I Will Grind My Way To Godhood

Xue Jing shook his head.

Wu Youqing pondered for a moment, "Since the New Era, various junction regions have gradually appeared around the world. As humanity explored these junctions, we discovered many things."

"Among them... traces of otherworldly deities."

"We differentiate them from 'God' and call them—Other Gods."

Xue Jing asked, "So the Cult of the Other Gods is a religion worshipping these Other Gods?"

Wu Youqing nodded, a look in her lavender eyes that Xue Jing couldn't quite decipher.

"Some who found traces of Other Gods in the junctions translated records about them and tried countless methods, eventually devising a unique ritual to contact the Other Gods and even... receive their gifts."

Xue Jing furrowed his brow. "Are these Other Gods actually living deities? Aren't junctions formed by the collision of two worlds that have lost divine control?"

Wu Youqing spoke with a deep tone, "That's correct—but fundamentally, is death truly the end for a deity? If 'God' can leave behind numerous divine relics, isn't it conceivable that 'deceased Other Gods' still possess the ability to connect with mortals and even bestow them with power?"

Hearing this, Xue Jing appeared thoughtful.

His worldview was slightly shaken.

"In short, these followers of the Other Gods can perform a unique rite to contact them and conduct a ritual to be blessed."

"And those who successfully perform the ritual and receive the Other Gods' gifts are called 'Bestowed Ones'."

At this point, Wu Youqing sighed, a hint of melancholy evident in her demeanor.

"You don't need to understand the Bestowed Ones for now. What's important is the matter regarding GOD-1391."

The young woman composed herself and steered the conversation back.

"About a century ago, there was a cult known as the 'Holy Lion Sect' that worshiped an otherworldly deity called 'Bastet.' After developing a series of rituals, they conducted countless ceremonies seeking Bastet's blessings. Though they did manage to establish contact with her, no one ever managed to win her favor."

"That was until... a disciple had an unorthodox idea. Since Bastet was the goddess of cats, he thought perhaps she liked cats and not humans, leading him to change his approach."

"He discovered GOD-1391 and transformed into a cat before attempting the ritual once more... He succeeded, and yet he failed."

Wu Youqing stated, "The ritual was successful... But the recipient of the blessing was not him, it was GOD-1391, the Cat Tail Ring."

"From then on, GOD-1391 possessed even more mysterious powers."

"If the wearer is highly compatible with it, in moments of intense emotion, they will merge with GOD-1391, displaying feline characteristics."

Hearing this, Xue Jing couldn't help but recall Ning Fengwan's appearance back in the bathroom after reverting to human form.

Cat ears, cat tail, canine teeth... and that round, soft skin with a sparse fur-like texture...

Xue Jing quickly forced himself to interrupt his imagination.

The problem with 'Visualization' is that your imagination becomes too vivid, things in your mind appear too real, down to every detail.

"—As the fusion deepens, the wearer begins to possess Bastet's powers, until eventually, they become Bastet incarnate."

Xue Jing squinted his eyes and asked, "Does this mean... they'll be possessed?"

Wu Youqing shook his head and smiled, "Not at all. Remember, the junctions are worlds that have lost their gods colliding with each other—Bastet is long dead."

"The term 'Bastet Incarnate' is what the Holy Lion Sect uses. They view someone who fully inherits GOD-1391's powers as Bastet's incarnation on Earth, with a status equivalent to that of Jesus in Christianity."

"Moreover, the fusion isn't easy. It requires the wearer to consistently invoke the same emotion that was first triggered during the initial fusion to deepen the process."

The initial emotion that triggered the fusion... Xue Jing pondered with a peculiar expression.

"So, you're saying that only when Ning Fengwan interacts more with him in the future, the fusion process will deepen?"

Xue Jing pondered for a moment before asking, "Does that mean GOD-1391 only brings power to its wearer, without any downsides?"

"Theoretically, yes... At least over the past hundred years, none of those who became the incarnation of 'Bastet' have shown any abnormalities,"

Wu Youqing replied softly. "The only issue is, this thing is the holy relic of the Holy Lion Sect."

"Even if there's a transfer phenomenon, they would spare no efforts to retrieve it, so it seldom stays out in the open,"

Wu Youqing subtly reminded.

Xue Jing nodded thoughtfully, showing his understanding.

...

He climbed onto a bus, preparing to go to the Hidden Dragon Dojo; practicing martial arts required perseverance.

Sitting in his seat, Xue Jing was scrolling through his phone when suddenly a message popped up on the screen.

["... Tail number 3166 savings account credited with 231,511.31 Zuxia currency, current balance 235,212.25..."]

Xue Jing perked up immediately.

Payday!

No, this should be the bonus from the containment mission this time around.

When he signed the employment agreement earlier, he had carefully read it; the bonus for a Class-C containment mission ranged from fifty thousand to five hundred thousand, depending on difficulty."

The containment difficulty of "Crown of the Wicked Woman" is considered fairly easy within the C-grade class. The hefty bonus this time is primarily compensation for the unexpected incident.

Xue Jing looked at the balance in his bank account text message with great satisfaction.

His fingers swiping through his phone couldn't help but speed up a bit.

Every so often, he had to return to the home screen to open the text message and take another look.

Never in this life had he seen so much money before; he didn’t even know how to spend it.

Maybe tonight he should buy some gourmet ingredients and make something nice for the cat.

...

In the training room at the Hidden Dragon Dojo.

"Bang bang slap bang..."

Xue Jing and Meng Qingjiao were fiercely sparring in the arena, their punches and kicks exchanged in rapid succession, causing the air to whistle with sharp shrieks, each move packed with power.

Li Qi and Chen Fuguang, who were watching from the side, stared unblinkingly, looking momentarily dazed.

Li Qi was somewhat accustomed to Xue Jing's growth speed, although today still surprised him.

Chen Fuguang was completely dumbfounded.

How many days had it been since this junior brother entered the door?

He could already fight against Senior Sister Meng like this?

Ten minutes later, Xue Jing made a careless mistake, exposing a gap and was hit by Meng Qingjiao with a soft force, sending him flying backwards.

He slowly stood up from the ground and marveled, "Sister Meng, you're really strong."

Meng Qingjiao shook her head, walked over to him, and patted his head, as if in praise.

Xue Jing was already used to her way of communicating and smiled.

Being doted on by an elder sister like this was actually quite enjoyable.

Off to the side, Li Qi scratched his balding head, glancing at Chen Fuguang, "Fifth Brother, how long did it take you from entering the dojo to qualifying to practice the 'Vibration Armor Technique'?"

Chen Fuguang's mouth twitched.

"...Reporting to Master, about eight months."

Li Qi sneered, "Eight my butt, it was nine months and seventeen days."

Chen Fuguang: "..."

Why remember it so precisely if you're just going to ask me?

Li Qi gave him a look, then glanced at Xue Jing, "Ah, the gap."

Chen Fuguang: "..."