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In Celtic mythology, there is a secret treasure named Fragarach.
It is a sharp blade that can tear through any armor, including the Sun's Armor. Once a wound is inflicted by it, it becomes cursed and can never heal.
And now, this demonic divine sword, renowned throughout Celtic myth, had just pierced the chest of the Queen of the Underworld and been pulled out.
Then came the second slash, and the third.
The sound of a sharp weapon tearing through flesh rang out again and again. Tendons were severed, bones were shattered, and organs were mangled.
And then—
Time resumed its flow.
Like a flower bursting into bloom, vibrant blood splattered through the air.
The power of life drained from the body of the underworld's master, causing the exquisitely shaped goddess's face to turn ashen-white in an instant. Her life force was rapidly fading. The effect of the Soul-Reaping Sword, one of the four great treasures of Celtic myth, was terrifyingly potent. Her divine power was insufficient to mend the wounds.
Unsurprisingly, she collapsed.
Vibrant blood flowed from the stunningly beautiful girl's body, staining her white garments and soaking the earth. The scene was horrifying, yet possessed a tragic, destructive beauty.
Thanks to a first-encounter kill composed of time magic and the Soul-Reaping Sword, the Queen of the Underworld had lost her life.
The young man quietly watched the fallen girl, waiting. He did not believe Athena would be defeated so easily. Gods of the underworld and gods of the sun were both deities who bore the weight of life itself; resurrection was a standard skill. As an ancient earth mother goddess, there was no reason for Athena to die so simply.
And sure enough.
Before long, an endless darkness surged from the fallen girl's body.
As if she had shrunk, a petite goddess rose from the blood-soaked earth. She held out her hand, and a jet-black scythe materialized in her grasp.
The master of the underworld had returned from death.
"How does it feel, Athena?" the young man asked, fully aware that resurrection was a standard feature for underworld gods. He casually set the Soul-Reaping Sword aside and gripped the demonic spear, Brionac. It was the symbol of the God of Light, Lugh, and held an absolute advantage over a deity of the underworld.
"You have slain a god of time."
In the moment of her death, the goddess had perceived the rhythm of time. She now stared at the God-Slayer who had clearly frozen the flow of an instant. Her eyes, as if filled with darkness, were pitch black, seemingly encompassing everything in her vision as they coldly pierced through to the truth.
"Something like that," the young man, who possessed a form of magic cobbled together from the very fragments of True Magic, replied with a light smile.
"Are you going to try and run?"
"To turn your back on a lion is to choose death."
The small goddess spoke a rather cruel truth in an exceedingly cute voice.
Before her words had even faded, the goddess moved. Her body dipped slightly, and the earth beneath her feet shattered. With a light leap, she crossed a distance of over fifty meters. The small goddess charged her enemy, swinging the scythe in her hands. The aura of death erupted from her as its epicenter. There was no god in this world who feared battle.
Facing the goddess wreathed in the aura of death, the young man swung the demonic spear in his hand.
A metallic clang resounded as the demonic spear easily parried the incoming scythe.
"CLANG—!"
The divine weapons clashed with a terrifying roar. Two completely different powers exploded outwards simultaneously, sending everything within the vicinity flying like a tornado, tossing debris hundreds of meters away. A series of heavy impacts that made one's heart clench rang out, and the rising dust was instantly blasted away as if by a terrifying force.
"As expected of Athena, I suppose? Even with your divine power severely depleted, you still possess considerable combat strength," Li Zihan said calmly, taking a step back.
Resurrection consumed magical power. Due to her revival, Athena had lost a significant amount of energy, and her power level had naturally declined. However, the strength she was displaying now was in no way inferior to Surya's. One could only imagine how terrifying the power of this ancient earth mother goddess was at her peak.
"Do not speak such meaningless words."
Athena looked at the young man, whose body was suffused with solar divinity. Her snake-like eyes flashed with a terrifying light. She was clearly at a disadvantage. To win, she had to weaken him first.
The Petrification Demon Eyes were an excellent choice. Petrify his hands so he could not wield the demonic spear; petrify his legs so he could not move.
And then—
Something that Athena could not comprehend happened.
The young man met the gaze of her Petrification Demon Eyes and swiftly threw the demonic spear from Lugh.
The Sun's Armor reduced all external interference by ninety percent. The remaining ten percent of the Petrification Demon Eyes' power was clearly insufficient to harm a being who held the dual status of God-Slayer and god.
And then—
Before the small goddess's astonished gaze, warm blood splattered as the sure-hit spear of light pierced through her chest.
Athena staggered. Rampant divine power wreaked havoc within her body. This was the divine spear of a sun god, and for her, a goddess of the underworld, it was a potent poison. She had to expel the sun god's power.
But her opponent's reaction speed was clearly faster than hers.
Another demonic spear was thrown.
The power of the Child of Light relentlessly ravaged the goddess's body, destroying it. The demonic spear that reverses causality pierced her chest.
"Ugh—"
The goddess's blood dripped onto the ground. She used her black scythe to support her body. Although her injuries were not so severe that she would die in the next moment, the pathetic amount of divine power left in her body could only barely sustain her life.
The gap was too vast.
This enemy's strength was simply not what a God-Slayer should possess. He was more like a god who had returned to their original mythological form!
"When I next revive from myth, I will have my revenge upon you," Athena said, knowing she had no chance of a counterattack. She calmly accepted the fact of her defeat. Next, she would likely be killed, becoming sustenance for his own growth.
"Please, I have no intention of killing you," the young man's voice reached Athena's ears. At some point, a third spear had appeared beside him. It was Indra's Thunder Spear. "If I really wanted to kill you, I would have used Vasavi Shakti the moment I stopped time."
The so-called God-Slaying Spear was an armament that operated on the unit of "one." —An ultimate weapon that no existence, be it living, non-living, or anything else—including demonic beasts, phantasmal beasts, divine beasts, humans, shields, armies, castles, barriers, and gods—could withstand. Only "The World" itself could stand against it.
Athena's expression faltered. She knew she could never withstand Vasavi Shakti, but her expression quickly returned to one of calm.
"Indeed."
"Then why did you not do so?" the goddess asked, unable to understand why the young man, her sworn enemy, had shown her mercy.
"Because I plan on using you to initiate the God-Slaying ritual for my lover," the young man replied. Finding Athena incredibly cute, he sized her up, his heart slightly conflicted.
So cute.
She must feel so soft and comfortable to hold.
Maybe I should try to find another underworld god to make up the numbers? But that might be hard to explain to Seele.
Looking at the goddess before him, the young man fell into deep thought.
---o---
Author's Note:
PS: Guess who became the substitute?