Myth: The Ruler of Spirituality

Emotions drove actions, without any superfluous communication.

Zeus stretched out his hand and gripped, then in the void, a ghostly long spear slowly solidified and was held in his hand.

The aura emanating from the body of the spear was strong and ancient, but it was not a true Divine Artifact. Of course, for deities who had reached this stage, ordinary Divine Artifacts were of little use anyway.

Just as Laine often used the power of death from the Well of Reincarnation to transform into a Black Sword, the long spear in Zeus's hand was also an embodiment of Asgard's power, one of the symbols of his Sovereign.

He opened up the Divine Domain, allowing All Gods to build Divine Kingdoms, which in itself was a behavior that aligned with a Sovereign's gathering of the masses. Hence, the Asgard Divine Domain was subtly changed to align more with the Sovereign's authority.

Perhaps a million years later, just like the Scepter forged by the second generation Divine King, if there really was a next generation of Divine King, Asgard might also be one of the things passed down to the successor.

But all that was a matter for later. Holding the long spear, Zeus locked onto his opponent.

Just like the shape of the long spear, which was the weapon of Asgard's previous master, the Divine Lance called "Gungnir" which guaranteed hits. This imitation bestowed upon it certain characteristics that made its attacks difficult to evade.

Whoosh—

The long spear cleaved through the air, piercing the void. As a manifestation of Divine Domain power, it was like a world pressing down at the speed of light.

If it had been in the outside world, such a strike would have made the earth sink and the stars tremble. However, this was the Abyss, and Tartarus had enough power to contain such destruction brought by outsiders to its environment.

Therefore, the supreme power was confined around the spear as it followed a mysterious trajectory towards the Lord of the Nine Hells. Naturally, what met the body of the spear was that bloodstained Sickle.

Clang—

A crisp ringing sound as the blade collided with the spear.

The next moment, vast power burst forth from their point of contact, tearing and reconstituting the laws of the void.

However, it was quite evident that Zeus seemed to be at a disadvantage. His conjured spear directly shattered at the tip, although it reformed in the next moment, the outcome was still clear.

"How is this possible! No—it's the Abyss!"

He was stunned for a moment, then Zeus suddenly realized.

In theory, although he did not know the specifics of the opponent's strength, there should not be a huge gap between them according to the sensation from the Divine Authority.

But the reality at hand made him realize that although the Abyss also repelled Hell, at his own doorstep, Asmodeus's power was still more fully exerted, unlike Zeus's.

He was a true Outsider, and also the one Tartarus sought to repel. Even so, feeling the difference in power, Zeus found it hard to accept.

In such a place, was there actually another being capable of contending with him?

Before his ascension, he had plenty of powerful enemies; after his ascension, there were still plenty. If it continued like this, wasn't his ascension in vain?

"You think geographical advantage can stop me? Dream on!"

Bang—

Unwilling to retreat, but under the Abyss's suppression, he truly was at a loss against the opponent before him.

Then the next moment, with a roar, Zeus's figure burst open, then expanded a thousand times over.

He glared at Asmodeus ahead, his hands raised high towards the sky. As if shouldering the Celestial Sphere, the titanic deity declared war on the laws of the Abyss...

"Come—!"

The suppression of the Abyss was too strong, and he could not exert his power at all—so what to do? Then, for the time being, he would borrow power from another world to fight it!

Thus the power of Asgard flowed forth, converging between the raised hands of Zeus. The world's shadow emerged there, and as the image appeared, not only was another strike from the Lord of the Nine Hells blocked, but the suppression of the Abyss was also briefly weakened. The price, though, was Asgard's power visibly draining away.

"I don't care, tools... only have value when they are used!"

Taking a big step forward, Zeus recalled the unforgettable figure from the time of the epochal transition.

His vast form became even more immense, and without the barrier of interface power, the full symbol of his Sovereignty was revealed for the first time in this world.

"Come, now let's see, who is the victor!"

Clenching his fists into a hammer, he struck down fiercely. And standing opposite Zeus, the Lord of the Nine Hells stood as immovable as a mountain.

"Drinking poison to quench thirst, how much longer can you hold on?"

"Well then, I'll indulge you. Let's see how much of your reserves you can deplete before you calm down," Asmodeus said while facing off against Zeus for a long time and having learned to be precise and calculating when dealing with discrepancies in scale.

So at this moment, watching Zeus, who was 'liberal' with his resources, he felt a touch of nostalgia but did not hesitate to take advantage.

Power in itself doesn't vanish; if not used now, it would be employed in the future. To drain some of it early was naturally a good thing.

······

In the Abyss, battle erupted, and upon the sea, a column of light pierced the sky, heralding the unsurprising outbreak of war among the gods.

At the onset of the conflict, Keto sought Aphrodite without hesitation.

There was no hatred between them, only the clash of interests brought about by power. Yet for deities, this was a far more intolerable dispute than any other.

Elsewhere, Phoebe, the Goddess of Luminous, finally joined the battle, cloaking herself in a righteous cause. She believed that Artemis, as the daughter of the Divine King, her own granddaughter, shouldn't be left to wander in the wild.

She claimed that the other should travel to the stars to meet her grandfather. However, Artemis only responded to Phoebe's proposals with her bow and arrows.

In terms of divine power, although the sun, moon, and stars no longer obeyed commands three eras later, the Goddess of Luminous had benefited from the expansion of the world, attaining a Divine Power Level close to 18.

By contrast, as a new goddess, even with the existence of the Power of Faith, Artemis was at a disadvantage in divine strength.

However, the role of Divine Artifacts was evident in the clashes of true gods, and Artemis had not only acquired the New Moon Crown but also transformed another gift from Keto into a Divine Artifact in her hands.

It was nothing else but the powers related to 'sea monsters' and 'wildness' that Keto, once the mother of sea monsters, had shed from her old form.

Such power was of little significance to the reborn Keto, but it was perfectly aligned with Artemis as the Master of the Wilderness. Combined, they stood off against Phoebe as in the divine battles of the previous era, with no victor likely to emerge in short order.

The other deities each had their own battlefields, with frequent clashes above the sea of Pontus Euxinus.

And, without a doubt, the true focal point for the spectating gods was the fight at the center.

The Trident, Thunderbolt Arrow, the Shield Aegis, the Spear of Voktor... Above in the high heavens, when Athena struck with full force for the first time, all gods were shaken.

Outnumbered, Hera was at her wits' end, Poseidon, though wounded, still fought on without loss of spirit, and weaponless Ares was being driven back step by step.

Yet Ares, the god presiding over unjust war, had his ferocity stirred. In his unique domain, the immense divine battle seemed to fuel his power, enhancing his fervor in combat.

Of course, the gap in strength was clear, and the only acclaim Ares gained was from the other deities who now held him in higher regard, recognizing that the War God did have immense skills in the midst of a large-scale conflict.

In any case, with a deft motion of her spear, the Goddess of Wisdom clad in battle gear, dominated the three gods from her superior position.

The power of a true god at its limit is so terrifying that it astounds onlookers... including a deity who had, at long last, awakened from a deep slumber.

"..."

"...Indeed, such mighty youths, even in later eras deities can emerge with such presence... Truly, like waves, the momentum of the predecessors will eventually wane, shattered against the shore, against the rocks. And if one wishes to avoid this fate, the only way is to withdraw early."

Beneath the battleground of the divine war, a profound voice echoed among the seabed.

Perhaps a side effect of a long slumber, the voice was clearly hoarse at first. But the speaker quickly recovered, clear and fluent by the time he finished speaking.

"To withdraw, yet you have already been drawn in, Pontus,"

"The cause of the battle is your daughter, and your other children have joined as well. How can you possibly extract yourself from such strife?"

In the shadows, or to say, the depths of the trench were always filled with darkness.

The voice of Erebus emerged quietly from within, narrating the current situation.

He wasn't supposed to come at this time, but it must be said, the display of the Lord of Hell's power from Keto had truly taken Erebus by surprise.

For a moment, Zeus was lured away, and part of the Lord of Darkness's domain laid just across the entrance to the Underworld. He could time Zeus' comings and goings, and with the broad cover of the gods' war masking many events, he was quick to change his plans and seek out the traces of the Primordial Sea God.

It was not difficult to find Pontus. As one of the earliest deities, their bond with all things was so profound. If the Mariana Trench of later ages was the world's deepest ocean, then beneath the sea of Chaos, under the Pontus Euxinus, was.

Coming here, Erebus easily awakened Pontus with his power. To complete his plan, persuading the other was crucial. However, faced with the words of the Lord of Darkness, the Primordial Sea God seemed nonchalant.

"Prince Erebus, I appreciate that you took the time to chat with me... but if you're trying to urge me to emerge, then it's wholly unnecessary."

"You see, the underworld deities born of your power have never been of concern to you, and while my relationship to Nereus and others is closer, I wouldn't dare to rashly enter the world on their behalf."

"Besides, although we haven't had much interaction, I do understand Zeus. He isn't a person like my brother who's driven by brutishness. To him, interests matter more than whims. The Heavenly Father could forsake benefits over mere 'dislike,' or torment his own child out of 'affection,' even if it serves him no benefit. But Zeus isn't like that."

"Furthermore, having awakened this time as one of the earliest Ancient Gods, the connection with the world allowed me to see clearer. The net of Order that covers the present, and the new symbols rising between heaven and earth... It's the Sovereign, isn't it?"

Without a word, Erebus knew he couldn't easily convince Pontus.

Yes, Zeus, who possessed Sovereign, was destined to seek power, not punishment. If Atlas, the bearer of the heavens, chose to bow before him and become part of the order under Sovereign, Zeus would probably set aside grievances and even personally welcome him. Experience more content on My Virtual Library Empire

Thus, no matter what, the offspring of the lineage of the Primordial Sea God wouldn't face too severe a consequence. It was simply a matter of allegiance to someone new.

For Pontus, who is the master of the world, and who leads the gods of the Primordial Sea God lineage, does that matter? Of course not.

He had decided to slumber, which meant he had let go of everything from his former life. Power, strength, and even all possessions.

To use an apt metaphor, "If the people are not afraid of death, how can death be used to threaten them?"

I have already renounced everything, so what significance do these discussions hold for me?