Heartbroken, he returned to his parents’ village home where he spent a month moping.

Recognising a good story, Cat God decided to publish a series of “creative and funny” online novels about a landlord and tenant, setting pen to paper on May 4, 2011.

“At this point I was earning a few thousand yuan each month compared to when I used to earn just a few hundred yuan…it really seemed like I could never finish spending all the money,” he said.

Cat God then began writing the Killer novels full-time, spending about three to five hours per day writing and the rest of his time coming up with ideas.

He then signed a new contract with the publisher, which gave him a steady income. Subscriptions and revenues began rising rapidly, earning him as much as 80,000 yuan in one month.

According to voc.com.cn, his Killer franchise has earned him nearly 900,000 yuan as of 2012. Statistics for 17K indicate that Killer novels have been read 240 million times.

Cat God has now earned enough money from his writing to buy his own apartment and is working on a new series of novels with 17K called Beauty Please Stay.

Netizens on Weibo are hailing him as an inspiration for "men with low self-esteem" and "a role model for all males".

"Behind every successful man, there is always...a woman," wrote one user on Sina Weibo.

Cat God told voc.com.cn: “I want to use this experience to tell everyone, especially young girls, don’t look down on the poor, after all, things change.”