Chapter 8: The Pain Debuff as a Catalyst

Feng Mu awoke from bed and turned off the alarm. It was eight in the morning, and he had only slept four hours. His entire body ached from excessive exertion, though the results exceeded expectations.

"Utilization rate at 2.4%, even higher than the 2% I predicted," he mused, both pained and pleased.

"An extra 0.4% each day may seem small, but if it accumulates steadily, reaching 100% progress could shave off ten days from the original estimate—that’s forty days total."

Still, Feng Mu was far from satisfied; he hoped to reduce that time to under a month.

Dressed, he pulled a handful of iron beads from his pocket—his breakfast. After only four hours of sleep, his stomach had just cleared some space, but he immediately filled it again, raising his utilization rate by 0.1%, to 2.5%.

The cost was an almost empty pocket, with only a thin layer of cash left. He weighed it in his hand, roughly estimating about 0.5%, then counted the bills twice, his expression darkening.

"Damn, I got a bit carried away yesterday. I almost forgot that besides my innate talent, poverty is another thing limiting my progress."

"Utilization rate can improve over time, but only if I have enough money to buy iron to consume."

Frowning, Feng Mu rummaged through the layers between books and old clothes pockets, finally scraping together a few stray bills.

After counting twice, he had a total of 177.5 currency units—enough to buy six pounds of iron beads, just enough to last a week without rationing.

His mobile banking app had no funds whatsoever; in fact, he hadn't even activated it.

Suddenly, he pulled out a different phone—powered off and unlike his own cheap model, this was the latest one, priced over 8,000 units, rumored to be worth a good kidney on the black market.

"Rich people, huh? Maybe I should activate mobile banking; there might be some money inside."

A greedy thought crossed his mind but was quickly suppressed.

"This phone can’t be turned on lightly, and any money inside must remain untouched to avoid being tracked. Although the police’s investigative technology is outdated, better safe than sorry."

The city’s technology lagged behind the previous world’s, at least on the surface, but the overhanging gloom was suffocating—one had to be cautious.

“Dad, he didn’t come home last night either?”

Feng Mu grabbed a steamed bun from the table as he headed out and asked his mother.

Wang Xiuli replied, “No, he said there’s a major case at the police station, so he won’t be coming home for a while.”

Bang.

Feng Mu casually shut the door, lowered his head, and went downstairs, his eyes flickering slightly.

He didn’t eat the bun, instead slipping it into the other pocket.

He first pedaled his bicycle to the hardware store, detouring into a secluded dead-end alley where, when he emerged, the old bag hanging from his handlebar was gone.

At the hardware store, he replenished three pounds of iron beads.

The store owner couldn’t help but ask, “What do you use these iron beads for, buying them every day like this?”

“Nothing much, just for martial arts training,” Feng Mu replied casually, but inwardly thought, “I can’t come here anymore.”

School was uneventful.

Apart from the warehouse episode, today was a carbon copy of yesterday.

His mind wandered during cultural classes, sweat poured during martial arts training, the playground was calm, and not a single police officer appeared.

Feng Mu speculated, “Maybe the family hasn’t reported it yet, or the disappearance case hasn’t been taken seriously. Or perhaps the police are tied up with a major case and can’t spare the manpower?”

Whatever the reason, the crucial 48-hour window for solving the case was slipping away, which was good news for Feng Mu.

After school, he left and went home.

He arrived earlier than usual, but no one was home.

His mother had taken Feng Ju’s dinner and clean clothes to him, leaving a simple meal on the table.

Feng Mu wasn’t about to eat; his pocket still held the steamed bun from earlier. But to avoid arousing his mother’s suspicion, he found a food container in the kitchen, scooped some dishes into it, and put the bun inside.

Returning to his room, he packed the food container in a tote bag, hung his backpack on the chair, rested briefly, and then began training.

Training was undoubtedly tedious and painful, especially with the lingering soreness from yesterday’s exertion, making today’s practice even harder—as if burdened by some debuff.

For a fleeting moment, Feng Mu wanted to rest.

He could train tomorrow when his muscles weren’t so sore, but…

The chill around his sternum’s sword protrusion grew more intense. If yesterday it was the size of a fingernail, today it was the size of a little finger. If yesterday the cold was minus one degree, now it was minus two.

[Utilization rate increased ↑↑]

[Utilization rate increased ↑↑]

Accompanying the cool sensation when swallowing, the flashing prompt on his retina offered the clearest indicator.

Notice the difference?

“↑↑” had one more arrow than yesterday’s “↑.”

“Double fatigue, double digestion—it’s like the pain itself is the indispensable catalyst for growth!”

Feng Mu cracked a wet grin, gasping greedily, his chest pumping like a bellows until deep into the night.

[Iron Eater: Level One]

[Edible Iron Types: 1]

[Absorbable Metal Properties: 1]

[Currently detected edible iron—ordinary pig iron, utilization rate 6.3%.]

[Absorbed properties: ??]

At 4 a.m., outside the window was pitch black; the upper city still had not lit a single streetlamp.

Feng Mu collapsed onto his bed like a puddle of mud, his eyes glowing faintly like fireflies.

“Today’s growth was 3.9%, 1.5% more than expected. Heh, cutting the time to one month is doable—maybe tomorrow I can go even faster!!!”

Of course, the cost was excessive; today’s iron consumption exceeded the estimate by 50%.

“Making money is urgent,” Feng Mu whispered to himself, turning to his side and unlocking his phone screen. A group chat window popped up.

You have been added to the group chat by Luo Ji—[Blank Ones·Class Reunion].

There were over 99 unread messages.

Feng Mu paused briefly before clicking in.

Tao Fei: “Big group chats are boring. Before I leave, I thought I’d create a small group and bring you all in. Since none of us took the college entrance exam, we can keep in touch here.”

Wang Jian: “Sounds good. I’m leaving too. The big group is pointless; they look down on us anyway. No use trying to keep up.”

Dong Ni: “I’m not leaving. I want to see how many of them actually pass. Those who don’t will be like us—blank citizens. Their faces will be hilarious then.”

Tao Fei: “Haha, smiley face.jpg.”

Wang Jian: “What is everyone doing now? I already got into the incineration plant. Burned two cursed corpses today.”

Sun Yi: “Are cursed corpses scary? I’ve only heard about them in the news. They say burning them is dangerous—is that true?”

Wang Jian: “Not really, they’re treated beforehand, just looks gross.”

Luo Ji: “I passed the vanguard team’s test. Might get my first mission next week. If anyone’s free this weekend, let’s have dinner together.”

…

Feng Mu skimmed through the flood of messages.

The last message was sent at 1:23 a.m., containing two mentions of him.

Tao Fei @ Feng Mu: “I heard you haven’t officially dropped out and have been going to school these past few days?”

Luo Ji @ Feng Mu: “Dinner this weekend, you coming?”

Feng Mu had no intention to explain or reply and was about to turn off his phone and sleep.

Suddenly, he hesitated, scrolling back to the messages and staring at one for a long moment before diverting his gaze to his backpack, his pupils contracting.

He typed a reply:

Feng Mu @ Tao Fei: “Sorry, I didn’t check my phone earlier. Yeah, I’ll drop out in the next couple of days.”

Feng Mu @ Luo Ji: “I’ll definitely be there this weekend.”

After sending his replies, he opened a private chat by tapping on a profile picture, hesitated, then sent a message…