sprall's mirror is very powerful. As a high-tier artifact in the domain of Space, its power is enough to manipulate most True Gods at will.
But its power is not that strong either; at least when facing a Great Divine Power, anything that hasn't touched that same domain is merely icing on the cake and cannot play a decisive role.
It can even be said that even if another Great Divine Power wields a high-tier artifact,
unless there is a significant disparity in their strength, it would be difficult to easily restrain the other party's actions in their home territory.
Even Hypnos, who could make anyone sleep in the original myths, could only barely ambush a relaxed Zeus with the enticement of Hera and the blessing of Aphrodite's girdle.
That's why Ryan never intended to act himself, nor did he intend to let an avatar whose hard power was inferior to the God King act.
Only the Fate Goddesses, with their ties to Zeus, their unique status, and their special powers, could ensure that the God King in the present world could not escape their influence.
Ultimately, an unexpected incident occurred that caught all 'observers' off guard—his main base was under attack, but Zeus was nowhere to be seen.
So when the void was torn apart by violent power, and vast power filled the heavens and earth, the God King's mood was simply indescribable.
He never expected that just as he was trying to take a shortcut back to Mount Olympus, an unpleasant Memory happened to make him dazed for a moment at that exact time.
And it was that momentary misstep that, coincidentally, caused a sudden disturbance in the omnipresent spatial maelstrom, sweeping him away to an unknown location.
Realizing something was wrong, Zeus was furious, but he couldn't waste too much time here.
Therefore, he relied on his connection with Asgard and directly tore space apart again.
But this time, he seemed to be a bit too close to Niflheim, one of the forbidden lands outside the world, which was filled with eternal mist, in the domain of time and space.
Thus, the power of the evil entity, bound by the one-day fruit, seemed to sense its original source, causing a slight fluctuation that Zeus had to quickly suppress.
Finally, the fluctuation subsided, and the power of the one-day fruitproved to be quite stable... But unfortunately, Zeus once again lost his way in the chaotic void.
One accident after another, yet it seemed as if they were stepping on a predetermined script.
No one did anything to him; it was just that when the right things happened at the right time and place, everything naturally took shape.
His face was extremely grim as he finally stepped out of the torn space.
No communication, no harsh words.
Zeus knew that at this point, Liana would not back down.
And although the Lord of the Spirit Realm himself had not yet appeared, the power of the Spirit Realm was unreservedly pouring into those two immensely powerful artifacts.
So, with a wave of his hand, the Thunderbolt Arrow, 'stolen' by Ares, appeared in his left hand.
He gripped his right hand, and a divine hammer, seemingly condensed from endless light, was held in his palm.
He swung his arm down, and the hammerhead struck the 'arrow' tail.
The foreign artifact and the artifact of Chaos collided, emitting a resounding shock that echoed through the heavens and earth.
The next moment, the most brilliant lightning in the world erupted.
Even the two great artifacts currently suspended atop Mount Olympuscould not ignore the power it displayed.
Boom!—
The divine thunder descended, breaking through the chains of orderswirling around it.
Characters floated on the ancient Codex of Creation, but it was not an artifact specifically designed for combat.
Under Zeus's full, unrestrained power, the order woven by the Codex of Creation was pierced through.
The vast lightning finally struck the Well of Reincarnation, stirring up a monstrous surge.
Clang~~~!
The well body vibrated, and the powers of life and death cycled within, while earth, water, wind, and fire eroded all things.
This world-shaking blow indeed shook the Codex of Creation, but it could not truly harm it.
Unless Zeus could completely strip away all his lightning, then retrieve the portion granted to the abyss, and finally let them merge into one, forming a symbol unique to himself.
Otherwise, the Codex of Creation cannot be damaged by powers beneath it, and Zeus's royal authority is not skilled in destruction, damage, defilement, or ultimate demise.
"Spirit Realm..."
Taking a deep breath, Zeus could see that his actions were meaningful, because to resist his attack, the Well of Reincarnation's speed of absorbing souls had decreased.
If he had returned here from the start, he might have found a way to mobilize the power of Asgard, one from outside, one from within, to isolate the artifact's absorption of souls.
Yes, the Ancient Gods are the masters of Spirituality.
Even if I cut off your absorption of these souls, you can directly extinguish the vitality of those who haven't been tainted by Divinity at the source, causing their souls to scatter.
But once it reached this point, Zeus could declare that the Outer Evil Gods had destroyed the Olympus Gods' kingdom while he was unprepared.
He had not violated the Covenant between Gods and Mortals, but was a complete victim... But now it was different.
Asgard had already been breached, and the power of the interface was no longer stable; it was unable to resist even a partial absorption of power from a Codex of Creation.
And once these souls were taken away, reincarnation would be the good outcome.
What if these Gods of the Spirit Realm transformed the souls of these believers into vengeful spirits, using the omnipresent nature of the Spirit Realm to let them wander the earth, and even contact their families from before their deaths...
Almost without thinking, the God King knew that this would cause devastating damage to the faith of Olympus.
"Hoo..."
With a wave of his hand, Zeus tried to make a final effort.
He attempted to draw on the power of the Hall of Heroes to counteract the Well of Reincarnation's absorption of souls.
This ancient foreign artifact was extraordinarily effective; Odin had put a lot of effort into it.
But a moment later, Zeus's face grew even uglier.
He suddenly remembered that not long ago, the greatest chess piece he had left in the Hall of Heroes, the demigod hero Perseus, who had 'ascended physically,' had already lost his body.
Including him, the remaining so-called heroes had not escaped, and those who stood on Perseus's side, who were actually Zeus's anchor points for influencing the Hall of Heroes, had all been destroyed.
And the one who destroyed them was none other than his own son, Heracles; the one who helped him achieve all this was also none other than the Hall of Heroes's original second authority holder, the artifact enlightened by Athena, Nike, the Goddess of Victory.
"My daughter... are you also involved in this?"
"Did you foresee this day, guessing that I and the Spirit Realm would eventually fight, or was it all just luck, stemming from your Divinity as the 'Lord of Ten Thousand Victories'?"
Zeus didn't know, and it made no difference to him.
Because the fact was, when he personally handed the Hall of Heroes to Athena, and the demigods who were supposed to counterbalance her authority also died, they could only be controlled by this artifact in the form of heroic spirits.
Then, as long as Athena didn't intend to let go, he could no longer control it.
"Very good... very good!"
"One after another, either useless or disloyal."
"Father, is this what you felt back then?"
With a cold expression, Zeus slowly looked up.
He looked at the distant shadow of the Nether Moon and at the continuously absorbed souls of believers in Asgard.
"Forgive me, innocent lambs."
"You were my wealth, but now I have no choice but to do this."
"If you are to blame, then blame those who took you... Heh, what about the Lord of the Spirit Realm?"
"Souls that have fallen into my hands, you still want to take them back?"
"Don't even think about it!—"
Boom!—
With a grasp of his hand, an invisible, powerful fluctuation spread out.
In an instant, the Well of Reincarnation, which had been absorbing souls, paused slightly, and then streaks of eerie crimson light emanated from it.
At the same time, all the remaining souls in Asgard trembled slightly.
A faint crimson glow burst from their spiritual bodies, making their expressions appear demonic and perfect.
Vaguely, a translucent leaf flickered in their pupils.
Accompanied by howls that mortals could not hear, their soul bodies instantly shattered, exploding into a sky full of fireworks.
"You—Zeus, how dare you—"
"—Why wouldn't I dare!"
Expressionless, a trace of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth; this was the price he paid as the God King for violating the Covenant between Gods and Mortals.
However, violating a covenant with a group of supplicants was better than violating the covenant with all living beings; he had promised them a heavenly life after death, and hadn't they all received it before he acted himself?
He raised his hands slightly, as if embracing the entire world.
At this moment, no longer disguising his fairness and benevolence, Zeus's eyes were cold and indifferent.
Thousands of years had passed; he had built his divine kingdom and absorbed Typhon's power; he was contaminated by the Lord of Darkness the first time he met him, and his subordinate gods had all made deals with the devil.
Under these circumstances, surely no one would really think that he, Zeus, the King of the Gods, the ruler who had dominated the present world for an epoch, had never considered the risks of souls in the divine kingdom, nor had he ever thought about how to utilize the power of that evil progenitor, right?
The God King didn't know if such a fool existed, but he clearly wasn't one.
"Goddess of the Dark Moon... As you can see."
"Your mortal followers say my Queen of Heaven colluded with witches and slaughtered living beings... This is, of course, false."
"Because for such a trivial matter, if she truly did it, how could I not admit it?"
With a calm expression, Zeus let the blood from his mouth drip.
Vaguely, he had already locked onto Liana before him.
"You're right, what's mortal should be handled by mortals themselves."
"What's divine should be handled by you and me."
"So now, come and deal with me; I'm giving you this chance."
"Of course, in return... whether you can leave here depends on whether that esteemed Lord of the Spirit Realm is still in this world."
For a thousand years, every soul that entered Asgard, the kingdom where he was first contaminated by the Dark Ruler's evil power and then diligently expelled it, Zeus would cleanse them with his divine power and another force.
A good farewell, give and take, then nothing would happen. The way you came in, you would have the chance to leave in the future.
But once an accident occurred, even if he had to personally slaughter them all, Zeus would never tolerate them becoming his enemies and striking at him.
As for what kind of impact this behavior would have on the human world?
What a joke.
Just as he previously didn't care if the Silvermoon City church knew what the witches had done, the Divinities of Silvermoon City also didn't care if Hera had colluded with witches and evil entities.
The God King knew that just as no one in the world remembered Typhon's bravery and defiance, as long as he won in the end, no one would remember what he had done.
As a monarch, as long as he wins, no mistake is a problem.
And if he lost...
"The God of Heavenly Light and Father, that is my fate."
The God King had no retreat, and Zeus even less so.
Behind him, the dissipation of billions of souls invisibly formed an altar.
As the first in Chaos to perform a 'sacrifice', the first to sacrifice a god, and the only one whose sacrifice received a response from the world, no one understood sacrifice better than he did.
So today, he stood here, waiting to see what state that Lord of the Spirit Realm was in.
If he didn't come out, then this artifact symbolizing the cycle would never return.
If he came...
"For the stability of the present world... this is a necessary sacrifice."
Speaking lightly, the God King said so.
And at the same time, the starry sky above his head trembled slightly.
The next instant, the stars shone brightly, swaying like sails.
The power that had been turbulent due to the violation of the oath suddenly became even stronger than before.
...
In the starry sky, dim and profound.
Just before and after the God King's fruitless summoning of the Hall of Heroes, a vast will descended upon several star regions.
A trace of helplessness flashed in his eyes, and Aether, the God of Heavenly Light, walked out of his divine palace.
He looked at his boundless domain, feeling a bit reluctant for a moment.
"What, regretting it?"
"No."
Shaking his head gently, Aether showed no powerful Divinity's majesty towards his wife and sister, Hemera, the Goddess of Day.
After all, he knew that not only was her innate Divinity stronger than his, but her binding to power and the star domain was also not as deep.
"Don't overthink it."
"That God King of the present world was too well prepared; no one expected him to be so ruthless—ruthless to others, and even more ruthless to himself."
"Before that sacrifice ritual dissipates, the great Dark Ruler doesn't really want to confront him head-on... So, let's uphold the agreement."
Speaking slowly, the Goddess of Day sighed softly.
Honestly, a cunning and ruthless god like Zeus was an anomaly among the Gods, not at all like an immortal being born to enjoy eternity.
Even those witches who made big moves in the human world were actually just so-so.
So, despite not wanting to admit it, Hemera knew.
Even with equivalent power, if she were to face this God King as an opponent, the Goddess of Day would likely have to deliberate repeatedly and not dare to make a decision easily.