Extra's Death: I Am the Son of Hades novel Chapter 825

Chapter 825: The First Witch, Duty Of The Older Generation

He twisted his wrist and sent Mars flying.

"Martial Arts are divided into ranks. Common. Rare. Exquisite. Legendary."

Zeus slipped into the opening created by Mars’ attack, striking low. His fist was caught effortlessly.

"One who has a Rare-rank Technique Spirit is stronger than one with a Common-rank Technique Spirit. Even at the same Realm."

"We know that too," Zeus said through clenched teeth. "What exactly are you trying to say?"

The Martial King’s gaze sharpened.

"There is a legend," he said slowly, "that a fifth rank exists. Beyond Legendary."

Both Zeus and Mars froze for half a breath.

"If you can learn Martial Arts (Extreme Arts) of that rank, and cultivate them to the Third Realm, you will be able to fight Fourth Step Cultivators."

For Martial Artists, Technique Spirits were the manifestation of their Martial Arts. They were one and the same.

Unlike Elemental Gods or Divine Beings, Martial Artists themselves had no inherent rank.

Their strength was defined entirely by their Technique Spirits.

Even if someone had a Third Realm Technique Spirit, learning a new Martial Art meant starting from the beginning.

The new Technique Spirit would have to be cultivated all over again. It would not be at Third Realm just because the Martial Artist had one at that rank already.

The Martial King looked at the two of them carefully.

’I don’t know where the two of them were until now, but if it’s them... they might begin a golden age for Martial Artists,’ he thought,

His expectations were high.

Mars might be able to learn a Martial Art beyond Legendary rank.

Zeus might be able to reach the Fourth Realm and carve out a path to survive it.

They were the most talented Martial Artists he had ever seen.

That was why he had decided to place his hopes on them.

When the training finally ended, the Martial King left without another word, leaving the healers to tend to their broken bodies.

After being patched up, Mars jumped to his feet immediately.

"Hey, Zeus," he said, stretching his arms. "Want to train together?"

"I’m busy," Zeus replied as he turned away.

Before Mars could say anything else, Zeus teleported, vanishing into the night.

Mars stared for a moment, then scratched his head. "That guy’s weird."

Zeus moved silently through the darkness.

He had been training in secret for a long time now, hunting cultivators far from the Martial King’s senses.

It wasn’t something he spoke about, not to Mars, and certainly not to his master.

There was a reason for it.

It also helped distract him.

But tonight, the cultivators were hard to find.

So his thoughts drifted.

To his past.

To his mistakes.

To the countless tragedies he had caused.

Neo had revived everyone Zeus had killed.

And yet, Zeus had never gone to see them.

Not his former comrades.

Not even his sister.

Even if they were alive again, the things he had done could not simply be forgiven.

That was why he stayed away.

’I did everything to kill the Devil of Cruelty, and now I’m helping him,’ Zeus thought bitterly.

If Apollyon won or Neo won, stability would return to the Cosmos.

Since it did not matter to Zeus which side won, he decided to be on the side of his sister.

The reason Zeus had been obsessed with erasing the Devil of Cruelty until now lay in the Akashic Records.

More specifically, in the First Child of Mana.

Euphemia Theodore.

He had met her by chance once. Or so he had believed at the time.

She had shown him fragments of a prophecy. A future where the Devil of Cruelty destroyed the Cosmos.

That was why Zeus had hunted down every seed that might become him.

Only after entering the True Blessed Land did Zeus realize how limited his perspective — a perspective of Stage 6 God — had been.

How narrow his understanding was compared to the truth.

’First Child of Mana. Euphemia Theodore.’

’Also known as the First Witch, and the Witch of Greed, .’

He had learned her true identity after meeting Elizabeth in the True Blessed Land.

’Why did a Witch help create the Akashic Records?’

’And why did she guide me toward killing the Devil of Cruelty?’

Zeus had tried to find her.

But she was within the Great Net of Life (Sea of All Consciousness).

Accessing that place was nearly impossible unless certain conditions were met.

And Zeus didn’t yet know what those conditions were.

...

Neo’s POV

Neo kept training.

Not just alone, but with others.

He sought out people who could pressure him in different ways, who could expose his blind spots. One of them was Veydran.

They stood facing each other after a long sparring session.

"How strong is Apollyon?" Neo asked.

Veydran tilted his head slightly, thinking.

"Hmmm."

After a moment, he spoke.

"He killed Master and Hades the moment he returned from the True Blessed Land. Back then, he was still a mortal on the Elemental and Divinity Paths. As a Martial Artist, he was at the Third Realm."

"...What?" Neo asked.

"Yes. He spent most of his life here. He didn’t have access to proper elemental training. That’s why he relied almost entirely on Martial Arts."

Neo’s expression darkened.

"And after that," Veydran said, "he began walking the Elemental Path in earnest. Eventually, he became the Fate Supreme."

Some elements existed naturally.

Death. Fate. Time.

These were not created by individuals. They were woven into the Cosmos itself. When a Supreme of such an element was born, they didn’t invent a Law. They inherited control over an existing one.

Other elements were different. Fire, Ice, Lightning, and countless variants only came into being when someone reached Supreme rank and carved their authority into reality.

.

After meeting with Veydran, Neo continued seeking out others.

He spoke with people who had fought Apollyon directly, people who had witnessed fragments of his power.

The answers differed in detail.

But the conclusion was always the same.

Apollyon was overwhelmingly strong.

When Neo finally finished, he sought out Paul. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

There was something else he needed to confirm.

"Hey," Neo said casually, sitting down beside him. "Do you know how Ultris and Julie came to know about the Devil of Cruelty?"

Paul thought for a moment.

"They found a document in the Forbidden Lands. It was believed to be from a previous Eon. The document claimed that only the Devil of Cruelty could defeat Order."

Neo nodded.

"So because Apollyon acts as Order, they started searching for the Devil of Cruelty," Paul continued. "That’s what led them down that path."

"I see."

Neo didn’t say anything else, but his thoughts were already elsewhere.

’As expected, they entered the Forbidden Lands, found one of Hades’ records, and mistook it for prophecy.’

Are we going to attack? Are we going to attack?

Why? Why? Why? You know their location. You learned it when you met that child in the dream.

You were always capable of finding them even before that. Why are you wasting time? Why?

Why aren’t you killing the spy? Why is Paul still alive?

Why are you allowing the Martial King to train Mars and Zeus? Why aren’t you killing the Heavenbreaker before he regains his strength?

You are smiling?

You? You? You? You?

Hahahahaha!

In a few years he will regain his strength!

And he will become infinitely more powerful!

You will lose if you fight him then!

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