Nobody knows how to be a villain better than me.

However, these elite guards stationed in the interstellar city mountain range were not to be trifled with. They immediately roared and raised their silver shields, engaging each other.

As the ether flowed, streaks of light flickered and floated, connecting in front to form a large, constantly operating magical barrier.

Immediately, amidst the clanging of metal, the incoming arrows and javelins were deflected.

The heroes' pupils contracted sharply, and their faces turned grim.

These prepared steel boxes are now even more difficult to deal with.

"Humph!"

As the Olympian soldiers, who had formed a defensive formation, were about to rush into the hall, a cold, loud shout rang out. A long armor-piercing weapon, one and a half meters long, made entirely of bronze, with a four-sided arrowhead, stirred up a gale in its path and, with a sharp whistling sound that almost pierced the eardrums of ordinary people, slammed into the center of the Olympian shield formation.

"boom!"

The violent explosion shook and roared, shattering the magical barrier formed by the ten Olympian soldiers, along with their own shields and armor.

The three core shield bearers were the first to be torn to pieces, with pink bits of flesh and white broken bones flying everywhere, and colorful organs raining down on the ground, walls, and even the bodies of both allies and enemies.

After the strike, which was like a missile hitting the ground, all eyes turned to Hercules on the high platform, where he had once again nocked an armor-piercing arrow and drawn his bronze bow. The chaotic battlefield was instantly quelled.

"Cough cough..."

At this moment, Samael looked at the scene created by releasing Hercules with satisfaction. After clearing his throat a few times to draw the attention of both sides to him, he twirled the dagger-shaped magical artifact between his fingers and smiled as he hovered the blade over Triton's vital parts.

"Listen up, you people outside! You've been threatened! The hostage is in my hands. If you want him to live, lay down your weapons, stop resisting, and surrender. I will guarantee your personal safety!"

Unfortunately, the scene was eerily silent, and no one understood the essence of the shouting.

"Uh, it seems that won't work. Okay, the terms are still negotiable."

However, don't stand so close. My hands tend to shake, and if I accidentally dislocate Prince Triton's arms or legs, it will be difficult for everyone to explain.

"How about this, I suggest you take a step back and let's sort this out. Maybe it's a misunderstanding?"

Samael blinked and smiled, his tone gentle, but the lightning-shaped dagger in his hand pressed down with his fingers, the blade slowly piercing into Triton's arm, and bright red blood seeped from the wound.

The Olympian soldiers felt a chill run down their spines and exchanged bewildered glances. Given the deeply ingrained class order represented by bloodline and status in Atlantis, they instinctively wavered, fearing that their prince might be killed.

"What's there to talk about! You've defiled the offerings and delayed the sea god's festival. Even if I die, my father will avenge me when he returns! You won't be leaving!"

Triton's face was contorted with rage, his tone filled with determination and anger.

As the mermaid prince struggled violently, the cuts on his body grew deeper and deeper. The Olympian soldiers around him immediately put away their guns and retreated without hesitation.

Grandpa, you're not afraid of death, but we are!

If His Majesty Poseidon returns seeking revenge, he will not only seek out these outsiders, but also slaughter us along the way!

All we needed to do was eliminate these outsiders who surfaced from the Eye of the Tide in the open sea.

If you want to force them to reveal that matter, just leave one or two key people alive. Why did you have to lead them to Olympus? It's pointless. Why try to capture them alive?

If the Sea God Festival goes wrong, we will die; if the secrets of Atlantis are exposed, we will die too. They had no reason to live from the moment they stepped into this place!

Feeling passive and controlled by others, the Olympian soldiers cursed under their breath and complained about their commander, who was all talk and no action.

Once the surrounding soldiers had retreated a hundred paces away like a tide, Samael slightly withdrew the strange, curved dagger.

Little Medea, who followed closely behind, waved her staff and raised her hand to heal Triton's injuries.

The ancient snake's eyes showed approval, and the little girl blushed, a hint of joy appearing in her eyes.

Speaking of which, this little gadget that can nullify the Triton Aether Barrier was a magical artifact specially created by Medea at her behest.

That's right, this thing is the prototype of the future [Symbol of All Laws].

Samael then gathered his thoughts, looked around, and his gaze fell upon the faint, cold glints hidden in different corners. He narrowed his eyes, leaned close to the hostage's ear, and spoke with a friendly expression.

"Your Highness, is there some misunderstanding between us?"

"Misunderstanding! Ha, do you remember that little girl you met in the Stormy Seas? Someone on your side tampered with her, causing the Sea God Festival to be delayed. Those who break taboos must die!"

"The offerings you mentioned, could they be...?"

“That’s right, her name is Rhodes, and she’s the key to the Sea God’s Ceremony. It seems this offering isn’t very honest; she actually ran away outside, left behind a sea chart, and found you lackeys of the Masses’ Mountain to help her escape and sabotage the Father God’s thousand-year plan! Now that you’re here, none of you will leave!”

That's it!

The Argonauts understood in their eyes, their expressions somber.

"If I said this was a misunderstanding, would you believe me?"

Samael sighed and asked helplessly, but Triton just sneered and remained silent.

"That means there's nothing to talk about. Fine, it seems we're stuck taking the blame for today."

"Then what are we waiting for? Please lead the way, Your Highness. If we don't rescue that mermaid girl and do something, wouldn't it be a shame to die?"

The ancient serpent raised the [Charm of Breaking All Laws], poked it forward, and carried Triton out of the hall.

Damn it, they just want to kill us without saying a word. Do they think we're easy to bully? Let's do it!

The Argonauts, having suffered an undeserved calamity and developing a fondness for the young guide, were further enraged by the relentless pressure from the Atlanteans. They grabbed their weapons, surrounded Samael and the hostage Triton, and prepared to cause a ruckus.

Chapter 219 No More Pretending, I'm Laying the Truth Down! (2/2)

On the vast and ethereal Corridor of the Machine Gods, the Argonauts, arrayed in formation, advanced forward, shields in hand and spears at their sides.

With Triton, the son of the sea god, being taken hostage, the Olympian soldiers along the way had to retreat again and again.

Having arrived at the end of the corridor without incident, Circe and Medea, after receiving feedback through their perception magic, nodded slightly to indicate that the road ahead was safe.

As a criminal gang with extensive experience in causing trouble, the Argonauts tacitly divided into small teams, climbing the spiral staircase one by one, leaving the most important members of Mount Ares, who were holding hostages, in the middle.

Following Triton's reply, we passed through the Mecha Corridor, ascended the spiral staircase, and arrived at the top of Olympus, the interstellar mountain city, at the ring-shaped building—the Crown of Cronus.

Rhodes, the little mermaid who was sacrificed, was imprisoned at the innermost altar.

With the hostages leading the way, the Argonauts quickly broke through layers of obstacles and reached the Great Altar.

During this process, there were many guardians who wanted to take risks and act rashly, but with the support of the three top archers, Atalanta, the moon goddess, and Hercules, those who were overconfident all died under the elusive arrows.

The self-regulating devices and Olympian soldiers guarding the route, seeing this, were even more wary of Triton's safety and could only watch helplessly as this group of bandits swaggered open the bronze door and entered the great altar, which was a sacred forbidden area.

As the bronze gate closed again, the threat from outside was temporarily blocked. The group, who had been on edge the whole way, finally breathed a sigh of relief, turned around and looked around, and finally fixed their gaze on the center with strange expressions.

Above the open-air dome is a huge openwork star disk, which draws down thousands of starlight and condenses it into a light prison that confines the sacrifices.

Below, a magic array with intricate divine runes is inscribed, nested and fitting seamlessly with the area sealed by the light prison.

Of course, all of this is normal.

The problem is that mermaids and whales are not the same species at all!

The Argonauts stared blankly at the Leviathan whale in the light prison, its body curled into a ball, its skin tinged with a grayish-black hue, as if frozen into a sculpture. They looked at each other in bewilderment, and when they came to their senses, they couldn't help but feel a little frantic.

Our little guide, our big mermaid!

"Wait, look, this looks like the Leviathan whale she rode!"

After observing for a moment, Prince Calydon, who was the first to react, subconsciously frowned and spoke.

The Argonauts, drawn by the sight, examined it closely and immediately recognized its identity from the familiar patterns, outline, and size of the Leviathan whale.

Yes, that's the one!

And it tastes good…

Some of the Argonauts, whose memories were stirred, couldn't help but have strange thoughts pop into their minds and subconsciously swallowed.

We've gone off-topic.

What are we doing again? Right, looking for that child.

Since all her whales are here, where is she?

Filled with suspicion, the crowd looked around and, following the hostages' gaze, their eyes fell once more on the Leviathan whale, which had rolled into a sphere.

Could it be...

Snapped!

Just then, a barely audible snap of the fingers stirred up an invisible tremor.

Click!

Immediately, the layer of gray-black hard shell that had formed on the skin of the Leviathan whale in the light prison cracked and peeled off.

This sea beast, which occupied most of the altar, was like a snake that had just emerged from hibernation. It shook its head and tail, stretched its body, and after a while, opened its huge mouth and spat out a stream of salty seawater.

A tiny figure, enveloped in a layer of pale blue water film, was clearly visible within it.

puff…

As this protective barrier crumbled, the little mermaid Rhodes yawned and opened her sleepy eyes. She looked around groggily and saw the Argonauts surrounding her, staring intently at her. She felt embarrassed and her little face was full of astonishment.

"You...you've come here."

How can you sleep like this? Little girl, you need to be more careful!

The Argonauts, who were inexplicably caught up in the situation, were both amused and exasperated. In the end, Orpheus, who was skilled in bard epics, squatted in front of the light prison and whispered to the little mermaid about their predicament and current situation.

Amidst the girl's exclamations of surprise and her bewildered, distressed, and embarrassed expressions, everyone couldn't help but chuckle. The perilous situation of being surrounded was actually alleviated by a significant reduction in the oppressive atmosphere.

Unfortunately, the light prison was indestructible, seemingly integrated with the entire high altar and even the surrounding structure, the Crown of Cronus.

The Argonauts took turns attacking; the weaker ones couldn't break through the defenses, while the stronger ones easily wiped out the entire altar, along with the little mermaid inside.

However, Rhodes, though imprisoned, was a natural optimist, and none of this diminished her interest in chattering with the Argonauts.

The goddesses of the moon, Atalanta, Caenis, Circe, and other women couldn't resist going up to tease this charming and impulsive little girl.

At this moment, Samael, the habitual bandit leader in charge of taking hostages, leaned against the sea-patterned pillar outside the great altar, staring at the mournful Leviathan whale from afar, his eyes half-open and half-closed in a mischievous manner.

Deep within the sea beast's pupils, a blood-red shadow resembling an ouroboros emerged.

Okay, let’s get to the showdown.

He had to admit that the Atlanteans hadn't made a mistake; the blame really did fall on him.

In fact, when he parted ways with the young guide in the stormy sea, Samael had a vague sense of foreboding because of the abnormalities in the area, such as the wind pillars, whirlpools, and crashing rocks.

Therefore, just to be on the safe side, he had prepared a little trick beforehand inside the Leviathan whale that he had recreated (see the end of Chapter 194 for details) to ensure the safety of the little mermaid Rhodes.

Logically speaking, with this Sea King familiar with the Stormy Seas leading the way, they should have passed through smoothly.

However, problems arose frequently along the way, and the safe routes that the Sea Kings had developed were no longer safe.

It seems that someone, some underlying force, is preventing the Argo from entering, and now it appears that their purpose is mostly to conceal the existence of Atlantis.

As the impetuous girl was leaving, she thought there was something wrong with the nautical chart and, fearing that her people who had surfaced would be in danger, hurriedly ran back to report the news.

Little did they know that this force, while hindering the Argo, also put the little mermaid Rhodes in danger.

Therefore, Samael worried when they parted that her people might not have any good intentions toward Lot.

Fortunately, he had left a protective divine seal inside the Leviathan whale, which would activate immediately if he sensed any danger to the little girl.

After all, from an official standpoint, they might need this girl to "enthusiastically" lead the way to the Paradise Island they're looking for.

Personally, he found this friendly young guide to be a good fit, and it was only natural for him to help out.

As expected, when the girl returned and was about to be offered as a sacrifice and placed on the high altar, the Leviathan whale became an impenetrable barrier, successfully delaying the Argonauts until they returned and ventured deep into the Eye of the Tide.

However, this also leads to a problem.

He inadvertently disrupted the Atlantean sea god's festival, which was shrouded in mystery, and successfully outmaneuvered his future ally, Poseidon.

But it's really nothing. As long as I don't admit it, who will know I did it?

Samael muttered to himself, sorted out his thoughts, and glanced listlessly at his side.

"Your Highness, if you don't want the entire Great Altar to be destroyed, release them."

Triton snorted coldly, hesitated for a moment, stepped forward, raised his hand, and twisted his fingers and palm against the star chart on the dome, sometimes facing forward and sometimes backward.

With a creaking sound as the mechanism turned, the star chart split and closed, revealing the entire sky overhead, and the light prison went out.

The little mermaid who stepped out of the magic circle of the great altar was immediately cuddled and hugged by the group of heroines like a little pet.

Samael glanced at Triton, who had a sour face, with ill intent, stretched his back, and muttered to himself with pleasure.

Alright, the prison break was a success. Now all that's left is to get to the port and escape on the Argo...

boom!