Being with My Goddess

"The pagoda suppresses the river demon," Goddess Li Pu replied matter-of-factly.

"Hehehe~" Herrscher Li Pu chuckled even more lewdly, "Then let's put on a show..."

"Smack!" Goddess Li Pu suddenly seemed to realize something and smacked Herrscher Li Pu Lip hard on the head, saying, "Get this straight, you and I are the same person! Even though you split into Goddess and Herrscher, are you planning to test your skills on yourself?"

"Hiss~" Herrscher Li Pu touched his slightly swollen head and said, "See, what did I tell you? You've been changed by Belldandy."

"Um..." The two saintesses, who were being sunbathed on the other side, said, somewhat confused, "What are you doing? Why can't I understand anything?"

"They're telling dirty jokes," MEI said, adjusting his glasses. "Based on the knowledge shared by Li Pu, this seems to be a conversation between bandits during a chaotic period in the history of a great Eastern power. There are two more lines: 'Why are you blushing?' 'Looking refreshed.' 'Why is your face yellow again?' 'Wax applied to protect against the wind.' But in this context, it's actually a figurative metaphor. 'Gai' and 'Zhen' are verbs indicating an action of one person on top of another, while 'Baota' and 'River Demon' can be understood as the act of a stick being stabbed into a hole. The pagoda is hollow in the middle, while the River Demon is solid."

MEI made a gesture and said, "If it's after intercourse, why do they blush? Why are they energetic? Because the woman is satisfied, which is a positive effect. So why do they turn pale? Because the man is exhausted and listless, which is a negative effect."

Mei's explanation made Kallen and Cecilia blush.

"As expected of MEI," Herrscher Li Pu exclaimed. "He understood it so quickly."

"So, you see," the Herrscher Li Pu said, seemingly quite displeased, "You won't even let me try the gun."

"You say you prioritize yourself, but actually, as Goddess ~"

"Belldandy's influence on you is more subtle and gradual!"

"What if we switched places?" Goddess Li Pu said again, "Would you be willing to let me try?"

Herrscher Li Pu's face froze, if it was just his consciousness. Although it seemed to have split into two people, it was ultimately one. Although it hadn't been performed yet, theoretically, this ritual that appeared to split into two could be reversed!

"No," Herrscher Li Pu hesitated for a moment before saying, "Never mind..."

"Hmph~" Goddess Li Pu snorted coldly, ignoring the somewhat comical Herrscher Li Pu.

"However, the Goddess is probably doing this for all of us." Soul of the Underworld suddenly said, "Physically speaking, I'm just an ordinary old man. As the core body, Li Pu's transformation into Herrscher will quickly affect others. The fusion between the Goddess and you will suppress the Herrscher's power with divine power. If I were infected, I might turn into an ordinary Honkai Beast."

"Now that the Goddess has power, she has merged with Li Pu, and others can also enjoy the blessing of divine power," said Soul of the Underworld. "From this point of view, the Goddess is also for all of us."

"We've said enough," said Saber, "Let's get down to business."

What are your plans next?

Chapter Thirty-One: We Are All Still Alive

"I'd like to visit Academy City," said Soul of the Underworld.

"Even if we wanted to go, we don't have the coordinates of that world," Goddess Li Pu said. "If we had the coordinates of that world, we could go and take a look. It wouldn't take much effort."

"If we're talking about coordinates," MEI said, adjusting his glasses, "We ourselves are the coordinates."

"What do you mean?" Herrscher Li Pu asked, "We ourselves are the coordinates?"

"I noticed it during my research." MEI looked at the seemingly confused Goddess Li Pu and Herrscher Li Pu and said, "Shouldn't you two have research abilities similar to mine? Didn't you even notice this?"

Goddess Li Pu and Herrscher Li Pu exchanged a glance, and both said in unison, embarrassed, "Well... we really don't have any."

"Actually, I think the Admiral has used your wisdom elsewhere, rather than on research," Mamiya interjected.

"He's a master of deception and swindling," Saber said. "He's managed to fool everyone in this world so far, which is enough to show that he hasn't used your wisdom for good."

"I already said, this is a scheme!" Herrscher Li Pu said, slightly displeased. "Everything is for winning, everything is for surviving."

"I know what you're trying to say." Herrscher Li Pu interrupted Saber as soon as she opened her mouth, saying, "I know your chivalry, but if we die, there will be no future. Others are Heroic Spirit; even if they die, they can go to their Throne of Heroes. If we die, there will be nothing left. Honesty and integrity didn't exist in the first place; it's through deceit and treachery that we can survive in this world."

"So you're saying that all the deals with Berserker were deceptions too?" Saber questioned.

"It's not deception," Herrscher Li Pu said without hesitation. "It's a strategy."

"Moreover," Goddess Li Pu said, "Although it's a strategy, from my personal perspective, I also hope to change Matou Kariya's fate so that he can have a better ending, and I also hope that my wife can have a better ending."

"If Matou Kariya agrees to the deal, I will help him get rid of Matou Zouken. And I will try to teach him some Divine Art so that he can better nurture Sakura Matou." Goddess Li Pu said sincerely, "I will try my best to give him and Sakura Matou a better ending, although teaching Matou Kariya Divine Art is somewhat of an experiment."

"To me, war is war, and the ultimate goal of war is victory, which requires any means necessary in the process," said Herrscher Li Pu. "But outside of war, I will not do anything to those who have laid down their weapons and left the war, although I am happy to help them if needed. During war, I need to use every means at my disposal to win the war."

Saber seemed to want to say something more, but she ultimately chose to give up.

"Mr. Li Pu, perhaps our beliefs are different, and I don't know you very well," Saber said. "But more than I believe in you, I believe in the People's Army you once joined. As a member of that army, I hope you can keep your promises and uphold the faith and ideals that army gave you. War may seem like a cruel and treacherous affair to you, but I hope you can help those who have laid down their arms and need assistance outside of war."

"I will," said Goddess Li Pu. "I swear in the name of the Goddess."

"Ah~ Speaking of which, shouldn't we discuss some more formal matters?" Herrscher Li Pu said, "MEI, what do you mean by 'we ourselves are the coordinates'?"

"It means exactly what it says," MEI said. "When we were studying the coordinates, those coordinates should have been prepared in advance by the system. And we couldn't possibly get the complete coordinates from the fragments of the Kōtotsu, so why did we get the accurate coordinates? My guess is that the system deliberately guided us away from the correct research direction and prepared them in advance, making us mistakenly believe that we could study the coordinates from the fragments of the Kōtotsu."

"Actually, I didn't pay much attention to this problem at first," MEI said, adjusting his glasses. "But after we were transported into this world due to the spacetime turbulence, I realized that we had been going in the wrong direction from the beginning when we were studying the coordinates."

"Mr. Li Pu," MEI asked, "Have you ever considered that Urd can hear us, and why we came into this world in the first place?"

Why did I come to this world? Why did I end up in the world of my My Goddess? If Urd was deliberately arranged by the system, then shouldn't my arrival in this world also be deliberately arranged?

"If you think it was intentional," MEI said, seeing that Goddess Li Pu still hadn't figured it out, "Actually, after we encountered the spacetime turbulence, our fate experienced a brief period where it wasn't controlled by the system. During that time, our connection with the system was completely severed. At that moment, while in the midst of the spacetime turbulence, we faced the following situations: being 'torn apart by the spacetime turbulence,' 'falling into the Sea of Quantum,' 'being randomly thrown into some world,' or 'falling into a world with the nearest known coordinates.'"

"By the way, although I exist as a character, I currently have the highest knowledge value, which gives me some independent privileges." MEI said with certainty, "When I was observing the system, I noticed that before the spacetime turbulence appeared, there was a special energy release in the system."

"Oh, I understand." Goddess Li Pu suddenly understood and said, "Our research on the system will inevitably lead to conflict between us and the system, but the conflict between us has not escalated to the point of life and death. The system's first choice is still to regain control of me. If I die, this is not what the system wants to see. If I fall into the Sea of Quantum, it may sever my connection with the system. Similarly, being thrown into an unknown world also carries the risk of not adapting and dying."

"The system wants to send me to a world that is very dangerous for me but not dangerous enough to kill me, and where the only help I can get is from the system," Li Pu said. "In that respect, this is the best place, because Archer is the biggest threat to me, but Archer can't guarantee that he will definitely kill me."

"Yes." MEI nodded and said, "The fact that the system dares to do this means that they are at least 90% certain that we will fall into this world."

"Is it because of my existence?" Saber realized and said.

MEI nodded.

"Based on the current explanation, it all seems feasible." Saber shook her head and said, "But MEI, haven't you thought about why we all become characters and are bound to character cards?"

"Because we're all dead," MEI said matter-of-factly.

"No!" Goddess Li Pu interrupted Mei, saying, "Mei, Kallen, Cecilia, and Mrs. Aleshkevich are definitely dead. But Mamiya and Soul of the Underworld are not dead in my memory. And Saber has become Heroic Spirit. Her special nature has made her a near-eternal being, so it's impossible for her to be dead."

Soul of the Underworld didn't speak, and Saber didn't say anything directly either.

"Our world has disappeared." Mamiya suddenly said, "We are Ship Girl, a special product under the will of the world. Death is just a temporary hibernation for us, and my last memory is that the world disappeared. I can't explain why, but the world seemed to collapse suddenly and then disappeared and then there was nothing. As a character, I only know that I am in this state from the Admiral's memories."

"So that means," Cecilia said after listening, "Is it possible that we didn't die?"

"Impossible! I'm dead," MEI denied.

"Could it be that you believe you're dead?" Kallen said, "We died because we actually died in history, and we weren't from the same world. But when we were about to die, the world disappeared along with us, and we were separated by the system and became the characters we are now?"

"No, I think our world might not have disappeared," Mrs. Aleshkevich said. "We've just been separated from our world. But if we want to confirm this, wouldn't it be enough to just study the coordinates on our bodies?"

"If our coordinates disappeared, we would arrive at a world that is the same as ours but does not exist there, yet we still exist."

Alexey looked at Saber and said, "Just like this little girl King of Knights, aren't we now in a world similar to the one she once experienced, a world that has her yet doesn't exist?"

Alexey's words reminded MEI, who thought about it carefully for a while and said, "Could it be that my research on coordinates was flawed from the very beginning?"

"But before that, shouldn't we figure out the current situation?" Soul of the Underworld interjected, "Only by understanding ourselves can we understand other problems."

"What's going on?" MEI asked back.

"How do we exist here, and what is our relationship with Li Pu?" said the Soul of the Underworld. "MEI, you should have noticed that everyone here has Li Pu's memories, and he also has our memories. Besides merging with Belldandy, a very small part of Li Pu's will has also merged with all of us, but it doesn't dominate."

"Why would you think that?" MEI asked, puzzled. "Shouldn't Li Pu have only merged with Belldandy?"

"I'm a doctor, so I have some understanding of the brain and the human mind," said Soul of the Underworld. "Actually, there's a little bit more to it than that. I don't think it's my own thought, but my subconscious believes it is. It's a very vague idea, and I think it's probably Li Pu's idea."

"What are you thinking?" MEI seemed completely oblivious.

"Hmm..." Soul of the Underworld thought for a moment and said, "I can't really explain it either, it's too vague. Maybe it's a sudden inspiration... or... telepathy? Or something else, a special feeling that allows us to understand each other or even sense what the other wants to say."

"I should say... a very vague sense of empathy?" Soul of the Underworld suddenly said to MEI, "Why don't you just ask Li Pu directly? By the way, ask Herrscher Li Pu, not Goddess Li Pu. I can guarantee that what he's thinking right now is definitely not the issue we're discussing now."

"Hey! What are you thinking about?" Goddess Li Pu immediately asked Herrscher Li Pu upon hearing this, "Are you lost in thought?"

"I was just thinking," Herrscher Li Pu said, "If everyone is alive, wouldn't increasing your 'knowledge value' equal increasing your 'affection' level? Like in some R18 simulation games, cultivating affection..."

"So you're saying you're building your own harem?" Herrscher Li Pu immediately shrugged and said, "So you're saying you're all part of my harem?"

No sooner had Herrscher Li Pu finished speaking than Goddess Li Pu delivered a chop to his forehead.

"See, I told you so," said the Soul of the Underworld, both amused and exasperated. "His thoughts aren't on the same wavelength as yours."

"Besides, I am not your harem. Your idea is too dangerous!"

"That's outrageous!"

Chapter Thirty-Two: What's Next?

"Let's talk about something serious," Goddess Li Pu said helplessly. "Don't mind this clown."

"I'm not kidding!" Herrscher Li Pu immediately retorted, "I'm talking about a serious matter. The higher your Knowledge Value, the stronger your combat power. Apart from Belldandy has already merged with you, Knowledge Value is a problem that must be faced."

"If we pull the enemy into the Inherent Domain," said Goddess Li Pu, "We can fight right here, just like with Rider."

"And as Goddess, our current combat strength is not bad. We can probably put the knowledge value issue aside for now, right?"

"Theoretically, it's possible, but I advise against it," Gaia suddenly interjected. "Our Inherent Domain is too fragile and unsuitable for combat. Secondly, our Inherent Domain has strong exclusivity; other independent entities entering Inherent Domain are prone to bugs and unknown risks. Therefore, Li Pu should probably avoid doing this."

"See what I told you?" Herrscher Li Pu shrugged and said, "We still need to consider the issue of knowledge value."

"Then can we separate the others like Assassin did?" Goddess Li Pu asked again, ignoring Herrscher Li Pu. "Temporarily separate them into independent individuals to fight? Just like Assassin, who has a split personality, he could do it, so they, who have independent individuals, can do it too, right?"

"Theoretically possible, but practically very difficult. There are two paths to achieving this," Gaia explained. "Creating an Inherent Domain that can be both internally integrated and externally maintained is extremely difficult. It's roughly equivalent to dropping an astronaut into outer space without a spacesuit and yet still expecting them to survive. Theoretically, we need to create an internal spacesuit to ensure the creation of a living environment that allows the astronaut to survive."

"But this is difficult and fragile, basically unusable in any combat," Gaia said. "The second method is like Assassin's, analyzing the special way the Holy Grail rules operate within Assassin and then releasing a clone. This might be easier and also allows for combat."

"But to achieve this, you need to increase your [understanding value]," Gaia said. "The reason Assassins can do this is because they can portray each individual personality perfectly, as if they were completely unrelated to their original self. In our case, it's about increasing your [understanding value] to cosplay each character very convincingly."

'From what we've seen so far, the only character who seems like something Assassin would release is Mrs. Aleshkevich, because she's just an ordinary person.'

"See, what did I tell you?" Herrscher Li Pu said with a hint of pride, "I did."

"What are you talking about?" Kallen looked at Goddess Li Pu and Herrscher Li Pu, who seemed to be talking but not quite having a conversation, and said with a puzzled expression, "Stop playing riddles like this."

"I think they're discussing some issues with Gaia," MEI said, adjusting his glasses. "Only they can communicate with Gaia; none of us can."

"Yes," Goddess Li Pu said, "We are discussing whether we can materialize the outside world, which is outside the Inherent Domain, like Assassin, to carry out combat and activities."

"What conclusions were reached?" asked the Soul of the Underworld curiously.

"Theoretically feasible," said Herrscher Li Pu. "But for now, the only one who can be separated is Mrs. Aleshkevich. That's not what I want to say. It's just that Mrs. Aleshkevich's character design after becoming a character is too thin, so her initial understanding value is very high. As for the others, with their current understanding values, they can only move around here."

"Oh..." MEI nodded and said, "I can think of that."

"So, Li Pu," Saber suddenly asked, "What are your plans now? If what MEI said is true, then we are all coordinates. Are you planning to go back directly to that Honkai world, or continue staying in this world?"

"My personal suggestion is to stay here for now," MEI proposed. "Theoretically, we ourselves are coordinates, but these coordinates are unknowns until they are extracted. There are two possible outcomes for our current journey: first, we end up in a world of Honkai; second, in the world of My Goddess; third, possibly in the world of A Certain Scientific Railgun; fourth, we fall back down; fifth, we die in a time tunnel; and sixth, we go to an unknown world."

"Based on my analysis, the most likely scenario is that you'll go to my My Goddess's world," MEI said half-jokingly. "The sacred Yugrashu system is connected to you, so you'll most likely end up in that world. But other possibilities cannot be ruled out, and because of the system's potential disruptive behavior, the consequences of recklessly crossing over without the correct coordinates could be unimaginable."

"In that case, I think staying here isn't a bad idea," Saber suggested. "But you should know Kiritsugu well. How do you plan to cooperate?"

"Cooperating with Kiritsugu is not difficult," said Goddess Li Pu. "Kiritsugu is an idealistic realist. He has lofty ideals but is extremely realistic. To achieve his ideals, he will weigh the costs and consequences on his scales. As long as we pay attention to our own weight, we can easily cooperate with Kiritsugu. Moreover, I don't think cooperating with Kiritsugu is the key."

"The key is the system," Goddess Li Pu said. "Gaia has checked Urd's seal on the system, and the feedback is that it is Urd's seal, but it has been modified in some shutdown procedures, so it cannot be removed in the conventional way, but it can be broken directly by force."

"Based on the current analysis of MEI, I think the system's purpose is to use some external means to directly break through the crisis we encounter in the upcoming battles," Goddess Li Pu said. "The system probably hopes to play a role at critical moments, so that it can gain an advantage or even a dominant position in future cooperation with me."

"If we're talking about crises," said Herrscher Li Pu, "It seems that the crises we're facing in this war are the sea monster summoned by Caster and the final battle with Archer."

"Caster's sea monster isn't strong," Saber said. "You have the Holy Sword and can kill it outright. As for Archer, are you worried about his Chain of Heaven?"

"If it's the one I'm familiar with, then there's really nothing to worry about," Herrscher Li Pu said. "But when I was in contact with Caster and Berserker, I sensed the existence of Honkai. And MEI also said that although the system is sealed, it still has the potential to directly affect the outside world. I personally estimate that Caster's sea monster may have been strengthened! It's very possible that you in this world will be unable to defeat the sea monster even with your full strength."

"Archer's situation is a bit more complicated," Herrscher Li Pu said. "His Chain of Heaven have a stronger binding effect on beings with higher divinity. I am a true Goddess, not a hybrid, and I remember that in some settings, the Chain of Heaven have little effect on gods like Goddess. But we can't rule out the possibility that the system might secretly strengthen the Chain of Heaven! After all, they are unknown entities that can turn Goddess into characters and let me draw them."

"And Archer's Gate of Babylon is even more complicated," Herrscher Li Pu added. "According to the lore, Archer's treasury contains all the treasures from history. This includes weapons that have already been created or whose concepts have already been conceived. Do you remember the Golden Flash gave me, 'Dawn of Ruin,' which he said was an engagement gift?"

Saber nodded; of course she remembered.

"The sword's true name is Gram, the legendary 'Sword of Victory' of Germany and Northern Europe. It belonged to Sigurd and was originally given by Odin to Sieg, Sigurd's father. It was forged by the dwarves using iron from the underworld and shines with the glory of heroic victory, representing the Holy Sword of his magnificent life," said the Goddess Li Pu. "As for the history of this sword, I don't want to say too much, but this sword and Belldandy belong to the same mythological system."

"They're all from Norse mythology," said the Herrscher Li Pu. "And he doesn't just have things from Norse mythology; his treasury also contains the halberd! That's not the key issue. The key issue is that if his treasury also contains Hou Yi's bow and arrows, that would be an even greater threat to us."

"In the legend of Hou Yi shooting down the suns, Hou Yi actually shot down nine suns." Goddess Li Pu said with some concern, "According to the setting, he may not lack the weapons to kill gods, not to mention there may be a double agent system that could secretly strengthen him."

"So what do you plan to do?" Saber asked.

"That depends on Matou Kariya," said the Herrscher Li Pu, with his arms crossed. "If he agrees to make a deal with us, we'll have a trump card in our hands."

"Originally, I wanted to see if I could make this deal with Lancer's Master, but you know Lancer's situation. Even if I succeeded, he might not be genuinely willing to help me," Herrscher Li Pu said. "By comparison, Berserker and his Master Matou Kariya, are better, because both Matou Kariya and Berserker's goals and thoughts are too simplistic."

"The success rate of doing business with him is extremely high! As long as we can reach a deal with him, our advantage will be enormous."