When Hera made her offer, her heart was pounding. These two brothers were formidable opponents.
Either Thanatos or Hypnos alone could fight Hera to a standstill back when she wasn't a God-Queen. If the brothers joined forces, they could challenge even a god-king—you only had to watch Hades now, spinning his halberd like a windmill yet unable to defeat them, to know their strength.
Unlike the solitary ferryman Charon, these two had numerous demigod offspring and vast armies of followers. The second and third layers of the Underworld were currently under their subordinates' control.
If she could pull these brothers to her side, this campaign would be won.
Hearing Hera's direct recruitment pitch, Poseidon hesitated briefly. He didn't know the full context, but he understood how to recruit allies. He just lacked Hera's central authority, making his offer slightly less compelling.
When Hera and Poseidon both extended invitations simultaneously, it sent a different signal to the Underworld gods—these two were definitely in league together!
The subordinates directly loyal to the Death God and Sleep God looked between the allied gods across from them and their former battlefield comrades, reconsidering their allegiances.
Apollo watched Hera with a peculiar expression, his usual defiance giving way to something approaching horror.
He didn't believe this was coincidence. His mind conjured images of Hera secretly conspiring with the two gods. Not only could the brothers help the gods defeat Hades, but they could also intimidate Apollo himself. He clicked his tongue internally—Hera's methods were so subtle. He'd never realized she possessed such intricate scheming abilities!
Hades, convinced he'd exposed the brothers' treachery in advance, channeled all his frustration into his attacks. His massive halberd struck faster and faster.
The two brothers still had no idea what was happening, but even the mildest have their limits. Unlike the unambitious loner Charon, they were gods with ideals and capabilities—sons of the primordial goddess Nyx with noble enough bloodlines, possessing both means and cunning. Only bad fortune had reduced them to their current mediocre position.
Deep down, they didn't think themselves inferior to Hades. Facing his fierce assault, they had to consider their future paths.
Should they switch allegiances or establish themselves as independent kings? The brothers quickly communicated telepathically and reached consensus, then began negotiations with Hera. Mount Olympus was the center of divine authority—this was the current consensus of the Greek pantheon.
Hearing their demands, Hera agreed without hesitation and proclaimed loudly: "I am God-Queen Hera! On behalf of Mount Olympus, I acknowledge the authority of the Death God Thanatos and Sleep God Hypnos over the Underworld. From this day forward, they are the Twin Lords of the Underworld!"
"Pfft—!" Watching this unfold, Thea's clone burst out laughing. Things just got even more interesting.
Hera was making promises so casually, practically burning through the god-king's credibility. But this had nothing to do with Thea—she was happy to watch the chaos unfold.
The battlefield could indeed be described as chaotic. What had been two clearly divided armies suddenly saw a quarter of the Underworld forces split off. These troops stood awkwardly in no-man's-land before finally, led by the brothers' offspring, joining the allied gods.
The previously balanced battlefield collapsed instantly. One side gained a quarter of its strength while the other lost a quarter. The battle's outcome was no longer in doubt.
The brothers' years of networking proved crucial. Hades himself was arrogant and harsh with his subordinates, while the brothers were relatively mild-mannered. Despite the sudden shift, quite a few supported them.
One of the three judges, Minos, persuaded by the brothers' discussion of past grievances and future promises, also joined the allied gods. His Minotaur army immediately turned to attack the legions of the dead. The allied forces' morale soared while the battle situation rapidly deteriorated beyond recovery. Finally, Hades began to panic.
He started promising benefits to his subordinates, but unfortunately, his reputation had never been high. Meanwhile, the allied forces' snowballing advantage was obvious to everyone. Perhaps a change in Underworld leadership would actually be an improvement.
Several gods who'd only come out of courtesy promptly withdrew. Numerous Greek heroic spirits automatically ran to the brothers' camp—their original oath was to serve the Lord of the Underworld once, and with Hera's official appointment, the brothers were now the legitimate Underworld Lords!
The rout was complete. Now only the Queen of the Underworld, his eldest son, two judges, and large numbers of demigod descendants remained at Hades' side. In terms of raw combat power, they could still fight.
Unfortunately, his subordinates were anxious and unsettled. The mindless undead weren't affected by morale, but gods and demigods were different—they had thoughts and eyes. The loyal ones were pondering defensive strategies, while the more flexible-minded were already considering what to say when they defected to the brothers.
The gods were all fired up with fighting spirit. Heracles charged ahead, directly killing his way into the first layer. Hades hastily reorganized his forces, trying to stabilize the situation, but the army's resistance was extremely weak. The first layer fell to the gods' assault.
The second and third layers had always been the brothers' traditional territory. Despite Hades' efforts there as well, facing over ten gods' combined assault, he could only retreat in bitter defeat.
Worth mentioning: during the third layer battle, Thea and Diana's main bodies returned fully loaded, merging with their clones unnoticed.
On the third layer battlefield, unaware the enemy had pulled a switcheroo, the eldest son was caught off guard and captured by Thea, Diana, Supergirl, and a bunch of Indigo Lanterns due to his carelessness.
Seeming to know the fate awaiting him, the eldest son struggled fiercely. Unfortunately, all three women matched his strength, and the Indigo Lanterns' conjured chains bound him in multiple layers.
Thea herself and Sister Blue took turns bombarding his consciousness with compassionate emotions. His psyche already bore old wounds, and Thea had drunk the Underworld's sacred white poplar tree fruit, which greatly enhanced mental power. Now not only had her old injuries healed, but she'd advanced even further.
Working with Sister Blue, whose will was equally steadfast and whose compassion was unmatched, this time without interference, they spent an entire day wearing down the rage in the eldest son's heart.
Shedding all impurities and facing his inner self again, the eldest son finally found rare peace.
Towering hatred, ten thousand years of solitary suffering, six thousand years of persistence—all became nourishment for compassion. Extremes inevitably reverse themselves. The eldest son, once surrounded by countless vengeful spirits, burst into tears when he put on the Indigo Lantern ring, burying his head against Hera and crying bitterly.
When Thea saw the eldest son again, even as the instigator she was utterly amazed. Ten thousand years of grievance dispersed in one day, and now the eldest son resembled a scholar filled with wisdom. Without any prompting, his gaze naturally radiated compassion. This state of being was beyond even Thea, who used compassion as a weapon—even Sister Blue couldn't match him.
"Thank you for your help. I feel truly light now." The eldest son exhaled, looking completely relieved. "I've already bid farewell to Mother. I want to see the world—the universe is actually that vast? Incredible. My vision was too narrow before."
He laughed self-deprecatingly, waved casually to them, and left the Underworld alone with his greatsword.
Whether he went to the outer world or into space afterward remained unknown. The eldest son's power was too great—even the Lantern ring couldn't restrain him. For him, the ring was more like a communicator.
The eldest son had quit Hades' friend group, and the Death and Sleep God brothers not only quit but dragged a bunch of people to the opposing group. The Lord of the Underworld's situation perfectly illustrated what it meant when defeat becomes a rout. Now he had only himself left who could fight.
Every time he entered battle, ten gods of considerable skill jumped out from the other side to gang up on him. Who could endure that?!