In a world resembling an ancient landscape painting, "Swish—!!" A spatial rift appeared, and the tip of a sword emerged from it.
The blade sliced downward, expanding the rift. Hades, clad in his lifeless grey six-winged underworld armor, stepped out. Surveying his surroundings, he remarked:
"So, this is the Netherworld?"
The Netherworld: heretic gods call it the boundary between life and immortality. It is known as the Netherworld in Japan, the Nether Realm or Underworld in China, the Spirit World in Persia, the Ideal Realm in Greece, and the Astral Realm in England. It is also called the Spirit Realm, the Fairy Realm, the Mental Realm, the World of Thought, the Soul World, the God Slayer Reincarnation Space, the Non-Realistic Domain, the void land between the mortal and divine realms, and the world in the gap of Yomotsu Hirasaka. It is a world situated between the domain of life and the domain of immortality, an Alternate Dimension where spirit and astral bodies are more significant than physical matter. It is a place that records everything that has happened since the birth of the universe and all possibilities of what will happen in the future. It is a vast world composed of disconnected Alternate Dimensions or barrier collections without any intersection, possessing countless independent spaces connected like a spider's web. Each space changes according to the preference of its ruler, who can even alter the world itself. However, no matter how a god uses their power, the scope of damage is limited to the space where the god resides.
Hades walked forward, and soon a Japanese-style wooden shrine appeared before him. Seeing this, Hades stepped up the stairs and pushed open the door. Inside sat three people; from their expressions, it was clear they had been waiting for a long time.
The first was an old man holding a sake cup, with a rugged appearance and dark skin, wearing a tattered white kimono. He was referred to by the History Compilation Committee as the Honorable Old Man, and he called himself Susanoo, a graduate from the ranks of the "heretic gods."
The second person had parched skin, completely devoid of real flesh as if it had all peeled away. He was a Sokushinbutsu, someone who had escaped the shackles of the flesh at the end of enduring suffering and approached immortality. He was the mummy-like Tenkai Sojo (the Black-Robed Dharma Master).
The third was a peerless beauty wearing a brightly colored Jūnihitoe, the attire of a noble princess from the Heian period. Her pupils were a clear glassy color, her hair was flaxen, and her skin was smooth ivory. Her carved, lovely beauty far surpassed that of the Japanese people; she was Sita, the wife of the hero Rama, the protagonist of the ramayana.
Seeing this, Hades went straight forward and sat on the last side of the square arrangement.
Then, with a wave of his right hand, various delicacies appeared before everyone: Puffer Whale Sashimi and its fin sake, Sky Vegetable Salad, Jewel Meat steaks, Sweet and Smooth Cola, BB Popcorn, rainbow fruit juice, and more.
"Please, the three of you," Hades said, gesturing with his hand.
"..." Seeing that Hades had no hostile intent, the three of them picked up their chopsticks and began to eat.
"Mmm, mmm! Delicious! This is a delicacy rarely seen even in the divine realm~!" Susanoo praised after taking a bite of the Puffer Whale Sashimi. He then followed it with a cup of Puffer Whale fin sake, an expression of bliss immediately appearing on his face.
Crunch—!!
Tenkai Sojo bit into a Sky Cucumber, which instantly burst with a large amount of moisture, restoring the proper luster to his parched skin. He then tried other Sky Vegetables, all with excellent effects.
After Sita ate the Jewel Meat steak, her whole body radiated light, as if all her divine power as an Earth Mother Goddess had erupted. After taking a sip of the rainbow fruit juice, her expression looked as if she had fallen into a fairyland.
Meanwhile, Hades sat to the side drinking Sweet and Smooth Cola, watching their interesting reactions.
After eating for a while, Susanoo's expression suddenly turned serious. He looked at Hades and said, "Speak, Hades, King of the Underworld. What are you doing here? It shouldn't be just for a meal with us."
"Hand that monkey over to me to deal with," Hades said, cutting straight to the point.
The monkey Hades spoke of was actually The Great Sage, Equal to Heaven, The Monkey King, the incarnation of monkeys and the protector of dragons. His signature was his ever-changing transformation arts; he was proficient in divine immortal arts and was a god with infinite supernatural power. Although he possessed the nature of a'Steel' War God, he was also a god skilled in incantations. He was a hybrid god formed by a collection of elements and divinity other than that of a sword god. He was different from the gods who inherited the purest lineage of'Steel,' not being as pure, but possessing a more complex divine nature.
He was bound by the divine power of Tosho Daigongen, which was gathered from sanctuaries across Japan by the most expert sorcery of the Tiantai sect monks. Even if he went on a rampage outside, he would eventually return here to accept the seal. This mechanism of the West Heaven Palace was formed by the wisdom of the Ancients (the mortal successors of the Netherworld residents).
To Hades, a descendant of the Yan and Huang Emperors, this was simply an insult to the title of Great Sage, Equal to Heaven. Not only was he trapped by the sorcery named "Bimawen," but he was even controlled by the Eastern Seas (Japan), so Hades wanted to eliminate him as soon as possible.
Upon hearing Hades's words, the expression on Susanoo's face instantly became somewhat awkward. Holding his sake cup, he said with feigned difficulty:
"Hades, you saying that makes things very difficult for me."
"Lord Hades, you came all the way from the Underworld to the Netherworld just for this?" Tenkai Sojo asked Hades in a raspy voice.
"Why are you doing this?" Sita said, looking toward Hades.
Hades put down the cup in his hand and formed a hand seal with his right hand.
Swish—!!
The Hades Sword tore through the air, its sharp blade resting against Susanoo's neck, while Tenkai Sojo and Sita were pinned in place by Hades's terrifying Cosmos.
A cold light flashed in Hades's eyes as he looked at Susanoo again. "I'll ask you one more time: hand that monkey over to me."
Cold sweat poured down Susanoo's face. Hades's strength was terrifying beyond his imagination; this move was practically the God of Death holding his scythe to his throat.
"Fine, fine... I will have someone from the West Heaven Palace lead the way for you..." Susanoo said tremulously, the Hades Sword still at his neck.
Hades did not lower his sword because of this, but said coldly, "No need. You just worry about evacuating the people. I don't want a swarm of ghosts flooding into the Underworld."
With that, Hades stood up and turned to leave.
When Hades closed the door and left, the Hades Sword at Susanoo's neck, as well as the restrictions on Sita and Tenkai Sojo, were all lifted.
"Haa, haa—!!" Once Hades had left the Netherworld, the three of them immediately propped themselves up with their hands on the ground, gasping for fresh air.
"What a terrifying fellow. Even scarier than when my big sister gets angry," Susanoo said with a hint of schadenfreude.
Sita and Tenkai Sojo did not answer Susanoo; their ability to endure was far inferior to that of Susanoo, a god of'Steel'.
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