“Why is it that every time I see you, you’ve gotten bigger and bigger. Hell, even your tits are bigger than a curvy woman.” Li Han said, before covering his mouth in shame. “Dammit! I’m picking up the vulgar nguage you miners speak. Don’t any of you have shame?”

  Gon stood a head taller than the guard of the mines, his tanned skin glistening in the bright sun. His bck hair was now slicked back, so his eyes could clearly see ahead, and only reached a bit above his shoulders.

  Flexing his muscles with a side pump, Gon taunted Li Han. “Look man, it’s all of you that's super scrawny. I’ve only been working out for a month. just eat some meat. And make sure you train your body. I know basically all of you cultivators don’t even bother to work out, let alone do cardio.” Gon did the Zyzz Pose, flexing all of his gains. With a wink, he told Li Han, “Don’t rely on qi too much.”

  Over the past month, he had bulked up to an absurd amount, mostly thanks to his Blue Colr Physique. The effects of steroids, on steroids, were showing itself completely. His body was now pure muscle, lean and without any extra fat.

  But there was still a lot more to grow. Right now, he could only consider himself as having an average physique with slightly bulging muscle. Yet to these cultivators, he already seemed like a brute.

  Li Han shook his head and let out a sigh. “I barely have time to cultivate my inner qi as an outer disciple and you want me to train my body as well?”

  “No pain, no gain.” Gon waved him away, sending him off with today’s quota of spiritual jades.

  A month had passed since Gon had arrived in this world. He had remained diligent in his mining and cultivation. With the steady growth of his physique and qi, Gon was curious to test how he fared against cultivators in battle. Up until now, Gon had only hunted roaming monsters for meat. He had never fought another person in this life, but supposedly they should be stronger in general compared to Earth.

  Once Li Han had left, Gon called out for his status.

  A blue interface appeared in front.

  “Actually, can you change the colour of the user interface? It looks kind of boring now.”

  System: …

  Gon received no response, but he knew the System was definitely listening to his every word and thought.

  “Make it… a dark grey, like a stormy grey. Make the font white but have the border of it glow with… dark orange. That sounds good, yeah? Also give it a nice border. I’m thinking maybe some mining motifs, like some gems and rocks or whatever.” Gon put his fingers out like a cameraman, observing the shot with his vision in mind. “Yeah, that’d definitely look way more striking.”

  Acknowledged. Updating System User Interface.

  Right away, the colours had changed according to Gon’s desires.

  Gon whistled. “Wow, you sure are cooperating for once. Appreciate it, old mate.”

  Status

  Name: Gon (Kuang Gong)

  Age: 21 years old (36 years old)

  Title: Ghost Axe Gon

  Blue Colr Physique: Copper Physique (35%)

  25%- Increased resistance to blunt attacks

  Cultivation Level: Ore Refining Layer (Shallow)

  Mining Altar:

  Gem Slot 1: Onyx Shadow (Uncut)

  “Hm, when my physique broke past 25% I gained a defensive bonus and once I formed the 4th cloud within my Inner World, I reached Shallow in the Ore Refining Layer. How closer am I to reaching the next yer?”

  You are 25% through the Ore Refining Layer. The four stages are Surface, Shallow, Deep, and Core.

  “Do I get a bonus every quarter? Heh, better than the yearly bonuses in my old job.” Gon waved his hand, dismissing the screen.

  “Let’s go check how the boys are doing.”

  The mine had changed drastically from before. Rows of well-lit nterns jutted out from each wall, lighting the mine even further than before. Sturdy pilrs of wood maintained the stability of the mine, holding it together. The paths were much cleaner and easier to push the minecarts on. The corridors had expanded a bit more, just so everyone could walk with more comfort.

  Even the scent of a damp and run down mine had dissipated, with Gon and the team adding more ventition shafts throughout the mines.

  But there was still more they could improve. Especially waterproofing so the mines weren’t prone to flooding.

  The clunks of a mine cart resounded across the mines.

  “Step aside, Boss! A big load is coming through!” Guam said, pushed a minecart full of spiritual jade rapidly. Gon hurriedly stepped aside lest he get run over.

  “M-move aside… Boss…” Another minecart zipped past, this one being pushed by Quma, though Gon barely heard him.

  Gon deftly stepped aside and chuckled to himself. “A big load coming through? Just make sure to aim it straight ahead!”

  The main cavern of the mine had also gone through a series of upgrades. If there was one thing Gon did not compromise on, it was safety. The timber supports were maintained and thoroughly checked weekly. Any loose or extra rubble was quickly cleared, so as to not become a hazard.

  Illumination was extremely important as well. Unlike before, where the miners worked in the dark during the deeper areas of the caverns. Gon organised with Old Qiang to get more series of mps that kept the pce well lit. Gon took a moment to gaze at what he had achieved.

  Of course, he could not have done it alone.

  His team remained hard at work. Everyone had changed from one month ago. Not to the extent Gon had transformed, but they had put on some muscle and bulked up, which was attributed to the meat Gon would acquire daily.

  I even had Old Qiang ask the sect to improve the rations, but they refused. The fuck is wrong with them? Don’t they realise manual bourers need to be well-fed? It’s almost like they want us all to slowly die off.

  As their foreman, Gon was responsible for his team's safety and wellbeing, and he was not one to avoid his duties.

  “Did you send off Li Han?” Old Qiang wiped his sweat away with a towel and asked Gon. He had lost his previous frail appearance and looked healthier now. His hands however, remained the same. Delicate, jade-like and without blemish. They could easily be mistaken for a woman’s hands.

  “Yeah, he’s taken today’s quota with some of the other sect disciples. How’s work progressing here?” responded Gon.

  “Same old… Usually we’d be wasting away until dinner trying to complete the job, but ever since you came, we’ve managed to get over half the day to ourselves!”

  “Everyone truly considers you the boss now.” Old Qiang gave Gon a thumbs up with a smile.

  “All of you guys always had this power. We just needed to improve the infrastructure and have some actual bloody food to bring it out,” Gon replied coolly.

  “Hoho, but the issue was no one wanted to take the first step in improving our situation.”

  “Boss! Have you prepared lunch?” Lil Hu approached the pair, pickaxe slung over his shoulder. Like the rest, he had also grown quite a bit.

  “Thought I’d check in with you guys before heading out.”

  “...Come on boss. Hurry up and get some meat!” Lil Hu started to push Gon away. “We can finish this off ourselves no problem. Just hurry up and get our food!”

  “...”

  Gon was speechless. To think the day would come he’d be shoo’d out of his own mine and told to fetch food.

  “Yeah boss, stop wasting time here and go!”

  “We’re starving so can you hurry and leave!”

  “I’m going to start eating rocks if I don’t get some meat!”

  The rest of the miners followed Lil Hu’s example and sent Gon away with their remarks. Gon could only shake his head helplessly and make a beeline for the exit.

  “These guys sure have changed. Not just physically but mentally.”

  “I think it’s time to give them what they want. My juicy and delicious meat.”

  Gon raised his arms behind his head and stretched deeply.

  He ran forward.

  The ground cracked under his foot while the leaves shook like they’d been hit with a rge gust of wind.

  Gon had long since surpassed normal human limits and had firmly stepped onto the path of cultivation, nay, the true path of a real miner.

  He travelled through the forest with blinding speed, his breaths even and controlled. His eyes continuously scanned the area, hunting for his next prey.

  After a few minutes of travel, Gon suddenly stopped and took cover behind a tree. A few metres away stood a four legged beast. It resembled a bison from earth with its thick, brown fur and rge protruding horns.

  A Forestpin Bison. It’s my lucky day. It should be enough to feed us for lunch and dinner!

  Gon controlled his breathing and waited for an opportunity to attack. Using the ability, Onyx’s Cloak, as long as Gon stayed within the shadow of the tree, he’d be extremely hard to detect.

  Now!

  The bison had turned around and left its back exposed to Gon, its shadow facing Gon’s direction.

  “Blink.” Gon muttered under his breath and activated his qi. A bck, shadow-like aura enclosed Gon as he melded into the tree's shadow.

  Within an instant, he crossed the distance of roughly 15 metres and appeared behind the bison, rising from its shadow like a ghost that refused to die. Even until now, the bison had not noticed Gon’s presence at all.

  He quickly followed up by raising fists and smmed them straight onto the bison’s head. What happened next was not a nice sight. Gon’s fists shattered through its skull like paper. Blood and brains exploded, instantly killing the beast.

  Before Gon could revel in his victory, he felt a sudden chill down his spine. His hairs stood on end as he tensed his back muscles in response.

  And then it came. An assault of pain erupted from Gon’s backside as he was flung across the clearing, straight into a tree. Pain assailed Gon as he quickly got up and faced his attacker. His breaths ragged.

  It was another Forestpin Bison.

  Much rger than the one he had just killed.

  Is that its mate? Damn! I should've paid more attention!

  Not willing to give Gon time to think, the bison stamped its legs and readied itself to charge.

  I can’t get hit again. Those bsted horns of his somehow broke through my copper skin!

  The throbbing pain that continuously pulsated from Gon’s back sent his thoughts into disarray. With a guttural snort, it charged at Gon with reckless abandon. Like a bull that had seen red, it wanted to kill the bastard that had just murdered its mate.

  Control your breathing. It’s mad right now. I’ve got enough qi to use Blink twice, but if I do that, the Onyx Shadow Gem will take 24 hours to regenerate in the altar.

  This was Gon’s biggest weakness. Though his unique method of cultivating allowed him to understand techniques of other paths, they were wholly dependent on the gems he found. And even worse yet, he could only use Blink at most three times if he travelled over a dozen metres. If he only travelled a few metres, he might be able to use it five to seven more times.

  To most cultivators, they would consider the restrictions of this technique enough to call it dogshit.

  What the hell were you supposed to do in battle after Blinking three times and running out for the next 24 hours? Just sit there and die?

  But to Gon, this was more than enough to go hunting wild beasts for food. To him, this was the greatest and most legendary technique ever.

  Gon waited with his back towards the tree. The bison charged like a rampaging train, ready to kill everything in its path. The horns of death approached Gon, yet he remained calm and at the st second he used Blink.

  He immediately dissolved into shadow and appeared behind the bison, who had just gotten its horn stuck in the tree trunk. He raised his arms and was ready to attack.

  And then it came.

  The bison, with its horns stuck, focused its weight upon its front legs and raised its back legs to deliver a brutal back kick straight towards Gon’s torso.

  However, Gon expected this and pced his forearms in front of him as a shield. A dull sound rang out as the majority of the impact was dispersed and Gon only took a step back.

  Not willing to lose the momentum he had just gained, Gon focused dashed forward, appearing beside the trapped bison’s head. He fully extended his fingers and gathered the power of his physical body into his palm and delivered a devastating, piercing strike straight into the bison's ear.

  Gon’s hand passed through the bison’s skin like a hot knife through butter and cshed directly with its brain. The bison bellowed in pain and struggled frantically before coming to a halt.

  It had died.

  Gon extracted his bloodied hand and slumped to the ground. He took in deep breaths and circuted his qi.

  “I didn’t think I’d struggle so much with a shitty cow!”

  “The rest of the boys can’t find out about this.” Gon ughed before wincing in pain. The bison’s tusks had left two, bloody, swollen bumps that caused it to hurt when Gon y down.

  System achievement!

  Defeated the Lord of the Forest.

  Upgrade: Copper Physique (35%) -> Copper Physique (40%)

  Unlocked: Mining Altar Nine-Coloured Divine Bowl

  A series of grey screens covered Gon’s vision.

  My physique just jumped up 5% at once! Did it increase because of the damage I suffered? So exercising isn’t the only way to increase it.

  Gon took a moment to collect his thoughts and continued to y down. Once he had recovered enough to move, he got up and pced each bison over a shoulder.

  “Looks like there's enough food for today and tomorrow!”

  Both the bisons weighed easily over half a ton, but to Gon they were lightweight. The body he had sculpted with the Blue Colr Physique was a marvel of muscle and strength, which was thoroughly exhibited when he overpowered the two massive beasts.

  He slung each over his shoulder and made his way back to the camp, humming an old miner’s melody.

  “Swing the pick, crack the stone.”

  “Digging deep where no light goes.”

  “Blood and dust, sweat and might.”

  “Every strike brings the light.”

  Gon’s stomach only rumbled with hunger pangs, only making him look forward to his next meal.

  “Ah, wait. I unlocked something new, right?”

  Gon thought of the Mining Altar Divine Rainbow whatever it was called. “You sure have a terrible naming sense, old mate… System? Tem?” Gon felt like a light bulb appeared above his head. “That’s right, I’ll call you old mate Tim. Not a bad nickname, eh?”

  And once he would finish his next meal, Gon would check out his inner world.

  “This rainbow bowl thing or whatever it is. I’m expecting it to be something good, old mate Tim.”