Chapter 432: The Other End of the Memory Space-Time Tunnel Is—!
At Mount Nikko, a giant silver serpent was still wreaking havoc.
Suddenly sensing something, it cast a sharp gaze toward a shrine.
Boom—!
An explosion erupted, and she saw a monkey—a monkey undergoing transformation.
In an instant, it became majestic and imposing, now holding a metal staff.
Although Asherah didn't know the exact origins of this being, she was certain—this was a God of Steel.
She just didn't know if it was the so-called Last King that woman Guinevere was searching for, the hero whom the Earth Mother Goddess was said to serve.
Hmph, Asherah didn't care about any of that. Her purpose in this world was purely to enjoy herself, to do whatever she pleased.
Of course, she had no choice but to act recklessly here now, all because the one who captured her was that most violent woman.
Hmph, once she accumulated enough power to restore her Earth Mother Goddess form, she'd make sure to brutally crush everyone who opposed her.
So for now, the immediate plan was to retreat immediately.
Since her mission was already accomplished, there was no need to stay and oppose this "Steel" god.
In her current state as merely a Divine Ancestor, she was no match for her opponent.
And then—
Thud—!
"Ugh!!!"
A nearly soundless scream escaped her as her massive serpent body, about fifty meters long, was violently sent flying, nearly snapping in half.
The one who delivered such a blow was, of course, that monkey!!!
Damn it, damn it!!!
She realized the monkey hadn't attacked her simply because she was a serpent, an enemy of the "Steel" gods. No, that monkey had struck her purely because it found her presence here too bothersome.
This dismissive behavior infuriated Asherah.
If that was how it was going to be, she'd fight with everything she had to sink her teeth into that bastard.
Thud—!
The mountains shook and the ground trembled as she propelled her body forward, lunging toward the monkey.
But just then, the space nearby tore open without warning, and a beam of white light struck her.
"Uwaaaaaaah!!!"
A blood-curdling scream echoed as the white light viciously tore through her body, nearly slicing her in two.
After cutting through her, the beam crashed into a nearby mountain, shearing off its peak.
If that attack had landed fully on her, she would have been killed instantly.
Even so, the blow left her severely injured, and she could no longer maintain her form as the Heretic Leviathan, beginning to revert to her original loli form.
Suddenly, another white light emerged from the torn space, startling Asherah. She thought it was another attack—after all, her body hadn't fully transformed back yet and was still about thirty meters long, making her an easy target.
So, what was that white light? It was a knight on a white horse, carrying a golden-haired loli—Guinevere and her guardian god.
They looked somewhat disheveled?
Why were they rushing toward her?
"Damn you, Guinevere, I'll kill you!!!"
Asherah roared as the approaching pair—one casting a binding spell on her, the other directly swatting her away—sent her flying straight into the rift.
Clearly, these two were in a panic because something terrifying was pursuing them from within the rift, and Asherah was being used as a decoy to slow it down.
So, amid Asherah's murderous cries, the group returning from the Underworld stared in astonishment as Asherah flew into the rift and was swallowed.
Then, the rift vanished.
"That was the divine blade forged from that man's remains, wasn't it? And you, who wield such a blade, are running away? How amusing."
The majestic monkey—Great Sage Equaling Heaven—his eyes blazing with intense battle fervor.
Though she herself was a God of Steel, she disliked fighting female Earth Mother Goddesses, preferring pure combat and challenges against powerful opponents.
So, what kind of being could force even a God of Steel riding a white horse to retreat after using that divine sword?
Unfortunately, as the rift closed, she completely lost track of the other party's presence.
"Yuri! Mariya Yuri, come here quickly and help me!"
This urgent plea snapped Yuri, who had also emerged from the netherworld, back to attention. She hurried over to the golden-haired beauty—Princess Alice.
"I've caught hold of them, but my power isn't enough. I need your Spirit Sight!!!"
There was no mistake—Alice could sense the presence of a Heretic God in the space beyond that rift.
In that space, she had detected Athena's presence, and through it, another existence connected to Athena—the mysterious figure she had been pursuing all along.
This time, she wasn't directly peering at the other party through Spirit Sight but was instead using the connection between Athena and that being to spy.
It was as if the target was on a physically isolated network, and Athena had suddenly become an external data cable. Now, she was using Athena as a stepping stone to observe.
But her spiritual power was insufficient at the moment, and she needed the help of Yuri, whose Spirit Sight was no less capable than her own.
"O-okay."
As Yuri approached and touched the princess, her Spirit Sight activated instantly.
"This is... the goddess Athena..."
"Don't focus on Athena. Follow my senses and delve deeper to spy on that one."
If they wasted their energy on Athena's information, they might not have enough spiritual power to uncover the origins of that mysterious figure.
"B-but..."
Wasn't it Athena who had spread the plague in this country?
If they couldn't fully read Athena's origins, how could they confront this goddess? How could they resolve this crisis? Yuri hesitated.
"The plague definitely isn't Athena's doing. It's another being—a mysterious god standing behind Athena. It seems Athena has already submitted to them."
"W-what?"
Yuri was stunned. That Earth Mother Goddess had submitted?
"Hurry, Yuri!"
"Okay, okay!"
With all their might, they used the princess's Spirit Sight to pierce through and see what exactly lay behind Athena.
For a moment, it felt as if they were traversing a tunnel of memories, witnessing countless scenes related to Athena.
By entering any one of these scenes, they could learn about that part of Athena's history.
But that wasn't their goal—they sought something deeper.
There!
They had reached the end of Athena's memory tunnel. The connected endpoint was—!