Myth: The Ruler of Spirituality

The sun rose in the east, shining on the boundless sea of clouds, casting ripples of golden light.

Music and the fragrance of a hundred flowers occasionally drifted by, surrounding the sacred land where the gods resided.

Countless chariots passed through the sky, bringing with them deities who did not often reside on Mount of the Gods.

It was like a prelude to a grand banquet… For the first time since the Golden Apple feast, so many deities had gathered together on Olympus.

The Goddess of Hearthfire stood on one corner of Mount of the Gods. She watched the sky, bustling with chariots, her expression tinged with worry.

"Hera, I have always advised against stirring up wars and chaos in the Mortal Realm over an elusive title… but this is ultimately your own affair, and I cannot stop you."

"But now, just to kill a mortal, Aphrodite and Ares have invited all the gods so grandly."

"Is such an action truly necessary?"

Not far from the main peak of Mount Olympus, Hestia could see a giant metal pillar erected high.

That place was intended for punishing the enemies of the Divine Court, but in reality, from the day it was built, it had never been used.

Those who could be killed usually did not require such drastic measures.

And the enemies worth noting were usually the undying Deity Race.

Until today, when a mortal was to be bound and executed here, even attracting such attention from all the gods.

Did this truly have any meaning? At least Hestia felt that it was unnecessary.

And, most critically, it was just Aphrodite and Ares causing trouble, but why hadn't Hera, the Heavenly Empress, stopped them and instead seemed pleased?

"Because I want to teach them a lesson, let them learn… haha, my dear sister — this is not my problem, but that Ares is simply intolerable."

Unlike Hestia's worries, Hera, in a long golden-red dress sweeping the ground, spoke in an extraordinarily calm tone.

She looked at the gathered deities in the distance, her demeanor so calm it did not seem like she was speaking of her own son.

"Ares has come to me, and he has also spoken to me about that mortal's issues."

"The 'criminal' who is about to be executed is no ordinary human; he is a demigod who has undergone the baptism of the Styx River."

"So Ares suspects that he might not truly be able to kill him, thus he asked me to be the last resort."

"Unwilling to persuade Aphrodite to give up, so he asked me to cover for him… haha,… he is quite thoughtful. As long as at the time he and this woman step down, why wouldn't I be willing?"

Frowning again, as the eldest sister, Hestia had always wanted to resolve the conflicts between her siblings and nieces and nephews for thousands of years.

But evidently, her efforts had never borne fruit.

"So Hera, you rejected Ares' request?"

"Of course not, I agreed to it."

"If I hadn't agreed, how would he and Aphrodite dare to invite all the gods to watch their 'execution conference'?"

"Heavenly Empress, although not the Divine King, but at least this time, I keep my word — of course, if they cannot handle this mortal, when I will step in to resolve this trouble, that will depend on my mood."

Her tone was calm; her lips carried a hint of mockery.

Regarding Ares, Hera felt that there was nothing left to be disappointed about.

Yet ultimately it still came down to using them, so Hera simply went with the flow.

Might as well use this event to teach them another lesson, to help them understand whose words truly hold power.

"..."

*Sigh*…

Hestia sighed softly, not knowing how to deal with this family's problems.

Although mortals revered her as the guardian of home, she had no children herself and therefore had no suitable solutions to offer.

"I hope you can have fewer conflicts; after all, you are a family. What problems could there be that you can't solve?"

Hera did not respond, although she respected her sister, she also had her own stance.

If Ares could deal with this mortal, breaking the power of the Styx, then everything would be negotiable.

After all, Hera, although deeply despising Zeus's ruthlessness, acknowledged that Zeus was a capable deity.

But lacking the ability to solve problems while covertly disobeying her commands…

"Hmph."

With a cold snort, Hera noticed the commotion in the distance.

The mortal captured by Ares had been brought onto the high platform.

······

Whoosh——

Boom——!

He strained with both hands, pulling at the chains on his body.

The sound of metal clashing and the reverberation in the air rose and fell, but at this moment, Achilles realized that his strength was not enough to break the shackles.

His limbs were locked to the copper pillar, unable to move. Although he could not discern the material of the chains, the young hero knew they were not ordinary.

Like the Golden Net that had once ensnared him, even deities would struggle to break free. For a mortal, it was an insurmountable barrier.

However, unable to break free, Achilles brought to the high platform, had not stopped.

He looked around at the eyes watching him like he was a clown, and unapologetically returned their gaze as if looking at trash.

"Ha ha ha ha ha… Ares, are you inviting me as a guest?"

"Or under the witness of all the gods, have you finally decided to hand over the position of War God to me?"

"If that's the case, I might reluctantly accept your kind gesture."
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Laughing loudly, Achilles's mocking intent was clear.

Since he had fallen into an ambush several days ago, he knew this day would come.

Achilles knew the power of the deities and had witnessed the might of a true Divine Artifact, so he knew he couldn't escape under these circumstances.

"But that doesn't mean he would bow and admit his wrongs, at least not to Ares, he's not worthy!"

"Enough, lowly mortal, your mother Thetis gave you divine blood, but your father's inferior bloodline has tainted it, leading you to commit unforgivable sins."

"Divine blood from the All Gods is no reason for your recklessness, Tantalus is still serving his sentence in the Underworld."

"And you, too, must pay the price."

Ares, with righteous indignation, loudly proclaimed the criminal's fate.

However, seeing Achilles wanting to say something else, he quickly waved his hand.

A few days ago, he had brought the other to Aphrodite, but the Goddess of Beauty had him prepare an elaborate execution to punish this mortal.

Ares did not understand why she wanted this, but Aphrodite considered it an indispensable 'ceremonial sense,' so the War God had no choice but to agree.

Despite this, it was still wise not to argue with the other party.

After all, no matter what, the fact that he had suffered at the hands of Achilles was truth.

"Bring forth the execution!"

With a gesture, in the next moment, Ares's true strength unfolded.

His mighty Divine Power, under his authority, coalesced tangibly and then wrapped around the swords placed to the side.

In just an instant, these weapons, already of extraordinary material, now possessed the strength to cleave Celestial Bodies and tear apart the Earth's layers.

Even without being wielded, the gods could see the cloud layers near the Mount of the Gods rolling like waves.

A thousand cuts, this was the death Aphrodite had requested.

Because Achilles had severed her arm, she also wanted him to endure the same cruel torture.

She had even prepared, after this human's death, to bind his soul deep in the Underworld, where he would be hacked by axes during the day and restored by night.

Thus, day and night, endlessly, to serve as a warning to the mortals of the Mortal Realm.

"Yes, Your Highness."

Once Ares gave the command, two ethereal attendants stepped forth.

They were beings who had once worshiped the War God and now came here in the form of spiritual bodies, bolstered by Ares's Divine Power.

The two first saluted the many watching deities, then picked up the swords nearby.

"Blasphemer, meet your death."

Feeling immense strength within them, as they looked at the restrained Achilles, they poured all their might into their strikes.

However, watching the coming blades, Achilles laughed heartily, as if he did not regard them at all.

Swoosh—

Thud—!

A swooshing sound passed, followed by a loud crash.

Like striking a giant bell, the swords were sent flying back.

The executioners could not react in time and were hit by the rebounding weapons. In an instant, the weapons, bolstered by Divine Power, shattered them, not even a scream lingered in the world.

"Ha ha ha ha ha... Ares, is this your 'punishment'?"

"Indeed, you can't overwhelm me in the Mortal Realm, and on Mount Olympus, you still can't overwhelm me!"

Whoosh—

Seeing this outcome, the crowd was in an uproar.

Listening to Achilles's laughter, Ares couldn't help but shout loudly, "Silence, bring me my bow!"

Although not renowned for archery, the War God's skills were somewhat proficient.

Receiving the longbow, Ares drew it fully, then released.

A huge gust broke through the air, as if splitting hundreds of miles of clouds in half.

However, the next moment, an arrow capable of piercing Divine Bodies struck Achilles and emitted only a 'clang' sound.

Unscathed, as if it had struck an inanimate object.

However, this time, many deities noticed something unusual.

Just as the arrow collided with Achilles, it seemed they saw countless tiny runes appearing on his skin.

The dark runes, fading in and out, seemed as if the War God had struck not a human, but a wraith clad in human skin.

"Ares, is this all you are capable of?"

"Too light, too feeble, if this is all you have, you cannot kill me!"

"Damn!"

Biting his teeth in secret, the worst had happened.

Ares had known that the power of Styx was not so easily broken.

Strictly speaking, Achilles should already be dead by now; he just did not know why he had deceived the law of life and death and still lived on earth as a living being.

But his entire body, rather than being of flesh, would better be described as a vessel of the power of the Styx River.

"Aph, don't rush, I still have a way."

After failing twice, the atmosphere at the scene had changed.

Even though the Goddess of Beauty had been silent from the start, Ares had already seen her suppressed discontent.

In fact, from his first day on Mount Olympus, Ares had secretly tried and truly couldn't harm this human.

So, the reason he didn't strongly avert Aphrodite's plan was only because he had another reliance.

"Since axes and swords cannot kill you, let's use thunder and fire instead."

Taking a deep breath, Ares actually didn't want to do this; after all, stealing the thunder from Hera was not something he could openly discuss.

But for Aph… if the Mother Goddess wanted to blame him later, he would just listen then.