The Twelve Titan Gods, as Gaia's most cherished children, received countless gifts from her. Gaia, the Creator God and the Earth Goddess, and one of the most ancient of the Ancient Gods, endowed each of her children with a unique gift: the Guardian Star!
These Guardian Stars, created from Gaia's divine power and imbued with the laws of creation, varied in form. For Iapetos, his Guardian Star manifested as a cluster of dark, blade-like stars.
These stars were imbued with the infinite laws of dimensions and housed countless followers. Each follower contributed immeasurable laws to Iapetos. These followers weren't just ordinary humans from the Golden Age but were beings created personally by Gaia. Both the Guardian Stars and the followers were exclusive to each of the Twelve Titan Gods.
This was Gaia's gift to her children as their Mother Goddess. Compared to Gaia's nurturing, other deities might feel a pang of envy. Some gods had parents who plotted their demise or sought to seal them away. Their mother might be relentless, without a trace of mercy, willing to scatter even their ashes if given the chance.
This stark contrast was evident. While these thoughts were mere musings, the present reality was that Iapetos, with his Guardian Stars unveiled, had drastically amplified his dimensional laws.
Blades of dimension rained down again, each blade infused with the power of the black, knife-like Guardian Stars. These stars, teeming with unimaginable laws and divine power, held the combined strength of the endless followers on the Guardian Stars, forming a terrifying power that was beyond comprehension.
For a moment, Hades was completely suppressed. Iapetos, calm and composed, said, "Hades, it's over. You have been outstanding, but this is your end. You cannot..."
Before Iapetos could finish his sentence, dark purple chains materialized, seemingly piercing through the entire world, blocking the blades of dimension that sought to reach Hades. No matter how the dark blade-like Guardian Stars struggled, they couldn't break free from these chains. The chains, formed by the Demon Star, began absorbing the divine power, rendering the Guardian Stars immobile.
"Demon Star?" Iapetos frowned. He was aware of the Demon Star's existence but hadn't anticipated it possessing such astonishing sealing laws.
"This sealing law…" Iapetos pondered, "a law that targets stars, weakening the Guardian Stars' power by thirty to fifty percent."
Iapetos was puzzled. Despite facing the sealing laws, the Guardian Stars shouldn't have been so helpless. Created by Gaia herself, they should have possessed divine power to resist such sealing laws.
What Iapetos didn't know was that the Demon Star had absorbed the essence of the Star World Chains, granting it the ability to suppress stars. Despite their divine nature, Guardian Stars were still stars in essence and thus fell under the scope of suppression.
Clang! Clang!
As the dark purple chains bound the Guardian Stars one by one, the tide of the battle shifted instantly. No matter how hard Iapetos tried, the sealed Guardian Stars could no longer move. Their divine power and laws were now untouchable.
"What is happening?" Iapetos evaded the Demon Star's chains, observing Hades who floated serenely behind the chains that seemed to pierce through the heavens and the earth. "Sealing laws? Demon Star's laws? Where did things go wrong?"
Iapetos couldn't grasp where the error lay. He sensed that the Demon Star differed significantly from what he knew, but he couldn't pinpoint the exact issue. Despite everything, he couldn't locate the problem's source.
But Hades wouldn't give Iapetos time to reflect. Chains continued to emerge from various bizarre angles, paired with numerous laws Hades controlled, making them almost impossible to detect. As the battle progressed, Iapetos was increasingly cornered.
"Do you plan to end it this way, Iapetos?" Hades spoke quietly, though his attacks showed no sign of stopping. The Demon Star's chains kept appearing from unexpected directions, reinforced by countless laws and backed by the shroud of invisibility.
This made the chains like undetectable projectiles. Over time, the outcome was clear: Iapetos would inevitably be defeated. No one could continuously defend against such relentless and stealthy attacks.
Hades, however, didn't rush to press a deeper assault. It seemed he was waiting for something, perhaps confirming his own speculations.
Most importantly, this battle presented a significant opportunity, one with high potential. Missing this chance would make future success exceedingly difficult.
"Iapetos," Hades said softly, "the game ends here."
"…"
Upon hearing Hades, all the gods watching the battle, aside from the Twelve Titan Gods, were momentarily stunned. They couldn't understand why Hades referred to the battle as a "game," especially when he had already gained the upper hand and pushed Iapetos to his limits.
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