The Hero Returns

Rumbleeee...

Vishnu looked so terrifyingly creepy right now that him shedding tears only a few seconds ago seemed like a lie.

The air oozing off of him was a blend of dense killing intent and 'beauty'. Two feelings that couldn't be mixed together were perfectly blended by Vishnu, making him look so much larger and menacing than before.

Squeeeeze-

Tumble, plop-

Several gods that had stared at Vishnu's blackened eyes lost their consciousness and collapsed to the ground.

Some grabbed their own throats to choke themselves or even stabbed their own chest with blades, too.

'Are they choosing suicide instead of participating?'

Without a doubt, all these gods must've come here fully prepared to die.

This was a battle against THE Primordial God, after all. They wouldn't have shown up today without the resolve, so the prospect of death shouldn't have been much of a deterrent to them.

'Fear even more terrifying than death, is it...'

In a way, they might be the smartest ones here today.

'It might be better than getting completely erased, after all.'

Dying at Vishnu's hands wasn't simply 'dying', as it were.

When one's flesh died, your soul would leave this plain to experience the cycle of reincarnation. This cycle didn't have time limit, so in some ways, you could call it the 'eternal life'.

But just now... Vishnu even erased Helios's soul.

It was the same as Helios being completely wiped out of all existence.

RUMBLE-!

Lightning bolts cracked in the air.

Zeus standing above the thick storm clouds roared out while gripping a Thunderbolt. "Do not hesitate!"

Kya-aaaaah-!

Dozens of Thunder Dragons circled around his vicinity.

The golden-orange light glowing in the heavens above managed to wake up the gods below. The indescribable pressure emanating from Vishnu's figure had waned slightly.

It was due to Zeus's influence.

"Charge!"

"Woaaaaaah-!"

Gods began making their moves.

From a far, their movement resembled a humongous wave.

Splaaaaash-!

Riiiiip-!

And that wave transformed into an ocean of blood before splattering everywhere.

...After Vishnu flung his hand just once.

"You are all nothing more than specks of dust." Vishnu turned his head toward the incoming wave of gods. "Insignificant dust that will simply disappear with a single breeze."

Fuu-hoo...

He blew softly.

But that soft breath created a massive gaping hole in the midst of thousands of gods.

POW-!

Riiiiip-!

Bodies exploded, limbs cruelly torn asunder. And one figure shot out from all the carnage, still charging straightforward at his target.

He jumped up above Vishnu's head and powerfully swung down the club in his hands.

KA-BOOOOOM-!

The only one to reach Vishnu among countless many was... none other than Hercules.

"An insect was hiding among all the dust, it seems."

Vishnu's bare hand had stopped the club mid-air.

Grip, crack...

Cracks began running on the club.

That was purely from the gripping strength.

"Your evaluation is rather unkind, isn't it."

Whoosh-

Boom, bang, boom-!

Hercules's fists began pounding on Vishnu's body.

Loud noises exploded raucously as if the heaven and earth were shaking around. Every time his fist landed on Vishnu, the ground below the Primordial God sunk deeper by a bit.

And so, just how many punches did he land on his target in this manner?

Stumble-

Hercules retreated several steps back. His fists were aching from dull pain right now.

'What kind of a body is...?!'

Hercules was confident of his physical strength, at least. He believed that as far as that aspect was concerned, he'd not lose to anyone even if his opponent was his father, Zeus.

That's why in case of a close quarter combat, even if his enemy today was Vishnu, he'd still win as long as he could land some body blows, but now...

"How stupidly tough you are."

Vishnu didn't even try to dodge as if Hercules's punches weren't worth the trouble.

...Or, as if he wanted to test something out.

"I see. Directly clashing and fighting physically feels like this, then."

"What was that?"

"The one called Buddha managed to last for three months against me." Vishnu extended his hand toward Hercules. "Let us find out how long you can last."

Fwhoosh-

Hercules was left utterly shocked. That's because Vishnu instantly appeared before his eyes, utterly filling up his vision.

'No, he didn't move, but...' Hercules reflexively punched while thinking to himself. 'I got pulled in, instead!'

Whoooosh-

SMASH-!

Vishnu's fist slammed into Hercules's face just as the latter landed a hit on the Primordial God's face.

For a moment there, Hercules lost all his strength in his legs and wobbled about precariously. The unprecedented level of pain the likes of which he had never felt before nearly robbed him of his consciousness, but he gritted his teeth and endured it.

Not only did Hercules feel confident about physical strength, but also with his sturdiness as well.

With all the strength he could muster, Hercules punched one more time.

Smash-!

That sounded quite refreshing to one's ears. Unfortunately, this punch failed to reach Vishnu.

"That last hit was quite good."

Squeeeeze-

Crunch, crack, crunch...

Vishnu had caught Hercules's fist in the air. His hand looked so much smaller and frailer but it still managed to easily restrain a fist as big as an adult's head.

Sounds of bones in Hercules's hand twisting and breaking loudly resounded out. But instead of screaming, he gritted his teeth even harder while opening his eyes wider.

Right at that moment, Hercules looked up. "What are you waiting for?!"

That loud roaring prompted Vishnu to follow Hercules's gaze and look up, too.

At that exact moment...

Rumble, kabooooom-!

A massive dragon slammed down on top of Vishnu's head.

By then, the gods in the surroundings had already retreated to some distance away.

It was all thanks to Hercules attacking Vishnu to buy a little bit of time.

Crackle, bzzzzzik-

Stinging arcs of electrical currents danced all over the moon's surface. A massive crater with Vishnu in the center was created.

Tap, taptap...

Vishnu dusted off himself. All that had happened to him was getting slightly charred despite the severity of the impact just now.

"That stings."

That was a Thunder Dragon created by Zeus. Not just any, but one created after storing up his powers for a while. Yet those two words were the extent of Vishnu's impression of that strike.

"Keuh-euh…"

Hercules, who also got hit by Zeus's Thunder Dragon, was staggering around, his whole body charred black. Still, he managed to survive thanks to his stupendously tough physique. Any other gods would've melted down to nothingness by that attack.

"How are we supposed to hunt something like that...?"

"We can only do something when attacks work on the damn monster first...!"

Indeed, attacks almost did nothing to Vishnu.

This fact loomed over like a cloud of despair to all those gods who understood the depth of Zeus's powers.

The Olympian god could dish out divine punishment with just a single Thunderbolt. Each and every single one of those lightning spears was a calamity in itself. And the Thunder Dragon, a concentrated form of the lightning power, could even fatally wound Uranus, one of the Three Destroyers.

Yet such a Thunder Dragon couldn't deal much damage to Vishnu. Seeing such a scene was bound to negatively impact one's resolve.

A brief bout of silence ensued.

Step-

When Vishnu voluntarily took a step on his own...

Fwhooooosh-

POW-!

A long spear hurtled in towards Vishnu's shoulder. The weapon leaving behind a single azure line in the air caused the Primordial God to stagger.

"A spear?"

"Who threw that...?"

Gazes chased after the spear's trajectory towards its origin.

They found Su-hyeun there, wielding the next spear.

[Dragon Slaying Spear – Flame]

[Festival of Fire]

Ruuuumble-

Flames gathering at the tip of the spear emitted a rainbow of colors. After confirming Vishnu staggering from Gungnir's impact, Su-hyeun quickly got into the spear throwing stance once more.

The gods had already evacuated far away from Vishnu's vicinity while trying to dodge the Thunder Dragon.

'So, I shall throw it with all my power.'

Su-hyeun's eyes gleamed sharply as he fired the spear with everything he got.

POW-!

A loud sound exploded. But the spear reached Vishnu way before that.

Chwa-rururururuk-

Fwhooooosh-!

Massive walls of flame swallowed Vishnu up. The Dragon Slaying Spear split apart into tens of thousands of pieces to rain down on its target.

Hundreds of spears pummeled Vishnu, who already had Gungnir stabbed into his shoulder. But unlike that spear, the Dragon Slaying Spear couldn't impale the Primordial God.

Even so...

"It definitely works."

This attack dealt the most impact out of all the others so far.

The sight of Vishnu staggering around was undeniable proof in itself. He was trying to pull out Gungnir impaling his shoulder but ended up letting go of the shaft from the impact force.

Swhooooosh, grab-!

Gungnir rapidly flew back into Su-hyeun's hand.

Vishnu's black eyes without focus were now staring at Gungnir. "A weapon crafted by Brahma, is it."

His expression distorted a little.

This was the first time Vishnu's expression had changed. All this time, he came across as an invincible and perfect being without equal. That change in expression alone was enough to let Su-hyeun know that Gungnir's attack was effective against the Primordial God.

"It hurts a lot, doesn't it?"

"You... are Brahma but not Brahma at the same time. So, not my son but... my grandson, is it?"

"Sorry, but I don't have an ancestor like you. That's why..." Su-hyeun assumed the spear throwing posture. "Stop with your bullsh*t and get lost!"

POW-!

Gungnir hurtled forward.

Vishnu standing still all along finally shifted out of the way to evade the incoming spear. In the beginning, he didn't pay much attention to Su-hyeun's existence, but now that he did, there was no more reason for him to just stand there and get hit by Gungir.

'As expected, it won't be that easy, huh.'

Whoosh, grab-

Gungnir returned to his grip right away.

He'd like nothing more than to rush toward Vishnu right now. But whenever he felt that way, Su-hyeun willingly stopped his legs from moving.

"You, stay still and keep throwing your spears."

That's what Shiva had told him earlier.

And when asked for a reason, he replied like this.

"You aren't fighting alone this time, after all. So, you should fight in the most sensible way. Think of it as being in a team."

"A team, you say?"

"Think about who will be the most useful cards in this fight. Like me, the Bull Demon King, Sun Wukong, Zeus, Hercules. Only these guys are strong enough to fight Vishnu in this entire universe."

That's when Su-hyeun learned about Shiva being aware of Hercules's existence. It sounded as if the ones mentioned were existences 'planned' by Shiva and Master Subhuti a long time ago for the purpose of defeating Vishnu.

Su-hyeun muttered softly. "You know, I've never tried out this style before."

"What, chucking spears around? Or fighting alongside other people?"

"I've been using spears for a long while now, so it's not that. The thing is, I'm not familiar with staying in the back and not jumping into the frontlines. Especially more so when others are working as a shield in front of me."

"If you're too used to fighting alone, why don't you try to recall the past experiences? If something happens to you and you can't use Gungnir anymore, well, that's going to make things very hard for everyone."

The past experiences, was it?

Of course, Shiva didn't mean Su-hyeun's experiences, but those from countless many past lives he had lived through. Without a doubt, more than a few of those lives had him fighting alongside many others.

Su-hyeun looked inwardly to recall all those memories and experiences. Although too much time had passed and those memories had gotten indistinct, he still became sure of what his role this time would be.

'For now, don't step into the frontlines.'

Su-hyeun remained in the spear throwing posture, glaring at Vishnu like a sniper.

'My job is to throw spears.'

Vishnu seemed to be keeping a very close eye on Su-hyeun.

Not only did he glance in Su-hyeun's direction every once in a while, Vishnu even began redirecting his power as if he was getting ready to defend against Gungnir.

That alone should be seen as a job well done.

And the role of stepping forward didn't belong to Su-hyeun. The ones doing that job, stepping forward to stop Vishnu's movements, would be left up to...

"It seems that we are thinking of the same thing, fella."

The Bull Demon King stepped up.

Step-

And then, Shiva stood next to him.

The two of them emitted such a noticeable presence even among all these many gods.

"To my great displeasure, unfortunately."

The Bull Demon King, who had already pulled out his Mixed Iron Rod some time ago, didn't seem all that pleased by the prospect of working together with Shiva.

He got this feeling that Shiva had been planning to work together with him for a while now. And his gut feeling proved to be correct.

"Well, it'll be hard for me to do it alone, you see."

Shiva had been planning for this very moment since a long time ago. The two of them would work together to stop Vishnu, while Su-hyeun would throw his spears.

"Don't worry, I shall fully repay the debt of threatening your wife earlier."

"Very well."

Pa-sususu...

Shiva walked towards Vishnu as jet-black armor enveloped his whole figure and a pair of sword and spear appeared in his hands.

He then addressed Su-hyeun behind him getting ready to fire another spear.

"Hey.. Be sure to get your aim right."