Nobody knows how to be a villain better than me.

"You have a grudge against Zeus? So that's your reason for helping me."

"..."

"Don't worry, I've helped you. In return, I'll find a way to destroy the [pattern] woven by the spinning wheel of fate and remove the hidden dangers from you, but in return..."

As they passed each other, a wisp of purplish-red blood flowed from between Samael's fingers, quietly seeping into Hecate's extremely unstable divine body. The life force originating from Tiamat temporarily alleviated the illusory feeling in Hecate's body.

Beside the goddess of the underworld moon, the ancient serpent, its head bowed, grew increasingly cold, its gaze sinister.

"...Don't lay a hand on my people! Otherwise, I'll send you straight back to the void. If you're hoping Thanatos and the other two will help you revive, they won't survive either!"

Hecate frowned slightly, glancing at the two followers outside the barrier who were completely unaware of what was happening and were looking at her with adoration. The antagonism that had been building up in her heart gradually faded away with peace.

"I have no interest in living a miserable life trapped in human bodies. However, they have been blessed by my gods. Once I can no longer maintain my existence, the dissipated power will automatically flow into their bodies. The side effect is that they will have a certain synchronization with the former Hecate. But even so, this is entirely beneficial to them. Don't think of gods as so despicable!"

Upon hearing this, Samael smiled ambiguously, neither confirming nor denying, but his vigilance secretly eased considerably.

Perhaps I'm just being a bit paranoid, seeing everyone as if they have malicious intentions.

In fact, Diodorus's "Historical Books" records that the sorceress Circe and the witch Medea were both daughters of Hecate. Even if the three were not actually related by blood, the two girls were undoubtedly the inheritors of Hecate's power and magic.

After feeling somewhat relieved, Samael was just about to form an alliance with Hecate to fight against Zeus, and also to go through the motions of swearing an oath to Styx, the goddess of oaths.

But suddenly, the sky over the eternally spring-like Pure Land of Bliss darkened abruptly, and leaden-gray clouds gathered in the air, forming a swirling vortex.

"Whoosh!"

A black cross-shaped spear whistled through the air, snapping the vegetation in its path, and its blade pierced through the shoulder of a figure.

A domineering force dragged a middle-aged man with a sinister face from the nursery, sliding him rapidly backward until he was brutally pinned to an ancient tree, only then did the momentum stop.

The black light, imbued with a sinister aura, emanated from the inner wall of the Pure Land of Bliss. It arrived in an instant, grabbing the man's neck with a single hand, its snake-like eyes filled with murderous intent.

"What are you doing?!"

"Rot with me... No one will leave here alive..."

The middle-aged man appeared deranged, his eyes filled with venom.

In an instant, four jet-black beams of light, one large and three small, descended from the leaden-gray clouds, and a surging aura of death spread out, causing all the flowers and plants along the way to wither.

The ancient serpent's pupils contracted sharply, its divine intent like a drawn sword, slashing forward and scattering the surging gray mist, revealing several figures within.

The middle-aged male god at the head of the group had an ordinary face, unlike the handsome and majestic Titan gods. The magnificent helmet on his head was engraved with dark divine patterns, which caused the surrounding space to be slightly distorted and his figure to be faintly transparent. The black sheathed longsword in his hand drew grooves in the ground and dragged forward.

Behind them, three people dressed in black armor and robes stood guard, forming a triangular formation.

"Ouch!"

At the same time, a fierce roar came from the side of the middle-aged man. The hellhound with three heads, surrounded by black hellfire, and with a ferocious face, bared its teeth and howled at the uninvited guest who had broken into the underworld. Its slightly off-key voice seemed to have an indescribable joy.

"This is forbidden territory for the living; you shouldn't be here..."

The middle-aged man's eyes were dark as he gripped the hilt of his sword tightly. The blade, accompanied by a clear, cold ringing sound, revealed its sharpness inch by inch.

The crowd in the Pure Land of Bliss, who were busy explaining their purpose to the heroic spirits, suddenly changed their expressions, and their pupils contracted sharply.

Hades, the god of the underworld, the three judges of the underworld, and Cerberus!

That bastard just now, I don't know how he used it, was sending a message to Hades!

Chapter 240 On the Self-Cultivation of Actors (3/4)

"Tantaros, this guy also got into Elysium? That's ridiculous!"

Following his instincts, Sisyphus instinctively moved closer to Samael to enhance his own safety, but when he saw the sinister man being held in the hands of the ancient serpent, his expression was one of astonishment.

Holy crap! This cruel guy in history who boiled his own son and used a human flesh feast to mock Zeus was pardoned and allowed to enjoy bliss in the Pure Land. Why should I have to push stones in that godforsaken place?

Sisyphus snapped out of his daze and immediately began to feel indignant and resentful.

Legend has it that Tantalus, due to his arrogance and cruelty, held a feast of human flesh, thus offending the gods.

After the gods saw through his trickery, they cast him into hell, where he suffered greatly and was tormented.

The specific punishment was that he stood in the middle of a deep pool, with waves rolling beneath his chin. He endured a burning thirst, unable to drink a single drop of cool water, even though it was right beside his lips. Whenever he bent down to drink, the water immediately flowed away, leaving him alone on an empty patch of ground, as if a demon had used magic to drain the pool.

At the same time, he was also unbearably hungry. Behind him was the lake shore, where a row of fruit trees grew, laden with fruit, their branches bent low and hanging in front of his forehead. If he just looked up, he could see the juicy pears, bright red apples, fiery red pomegranates, fragrant figs, and lush green olives on the trees.

The fruits seemed to be smiling and beckoning him, but whenever he stood on tiptoe to pick them, a strong wind would blow the branches into the air. Besides enduring these torments, the most terrible pain was the constant fear of death, because a large rock hung above his head, ready to fall and crush him at any moment.

But Tantalus, who was guilty of heinous crimes and should have been tortured, was secretly pardoned and became a resident of Elysium, the land where heroes return to their resting place. This is quite ironic.

"That's because he became a dog, while you always wanted to be a human!"

Samael, noticing Sisyphus's emotional fluctuations, turned around and sneered, succinctly revealing the key point.

Immediately, the ancient serpent's five fingers tightened, and Tantalus, who was pinned to the tree trunk and informing Hades, had his shinbone snapped.

However, Tantalus, whose head was tilted to one side, showed no signs of dying and instead chuckled gloatingly.

"Ho ho ho... His Majesty Zeus has granted me... immortality, and Lord Hades has arrived. Today... all you rebellious gods shall die!"

"Immortality? Is that so?"

Samael drew out his words, and a blazing black-gold flame instantly erupted in his hand.

At first, Tantalus didn't take it seriously, but those dense, thread-like flames seeped into his body through his pores, mouth, and nose, fiercely and brutally pursuing his soul and consciousness, burning them inch by inch.

Meanwhile, under the scorching heat of the Flame of Fate, Tantalus struggled violently in agony, his skin cracking inch by inch to reveal his purplish-brown, rotting flesh and stark white bones. Deathly energy escaped from his mouth, emitting a strong stench of corpses, and even his eyeballs melted away, revealing empty, eerie flames of his soul.

After being blessed and dispelled by the Pure Land of Bliss, Tantalus finally revealed the true nature of his so-called "immortality".

He was nothing more than a living corpse whose soul was imprisoned in a body. Even if Zeus knew how to use such a groveling watchdog, he wouldn't bother to invest much effort or resources in him.

"Aaaaaah! How could this happen? My... immortality... Lord Hades... save me..."

Tantalus felt the excruciating pain of his soul being burned inch by inch, and seeing his true form revealed on his body, he screamed in terror.

"You've lived long enough!"

At this moment, Samael, who had dragged Tantalus off the tree trunk like a dead dog, was cold-faced. The instant his words fell, the dark golden flame of destiny in his hand surged.

hum!

In an instant, Tantalus, engulfed in flames, didn't even have time to scream before his limbs twisted and disintegrated like burnt-out firewood, turning into ashes inch by inch.

Tantalus, the son of Zeus, had been nurtured in Elysium for so long that he should have already ascended to the level of a god.

And then, it was gone in an instant?

Sisyphus swallowed hard, his expression slightly horrified, and quietly distanced himself from the fierce-looking man beside him.

Meanwhile, Hades, who emerged from the dark pillar of light, frowned slightly upon seeing this.

"What you're doing makes it very difficult for me to turn a blind eye..."

"But you still stood by and did nothing, so, shall we talk?"

The ancient serpent brushed off a few wisps of corpse ash from its body with a hint of disgust, then turned around, clapped its hands with a smile, and extended its arms in invitation.

Zeus was indeed careful enough to plant Tantalus as a spy in Elysium.

However, after that initial probing, Samael was certain that only Hades and three judges of the underworld had arrived; Zeus had not received the message.

The most likely answer is that the three bronze walls formed by the fusion of the power of the Olympian gods on the outer perimeter of the underworld, and the three layers of darkness formed by the power of the god of darkness Erebus, cannot be easily penetrated or spied upon even by this wise god-king.

So, the news hasn't leaked yet, and they are safe for now...

"laugh!"

Just as Samael's tense mind began to relax slightly, a black light unfurled before his eyes like a bolt of lightning. The pervasive aura of death instantly extinguished the life force of the flowers, plants, and trees along its path.

when!

In an instant, a sharp, cold glint shot out, the spear moving like a dragon, instantly shattering and scattering the Deathly Nether Sword's light, causing the nearby plants to wither. However, the vast spiritual veins of the Pure Land of Bliss caused them to sprout and grow again in the blink of an eye, and in just a few breaths, the nursery had returned to its original state.

"You seem to have misunderstood. I didn't make a move just now; it's simply because I don't like Tantalus."

Hades lightly wiped the blade of his sword, slowly opened his eyes, his gaze filled with a sinister light, and his tone was low and chilling.

"But that doesn't mean I'll stand with you against my brothers! Humans or gods, the underworld only accepts the souls of the dead, so leave your lives behind!"

Seeing this, Samael sighed regretfully, shook his head helplessly, his eyes flashing, as figures stepped forward from behind.

"That means there's nothing to talk about?"

"Do it!"

Hercules, Atalanta, and the others, who had long been in sync with the ancient serpent to the point of needing no further explanation, leaped forward without hesitation to restrain the three judges of the underworld.

A handsome judge of the underworld with thick eyebrows and large eyes solemnly confronted Hercules. After a few moves, Hercules screamed and flew backward, unable to rise again.

Oh right, according to their positions, this judge of the underworld should be called Rhadamanthus, Hercules' stepfather.

The remaining two judges of the underworld, though not obviously lenient, still faced considerable difficulties under the combined attack of top heroes such as Perseus, Orion, Atalanta, and Circe.

After all, even gods have emotions and desires, let alone these three judges of the underworld who were transformed from humans.

You should know that those imprisoned in the Elysium were all the dead heroes of Greece.

Of the three of them, all were once kings of human city-states. Among these heroic spirits forced to serve the gods, there must have been many of their blood relatives and friends.

Add to that the dog with the stern face pretending to be stupid, Hecate who had long been on the opposite side of Zeus, and the three brothers, Death, Hypnos, and Styx, whose attitudes were ambiguous, Hades' teammates were all traitors.

Seeing this, Samael couldn't help but laugh, a wicked smile spreading across his face.

Chapter 241 The Unveiling of the King's Flush! (4/4)

"Lord Hades, a one-on-one duel, no objections?"

The ancient serpent dragged its spear as it circled Hades, adjusting its attack posture and angle while speaking casually.

"Can…"

Hades pondered for a moment, then nodded. This was the underworld, his home turf. If he could resolve the matter perfectly, the losses here would be minimized. It was worth a try.

Samael grinned, a sly smile spreading across his face, and turned to yell at those behind him.

"Did you hear that? Lord Hades is going to take on all three of us by himself!"

Artemis and Hecate both twitched their cheeks and turned pale.

Hades, who was trying to calm himself down and focus on locking onto the enemy in front of him, was so flustered that he almost lost his composure and started cursing.

laugh!

But just as Hades was momentarily distracted, Samael charged forward, his cross-shaped spear piercing the air.

"boom!"

Coming to his senses, Hades hastily raised his sword to defend himself but was instantly blasted away by the overwhelming force. His lungs trembled violently, and a trickle of blood appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Don't worry, if it's a one-on-one fight, it's a one-on-one fight. Although they're tied to me, and although there will be endless trouble if the news gets out, they will absolutely not interfere, and they will absolutely not shoot you in the back or use magic to ambush you."

Samael charged forward, gun in one hand, and made a smiling promise.

However, even a fool could tell that this wasn't a guarantee at all, but a shameless invitation to join the brawl.

With the advantage of the terrain and his own strength as the King of the Underworld, Hades might be able to fight to a draw. However, because he had to spare some attention to guard against the sudden attacks of the other two main gods, he quickly fell into a disadvantageous position under Samael's aggressive offensive.

boom!

After several exchanges of spear and sword, Hades, whose mind was wavering, was caught off guard by Samael, who struck him with the shaft of his spear and sent him flying.

At this moment, when Hades had exhausted his remaining strength and stood up to look around, he was shocked to find that the three judges of the underworld had all lay flat.

The freed-up Heroic Spirits and the Argonauts looked at him, the King of the Underworld, with ill intent.

hum!

Hades' divine will spread, issuing a call to action, hoping to draw people in to share the burden.

However, Thanatos, the god of death, and Charon, the ferryman of the Styx, remained unresponsive, and even Hypnos, the god of sleep who was supposed to guard Elysium, was nowhere to be found.

A bunch of traitors!

Hades, guessing that his subordinates were likely to betray him, was furious. But at the same time, Hades felt a weight on his body, realizing that the sluggish feeling that had caused him to suffer losses several times was coming back to him.

Hades immediately gritted his teeth and activated the invisibility helmet, removing the suppression of this power of destiny. In the instantaneous sound of air being cut, he raised his sword and slashed upwards.

boom!

As the spear and sword clashed, Hades, who had hastily parried the cross spear, was so shocked by the earth-shattering force that his arms went numb and his body swayed. He had to bend his knees and half-kneel, gripping the sword hilt with both hands and desperately blocking the attack, before he was able to stabilize the downward momentum of the cross spear.