Three hours later, Gu Xi finally looked up.
The corner of his right hand was dark with pencil lead. His neck ached. His back creaked like an old folding chair. His mind, though?
Clear.
Five books lay splayed out in front of him, their spines barely hanging on—three on classical mechanics, one on differential equations, and one focused entirely on real-number properties and function modeling. Dry, dense material, all of it. But it felt good.
No. It felt earned.
He leaned back in his seat and stretched slowly, joints popping like firecrackers in the quiet.
[Ding—]
[Achievement Quest: "Foundation of the Mind"]
Progress: 20%
Reward Unlocked: Wisdom +5
Assimilation Time: 12 hours
He smiled quietly to himself.
Second milestone of the day.
The system had been generous lately. Charm, physique, now wisdom—each slowly, steadily climbing toward something new. Something more.
He tapped the air again.
[Status]
Strength: 25
Wisdom: 42 (+5 pending)
Charm: 40
Physique: 40
Vitality: 38
Evaluation: "Clean and balanced. Easy on the eyes, slightly easy on the mind."
Minor Skills:
• Cooking: 60
• Singing: 60
• Linguistics: 40
Active Quests:
– "Male God's Body" (30%)
– "Foundation of the Mind" (20%)
Gu Xi stared at the Charm 40 and Wisdom 42 line.
"…Tomorrow's going to be something," he murmured.
He didn't know what would happen. But 40 felt like a threshold. A gate. Like something would unlock or awaken. It wasn't just a number—it felt different. Like his senses were sharpening even before the boost finished assimilating.
Still… why was Wisdom progressing so fast?
He narrowed his eyes, leaning against the desk.
It had only taken five books and a few hours to get 20%. Could it really be that simple?
Then again—he was still early-stage. Maybe the system was giving him a beginner's push. Letting him build momentum before the real difficulty began.
That was probably it.
"No way it'll stay this easy," he muttered, gathering up the books.
He stacked them carefully and stood up.
The shelves near the back of the library were mostly empty—quiet, unmonitored, and bathed in soft natural light. He walked between the rows slowly, his bag slung over one shoulder, the weight of knowledge somehow lighter than it had been hours ago.
He returned the books one by one, sliding each into its place.
He turned around—
—And walked face-first into a wall of something soft and warm and unmistakably biological.
His nose pressed into a firm shelf of something wrapped in athletic fabric.
Soft, but springy.
His body stiffened.
He looked up.
And up.
And up.
Standing before him was perhaps the tallest woman he'd ever seen.
She must've been at least 188 centimeters—lean, long-limbed, and powerful. She wore her school vest loosely over a cropped sports top, her toned abdomen clearly defined beneath. Her arms were covered in light sheen—like she'd just come back from running drills. The smell of fresh sweat and citrus deodorant lingered faintly in the air.
Her face?
Sharp brows, phoenix eyes, a straight nose, lips slightly parted in surprise. Her jawline was clean, not a trace of makeup, and her skin was sun-kissed—like a living embodiment of motion.
No earrings. No nail polish. No filter.
Just raw, athletic dominance.
He knew her instantly.
Chang An.
The school's reigning Number One Heartthrob Princess.
Even Gu Lin, for all her aura and model shoots, couldn't surpass her in the rankings.
Chang An didn't need to smile to make people swoon. She didn't need to flirt. She didn't even need to speak. She just needed to exist—and every pretty boy in school lost sleep over her.
Already recruited into University A—the top sports university in City A—and rumored to be preparing for international leagues in the States. Some whispered that she'd be China's first female export to the NBA if she played her cards right.
And despite all that?
No one had ever seen her with a boyfriend.
Not even rumors.
Not even scandals.
Many had tried. The most gorgeous male students in the school. Even some from rival schools. All turned down.
Some whispered she wasn't into men.
Others said she had a secret lover hidden off-campus.
But no one knew for sure.
All Gu Xi knew was that her chest had just physically bounced his brain.
And so—like a fool, like a reflex, like the idiot he sometimes forgot he could be—he blurted:
"Watch where you're going!"
A beat of silence.
Even the bookshelves seemed to go quiet.
Chang An blinked.
Then tilted her head slightly, as if studying him for the first time.
"…You bumped into me," she said flatly.
Her voice was low. Calm. Not aggressive, but unyielding. It wasn't a threat, but more like a polite reminder that Gu Xi had just faceplanted into an Olympic-grade rack.
He opened his mouth.
Then closed it again.
"…Right," he muttered.
She didn't move.
Didn't smirk. Didn't frown. Just looked at him with unreadable eyes.
Then, after a long pause, she stepped aside, brushed past him with the soft rustle of fabric—and was gone.
Gu Xi stood still for five full seconds.
He covered his face with one hand.
"…Great."