A Future Big Shot Right Next to Me?!

The chat went quiet.

Wang Xiangxiang: "As long as you both keep making it out of the Land of Origin alive, Xiao Mingzi and Wenni still have a shot at 50% tempering."

Wenni: "Oh right — we haven't actually met classmate Lu Yuan yet. When should we all get together?"

Gu Yu: "I think that's a great idea. Now that classmate Lu Yuan is already a full-on big shot, shouldn't he treat us all to a proper meal?"

Lu Yuan had been silently lurking on his screen the whole time. He couldn't hold back:

Lu Yuan: "? Please — just sell me off. I don't have any money."

Wang Xiangxiang: "(angry emoji)(angry emoji)(angry emoji)"

Zhuo Ming: "@Wenni... rich lady, hungry hungry, feed me!"

Wenni: "(smiling emoji) Drop dead."

Wang Xiangxiang: "(smug grin emoji) Fine by me — I want to eat at the Jiuhu Grand Restaurant!"

*Jiuhu Grand Restaurant.* The most prestigious dining establishment in all of Xili City. Even someone living in the slums knew the name.

*Take them there?*

*There was absolutely no way he could afford that place.*

Lu Yuan: "? Please — just sell me off. I don't have any money."

Wang Xiangxiang: "?????"

Wang Xiangxiang: "You actually took me seriously?! I was joking! I'm in Stormwind City — we don't even have the same starting city! And I'm already at 98% tempering!"

Lu Yuan paused. A flicker of embarrassment crept in.

He typed with a completely straight face:

"Did you think I didn't know you were joking? I was joking too. You actually believed that? Come on."

Wang Xiangxiang: "?"

The atmosphere fell silent.

*So Wang Xiangxiang was already this strong?*

Lu Yuan thought it over. She had Awakened in her first year of high school, and her family was deep in the Gene Warrior world — the support they could give her was substantial. She'd been at it for almost two years. Being on the verge of breaking through to first-rank was perfectly reasonable.

Wang Xiangxiang and Cao Yan both came from Gene Warrior families and had family backing. They were doing reasonably well. The others had a harder road.

Wenni: "So this is what a big shot looks like? While the rest of us are still just trying to survive the Land of Origin, she's already worrying about breaking gene locks. We're all human — why is the gap this enormous? I'm so sorry to have been born. (sobbing emoji)"

Zhuo Ming: "(sobbing emoji) Making it out of the Land of Origin alive is NOT simple. The creatures in there and the other warriors are absolutely ruthless — every last one of them wants to put you in the ground on the spot! I've been Awakened for a whole year and I've only walked out alive ten times! This last run I was basically dead meat — if it weren't for Yuan-bro I wouldn't have made it out!"

Gu Yu: "By the way — if Cao Bro makes it out alive this time, he should be close to 95% tempering, right?"

Wenni: "You're already in decent shape, Gu Yu. I'm only at 33%. At this rate I can barely hope to hit 35% before the college exam. What about you?"

Gu Yu: "64%. Can't compare to Sister Xiangxiang and Cao Bro."

Zhuo Ming: "That's still solid, though. With your tempering degree plus a Transcendent Gene already encoded, you can still get into a decent mid-tier Gene Warrior Academy. It's me and Wenni who are in trouble."

Zhuo Ming: "Jealous. I'm only at 36% right now."

Wang Xiangxiang: "If you both keep making it out alive, Xiao Mingzi and Wenni, you still have hope of hitting 50%."

Wang Xiangxiang: "@Wenni, you'd better hurry up — the college exam is right around the corner."

Wenni: "I know."

Wenni: "If push comes to shove, my dad is planning to buy me a batch of Spirit Crystals. At least that'll push my tempering degree up."

Wang Xiangxiang: "(sighing emoji) It's not easy for me either. Breaking through a gene lock is incredibly difficult — the materials I need aren't something I can get hold of quickly. But if I can push through to first-rank Warrior, I might have a shot at competing for a top-ten Gene Warrior Academy."

Zhuo Ming had noticed Lu Yuan's earlier message. He asked curiously:

"Oh right, Yuan-bro — what's your tempering degree at?"

Lu Yuan: "Lower than all of you. I'm only around 10%."

Wang Xiangxiang: "...You've only been Awakened for ONE WEEK and you're already at 10%?!"

Gu Yu: "Why is it going so fast??"

Wenni: "At that speed, with roughly two months left until the college exam — are you seriously going to challenge first-rank?! (horrified emoji)"

Lu Yuan blinked. A trace of awkwardness settled in.

In truth, a large chunk of the Spirit Crystals he'd spent had gone toward charging the Evolution Cube — the tempering progress was only part of the picture. That said, even factoring that in, it was still considerably faster than ordinary cultivation.

Most people's Spiritual Energy absorption was fairly average. Talents like him didn't come along very often.

Lu Yuan: "Maybe my Spiritual Energy absorption efficiency is just higher. I've heard people say I'm a genius."

Wang Xiangxiang: "If that's really the case, Lu Yuan, you are genuinely a genius — and not just any ordinary genius! At your speed, you can keep pace with kids from the great clans. I'm serious — if you can sustain this, you'll definitely become a big shot. Maybe even a Battle General, or a Battle Venerate!"

The chat fell into stunned silence.

Then, one after another, as if on cue:

Wenni: "So this is what a big shot looks like? While the rest of us are still just trying to survive the Land of Origin, she's already thinking about breaking gene locks. We're all human — why is the gap this enormous? I'm so sorry to have been born. (sobbing emoji)"

Zhuo Ming: "So this is what a big shot looks like? While the rest of us are still just trying to survive the Land of Origin, she's already thinking about breaking gene locks. We're all human — why is the gap this enormous? I'm so sorry to have been born. (sobbing emoji)"

Gu Yu: "So this is what a big shot looks like? While the rest of us are still just trying to survive the Land of Origin, she's already thinking about breaking gene locks. We're all human — why is the gap this enormous? I'm so sorry to have been born. (sobbing emoji)"

Lu Yuan watched the messages pile into the chat and couldn't quite suppress the corner of his mouth twitching.

He also couldn't help himself:

Lu Yuan: "So this is what a big shot looks like? While the rest of us are still just trying to survive the Land of Origin, she's already thinking about breaking gene locks. We're all human — why is the gap this enormous? I'm so sorry to have been born. (sobbing emoji)"

Wang Xiangxiang: "(angry emoji)(angry emoji)(angry emoji)"

Zhuo Ming: "A Battle Venerate?! Holy crap! A future big shot — right next to me?!"

Wenni: "Big shot! Can I latch onto your leg early?"

Gu Yu: "Which leg?"

Wang Xiangxiang: "Xiao Mingzi, Xiao Yuzi — do you two want to die?"

[Gu Yu has been muted for 24 hours.]

Zhuo Ming: "? Old Gu, something's off about you."

Zhuo Ming: "(candle emoji)(prayer emoji) I hope he's busy."

Wang Xiangxiang: "Alright. Quiet now. I'm going to go deal with Xiao Yuzi later."

Gu Yu: "@Lu Yuan — a big shot is a big shot! My idol! You actually dared to mess with Sister Xiangxiang!"

Zhuo Ming: "@Lu Yuan — a big shot lives up to the name! Idol! You actually dared to flirt with Sister Xiangxiang!"

Wang Xiangxiang: "(angry emoji)(angry emoji)(angry emoji)"

Zhuo Ming: "Then it's decided! Starting today, I'm not eating — just waiting for the big shot to treat us!"

Lu Yuan: "Fine, don't eat."

Wang Xiangxiang: "Joking, joking. Gene Warriors have plenty of expenses. Something simple is fine. Besides, let's wait for Xiao Yanzi and Lili to come out too."

Zhuo Ming: "@Wenni... rich lady, hungry hungry, feed me!"

Wenni: "(smiling emoji) Drop dead."

Zhuo Ming: "I suddenly can't tell whether Yuan-bro is just that strong or I'm just that terrible."

They chatted until the sky began to lighten. Lu Yuan left the group chat and opened a browser, searching for information on the creatures inside the Sandy Rock Palace.

Before long, he spotted something in the newcomer forums.

His eyes lit up. He clicked in.

*《Sandy Rock City Creature Field Guide》*

*"This thread covers creature information for the Sandy Rock City starting region. (Note: this thread covers only standard creatures; certain unique specimens are not included.)"*

He glanced at the opening line and couldn't help but curl his lip.

A paid post.

*Three thousand yuan per access.*

*"Is this robbery?! Even if it kills me, I'm not paying that!"*

Lu Yuan exited and kept searching. After a long hunt, he found several more posts on Sandy Rock City creatures. All of them were paywalled — and the first one he'd found was still the cheapest.

He had no choice but to go back to it.

*"It's only three thousand yuan. It's not like I can't afford it."*

He had just over four thousand yuan left in his pocket. If he'd had any less, he wouldn't have been able to pay even if he'd wanted to.

He grumbled, paid, and started reading.

The complete guide covered hundreds of creatures, with over a hundred entries specific to the Sandy Rock Palace alone. Each one detailed the creature's characteristics, combat power, most valuable body parts, and more. The information was comprehensive.

Among them were creatures he'd already encountered — Stone Men, Black Scorpions — alongside ones he hadn't: Palace Sand Ants, Black Line Snakes, Palace Sand Kuis, and more.

Sample entries:

*"Gray Rock Beetle: Common creature. The weakest creature in Sandy Rock City. Primarily distributed in the Gray Rock Forest, with spread into other areas. Weak in combat, feeds on rock, moves very slowly. Ideal for beginners..."*

*"Black-stripe Gray Rock Beetle: Elite creature. Primarily inhabits the Gray Rock Forest. On the weaker end among elite creatures — roughly equivalent to a Gene Warrior at 40%–60% standard tempering. Possesses the combat technique Petrified Skin..."*

*"Iron Shell Beetle: Common creature. Primarily inhabits the deeper reaches of the Gray Rock Forest. Rare in number. Stronger than the Gray Rock Beetle, high defensive capability, slow movement speed..."*

*"Stone Man: ..."*

*"Black Scorpion: ..."*

*"Palace Sand Ant: ..."*

And so on.

Some creatures, even at his current strength, he would have no choice but to flee on sight. Engaging them would mean death. There were even species that no Gene Warrior seemed to have documented — given how vast the Land of Origin was and how many creatures inhabited it, that wasn't surprising.

If he had stumbled across some of these earlier without knowing what they were, he might have charged in like an idiot and gotten himself killed.

Knowing the creature composition of the Sandy Rock Palace now gave Lu Yuan a much clearer picture of what lay ahead.

After reading for two hours, it was no longer early.

He felt it was worth the money.

He also thought about picking up a dungeon map. He opened the listing post.

*Ten thousand yuan.*

He went silent.

*"Is this ROBBERY?! I would literally rather die."*

He exited and searched further. Nothing but more paywalled posts.

He gave up.

Although creature nests and habitats inside the dungeon did shift over time, the passages themselves wouldn't change dramatically without some major upheaval. The creature guide was enough. He'd find his way.

He still had a full spatial storage of materials he hadn't sold yet. That was a relief.

*First things first — go sell those materials.*

Lu Yuan closed his laptop and headed out.

Perhaps because of last night's incident, every door in the apartment was shut tight. Not a single tenant had come out. He glanced at the closed doors and didn't give it much thought.

The shops would be open by now.

He left the building, caught a ride, and made his way to the Jiuhu Shopping District.