Volume One, Chapter 1: In This World, Gu Reign Supreme

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“Breaking news: Kells and his team have successfully infiltrated the depths of the Atlantic Ocean under the protection of a high-rank Gu Master, where they detected the existence of an ancient city on the seafloor. It is said that the secrets of the origin of Gu may be hidden within.”

“Let us follow the cameras and take a closer look...”

Swipe.

“Let’s sway together...”

Swipe.

“Does the Time Gu truly exist? This is a subject that countless experts have been discussing. Professor Bruce, may I ask what your opinion is?”

In River City, on the athletic field of Shaded Grove Gu Master Academy, a young man sat cross-legged on the grass, furiously swiping across his phone screen.

One short video after another flashed before his eyes, most of them related to Gu.

Swipe.

“A high-rank Gu Master was seen behaving intimately with a female student in the classroom. The organization is currently investigating...”

“Hm? This video looks interesting.”

The young man’s gossip-loving spirit instantly burst into flame, and he began watching with great interest.

“Wait. Why is my attention so strangely focused?”

With that thought, he resumed frantically swiping through his phone.

The sky, which had been clear only moments before, grew gloomy as several dark clouds appeared, as though echoing the young man’s mood.

His name was Chen Tianming, and he had never originally belonged to this world. He had been a prodigious high school student who had never taken his daily examinations seriously, always handing in blank papers.

He had intended to put in a little effort when the entrance examination came around, then stunningly claim either first or second place in the entire school and give those people who looked down on others a proper lesson.

For that reason, he often studied in secret by himself, all for the sake of that one spectacular moment.

But then the unexpected happened.

One day, while studying diligently at home, he must have grown somewhat exhausted. In a daze, he fell asleep with his head on the desk. When he woke again, he found himself—damn it—in a completely unfamiliar world.

Gu worms and Gu Masters, things that had previously existed only in novels, had become reality in his own life.

The classmates, teachers, parents, and even his own elder sister were all unchanged. The only difference was the world itself.

The world that had once revolved around science had, after one night’s sleep, become a world where Gu reigned supreme.

Mathematics, physics, and chemistry had become the Theory of Relativity for Gu Worms!

Fine, the world had changed. Chen Tianming had not actually resisted it. On the contrary, he thought it was a good thing. After all, this world was incredibly wondrous, and Gu worms could be used to achieve all kinds of ends.

Unfortunately, the world had changed completely right in the middle of his entrance examination, and after arriving here, Chen Tianming had not understood any of the relevant knowledge.

Thus, the top student who had originally planned to conceal his abilities, shock everyone, and humiliate those who looked down on him had truly become a worthless student whom everyone despised.

He had endured every kind of mockery and ridicule.

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The only thing worth celebrating was that the nine years of compulsory Gu education covered merely basic knowledge and theory. Genuine Gu-related subjects would not be introduced until high school.

And to become a true Gu Master, one had to pass through an essential step: Gu Worm Awakening.

The first step toward becoming a true Gu Master was Gu Worm Awakening!

As long as one successfully awakened a Gu worm, one could still carve out a path of one’s own, even without having studied the preceding theoretical knowledge.

Chen Tianming held a faint expectation of becoming a Gu Master. After all, who would refuse supernatural power?

Whether one wished to punish evil and uphold justice or strike down corrupt villains, everything depended on one prerequisite: strength.

Unfortunately, this examination...

To put it simply, after his tireless efforts before the test, he had finally reached the level where he could understand the questions. As for whether his answers were correct—

Well, a true man never checks his answers after completing an examination.

At that moment, several voices came from nearby.

“Hey! Li Chengying, what type of Gu worm can be combined with a Water-type Gu worm to create a Steam Gu worm? Did you solve this question?” asked a dark-skinned boy wearing glasses.

“Perfectly,” the handsome boy replied smugly.

“As expected of the top student in our class. You even managed to answer such an obscure question. Impressive!” the bespectacled boy said admiringly.

Then, his tone suddenly changed. Pointing ahead, he said, “Huh? Isn’t that Chen Tianming, the perennial last-place student?”

Li Chengying cast a disdainful glance at the young man standing alone beside the teaching building.

“That fellow is about to become just like his father—a gardener who trims flowers and grass.”

“Wouldn’t that make him a servant of the Li family? Ha-ha-ha!”

Several boys burst into unrestrained laughter.

After finishing their mockery, the two swaggered away. Clearly, they were confident they would be admitted to the ideal Gu Master high school.

As they departed, their voices gradually faded from Chen Tianming’s ears. Several raindrops the size of grains of rice fell from the sky onto his face, interrupting his thoughts.

“It’s raining? I should go home too.”

Chen Tianming rose, brushed the dirt from his clothes, and slowly headed toward the school gate.

Once he stepped outside, the rain began to fall more heavily. He hunched his shoulders and prepared to jog all the way home when he suddenly heard a familiar call.

“Tian! Tian...”

Amid the crowd, a kindly, slightly simple-looking man held up an umbrella and waved repeatedly in his direction.

Seeing the familiar face, Chen Tianming was somewhat surprised.

“Dad, what are you doing here?”

“Of course I came to pick up my precious son!”

Chen Guozhong hurried over, handed his umbrella to Chen Tianming, and then opened another one for himself.

“You’ve graduated now, so I found you a job as a gardener. I’ll have your Uncle Chen take you along and teach you for a while. Once you’ve become proficient, your father will think of a way to get you into the Li family to trim their flowers and grass. That way, we can work together, father and son, and look after each other.”

Chen Guozhong’s face was full of smiles.

Although the world was different, his father was still his father. That deep, instinctive sense of familiarity remained unchanged.

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Chen Guozhong had already mentioned the matter of working as a gardener for the Li family. Chen Tianming had originally intended to give his father a pleasant surprise, but now he could only bitterly accept the fact that he truly was a perennial last-place student.

But he was unwilling to accept it.

Everything in this world was identical to the Blue Planet he had known before. Airplanes, high-speed trains, mobile phones, computers, and other technological products had not been replaced simply because Gu worms existed.

If he could not become a Gu Master, then he would become one of the laborers producing those technological goods.

“Damn it! How is this any different from my old world? I’m going to become a Gu Master!”

Based on the principle that everything else in this world remained unchanged, his own talent should have remained unchanged as well.

As long as he studied hard, he would reclaim with his own hands everything he had once lost.

“Dad, I want to keep studying.”

After hesitating for a moment, Chen Tianming slowly spoke and told Chen Guozhong what he was thinking.

“Weren’t you never particularly interested in becoming a Gu Master?” Chen Guozhong asked in astonishment, his smile fading.

“Uh...”

Chen Tianming was momentarily speechless.

Looking at his son’s troubled expression, Chen Guozhong’s smile returned.

“It’s all right. As long as you want to study, your father will support you even if I have to sell everything we own.”

Chen Tianming was deeply moved. He had a great deal of information to mentally rearrange.

For example, the founding ancestor of Lightning-type Gu Masters was Tesla, while the founding ancestor of Light-type Gu Masters was Edison.

“Dad, I found a temporary summer job at Cloudrise Gu Master High School. I’ll be looking after the library, and I start tomorrow.”

Considering the family’s circumstances, the sensible young man already understood that he needed to ease the financial burden at home.

The job offered almost no pay—only food and lodging—but it was extremely important to him. The books in the library could provide him with a tremendous amount of knowledge.

There was no helping it. He was desperate to improve.

“All right. Since you’ve made up your mind, I won’t say anything more.”

Seeing how determined his son was, Chen Guozhong was filled with relief. He patted Chen Tianming on the shoulder.

“Your father believes in you.”

“So this is what familial love feels like? It’s wonderful...”

Father and son exchanged smiles and slowly walked home together...

...