Chapter 186 - 137: Second Breath

"It actually created a synergy!"

’Is it because I emptied my mind while running?’ Chen Jue looked at the notification that popped up on the panel and continued to run, maintaining that wonderfully empty state.

Relying on his willpower and a Constitution Attribute of over 2, Chen Jue managed to run the first 20 sets.

Including the 200-meter slow jogs interspersed between sets and the previous 2.5-kilometer weighted trek, Chen Jue had already run a cumulative 14,000 meters this afternoon.

That distance was more than a quarter marathon!

Most importantly, the Fartlek Run was a method that mixed both fast and slow running. Compared to a marathon jog, it was more exhausting, more effective for training, and compressed into a shorter time.

Just by finishing the first 20 sets, Chen Jue had already broken his physical limit once, completely depleting his stamina.

"Haaa... Haaa..."

"What kind of sadist invented this running method?"

’Running like this is just too exhausting,’ Chen Jue thought, stepping off the track. He couldn’t help but complain internally.

Unable to sit down, he could only walk slowly over to his backpack and chug two bottles of the supplements and electrolyte water he had brought.

...

After pacing back and forth on the rubber track to rest for a full 20 minutes and noticing his stamina was recovering a bit slowly, he tried allocating 0.03 Free Attribute points to his Constitution.

Three streams of warmth spread through his body. The tension and stiffness in his muscles eased slightly, and his nearly depleted energy surged back significantly.

His stamina recovered from about 20% to around 60%, but it was far from the 120% hyped-up state he’d experienced at the beginning of his training after taking a pre-workout and activating his Adrenaline.

’The toll of breaking my limit is pretty huge! I can’t even finish all 40 sets with this much stamina,’ Chen Jue thought to himself.

Just then, Zhang Xuete and his friends got on the track after finishing their sprint practice. Seeing them form a group and take the lead, Chen Jue subconsciously fell in behind them.

In professional middle- to long-distance running and marathons, this technique is known as drafting.

The idea is to run behind the lead runner. This reduces energy consumption and conserves a certain amount of stamina, making it easier to pull off an outstanding sprint in the final stage.

This method of drafting isn’t without scientific basis. According to wind tunnel experiment data released by the Nike Sport Research Lab in 2016, the pacer in front serves to break the wind for the runner behind.

That’s why in mid- to long-distance races like the marathon or the 10,000 meters, you often see cooperative formations of three or six runners. Among them, only two are the ones actually making a push for the gold medal. The rest of the teammates are there to support the main runners, acting as wingmen.

It was a very clever competitive sports tactic, and since Chen Jue’s stamina was severely depleted, he fell in behind Zhang Xuete and the others.

However, his Fartlek Run had a time limit; the last 20 sets of 400 meters had to be completed within 70 seconds. So, while drafting, Chen Jue had to control his speed to avoid exceeding the time limit.

Fortunately, after each 400-meter lap, there was a 200-meter slow recovery interval. Although his stamina was not at its peak, Chen Jue still gritted his teeth and finished the first 10 sets.

As he drafted, his mind began to empty out more and more. The sensation was wonderfully strange, like entering a state of Meditation while in motion.

The distracting thoughts in his head faded. He could only hear the sound of his own breathing. The originally frantic thumping of his heart began to weaken, his chest felt tight, and his limbs grew heavier and heavier. It felt like he couldn’t possibly endure the next 10 sets.

But with fewer distracting thoughts, Chen Jue was only aware of mechanically swinging his arms and moving his legs, struggling to keep up with Zhang Xuete’s group.

Then, something magical happened!

Just as his stamina was about to be completely depleted, his exhausted body suddenly felt revitalized, as if a stamina bar that had dropped to 0% had abruptly shot back up!

And at that moment, a notification popped up on the panel:

——————

[Ding~]

[By completing a second limit-breaking aerobic exercise in a short period, your body has entered the rare "Second Breath" state.]

[Your motor systems are rebalancing, the inertia of your Inner Organs has been overcome, oxygen supply has increased, accumulated lactic acid has been cleared, your body’s internal environment has been greatly improved, and your dynamic stereotype has been restored.]

[Temporary Constitution Attribute +0.20]

[Temporary Strength Attribute +0.15]

[Temporary Spirit Attribute +0.10]

——————

With this surge in Temporary Attributes, Chen Jue felt the sensation of "hitting the wall" shatter in an instant!

Gradually, his leg turnover quickened, his pace began to accelerate, and his breathing became smoother. His energy distribution became more rational, and his sprint speed steadily increased after the 30th set.

It was like breaking through a "Pole" and entering a second burst phase!

The original goal of running 400 meters in 70 seconds was suddenly smashed as he ran it in 60.

Keep in mind, he had already run over 20,000 meters at this point!

Logically, his stamina should have been completely drained by now, but this magical Second Breath put Chen Jue into a state like a final, brilliant flash of life, allowing him to actually accelerate into a sprint during the latter half of his run.

In the end, he even blew past Zhang Xuete’s group, who had been leading, and overtook them in one fell swoop!

"Holy shit!"

"How many laps has he run?"

"He still has stamina?"

"He must be cheating!"

Zhang Xuete and the other track and field students exchanged stunned glances, gritting their teeth as they tried to keep up.

But Chen Jue only pushed harder, his 400-meter lap times shrinking from the initial 70 seconds all the way down to 50 seconds on the final lap. He finished the last few sets at what was basically an all-out sprint.

By the time he finished the second round of 20 sets and slowed from a sprint to a walk back to the starting line, Zhang Xuete and the others were trailing behind him, exhausted like dead dogs. They staggered across the finish line, completely burned out by Chen Jue!

’Second Breath?’

’What a magical physiological state!’

’It feels even more intense than activating Adrenaline.’ Chen Jue took a deep breath, calming his racing heart.

He discovered that after entering the Second Breath state, he didn’t feel tired at all when he ran.

The feeling of hitting the wall was completely gone, and even after finishing, his whole body felt light and refreshed.

After he drank some electrolytes and supplements, shouldered his weighted pack and backpack, and started walking off campus, the panel actually followed up with a whole slew of Attribute increases:

——————

[Ding~]

[You have completed a two-stage, extreme aerobic exercise. Your body has broken its original physiological limits, your metabolic functions have been rebuilt, and your mental willpower has been significantly tempered. After the Second Breath state fades, your physiological functions will experience a massive leap in growth.]

[Constitution Attribute +0.03]

[Strength Attribute +0.02]

[Spirit Attribute +0.01]

[Free Attribute +0.02]

——————

"So awesome!"

’Did I just one-shot the final boss for 9999 damage and make a screen full of treasure chests explode out?’

Seeing the Attribute growth notifications spamming his panel, Chen Jue felt a bit dazzled.

However, such a large Attribute increase didn’t do much to help his stamina recover.

Once the temporary Three-dimensional Attributes on the panel faded, a feeling of being completely hollowed out washed over him.

At that moment, Chen Jue felt as if his entire being had become "empty." Only his consciousness remained; his body felt like it didn’t belong to him.

The transformation from rebuilding his body’s metabolic functions made him feel a strange sense of unfamiliarity with his own body.

’I really want to just throw this body away!’

An absurd thought surfaced in Chen Jue’s mind. He stored his backpack and weighted pack in the security office at the entrance of Jiang University, then hailed a cab to the Tianyu Rehabilitation Center.

While he was still conscious, he changed his clothes, entered the sports massage room, and entrusted his body to that Master Liu for a massage.

As for him, after lying down on the massage table, his mind began to empty, and he entered an extremely peculiar state.

How could this state be described?

Chen Jue clearly knew he wasn’t asleep, but it felt as if he were.

He could clearly feel someone manipulating his body, but he had no desire to move a muscle, or even to let his thoughts run. It was as if he had entered a "vegetative" state.

Master Liu was astonished when he saw this, because he discovered that Chen Jue’s physical condition was even better than the last time he’d come in.

His muscles were full, his ligaments relaxed, and his bones broad and solid. It was as if he had been completely reborn.

"This kid... what kind of training has he been doing?"

"To actually train himself to sleep!" Master Liu remarked with a sigh, picking up a fascia blade and beginning the massage to relax Chen Jue’s muscles.