Chapter 121 Tartarus
Time goes back to not long ago.
The collision on the earth has just begun, the Earth Mother has not arrived yet, the sacred mountain is still intact, and the sky and the earth have not been shaken.
But in the underworld, Ryan's incarnation carried the things he had prepared in advance and stepped out of the spiritual world with the essence left by Kronos.
In fact, as early as half a day ago, when the burning flames of [Death of the God King] burned down the part of Kronos that belonged to the "kingship", the change of the era had already begun. As for the later burning of the remaining part of the former God King, it had little to do with the change of the era. It was just Kronos's personal matter as the God of Time and Space.
Using the past to fight the present, using the God King to fight the God King, this is the value of [Death of the God King], not just a simple artifact painting. If Ryan just wanted a few artifact-level paintings, he could actually create several at will, but only this masterpiece, which was also born at the turn of the era, had the same special "symbol" after recording special content.
With its assistance, the power of the God King was stripped off and transferred to Ryan's body. However, even if the law has been deceived as much as possible, it is still difficult for this power to remain in the body of the outside world for too long.
Of course, Ryan does not need it to exist for too long. This period of time is enough for him to do what he wants to do. Testing the rules of the world, increasing the restrictions on the power of the gods in the next era, and granting the spirit world the "legal" right to open to the world, these things that are difficult to do as the Lord of the Spirit World can be easily accomplished by him in the name of the God King.
In comparison, things like endorsing the rooting of the magic network in the world can only be regarded as a side issue. After all, even without the authority of the God King, the rules of the world will most likely not reject the magic network.
Sorting out energy and sorting out chaos are exactly what the world prefers. If it were not for the fact that the source of the magic network came from the spirit world, and in the past thousands of years, it had gradually become mixed with the power of the spirit world, I am afraid that Hecate would probably be rewarded by the law for this like Themis once was.
Of course, she probably doesn't have this opportunity now.
In addition, apart from the business, Ryan actually wants to take this opportunity to experience the fun of suppressing the gods with force. Otherwise, he could have done it all secretly, instead of fighting the gods alone like now.
In fact, every person who uses his brain has the idea of solving all problems with force in his heart.
Ryan didn't stay for long as his mind turned. The original body has its own affairs, and the incarnation has its own tasks. In one step, he and Kronos appeared in a familiar place.
The boundary between the underworld and the abyss, the portal between the present world and the outside world. The rules of chaos are revealed here, upside down, left and right, everything seems incomprehensible.
This is the most terrifying interface in the outside world, the collection left over from the beginning of creation, the source of all chaos, the bottomless abyss, Tartarus.
Ryan just witnessed Zeus and his two brothers entering and leaving here not long ago, and Kronos actually knew something about it. After all, as an eternal prison, even if it has not been used so far, the God King can't help but want to know about it.
Especially the curse of the Father before his death, which also foreshadowed that this was supposed to be his destined ending.
"Your future new home looks pretty good."
Ryan made a joke casually, and he was not very opposed to the chaotic rules here.
Unlike the gods in the world, the spiritual world is a coexistence of chaos and order. Although Ryan himself prefers the latter, he also accepts the former.
So the spiritual world is getting more and more chaotic from the outside to the inside, but the core of the Sinai Mountain is the anchor of everything.
"If it was before, I would definitely not accept it, after all, my divine body and priesthood are incompatible with this place."
"But now, only the innate immortal essence is left, and I don't feel disgusted with this place."
Comparing the feelings before and now, Kronos had to admit that the influence of the world on the gods has never been cut off. Even if they themselves don't realize it, the priesthood is actually changing their minds imperceptibly.
However, after stripping away everything that the present world has given him, this influence was also isolated. If Chaos is a whole, then the present world is only the most important part of Him, not all of it. So standing here at this moment, the former God King has no extra sense of rejection.
Since the creation of the world, the true will of Chaos has only been manifested in three places. The first time was the warning that affected the world when the spiritual world was opened up, the second time was the birth of the immortal essence of the gods, and the last time was suspected to have occurred at the beginning of creation when the original gods were not yet born.
In addition, whether it is the birth of the gods, the authority of the God King, or even the priesthood and body of the gods, they are all products below the order of the present world.
Outside the present world, like Ryan's spiritual world, although the multifaceted crystal that symbolizes authority is also called priesthood, it is not strictly speaking a structure, so sometimes it is also called Godhead by its creator.
"Let's go, don't waste time. The turn of the era, just a little while."
With a smile, Ryan walked into the boundary between the abyss and the underworld first.
"Since you think the time is not enough, can't you fight for a while longer?"
Kronos said this, but he followed closely. Although he also wanted his rebellious son to receive a longer beating, he knew very well that the war of gods on earth at this moment was just a superficial fight between the gods.
Hidden behind is what kind of sanctions will be brought after half of the great personality vents his power in the world.
The Earth Mother herself is part of the world, and she rarely shows her power directly, so she was just cut by a blunt knife. But whether other beings will cause more direct reactions by doing this is the focus of this test.
Now, with the authority of the God King that has not yet dissipated as a cover, all the consequences of the "test" can be paid by the authority of the God King. The faster it fades, the more intense the reaction of the world.
And when this power disappears completely, Ryan's body must leave. After all, Chaos today does not exist to fight against the world itself.
······
A distortion of time and space, the next moment, Ryan and Kronos came to this strange world one after another.
Crossing this "portal", the connection with the underworld is cut off. Even if the two retreated the same way, they could no longer go back to where they came from.
Now, Ryan can still rely on the connection between the incarnation and the spiritual world to find the right path, just as Zeus relies on the weak power of the God King to go back and forth to the imprisonment of the giants. But once you go deep into it, whether this connection can be maintained is uncertain.
However, the connection may be disconnected, but the synchronization of thoughts will not. Even Tartarus cannot prevent the spiritual master from exercising his authority.
"Go further in, the power outside is too weak. If you really choose to convert here, I'm afraid it will take thousands of years to finish."
After observing the environment, Ryan said.
"The power here is a little thinner, but in Tartarus, how do you distinguish between 'inside' and 'outside'?"
Somewhat puzzled, after all, Kronos actually came here, so he asked directly.
There may be a gap between him and Ryan's original body, but it is not worse than an incarnation. What he can't perceive, the other party shouldn't be able to perceive either.
"Do you remember the source of chaos I took away when Themis made the law?"
Stretching out his hand, a snake-shaped mist emerged in his palm. Kronos recognized it at a glance. It was the manifestation of the source of chaos.
"I have some understanding of chaos. One of the preparations I made for this trip was to take some of the roots that became this incarnation. Therefore, it is really difficult for me to detect the subtle changes in the abyss, but if it is a big difference in strength, I can still judge it."
After distinguishing the direction, Ryan led the way.
"Follow me. Once the distance is widened, I am not sure if I can find you again. At that time, you can only rely on luck."
Without saying a word, the former God King followed Ryan. Now that he only has the immortal essence left, once he leaves Ryan's surroundings, he can't even affect the surrounding environment.
Strictly speaking, his current state is only one step away from eternal sleep. It's just because of the previous agreement that the spiritual power has been keeping him awake.
In the abyss, the two slowly moved forward. Whether it was a curve, a sideways movement, or a circle in place, there was no logic in the behavior. But as time passed, even if there was only a little essence left, Kronos could still feel that the surrounding aura was getting heavier.
However, as the two of them went deeper and deeper, at a certain moment, Ryan suddenly stopped.
"What's wrong?"
Although from the surrounding aura, this place was already deep into Tartarus' body, Kronos could be sure that this place was still far from the center.
"Nothing, I just found something strange."
With a frown, Ryan stretched out his hand and gently moved in the chaos around him.
The next moment, the space fluctuated, and a strange and changing rune appeared in his hand.
On the surface, this rune was a bit like the one Ryan had left in Delphi, both of which had a sense of changing and uncertain reality. But if you distinguish carefully, you can feel the huge difference between the two.
The one Ryan left behind was not only much higher in essence, but also closer to the source of "text", and it was more like between order and disorder. By observing it, you can gain a lot of conceptual knowledge. Even from the perspective of witchcraft, this rune representing the Lord of the Spirit World can be used as an object of meditation.
But the one in his hand at this moment is different. Perhaps because it was born in the abyss, Ryan felt that the only meaning of its existence was that it had no meaning.
Of course, if "name" can be considered a meaning, then it still has meaning. It's just that there is no other life or object in Tartarus at all, so that the only value of "naming" is also deprived.
"Text? Will there be such a thing in the abyss?"
Seeing this, Kronos was also surprised. There are innate divine texts in the world, the original spiritual texts created by Ryan, the water texts created by Metis, and the ordinary texts taught to humans without extraordinary power, but the premise is that there are objects to use.
There were gods first, and then there were innate divine texts. There were the Lord of the Spirit World and spiritual life first, and then there were the original spiritual texts. There were many ocean goddesses first, and then the water texts came into being. And if there were no humans, there would be no ordinary texts.
But there was nothing in the abyss, no sign of any life. The only thing that had ever existed was three giants who were prisoners. Kronos really couldn't imagine what the meaning of the birth of writing was here.
It can't be that the abyss is showing itself, but Tartarus is the only primitive god without personification, and he has no ability to "see" at all.
"Who knows. The abyss is one of the few places I know nothing about."
"I won't be surprised by anything that happens here. That's why I use "adventure" to describe this trip, after all, I am even prepared for the abyss to suddenly come alive."
After looking at the text in his hand for a while, Ryan summoned a few more for comparison. But in the end, he still couldn't see anything.
"Keep going, I hope to find the answer in it. This trip to the abyss is really a big gain."
Putting them aside, Ryan didn't plan to dwell on it. At the core of the abyss, it seems that the result can be obtained.
Even if there is no answer there, when Kronos completes the transformation, he can tell himself the answer, if he has not been confused by the power of chaos at that time.
"Okay."
Nodding, Kronos was also very interested in this matter.
After all, Ryan's foundation is in the spirit world, and he only pays attention to the abyss for the purpose of exploration and prevention. But for the former God King, every unknown here needs to be understood clearly, so as not to cause greater trouble inadvertently in the future.
Throwing away the text in his hand, the two continued to set off. As they continued to go deeper, the surrounding void became darker and darker, and sometimes even showed a chaotic color. A wisp of messy source power wandered around, and Ryan tried to touch it, but finally gave up.
These residual source powers that were freely dissipated in the heart of the abyss were difficult to use. They were the residues of the beginning of creation and the debris after the collapse of the chaotic void. If they were taken out and digested with the volume of the entire spirit world, it would indeed be possible, but it would not make much sense.
On the one hand, it was difficult to collect, and on the other hand, it was too time-consuming. Ryan could probably judge that even if he spent ten thousand years, the power obtained from it would be negligible.
Even Chaos, whose size is larger than that of the spirit world, chose to expel them into Tartarus' body, allowing it to consume bit by bit over the long years. Ryan had time to spend his energy on them, so it would be more valuable to think about how to improve the inner circulation of the spirit world.
Continuing to go deeper, the chaotic colors around him and the airflow mixed with a trace of source power became more and more dense. In this case, Ryan had to release his strength to resist the surrounding environment.
At a certain moment, when the two of them once again avoided a wave formed by the gathering of airflow, Ryan stopped again.
Standing here, he can already see the core of the abyss. Ryan's expression was a little surprised and enlightened. All his previous doubts were answered, but he now didn't know whether he should be disappointed or surprised.
"What's wrong again?"
He had been a little impatient for a long time, but was interrupted again. Kronos also showed a little impatient, but he still held it down.
"Well"
After hesitating for a while, Ryan organized his words. He was also thinking about how to deal with it, but in the end, he slowly spoke.
"Although this is the abyss, with the help of the chaotic source power that constitutes this incarnation, I can still sense a certain range. I have said this before."
"Yes, so we are almost there. Have you seen the core of Tartarus?"
Kronos asked with a relieved look.
"Yes, but I have good news and bad news to tell you now. Which one do you want to listen to first?"
The tone was a little regretful, but Ryan did not intend to deceive the other party. After all, if there was no Kronos, he himself would not be able to get this benefit unless he gave up everything and accepted the transformation of the abyss first and became His dependent.
But this is impossible. Even if Kronos got it, he could get some of it. After all, this was not in the previous agreement, and the other party also needed his help.
"Bad news?"
On the side, Kronos's expression stagnated. He obviously misunderstood something. He has now abandoned everything. Just like Ryan's previous evaluation of him, the former God King bet everything on the gambling table, waiting for the moment of reversal. At this moment, any bad news is something he never wants to hear.
".Then let's talk about the bad news first."
Take a deep breath, the former God King said.
No matter what, he has no room for regret. No matter what the result is, he can only accept it.
"The bad news is that our previous plan may not be realized."
"I thought there was no life in the abyss. As long as you can come here and accept the assimilation of the abyss with the identity of a god who has lost all the gifts of the world, then you can become the first god here. You are to the abyss as the original god is to the world."
"But now there is an outsider who has replaced your position. Without the concept of "first", even if you continue to execute, your gains will be greatly reduced."
Observing more carefully, Ryan's expression is more regretful. Unfortunately, he is only an incarnation now, but no one knows what is in the abyss, and it is reasonable that he has not made preparations in advance.
As for waiting for the main body to come in and explore later, there is no point. The opportunity is fleeting, and now it seems that he has to reluctantly become a shareholder who receives dividends.
"."
"What about the good news?"
After a long silence, Kronos thought Ryan was feeling sorry for himself. He tried to accept this result, after all, his luck never seemed to be very good.
Now, it was just another blow. But even if he lost the concept of "first", he could still become the Abyss Demon God, but it was far from what he expected.
However, in front of him, Ryan gave an answer beyond his expectations.
"The good news I'm talking about is-"
Shaking his head gently, Ryan looked at the former God King beside him. It must be said that maybe it was a good turn of events, and the other party was going to get a bargain this time.
Of course, along with the bargain, there was also a powerful enough enemy.
"I opened up the spirit world, you know that, right?"
"Yes, so?"
"So, have you ever thought about opening up a world that may be smaller and weaker, but can grow and develop without being affected by the real world?"
I was afraid of explaining too much before, but seeing that many people understood the last chapter, many people didn't understand it. That's because my explanation was not enough. After all, novels are for most people. I'll just write more details in the next few chapters. In fact, as an author, I am not very opposed to writing explanations, and many authors are eager to write more. If there are still people who don't understand, a book friend's comment at the end of the last chapter explained it more clearly. I pinned it to the top, you can go and take a look. Finally, don't think too much about the collapse of the sacred mountain. This mountain is not comparable to Zhou Mountain, and it is not the one in the protagonist's spirit world. If it collapses, there will be an impact, but it won't be too big. It just adds some legends to future generations and lays a small foundation for the rationalization of myths. I feel that one of the troubles of writing myths is that I have to find explanations for a lot of self-contradictory places.