Dude, You Trying to Ascend to Godhood?

"Not snatched, won!" Li Sushang's eyes caught sight of Shu returning with the food, and she shuddered, quickly emphasizing her point again.

Li Sushang was a person of integrity, through and through…

"Won…?" Kallen was even more confused.

"Yes… Shu here tricked you into some kind of unfair bet, and then through shady tactics, he won your sword, is that it?" Otto kept fanning the flames. "Do you require legal assistance?"

"You're welcome to sue me, if the courts are even still processing cases these days." Shu walked over, totally speechless at Otto's ability to spin nonsense.

Who knew if Otto would start saying things like, "We attempted amicable negotiations, but the other party responded with hostility" if he even tried to argue back.

"Alright, seems like I can't be of help then." Otto spread his hands at Li Sushang, putting on a helpless expression.

Li Sushang pouted, but with the person in question right there, she was a bit intimidated to confront him directly.

Fu Hua finally understood what was going on and couldn't help but sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Shu, where's the sword?"

"Over there, I haven't even touched it, okay?" Shu gestured towards the corner of the hall, where the "won" sword leaned against the wall, looking like a broom shoved in a corner.

Li Sushang almost choked.

My sword…! This fiend dares to treat you like this…! You've suffered! Thirty years from now, I will…!

"So, this sword, you won it? What did you and Sushang… bet on?" Turns out Fu Hua was still protective of her own, but she was too embarrassed to directly ask for it back, so she could only try to get at it indirectly.

"What are you talking about!" Shu immediately protested, "I didn't do anything! This little bean sprout comes up and performs a self-trip, spiral-into-the-sky maneuver, then just lies there saying 'Ah, I lost, from this moment on, you are my master' or something like that."

"She's acting wronged, I'm the one who's wronged here!" Shu glared daggers at Li Sushang, who was "badmouthing" him.

Wasn't twisting the truth with the art of language his specialty? He was a survivor of the Great Information Abstraction Era, after all!

Otto went silent, a strange look in his eyes as he glanced at Li Sushang.

This child…

Li Sushang really did almost pass out this time, her seven-year-old body twitching like a seventy-year-old, trembling, pointing finger at Shu.

Evil villain! How dare you insult me!!

When did she ever say "you are my master"?! This was slander! Slander! You treacherous, villainous, evil, Xu-villain!!

"I…" Li Sushang opened her mouth, wanting to curse him out, but after struggling for ages, she could only manage, "You big meanie!!"

Shu was successfully defeated, but not in a hurtful way.

"You little dummy!!" Shu retorted fiercely, using every ounce of wit he possessed.

Li Sushang's eyes widened as she looked at Fu Hua, "Master Shifu, look at him!"

"Sigh…" Fu Hua had a headache. She'd noticed a pattern with Shu: when talking to Otto, he was serious like some hidden big shot, an industry elite.

When talking to Mei, he was gentle and sunny. When he was with Kiana… they were just like two Kianas arguing.

And now he could bicker back and forth with Li Sushang like this…

"Alright, Sushang, go get your sword back." Fu Hua waved her hand, abruptly ending their childish squabble.

"Hmph!" Li Sushang felt like she'd scored a major victory, bounced up, and ran to retrieve her sword.

"Tch!" Shu wasn't going to bother arguing with a kid, and shoved the first mouthful of Otto's fried rice into his mouth.

Top-tier flavor!

"Shu, why did you come here?" Seeing the fight was over, Otto smiled and steered the conversation back on track. "Is there some danger you need to warn us about?"

Finally getting to the point, Shu turned serious again, quickly shoveling down a few mouthfuls of rice to avoid starving halfway through his explanation. "Otto, we need to leave here as soon as possible. We found a Honkai Emperor."

Honkai Emperor? The apex of the Lower Honkai Beasts that Shu had mentioned? What was it like? What were its characteristics and capabilities?

Otto's face showed a hint of interest, but Shu quickly interrupted him.

"Otto, you can stick to tracking Knight-class Honkai Beasts. Don't even think about messing with that Honkai Emperor. It took everything I had just to lure it away and let Kiana and the others escape."

"Huh? Shu, you're that amazing?!" Kallen was astonished. Although she hadn't memorized the Honkai Beast ranks Shu had talked about, a Honkai Emperor sounded way stronger than a Knight-class Beast!

Even she wasn't confident she could safely lure away a Knight-class Honkai Beast.

It was then that Shu finally remembered what he'd forgotten, "Yeah, I'm pretty strong now."

Otto raised an eyebrow, "You're strong now… weren't you always like this? Or did you just recently awaken or acquire…"

"I can't really tell if it's awakening or acquiring…" Shu himself was still confused about the source of his power.

"Can it be replicated?" This was the question Otto cared about most.

Shu thought about his own "special characteristics" and shook his head, "Probably not."

Otto lowered his gaze, pondered for a moment, then asked again, "Can it only enhance yourself?"

"It can affect external objects…" Shu suddenly paused, then looked down at his hand.

Right, he could directly affect external objects. Then the way he affected them didn't have to be negative all the time, did it? He could totally give Kiana and the others some positive buffs, make them stronger too!

How could he have not thought of such a simple thing all morning?!

No, think bigger! It's not just affecting things, he can create things! Buffs are temporary, but that candy he made wasn't!

And it was edible, not poisonous. So why couldn't he create more things?

Like weapons, like mechs, like… Divine Keys? Stigmata? Even the Hyperion, the Selene?

His hazy future suddenly became crystal clear!

If Divine Keys and Stigmata or Valkyrie Battlesuits could be created, would those Honkai Beasts still dare to chase after them? Wouldn't they get their heads smashed in?!

I have a plan, that can bring civilization from darkness to light!

As for how to create Divine Keys and Stigmata, Shu had the knowledge in his memory, and he had imagination. With Otto assisting from the side, and adding just a tiny bit of [Expectation]… wouldn't that…

Shu fell silent.

Good question. Where would that tiny bit of [Expectation] come from?

"Is something wrong?" Otto noticed Shu's micro-expressions shift from excitement to melancholy in a split second, his concerned tone even making Kallen glance sideways at him.

"It's nothing, just… I'm still not strong enough." Shu wore a long face and shook his head. "I'm still missing a few devout believers."

Otto: "?"

Dude, you trying to ascend to godhood?