Chapter 152 : The wrath of Hades, six thousand years of opportunity!
In Hades's Castle, the air was thick with an unyielding pall of death and silence.
"Lord Hades! I have seen Apollo!"
Hypnos knelt on one knee, his head bowed low, his golden-white robes stained with the golden dust from the outskirts of Olympus, glaringly bright in the dark Underworld.
His voice carried a hint of extreme weariness, barely suppressed, and an undeniable sense of humiliation.
The statue's eyes suddenly snapped open! Two streams of eerie green flame blazed, and a colossal divine power, imbued with coldness and unquestionable authority, descended from above.
"What did he say?"
Hades's voice directly entered Hypnos's ears, like a muffled thunder rolling from the depths of the Underworld.
Hypnos dared not conceal anything, relaying the entire encounter with Apollo, along with Apollo's response, word for word.
Finally, Hypnos concluded.
"Apollo's meaning is that it is not yet his time to act; he wants you to initiate the Eternal Eclipse first."
Hypnos gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice.
"Lord Hades, in my opinion, Apollo intends to wait until all three of our factions are battered and bruised... Only then will he act and seize control of Human Realm."
"This Human Realm, along with our Underworld, will become his stepping stone to the position of God-King."
By the end, Hypnos's voice carried an undisguised hint of humiliation and chill.
As a fellow god, he naturally understood the implications behind Apollo's words.
Apollo's refusal to act now was simply because he didn't want to needlessly expend his own power!
He, a god, though only a subordinate god to Hades, had been dismissed from Olympus like a beggar by Apollo. How could he possibly swallow such an insult?
Boom!
Hades's Castle trembled violently!
Giant stones and rubble from the temple's dome rattled down. The light enveloping the statue was no longer green but had transformed into raging, almost corporeal, deep blue Underworld flames!
The flames twisted the air, emitting an extreme cold that froze souls and a furious rage that incinerated all things.
"A! Po! Llo!!!"
Hades's roar, like the shriek of a billion vengeful spirits, instantly tore through the deathly silent sky of the Underworld.
The Acheron River in Elysium reversed its flow, and the souls in the Eight Prisons, Three Valleys, Ten Trenches, and Four Circles trembled under Hades's divine pressure.
He had sought aid from Apollo, only to be regarded as a stepping stone by him!
The fury of being belittled, manipulated, and treated as a pawn thoroughly ignited Hades's dormant brutality.
The Underworld flames around the statue surged wildly, reflecting the twisted outline of Hades's cold statue, as if threatening to incinerate the temple itself.
"Good! What a brilliant plan to reap the rewards! What a God of Light!"
Hades's voice, like the scraping of Nine Nether ice on eardrums, each word imbued with insane hatred and destructive resolve.
"Since he wants to reap the benefits... then I shall fulfill his wish!"
"Issue my divine decree!"
Hades's voice carried the madness of a desperate gamble.
"When the Nine Stars Alignment occurs, immediately activate the Eternal Eclipse! Completely swallow the sun's radiance, let the eternal night of the Underworld shroud the earth! Let all things wither, and life cease!"
Hypnos and Thanatos quickly tried to dissuade him.
"Lord Hades, please reconsider. Although the Nine Stars Alignment only occurs once every six millennia and is the best time to bring the living beings of the earth into the Underworld, doing so would push the Sanctuary and the Sea Emperor to a dead end, leaving no room for recovery."
Hades sneered.
"Do you think my Underworld is like the Sea Emperor's watery divine realm, where one can come and go as they please?"
"Furthermore, I still have the Wall of Sighs. Since the Age of Myth, no one has ever managed to break through the Wall of Sighs. Athena cannot, and Poseidon cannot either!"
"Let them try to break through; they will naturally come to realize the vast divine might of my Underworld!"
Hypnos and Thanatos's gazes deepened. Indeed, the Nine Stars Alignment, occurring only once every six millennia, was a rare opportunity.
Once missed, they would have to wait another six millennia.
Since ancient times, the Holy War, occurring every 243 years, had always ended in defeat for Hades's side.
Hades could no longer tolerate it. If Athena wished to end the Holy War, why wouldn't Hades!
The prolonged stalemate had caused both gods to lose patience... Hades sneered.
"I want Athena, along with Poseidon, and all the Olympian Gods... to experience the taste of despair together!"
"Let Athena and her Sanctuary struggle and wail in eternal darkness! Let Apollo see that the earth he desires will be a worthless scorched land of death!"
"Go forth, Hypnos, Thanatos!"
"Yes!"
The twin gods of sleep and death, sensing Hades's firm destructive will, no longer hesitated and swiftly retreated as if melting into the shadows.
Inside the temple, only Hades's statue remained, burning fiercely in the blue Underworld flames, about to drag the entire earth into eternal darkness.
At the same time, in the Sanctuary's Star Observation Tower... The current Pope Saga, clad in white robes, his blue hair caressed by starlight.
He was gazing intently at the night sky, his handsome face serene and focused under the starlight, his eyes reflecting the vast cosmic movements.
This was the art of stargazing, a skill a Pope must master.
The myriad stars, originally following their own paths, the points of light symbolizing the nine planets, their trajectories were gradually converging, about to form a straight axis!
Saga's expression gradually became incredibly solemn.
"Nine Stars Alignment..."
Saga uttered the term, considered a grave omen in Sanctuary texts, in a deep voice.
As Pope, he knew better than anyone what this meant.
The texts clearly stated:
On the day of the Nine Stars Alignment, the earth would forever plunge into darkness; only by sealing Hades could this terrifying apocalypse be ended.
"Time... is running out!"
Saga quickly calculated the precise moment of the stellar convergence, an alarm bell ringing in his heart.
Without a moment's hesitation, Saga left the Star Observation Tower and headed towards the temple where the goddess Athena resided.
Meanwhile, Saori Kido, the human incarnation of Athena, the goddess of war and wisdom, stood by the temple window, gazing at the tranquil Sanctuary.
Her delicate brows were slightly furrowed; she seemed to still be processing the consequences of the previous battle where Hades's Castle had vanished and Hades had retreated.
Li Yu's warnings about the threat of the Olympian Gods and the Eternal Eclipse, before his departure, weighed like a massive stone on her heart.
The progress of the Holy War seemed to be completely out of her control, leaving Athena feeling quite helpless.
"Lady Athena, Saga requests an audience!"
Saga's steady voice echoed from outside the hall.
Saori Kido's expression once again became serene.
"Come in, Saga."
Saga's tall figure appeared at the entrance of the goddess's palace. It was late at night, and even as Pope, it was not appropriate for him to enter the goddess's palace.
He knelt on one knee. Saori Kido turned around, her clear gaze falling on Saga's face, keenly catching the deep-seated worry there.
"Saga, what is so urgent?"
Saga raised his head, looking directly into Saori Kido's bright eyes.
"Reporting, Lady Athena! I observed the stars last night, and the omen of the Nine Stars Alignment has appeared! The stellar trajectories are changing dramatically, and the nine stars are converging into a line with an irreversible momentum. This omen perfectly matches the precursor to Hades activating the Eternal Eclipse, as recorded in the ancient texts!"
"How much longer?"
Athena's pupils constricted slightly, and her grip on her staff tightened sharply!
Eternal Eclipse! Hades's most terrifying means of world destruction! A celestial phenomenon that occurs only once every six millennia. Li Yu's warning upon his departure flashed through her mind instantly.
"Hades is about to activate the Eternal Eclipse!"
It was finally coming. Once the Eternal Eclipse appeared, she would have to lead the Saints into the Underworld. The Underworld was vast, with endless territories and many dangerous places; even she would have to proceed with caution.
"According to stellar trajectory calculations, there are less than seven days left until the Nine Stars are fully aligned, triggering the Eternal Eclipse!"
Seven days... Athena exhaled softly. The Eternal Eclipse hung like a Sword of Damocles over the Sanctuary.
The final Holy War, deciding the fate of the earth and the survival of all beings, was imminent.
"Eternal Eclipse... the final Holy War..." Athena's voice carried resolve.
"Issue the order: all Saints prepare! We must stop Hades, no matter the cost!"
"At the same time, send someone to notify Poseidon, requesting assistance. Once the Eternal Eclipse is activated, even his divine realm will fall into decline!"
"Yes, Lady Athena!"
Saori Kido clasped her hands to her chest, silently calling out to Li Yu.
"Li Yu, return to the Sanctuary. I need you..."