Chapter 28: Huge Rise In Strength
Time flew by faster than a skibidi toilet meme going viral. Summer had packed its bags and autumn came rolling in like an Ohio rizzler. Fang Yuan stood before the massive boulder again, but this time his physique was absolutely mewing - lean muscles flexing under his robes, skin glowing with that sigma male rizz.
The White Boar Gu had been his personal gym bro these past months, pumping him up until he finally achieved that coveted one boar strength. No more gains though - the Gu had stopped working three days ago, signaling he'd maxed out its benefits.
"Alright bet," Fang Yuan cracked his knuckles, adopting that low taper fade stance - right leg forward, left leg back like a true warrior. He channeled all his rizz into pushing the enormous round rock.
At first it resisted like a stubborn TikTok hater, but gradually began moving. Fang Yuan counted each step in his head like counting stacks of primeval stones:
"Ten... twenty... thirty..."
Sweat dripped down his forehead like Grimace shake tears. Last week he'd hit his limit at forty-five steps before his stamina said "nah I'd edge." But today was different.
Forty-six... forty-seven... His arms were shaking harder than a Baby Gronk live stream.
Forty-eight... forty-nine... "Bruh I'm literally one step away from glazing..."
Then - the fiftieth step.
Suddenly the pressure vanished like a deleted tweet. The boulder rolled smoothly onto a flat platform, revealing a hidden chamber glowing with that backrooms aesthetic - walls pulsing red like a cursed LED strip, with a dusty rock door at the far end.
But Fang Yuan's sigma instincts kicked in before he got distracted. The floor near the door was slightly damp. "Don't tell me..."
He knelt and dug through the soft earth with his bare hands until - bam! Another Earth Treasury Flower appeared, petals glistening with that rare rizz. Inside, nestled in golden nectar, slept a Jade Skin Gu looking cozy as a Discord mod in their basement.
One touch of his primeval essence and the Gu was his - sixth one secured. "Flower Wine Monk really hooked me up with that premium sigma starter pack," Fang Yuan smirked. Top-tier defensive Gu, but the upkeep? Absolute pain. Two jade rocks every ten days? Might as well become a Minecraft streamer at this rate.
After resting his tired arms (no days off for a sigma), he pushed open the heavy rock door. The sight that greeted him was Ohio levels of wild - a massive underground stone forest stretching further than the Qing Mao Mountain school cafeteria line.
Stone pillars hung from the ceiling like inverted trees, each dotted with dark holes that screamed "monkey business ahead." And indeed they were - home to Jade Eye Stone Monkeys, the ultimate neet creatures who never left their holes unless provoked.
Fang Yuan tested one. A single moonblade shot into a hole. Screech! A gray monkey launched out like a skibidi toilet jumpscare. Three more moonblades later, it exploded into rock dust, leaving only two glowing jade eyes behind.
"At least the Jade Skin Gu won't starve," he muttered, pocketing the eyes. But when he took seven cautious steps forward, dozens more glowing eyes lit up in the surrounding pillars.
Fang Yuan immediately backpedaled. "Yeah no, I'm not speedrunning death today." The inheritance could wait until he'd leveled up some more.
Big Powerspike
The autumn forest was painting itself in shades of red and gold as Fang Yuan stood motionless, facing down a charging black wild boar. Most would dodge. Not him. Sigma rule #1: Never show weakness.
At the last possible second, he activated the Jade Skin Gu - his shoulder glowing faint green - and tanked the hit like a true Ohio warrior.
Boom!
The impact sent him stumbling back three steps while the boar only retreated one, looking dazed like it had just seen the skibidi toilet dance. Before it could recover, Fang Yuan was on it - grabbing a tusk with one hand while his other fist, coated in jade energy, started delivering the pain.
Bam! First punch to the skull. The boar squealed.
Bam! Second punch. Its legs wobbled.
Bam! Third punch. Lights out.
As the boar collapsed, Fang Yuan stood over it, catching his breath. "Life's like a viral meme - flashy but short. Death's like a shadowban - quiet and unnoticed."
He fed the carcass to the White Boar Gu (no wasting resources - another sigma rule) then checked his primeval sea. Only 8% expended despite the intense fight. Peak stage efficiency at work - his black-green primeval essence was built different.
Meanwhile, across the mountain, Fang Zheng had been on that main character grindset. After surviving the poisoning incident, he'd awakened with protagonist energy - first to reach upper stage, then peak stage, leaving all the NPC classmates in the dust. That A-grade talent difference was real.
Fang Yuan? Still upper stage. Not because of lack of effort, but because the stone monkey grind was ridiculously time-consuming. Between feeding the Jade Skin Gu and searching the labyrinthine stone forest for the next inheritance clue, his cultivation progress had slowed.
A rustling in the bushes snapped him from his thoughts. A grizzled old wolf emerged - one eye missing, fur patchy, limping slightly. It sniffed the air, catching the scent of boar blood.
Man and beast locked eyes in a silent standoff that lasted several tense seconds. Then, wisely recognizing that sigma aura, the wolf turned and melted back into the underbrush.
Fang Yuan didn't pursue. Sigma rule #42: Never waste energy on low-tier mobs.
But then - crunch. Another presence approached, much larger. The wolf's sudden, choked-off yelp told him everything he needed to know.
Fang Yuan's hand drifted toward his Gu as his pupils narrowed. Whatever was coming had just one-shot that wolf without breaking a sweat.
A slow smirk spread across his face. "Now this... this might actually be fun."
Rank Two Already
The forest floor crunched under heavy footsteps as an absolute unit of a man emerged from the bushes. This was no NPC—this was Gu Yue Chi Shan, the clan's hidden OP character.
Dude was built like a final boss. Shirtless in autumn like a true sigma male, muscles glowing red from some insane cultivation technique. Had a whole grocery store of dead animals hanging off him—foxes, rabbits, even that one-eyed wolf from earlier. No-diffed it like a side quest.
Fang Yuan recognized him immediately. Chi Shan was that guy who made B-grade talent look S-tier. At twelve, he was out here tossing stone grinders like they were frisbees. Now? Rank Two Upper Stage and radiating main character energy.
The man glanced at Fang Yuan, did a double take like "GYATT damn this kid's mewing," then kept walking without a word. Sigma rule #1: Never waste dialogue on NPCs.
Fang Yuan checked his own stats as Chi Shan left.
Inventory Status:
Primeval stones: CRITICALLY LOW (bro's wallet was drier than a Discord mod's social life)
Gu worms to feed: 6 (gacha addiction levels of expensive)
Cultivation: Rank One Peak Stage (C-grade diff, but the sigma grindset never stops)
The year-end exam was coming up. First place meant 150 primeval stones—enough to keep the grind going. Fang Yuan cracked his knuckles. Time to turn this cultivation novel into a speedrun.
Exam Day (Glow-Ups Only)
Snow fell like forgotten TikTok trends as fifty-seven students lined up for their final stat check. The clan elders sat watching like Twitch mods reviewing a cringe compilation.
One by one, NPCs got exposed:
"Gu Yue Jin Zhu... Rank One Middle Stage!" [Average enjoyer]
"Gu Yue Chi Cheng... Rank One Peak Stage!" [Tries to smirk, looks constipated]
"Gu Yue Mo Bei... Rank One Peak Stage!" [Seething at Chi Cheng]
Then—plot twist.
"Gu Yue Fang Yuan... Rank One Peak Stage!"
The crowd lost it.
"Bro's C-grade! HACKS!"
"Liquor worm carrying this noob 😤"
"Wait till Rank Two—skill issue incoming!"
Fang Yuan didn't even blink. Sigma rule #2: Let the NPCs mald.
But then—
The examiner's voice cracked:
"Gu Yue Fang Zheng... Rank Two Initial Stage!"
EVERYONE: 😱
Mo Bei and Chi Cheng looked like they just got mogged in a battle royale. The clan elders started whispering about "A-grade diff" and "clan leader's rizz." Fang Zheng stood there glowing like he bought the $100 battle pass.
Fang Yuan just smirked. "He's ahead of schedule... interesting."
Fang Zheng clenched his fists, eyes shining with that shonen protagonist sparkle. "I did it, clan leader! Brother... your shadow can't hold me back anymore!"
Meanwhile, Fang Yuan was already ten steps ahead.
"Let him have his cutscene. The real grind starts now."