I Will Grind My Way To Godhood

“Whizz—”

Pei Youguang threw the flat stone in his hand, and it skipped across the clear lake surface with a resounding plopping sound, bouncing over ten times before finally sinking.

His performance was a bit off today.

He swallowed hard, his heartbeat quickened slightly.

“Xiao Qin, did you… did you specifically ask me out because there's something you wanted to talk about?”

Pei Youguang glanced at the girl beside him, wearing a white dress, looking pure and beautiful.

His gaze subtly dipped downward, noting the faintly visible deep cleavage, hiss—

Pei Youguang felt a pulse of excitement.

Could it be that his romantic spring is finally here?

Yesterday while barbecuing by the lake, Xiao Qin had been quite gentle with him, and seeing today's situation, it seemed she really had feelings for him?

“Young Master Pei…”

The girl named Xiao Qin clasped her hands together and rested them against her cheek, a hint of bashfulness on her pure and lovely face directly hitting Pei Youguang's sweet spot, making him feel a bit light-headed.

“Just call me Youguang, Xiao Qin.”

He put on a deliberately calm expression on his plump face, making Xiao Qin stifle a giggle.

“Alright then, Youguang~”

she called him with a sweet tone, as if coquettish.

Pei Youguang felt a tingling sensation all over, as though his bones had turned soft.

“Can you…”

Xiao Qin's eyes were bright with expectation.

Before Pei Youguang even heard the rest, he couldn't help but nod repeatedly.

Agree? He'd agree to anything.

Even sell himself if that was what she wanted.

“Can you give me Brother Xue's contact information?”

Xiao Qin clasped her hands together, her pure and lovely face showing a pitiful pleading look.

Pei Youguang: “...”

It felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over him, his whole self felt off.

So, it was never really his kind of good fortune…

Pei Youguang's lips curved into a bitter smile.

“Please, I'll treat you to dinner, okay?”

Xiao Qin continued to plead in a coquettish manner.

Pei Youguang sighed, saying nothing, despondently picking up a flat stone from the lakeside.

Then, channeling his frustration, he threw it fiercely towards the lake.

“Boom!!!”

A thunderous explosion nearly deafened him.

The girl named Xiao Qin beside him screamed in fright, falling to the ground.

Above the lake surface.

A pitch-black spiral tornado, several meters in diameter, swept up countless streams of water as it churned forward from the lake’s surface.

“Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!”

Wherever it passed, it was as if a typhoon was raging through, the lake waters swirling up in great waves, clinging to it only to explode outward, spraying a myriad of raindrops around.

The dark tornado sped forward rapidly, whirling past Pei Youguang and Xiao Qin at close range, then continuing on into the distance.

They felt as if the strong winds would blow them away, unable to keep their eyes open, while a torrent of water droplets poured down on them, drenching them instantly.

When everything finally calmed down, Pei Youguang wiped the water from his face, opened his eyes, and breathed heavily, still shaken.

He looked at his hand that had thrown the stone with a bewildered expression, "Huh? I caused that again?"

“There’s a water monster... There’s a black water monster in the lake!”

Xiao Qin shivered, clutching her white dress, now wet and semi-transparent.

...

Xue Jing was equally stunned by the effect of just one swing of his blade.

“Wow… Just lightly imbued it with Shadow Flame and Dual Enchantment, and it’s this powerful?”

“I bet this blade aura could even shred that enhanced version of the cockroach monster over at Qingfu...”

Xue Jing inhaled sharply.

He couldn’t believe this was just a result of pure physical attack.

“Interfering with reality through mental strength... How terrifying!”

“But this strike is clearly much more powerful than yesterday’s—its power, range, and distance have all increased substantially...”

“This must be the effect of the Shadow Flame, altering the nature of the blade aura when enchanted with it?”

Xue Jing pondered.

“It seems there are still many ingenious uses for this divine skill I haven’t discovered yet...”

Grasping his hand, Xue Jing focused his thoughts.

Tendrils of black energy emerged from his shadow, wrapping around his palm but not transforming into flaming black fire. Instead, they formed a dark membrane covering his hand.

“Looks almost like Armament Haki...”

Xue Jing raised an eyebrow.

“This is a discreet way to use Shadow Flame, not as conspicuous as when it blazes.”

“I’ll have to prioritize enhancing Shadow Flame... But then again, the divine power is already so scarce.”

Xue Jing frowned slightly.

Yet at the thought of acquiring [Higher Ground] tomorrow, his frown eased into a smile.

“Higher Ground should provide a few hundred divine power, just enough to level up Dual once more... Preparing me to face Otogi Suzuka.”

“Though reaching Fitness Level 10 isn’t far off either, just a bit over ten thousand experience points needed, and I should have the thousand points of divine power ready for skill ascension... Still quite lacking.”

Xue Jing shook his head, deciding not to dwell on it further, and began his martial training for the day.

...

By noon, Xue Jing returned to the estate, riding the Wind Eater.

He led the creature into its stable, removing its saddle and reins, then fetched a hearty serving of carrots, apples, and corn from the storage as a reward.

After leaving the stable, Xue Jing walked back to the manor's main house, planning to immerse himself in swimming experience.

Just as he reached the entrance, he happened upon a black sedan pulling in along the cobbled driveway.

The back door of the car opened, and Zhushan Ying's petite figure emerged.

Her long, sleek black hair fluttered in the breeze as she tucked a stray lock behind her ear and looked at Xue Jing.

At first, she seemed puzzled by the glasses he was wearing, but then her bright eyes lit up, and she called out in a sweet, delightful voice, “Junior Brother~”

Xue Jing smiled and nodded at her, “Senior Sister Bamboo.”

Zhushan Ying walked up to him, pinched her chin, and scrutinized his face, commenting, “On closer look, Junior Brother you really suit wearing glasses. Though it lacks your usual impact, it carries a subtle and understated beauty.”

“Hmm?”

Zhushan Ying's small nose twitched slightly as she leaned forward, taking a sniff close to Xue Jing.

“Junior Brother, you smell delightful.”

Without showing any changes in his expression, Xue Jing shifted the topic, “Senior Sister Bamboo, you've seemed quite busy lately, where have you been?”

Upon hearing this, Zhushan Ying puffed her cheeks, muttering, “Business discussions… It's strange how suddenly there are so many deals that I have to handle personally, it wasn't like this before…”

“I've been so busy I haven't had time to hang out with you, Junior Brother.”

Xue Jing, understanding the implication, merely smiled and said, “Perhaps your exceptional business acumen has caught the attention of your family elders, hoping you can shoulder more.”

Zhushan Ying spread her hands wide, “Maybe~”

After having lunch together, Xue Jing spent a little more time talking with Zhushan Ying before she left.

Watching her get into the car, Xue Jing waved goodbye.

Once the car was out of sight, he realized it might not be wise to stay too long at Zhushan Ying’s home.

However, abruptly saying he wouldn’t visit again might make her overthink.

With an upcoming competition in Fengcheng, he figured after the trip, it would naturally be less frequent for him to come by.

Xue Jing rubbed his chin, feeling a bit odd.

“Could it be that her family will come over and offer me a bank card, saying, ‘There’s five hundred million in this, leave my daughter alone’?”

“Hmm? That doesn't sound too bad.”

Xue Jing chuckled to himself.

He wasn't concerned about the subtle wariness from Zhushan Ying's family.

Even in an ordinary family, parents might hesitate if their daughter suddenly brought a man home when they weren't around.

Given Zhushan Ying's distinguished background, their concerns were expectedly greater.

Young and alone in such a situation claiming innocence… inevitably hard to believe.

It’s only natural to act this way, and Xue Jing understood their perspective.

Xue Jing stretched lazily before heading to the indoor pool on the third floor, ready to earn some swimming experience.

An hour later, he emerged from the pool, moving on to the training room to cultivate his latent dragon technique and armor skills.

At five in the afternoon, Xue Jing finished his day-long training and drove home.

The cat, Catcat, lounging idly on the sofa while watching cartoons, perked up at the sound of the door opening. Her initial indifference shifted when she noticed something odd, swiveling her head owl-like to peer at the glasses Xue Jing was wearing. "Hmm?"

A humanlike twitch tugged at her delicate feline features.

She vividly recalled how she had once fallen victim to those very glasses...

"Teacher Wan, you're home," Xue Jing said, pushing up his glasses and walking over with a smile.

Catcat, however, stood as if facing a grave threat, her white-gloved paws angling backward as her fur bristled, caution evident on her feline face. "What... what are you planning?"

Xue Jing hesitated, uncertain what to say, whether to pursue his intent or not.

Scratching his chin thoughtfully, he suggested, "Teacher Wan, since you enjoy cartoons so much, how about I perform a cosplay for you?"

Catcat tilted her head, puzzled. "Hmm?"

Xue Jing entered the bathroom, searching the cluttered sink area for hair gel, but came up empty.

He thought for a moment, then squirted some shampoo into his hand, lathering it up before exiting the bathroom to stand before Catcat, looking down from his height.

Moments before Catcat could make sense of his actions, Xue Jing's dark pupils suddenly turned a silvery white, transforming his aura completely.

Divine, domineering, contemptuous, he seemed like an unearthly god oblivious to human emotions.

Gazing down at Catcat with a detached expression, his voice became a low, ponderous drawl, "No one begins life poised in the sky—"

"Be it you or I, even gods themselves."

Removing his glasses with deliberate slowness, his average-length black hair fell over his eyes as the presence he'd suppressed all day burst forth unrestrained.

In that instant, he magnified his already intimidating divine aura tenfold or even ninefold, leaving Catcat's emerald-like pupils constricted, her entire self shocked into stupefaction.

"What... is this?" Catcat was left in awe, feeling as if she truly stood in the presence of a god, scarcely able to speak.

"But the intolerable vacancy of the throne in the sky shall end."

Xue Jing's tone resonated with a hint of divinity, becoming increasingly ethereal.

He spoke while tossing aside his glasses, running a single hand through his hair.

As his fluffy bangs morphed into a slicked-back style, his flawless, striking face was laid bare to the air—a visage both commanding and alluring, exceptionally attractive.

Gazing down at the wide-eyed Catcat, he declared with a cool, clear voice, "From now on, the sky shall be mine to command."

【Someone has developed a strong liking for you, Charm Skill experience points +662】

【Someone has developed a strong liking for you, Charm Skill experience points +688】

【Someone has begun to worship and admire you, Charm Skill experience points +1026】

"...Divine."

Catcat stared at Xue Jing in a daze, its three-parted mouth opening and closing as if murmuring something.

The tail behind it swayed gently, and the platinum ring around it began to emit a blinding light.

Soon, the entire body of Catcat released circles of light particles, transforming into a girl with cat ears and black hair in human form.

Xue Jing glanced at the panel, pausing at the prompt 'generate faith and worship.'

He reached out and gently patted Ning Fengwan’s head, smiling as he asked, "How do you feel?"

【Detecting divine matter, absorbing divinity...】

The moment he touched Ning Fengwan, a prompt popped up on the panel, and divinity increased at several points per second.

The girl didn’t reply, but instead, closed her eyes and pressed Xue Jing’s hand against her cheek.

Her expression was peaceful and serene, akin to a baby cradled in its mother's embrace, exuding a palpable sense of tranquility.

"..."

Xue Jing raised an eyebrow slightly.

Maybe he had overdone it... Had he just stupefied Teacher Wan with his looks?

They stayed silent like that for a few minutes, Xue Jing observing the panel where divinity increased to over 300, yet continued to rise incredulously.

He thought there might be some gain from removing his glasses, but the harvest was unexpectedly bountiful.

After a while, the divinity increased to 518 before finally stopping.

At this moment, Ning Fengwan slowly opened her eyes and looked at Xue Jing.

By now, Xue Jing’s dazzling presence had faded, his divine aura dissipating, returning to normalcy, except his hairstyle still kept the slicked-back look.

Ning Fengwan's cheeks flushed with a rosy tint as she released Xue Jing’s hand, covering her chest like nothing had happened, she huffed, "...Hmph, passably handsome."

Hearing this, Xue Jing chuckled, his expression gentle, "Is that so? It seems I need to work harder."

"Did Teacher Wan find anything useful?"

Ning Fengwan glanced at Xue Jing, her gaze complex, carrying something more than usual.

She sighed softly, sensing her current state, "The fusion is deeper, and now... I am very strong," Ning Fengwan said.

"And I've gained a peculiar new ability."

"In Chinese, it translates to—Unyielding Lionheart."

...

At eight PM, Xue Jing left home, preparing to meet up.

The elite classmates had promised to treat him to dinner tonight.

On his way to the bus stop, Xue Jing opened the panel, flipping to the divinity skill bar.

【Twin Souls Lv3】

Xue Jing decides to upgrade.

……