"Only an idiot would go?"
The faces of the four demon gods shifted slightly, but they were already used to the Fifth Demon God's constant insults.
The situation was clear: aside from the Fifth Demon God, the other demon gods were all willing to leave this ss behind and head to the Heavenly Realm.
"I want to go."
"So do I."
|| ||
Even the Archdemon hesitated for a mont before admitting, "I want to go too."
Maxen sneered coldly. "Dream on."
Escape? Hah! Not a chance!
The Archdemon's debts were dead debts, and they had to be settled.
Apollo listened to their responses and continued,
"Once you're in the Heavenly Realm, after so ti, you might still die... or worse, wish you were dead."
He was always honest.
With Apollo's strength, killing a demon god was easy. Forcing them into the Heavenly Realm? Also easy.
But Apollo was a man of principle.
He had his own way of doing things.
He believed in laying out the risks beforehand. What happened after that? Well, that wasn't his concern.
"Die?"
The Second Demon God chuckled.
He had just been killed by Shadow Three not long ago.
For these demon gods, their lives had never been easy. Living was already a form of tornt.
At first, the demon race thought humanity was weak and insignificant, not worth worrying about.
But when Morpheus rose to power, the demon gods began to sense that sothing was wrong.
Soon after, Morpheus died, and the demon gods relaxed for a few years.
Then Ares ca. That man, with a single sword, tore through the Abyss.
From that mont on, the demon gods of the Abyss lived under the shadow of humanity's Supre Beings.
When Ares was gravely injured, Apollo arrived.
For years, Apollo stayed within the Tower of Truth, his presence seemingly diminished to the lowest point.
But when he finally acted, three demon gods fell in quick succession.
In front of Apollo, demon gods were utterly powerless.
Even now, the demon gods struggled to comprehend just how strong Apollo truly was.
Their lives were already worse than death, with no hope in sight.
Even if it ant imprisonnt, they wanted a change of scenery.
Watching this unfold, Joseph couldn't help but feel both amused and exasperated.
Three hundred years ago, the demon race had been so arrogant and domineering.
They killed humans without hesitation, stole human lands without a second thought. And now?
The demon gods stood in line like prisoners, trembling before Apollo, not daring to speak too loudly.
For the demon gods, going to the Heavenly Realm ant there was still a chance to grow stronger. Naturally, they agreed.
All except for the Fifth Demon God, that lunatic.
Apollo turned to the Fifth Demon God and asked again,
"Are you sure you don't want to go?"
The Fifth Demon God frowned. Apollo was one of the few beings he respected.
For once, he didn't respond with his usual insolence. Instead, he asked,
"Why? Should I go?"
Apollo thought for a mont, then shook his head.
"No, you shouldn't."
The scene fell silent again.
"Third bro."
Seeing that the situation was about to be resolved, Mike finally couldn't hold back and spoke
up.
"Shadow Nine did a great service for humanity. Before he left, he specifically asked to look after the Ninth Demon God if I ever had the chance."
Hearing this, the Ninth Demon God, who had been smiling faintly, suddenly froze.
He already had a bad feeling about what was coming.
He didn't understand!
Why, at such a critical mont, would Thor suddenly intervene?!
The Fifth Demon God, standing on his moral high ground, began pointing fingers,
"When the Progenitor of Ghosts attacked your Ninth Abyss, Shadow Nine's intention was for you to hold the line. But what did you do? You idiot thought Shadow Nine was gone, so you just stood by and did nothing."
The Ninth Demon God's face darkened. He had indeed hesitated back then, but he hadn't expected the cost to be so steep!
The other demon gods all gave the Fifth Demon God a thumbs-up.
After hearing Mike's words, Apollo nodded and turned to the Ninth Demon God.
"You stay."
On the way back from sending the demon gods off, Mike tried to comfort the Ninth Demon
God.
"Don't overthink it. The Heavenly Realm... isn't necessarily a good place to be."
Mike ant it.
If it weren't for Shadow Nine's request, Mike wouldn't have bothered to speak up for the Ninth Demon God at all.
For Mike, if he wanted to deal with the Ninth Demon God, he didn't need Apollo's help.
He could handle it himself!
The Ninth Demon God, however, began to sense sothing deeper.
Mike had been very clear: the Ninth Demon God had done a service for humanity and deserved
so consideration.
So might think Mike was being sarcastic, speaking in reverse.
In reality, Mike was being sarcastic, speaking in reverse.
But Apollo didn't understand sarcasm!
Whatever Mike said, Apollo took at face value.
If Mike said the Ninth Demon God had done a service for humanity, then he deserved a
reward.
Staying behind was the reward.
Mike shifted the conversation.
"Looking at it this way, we're even now. Once you stay behind, you'll have no further ties to
humanity."
The Ninth Demon God: ???
The Ninth Demon God asked cautiously,
"What... what would I need to do to continue serving humanity?"
"Let's not talk about service just yet."
Mike pulled out a stack of IOUS and said seriously,
"Do you rember the money you borrowed from the goblins? All the IOUS are here. When do
you plan to pay it back?"
The Ninth Demon God froze again.
He never expected to be blindsided by debts he had been dodging for three centuries!
If it were the goblins themselves coming to collect, he would have simply refused to pay.
But who could have guessed that these IOUS would end up in Thor's hands?!
That changed everything.
Owing the goblins money and owing Thor money were two entirely different things!
The Ninth Demon God subtly hinted that he had no money.
"If there's anything in the Ninth Abyss you like, feel free to take it."
Mike, unfazed, pulled out a contract.
"Fine. Then sign this slave contract."
The Ninth Demon God: ...
He had always known Thor was blunt, but he hadn't realized Thor was this blunt.
Taking the slave contract, the Ninth Demon God didn't sign it imdiately. Instead, he said
tactfully,
"I'll wait for Shadow Nine to return and ask for his opinion."
Mike remained calm and nodded in agreent.
"Sure. Just so you know, I only care about the money. Whether a demon god lives or dies
doesn't really matter to ."
[Congratulations! You've obtained the Ninth Demon God's Slave Contract x1.]
After sending the demon gods back, Mike returned to Earth.
Whenever he acted on Earth, he was careful about the details-like wearing a mask or blurring
his face to keep his identity hidden.
When Mike returned, he saw Joseph preparing a barbecue feast.
After eating his fill, Mike walked to the lakeside and sat down next to the fish basket.
He casually plucked a blade of grass and stuck it in his mouth.
"Bro, what's next?"
Apollo stared at the lake and replied seriously,
"We wait."
Mike asked again, "Wait for what?"
Apollo answered plainly,
"For my instructor to climb that mountain."
In Apollo's plan, Shadow Nine would reach the summit and retrieve what he needed.
Then Apollo would act, confronting the Supre Demon God.
After that, Mike would ascend to beco a true Supre Being.
As for when Ares would make his move?
Apollo didn't bother calculating.
Predicting the actions of humanity's Supre Beings was pointless.
They were beings who truly controlled their own fate.
For them, divination was a aningless concept.
Their fate was whatever they decided it to be.
It just so happened that they all made the sa choice: to fight the Supre Demon God to
the bitter end.
Satisfied with the answer, Mike looked at the lake and asked curiously,
"What are you doing?"
Apollo replied,
"Fishing."
After a while, Apollo put away his bamboo rod.
He had finished fishing.
Apollo began to think about what he should do next.
After so thought, he said seriously,
"I should find myself a student."
Apollo wanted to take on a disciple? Mike hadn't expected Apollo to co up with such an idea.
But after thinking about it, Mike quickly understood.
Shadow Nine had a disciple, and Apollo was Shadow Nine's disciple.
So it made sense for Apollo to have a disciple too.
If Mike were still weak, he might have shalessly begged Apollo to take him as a student.
But Mike was humanity's fourth-generation potential Supre Being!
How could he do such a thing?
---
anwhile, Maxen, who had been eavesdropping, hesitated. Should he volunteer himself?
In terms of talent, Maxen was undoubtedly the best below the Supre Beings.
The problem was... Maxen wasn't very good at being a disciple.
He was much better at being a son.
Maxen imdiately fell into a dilemma.
Before he could make up his mind, he looked toward the lake-only to find that Apollo and
Mike were already gone.
Happy Tis Bakery.
The diligent shopkeeper Michael was still smashing the store.
He had even called his student Jas over to help with the renovations and the smashing.
Their relationship was unique-not just a typical instructor-student dynamic, but more like a proper master and apprentice bond.
As the two worked busily, a middle-aged man suddenly appeared in the store.
Mike glanced around, slightly surprised.
He hadn't expected Apollo's chosen disciple to be this guy.
When Apollo appeared, Michael imdiately noticed him, and his expression froze.
Michael knew a lot about humanity's Supre Beings he had collected plenty of information on them.
He had even felt Apollo's gaze before.
That gaze, that oppressive presence-it was unmistakable!
At that mont, Michael was imnsely grateful for his habit of wearing adult diapers.
Apollo looked at Michael and casually asked,
"Do you want to be my disciple?"
Michael: ???
He was stunned, unable to respond for a long ti.
After what felt like an eternity, he timidly nodded.
"I... I do."
"Good. You're my disciple now."
With that, Apollo turned and left, with Thor following behind.
He didn't teach Michael anything.
The reason was simple: what Michael could learn, Apollo didn't need to teach.
And what Michael couldn't learn, Apollo wouldn't bother teaching.
After Apollo left, Michael stood there in a daze, still wearing his hard hat.
Jas whispered cautiously,
"Instructor Michael, are we still smashing the store?"
"Smash! Smash!"
Michael pointed at himself and said,
"Hit on the head first. I need to make sure I'm not dreaming."
Jas hesitated for a mont but eventually followed Michael's instructions, giving him a
light tap.
Michael felt nothing and scolded,
"Harder!"
Jas gritted his teeth and swung harder.
Caught off guard, Michael was sent flying, landing in a pile of rubble.
Jas quickly ran over and pulled him out.
"Jas," Michael said, laughing and crying at the sa ti, flailing his arms like a
madman.
"I've finally made sothing of myself!"
For the first ti, Michael felt a true sense of security among humanity.
Like a seedling, he had finally taken root.
After a long while, Michael cald down.
He patted Jas on the shoulder and said seriously,
"From now on, we must never disgrace the Supre Beings!"
A question mark appeared above Jas's head. Supre Beings?
What Supre Beings?
Instructor Michael... has he gone mad?
While Apollo and Mike wandered, Ares appeared outside the Supre Abyssal.
He watched as Shadow Nine and Calderon climbed the snowy mountain and shook his head
slightly.
Ares's gaze passed over the mountain, focusing on the deeper darkness beyond a terrifying,
black, and malevolent will curled up in the depths.
Behind Ares, a group of sword servants, who had been recording his every move, suddenly
stopped.
Sensing sothing, they revealed their true forms.
Nine long swords floated behind Ares, radiating Arcane Vitality.
Ares gazed down at the Supre Abyssal and said softly,
"It's my turn now."
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