I Will Grind My Way To Godhood

“Did the surgery work?”

Aqin blinked, her mind slowly clearing up, finally realizing something was off with her field of vision.

There was a faint tugging pain from her left eye.

“What... what have you done to me?!”

Her voice was a mix of anger and fear as she subconsciously tried to call upon her otherworldly powers...

But the ‘Stigma’ gave her no response.

“Are you looking for this?”

The boy across from her, looking quite charming, casually placed a bowl on the table and pulled a vibrant, colorful round gemstone from his pocket.

No, it was an eye.

Damn it, that's my eye! My Stigma!

“Give it back!” Aqin demanded angrily.

Xue Jing raised an eyebrow, “Lady, you don’t seem to understand your current situation.”

He tossed the eyeball onto the table, and it bounced high off the ceiling, only to be caught by him again. “Oh? Still quite bouncy.”

Xue Jing held the eyeball in his hand, spinning it on his finger like a basketball with a hint of a smile in his voice, “You know, if this gets tossed out carelessly, it's likely to bounce away in no time, impossible to find—can't be too careless with it.”

Aqin's lips twitched: “Don't mess around, let’s talk this through.”

Xue Jing nodded, “Alright, let’s have a nice chat.”

He continued tossing the colorful eyeball as he spoke, “From now on, anything you say won’t become evidence in court, but you also have no right to remain silent, and no matter whether you're lying or not, if I think you're lying, I'll cook this thing. Understand?”

Aqin sighed in resignation, “Fine, ask away.”

Xue Jing's tone was flat, “You're quite cooperative... Is this eyeball really that important to you?”

“Not really tha—” Just as Aqin was about to put on a brave face, she saw Xue Jing’s eyes narrow.

Remembering what he had just said, she quickly corrected herself, “Yes... quite important. It’s a 'Stigma' from the Benevolent Mother, and if it’s lost, even she, kind as she is, will be angry...”

Xue Jing gave a noncommittal grunt and stood up, walking to a small table at the side. He reached over and pressed the button on the electric kettle there, starting it up.

The kettle began its noisy process of boiling water. Aqin blinked and added hurriedly, “...Or rather, she would be very angry. Typically, unless the Benevolent Mother is very fond of a particular recipient, she rarely bestows a second divine blessing to provide a new Stigma.”

Hesitating a moment, she continued uncertainly, “However, it’s hard to say if the Mother Benevolent is really angry... We can only roughly guess her emotions from her reactions. Our assumption that she’s upset might just be wishful thinking on our part—humans cannot truly comprehend the divine.”

Xue Jing nodded, “I see.”

“The second question is, who assigned you to find me, and for what reason?”

Aqin answered without hesitation, “It was the Professor, Professor Lyu sent me.”

“Professor Lyu from the Horticulture Department of Maple City University, your sister Xue Wan's mentor.”

“She is the priestess and director of the Floral God Society, Maple City branch. All of this was arranged by her. I was merely a tool carrying out the mission!”

Aqin swiftly exposed everything about those behind her.

Xue Jing frowned slightly at the mention of his sister's name, his expression becoming more serious as he asked, “Why? Is it related to my sister?”

“Your sister, like me, is also a recipient of divine favor bestowed by the Lord of Infinite Blooms. It was Professor Lyu who personally conducted the blessing ceremony for her,” Aqin explained.

Xue Jing squinted slightly, “When did this happen?”

Aqin, ready to answer anything, replied, “It should be within the last two months... I also met your sister for the first time about a month ago during a regular gathering. That was when Professor Lyu brought her to meet us.”

Xue Jing recalled, and the timing coincided with when their mother, Nan Jiayu, began to feel that something was off with Xue Wan.

Could it be a mother's intuition?

“Your sister has excellent potential,” Aqin remarked, as though it weren't enough, and seriously added, “Remarkable potential.”

Xue Jing said nothing, signaling her to continue with his gaze.

“The so-called potential of a recipient reflects ‘how fond the gods are of them.’”

“Your sister is among the very few who triggered the ‘Dream Medium’ during the blessing ceremony.”

“The ‘Dream Medium’ is the sole method by which extramundane deities communicate with us, somewhat like sending a dream-like vision in which the gods speak to the blessed.”

“Of course, calling it speaking is not quite right. Extramundane deities use abstract expressions. For example, your sister said she went to a place where endless flower fields spread in her dream, and each flower was speaking incomprehensibly to her, noisy beyond words.”

“Individuals capable of activating the Dream Medium are called ‘Proxies,’ meaning they are deeply favored by the gods and can communicate with them, a status above ordinary blessed individuals.”

Aqin shifted uncomfortably in her tightly bound restraints, limited by the steel wire jump rope. She sighed, continuing, “With such rare potential, your sister could have a boundless future—provided she doesn’t undergo aberration, she might even reach the ‘Near-God Realm’...”

Xue Jing’s gaze remained calm, “Aberration?”

Aqin tilted her head, “You don’t even know that... As expected, you’re not a blessed one. That strange power of the black flame must come from some divine relic, right?”

Xue Jing remained silent… In a certain sense, she was indeed correct.

The Shadow Flame was activated from the "Crown of the Wicked Woman," so saying it came from a divine relic isn't wrong.

He replied dismissively, "You could say that… let's not digress, what about aberration?"

Aqin glanced at him, "We people of this world, when attempting to gain power beyond our realm, naturally must pay a price."

“Like implanting alien grafts or martial artists using forbidden drugs and practicing forbidden arts, all these can pollute the body, causing aberration… Those who are granted the extramundane powers of alien deities face the same fate."

“Pollution and aberration due to alien grafts or forbidden drugs mostly manifest physically and can be suppressed with various anti-aberration potions and surgeries… However, the aberration faced by those bestowed with power is a mental one."

“During the granting ceremony, when we reach out to the divine with our spirit, the divine energy naturally seeps in, polluting our spirit. Given its level of existence surpasses the mundane, nothing external can interfere. Aside from using our willpower to resist the corruption, there's almost no remedy."

Xue Jing frowned and asked, "What are the consequences of aberration?"

“It depends on the aberration rate," Aqin spoke in a deep tone.

“An aberration rate below 10% has no impact; below 30%, the impact is negligible, so most bestowed will try to suppress their rate below 30%."

“Once it exceeds 50%... various 'aberration diseases' start to appear."

“Such as rapid aging syndrome, berserk syndrome, immortality syndrome, self-dissolution syndrome, phantom face syndrome… Different bestowed individuals exhibit different symptoms. As for those under the Thousand Splendid Flowers Lord's blessing, they develop a 'Tree Man Syndrome,' where their skin becomes bark, and flowers, branches, and leaves grow, with their body gradually transforming into plant-like features. Mentally, they also become increasingly dull and lethargic, like plants."

“The higher the aberration rate, the more severe the symptoms until it reaches 100%, completely erasing any trace of humanity and transforming into another existence… which to the person, is no different from death."

Xue Jing knitted his brows tightly and asked, "Is it difficult to suppress aberration?"

Aqin nodded, "Extremely so."

“Different people have different methods to suppress it, such as meditation, but generally, the purer the person's spirit, the easier it is to suppress.”

“The more attachments and complexity in a person's life, the harder the suppression of aberration, which is why many bestowed try to live without attachments."

“Your sister values her family, values you greatly."

“She aims to go to the Compassionate Mother… Her attachment to you will become an obstacle on her path."

“I suppose Professor Lyu's idea is that if your sister cannot sever mortal ties, then it’s best you stay by her side… Thus, he sent me to invite you into the sect."

Xue Jing's lips curled into a mocking smile:

“Or maybe failing the blessing is also seen as solving the problem, right?"

Aqin shook her head, "That, I don't know."

Xue Jing rolled the colorful eyeball in his hand, like playing with a walnut, and commented:

"You bestowed ones seem less blessed with divine power and more like cursed."

Aqin smiled lightly, yet there was a hint of devotion on her face.

"No, it's a divine blessing, not a curse. If one can't bear it, it's merely that mortals are unworthy, not a fault of the gods."

"He only grants us power; how we use it is up to us. If we use it poorly, that's our own fault."

Xue Jing was noncommittal. "I have no intention of arguing with you about this..."

He pondered a moment and said, "By the way, that plant you're controlling, what's it called, Nagu-something-something-cha-something-si..."

Aqin pouted discontentedly, "Naguzum Chartolus! Aren't you supposed to be a high schooler? This is when your memory is supposedly best, yet you can't even remember a name!"

The sound of boiling water gurgling from the electric heater interrupted them. Xue Jing glanced at her, twirling an eyeball in his hand, and raised an eyebrow.

Aqin quickly backtracked, "That name is a bit complex; it's perfectly normal to forget it for a moment..."

Xue Jing chuckled and said, "It's too much trouble; let's just call it the 'Oxygen Tree'... Give me one of those, or a seed will do."

Aqin's remaining right eye lit up instantly.

"Then return my holy mark to me. Only then can I summon it…"

Xue Jing stroked his chin, "If you got hold of this, you'd probably pull some bizarre trick with it, wouldn't you?"

He recalled, during their recent fight, the moment when she reached toward her eye.

"Eh... What are you talking about? I only have that one ability, which you already completely overwhelmed, didn't you?" Aqin replied a bit sheepishly.

Xue Jing said nothing, heading straight to the electric kettle, acting as if he were about to toss the eyeball into the boiling water.

Aqin was horrified, "Wait! Big brother, good big brother!"

Xue Jing had no intention of paying her any heed but halted his actions when his phone rang.

He fished the phone out from his pocket and glanced at the screen.

It was Wu Youqing.

Xue Jing returned to his seat, answered the phone, and said, "Hello, Boss."

"We've pressed them, and the Flower God Society claims it was their subordinate acting on their own." Wu Youqing's serene and ethereal voice drifted through the receiver.

"The person you caught can be dealt with as you please; they won't pursue the matter."

Xue Jing nodded and said, "Understood."

"Thanks for the trouble, dear sister."

After a few more exchanges, Xue Jing hung up the phone, his gaze turning back to Aqin with an unreadable expression.

Aqin shivered under his gaze, stammering, "Wh-what?"

Xue Jing did not immediately reply, but after a pause, he began to speak slowly:

“Actually, there's no big conflict between us.”

“Just letting you go like this, well, it's not impossible.”

Aqin nodded fervently, almost moved to tears: “You're absolutely right...”

“However...” Xue Jing shifted the tone.

“Just letting you go without any cost makes it seem like I'm easy to bully, and that annoys me a bit.”

Hearing this, Aqin suddenly blushed and bashfully said: “Well, if it comes down to it, I could... do that, you know.”

Xue Jing: “...”

He said speechlessly: “What are you thinking? That's really inappropriate.”

Aqin retorted: “What the heck, even someone like me is offering, what more could you want!”

“Wake up, look at me, then look at yourself in the mirror. Who do you think loses out in this deal?” Xue Jing chuckled.

Aqin: “...”

She wanted to insist it would definitely be her, but looking at Xue Jing's face... she couldn't quite bring herself to say it.

She pouted angrily: “Then what do you suggest?”

Xue Jing thought for a moment and said: “You have to give me a sample of that Nagu thing for investigation, a seed would do.”

Aqin quickly nodded upon hearing this: “That won't be a problem.”

“Additionally...” Xue Jing started to say, then suddenly changed his mind: “Forget it, never mind.”

He stood up, walked in front of Aqin, and held up a colorful eyeball: “It's okay to just put this back in your eye, right?”

Aqin was stunned for a moment and said: “No issue... as long as the sacred mark is in contact with my body, I can use the power of the Sacred Mother to heal myself, and the nerve connections in the eye will heal quickly.”

“That's good then.” Xue Jing directly pried open her left eyelid, took aim, and with a pop, inserted the colorful eyeball into her empty eye socket.

“...At least give it a wash,” Aqin said helplessly.

Thinking about how Xue Jing not only kept her eye in his pocket but also played with it the whole time, she felt extremely uncomfortable.

But with the sacred mark restored and being able to use divine power again, she felt a sense of relief and quickly activated it, a faint green light emanating from her left eye.

Before long, she blinked her eyes, and her vision was fully restored.

At this moment, Xue Jing casually asked: “So, how do you feel? Anything amiss?”