The Underworld!
After countless years, Hades finally arrived at the Underworld. Here, he was determined to reclaim his essence, which had been binding him for so long. Without this essence, he could never advance, forever shackled to his current level.
Hades was acutely aware that his strategies, his struggles, and his near-death experiences against the outer gods in the Sea of Chaos had allowed him to ascend from a Major God to a Chief God. However, reaching his rightful level as a God-King was impossible without reclaiming his essence. This was an absolute, undeniable truth.
His essence was located within the Underworld. Upon his first arrival here, Hades stopped and did not enter immediately. In front of him lay a pitch-black boundary line. On one side was the normal land, and on the other side was the dark terrain of the Underworld.
This was the Underworld, formed from the body of Tartarus, one of the Ancient Gods. In this Golden Age, it represented one of the four worlds of Heaven, Earth, Sea, and Underworld. This was why Hades had no qualms about absorbing the Underworld Prison or devouring the Underworld land without any reaction from the world.
The reason was simple: the duties of the Underworld lay within this place, not within the Underworld Prison or the Underworld land, nor in the Underworld Hades had created. This distinction was crucial.
If the duties of the Underworld resided within the Underworld land or the Underworld Prison, Hades' actions, no matter how favored by the world, would have been tearing the world apart, something the world would never allow.
This unique situation with the Underworld granted Hades considerable operational flexibility. Poseidon's Sea Realm and Zeus' Sky Realm were fixed and non-negotiable, unlike his own situation.
Now, Hades stood at the threshold of the Underworld, ready to step in when he noticed a figure kneeling devoutly at the boundary between the Underworld and the earth.
This was a tall, burly figure, easily over two meters in height. The figure knelt, repeatedly bowing with utmost devotion. No one knew what he was praying for.
Hades observed the young man, sensing within him the power of death—specifically, the power of the undead. In this era, the existence of the undead was abnormal. The death of gods meant the extinction of their divine souls, and human death returned their essence to the world to be reborn.
Yet, this young man emanated the aura of the undead. With each bow, he absorbed a sliver of death's law from the Underworld.
"He..." Hades muttered, "he's absorbing strands of the death law from the Underworld with each bow."
This was nearly impossible. The Underworld belonged to Tartarus, an Ancient God. Even in eternal slumber, Tartarus should be aware if the laws of death were being stolen. Intrigued, Hades continued to watch.
Each bow took the young man an hour to complete, absorbing a tiny amount of divine power. He could absorb this twelve times a day, a negligible amount for the Underworld, which recovered more than it lost.
Yet, it was fascinating, akin to plucking hairs from a tiger's back—a dangerous endeavor. The young man's body was filled with the laws of death and the undead, slowly corroding him. If nothing changed, the young man would eventually die, consumed by the very forces he sought to master.
Normally, one could ascend by mastering divine power, progressing from the eighth sense to the will of the gods, becoming a deity. This young man could become a god of death or the undead. But the excessive death and undead laws within him killed any chance of further advancement, trapping him.
His efforts would ultimately lead to his demise unless he received a blessing from a powerful god, transforming him perfectly into a deity who could command the laws of death and the undead.
"Austerity," Hades pondered, "like the austerity practices of the Indian pantheon, seeking divine blessings through severe penance. This young man must be hoping for a blessing from the god of the Underworld, or perhaps even my father."
In the Indian pantheon, ascetics sought blessings from the highest three gods, including Brahma, the Absolute God, and the Creator Gods: Shiva and Vishnu. These ascetics, known as Asuras, often opposed the celestial ruler, Indra.
Similarly, this young ascetic sought a blessing, hoping his efforts would be acknowledged. Hades was curious whether this young man's perseverance would be rewarded.
At that moment, Hades sensed a faint resonance from the demon star.
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