Mount Etna, the home of Hephaestus, the god of fire. As one of the twelve main gods of Olympus, Hephaestus was the son of Zeus and Hera, making him Diana's half-brother. When Diana was born, he had crafted several pieces of equipment for her, including the Godslayer Sword.
When it came to forging equipment, Hephaestus was second to none.
However, his appearance did not match his divine status. He was ugly, resembling the dwarves of many legends, with none of the grace or beauty one might expect from a god. When Su Sheng saw him, Hephaestus was wearing an apron and hammering away at some equipment, his hands glowing red with the heat of his work.
"Are you Su Sheng?" the god of fire asked calmly, his gaze shifting from the Disciple, which had just crashed down from above, to Su Sheng, who had descended from the ship.
"Can you upgrade this time ship?" Su Sheng asked, getting straight to the point.
"Mount Olympus is in chaos," Hephaestus replied slowly. "There is no longer any difference between gods and mortals, and the gods are even worse off than the humans. Although I have never involved myself in these power struggles, I want this to end as soon as possible and for peace to be restored. I can help you transform your ship, but you have to help end this chaos. I know you can do it, and I know you could kill me easily if you wanted."
His tone was calm but resolute.
"Alright," Su Sheng agreed indifferently.
"You can take a look around while I work," Hephaestus said, calling for his assistants to move the Disciple and begin repairs and upgrades. Su Sheng watched for a moment but quickly realized he couldn't understand Hephaestus's methods. There was no technical explanation; it seemed more like the god was using his divine abilities to perform an unscientific transformation.
So, Su Sheng decided to explore the forge.
Hephaestus's workshop was filled with various finished pieces of equipment, most of which were cold weapons. Although the materials seemed ordinary, the craftsmanship of Hephaestus elevated them far beyond the norm. As Su Sheng wandered around, inspecting the various weapons and tools, he lost track of time. Before he knew it, over an hour had passed, and Hephaestus called him back.
"Try a punch," Hephaestus said.
The Disciple's appearance hadn't changed, but the damaged sections had been completely repaired.
"How hard should I hit it?" Su Sheng asked.
"As hard as you can," Hephaestus replied confidently.
With the strength of a demigod, Su Sheng raised his fist and struck the ship.
Boom!
The force of the impact caused Hephaestus's assistants to stumble backward, but the Disciple remained unscathed.
"Amazing," Su Sheng remarked in awe. He then multiplied his power fourfold and delivered another punch.
This time, the ship only showed a slight dent.
"Impressive!" Su Sheng exclaimed, giving Hephaestus a thumbs-up. Without any visible changes, Hephaestus had significantly improved the Disciple's defenses. The punch he had just thrown was equivalent to a full-strength attack from Diana at four times her demigod strength, yet it only left a small dent. Against the power of the First Born, the ship should now be able to withstand multiple attacks.
Even if the defensive barriers were broken as before, the hull of the ship would remain intact.
"This is for Diana," Hephaestus said, handing over a sword.
"The Hephaestus Sword?" Su Sheng asked with a grin. "Could it cut through my ship?"
Hephaestus remained silent.
"Well, that's fair," Su Sheng chuckled. "You're the first Olympian god I've actually liked. Keep it up, and if you ever run into trouble, you can come to me—though I can't exactly give you my contact info." With a laugh, Su Sheng boarded the Disciple and prepared to leave.
With the ship's upgrades complete, all that was left was to install artificial intelligence and visit Atom Man to study nano-shrinking technology. The Disciple would be perfect!
Boom!
The Disciple took off, accelerating several times faster than before.
Watching the ship disappear into the sky, Hephaestus slumped to the ground, exhausted. He hadn't cut any corners in upgrading the Disciple, especially when it came to the ship's intricate and delicate internal structure. The effort had drained him of much of his energy and divine power.
When Su Sheng returned to Paradise Island, the journey took less than half the time it had taken to get to Mount Etna.
The Disciple's defense and speed had been greatly improved, and Su Sheng couldn't be more satisfied.
As Diana approached from a distance, Su Sheng smiled, rushed over, and hugged her, planting a kiss on her lips.
Diana, taken by surprise, instinctively responded before pulling back slightly.
After a moment, Su Sheng released her and smiled. "Your brother did a great job."
"For you to say that, he must have really impressed you," Diana replied, smiling back. "It seems the upgraded Disciple has exceeded your expectations."
"It has," Su Sheng said, handing her the Hephaestus Sword. "He made this for you."
Diana accepted the sword, feeling the power it radiated. "What about my lasso?" she asked, looking up at him.
"Well…," Su Sheng hesitated before shaking his head. "It's too useful, so…"
"Hmph," Diana huffed in mock annoyance, her slightly haughty demeanor prompting Su Sheng to pull her into another embrace. Whispering in her ear, he asked, "Should we head to the ship or your room?"
"We just got back to Paradise Island… why…," Diana trailed off, her voice faltering.
Su Sheng grinned. "I learned a thing or two from Zeus, but once the Olympus issue is resolved, I'll have to leave. It might be decades or even a century before we see each other again."
"Is that why you've been looking for the Flash?" Diana asked.
"Exactly," Su Sheng replied with a bright smile, pulling her toward the Disciple.
After a few steps, Diana gently broke away. "I… I'm the only pillar holding up the sisters now, and I need to arrange the defenses. Also, don't forget that we're still enemies. I will defeat you next time."
"Even if you become stronger than a god!" Su Sheng said with a pause, then pointed to the starry sky above them. "Do you want the stars in the sky? I can steal them for you."
"What?" Diana looked up at the stars, puzzled. "Steal the stars? Why would you do that?"
Sometimes Diana really couldn't understand Su Sheng or his intentions.
"I want to steal the sky!" Su Sheng said with a bright smile.
"Steal the sky and change the sun? That's a Chinese idiom, isn't it?" Diana asked, her brow furrowing. "It means secretly altering the truth to deceive others. What are you planning?"
Su Sheng just smiled and waved as he turned back to the Disciple, leaving Diana standing there, still trying to figure out the meaning behind his words.