Once upon a time there was a greedy snake

"But that was a long time ago."

As he said this, the phantom of the God of Death sat down directly next to Du Yi.

As the God of Death recounted his tale, Du Yi gradually learned about things that had been buried for who knows how long.

The god of death is named Anubis. This is not even a coincidence of names. This is the Anubis that Du Yi knows, the god of death in ancient Egypt. However, in Anubis's time, Egypt was not even called Egypt. Even the name of the place came later.

In that ancient era, Anubis had already become a deity under the Ennead, in charge of guiding and judging the souls of the dead.

Yes, it was just about guidance and judgment. At that time, he could not be called the Grim Reaper, and he was far from being able to control the underworld.

But as time passed and many changes occurred, the once glorious Nine Pillar Gods disappeared one after another.

Anubis, who was originally not even worthy of being included among the nine gods, was gradually brought to the forefront.

"Back then, I couldn't understand why the gods, who were so powerful, couldn't escape the fate of annihilation... They had all become gods, immortal and indestructible."

At that time, Anubis still had doubts, but in any case, as the successor of the Underworld, he had been brought to the forefront to enjoy the last glory of the Ennead.

Therefore, Anubis had no choice but to take on all the responsibility.

In order to shoulder all this responsibility, Anubis expanded his territory far and wide, even surpassing the former Ennead Gods in his achievements, and established a vast empire. However, it was at this time that he encountered the same problem as the former Ennead Gods.

That is, the loss of power.

The loss of power, or rather the loss of faith, may seem to many as a sign that powerful and incomparable gods do not necessarily need the humble worship of believers. But can a god who has no one to worship truly still be called a god?

The Nine Pillar Gods fell because of this. Even though they originally thought they were incomparably powerful, as the stories about them were buried in the yellow sand, and as the past related to them was forgotten one by one, they gradually weakened. While the Nine Pillar Gods were declining, new gods were gradually rising.

Thus, it became so natural for a new god to replace the old one.

However, unlike the ancient and stubborn Ennead, Anubis was very adaptable. On the one hand, he fought against the new gods and tried to kill them directly. On the other hand, he also worked hard to increase the number of believers and the sphere of influence of his faith. As it turned out, he did have the last laugh. The pantheons that once fought against the Ennead, like the Ennead, were also annihilated by time and became forgotten.

However, just when Anubis thought he had won...

An ancient evil from the starry sky descended.

It was at this moment that Anubis learned why the gods were constantly at war, and it was at this moment that Anubis learned why the Ennead had been defeated—not because they hadn't tried hard enough, nor because they weren't strong enough, but simply because some beings in the stars didn't want to see them become powerful.

"They want our world to be at war year after year, they want our world to be torn apart... so that we can't unite, let alone fight them."

However, even if Anubis realized this, it was still meaningless. He didn't even have time to organize any decent counterattack before the chaos descending from the stars had already slaughtered all the power in his hands.

Even Anubis, the god of death, could only retreat into the underworld.

Until, time passed and the world changed.

"As for you, my successor, although I don't yet know which faction you belong to, whether you are a visitor from some starry sky, or a new generation of strongmen born on this land... but none of that matters. When you take over the position of God of Death, it is equivalent to taking over my enemy."

"Those heretical demons in the starry sky will not allow this world even the slightest chance to restore peace, and now that you have this possibility, you will inevitably be hunted down by them."

"Please forgive me for using this method to force you into this position. It is indeed a bit underhanded to pull you into this position without any discussion, but this world needs hope and it needs you to stand up."

"Of course, you might wonder why I didn't survive until now if I was able to preserve the information... Indeed, that's a good question. After all, no matter how you look at it, this is my war, the war I should fight."

"But I can't win."

"The enemies that threaten this world, those heretical gods in the starry sky, they have always been watching me. They know exactly how I will act... My every move, my thoughts, are almost transparent to them."

"But you are different."

"Perhaps you were once watched by them just like I was, but my power will bring you new possibilities. You will have the opportunity to use my power, along with your own understanding, to do things that the heretical gods could not have imagined."

"Go do the things I can't do, go do the things only you can do."

"Go and bring new hope to this world."

As he said this, the enormous phantom with the head of a jackal raised its long staff and struck Du Yi.

The enormous staff and the golden scales instantly shattered into countless rays of light, which then surged into Du Yi's body—with the influx of these rays, the last part of the Netherworld finally fell into his grasp.

The phantom image with a jackal's head gradually faded and disappeared.

The entire underworld has also welcomed its new ruler.

Chapter 222 Becoming Bigger and Stronger

After becoming the ruler of the Underworld, Du Yi finally understood what the Underworld truly was.

Although, in the words of the sun god Ujat, this is a space existing in the gap between life and death, Du Yi, as the ruler of the underworld, already knows that this description is very inaccurate. To be more precise, this underworld left behind by the god of death is another space that is based on the material world and is closely connected to the material world.

Simply put, as long as the planet beneath your feet exists, the Netherworld will remain. If the planet beneath your feet is burned to glass, then the Netherworld will naturally disappear along with it.

This space, which is based on the material world, can theoretically be infinitely vast—after all, it is not the material world, so many places are not bound by common sense. But conversely, there are also some things that are not so common sense that constrain the underworld itself.

For example, only spirits can enter the underworld, due to its special nature. Physical bodies from the material world cannot be brought in, which directly caused some of Du Yi's plans to fail from the very beginning.

"So it turns out it can't be used to raise mammoths."

Du Yi was quite disappointed when he realized this, as he had originally thought that the Netherworld might be of some use.

Although it can't be used to raise mammoths, the underworld still has other uses.

Like the ability that Du Yi just obtained, which is the power of life and death reincarnation in the Death God's power, as long as he can find the corresponding soul in the underworld, he can bring the corresponding person back to life in the material world—and it's not just people, even non-humans can be resurrected, as long as Du Yi can find the corresponding soul.

"Then it seems there's some explanation."

Du Yi commented on this function, saying that being able to revive mammoths was the best thing ever. In fact, this meant that as long as he could find the souls of mammoths, he wouldn't even need to search for the Ignivas. He could revive a batch of mammoths himself and then start artificial breeding.

If only he could find the souls of those mammoths.

This is also the most troublesome part.

Because the Underworld was in such a state of disrepair over the years, and there were few believers of the God of Death in the material world, the soul-guiding mechanism that should have been functioning smoothly had long since malfunctioned. Although some souls would occasionally wander here, they would either sink directly into the dark clouds in the sky and enter eternal slumber, or they would be swallowed whole by the Beast of Sin, Amit, and become nourishment for the entire Underworld.

Simply put, the Underworld is currently an empty shell; apart from Du Yi, the new generation of Grim Reaper, there is nothing else capable of doing the work.

"Wait a minute?"

Du Yi felt that he had noticed a blind spot.

Based on the information Anubis left in his mind, the Underworld that was left to him was indeed an empty shell. But on the other hand, could he find some manpower himself to fill this empty shell?

"Anyway, I can't really stay here forever..."

With this in mind, Du Yi's consciousness began to scan the remaining available manpower in the Underworld.

Forget about Ujat, the sun god; this eagle-headed man still has a great use for him. The position of the new energy grill is far more important than his position in the underworld. However, the chosen champion Elias, who is currently carrying Ujat on his back, can still be used.

So Du Yi didn't consult with Elias and directly gave him the position of guide. The pure power of death fell on Elias, leaving Elias completely stunned.

"No, this, I..."

Feeling the new power flowing through his body, even though Elias had seen many grand occasions, he was speechless for a moment.

"I am the chosen champion of the God of Courage, I can't possibly convert to the God of Death, this..."

"Here you go, take it."

Du Yi, however, had his own understanding.

"It doesn't interfere with either side. No matter which battlefield you go to or which powerful enemy you challenge, you still have to kill people, right? Doesn't that mean you're essentially bringing my soul here?"

"This……"

Elias was about to say something when he realized that there seemed to be nothing wrong with this logic.

Not only is there nothing wrong with it, but the whole logic is also exceptionally smooth—as the chosen champion of the God of Courage, he is destined to fight everywhere, and the more brutal the battle, the more he can prove his courage.

In the course of the fight, it is common for people to die. The souls of the dead are indeed of little use to him. Exchanging them for this power of death seems like a reasonable option.

"But...you need to think it through, we might not be on the same path."

Elias's expression was somewhat subtle.

“I heard what that God of Death said. He actually dared to wage war against the gods above the stars… Although I do acknowledge the strength of this God of Death, he probably underestimates the power above the stars.”

As for what came next, Elias didn't say it too bluntly, but for someone of his status, saying it to this extent was already quite appropriate.

After all, he himself was the chosen champion of the god of courage.

In other words, if this ancient serpent truly intends to take the place of the God of Death, then he, along with the God of Courage behind him, will also be the serpent's enemy.

But at that moment, Du Yi spoke again.

"I didn't ask you to change your letter. I just said that when you have time, you can help me get some business and boost my sales performance."

Du Yi offered his own explanation.

"Just treat it as a part-time job; it won't affect your daily life anyway."

Everything seems to be fine, at least for now.

After a moment's thought, Elias accepted this ability without resistance, considering it a trophy from conquering the warp.

Yes, even if it's power given by the enemy, so what? Power is power. It's already been placed in front of us, so why not accept it?

If one resists receiving power because of their identity, that is a sign of cowardice and a lack of courage.

Elias felt he had enough courage and ability to control this power from the opposing god.

"And then, it's you guys."

After completing the recruitment of the first temporary worker, Du Yi turned his attention to the phantom of the three giant beasts.

"Do you have anything to say?"

Du Yi scanned the three giant beasts.

"This isn't the first time you've fallen into my hands. You should be mentally prepared for your fate, right?"

Chapter 223 Your Snake God is Back

The blue-faced giant lion, the six-tusked giant elephant, and the golden-winged giant roc—this wasn't the first time these three giant beasts had fallen into Du Yi's hands.

The last time was a long time ago. These three giant beasts promised to help him tame the mammoth and saber-toothed tiger, but then ran away without a word. However, Du Yi didn't pay much attention to these three giant beasts at the time, so it wasn't a big deal.

But now, upon meeting again, these three giant beasts are secretly plotting to kill each other.

This is extremely egregious.

It was at this moment that Du Yi finally understood why some people always said that killing them directly was too lenient—just like now, he could have simply erased the spirits of these three giant beasts, but clearly, such a radical approach was far less effective than the heinous acts of these three giant beasts.

So after thinking for a moment, Du Yi assigned positions to the three giant beasts.

The Beast of Sin, Amit, of the Underworld, is the monster with the head of a crocodile. Although it looks like a monster, it is actually part of the entire Underworld. As the Underworld itself has fallen into disrepair over the years, the Beast of Sin, which should have been majestic, has also been damaged. A large chunk of the flesh on its head has been gone, and even the bones are exposed.

As the only officially designated employee in the entire underworld, Amit naturally needs corresponding maintenance and upkeep.

And this heavy burden naturally fell on the heads of the three giant beasts.

They are responsible for the daily cleaning of the Beast of Sin, including washing its fur and cleaning its teeth. Of course, the job of cleaning up its poop is also the responsibility of the three of them. If no sinner's soul appears for too long, causing the Beast of Sin to become hungry, then the three of them must cut their own spiritual bodies to ensure that the Beast of Sin does not go hungry.

"have you understood?"

As Du Yi finished speaking, the three giant beasts still looked fearful, but the Sin-Eating Beast Amit had already poked out its crocodile head and kept nodding, indicating that it had completely understood.

Immediately afterwards, the enormous monster with the head of a crocodile snatched away the spirits of the three giant beasts in one gulp and carried them back to the depths of the underworld.

Clearly, this sin-devouring beast couldn't wait to use its three newly acquired toys.

Now that Du Yi has obtained everything from the Underworld, it's time for him to return.

"So, have I forgotten something?"

Du Yi felt like he had overlooked something, but there was an even more important problem facing him right now.

That is, how to get back.

"All we need to do is put the separated part of the soul back into the body."

The question posed by the ancient serpent in front of him was far too basic, but considering that the other party really didn't understand these things, the Chosen Champion Elias casually gave a brief explanation.

"It's like pouring water back into a glass..."

It's impossible to pour spilled water back into the cup, but it's perfectly logical to reintegrate the separated consciousness into the body—because the two have never truly been separated; it's just that a part of it has temporarily entered the subspace.

Just like when swimming, half of your body is submerged in the water while the other half remains on the surface, this so-called return is simply the reunification of the body that was in two different mediums.

"As for why it's called 'returning to one place,' it's mainly because everyone's experience of this is different. Some people feel that returning to the material world is like leaving the water, while others feel that returning to the material world is like returning to the water..."

At this moment, Elias used an extremely precise way of speaking, and Du Yi could also feel that he was using relatively accurate descriptions to prevent his perception from being confused—this also made him look at this chosen champion with higher regard, after all, he himself knew that after accepting the position of the God of Death, he and this chosen champion were already on opposing sides.

However, just as he generously granted a portion of the authority of death so that Elias wouldn't leave empty-handed, this chosen champion also had no intention of tripping him up in such a trivial matter.