Blessing in Disguise

After seeing that the Raiden Shogun had agreed, Yae Miko brought the Gnosis before Wang Lei and said, "Little one, whether you live or die depends on this. Hold this Gnosis. Though it is nearly indestructible, don't drop it. Even if the Shogun does not blame you, the little girl from the Kujou Family will call down lightning to strike you."

Upon hearing that, Wang Lei guiltily glanced at Kujou Sara. She was glaring fiercely at him. When she saw him look over, her imposing aura surged, as though she would duel him and personally cut him down if he truly dropped the Gnosis.

Seeing this, Wang Lei was already considering whether he should simply return. Not one woman in Inazuma seemed to think normally. He felt that if he stayed any longer, he was definitely going to die.

Yet as he looked at the Gnosis before him, Wang Lei did not know why, but he felt a yearning rise from within his body. Without realizing it, he reached out and grasped it.

By the time Wang Lei realized what he had done, it was already too late. He had already grabbed the Gnosis. All he could do was frantically think about how the Raiden Shogun had led him to clear Abyss Floor 12 for the first time using the Raiden National Team.

At the same time, he desperately recalled all the enormous damage numbers produced by the Raiden, Kujou, Bennett, Xiangling team. He only needed to think of their glorious moments. As for the Milky Fragrant Slash, he knew absolutely nothing about that.

As Wang Lei's hand completely closed around the Gnosis, Yae Miko released it as well.

Countless voices suddenly rang in Wang Lei's ears, while unfamiliar scenes gradually surfaced in his mind. "Please, Your Excellency the Shogun, bless my child's voyage to sea with safe passage."

"Your Excellency the Shogun, please look upon us. The Tenryou Commission is charging us arbitrary fees—we can barely hold on any longer!"

"Ah, is the Shogun really that powerful? When I grow up, I'll definitely split mountains apart like the Shogun!"

"Your Excellency the Shogun, save me!!"

"Your Excellency the Shogun... am I going to die... Hehe... I've had both sons and daughters in this life... all thanks to your blessings..."

"Your Excellency the Shogun, please bless my wife with a safe delivery."

"Our business has been thriving lately, all thanks to Your Excellency the Shogun's blessings."

"Ah!! I'll fight you monsters to the end! The Sacred Path is Eternal! Narukami is Eternal!"

Wang Lei seemed to have been cast into the countless wishes of Inazuma's people—the scenes of their daily prayers, the scenes of their final prayers before death. All kinds of emotions crashed into his mind.

Then, Wang Lei felt himself fall into a vast expanse of white. The white light that continually extinguished itself all around him felt familiar. An unimaginably powerful force suddenly appeared within his body, and at the same time, he instinctively learned a skill.

After sorting everything out, Wang Lei muttered to himself where he stood.

"Heh, a Stellaron? Was this why you remained dormant for eight years? Aren't you supposed to be the World Cancer? I didn't have a strong enough wish, so I need prayers to use your power? I gained the power of the Space Gap? And this is still only a fraction of your power. Hehehehe..."

Then the scene before Wang Lei shifted, and he returned to the platform he had reached when he first touched the Statue of The Seven.

The rows of Torii around him had not changed at all, nor had the goddess sitting at the center of the platform.

Looking at the Gnosis still in his hand, Wang Lei slowly walked toward Raiden Ei at the center of the platform.

Raiden Ei also noticed Wang Lei's arrival. She rose from her cross-legged seated position in the void and stood up. The killing intent she had possessed when they first met was gone from her eyes. She merely said helplessly, "I did not expect Liyue's priest to truly be able to enter this place. Leave. I pardon you for unintentionally disturbing my secluded cultivation through the Statue of The Seven. Do not enter again in the future."

Wang Lei nodded, then suddenly realized this was a great opportunity to improve his favorability with Raiden Ei. He said, "Alright, Lady Ei. Uh, I learned your true name through the Gnosis. I also gained some abilities. But since I truly am from a clan that worships gods, would you like me to put my inherited skills to use? After learning those cooking techniques, I've never cooked for anyone else. Since I've encountered a true god, could you let me use my cooking for its proper purpose? And let me thank you for the power you bestowed upon me."

Raiden Ei considered it briefly. Wang Lei had already proven his devotion to her and successfully met with her. As a god, she needed to offer some response to such a believer. Though she did not seem to have granted him any power. Could it have been feedback from the Gnosis? Thus, she said, "Very well."

The moment Wang Lei heard that, he unhesitatingly activated the Gap he had just learned. A crack appeared behind him, its edges shining with a dark golden glow while its center was steeped in profound darkness. Wang Lei turned and stepped into the crack, appearing in the room where he had originally come to meet the Raiden Shogun the very next second.

Though Wang Lei seemed to have gone through a great deal just now, from everyone else's perspective, once he grasped the Gnosis, streaks of white light that made one's scalp crawl merely by sensing them erupted from his body. Then Wang Lei vanished entirely.

Before Yae Miko and Kujou Sara could even react, perhaps only a second or two later, a dark golden crack tore open in the space where Wang Lei had stood. Wang Lei stepped back out of it.

Wang Lei now gave off an entirely different impression. If he had seemed like an utterly ordinary God's Eye holder just moments ago, then now, even the aura he unconsciously radiated made Yae Miko sense a trace of danger.

To be reborn in just a few seconds—Yae Miko was beginning to regret it. Could Wang Lei truly be the descendant of some god? Had the Gnosis instantly awakened his hidden bloodline?

In truth, Yae Miko had genuinely wanted to save Wang Lei when she told him to hold the Gnosis. After all, Wang Lei had truly resolved a major problem for Inazuma. He should not be killed for some inexplicable reason.

She had long since played a little trick beneath the Gnosis's base. As long as Wang Lei held it, it would emit a peculiar light. The Raiden Shogun was not Raiden Ei, after all. With insufficient data, she could only acknowledge Wang Lei's identity—unless her old friend personally came out to deny it.

But if Raiden Ei truly emerged because of this, it would actually be a good thing for Yae Miko. Her old friend was much easier to fool than the rigid Raiden Shogun.

Fortunately, things had not developed in the worst direction Yae Miko had imagined.

After returning, Wang Lei respectfully held the Gnosis up before Yae Miko with both hands. "Lady Yae Guuji, thank you for your trust. It seems I really do have some special bloodline. I just met Lady Raiden Ei and received Lady Ei's blessing, gaining the power to manipulate space. Lady Ei has agreed to let me prepare an offering meal for her. Lady Yae, please be sure to join us."