Chapter 25

The overall progression was the same as yesterday.

As the sun slowly rose beyond the horizon, the gates of the Colosseum opened with the sound of trumpets.

Hercules blocked the entrance like a mid-level boss in a game.

And the warriors stomped their feet and banged their shields, chanting my name.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

-Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

-Dianes! Dianes! Dianes!

Unlike yesterday, the fifty young heroes formed a dense formation at the entrance of the Colosseum.

They opened a path in front of me towards the villain blocking the way.

It felt like watching a scene from that Spartan movie I saw in my past life, the solemnity and intensity made my blood boil.

“This is the double boar hunting tactic. Finally, we get to use it against that boar!”

“A boar is caught with another boar…. Is there a more efficient tactic than this? Hey, you over there! Your voice is getting quieter! Louder! Louder!”

– Woooooah!!

…If only it weren’t for the whispers of those two sneaky guys amidst the soldiers’ shouts.

“Um, Tessi? Dianes is looking this way?”

“What do you mean, Jason? There’s no way he could hear our strategy meeting over the cheers of these soldiers…”

Hmm, cute. So cute.

As expected of the Greek heroes famous for their cunning, their relentless methods to capture the legendary boss, Hercules, were truly impressive.

Yes, a strategist should not discriminate between means and methods for the sake of their goal.

However.

It was extremely unpleasant that I became those means and methods.

“…He’s really looking this way?”

“Hey, hey! Why are your voices so low?! Louder! Louder!!”

Although the faces of Theseus and Jason turned ghostly pale when they met my eyes, still…

They eagerly chanted my name, trying hard to pit me against Hercules.

“Such adorable little things.”

I’ll deal with you later.

Using the head of Demon’s Way as a pawn in this theatrical play would cost you dearly.

Anyway, it seemed I had to play along a bit for now.

The sparkling eyes of those hero hopefuls, and the great hero sapling up front, made it impossible to back out.

Above all, I too had been looking forward to a one-on-one with Hercules.

Yesterday, after eliminating Atalanta’s heart demon, I imparted a bit of my realization of the Three Emperors into the empty spot left behind.

At the same time, I was also able to reaffirm my own realization and state.

‘My realization still resides within me.’

The realization I reached in my previous life by transcending the limits of my body, training my mind, and sublimating qi.

That state and enlightenment etched not on the flesh but on the soul still existed within me.

While training in Martial Spirit Cultivation Arts and the secret techniques of the Demon Cult, I subconsciously knew this, but yesterday’s taste of my past life’s martial prowess and state in the mental world confirmed it.

‘I will rise again.’

Somehow, by any means necessary, I must rise again.

This was not a simple need or desire.

It was an instinct.

Like a salmon returning home against rugged rivers.

Like migratory birds heading south against fierce winds.

I naturally had to return to the state I had once reached—the martial prowess I had ascended to.

The thirst that the beauty of the Aegean and the richness of Greece had made me forget

was once again stirred up by the true self I briefly regained in the mental world.

Stronger than the renowned Greek heroes?

Equal in strength to the mythical champions?

Damn, that was only natural.

When did the Great Heavenly Demon, who could topple mountains and dry up rivers, become so modest?

Being secretly content with a mere first-class level, fearing and trembling at the mention of Zeus and Apollo.

Was I unknowingly overwhelmed by the name of gods, by the name of myths?

Born as a human, was it foolish to oppose the gods?

“Nonsense.”

That was not what a demon was.

If the heavens do not permit me and the land rejects me.

I should rightly bring down the heavens, trample them underfoot, and break the land and scatter it into the void.

That was what a demon was.

How could I have forgotten this due to the trivial event of being born in a different body?

However, impatience was forbidden.

A well-built tower couldn’t be toppled even by a thousand years.

A tree with deep roots would stand alone, planning for a millennium, even if the whole forest burned.

The state of my mind and soul had already reached an unfathomable level, achieving an eternal accomplishment, so all that remained was to train this vessel to contain it.

Despite knowing this from the beginning, experiencing my past life’s body even for a moment made my current body feel so stifling that I couldn’t bear it.

It wasn’t a matter of simple physical training.

The evolution of the body that could only be achieved through numerous life-and-death crises and extreme situations.

The moment when blood and flesh splatter, and your breath catches in your throat, making all your instincts sound the alarm.

What I needed most right now was just such an extreme moment.

And fortunately, in this world of myths teeming with gods, monsters, and heroes, I was the greatest in history, and I was facing the so-called great hero.

Suddenly, the surroundings became quiet.

In the middle of the Colosseum, Hercules and I stood facing each other.

“Your eyes have changed.”

“I have something to do.”

“Did something good happen yesterday, by any chance?”

Hercules smirked slyly and glanced at Atalanta behind me.

Well, I did recall old memories thanks to Atalanta, so it wasn’t entirely wrong, but it wasn’t what he was thinking either.

“…Oh? You’re silent. Is it true? Did you really do it?”

However, Hercules, who seemed to take my silence as affirmation, opened his mouth wide in disbelief.

“No, just how strong must the headbutt be for Atalanta to…”

“Hey, isn’t your head filled with too many lewd thoughts?”

Seriously, this guy and the Greeks seem to think with their lower bodies instead of their heads.

Every time, a 19+ conversation would pop out.

“What are you talking about doing to a fainted girl? There was even Asclepius at the clinic.”

“Why? Isn’t that better?”

“What a bastard.”

What did I just hear?

Was this supposed to be the great hero of Greek mythology?

Was the ‘better’ part that Atalanta fainted or that Asclepius was there?

I couldn’t tell. Nor did I ever want to know.

“Enough, shall we start?”

“…Yeah, it’s about time to start.”

With a sinister grin, Hercules pointed the spear he was holding at me.

“Though I’m skilled with other weapons, let’s have some fun with the spear that matched even with Master Chiron.”

“A spear isn’t your main weapon, is it?”

In the myths, I remember Hercules mostly using an olive wood club or a bow, not other weapons.

From the start, he was a great hero whose entire body was a weapon, so he didn’t need any additional arms.

“Oh, how did you know that?”

“You can tell at a glance. It shows that you’ve learned some spear techniques, but your stance isn’t that of a spearman.”

The Greek-style spear techniques I’ve seen typically involved using a shield and spear together as a pair.

Blocking the opponent’s attack with the shield and attacking from a safe distance using the spear’s long reach.

However, if one doesn’t carry a shield, it would be basic to hold the spear with both hands.

But Hercules was swinging the spear with one hand as if it were a club.

“Hehe, that’s right. But since you’re using a spear, wouldn’t it be fair for me to use a spear too?”

“…What?”

Fair?

What did this young, great hero just say?

“So. Since I am using a spear, you should also fight with a spear that you don’t normally use. That sounds fair?”

“That’s right.”

“In other words, if we fought with something other than spears, you would win?”

“For your information, what I’m most confident in is pankration. Despite how I look, I’m incredibly strong.”

“In other words, if I don’t use a spear, I wouldn’t be a match for you at all?”

As the unpleasant feeling crept down my spine and my face slowly hardened, Hercules tilted his head as if puzzled.

“…Hey, hey. I saw how you overwhelmed Atalanta yesterday. But that level is nothing to me.”

With an arrogant certainty and confidence that such martial arts couldn’t even scratch his body, Hercules smirked and continued speaking.

“Despite how I look, I am born of the bloodline of Zeus, the chief god, and raised on the milk of the goddess Hera. If I, who caught the Nemean lion with my bare hands, engage in close combat, whether you wield a spear or a bow, do you think you can stand against me?”

A strong intoxication and confidence in oneself.

Honestly, if it were the mythical Hercules, I could understand.

Since he was born, it has been said that only when the Nemean lion, a powerful beast and child of Typhon, attacked him did he see blood.

No matter who he showed such confidence in front of, it couldn’t be called arrogance.

But only one.

In front of me, Hercules’s confidence was nothing more than arrogance, no less, no more.

I casually put down my spear.

“…..”

“Hey, don’t do that; pick up the spear. No spear blade in the world can leave a scratch on my body. But saying you can’t stand against me with bare hands is a clear fact… Huh?!”

One step.

It was the step needed to enter the space of Hercules, who was confidently standing with his chest out and smiling.

Hercules, who wasn’t even wearing armor and proudly exposed his upper body, was indeed admirable.

A body stronger and harder than any armor in the world.

It was indeed worthy of being called the body of a great hero.

“But, in the end, it’s just a body made of human flesh and blood.”

“Wh-what…?”

In an instant, I penetrated inside, and my five outstretched fingers touched Hercules’s chest.

Hercules, who seemed momentarily flustered, shrugged and smirked again.

“Hey, what are you doing now? No matter how tempting my body is…”

“Shut up and watch your breathing.”

If you make a mistake, you might end up half-crippled today.

-Wooooong!

The qi of the Martial Spirit Cultivation Arts, drawn from my dantian, was concentrated at the tips of my five fingers along with the divine qi.

“…Huh?”

Hercules looked down at me with a bewildered expression, perhaps instinctively realizing something had gone wrong.

But the situation was already over.

“The anguish of the Five Yin destroys the mind.”

In the orthodox martial world, when discussing cultivation, Shaolin’s Muscle-Tendon Changing Classic and Mount Hua’s Purple Righteousness Divine Art were considered the best.

However, in the Heavenly Demon Cult, there existed a rare demonic cultivation that rivaled them.

It was the unique martial art of Jong Wi-geol, the Grandmaster of Cultivation in the Heavenly Demon Cult and the unparalleled master among the Twelve Godly Demons.

The Five Yin Pseudo-Destroying Art was exactly that.

And at this moment, the essence of the Five Yin Pseudo-Destroying Art exploded within the body of the great Greek hero.

“Five Yin Pseudo-Destroying Art – Heaven-Splitting Wave of Anguish.”