Here are my favorite progression fantasy series that I’ve read so far:

• Cradle by Will Wight
• Mage Errant by John Bierce
• Arcane Ascension and Weapons and Wielders by Andrew Rowe
• Bastion by Phil Tucker
• The Weirkey Chronicles and Street Cultivation by Sarah Lin
• Soul Relic by Samuel Hinton
• The Umbral Storm by Alec Hutson
• Super Powereds by Drew Hayes
• Portal to Nova Roma by J.R. Mathews
• The Eldest Throne by Bernie Anés Paz
• Jekua by Travis M. Riddle
• The Enchanter by Tobias Begley
• Eight by Samer Rabadi
• Morcster Chef by Actus
• Ascendant by Michael R Miller
• God of Gnomes by Demi Harper
• Heaven Fall by Leo Petracci
• The Mage of Shimmer Mountain by Adam Sampson

Note that some of these have stats, but all of them take place on a real world. I consider LitRPG to be only those that take place inside a virtual reality game.