Myth: The Ruler of Spirituality

Mortal Realm, Olympus.

It seemed as though a long time had passed, yet it happened almost simultaneously.

Starlight became dazzling, the Underworld trembled.

Supreme sovereign power unfolded, enhancing itself as well as marking the achievements of the Divine King in the present world.

Thus, the backlash from violating the covenant with the divine was only just becoming apparent, when a force far surpassing the original suddenly descended.

This was just the beginning, because the unification and organization of the royal order in a new domain cannot be accomplished overnight.

All Gods seemed to obey, yet their divergent thoughts also delayed its completion.

Nonetheless, Zeus knew that as long as there was enough time, this step would be achieved by him sooner or later.

And before that happens, he could perhaps do even more.

"The mortal realm... it is time to unify."

He waited for several breaths, both to adapt to the stronger power of royal authority and to await the response from the Lord of the Spirit Realm.

But Zeus felt neither joy nor disappointment, as he perpetually sensed no will emanating from deep within the Spirit Realm.

With a slight shake of his head, Zeus did not know whether it was absence or slumber.

Both were possible, but the Divine King need not delve deeply.

He simply stepped forward, confronting the rules descending from the Codex of Creation, arriving at the ancient well which emitted strands of strange blood color.

"Genesis Artifact... I met you for the first time when I entered the Spirit Realm."

"Since you are a divine artifact that attracts souls, why did you come to the Mortal Realm!"

Boom—

A great hand pressed down, gripping the sides of the ancient well.

An unimaginably immense power attempted to drag it out of the seams of space-time, to suppress it within the now-empty Asgard.

A giant visage stood like a Giant God, grinning widely, as Zeus sensed the energy of corruption and erosion within the Well of Reincarnation.

Normally, souls flowing into the Spirit Realm along the waters of the River of Oblivion would not, even if carrying corruptive power, ever contact the Reincarnation Core.

It would settle in the River of Oblivion, to be stripped away in the hands of three Goddesses, always returning to its purest origin.

However, once it left the central axis of the Spirit Realm, it allowed an opportunity for outside interference.

Rush—

The well water boiled, blood-red color began to seize the territory of black and white.

An unexpected color flashed in his eyes, Zeus did not expect this effect to be so pronounced.

Was it because the essence of the power of evil creatures was fundamentally tied to life and death?

He wasn't very sure, but such a result was always good.

Watching the blood-red change from a point into an expanse, and then from an expanse into a vortex.

The Divine King leaned closer, peering deep into the ancient well.

According to old legend, secrets of the Spirit Realm were hidden at the well-bottom of the Well of Reincarnation.

Some say it is a divine artifact, a pair of Golden and Lead Double Arrows capable of distorting thought.

Some say it is a plant, a Heaven and Earth Spirit Root akin to the Golden Apple Tree.

Others say it is a prison in truth.

In the interweaving of life and death, terrifying things that even the Lord of the Spirit Realm feared were imprisoned there...

Regarding the answer to this question, Zeus was also very curious, so now he personally sought verification.

"Come... let me see."

"What exactly is inside here!"

Riiiip—

Invisible force parted the water surface, the center of the blood-red vortex seemed directly to reach the bottom.

The Divine King bent down, looking into the pitch-black well-bottom.

There, the gaze across worlds was completed.

...

"...Did His Majesty win?"

On Mount Olympus, her lower body had already transformed into a fishtail.

Aphrodite swam through the molten lava river, constantly ready to escape.

"Who knows, winning or losing, what worry do you have either way."

Speaking indifferently, disregarding the Goddess of Beauty's appearance.

Since sculpting a statue in the likeness of Aphrodite, Hephaestus seemed to lose interest in the real person.

At this moment, he simply held a heavy forge hammer, gazing distantly at the sky beyond the mountain.

There, the Nether Moon hung high, seasons turned, the Divine King leaned into the Well of Reincarnation, behind him was the Codex of Creation pressing forward.

Any of those there could crush his power in battle, yet fortunately, Hephaestus had no intention to partake.

"Why?"

Unlike the relaxed God of Craftsmanship, Aphrodite could not summon such a mood.

"Have you not witnessed the chaos of Typhon, if I had stayed on the Mount of the Gods at that time—"

"—Are you crazy?"

Utterly speechless, Hephaestus shook his head.

"That is the Spirit Realm, although those Sub-Gods of the Lord of the Spirit Realm were a bit paranoid, it's not as if they couldn't communicate."

"I forge iron, you only dance, are you intending to lend a hand to the Divine King?"

Indeed, this is life that can speak and think.

Although possessing perfect appearances, they lack matching minds… wouldn't it be better if there were no hearts.

Various thoughts flashed through his mind, but fearing that they could affect his temple, destroy his arts and creations, Hephaestus couldn't care less about the outside.

Even if the Divine Kingdom ceased to exist, how would that matter; his most esteemed assistants and believers had long accompanied him in another form.

"You—"

At a loss for words, Aphrodite couldn't find suitable reasons to argue back.

But thinking carefully about Hephaestus's words, she found them somewhat reasonable.

Indeed, she too had a backup plan now, so even if something went wrong, she wouldn't be entirely without escape... her attitude relaxed slightly, yet observing the situation in the sky, the Goddess of Beauty frowned.

"What is the Divine King watching, why is he so slow to move?"

Puzzling, but perhaps this is the nature of the interaction between great divine powers.

The thought flashed through her mind, Aphrodite pondered thus.

Yet the thought did not last long, beyond the Mountain of the Gods, the originally stagnant situation changed once again.

At some unknown point, the water of the Well of Reincarnation returned to its original two colors.

A pale golden net transformed into chains, binding the Divine King's body from behind, yet the Divine King did not resist at all.