Thea was about to collapse from exhaustion. She really didn't have the energy to pursue. Diana, however, gave Steppenwolf one more spear thrust at the end—at least partly avenging Earth-Two's Wonder Woman.
Diana supported Thea as they flew out of the soul sea. Superman and the other heroes watched from the periphery—without divinity, they couldn't enter such a place.
Facing Superman's expectant gaze, Diana raised her voice. "We won!"
Her shout echoed across the land. Actually, when the Dark Lord retreated, all intelligent beings sensed it—the heavy weight pressing on their hearts vanished. Even the dullest person knew what that meant.
"We won!"
"Long live humanity! Long live freedom!"
"Long live Atlantis!"
The coalition forces of different races all cheered. With the big bosses deciding the outcome, their battles could end too.
Apokolips had less than ten million foot soldiers remaining, all fleeing through Boom Tube portals. The coalition pursued briefly before stopping their attacks. The entire battlefield fell silent. Many soldiers collapsed to the ground—some kissing the earth, grateful to be alive; others wailing over fallen comrades.
More than a hundred sirens had been born in the soul sea. Though each generation was weaker than the last, their overall level still exceeded ordinary humans. Physically immune, with soul-song enchantment—any one of them could serve as a second-tier villain on Earth.
"Thea, are you alright?" This anxious voice naturally belonged to her brother Oliver.
"I'm fine, just a bit tired..." She wasn't pretending—she really was about to pass out. Her body was exhausted, her spirit drained, and her divine power nearly bottomed out.
Looking back at the soul sea, she sighed. It had consumed thirty percent of her divine power. Unfortunately, now mixed with Diana's power and Darkseid's energy, she couldn't take it back.
Landing on the ground, they looked back at the distant battlefield shrouded in black mist and gray fog. The heroes were somewhat speechless. Thea's soul sea had been colorless and transparent before. Now this vast expanse of black looked utterly evil.
"This was all Darkseid's doing!" The young woman had no shame, immediately pinning the blame on the Dark Lord.
Everyone nodded. This aligned with mainstream values. They automatically interpreted the golden lightning in the clouds as Thea, while the sky-covering black fog was naturally Darkseid.
Justice was so subtle, evil so powerful! This thought crossed their minds, strengthening their resolve to fight against evil.
Though exhausted, the heroes couldn't rest yet. Flash still needed help. By the time Thea and the others flew over, Harley Quinn had been riding Barry around the New Continent for over ten laps and was practically falling asleep.
Though Amazo was formidable, he could only simulate one ability at a time. Surrounded by a group, he was quickly bound tight by Diana. Batman arrived and rewrote its core programming. This massive bomb created by humanity was finally pacified.
Treating the wounded, cleaning the battlefield—these tasks didn't need the heroes' help.
However, as the White House representative, Thea received a preliminary casualty report. One helicarrier had been shot down—Superman had flown to catch it at the critical moment, so personnel losses weren't too severe. The other four all had minor damage.
Nineteen giant mechs were completely destroyed, with no surviving pilots. The remaining mechs all had varying degrees of damage.
Human soldiers: 150,000 dead, over 700,000 wounded. Atlanteans: 70,000 dead. Amazon warriors: 31 dead. The Minotaurs and Death Knights also had varying casualties.
The Lantern Corps, which had independently held back a million enemies at the rear, also suffered heavy losses. Four Green Lanterns were killed, along with seven Yellow Lanterns and seven Indigo Tribe members.
"They were all warriors." Thea patted Diana's shoulder. The warrior goddess knelt on the ground before her—the thirty-one fallen were all her sisters, including two of Hippolyta's personal guards who'd watched her grow up.
"We'll send them back to Themyscira for burial later. But first, we need to return to New Genesis. Highfather's battle is even more intense, and we should at least make an appearance." Thea kept her voice very low on that last sentence.
"Bekka." She called out loudly.
"Legion Commander!" Blonde Bekka was covered in wounds. Seeing Thea, she quickly bowed in greeting. Her legion commander could defeat Darkseid's avatar—she had to show respect!
"I know everyone's suffered heavy casualties, but we need to immediately reinforce New Genesis. The battle at Highfather's location is extremely intense."
This wasn't false. The battle with the New Continent and New Genesis had started simultaneously—Apokolips was fighting on two fronts. If Highfather's side fell, defeating two avatars would be meaningless. The young woman had thoroughly offended Darkseid and had to go check things out.
The New Genesis warriors learned they'd become the decisive force and were all excited, disregarding their severe injuries and declaring they'd die on the charge if necessary.
Thea and Diana each left fragile avatars behind to handle matters, then led the New Genesis army through a Boom Tube back to New Genesis.
The usually serene New Genesis now looked like a chaotic hive. Countless people were running—messengers, those helping the severely wounded retreat, and more holding loved ones' bodies while wailing in anguish.
"Huh? Anna? You're back!"
"Aunt Eliza, how's the battle going?"
Everyone asked acquaintances around them about the current situation.
Thea gazed across the battlefield. The entire situation was clear at a glance.
Her brow gradually relaxed. Not bad—Highfather had the upper hand. Darkseid's divine power had been divided with at least thirty percent taken by the avatar. Though the fight looked evenly matched, he was actually burning through power faster.
As for the other battlefields, none looked optimistic. "Going dark makes you three times stronger" wasn't just talk—Apokolips' New Gods really could suppress New Genesis' forces.
Thea automatically spotted an old acquaintance—Steppenwolf. Their eyes met across the distance, and he quickly looked away.
"Heh, that guy won't recover for decades." Diana had also spotted Steppenwolf, commenting quietly.
"Everyone hold on a bit longer! Victory is at hand!" Thea put on a show, drawing her holy sword and leading the charge. Diana followed close behind, with the remaining New Genesis soldiers howling like madmen as they rushed into battle.
"Steppenwolf? When did you get back?" Granny Goodness was fighting Barda. Both were evenly matched. Seeing Thea leading the charge, she suddenly realized something and turned to see Steppenwolf, who'd returned early and was planning to coast.
Nobody here was a good person. They were willing to fight favorable battles but nobody wanted to tackle hard targets.
"Steppenwolf, I let you slip away earlier, but you stop right there!" Thea started shouting from far away.
At his current lowest-ever power level, Steppenwolf didn't dare fight her. Without thinking, he turned and ran.
Thea was putting on a strong front despite her weakness. Her power still exceeded these New Gods', but Apokolips couldn't gauge her depth. Seeing Steppenwolf flee, they were all cunning enough to follow his lead without hesitation, scattering in all directions.
Darkseid's true body glanced at Thea once, then stepped away from the battlefield with a single stride. Down thirty percent of his divine power, he couldn't beat Highfather. The avatar's injuries needed treatment—or at the very least, he needed to recover that portion of divine power urgently.
The young woman waited until he was completely gone before giving him a sidelong glance, muttering quietly, "Fat bastard, what are you glaring at?"
"We won!" Nobody knew who roared across the vast battlefield, but the previously evenly matched sides finally reached a turning point. Apokolips began a complete retreat across the entire line.