Simulate the universe, starting with speedrunning Greek.

On how to kill a conversation with just one sentence.

The gods, who had been chatting and laughing, fell into a deathly silence, like ducks whose throats had been pinched. They stared at each other, bewildered.

Unleash a divine artifact comparable to a master's declaration?

During this period, the Aesir gods in the main world were at their poorest. Even Odin, the king of gods, was so poor that he didn't have a decent weapon. These ordinary gods, even if they occasionally had one or two divine artifacts, would not be willing to take them out to help a hero. How could they possibly have weapons of that level?

Although Frey, the god of agriculture, once possessed a golden knife, he no longer does.

Not to mention, given Freya's relationship with Night, Frey was just trying to coast along and had no intention of seriously dealing with Night.

As for the other gods, it's hard to say whether they really wanted to punish Night.

After all, it's clear to anyone with eyes that the difficulty of conquering humanity's final trial is extremely low—the success rate is really not high.

The strength of the heroes they can cultivate in a short period of time with their current resources is truly worrying.

"You've got one thing wrong. Our main objective now isn't to defeat the final human trial, the mighty Sun King. It's to kill the White Dragon...!" Just then, a deity calmly spoke, drawing the focus of the gods back to the present.

Everyone suddenly realized—that's right! They didn't need to fight that Sun King to the death at all!

That monster was so powerful that even the gods couldn't defeat it. Moreover, it wielded the 'Declaration of the Gods,' which had killed the God King. Given this achievement, the gods were extremely afraid of this god-slaying weapon. Even without any human restrictions, they wouldn't be confident of defeating Night. How could they possibly be confident of cultivating an existence stronger than the combined strength of all the gods?

The race is also stuck on humanity—!

"Will the hero still be created?"

"Of course—but not with the goal of defeating absolute evil, but with the goal of stopping absolute evil. As long as we limit the power of absolute evil, it will be just a white dragon that has just begun to grow. Even if we defeat a great god, it will only be by borrowing the power of others. A dragon with no combat experience cannot possibly defeat the entire Norse pantheon."

Although it sounded somewhat funny, or even embarrassing, the gods all nodded in agreement, acknowledging that they could gang up on the White Dragon instead of fighting him one-on-one.

Just kidding, Odin's avatar has gone into overdrive, and even the white dragon can't win in a direct confrontation.

Even if the opponent has little combat experience, in a one-on-one fight, the probability of being defeated by brute force or killed by dragon breath is extremely high.

There's no way we can win; there's no chance of winning no matter how you look at it.

And so the gods quickly began their plan to create artificial heroes, while simultaneously sending a portion of their people to search for the whereabouts of Night.

And what about the night at this time?

After having the idea of ​​getting a second White Dragon.

When asked if she wanted to become stronger and become a dragon.

When did the strongest species in mythology, the dragon at the top of the food chain, the giant dragon that even the gods fear, become a pure-blooded dragon breed that can be mass-produced after birth?

Brunhilde was somewhat dazed at the time, but having already lost half of her divinity, she still had a strong desire to gain power, and she had no reason to refuse.

But Fafnir was already dead, and all the blood from before had been shared equally by Krimshild and the Night.

To forge a second white dragon, the runes of the night are not enough; at least another pure-blooded dragon is needed.

Who else meets the target criteria?

Chapter 260 No living being would be interested in the underworld…! Hoddle: ?

Pureblood dragons are hard to find, and victims who are as famous as Fafnir must at least be creatures with sufficient renown in Norse mythology. Night has indeed locked onto a target.

Or rather—as the true controller of the World Tree, that serpent that has been lurking in the shadows, like a venomous snake waiting for its chance to strike, coveting his 'treasure,' is like a pest that will wreak havoc on his backyard, a worm that Ye cannot ignore—and will have to eradicate sooner or later.

—The Poison Dragon 'Nidhogg'!! A legendary fantasy species that feeds on the World Tree, the pinnacle of pure-blooded dragons!

With its colossal size perched on the World Tree and its catastrophic threat of devouring the world, it poses a more tangible threat to the world's existence than Fafnir, according to mythology.

If we set aside the concept of evil and simply look at who has caused a greater global crisis, Nidhogg's threat is greater than Fafnir's.

That night, he told Brunhilde the crucial dragon blood needed for the transformation process—and what he was aiming for.

Brunhilde cried out, "Black Dragon—!"

It was Nidhogg, the black dragon—his name meaning "malicious attacker," "vanguard of darkness." Brunhilde knew of this dragon; when Nidhogg gnawed through the roots of the World Tree, it would signify the coming of Ragnarok.

The gods were aware of this prophecy, but they did not go to attack Nidhogg because of it.

The prophecy is merely a harbinger of Ragnarok's arrival. The fundamental cause of Ragnarok's birth has nothing to do with Nidhogg. Even if he were defeated, it would be futile and would not prevent Ragnarok's arrival.

...And Nidhogg, which was not defeated, could, to some extent, serve as a timekeeper for the gods. Given Nidhogg's terrifying nature, defeating it would be a thankless and arduous task for the gods.

So Nidhogg, which seems to have no impact on anything in the world except for being the World Tree and the world itself, has to be wary of the eagle Vidfulnir, its mortal enemy in the World Tree's canopy, and the squirrel Ratatoskr, who is always stirring things up in their ears. Its daily life consists of nothing more than eating, sleeping, and eating again when it wakes up. It's a boring and tasteless life of just eating and sleeping.

Fortunately, Ratatosk here won't suddenly introduce a romance strategy system that makes her shy and seals her away.

Whenever I think of this name, I have a strong sense of hallucination.

After all, that black dragon wasn't some beautiful girl... In Old Norse, its name also meant a villain who had lost his honor and status. It originally symbolized the idle dregs lurking in the shadows of corrupt societies, the parasites of dynasties and civilizations.

This gloomy, homebody dragon isn't hard to find! In the original world, it should appear near the Hvagmir Spring in Niflheim, one of the three major root systems of the World Tree.

Niflheim, the Land of Fog, existed before the creation of the world.

As the original spring of the world in the chaos that is the true precursor to the Norse pantheon, it supplies twelve 'Erivargars'—that is, 'waves of ice'. It is said that the first Ymir was born from the frozen glaciers of these twelve great rivers. This water contains the highly toxic substance Eitr, so the blood of the giants contains this poison, causing the giant race to be savage and ferocious. At the same time, only giants and Nidhogg can drink from this spring.

This is also the origin of Nidhogg's nickname, the Black Dragon, as well as his title, the Poison Dragon.

He was as brutal as the giants, perhaps even more vicious, since giants in this day and age wouldn't be active near this poisonous spring every day.

And this source of life-poisoning that gave birth to giants, and even the world, has now taken over as Nidhogg's old home.

In this world of possibilities, due to incomplete mythology and the absence of deities, even the World Tree only casts a shadowy image.

The chaotic world beyond the Land of Mist is nowhere to be found here, and Nidhogg is certainly not near the Hwagmill Spring now.

However, for Night, which is connected to the World Tree, tracing its origins directly led to its location.

In the underworld?!

—The underworld exists in the Nordic world.

Although their role is small, Nidhogg's legend is that on the day Ragnarok begins, they fly out from the entrance to the underworld and bring disaster to the world.

This also proves that the underworld and the Hevagmir Spring are located very close to each other.

Even in this incomplete little world, there is a small underworld with relatively reduced functions and mechanisms.

At this moment, the will of a god of the underworld descended upon the underworld—Helheim.

Because Loki has not yet fathered many children in reality, Hela, the original sole ruler of the underworld and goddess of death, is no longer in this world.

The current ruler of the underworld system is the god of darkness, Hodr, who is also the son of Odin and Frigg, the god of light, Baldr, and Baldr's twin brother.

He was born blind, melancholic, and reclusive. He was treacherous and cruel, and insisted on being an enemy of light. Later, under the instigation of the evil god Loki, he caused the fall of Baldr, the god of light.

When the gods gathered at the Divine Assembly not long ago, Hoddle hid in a corner. Although he had heard the gods' plans, he had no intention of cooperating with them; being a loner, he never needed any companions.

Upon returning to the underworld, he did not follow his agreement with the gods to search the entire map of Scandinavia for Night's whereabouts.

Hoddle didn't even think he'd find the dragon-slaying hero on his territory; he was already prepared to coast along until everything was over and return to the main universe.

After all, for Hoddle, only things of light could ever inspire his fighting spirit; he had absolutely no interest in things like absolute evil.

Unless that dragon-slaying hero actually came to my territory, but where is this? The underworld!

This is a place only the dead would come to; no living person would like this dark, decaying hellish world, and even the gods despise it.

There is nothing here except Gam, the watchdog of the underworld, and the omnipresent darkness.

Just as Hoddle was somberly closing himself off and falling into a deep sleep on his throne in the underworld, suddenly—he raised his head.

Although he was born blind, his divine power allowed him to see the world without his eyes.

Everything that lives on this bright earth is so dazzling that it makes him loathe it from the bottom of his heart.

The Underworld—is an absolute forbidden zone of light!

Just as he hated his brother, the God of Light Baldr, who was born perfect and loved by everyone!

Compared to brilliance and noble light, darkness and decay are insignificant and feared by everyone. Jealousy makes Hoddle hate all life and all existence that comes from the world of light.

Therefore, when the living finally visited the underworld, only Hoder, the only deity in the entire underworld, immediately sensed it.

Chapter 261 Hodr, the God of Darkness: Just as hateful as the sun, just as hateful as light!

It's the breath of life!

Hoddle frowned, feeling endless malice towards these living beings. What fools!

Are there really any earthly beings that dare to step onto the land of the underworld?

The underworld is the realm of the dead, a place inhabited only by spirits and the gods of the underworld.

Now that they're here, leaving is easier than coming! Hodr raised his hand, intending to crush these little ants that had come from the ground. For Hodr, who now possessed some authority over the underworld and had the power to control darkness everywhere, wiping out a few weak creatures in his own domain was a piece of cake.

however--

He waved, waved, and waved again. The darkness that had once been so close and vibrant to him now seemed to have entered a state of lethargy, lifeless and stagnant like a pool of still water, without any movement whatsoever.

Hoddle was stunned, and most of his malice disappeared.

What's going on?! He finally became a little serious, and the moment he heightened his senses and detected the specific auras of those creatures on the ground, he couldn't sit still any longer.

That enormous true ether—! It seemed as if Hoddle's prying eyes had triggered a rebound.

The next moment, boom! A terrifying aura affecting the entire underworld began to spread, and the entire underworld trembled.

? !

what?

Roar—! Just then, a dragon's roar came from the entrance to the underworld.

Then, a blinding white light shone throughout the entire underworld.

bright--!

The divine light shone upon the underworld, so dazzling that even the blind Hoddle was brought to tears.

"Light—! It's hateful light!!"

When one sees such intense and abhorrent radiance, it is no less dazzling than the radiance emanating from Baldr's own brother, the god of light.

How could this not drive Hoddle mad?

After all, he was a god who loathed the light so much that he would kill his own brothers if provoked.

At this moment, the disgust I felt from the bottom of my heart overwhelmed everything else!

Originally shocked by the terrifying aura of the newcomer, and now realizing that the dragon's roar possessed a terrifying aura capable of traversing the boundary between the world of the living and the world of the dead, the only one who could possibly be that dragon-slaying hero was probably the one who slayed the dragon.