Devouring World Dragon

Chapter 321 The Human Boy of Nano City
Nano City, a city situated beneath the underworld and atop the head of the great serpent, is the eternal home of the serpent people, where many work, pray, and live.

Every day, the booming bells remind the snake people of their daily routines, then the craftsmen wield their hammers to forge exquisite steam engines, and nobles wearing tall crowns hold scepters symbolizing their status to discuss the future of the empire in the council.

Walking on the streets are not only snake people dressed in various styles, but also powerful brass giants. These giants, driven by steam engines and spewing hot gas, are the guardians and maintainers of order of the snake people.

There are virtually no other races in Nano City.

In other snake-people cities, there are many mortal slaves, but in the world-renowned city of Nano, mortals are not allowed to enter; only snake-people of the purest bloodline are permitted to tread upon it.

However, there are occasional exceptions.

Atop towering skyscrapers, a young human boy leaps like an antelope and runs like a cheetah. The city, layer upon layer like a maze, is as flat as ground to him; he can leap over gaps of several meters, or even tens of meters, with a single bound.

On the street, a snake-man who had just entered the city of Nano saw a human boy daring to wander freely in the city and his face showed anger.

How could a slave be allowed to act so presumptuously in the most prestigious place of the snake people?
It was about to rebuke, but was stopped by the snake people around it.

“That human is Alcides, do not stop him.”

Alcádez?

Upon hearing the name, the new snake-man was initially startled, then a look of awe appeared on his face. It wasn't fear of the boy himself, but rather awe of the goddess he represented.

Twelve years ago, the serpent goddess returned to the city of Nano with a human baby in her arms. She then raised the baby and named him Alcides.

As for why he was called Alcides, the goddess did not explain, only saying that it was the name he should have.

Over the course of twelve years, the human infant grew up, learning knowledge and music from the snake people. However, his innate enthusiasm made him prefer adventure, exploring and climbing throughout the city—something the goddess's adopted son loved to do.

In this city of snake people, he was regarded as the goddess's adopted son and became the only mortal who could come and go freely.

After his usual leisure and play, the human boy leaped down and landed before a majestic temple. The eyes of the two bronze giants guarding the temple entrance glowed red simultaneously, then dimmed after recognizing the newcomer.

They are not intruders.

Since they are not intruders, then it has nothing to do with them.

The boy, his hair disheveled like a lion's and his pupils as black as obsidian, strode into the temple.

"Mona, look what I brought you."

Before even entering the temple, the carefree young man called out the goddess's name.

But in this empty and desolate temple, there was no one the boy wanted to see, only a giant lion lying on the carpet on the left.

The lion, larger than a three-year-old bull, was lying on the carpet with its eyes slightly closed and yawning, yet it gave the impression that it could pounce on the boy at any moment.

"Alcides, the goddess is not here now."

With its mouth wide open, the lion's cold eyes stared at the boy, yet it uttered human words.

"Ah, Leo, it's been a long time."

Seeing that the goddess was not there, and looking at the giant lion, the boy was not afraid. He calmly approached the lion and sat down next to it.

He reached out, as if to stroke the lion's chin, but the lion didn't mind and let the boy scratch the mane under its chin.

He had seen this lion when he was a child.

It is a monster born from the blood of Typhon, the god who devours the world and the ancestor of all demons. Its fur is impervious to blades and spears, and no divine weapon in the world can harm it.

The lion was still young at that time and was brought to the temple by the serpent goddess to play with the boy, until later the lion was taken away by the moon goddess Selene.

Now, several years have passed since they met again. Although the lion cub has grown up, the boy still recognized it at a glance.

“Selene, the moon goddess, is driving her moon chariot through the underworld and is currently meeting with the goddess. I also came to take a look. The two goddesses are currently meeting with my father in the abyss and will be back in a while.”

The lion squinted, seemingly enjoying the tickling sensation, which relaxed it somewhat. It continued to speak in human language to the boy.

"The goddess's father... ah, no, it's the father you share with the goddess."

As he spoke, the boy suddenly realized the lion's ill intentions and quickly changed his words to explain.

The lion is most proud of its father, taking great pride in him, but because of this, it sometimes feels frustrated that it has not fully inherited its father's strength. Therefore, the lion is surprisingly sensitive on this topic.

Seeing the lion grunt and swish its tail indifferently, the boy chuckled, then sat cross-legged again and continued speaking.

"I wonder what kind of person your father was that you and the goddess would admire and revere him so much?"

"Hmph, how can mortals comprehend the power of my father?"

The lion spoke with extreme pride.

"There is no being more powerful than my father in this world. Among all the gods, even Zeus, the king of the gods, would not dare to confront my father alone."

"In the ancient war, my father fought alone against the gods, and the battle lasted for ten years without a victor. If it weren't for the cunning god-king's trickery, this world would already be in my father's belly..."

The boy listened with great interest as the lion praised and recounted the battle as if he had witnessed it firsthand. Although he had heard it many times before, the battle still fascinated him.

The battle was so powerful that the sea boiled, the sky was torn apart, and the earth split into pieces... It was truly amazing.

The boy was thinking about it, but a faint impulse was rising within him: what if he could participate as well… Just then, the lion suddenly stopped, its ears perking up due to its far more acute senses than those of humans.

"The two goddesses are back."

The boy also heard the sound and looked towards the temple entrance.

Because the city of Nano is located beneath the underworld, it is never exposed to sunlight, and the sky is always dark, with only a faint moonlight.

At that moment, a soft moonlight appeared at the entrance of the temple, its light like water, soaking the entire ground.

In the moonlight, two graceful figures emerged.

One was Selene, the moon goddess. This daughter of the Titans wore a crescent moon crown and a long robe, and her face was veiled, making her appear even more mysterious, like the moon hidden behind the clouds in the night, shrouded in mist.

But even with such a beautiful appearance, what the young man cared about more was another person walking alongside this goddess.

Even after countless years, her youthful appearance remained unchanged. Her face was cold and pale, her pupils were lifeless and deathly white, and faint snake scales could be seen behind her slender ears and on her long neck.

If the beauty of the moon goddess is the cool moonlight, then the beauty of this serpent goddess is the silent and tranquil night.

Both were equally beautiful, but the boy preferred the latter. The reason...

"Mona!"

With a leap, the boy shouted and ran towards Mona.

"Look what I found!"

With a boastful laugh, the boy held up what he was holding high: a tortoise struggling desperately.

Strange things occasionally occur in this underworld.

Just like this little turtle, it looks small, but its shell is covered with countless dense rings. It has lived for many years without anyone noticing, until the boy suddenly caught it and presented it to his adoptive mother as a novelty.

Mona looked at the turtle and nodded.

"That's good, it might taste better if it's cooked."

The turtle seemed to possess sentience, and upon hearing these words, it struggled even more fiercely.

Beside Mona, the moon goddess rested her chin on her hand and chuckled softly.

"Oh my, is this the same little kid from back then? He's grown up so fast."

The boy was very unhappy when he heard himself being called a child.

"I'm not a child, I'm very capable."

As he spoke, the boy flexed the muscles in his arms, showing off.

"No one in this city can beat me."

The Moon Goddess smiled but said nothing at the boy's childish behavior.

But a voice rang in Mona's ear.

"Is this the boy? Time has flown by so quickly."

"Humans always grow very fast. What, what task did Zeus give you? Is he planning to send you away with him?"

"No, the King of Gods didn't give me any task. All the gods know that he cares about this boy. Hermes is still suffering on Earth because he lost him, but he hasn't given me any orders."

"I'm just curious what that child who angered the Queen of Gods and is so concerned about the King of Gods looks like now. Heh, this boy probably doesn't know that his fate has already been planned by the gods."

"..."

Mona didn't answer, but just looked at the boy, whose face was full of excitement as he chattered to Mona about the things he found fun.

"Have you made the plans?"

Mona thought to herself.

Among the gods, the existence of this boy was not a secret; they all believed it was a test from Zeus, the king of the gods, for his human child. But only Mona and a very few other gods knew the true mission this child carried.

In the eyes of Zeus and even the serpent, this child would be pushed to the pinnacle of the world by Zeus, and ultimately fight against the serpent.

For some reason, Zeus seemed convinced that this child would definitely have a chance to defeat the serpent. The serpent, however, scoffed at this, arrogantly waiting for the little bundle of flesh to grow up, determined to shatter Zeus's inexplicable confidence.

From any perspective, this child's future was indeed planned by gods and demons from birth.

But her innate insight into fate, and her understanding of the boy over the years, led her to give a negative answer.

"It's not necessarily all planned out... He might really surprise everyone."

Mona gazed intently at the boy, lost in thought.

(End of this chapter)