"What... what is that?"
"My God, it's a meteor! A meteor is falling, run!"
"No, please, Divine One! We are soldiers of the Kingdom of Orichalcum! We ask that Your Divine Power spare us!"
"We are willing to surrender! We are willing to submit!"
It wasn't until now that everyone finally realized what had happened. The Ashen faction, consisting of five gods, had been almost completely obliterated in an instant!
And the cause of this destruction was none other than the terrifying god floating in midair, holding Diana in their arms, radiating boundless divine light like a deity from the heavens.
Five entire gods—just like that, as if cutting through vegetables—were they truly slain?
Though their minds struggled to process the information, they all understood that, in the face of divine power, they had no chance of resistance.
Meanwhile, the heavens and earth seemed to mourn. With the death of these five gods, the divine authority they once wielded returned to the world.
However, Sterl noticed that perhaps due to the merging of the worlds, the impact of these gods' deaths wasn't as immense as it had been in the past. In fact, the simultaneous death of five gods seemed less impactful than the combined killing of the Conspiracy and the God of Trade by Gloria and the other five gods in the Hall of Valor.
"So... this is what they call the Great Calamity..." he thought to himself, but his actions didn't pause for a second. With a swift movement, he sent several meteors, enhanced by Stardust and surrounded by terrifying flames, hurtling toward the earth at incredible speed.
Many legends and demigods tried to evade the meteors by jumping into the air or fleeing into the distance.
But Sterl had already anticipated this. He used the Space Law, augmented by the power of the Dimensional Heart, to apply the Force of the Forbidden Sky across the entire battlefield. Not even the legends and demigods could escape—let alone the mere mortals.
With a deafening crash, the earth trembled violently. Many were crushed into dust by the falling meteors. Meanwhile, the Starlight Spray and Cursed Vision activated, sending massive bursts of energy scattering throughout the battlefield. At first glance, it seemed like a chain of crimson light tinged with silver, weaving through the crowd, until it finally ceased after touching almost everyone.
In an instant, the vast battlefield fell silent and desolate. The Ashen army was entirely wiped out, and the forces of the Kingdom of Orichalcum were reduced to fewer than a hundred.
"As warriors, we must fight with all our might for our nation," Sterl declared coldly. "To allow evil enemies to desecrate our goddess... such men are unworthy of being called warriors. They must be eradicated!"
Gazing down at the terrified eyes of the remaining soldiers below, Sterl spoke domineeringly. This group of people were the few who hadn't been swept away by desire and had refrained from inappropriate actions toward Diana. As for the rest, since they had tried to subdue Diana, a goddess, they naturally had to be killed.
As for whether innocents would be affected—of course not. Sterl, at his core, was still a good person. It was just that he had always been forced into these actions. Therefore, anyone he killed deserved to die.
Sterl thought to himself, exhilarated. The feeling of forcibly kissing a goddess was definitely amazing! To his surprise, his charm was so great that even this powerful goddess was drawn to him. Truly, strength was the best beauty treatment a man could have!
"This..."
Morette was left dumbfounded. He almost wondered if his eyes had been damaged in the earlier battle or if this was some kind of illusion conjured by the enemy. After a long pause, he finally accepted the incredible—yet somewhat envy-inducing—reality: it seemed that Goddess Diana really had fallen in love?
"Congratulations, Honorable Hades," he said immediately, bowing to Sterl. Then, as he thought it through more carefully, his heart swelled with even greater joy. It seemed that if Hades truly had feelings for Diana, this powerful and mysterious being would be forever bound to the Kingdom of Orichalcum.
This was truly monumental news. With such a powerful god in existence, the Kingdom of Orichalcum would undoubtedly become even more stable. After all, this individual's strength was equivalent to at least five gods of the same rank!
Sterl, too, was in high spirits. Looking at Diana, he figured that with just a little more "training," it might even be possible to detach her from the Kingdom of Orichalcum. Once that was done, he could refine her into a
deputy star
, which would add another god-level force to his side.
And who knows... maybe he could even take the opportunity to enjoy the "goddess experience" himself.
"Alright, the crisis in the Southern War Preparedness Zone isn't over yet. We can't afford to waste any more time."
Sterl spoke up, but his hand remained on Diana's waist, holding her firmly in his embrace with rough, domineering strength.
However, Diana, clearly captivated and drawn in by Sterl's overwhelming aura and power, didn't make any attempt to resist. Instead, she seemed to almost enjoy pressing her face against his chest.
Then, Sterl glanced at the map module. After all this time, it seemed that the Southern War Preparedness Zone was finally approaching its breaking point.
The god who had been severely injured had been ambushed during a skirmish and was then decisively slain by an Ashen god, who had been lying in wait.
The balance that had been tenuously maintained was shattered in an instant. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before the Southern War Preparedness Zone, like the other two locations, fell into a state of desperation.
Sterl also noticed that the Kingdom of Orichalcum had dispatched several gods for reinforcements. Though they were also entangled by the Ashen faction's preparations, it wouldn't take long for them to break free and head toward the Southern War Preparedness Zone.
Perhaps he wouldn't even need to take action himself—the crisis there might resolve on its own. But of course, he wasn't going to miss out on the chance to earn more contributions, reputation, and legendary tales.
With that, he swiftly gathered Diana in one arm and took Morette with him as they flew toward the Southern War Preparedness Zone.
The battle was still ongoing at the Southern War Preparedness Zone. Because of the earlier failed assassination by the God of Thieves, the Ashen faction had been given some time to respond. It wasn't until just now, when a god had been forcibly slain, that the situation began to tip in favor of the Ashen faction.