to shoot four arrows in under ten seconds. Maybe not even three.
In terms of archery mastery, Leo had far surpassed them.
"So this is what Physique enhancement does... Even training with basic stances has huge benefits."
Leo's chest heaved. His lungs burned.
But he had done it. From triple shot to quad shot.
Then, a thought struck him. He opened his panel.
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Skill: Basic Archery – Lv.4 (1%)
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A full 5% jump.
He smiled.
If he had been shooting at moving targets, it would've gone even higher.
But this was enough.
He'd found the fastest way to level up.
Of course, the price was steep. After a single burst, his entire right arm felt scorched. His lungs, too.
"Still hanging in there?"
Zach approached with a bowl of water. "I said try it—not go all out."
Leo chuckled and took the bowl.
Going all out?
It wasn't that bad.
He could still push himself further. Once he reinforced his body again, quad shots wouldn't be so draining.