Present world, southern sea area.
It didn't take too long for Voros and Eros to cross the long distance. They passed through the deep spiritual world and in a few flashes they traveled from the spiritual world to the top of the palace of the Sea King.
The sea surface filled with fragrance, the guards who were almost lax, and the luxurious palace that was vaguely visible, that was all there was. Obviously, the Sea King didn't think that someone could come to him silently in the sea - of course, he was actually not wrong.
Just like now, even the 'black and white ocean' reflected by the first layer of the spiritual world looks different in the area close to Poseidon, and even has some colors in it.
Just like Olympus, the place where the gods live all year round is naturally affected by their power, and this influence has even penetrated into another time and space level over the years, making the spiritual life instinctively stay away and making it difficult for others to directly sneak into the side of the Sea King.
If it was the little Cupid in the original myth, he would be helpless in the face of such a situation. He couldn't shoot a god who stayed in his palace. After all, although his golden arrows had special power, he himself was not an unparalleled marksman.
But facing the same problem, Volos and Eros were not worried about it. Because although the blood of Uranus added a restriction of "revenge" to their bows, it also gave them the ability of "locking". Coupled with the "must hit" inherited from the magic spear [Gungnir], everything seemed much simpler.
Boom——
He drew his bow and put an arrow on it. With the sound of the bowstring vibrating, the golden arrow in Volos' hand shot out.
Even though it hadn't even seen the two people yet, it still followed some connection and flew straight to the palace under the sea, chasing after the owner of this place.
…
In the temple, people were toasting each other.
At this moment, in Poseidon's palace, the real Queen of the Sea, Amphitrite, had long gone away. Most of those who remained here were servants that Poseidon had brought in from all over the place.
Some of them were sought out, and some simply had the blood of Poseidon, but this was not unusual among the gods of Chaos, and the Queen of the Sea was not here because of these things.
After all, although she did not like Poseidon's behavior, she did not have Hera's power and status, so if the King of the Sea wanted to have fun, she could only choose to endure it. It was not until she discovered that more and more strange creatures that made her feel uncomfortable appeared in the temple that Amphitrite suddenly realized it and moved to another place to live.
She felt that she understood why Poseidon had no interest in her. It was not because she deliberately created a pursuit before they got married, but because his hobbies were unique - of course, strictly speaking, this factor was indeed involved.
The Sea King did dislike Amphitrite for her past tactlessness, but he also had too many "exotic beauties" to care about this woman.
It is worth mentioning here that Poseidon is not unable to recognize beauty and ugliness. He also thinks Athena and Aphrodite have top-level beauty, but the range of his recognition is a little wider. Those aliens he chose, if viewed according to their own racial concepts, are actually very "beautiful".
This is a bit like the dragon clan in later legends, they want to snatch the princess with peerless beauty, and they won't let go of the "beauties" among the dog-headed people. So Poseidon was enjoying the singing and dancing in his palace until a golden light flashed in front of him.
brush--
Suddenly, he realized that Poseidon's powerful divine power was released, instantly causing all the creatures in the palace to be killed or injured. But he didn't care at all, but quickly stretched out his hand and tried to catch the golden light.
A sneak attack... There is no doubt about it, but the power above is not strong. Although Poseidon didn't know who dared to disturb his interest, he swore that he would let him know the consequences of disturbing him on the sea.
"Boo——"
In a flash, the golden light was approaching just as the thought flashed through his mind. However, contrary to Poseidon's expectations, he was unable to block the light.
The golden light broke - or rather ignored the divine power in his hand, then directly touched his palm and disappeared in an instant.
The whole process did not give him any time to react. When it was over, Poseidon looked at his palm. There was no scar there. The golden light just now seemed to be an illusion.
"What is this..."
"...?!"
Shock, anger and confusion rose in Poseidon's heart. He was about to do something, but then he stopped.
For some reason, a burning emotion surged from his heart, that was the feeling for his second sister, Demeter.
"…"
After a long silence, Poseidon struggled for a while, but finally he gave in to his feelings. He looked at the palaces around him, and the lives in the distance that were not affected by him... Demeter was his beloved, so what did these mean?
So without hesitation, the Sea King stretched out his hand and pressed, and the area within a hundred miles instantly became quiet.
After doing this, Poseidon calmed down a little. His reason told him that something was wrong with his current situation, and it must have something to do with the golden light. However, most of the gods of Chaos were more emotional than rational, so this moment of calmness was only for a moment, and he hardly thought about it. He was ready to consider this matter later.
Now, the most important thing is to find my sister.
Poseidon turned into water light and flew to the north. He had also heard about the cold winter brought about by Demeter. Now, it seemed that the other party was in a human tribe.
…
On the sea, behind a cloud.
"Okay, let's call it a day. Next, just go to that goddess and wait."
Clapping his hands, Volos said with satisfaction.
His golden arrow will keep going forward until it hits the target. Although there is something in this world that can stop it, Poseidon at least does not have the ability to do so.
And the feeling he felt now was indeed true. As expected, his arrow had hit the target.
"good--"
"Come to think of it, the goddess seems to be in the temple built for her by the human kingdom."
Nodding slightly, Eros said a little eagerly,
"I wonder when we can find some believers to play with us, and then ask them to build a temple for us."
"Then let's not do it."
Voros refused casually, and gave an irrefutable reason.
"I think humans are pretty stupid, so it's better to stay away from them. We are gods who control love, not gods who are controlled by love - but I think humans are easily controlled by their emotions. After all, the highest-ranking people among them are like this."
"...Okay, you're right, then let's not have believers."
After thinking for a while, Eros felt that she was convinced that she should indeed stay away from them.
After the chat, she was ready to leave with Volos, but at this moment, a huge noise came from the sea below.
A beam of blue light separated from it, instantly turning the surrounding life into dust. Then Poseidon's figure jumped out of the sea and flew towards the north.
"Hmm...it worked—but are arrows fueled by mortal hatred really that powerful?"
Somewhat surprised and somewhat confused, Volos felt the surge of emotions in the heart of the Sea Emperor, the possessiveness of his sister Demeter, but it seemed that he was showing it a little too much.
"That's probably what he had in mind... Hey~ Stay away from me too!"
Looking at Volos on the side, Eros showed a look of disgust on her face. Her face of about 11 or 12 years old combined with her current demeanor made her look a bit cute in a contrasting way.
"Come on, Eros... As separate gods of love, the last thing we can do is develop feelings for each other."
Pursing his lips, Volos knew that the other party was joking, so he didn't care and just greeted him.
"Let's go, let's follow!"
With a greeting, Volos flew ahead, and Eros followed after laughing. The big show was right before their eyes, and they didn't want to miss it.
······
Spiritual world, fifth level.
In the chaotic space and time, it is as quiet as ever, except for the addition of an imaginary kingdom that looks like a star on the outside but seems infinitely large on the inside.
Sitting cross-legged in the void, Ryan had increasingly stable interfaces of positive and negative energy above his head and under his feet.
A certain connection between them became closer and closer, which gradually balanced the two energy planes that were originally unbalanced. However, at this moment, Ryan's mind was not on them, but on the movements of the outside world.
Of course, Ryan was not paying attention to that small human kingdom either. Although he did pay attention to everything that happened there because of the Eros Twins, he did not have any extra thoughts about the whole incident.
Be it Metaneira or Demeter, there is nothing to pay attention to in their actions. After all, the development of the first half of the matter is extremely similar to the myths of later generations, and the development of the second half also seems to be very normal.
Compared to what the son of Zeus, a king named Tantalus, did in the future, this matter between the goddess and the queen was nothing, and he had no intention of intervening in it. Even if it had not involved the rotation of the four seasons, he would probably not have remembered this little thing.
As for what Ryan is doing now... he is naturally waiting to observe an important memory.
Hundreds of years ago, after the war between gods, Ryan gave his artifact to Athena, allowing her to use it to spy on past memories. During this period, the goddess of wisdom also used it more than once to try to understand the whereabouts of the mother goddess who was originally in Zeus' head with her.
However, perhaps there was some higher influence during that period, or perhaps it was the subtle interference of fate, or perhaps both. In short, whenever Athena tried to explore that brief but important past from the hazy memories before her birth, she would always be disturbed by some unknown disturbance and then deviate to other contents.
Most of them are blank, but there are a few with content - those are basically when Zeus borrows the wisdom and authority of Metis.
At such times, the God King had to relax the seal on the goddess. This might not be enough to free Metis from his captivity, but it did allow some of the outside world to be transmitted inside, and the unborn Athena heard it unconsciously.
These things would not have been remembered by her originally, but now under the effect of the artifact, Athena remembered them one by one. Of course, although these were also gains, which allowed the goddess to have a deeper understanding of the unknown side of her father, Athena still remembered what she was really looking for.
Some higher-level power has been interfering with her, which seems difficult to deal with, but after all, this is her own memory, something that really exists. So when she found that the "smart way" could not achieve her goal, Athena decisively chose the "stupid way".
Since it is impossible to lock in that period of time, then just extract all the memories before birth bit by bit. This simplest and crudest, most time-consuming and labor-intensive method is not affected by that potential influence.
So for the past few hundred years, Athena has spent most of her time in her past. Although most of it was complicated and useless, fortunately, just recently, this exploration of memory finally came to an end.
When all the useless parts are isolated, the remaining ones will no longer be able to conceal their existence.
So, on a small island in the East China Sea, Athena, wearing a long dress, took out the scroll. She activated the artifact for the last time, touching it to her smooth forehead, and with this action, [History] and [Memory] also acted on the goddess.
The secret was about to be revealed, and Athena's face flashed a little red due to her mood swings. At the same moment, Ryan's eyes also moved away from the twins and looked at the goddess on the island. He was also looking forward to the results of this exploration.
"Come on, let me see...what you did."
The voice echoed in the void, and Ryan's eyes flickered slightly. The next moment, something seemed to have changed. Although he was still sitting in the same place, his "spirit" seemed to have left his body.
The last exploration was different from the previous ones. Ryan did not choose to simply wait and see, but used the power of the artifact to browse the fragments of memory. Because he knew very well that this memory was suspected to involve a confrontation at the world level, so it was also extremely affected.
If he still waited for the artifact to record itself... then it was very likely that the key positions would be blurred. As for asking Athena at that time, let's not talk about other questions. Even if the other party was willing to tell Ryan the whole story, some "mysteries" could only be obtained and understood by seeing them with one's own eyes.
Just like the Rune, the version recorded in the original and the later disseminated version are completely different things. Over the years, Ryan has read the original from Odin's treasure house many times, and he has learned a lot of useful things every time.
The closer the 'information' is to the source, the more 'real' and 'complete' it is...so Ryan wants to go in and take a look himself.
If there is anything in the entire Chaos world that can have even the slightest resistance to world-level power, it is probably only him.
So when this thought came to his mind, the divine body he left here became an empty shell. Ryan's soul escaped from his body silently and entered the depths of Athena's memory along with Athena who was far away in the East China Sea.
Ryan's intuition told him that this memory trip would be very interesting. And what he was about to see was probably not just Zeus' experience of receiving the ritual.
…
Chapter 260: False World
It's dark.
It was as if I had fallen into the depths of an icy void, my thoughts were frozen, and I felt cold all around. Only in the depths of my soul, some equally extraordinary power radiated warmth, dispelling the cold.
The bizarre illusion flashed by in an instant, and then returned to nothingness, but the feeling of "cold" became stronger and stronger. Ryan knew very well that it was probably the residual influence of the world.
The power from the Nine Realms had been erased in the past and future, and the only thing that really affected this memory was actually the power of Chaos. It instinctively prevented other lives from spying, but it would not take the initiative to make any more obvious reactions, so although its existence made Ryan feel conceptually "cold", it was just that.
So the shuttle continued, and the concept of time became blurred. It seemed like a day, but also like a second. At a certain moment, Ryan seemed to see a ray of color in his eyes...
Suddenly——
Time and space flowed, and time leaped, as if breaking through a barrier and entering a virtual world... When Ryan woke up again, he was shocked to find that he was not staying on Mount Olympus or integrated into Asgard in Chaos' world as he had imagined.
These two places were the most likely places for Zeus to obtain that strange ritual, and Ryan was even prepared to see Odin there... But at this moment, the surrounding environment was a little unfamiliar, and he was standing on a slightly damaged city wall.
A great battle seemed to have just ended, and a murderous atmosphere was floating around. Not far away, there were still many mortals walking around. Some of them were injured and groaning in pain, while others were wearing armor and on guard, patrolling the surroundings.
In the nearer place, there were hundreds of people who looked like slaves. They were carrying heavy stones and seemed to be repairing the damaged city wall.
This was just the vicinity. In the farther places, inside the city walls, outside the city walls, dense crowds of people gathered around, their flags were different. And Ryan's current location happened to be a gap in the city wall.
"——Who are you?!"
"Raise your hands!"
A loud shout broke the silence. In an instant, Ryan's presence attracted the attention of everyone nearby.
Obviously, no matter how he appeared here, the sudden appearance of a stranger directly aroused people's tense nerves after just experiencing a war.
More than 20 soldiers raised their weapons and looked towards Ryan with tense and murderous eyes, as if they were ready to attack if they disagreed. In the farther direction, more soldiers were coming after noticing the unusual movement.
As for the one who just spoke, he looked like the captain of this team of soldiers. He was shouting at Ryan, but opposite him, when the sense of surprise gradually faded, although Ryan heard the warnings of those soldiers, he obviously had no intention of following them.
He just observed the environment he was in more deeply at the first moment, then gazed at the sky and the earth, and finally sensed his own power.
Laws that are extremely similar to those in the real world, a certain force that attempts to imprison oneself, and... a sense of illusion that seems real but is actually somewhat 'empty'.
However, Ryan was certain that this kind of "illusion" would be impossible to sense even if other primitive gods were to come.
Because although this world looks a bit fake, the essence of the power that constitutes this "fake" is high enough. Although the number is also rare, the higher the level, the more useless the quantity is in front of the quality. The Flesh and Blood Mother Tree only has some higher-level "characteristics", which can still make Erebus helpless. Although Ryan is not clear about the whole story, he obviously has a deeper understanding of the true creation-level power.
As for where this almost non-existent power comes from, it doesn't take much to figure it out. It's probably the world power that remains in the memory.
At this level, there is no difference between information, matter, and energy. Even if it only exists in the form of memory in the mind, its power is real.
"Well... at least I can be sure that Zeus's changes and rituals are indeed related to the world itself. The power lingering on the memory is not because Zeus is the destined king of gods, but because the content of this memory involves the world itself."
"As for the current situation... This is not a parallel universe. Such a thing does not exist in Chaos' world. It is not a time travel to the past or the future... Such a ridiculous thing will not happen to me. If the future can be truly 'reached', then this world is completely 'dead', which proves that He has lost all the unknowns and possibilities, and there is no meaning for His existence."
"This feeling is a bit like a 'possibility' of fate. It was briefly 'realized' under the power of the first level of creation, although it still couldn't hide its 'falsehood'... and this world, let's call it the world. It seemed to try to limit my power the moment I entered, although it was useless."
"Finally, judging from the current structure of the world, this is Chaos—but there is no trace of the spirit world."
Ryan made the above judgment almost instantly. This should not be a time travel or a time travel. He still remembered the purpose of this trip - he came here to explore the memory of Zeus's secret. So no matter how it changes, this should be that memory.
However, judging from the current situation, this illusory memory seems to have encountered some minor accidents. It has changed under the influence of the power of the world - and possibly also under the influence of some subjective will. It is no longer a thing that can be viewed by anyone, but has become a 'cage' for outsiders.
Yes, a cage. If Ryan excluded his own tiny but real high-level essence, he was almost certain that even he would be trapped in this memory and would find it difficult to escape for a long time.
And this is probably the meaning of the existence of this virtual world.
"Is it Zeus? It doesn't seem like it, but we can't completely rule out the possibility that it's him..."
"But no matter what, this is indeed a big surprise."
Shaking his head slightly, he had to admit that this was the second time Ryan was surprised regarding Zeus and his rituals.
But this is nothing strange. After all, Zeus himself may not be that strong, but as long as he is still the king of gods recognized by the world, it is normal for something to happen.
Of course, in the final analysis, the reason why Ryan took it lightly was that no matter who did it, the other party's plan obviously fell into the void.
If this was a cage, then since he was not actually restricted, he had already taken the absolute initiative in this unexpected game.
What's more... Ryan really wanted to know, since that weak world power constituted this false interface, then if he destroyed this world, where would this power go?
It won't be a return to the world itself... After all, as mentioned before, since it exists in this memory in the form of "information", it should naturally change with the ownership of this memory.
If Chaos had consciousness, it would not be so simple. But just like every time in the past, he had no reason or thinking.
"Go, take down this foreigner!"
A loud shout suddenly sounded, and Ryan's thoughts were pulled back to reality. Around him, perhaps because they had confirmed that they did not know this outsider, the soldiers in this city had already started to move forward with knives.
Their captain rushed towards Ryan first, with determination and murderous intent in his eyes, and the rest of the people came from both sides. At least as a soldier, their actions were still qualified.
But obviously, this was just a way to deal with mortals. Even those beings whose divine blood had gradually become thinner could defeat this small team of just a few dozen people with their absolute strength.
Of course, these soldiers actually wanted to delay time because this was their city after all. However, Ryan, their target, had no intention of playing with them, so -
"——Stop."
As soon as the words fell, invisible waves spread out, and the next moment, the surrounding soldiers froze on the spot. It was as if the world had stopped, and they couldn't move even a little.
Among them, there was only one exception, and that was the captain who led the group. However, it was not that he had the power to resist Ryan, but that he was spared.
"Tell me, soldier, where this is."
Ryan asked calmly, his voice calm.
Showing irresistible power and asking what you want to know should easily get the answer. But in front of Ryan, the soldier was not afraid at all.
"Evil outsider, do you think you can make me surrender? No matter which god you are, you should not interfere in this war!"
"It's meaningless to pretend you didn't know. Everything you did was seen by the gods... You will definitely be punished for this. This is an unavoidable consequence - because this is the will of the great Zeus!"
"…"
"...Yeah?"
After a moment's silence, Ryan nodded, indicating that he recognized the other party's belief, then stretched out his right hand and lightly tapped his forehead.
The next moment, the soul of the leader of this team of soldiers was extracted.
Mortals are not gods, they can't really protect their secrets in front of Ryan, and the reason why he chose to ask before was just out of habit. So when he let go of this habit, soon, a memory that he couldn't tell whether it was true or false emerged in his mind.
"...I see."
After learning the result and observing this unfamiliar environment again, Ryan finally understood where his previous sense of familiarity came from.
The walls beneath his feet contained divine power, capable of withstanding and weakening the destruction of demigods and gods—a creation that no mortal could create. And in the endless camps outside the city, countless armies gathered.
One after another, divine powers were revealed in the tents, and the same aura was rising in the city. The power of the masters of these auras was extraordinary, and they could even defeat the gods who came to the human world to a certain extent.
This city is famous in later generations because it is the end of Chaos myth, the symbol of the end of the era of gods and demigods, one side of the ten-year war, and the legendary Troy. But now, this war may have just begun.
Because just as the soldier said, Zeus had just made a decision on Mount Olympus to forbid the gods from intervening in the disputes among the human world. Judging from this, the real climax of this war should not have come yet.
"Unfortunately, this is not true."
Ryan sighed and felt a little regretful. If this was the real world, he really wanted to stay here for a while and personally witness this epic that should have happened in the future. Even Hercules, who passed the twelve trials, already existed at this time.
But there is no if in reality. What is fake is fake and can never be true. Ryan has not forgotten. He just entered a memory. Even if he was affected by the power of creation, a memory or a fate is not enough to evolve a real world. Everything that happened here probably has no reference value in the real world.
What's more, the false world evolved from this memory seems to be the 'original destiny', or more precisely, a world without Ryan.
"In that case... go tell your gods and pray to 'great Zeus'."
"Go tell him that someone has disobeyed his orders... and that his power will soon be witnessed on Mount Olympus."
With a gentle wave of his hand, the soldiers who were originally imprisoned around him collapsed to the ground. Without looking at them again, Ryan turned around and said in a calm voice.
"I will, and the King of the Gods will see everything you do, and punish you as he promised!"
With their heads held high, someone answered loudly. Like many people of this era, not everyone knows how to fear an unknown god, from the king to the common people.
Ryan didn't intend to argue with him. After all, when this virtual world disappeared, everything would be destroyed.
Now, before he started to destroy this world, there were two questions that really made him curious. One was whether there were replicas of the original gods in this fake world - although there was a high probability that there were none, he still wanted to take a look. As for the other question, how was Athena, who came in with him, doing now?
Unlike him, this fake world seemed to replicate the "fate without Ryan", so he appeared directly at the most critical place of this fate, on the wall of Troy, but Athena was different. On Mount Olympus in this world, there was already an "Athena".
"No rush. Let's go to the underworld first and see if the Eternal Night and the Lightless Realm exist. No matter what the result is, we can destroy it."
"Then we'll go to Olympus and see what Zeus is up to - if he's really involved."
After making the decision, Ryan took one last look at this mortal city. At this moment, the regrets he had felt before had gradually faded away.
With his existence, everything is destined not to happen this way. In the real world, this history will only be more magnificent.
"Not for long."
In the distance, it seemed that someone was approaching here quickly, but Ryan had no intention of waiting for him.
What's the point of witnessing something in a false situation? Let's wait until reality arrives and see how the protagonists of these times really perform.
······
Early morning, Mount Olympus.
Time and space changed, reality and illusion alternated, as if a long time had passed. Like Ryan, she did not feel the coldness brought by the power of the world. At a certain moment, when everything was over, Athena finally regained her consciousness and slowly opened her eyes.
Then the next moment, she suddenly found herself in the palace of the gods, surrounded by some gods that she was familiar or unfamiliar with. They were somewhat different from the images that Athena had in mind, but they were still roughly recognizable. At this moment, they were standing on the left and right, surrounding Zeus.
At first, Athena even thought that her memory snooping was discovered, but then she felt something was wrong because no one around was looking at her, they were all looking at Zeus who was standing at the highest point, even the original "herself" was the same.
This king of gods was also a little different from what Athena had in mind. He was more powerful, more casual and unquestionable. At this moment, Zeus was releasing his aura without any concealment. He seemed to be lecturing the gods, and every god present had to listen attentively.
"Hear, all gods and goddesses - I hereby declare my command."
"From today on, if I find any god who dares to disobey my orders and go to the battlefields of the mortal world to help the armies of those city-states, then when he returns to Olympus, my thunderbolt will make him lose all face."
"Or I will lift him up and throw him into the bottom of Tartarus, and the distance between him and Hades will be as great as the distance between the sky and the earth."
"In this way, perhaps you will understand that no one dares to disobey my orders."
Looking around at the gods, the God King said loudly:
"Come on, gods of Olympus, I know you are not happy about this. Among those warring humans, there are those you prefer... But this is my will. If you want to oppose my authority, then why not give it a try."
"Let me drop a golden rope from the sky, and you stand on the other end of the rope. Even if you use all your strength, you cannot shake the supreme king."
"And I only need to exert a little force to lift you all up, including the earth and the endless ocean!"
The above passage at the end of the chapter is adapted from the content of Book 8 of the Iliad. It doesn't matter if you haven't read it, I just point out the source.
Chapter 261 All
On Mount Olympus, standing among the gods, Athena listened quietly to Zeus's instructions.
The suddenly changing environment and the gods with completely different auras were all somewhat beyond the expectations of the Goddess of Wisdom.
She was just exploring her own memories, but she didn't expect something like this to happen - especially as Zeus finished speaking, Athena clearly noticed that the gods' eyes seemed to be faintly sweeping over her.
Or rather, it wasn't just her, there were also Hera and Aphrodite, but they were pointing more at her. After noticing this change, Athena seemed to understand something.
Everything was obviously related to what Zeus had said before. The "battlefield on earth and the army of the city-state" he mentioned was probably deeply related to her and the other two gods, so much so that the gods were waiting for their reactions.
As for looking at herself more... the goddess of wisdom had a vague feeling, perhaps it was because at this moment, she was the second only to the King of Gods on Mount Olympus.
It's not that the gods have become weaker, but that I seem to be stronger now. At least compared to before, this familiar yet unfamiliar body has a stronger power, almost the pinnacle of the gods...
Thinking quickly in her mind, Athena suppressed her inexplicable thoughts and retracted her divergent thoughts. In any case, no matter how powerful she was now, the God King in front of her would only be stronger.
Facing Zeus' instructions, a passive response was not advisable, and direct confrontation was not appropriate. So according to the information available at the moment, the goddess made a simple judgment of the situation.
She decided to give herself more time to deal with the current situation. So after a moment of silence, the goddess raised her head slightly, and under the attention of the gods, Athena broke the silence on the sacred mountain.
"Son of Kronos, Lord of the Gods, Master of the Sky and the Earth - your power is unquestionable. How could the gods ever think of competing with you?"
"But despite this, I still feel sad for the deaths and injuries of those intelligent beings... They will have to accept a tragic fate, with blood flowing under high walls and in the wilderness, and all this could have been avoided."
There was some sadness in her tone, and as Athena spoke with compassion, the atmosphere in the field seemed to ease a little. Zeus also smiled as the gods' eyes met.
Above the sacred mountain, the dark clouds that originally gathered due to the will of the Lord of Ten Thousand Thunders slowly dissipated, symbolizing the change in the mood of its owner. Looking at the most brilliant of the gods, the God King smiled and said:
"Do not be discouraged, Tritogenia, my most beloved daughter."
"Everything in the world will have its due consequences...My words are not meant as a harsh reprimand. I always have good intentions towards you."
It was natural that no one dared to oppose him. After all, everyone knew the power of the King of Gods, so Zeus put away his serious expression.
Ever since Poseidon started a ridiculous rebellion, the God King has often used similar methods to punish these immortal gods. Now that his will has been executed once again, this temporary meeting can end here.
Now, he is going to the human world and let this mortal war proceed according to the outcome he wants.
Yes, Zeus prohibited all the gods except himself, so he had selfish motives in issuing such an order. However, just as the King of Gods was about to summon his chariot, a streak of light across the distant sky suddenly caught his attention.
"Um-Hermes, what are you doing here?"
Somewhat surprised, the God King could not help but stop. He looked outside the sacred mountain, and soon, that figure quickly appeared in the perception of the gods.
Athena stood aside and watched the scene silently - another god she had never seen before. Hermes... The goddess silently memorized the name.
After a while, when the light fell to the ground, a young god who looked like a teenager appeared in front of the gods. There was a cynical smile on the corner of his mouth, and he looked like a cunning and clever guy.
His gaze passed over the gods, stopped on the King of Gods, and then he stroked his chest slightly.
"Dear King of the Gods, my heroic father, as you requested: I obey your instructions and convey the oracles that the gods cannot interfere with to the world."
He paused for a moment, secretly observing the expressions of the gods, and then continued,
"But when I was about to return, Your Majesty, something unexpected happened in the human city of Troy."
"A strange god attacked the guards of the city and ignored your orders. Even at the end, according to the humans who were present, he claimed that he would come to Olympus, the place where the gods live, to come and experience your unparalleled power."
In the original mythology, the wind god was not Zeus's confidant. Instead, Hermes, the son of the king of gods, who was in charge of travel, theft, and eloquence, was the messenger of the gods. Before that, it was he who conveyed Zeus's oracle to mortals.
Now, he also brought back this unexpected news. And unlike before, he did not bring any personal "little opinions". This time, Hermes explained the situation truthfully without any other thoughts.
It's not like no one has openly challenged the God King before, but they were either special gods like the Queen of Heaven or the King of the Sea, or they had already received terrible punishment. Hermes didn't intend to get involved, and when he finished speaking, the mountain fell silent again.
Silently, the dark clouds gathered again. The God King was still smiling, but his smile was a little colder.
"A strange god... Hermes, that's not common."
"Your Majesty, perhaps he was born not long ago and does not know your power yet, just like the goddess of beauty in the past - this is completely understandable."
He responded respectfully, winking in the direction of Aphrodite. This incarnation of love and beauty had a close relationship with many gods of Olympus, and Hermes was no exception.
"You are right, my child, I should always be extra tolerant of the offenses of the ignorant."
Zeus nodded slightly, agreeing with this statement. But to confirm this, the King of Gods looked at his messenger again.
In front of Hermes, Ryan's virtual image had been projected by him. A being that had never been seen before, perhaps indeed a newly born god.
"Does anyone recognize him?"
The God King asked, and the gods shook their heads. Seeing this, Zeus narrowed his eyes and said with a smile:
"Since no one recognizes me, maybe it's just as Hermes said - in that case, I'll just wait here."
"He wants to see my power, so I will give him this opportunity. As the king of the gods, this is also the magnanimity I should have."
As time goes by, there will always be some strange beings that challenge him, whether they are mortals or gods. So after a brief moment of anger, Zeus calmed down and regarded this as a fun and opportunity to show his strength again.
Therefore, Zeus, immersed in his thoughts, did not notice the flash of astonishment in Athena's eyes after seeing the image of the strange god.
The goddess recognized him; he was the man who had given her the divine weapon, but that was not what really surprised her.
Because just now, the image materialized by Hermes seemed to nod to her.
······
Underworld, Narcissus Plain.
Walking on the gray land, Ryan casually observed the surrounding environment.
Before that, he had already looked around one by one. Unlike the underworld in reality, this underworld under the fate track had neither the dead souls coming and going nor the traces of the original gods.
Places like the Abyss and the Land of Eternal Night do exist, but they are just that. They are like an empty shell, and Ryan did not feel the slightest consciousness inside.
Just as he thought before, there was no trace of the second great power in this world. He didn't know whether the meager power of creation was not enough to do this, or simply didn't do it.
But this made Ryan more certain. Fake is fake, even if it is Zeus in this fake world, his power probably exists more in the "setting". After all, although everything is equal to the power of creation, the information carried in a memory alone is not enough to transform such a huge amount of energy.
"And these souls are simply replicas."
My eyes swept around one by one. The underworld in the original version of Fate was much more lively than the real one.
Perhaps because of the war in the human world, the souls of the dead came to the underworld. After paying silver coins (Opoles), the densely packed figures were ferried to the other side, and then walked forward for a distance to be judged by three judges of the underworld in a tall palace.
Different from the spiritual world in reality, which uses the soul's ability and achievements in life as the criteria for judgment, these three were once famous humans in their lifetime. The judges who were promoted after their death use "good" and "evil" to decide the fate of mortal souls.
Those lives that are both good and evil will be left here, in a place called Narcissus Plains, full of golden spike flowers. They will feed on them, and then gradually lose their memories of their past lives and the traces of their existence as they wander.
Souls whose "evil" far outweighed their "good" would be sent to a place close to Tartarus to be punished. There, the gods built a huge prison specifically for these guilty ones.
For those whose "good" far outweighs their "evil", they can continue to move forward and enjoy an eternal and happy life in the paradise of Elysee built by the gods, until their souls exhaust their last energy and dissipate in the world.
As for how to judge the "good" and "evil" of human beings in their lifetime, that is obvious. Those who worship God and believe in God are undoubtedly the most "good", and those who are not are the most "evil". Other criteria for judgment are also highly subjective.
But this is normal. The judge and paradise set up by God are naturally prepared for the pious. It doesn't seem so strange to decide "good" and "evil" according to faith.
"Hmm - so for the people who already exist in this world, after she enters, she will become one with her original self?"
With a change of expression, Ryan bypassed the judges and arrived at the Garden of Truth. However, this moment was the scene where Hermes evolved his image on Mount Olympus. Following this invisible connection, he directly "saw" everything that happened there.
It was obvious that a truth suddenly appeared in the midst of all the "falsehoods". But what really made Ryan feel a little interesting was that in this way, could Athena also "see the future"?
Although it was only the original future... He watched the goddess cleverly find an excuse to temporarily leave the gods and head straight for her palace. And it was almost conceivable that the first thing Athena would watch was the "history" of this fateful trajectory.
What happened in the past, what role did she play in it, why this world is so similar to the original one, yet different in so many ways - as long as she sees it, this kind of doubt will almost certainly arise in Athena's mind, and then she will try to explore the reasons.
"It's just that it's already the Third Age now, so let's just take a look at the original trajectory."
Ryan withdrew his attention and put his mind back into the underworld.
In front of him, there was a figure. The master of the underworld had discovered him, or rather, discovered him the moment he stepped here without any disguise. But it was not until Ryan walked here that Hades had to come to him.
Because even though he didn't sense the presence of this unknown god, Pluto had already felt the warning sign. So if possible, he didn't want to come and face Ryan.
"Strange spirit, why are you here?"
He spoke cautiously. No matter what, since the other party had come to the door, Hades could not just turn a blind eye.
"I come to destroy."
With a sincere tone, Ryan responded.
"Destruction... If any mortal provokes you, will you punish him with eternal punishment?"
With his brows relaxed, Hades couldn't help but ask.
If that was the case, it wasn't a big deal. He was just wondering why this spirit came directly to the Garden of Truth.
In the past, the Olympian gods had similar needs but never informed him. They just took him away or did something to him without taking him into consideration at all.
"If that's the case, then I agree."
"No, you misunderstood."
Shaking his head slightly, Ryan looked at Hades.
"I mean all of them."
"All souls? That's not a good idea."
There was a hint of surprise in his tone, and this time, Hades couldn't help but refuse.
It's not that no gods come here occasionally to claim some mortal souls, but that's a bit too much.
"Certainly not all souls."
With a smile on his face, Ryan slowly corrected:
"When I say everything... I mean the whole world."
Chapter 262: The Way to Dismember the Root
Under the dark sky, the lava from the Fire River flows and emits light that illuminates half of the sky. On the vast land, the souls of mortals are dim.
This is a scene that is hard to see in the real underworld. As the Lord of the Underworld, Hades has been particularly busy recently, because the war in the human world has exposed the hidden contradictions among the Olympian gods, and the number of human casualties has increased, causing a large number of souls to flow into the underworld in a short period of time.
However, seeing the gods fighting each other on earth while he himself just stood by and watched, Pluto was somewhat happy in the busyness. But now, Hades' good mood came to an end.
Looking at the stranger in front of him, Pluto's expression gradually became gloomy.
In most cases, Hades does not care about what outsiders think of him, so even though there is no temple of his on the earth and it is rumored among mortals that he has trembled in fear at the power of other gods more than once, he has never reacted too much to this.
Pluto doesn't care much about those prejudices or formalities if they don't bring him any practical benefits. It can be said that he is more pragmatic than his father in this regard.
Kronos at least cared about his face, but in Hades' eyes, they were worthless. So Hades had no intention of provoking this strange god, if he had not declared that he wanted to destroy the underworld.
After all, as the god of the underworld, he is part of the underworld, and destroying the underworld is equivalent to destroying himself - yes, Hades did not think that Ryan was referring to the entire world, he only thought that he was talking about the underworld. Although just like gods cannot commit suicide, even Hades himself does not know how to destroy the underworld.
"Strange god, I think you'd better take back your words."
The voice turned cold, as if he realized that the visitor had ill intentions. Silently, half of the authority of the underworld began to converge on Hades.
The power of the interface added an invisible pressure that enveloped the entire Garden of Truth. However, even so, the power displayed by Pluto at this moment was actually not as strong as his real self - because of Ryan's influence, although he was deprived of the authority to manage souls, the power of the underworld in reality was actually increasing compared to the original trajectory.
After all, in mythology, although the souls of mortals exist in the underworld, they do not really bring any benefits to this place. The Titan god Iapetus is the original god of souls, and even the title of "Lord of the Dead Souls" is more often attributed to Hecate.
"I don't know what you want to do, sir, but destroying the underworld - if I may be frank, I'm afraid no one can do this yet."
At some point, several streams of light rose from the Pluto Palace. The God of Destruction, the God of Doom, and several other gods stood behind Hades, looking at Ryan warily.
"The underworld is part of the world. Even the king of the gods cannot destroy it."
"Tell me why you're here... or you'll stay here forever. Although the Garden of Truth is not Olympus, it won't allow you to be so rampant!"
The power was hidden but not revealed, only the overwhelming sense of oppression swept over. But when it fell on the god in front of him, it seemed to press on nothing, which made Hades more alert.
Hades couldn't help but recall what grudges he had with this strange god - even now, he didn't take action directly, because he didn't believe what Ryan said before. Destroying the underworld is simply a fantasy.
Standing opposite him, Ryan had to admit that if he did not consider that this was an illusory world, then what the other party said was indeed correct.
The underworld can be weakened and damaged, but it can never be destroyed, unless the person who does it already has the power to fight against the entire world, or the world itself is already too busy to take care of other things. Otherwise, the world itself will not allow such a thing to happen. Just like whoever wants to destroy one of the seven spiritual realms actually needs to have power that surpasses the entire spiritual realm.
However, the current situation is undoubtedly the latter. The meager power of creation lingering in the memory is not much, and it is already the limit to maintain the existence of this world, and it is impossible to have more influence. So in this case, Ryan only needs to consider how to truly destroy the underworld from the root.
"Just like I have been thinking, one day in the future, when the collision between Chaos and Hermeneu's worlds reaches its peak, what should I do to truly destroy the root of that world."
As if no one was around, Ryan looked at the illusory underworld. The reason why Ryan didn't go directly to Olympus before was not just to see if the original god existed. After all, it was just a matter of a few steps for him. In fact, the real reason was that he didn't know how to destroy a world.
Is it enough to just destroy it? I'm afraid that may not be the case. And like a complete world, "swallowing" the world from a macro perspective is something he cannot do at present. In this case, the underworld, which is a world of its own, naturally becomes the most suitable target.
Use this as the first experiment, and then use the entire virtual world to verify it, and the Hemenu world is the time to finally apply the experimental results.
Sizzle——
With a slight sound, the black sword condensed by [Death] was pulled out from the void. In the absence of a special combat artifact, this was Ryan's favorite method.
"You're right. No one has ever been able to destroy the underworld before. I can't do it in the real world either, let alone have any experience to speak of."
The voice was calm, and it seemed more like Ryan was talking to himself than to these false gods.
Holding the hilt of the sword and standing in the void with the sword in his hand, his eyes passed through Hades, across the entire Garden of Truth, and looked at the root of this illusory underworld.
"So even though I know it probably won't work, I'm still going to give it a try. How much of an impact can the collapse of the underworld have on this world?"
The next moment, the tip of the sword pressed down, and the edge of the sword of the end touched the underworld. In front of Ryan, when he drew out the black sword, Hades had already taken action.
Although the power was mixed and not leaked, as the god of the underworld, Hades still felt an extremely terrible threat from the sword. Even though he still didn't believe that Ryan could destroy the underworld, he couldn't tolerate the other party destroying the symbol of his priesthood like this.
But it was meaningless, it was right in front of him, yet it seemed as if it was a world away. Hades was unable to put up any meaningful resistance until Ryan pressed down the black sword without paying any attention to anyone.
So, under the shocked and angry gaze of the gods of the underworld, the seemingly ordinary black sword came into contact with the underworld.
······
Clatter——
At the entrance to the underworld, on the River of Pain Acheron, Charon sat on his wooden boat and sailed towards the shore again.
Recently, due to the war on earth, his work has become very busy. After all, as the ferryman of the Styx, only Charon can carry the souls of mortals across this rolling river.
Of course, corresponding to his busy schedule, his "income" also increased a lot. After all, according to the regulations, everyone crossing the river had to pay Charon a silver coin as the fare for the crossing - this was also the origin of a custom in the mortal world.
Even if they were afraid of death and did not want to mention the names of the gods in the underworld, mortals would still put a silver coin in the mouth of the deceased when he was buried. Otherwise, the souls of their loved ones would only wander at the entrance of the underworld or sink to the bottom of the Styx, never to rest in peace.
Of course, Charon is also a god, and what he needs is not the silver coin itself. What he can really get is the thoughts of the deceased's family members placed on the silver coin, and the respect they have for him as a ferryman.
"Hey, I really hope the war in the world can last a little longer. Good days like this don't come often."
With a smile on his old face, Charon took the wine glass from the boat and took a sip. He looked towards the shore, where there were still many souls crowded there.
"There is just one bad thing - in times of war, there seem to be more mortals whose bodies are not collected after death."
He complained casually, but it was a happy trouble after all, so Charon quickly put it behind him.
He exerted his strength to make his wooden boat go much faster, and he sped towards the shore.
As the distance got closer, the eager and awe-inspiring eyes of the souls became clearer, which made Charon feel even better.
He knew what these souls were thinking. If they stayed here, they would only have to endure the cold wind and hunger and thirst. If they crossed the Styx, even if their deeds in their previous lives were not enough to allow them to enter the Elysee Paradise, they would at least be able to stay on the Narcissus Plain. In this case, they naturally couldn't wait to leave here first.
But the right to choose who gets on board first is in my hands... With a chuckle, Charon stood up from the boat, ready to find a few people he likes.
"Hmm? What are they looking at?"
Suddenly, Charon seemed to notice something different. The souls on the shore were indeed looking in his direction, and they were indeed full of awe - but also mixed with fear.
Some people were even shouting loudly or kneeling on the ground trembling.
"Is this some new trick..."
Not noticing anything unusual, Charon was a little confused. But this was Hades, and there might be things that mortals feared, but it definitely didn't include the incarnation of the Styx. So he shook his clothes slowly, then turned around to check.
"I don't know—"
Suddenly——
Everything went dark before his eyes. He didn't have time to see anything, let alone react. In an instant, a black light swept past, and Charon's divine body was instantly wiped out from this world. Behind him, the black light continued to cross the Styx at an incredible speed and spread to a farther place.
The souls of the mortals disappeared in an instant, and the few remaining plants turned into dust. There was no sound, only disappearance. There was no sound at all along the Acheron River.
Everything became quiet, only the River Styx continued to flow.
After a while, the river water began to churn slightly. Through the surface of the river, one could see an illusory shadow condensing under the water.
As the ferryman of the Styx, Charon obviously did not die just now. But when he came back to his senses from the shock just now, he was still a little confused.
"What just happened?"
Charon was confused and didn't know what happened, but the inexplicable force just now seemed to come from the direction of the Garden of Truth. So he looked through the river and towards the center of the underworld.
Everything was the same as before, and the incident just now was just like a dream. Except that the underworld was even emptier, there was only that black spot in the distant sky...
"Um?"
As if he had discovered something, Charon suddenly looked up into the sky. It was not a black dot, but a figure at the highest point. Faintly, the figure seemed to shake his head in disappointment, then held the long sword and slashed downwards.
boom--
An inexplicable sense of warning surged into his heart. It was the fear that the Styx itself conveyed to Charon. He instinctively wanted to escape, but there was nowhere to escape.
The next moment seemed to be a continuation of the previous changes. When the black sword pressed down, the entire interface was shaking. The water of the Styx River rolled out of the river bank, and the magma of the Fire River flowed in the cracks of the ground. Then everything ended with a sword mark that split the entire underworld from east to west, as if it was completely dead.
The River of Pain is no exception. This Styx, which makes everyone who approaches it sink to the bottom of the river and howls in despair, seems to have lost its life. Even if the riverbank is cracked, its water remains still.
Charon's consciousness swirled and danced in the river. He felt no pain because he knew that he was about to become another god who would sleep forever.
No, at this moment, the Styx ferryman who was wandering between life and death seemed to have realized something. He would not sleep forever. Because of the falsehood and emptiness that flowed between all things...
The next moment, Charon's consciousness was completely annihilated. In this false world, he was the first Chaos god to die, but he would not be the last, because in the sky, Ryan raised his sword again.
······
Zheng——
He flicked the sword tip lightly. Although it was a black sword temporarily condensed with power, it seemed to have a physical body at this moment.
Listening to the clear and pleasant metallic sound, Ryan looked at the underworld beneath his feet.
This was the seventh sword. It had killed the creatures of the underworld, cut the central axis of the underworld, and stopped the three rivers of the underworld. Now, looking around, the entire underworld was like a doomsday disaster.
But this is only the perspective of ordinary things. If you look beyond the appearance and directly at the root of all things, Ryan will suddenly find that all he has done is actually of very limited use. The world is material, spiritual, and conceptual. What he has just done has at best destroyed its material structure, and even reflected in the root. The impact on the underworld is not as severe as imagined.
It will be traumatized, but only traumatized…
"Stop, what are you doing?!"
An angry shout interrupted Ryan's thoughts. Not far away, the armless Hades looked at this strange god incomprehensibly.
The opponent's strength was simply unimaginable. He had just tried to stop it once, but the sword light almost wiped out his arm without stopping, and then continued to tear the earth apart.
"You can't destroy the underworld, just like you can't kill me... Your actions will anger the entire world, just like Typhon, the king of all monsters who once wanted to destroy the world. You—"
"No, we are different."
After interrupting, Ryan raised his head and looked at Hades in front of him. His originally unfocused thoughts were instantly continued.
He needed a way, a way to directly harm the root of the world, which could not be achieved by simply destroying the material structure. At this moment, looking at the broken-armed Pluto, Ryan suddenly understood.
The gods are the representatives of the laws, and the origin of the gods is the quickest way to reach the root. As for the essence of immortality...
This imaginary world does not have it, and neither do the gods of Upper and Lower Egypt of Hermeneus.