I Will Grind My Way To Godhood

“That little brat can really run!”

The man cursed inwardly as he tracked Xue Jing's trail with his artificial eye.

Martial artists were nothing but trouble, nimble as monkeys, darting around incessantly—couldn't just stand still.

After crashing through yet another wall, the man waved away the dust and stopped in his tracks.

The trace displayed by his artificial eye ended abruptly, with three question marks appearing in the top right corner, indicating insufficient data and an unknown direction.

"Got away?" The man's face looked grim.

"Impossible. If he could have run, he'd have done it already. He's hiding somewhere!"

The man adjusted the mode of the artificial eye from [Tracking] to [Insight].

"You little bastard, you can't escape."

In the dark red vision, every detail of the alley was scanned into the chip for a thorough analysis.

In the vision of the artificial eye appeared a phantom, identical to Xue Jing, darting into the alley and scanning around, seemingly searching for something, before bending down to pick up an item from the ground.

The artificial eye was still analyzing when suddenly, a sharp whistling sound came from above.

Instinctively, the man raised his right hand, pinching two fingers together just in time to catch a rusty iron nail right in front of his eyes.

But before he could react further, a figure descended from the sky at an unimaginable speed, delivering a punch towards him!

The figure's speed was so outrageously fast that the man couldn't make any counterattack—the fist already struck his hand that held the nail, driving it directly into his artificial eye!

“Arghhhhhh!!!”

The rusty iron nail plunged into the eye, completely embedding itself, and the man screamed in agony, clutching his eye as blood poured out.

Seeing his sneak attack succeed, Xue Jing seized the opportunity to maintain his assault, relentlessly pounding his fist against the eye where the nail had penetrated.

“Bang bang bang bang bang…”

The nail, already driven deep, was hammered further into the man's body with each successive blow.

“You courting death?!”

The man roared furiously, enduring the searing pain. With a single eye opened to regain his sight, he forcefully batted away Xue Jing's barrage.

Suddenly, he lashed out a kick at Xue Jing, who quickly brought up both hands to defend, shielding his chest.

The force of the kick sent Xue Jing hurtling backwards, slamming into the wall with enough impact to leave a human-shaped imprint.

“...”

Despite having braced himself, Xue Jing still felt the sting, his arms burning and chest aching intensely.

“Such strength.”

Casually picking up shards of broken wall debris, Xue Jing grabbed a handful and hurled them at the man.

“Clatter, clatter...”

In his hands, the stones were like bullets, but they had little effect, merely causing the man to shield his eyes with his hands.

“I'll tear you to pieces, you wretched brat!”

The man bellowed with rage.

He truly hadn't expected to suffer such a setback in the outskirts—a rural area—at the hands of a mere boy whose ranking had barely reached Level 2.

“You're just a mangy dog with a thick hide.”

Xue Jing taunted.

He glanced at his panel.

His new divine skill glowed ever brighter.

Hearing the taunt only incensed the man further, and like a heavy tank, he charged straight at Xue Jing.

Xue Jing activated his Twin Speed ability, twisting his body to dodge, while the wall behind him was shattered by the man's charge.

"Damn it!"

The man felt frustrated, almost spitting blood in anger.

If it weren't for the restriction of [ISE] scanners not passing security checks and being illegal to bring into Outer Ring City, how could this kid be running around unrestrained?

He would have crushed him already!

At this moment, Xue Jing, sidestepping as he dodged, focused his gaze sharply and suddenly launched a precise kick that brushed against the man's chin.

It was an instinctive strike, as perfect as if it were a natural phenomenon, both in angle and timing.

The force of Xue Jing's kick combined with the momentum of the man lunging forward caused an immediate concussion, making him feel dizzy and disoriented.

"Oh no!"

Seeing the ground rush up to meet him, the man realized things were going wrong.

The most valuable part of him was the protective [C5-grade dermal membrane] on his body, which effectively shielded him from martial artists' strikes.

But even so, he couldn't withstand a heavy blow to the chin, the body's most vulnerable point—aimed straight at the brain.

The man fell to the ground, struggling to stand, but the shock to his brain destroyed his sense of balance, preventing him from rising despite his efforts.

Xue Jing narrowed his eyes, taking a discarded pressure cooker lid from the garbage in the alley, and approached the man.

The edge of the lid struck hard on the man's occipital bone with a loud crash.

"Bang, bang, bang, bang!!"

The relentless barrage continued until the lid's handle broke under the strain, sending the lid flying.

"You… just wait, I'll… devour you alive…"

Surprisingly, the man appeared almost unaffected, his equilibrium gradually restoring as he stood up slowly, shouting threats.

Xue Jing clicked his tongue, "What kind of creature is this?"

He realized it wasn't a force that any human should be able to withstand.

At that moment, the panel before him burst into a dazzling golden light.

【Divine Essence Extraction Complete】

Beneath the original abilities, a brand new divine skill appeared!

【Shadow Flame: Divine Skill, Activation Requires Divine Essence 539/500】

【Conditions Fulfilled. Activate?】

【Yes/No】

Xue Jing hesitated, unsure whether to upgrade his existing traits first or activate this new divine ability.

But the name【Shadow Flame】sounded like an attack-oriented skill...

After some thought, Xue Jing made the decision and pressed【Yes】.

【Activation Successful】

【Shadow Flame Lv1】

【Effect: Transforms shadows into tangible shadow flames】

【Divine Avatar: Locked】

In the alleyway, from all shadows untouched by sunlight, countless streams of black energy swirled towards Xue Jing like a vortex.

Whoosh—

Black flames began to ignite and bloom all over Xue Jing's body.

The black flames grew more intense, forming into a splendid coat of dark fire.

The man slowly regained his senses, coming out of his dazed state, only to be met with a shocking scene. His lone, remaining real eye's pupil contracted fiercely to its limit.

He opened his mouth wide, his expression shifting from anger to sheer terror.

"You...!"

It seemed he wanted to say something, but was utterly unable to.

A hand engulfed in dark flames grasped the lower part of his face, lifting him high into the air.

His pupils contracted further, overwhelmed by fear, he did not dare to resist.

'The power of the beyond, the Blessed One...'

'He's the Blessed One!!'

'Am I really opposing a Blessed One?'

'Ha, hahaha, haha...'

'I'm finished, am I going to die?'

'I'm doomed...'

"Mind your words in the next life." Xue Jing spoke softly.

A resounding "boom!" echoed.

Innumerable black flames, controlled by his will, surged into the man's mouth.

The man convulsed a few times, his skin swelling as the whites of his eyes turned upward, soon ceasing all struggle.

Wisps of dark flame seeped from his eyes, nose, and ears, dissipating into the air.

"..."

Glancing at the lifeless corpse in his hand, Xue Jing discarded it to the ground, calming the turbulent emotions stirred by his first act of killing.

The black flames coiled around him, flickering silently, akin to a deity of the underworld clad in the mantle of death.

(End of Chapter)