NOVEL NEXT Chapter 67: Chapter 67
Alex had just finished his usual morning jog, his muscles loose and warm from the steady rhythm of his feet pounding against the pavement. His breath was even, heart calm. It was a routine that had become part of his life, a way to prepare his mind and body for the day ahead. Today, though, something inside him urged him to do more. He decided to run through a few flow strikes, a combination Meditation and the smooth, fluid movements from his martial arts training.
Not that he really needed the practice. Every technique was stored perfectly in his mind, ready to be recalled with flawless precision at any moment. But there was something about the movement itself that grounded him, a kind of meditation in motion.
He started slow, focusing on each transition, letting his body follow the rhythm. His arms cut through the air, legs shifting into stances he had mastered weeks ago. The lightness of the strikes felt almost effortless now. Every shift of weight, every strike flowed in perfect harmony.
Then, something happened.
It was subtle at first. A slight buzzing sensation behind his eyes, a faint pressure building at the back of his mind. His movements grew lighter, and for a split second, everything felt… different. The flow of his body seemed to sync perfectly with his mental state, and then—
Click.
It was as though a barrier inside his mind had shattered. The pressure that had been building quietly for days suddenly released, flooding him with a rush of clarity and power he hadn't anticipated. He stopped mid-movement, his hand frozen in the air, eyes widening as realization struck.
He had just broken through. Level 3 mental strength.
For a few moments, Alex just stood there, letting the rush of newfound power settle within him. He had been hovering at 99% for what felt like forever, stuck just on the verge, but never quite crossing the threshold. And now, here it was, unexpected and without warning. It was as if the smart mode training had primed him for this, and all it took was the slightest push for everything to fall into place.
His first instinct was to feel for any new abilities—he instinctively checked for telekinesis or some kind of psychic ability. But nothing. That wasn't how his ability worked. Cognichip wasn't about flashy powers or manipulating the world around him in physical ways. It was about the mind, mental strength, and mastery of thought.
He focused inward, trying to gauge what this new level brought him. The increase in mental strength was palpable. His thoughts were clearer, more organized, and sharper. The way his mind processed information felt almost… frictionless. Where there had once been mental fatigue after a prolonged use of smart mode, now there was a more sustained energy, a longer focus. He could already feel his capacity for smart mode extending, and the rest period afterward would likely shorten too.
But it was more than that.
Alex's mental recall had always been perfect, but now it seemed he could analyze and dissect that information with far greater speed. Complex problems that would take hours to untangle felt like they could be handled in minutes. A level of mental fluidity that wasn't just about storing data, but processing it faster than ever.
His intuition had also sharpened. He could feel connections between disparate pieces of information forming in real-time, like threads weaving together into a coherent pattern without much effort. He tried an experiment, focusing on a random topic—market analysis trends from the previous month. The insights that popped into his mind were startling, coming at a pace that felt almost unnatural. This was a level of cognition that transcended just memory.
Beyond that, his awareness of his own body seemed heightened. He had been practicing Tai Chi to increase his fluidity, but now… Now he could feel the subtleties in his movements more acutely. The minute shifts in balance, the micro-tensions in his muscles, even the rhythm of his breathing felt like they were under his command. He wasn't perfect, far from it, but the path to mastery suddenly seemed much clearer. It was as though his mind could now process what his body needed to improve with a precision he hadn't had before.
"Wow," Alex whispered, letting his hands fall to his sides, still absorbing the changes.
Level 3. He didn't expect to break through during a simple morning routine, but life had a way of surprising him like that.
For a few moments, he considered what might come next. There had to be a level 4, and after that, a level 5. What would those bring? He had no idea, but if the leap from level 2 to level 3 was anything to go by, the future held something even greater. He wasn't sure if Cognichip would give him a precise roadmap, but he trusted the process.
His breakthrough at level 3 wasn't just another step; it was a revelation about the power of his mind. It wasn't about grand abilities like telekinesis or controlling the physical world—it was about mastering himself, pushing the limits of what the human mind could achieve, one level at a time.
"Looks like the journey just got a bit more interesting," Alex said to himself with a grin, stretching his arms overhead as he prepared for what was to come.
Level 3. His path forward was clearer than ever, and with this new power, he felt ready to tackle whatever came next.