Myth: The Spiritual Dominator

"Oh, you see it very clearly."

"Zeus is indeed such a person. He won't mind you staying at the bottom of the sea, nor will he mind that you once opposed him. After all, you are actually not a threat to him. As long as you are willing to submit to him, everything can be turned around."

With a slight nod, Erebus agreed with Pontus's statement.

However, in the bottomless trench, the spirit of the primitive sea god became nervous.

If it was so easy to get the other party to give up, then that would be great. But no matter how he thought about it, he didn't think it would be so simple.

"Yes, Your Highness Erebus... I don't intend to be an enemy to anyone. And it's not just me, the same goes for Uraya who turned into Mount Olympus."

"This world is no longer our era. Even the Titans have retired one after another, let alone us. The world has welcomed a new master. Let the past grudges and hatreds go with the wind."

The sound rippled on the seabed, and the sound became weaker and weaker.

Pontos planned to go directly into a deeper sleep. He was no match for Erebus, but the other party could not force him to do anything either.

As one of the first gods, Pontus knew more about these primitive gods than the gods of later generations. He knew that although to most people, the degree of personification of the primitive gods seemed to have no other difference except the strength of the influence, in fact, except for the fully personified Gaia, Erebus and Nyx could not walk outside for a long time.

They stayed away from the world most of the time, which might be voluntary for Nyx, but half voluntary and half forced for Erebus.

Only a truly complete and great divine power can be identical with the source power, coexist with the symbol while maintaining an indestructible personality, and still maintain thinking and humanity from being eroded, but this is something that no one in the world can really do.

That's why Pontos was worried but still fearless, because he knew that even the worst result would be that the Lord of Darkness would attack in anger and leave after venting for a while.

The threat he brings is limited, and the essence of non-violent non-cooperation is that the other party is unable to use absolute violence due to various factors, so it cannot pose a real threat to oneself.

"Is that right?"

Pontus's refusal was so direct that he even began to shut down his thoughts. However, in the face of this reaction, Erebus just smiled and nodded again to show his agreement.

"Perhaps you are right, Pontos... This is no longer your era. But just because it is no longer yours does not mean it is no longer someone else's. At least I feel that the years of the First Age are far from over..."

"Of course, since you don't want to, forget it. I won't force you. Please make your own choice."

The voice was even somewhat amused, and the Dark Lord's robe fluttered slightly. He was not at all annoyed by the rejection, but waved his hand and continued to move forward.

The bottom of the ocean was so quiet and dark, surrounded by the seabed. And the place he was heading to at the moment was the only place to go, the deep trench.

"...You are...wait, Lord Erebus, what are you going to do? I rejected you, so you are going to attack me?"

Suddenly, the voices that had been quieted started to rise again. Pontus seemed a little nervous, but Erebus just explained softly that he had no ill intentions.

"Don't get me wrong. Since you want to sleep, then go ahead. You have given up everything in the material world, so what I do should have nothing to do with you."

"Don't worry, I won't disturb your sleep again. I just... want to solve a puzzle that has been on my mind for a long time."

Taking a step forward, Erebus descended into the seemingly bottomless ravine.

Light and shadows passed behind him, and he turned a blind eye to all the wonders created by nature. The Lord of Darkness moved forward, and at this moment, Pontos seemed to realize what the other party was going to do.

"Wait, this is where I sleep. If you don't intend to disturb me, why do you invade here? Well, you just want me to do something for you, right? I can listen to you first, as long as you don't go too far..."

boom--

In the trench, invisible forces gathered together, as if to stop Erebus, but it was all useless.

Without even a moment's pause, Pontus's obstruction was smashed by Erebus. As if he hadn't noticed, the Lord of Darkness continued to move downwards.

"Stop, you win, I don't want to be your enemy, tell me what you want to do, but this is not the place for you!"

click-

Another deep blue light curtain was shattered, but interestingly, this did not seem to be a barrier that had only recently appeared.

Perhaps thousands of years ago, or perhaps tens of thousands of years ago, Pontos had already left this obstacle. Looking at this scene, the Lord of Darkness' smile became more intense.

"Sure enough, I knew it... Haha, it looks like this is the right place."

"Stop, Erebus! What the hell are you trying to do? Do you know what you're doing!?!"

The roar of the primordial sea god echoed in the trench, but it was just a meaningless protest.

Ignoring him, the next moment, boundless power slowly spread out from Erebus' body. The entire trench was enveloped by it, and everything was obscured by him.

The gods in the sky had no idea what was happening beneath their feet, and Erebus kept moving forward.

One after another, ancient barriers were broken down, and compromises, insults, exhortations, and threats came from Pontus' mouth.

Pontos' voice changed several times in a short period of time, until he gradually realized that the Lord of Darkness would probably not stop.

Then he fell silent. In the soundless silence, he didn't know how deep he had dived.

Finally, at a certain moment, in front of a terrifying barrier of yellow and blue, Erebus finally stopped.

A magnificent and thick barrier was right in front of him. Unlike the previous ones, the power that was enough to block most of the true gods in the world was meaningless to Erebus.

But within this barrier, there is also a power that surpasses that of the true God.

With just one glance, Erebus easily discerned the source of the barrier's power. Some of its power might come from Pontus, but the most crucial part belonged to Gaia.

And not the her of now, but the her of long ago.

"As expected, that's how it is. At the end of the First Era, Gaia left Mount Odilus and went to the shore of the Eastern Sea, where she lived with you for a long time... Haha, I knew she wasn't as crazy as she is now.

"After putting an end to her cruel husband, even if her children were not so obedient, how could she leave the old house where she had lived for tens of millions of years so cleanly and neatly, come directly to your side, and even have the leisure to have children with you?"

"Because she wanted to leave this seal, and she did this without telling anyone. She didn't even want to tell Kronos, because he is also the King of Gods."

He laughed out loud. Although he had been very confident before, it was finally confirmed at this moment.

It is said that after the Father of Heaven and the Mother of Earth, Gaia gave birth to the Five Sea Gods with her second son Pontus. Therefore, in theory, Keto and Nereus are actually Gaia's children.

But why, compared to the Titans and even the giants, the paranoid Mother Earth never seemed to care about these sea gods? Compared with her previous personality, this seemed completely unreasonable.

Now, everything has been answered. It is not that Gaia discriminates against Poseidon, but because the five children of the original Poseidon are actually the same as the gods of Hades. They are the children of Gaia, guided by some kind of power, and bred by the concave surface of the sea symbolized by the earth and Pontus.

They were not actually recognized by Gaia as her own children, so she never cared about them.

So the question is, what could be the thing that could draw on Gaia's power to give birth to a true God, and that could make the Mother Earth at that time pay so much attention and fear it that she even went so far as to conceal her whereabouts and seal it herself?

"...As you can see, Your Highness Erebus, this is the root of all evil."

The deep voice echoed beneath the sea, and Pontus was finally no longer silent.

At this point, everything was clear. Since he couldn't hide it, he had no choice but to explain:

"Kronos used his sickle to end Uranus's paternity, and Oceanus threw it into the sea to prevent it from being taken back by the Father. And I also betrayed the tyrant. I hid it, in the deepest part of the sea, which is what you have all seen."

"The power of the Father is so strong that the blood he spilled on the ground can turn into the Ash Goddess, and the essence he spilled can give birth to the Goddess of Beauty and Revenge. Uranus once ruled all things with the authority of the first generation of God King, sublimated the [Sky] and [Fatherhood], and thus possessed a power that even you at that time had to face up to... Until today, nearly two eras have passed. With the perfection of time, the birth of gods, and the reproduction of creatures, the [Sky] and [Fatherhood] have already taken that critical step, just like the complete ocean and water, and condensed their own symbols."

"Just like the sea has never been unified, so the symbols of the sea and water have the qualifications to unite, but never take shape, Uranus fell into eternal sleep, so [Sky] and [Fatherhood] also failed to complete that leap, and have not had an impact on the world to this day. In fact, because the two have grown simultaneously, there is no sign of him awakening to this day - as long as this seal remains intact, he will not wake up."

"So you're not going to open it, are you?"

The undercurrent in the sea surged, and half an era passed. As the waters converged, Pontos once again appeared in the world in the form of a personality.

However, the tall god was only worried at the moment... He knew he couldn't stop the other party, but he still tried his best to persuade him:

"No one knows how terrible Uranus will be after taking it back, and he was once the king of gods. Erebus, no matter what you want to plan, do you really think that a being like him will act according to your plan?"

"Of course he won't, Pontus."

"I know, Uranus. He will only sneer at me like that madman named Typhon - ah, no, he is not that crazy. At least he knew how to fear the power of fate back then."

He smiled faintly and said that for the Lord of Darkness, the barrier in front of him was not difficult to break. After all, a long time had passed, especially the war at the end of the Second Era. Even though the war did not affect here, the seal was weakened by the damage to the land and the ocean.

At the same time, as the number of gods increases and the world becomes more perfect, the patriarchy that was born out of the birth of gods naturally rises as well.

With just a little force, the seal would vanish. But then, Gaia would be able to sense it.

"Fortunately, I was prepared."

Gaia's barrier is sensitive to touch, even when in deep sleep. However, a long time ago, another almost identical barrier was also useless.

That barrier is protecting the golden apple tree, and the thing that renders it useless is called the [Vase of Life].

"She lost something, and she didn't even bother to update the protection... Heh, maybe she forgot about this place a long time ago."

It is a bit ironic that time will smooth out everything, including the fear of Uranus, but Gaia's mistakes are actually what Erebus is happy to see.

So he stretched out his hand, and a emerald green light lingered on his wrist. Under Pontus's horrified gaze, Erebus reached out from behind the barrier without hesitation.

The next moment, a ball of light emitting a warm breath was held in the hand of the Lord of Darkness. At the same time, if it weren't for the darkness that still covered this place, I'm afraid that this ball of light would have flown over the nine heavens and returned to its master's arms the moment it came into contact with the outside world.

But now is not the time, so he can't allow this to happen.

"... Erebus, you still did it..."

Pontus paused for a moment, unable to understand this behavior. What good would it do him? However, Erebus was not going to let him understand.

He just looked at the ball of light in his hand and asked calmly:

"Pontus, you are afraid of him, but who does Uranus hate most?"

"…Maybe it was Kronos, but he has been missing for a long time. How can we seek revenge if we can't find him?"

"Uh...yeah. He's gone without a trace, and can't be found...hehe."

With a low laugh, Erebus asked again:

"What about the second hatred?"

"…It could be the Earth Mother, but it's more likely the Spirit Lord—what do you want to say?"

He spoke hesitantly. In Pontus's judgment, his wife's betrayal and the despicable prophet were both likely to rank second in Uranus' heart. But the former had at least endured the brutal oppression of the Father, so her betrayal was understandable. So although Uranus would not forgive Gaia for this, he would probably still put her in third place.

As for Ryan... the prophecy is not the key. When the Heavenly Father thought he had defeated fate and went around the world to look for him, it was mostly just a way for the winner to show off to the loser.

But when Ryan opened up the spirit world at the turn of the era, all causes and effects changed. No matter how you look at it, he is the mastermind behind the plot, treating the God King as a pawn.

"What about the fourth hatred?"

He asked again, and this time, Erebus didn't wait for an answer, he gave the answer directly.

"The fourth hatred is between you and Oceanus. One of you threw his body into the sea, and the other hid it afterwards. Therefore, neither of you can escape."

"So what do you mean, and what exactly are you doing here?!"

The worries in his heart were pointed out, and Pontus couldn't help but feel angry. Yes, he would not let him go, but it was clear that as long as you don't interfere, nothing will happen.

"No hurry, just listen to me."

He shook his head slightly, but his hand still did not come out from behind the barrier. Erebus seemed to be considering something, but he had not yet made up his mind.

"Cronus, I don't know where he is now; Ryan and Gaia, even if he wakes up, it will be difficult to deal with him easily. But you and Oceanus are different. You are not great, so although you are ranked fourth and fifth, you are actually the first to be unlucky."

"You will be punished with the cruelest revenge, eternal revenge, and unlike me, Uranus, he will remain under the sky forever."

"So... listen to my plan, or are you going to count on Zeus to protect you? No, you know, only you can protect yourself. And that's why I'm here."

Everything is under control. Erebus waved his long sleeves and retracted the power covering the seabed.

He planned to continue communicating with Pontos, but at this moment, a subtle movement coming from underground immediately caught his attention.

The underworld was shaking, dust was rising and falling, and through the connection with his own domain, Erebus seemed to hear the roar of thunder even through the thick layers of earth.

Lightning was dancing wildly, gods were roaring, and along with it came the winding, rugged, endless shadows of gods and demons.