I will eventually become a divine being through accumulating constantly

(There was a rather silly mistake in the last chapter, where the total amount of Divinity held by the protagonist was miscalculated, missing over a thousand points; it has been corrected. No need to look back.)

[Divinity held: 3802]

The unexpected gains from the museum incident included killing a few creatures from the Intersecting Boundaries that contained Divinity, one of which was the rare and powerful 'Furnace Noble Species,' amounting to about sixteen hundred points of Divinity.

Added to the Divinity obtained from the Forgotten Greatsword and the killing of two Blessed Ones of the Dragon Cult, Xue Jing's total Divinity had again surpassed three thousand points.

"There are a thousand points I can't use... I can already sense that [Combat Skills] are about to ascend, the feeling is getting stronger."

"But take away a thousand, and that leaves only two thousand eight... still not enough to upgrade Shadow Flame."

Xue Jing glanced at his panel's Extraordinary Skill column where [True Martial] was listed all alone.

[True Martial Lv2 (Transcendent)]

[Upgrade requirements: Experience Points 10361/20000, Divinity 3802/1000]

"True Martial still needs about ten thousand experience points before it can be upgraded."

"Twin Lifes, Plant Pact, Dragon Horn, there's no immediate need to upgrade these... It's like having money but not quite enough to spend, stuck in an awkward phase."

Xue Jing shook his head and closed the panel.

He was about to take a rest, Nourish the Essence, and then continue training the Impeccable technique with Consciousness Simulation.

That's when Miao Miao, who was squatting beside him on the sofa, playing with his cell phone with her paw pads, spoke up:

"Looks like your situation with Zhou Yinglin has blown up."

On hearing this, Xue Jing turned his head to have a look at the news report on the cell phone screen.

['Gun Saint's disciple Zhou Yinglin's purpose in attending the U19 tournament is actually to stamp out the talent from the Outer Ring?']

The news first provided a detailed description of Zhou Yinglin's background, highlighting his high status and participation in the 'Small Dragon Gate Cup,' a tournament similar in nature to U19, suggesting from every angle that he had no reason to travel great distances to join U19, thus leading to the discussion of Zhou Yinglin's true motives.

It went on to introduce Xue Jing, describing him as a phenomenal talent grown in the Outer Ring, and finally citing Phoenix Cry School Wei Junwu's public statement, "Zhou Yinglin's purpose in participating in U19 is to kill Xue Jing under the guise of an accidental blow," unveiling the explosive angle of the news piece.

The level of diction and emotional manipulation in the entire article was exceptionally high, evidently the work of a seasoned writer.

The news was also extremely viral, with the number of comments under the report already exceeding one hundred thousand.

"Hmm? It's caused this much of a fuss?" Xue Jing said offhandedly.

His cell phone wasn't equipped with a 'Super Network Connector,' so he could only log in to the old net.

With the degree of isolation between the Inner Ring and Outer Ring, he was indeed surprised that news from the Inner Ring could reach the old net of the Outer Ring so quickly and with such a high fever.

It felt less like normal spread and more like someone was deliberately promoting it.

Xue Jing shook his head and said:

"Unnecessary... Are they expecting this to make Zhou Yinglin have second thoughts?"
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He didn't know if Zhou Yinglin would be affected, but his own fists were almost ready.

They really treated him like a child, taking care. It seemed that the person behind this either underestimated him too much, or overestimated Zhou Yinglin.

Now he really had no choice but to show off.

At this thought, Xue Jing suddenly realized something wasn't right.

"No... If I look at it from the opposite perspective, maybe that's exactly the 'Promoter's' purpose."

"Offering me the Forgotten Greatsword, pointing out the flaw in Impeccable, letting Wei Junwu make public statements to try to deter Zhou Yinglin... these actions seem like they are helping me, taking care of me, but in fact, it may be just the opposite."

Xue Jing's eyes showed contemplation.

"Doing this deliberately... Is it to stimulate my 'young man's pride,' forcing me to prove myself?"

"Maybe it is... But it's also possible that I'm just overthinking."

Miao Miao scrolled through the phone's news comments with her paw, frowning and saying:

"It's really rare for you to be the one getting bashed. It seems Zhou Yinglin has a lot of fans."

Xue Jing glanced at the screen and saw comments like [No, what level is Zhou Yinglin, what level is Xue Jing, don't rub against him okay?][That Wei Junwu must have had a brain thrombosis for the last ten years to say something so stupid, what qualifications does Xue Jing have to be targeted by Zhou Yinglin?

I almost laughed till I cried][Better wait to encounter Zhou Yinglin in the top eight before you speak, don't become a laughingstock by failing to make it there], and others.

The main point of discussion was that Xue Jing was not on a level where he could clash with Zhou Yinglin.

These were among the more rational analyses; many others started to outright abuse Xue Jing the 'presumptuous small potato,'

completely ignoring the fact that Xue Jing himself hadn't said anything.

About this kind of online mobbing, Xue Jing felt no emotional disturbance at all, merely thinking these people must be really bored, or too well-fed.

On the other hand, the more Miao Miao read, the angrier she became, her paw pads hardening.

She began to tap the screen to make comments, defending Xue Jing and squabbling with others, but she was quickly overwhelmed by the majority, her fur bristling with ridicule.

"You're saved by the lack of real-name system online... Otherwise, I, as the Sect Hierarch, would have to find each one of you and scratch up your faces!"

Her delicate feline face showed an anthropomorphic gnashing of teeth.

Seeing that Miao Miao was about to scratch the phone screen, Xue Jing quickly reminded her:

"Be careful, it's a hassle to replace a screen."

Miao Miao retracted her claws, indignantly saying:

"Jing, you must beat up Zhou Yinglin hard! Make a big show of it, and swell the faces of these idiots who can only hit keyboards!"

Xue Jing laughed and patted her fluffy little head, comforting her as one might a child, "Okay, okay, don't be angry. Stop looking at the phone. I'll make you something to eat."