A little earlier, just after Su Mo had defeated Athena and, due to Jibril's challenge, set the battlefield on the moon.
Rome, Copper Black Cross headquarters, in the underground prison.
"Marquis Voban, are you truly not planning to come out?" a young man in a dark black suit asked the old man inside the cell. "I may not have a way on my own, but if we unite with the other Godslayers, we might be able to remove the shackles on you."
"Hah, lightning boy, save your useless schemes! As the defeated, I have not yet lost so much dignity as to flee!" Voban snorted, not even looking at him.
His attitude was cold, but in this world, there were only a handful of individuals he would treat as equals. And as his name suggested, the young man outside the cell was none other than the Godslayer known as the Black Prince Alec, the swiftest of marquises.
As one of the few Godslayers who preferred to use his brain, Alec wasn't angered by Voban's words and continued his persuasion.
"If you wish to reclaim your dignity, shouldn't the most important thing be to join forces and defeat the new King who seeks to dominate us all?"
While most Godslayers preferred to fight alone, he was one of the rare few who advocated for everyone to team up against Su Mo. By any normal logic, this was the most sensible course of action.
A mere newcomer dared to demand the submission of all other Godslayers? Didn't he deserve a lesson from his seniors?
But as it turned out, the logic of Godslayers was anything but normal.
Even Voban, who had already suffered a loss, didn't change his mind as Alec had predicted. On the contrary, he utterly scoffed at the suggestion.
"Join forces? Have you ever seen a pack of fierce beasts?" he retorted, his refusal firm.
"…" The Black Prince felt this was getting tricky.
Just then, Doni from the opposite cell chimed in.
"I have. Wolves travel in packs. Has your old brain gone soft, old man?" As a fellow prisoner, he was becoming more and more uninhibited.
"…Shut up, sword-boy. It's not your turn to speak!" Voban glared at Doni, who perfectly ignored him.
"The Sword King has a point. Even fierce beasts travel together at times," Alec seized the opportunity to press on. "Besides, a single defeat doesn't mean everything. Are you really planning to spend the rest of your life in the new King's prison?"
As far as he knew, Marquis Voban was not the type to honor a contract.
"A lifetime of imprisonment, or joining us to defeat the new King. The choice shouldn't be difficult, should it?" He extended his hand, offering a sincere invitation.
However…
"Say no more." Voban still shook his head, rejecting his proposal.
Just as Alec was wondering why, Doni from the side let out a sneer.
"Don't bother asking. No matter what you say, he won't agree. This old man has been beaten into submission!"
Hearing this, Alec's heart skipped a beat. This foolish Sword King really knew how to stir the pot. With Voban's temper, he surely couldn't tolerate such contempt. If a taunt could work…
Huh, wait a minute. Why isn't Voban saying anything?
Realizing something was wrong, he turned his head and saw Voban's face had turned a deep shade of green. Faced with Doni's mockery, he had, for a rare moment, offered no rebuttal.
What was going on? Could Doni be telling the truth? Had Voban truly been cowed? How was that possible?!
Before Alec could ask, Voban spoke.
"You cannot win against him."
It was not a lament or a question, but a statement of objective fact. That tone was undoubtedly proof of Doni's words.
"But Marquis, haven't you already analyzed a part of the new King's technique? With your intelligence and the combined forces of the other Godslayers, how could we possibly lose to a lone King?" Alec still couldn't understand. Five against one, with a dragon breathing down their necks—how could they lose?
Voban had no intention of explaining such a naive sentiment.
"It's useless. You will lose, whether you know his technique or not."
Seeing his resolute attitude, Alec realized that this old man would not be joining him. So, he turned to Doni.
"Since the Sword King said that just now, then you—"
Before he could finish his invitation, the other man immediately waved his hand.
"Don't bother. I think it's quite nice here. I won't be going out with you."
Seeing the two of them acting as if the prison were their home, Alec was baffled.
"And why is that?"
"I've been beaten into submission!" Doni declared, puffing out his chest without a shred of shame. "In short, my dear friend's strength is beyond your imagination. It doesn't matter how many Godslayers you gather. I have no intention of participating in a battle that is doomed to fail."
"In fact, when Erica gets back, I'm going to report you for trying to incite a prison break. Hehehe, with that merit, she should be willing to get me a better pizza!"
To threaten to report Alec to his face—the thickness of his skin was breathtaking.
Even Alec was taken aback by this, his face turning a little green. He had come here to find allies against Su Mo, but not only had he found none, he was now going to be reported.
If the new King found out he had tried to sneak around while he was away, wouldn't he be hunted down?
Seeing his plan had backfired and not knowing when the new King would return, Alec felt the urge to retreat.
In any case, knowing a part of the new King's technique was a decent gain.
Since his Godspeed Authority was key to dealing with the new King, he would hold the advantage no matter how he cooperated with the other Godslayers.
If he couldn't win, he could still run.
Before leaving, an idea struck Alec, and he asked Voban one last question.
"Marquis, are you saying that even if I brought Cult Leader Luo Hao, we would still be no match for the new King?"
"…" Voban glanced at Alec, guessing his intentions. But he still gave him the line he was hoping for.
"Of course. He is an opponent you cannot win against."
---||---
Several dozen minutes later, on the other side of the Earth.
Mount Lu.
"How preposterous! The Marquis dares to look down on me so? To insult the name of Luo Hao like this!"
After hearing Alec's description, Luo Hao was, as expected, furious. It was unclear whether she was angry at being underestimated by Voban or at being woken up by a guest.
Seeing his taunt had worked, Alec felt a sense of relief and continued, "The new King's strength is indeed extraordinary. Otherwise, Marquis Voban and the Sword King would not have been defeated so easily."
"If the Cult Leader is interested, you can join forces with us. The Lord of the Flies and I have already made contact. We can follow your lead and fight the new King together!"
It wasn't that he was being overly proactive; Doni was just too much of a scoundrel. Originally, Alec hadn't been too afraid of the new King.
If he couldn't win, couldn't he run? But after seeing the attitudes of both Doni and Voban, he had immediately abandoned that casual thought.
Anyone who could beat Voban into submission was bound to be a ruthless individual. Against someone like that, he alone was definitely not enough.
Especially now, after being reported by Doni, he was bound to be targeted by the new King.
Therefore, to ensure his own safety to the greatest extent possible, he had to build a defensive line capable of resisting the new King.
Defense and counter-attack had always been his specialty.
Thus, after failing to negotiate with Voban, he had found Luo Hao and attempted to use a taunt to establish a Godslayer alliance capable of fighting the new King.
As he had expected, upon hearing his report, Cult Leader Luo Hao was enraged. As Voban's nemesis, how could she tolerate being underestimated like that?
Unfortunately, contrary to Alec's expectations, Luo Hao was also a stubborn individual.
"Fight the new King together? Unnecessary! Otherwise, people might think I fear the new King!" she declared with a wave of her hand, rejecting Alec's proposal.
"The new King seems to be one of my fellow countrymen. Even without this matter, I was planning to go and assess his quality. Let's see what kind of person dares to challenge me, the pinnacle of martial arts!"
Seeing her brimming with battle intent, looking as if she were about to go and challenge the new King to a duel right now, Alec grew anxious.
"Cult Leader, calm down! Marquis Voban was just as confident before, but he was captured in one battle and has now completely lost his fighting spirit!"
His intention was to dissuade Luo Hao from a one-on-one fight.
However…
"Oh?" After drawing out the word, a sharp glint flashed in Luo Hao's eyes. "Doesn't that mean that if I can defeat the new King alone, then the Marquis will be nothing more than the defeated underling of my own defeated underling?"
"…" Faced with such a narcissist, Alec was completely speechless.
"The new King's Authority is exceptionally bizarre and impossible to guard against. Has the Cult Leader never considered the possibility that you might lose?"
"Hah!" Hearing this, Luo Hao's eyes showed displeasure, but she didn't get angry. Instead, she raised her head confidently. "I, Luo Hao, am the strongest Godslayer, reigning at the pinnacle of martial arts. What need is there to ally with others against a mere newcomer?"
"As a senior among Godslayers, if I were to be so wary of a junior, I would become a laughingstock. I, Luo Hao, would never stoop so low!"
"Therefore, speak no more of alliances. I will let the new King know what true power is!"
Faced with such impassioned and narcissistic words, Alec was at a complete loss for a rebuttal. At this moment, he finally understood a deep truth: Godslayers could never be united.
Realizing this, he completely gave up on the unrealistic idea of forming a Godslayer alliance. Forget it. Worst comes to worst, I'll just run faster next time.
With that thought, he shook his head and bid farewell to Luo Hao. "Then I wish the Cult Leader good fortune in battle!"
If Luo Hao could actually defeat the new King, that would be a good thing too. At least he wouldn't have to live in fear.
With that thought, just as he turned to leave, the moon above suddenly lit up as bright as day, and a celestial anomaly occurred.
"Is that a Heretic God, or a Godslayer?" Luo Hao also noticed the astronomical event and immediately looked toward the moon.
"This timing… could it be the new King?" Alec, who had only dared to enter the underground prison after Su Mo left Italy, did a quick mental calculation and confirmed his suspicion.
"How did the new King get to the moon? Is he fighting a Heretic God?" Alec was puzzled. Did the new King have absurdly good luck? How had he encountered another Heretic God so quickly?
"To go to the moon to fight… the newborn compatriot has good courage!" Luo Hao commented with the air of a senior. "When he returns from the moon and has recovered his magical energy, I will answer his challenge and let him taste defeat!"
A few dozen seconds later, another torrent of light appeared.
"This scale of energy…" Alec's expression suddenly grew grave, filled with worry.
And in the next instant…
CRACK!
Though no sound reached them, the image before them inevitably brought that sound to mind.
Under the watchful eyes of the two Godslayers, the full moon above was struck by Su Mo, and a corner of it was shattered.
"…"
Staring at the broken satellite above, the two Godslayers on the ground looked at each other, completely dumbfounded.
Even Alec, who had been the most wary of the new King, had never expected something like this.
What had they just seen?
The new King had shattered the moon?
Even if it was only a corner, this was definitely not something a Godslsayer could do! What was going on?
The Martial Arts King Luo Hao was utterly silent.
As the pinnacle of martial arts, as one of the strongest Godslayers of her time, she knew exactly how difficult it was to destroy a country, a continent, or a planet in one go.
She also knew exactly what the scene before her represented.
No wonder even Marquis Voban was defeated. Against an enemy of this level, it was impossible to win.
After a long silence, she spoke in a trembling voice.
"Black Prince, what did you mean earlier, about a Godslayer alliance?"
She who had just declared she would show Su Mo what true power was had gone back on her word on the spot, no longer caring if she became a laughingstock.
Against a Moon-Shattering Demon King, fighting alone was pure suicide!
At this moment, they finally understood the deep meaning behind Marquis Voban's words.
The new King, Su Mo, was indeed an unwinnable foe.