Greek Mythology: The Spiritual Dominator

Since the flood destroyed the world, the world has been devastated, and no one knows how many years have passed on the earth.

To God, this is actually not a long time, but to humans, it is already a period of time that is hard to ignore. This is enough for newborns to grow into adults, enough for their migration paths to cross mountains and seas, and enough for mortals to establish new institutions in the process.

But this time, there was no Prometheus to guide them, and the gods also did not interfere in the process. Except for the followers of the Kitchen Goddess who brought the knowledge of the old era under the will of God, the new generation of humans is completely in a state of free growth.

They learned about the existence of gods in this world, and saw those terrifying giant beasts from the west retreating in front of the holy fire; they lamented the greatness of nature and worshiped the sun, moon, and rivers. Although the gods never appeared directly in front of them, mortals There is still a lot of belief and worship in them.

However, this era is not only filled with warmth, but hidden behind it are more primitive disputes and killings. Along the way eastward, the humans who were originally gathered together gradually separated. When they reunited, what they encountered was often not friendly exchanges, but cruel fights.

If you have enough food and clothing, you know the etiquette, and if you have enough food and clothing, you know the honor and disgrace. But without the care of the prophetic god, and without a place suitable for development to settle down, the new generation of human beings often live in precarious days. They will fight each other for food, and will also fight with the human teams who discovered a habitable plain. In this process, a special class emerged among humans.

That was the knowledge that Cohen once passed down among humans. It was a way to refine the blood and increase strength by tempering the body. It was brought to mankind by the believers of Hestia together with the knowledge of the old age, and it also sparked unprecedented sparks in different human tribes during the entire Great Migration.

In Cohen's hands, it was just a summary of the Golden Man King's way of becoming stronger, but although he was the founder of the system, he actually did not explore it in depth. Because of the progress in the realm below the extraordinary (fifth level), even Cohen himself is not sure how to cross it.

Or to be more precise, as the first golden human, his innate talent allowed him to ignore all kinds of problems and gain momentum when he was not paying attention. But when Cohen turned around and wanted to understand, he was already too far away. High, it’s hard to experience firsthand the feeling of ordinary human beings making progress step by step.

Except for Cohen, in the hands of bronze humans, it is also just a dispensable ability. In the past on the Aurora Plains, humans did not fight with each other. This method of strengthening themselves could only be used on beasts. However, humans at that time did not have the need to expand externally. They were more interested in fighting than fighting. Keen to experience avoidance. Therefore, the short period of more than ten years has not brought any real development to this extraordinary road. It is still rough and basic. Without Cohen, it would even be more like a joke.

But things are different now. In the fourth generation of humans, faced with threats during migration, wars with their own kind, and an environment of survival of the fittest, the survival instinct of human beings as living beings was stimulated, and different sparks of wisdom emerged from friction and collision. Many of them died in the process, and most of the remaining ones only achieved very little. But after all, some people with extraordinary talents have made different achievements. They have walked out on the original extraordinary path that belongs to human beings. direction.

And these people also gained support because of their power and became the leaders of different human teams. And after finding a suitable place to live, with the support of everyone, they completed the change in status - from leaders to kings.

However, in this era, whether it is a king or a person in a high position, responsibilities are still greater than rights. Although they have a status much higher than ordinary people, they must also have abilities far beyond others. Even their descendants often need to use force and merit to win status, rather than being born extraordinary.

So as the years went by, little traces of human beings gradually spread into the distance. Step by step, they spread human existence throughout the east of the earth.

Of course, at the same time, a huge city built with the help of the Goddess of the Magic Network also stood in the southeast of the earth. A certain migrating team all the way north finally stopped, and even new species began to be born underground.

However, at this time, they had no contact or communication with each other. Maybe when everything starts, you need to wait for another opportunity to appear.

This opportunity can be called Typhon, the founding of Athens, or the birth of Mycenae. But anyway, it won't be far away.

······

East Sea, Lemnos Island.

The waves rolled on the sea, but became quiet as they approached the island. This is not a normal phenomenon, but it does not surprise anyone who sees it, because since more than ten years ago, this island, which was originally a place with changeable ocean currents and unpredictable climate, has become more prosperous.

On its surface, there is a large plain in the east, rugged rocky land in the west, and a towering peak in the center with thick smoke billowing from it. In the sea, such islands are not uncommon, but in recent years, there have been traces of human activities here.

They sow seeds there, build cities there, and even have their own objects of worship and belief, which makes this originally ordinary island become a bit more civilized.

"Ding--"

"Ding--"

"Boom————"

Sparks flew everywhere, and the forging hammer and iron materials collided with each other, making a loud noise. In an open space, an ugly and short forger showed off his skills, and near him, hundreds of humans surrounded him.

Unlike those gods, or even the nymphs who serve the gods, there is no ridicule or contempt for the appearance of the forger among these humans. On the contrary, they all showed reverence and excitement, learning the forging techniques shown to them by the people in front of them.

This is the ocean. Unlike on land, humans living here have never experienced migration and do not need to face threats to other life. Sea beasts don't like land, and the masters of the sea don't want those imbecile beings to harm the newly reproducing humans. Therefore, large islands are often occupied exclusively by humans, who build cities for fishing or farming on them.

Of course, while avoiding threats to other life, these humans also have to face a more changeable natural climate. Whether it is a storm or a tsunami, it is enough to destroy their home in an instant, and what is even more terrifying is the volcano standing on the island.

Etna, in some myths, once suppressed Typhon's volcano. Although it may not have this honor in the real mythical world, for mortals, there is still no doubt that it is terrifying.

Just ten years ago, the people on the island of Lemnos witnessed the gushing lava and the torrent that almost destroyed everything. Perhaps it was on that day that this short and ugly man first showed his of divine power.

He allowed the magma to flow back, allowed the smoke to clear, and then told mortals his name: Hephaestus, Lord of Volcanoes and Lava. In order to thank this god for his help, the people on Lemnos named their city Hephaestia and built a temple for this god, praying that he could forever appease the god who brought him to the island. The volcano with hot springs and minerals will never erupt again.

From then on, Hephaestus, who was raised by the sea nymph Thetis, the daughter of Nereus, often came to the city named after him. Here, he can feel people's respect and love, which is a completely different attitude from the Poseidon and Nymphs. The respect of mortals also gave him some comfort in his somewhat twisted mind under the eyes of ridicule and contempt.

"Ding--"

"Bang——"

"That's it for today. You go back and think about it. I have guests to receive."

After striking the last hammer, Hephaestus looked at the dagger in the fire with some disappointment.

He ignored the high temperature and threw the red-hot dagger aside. This is a failed work, and naturally there is no point in further treatment.

Blacksmithing was not his natural vocation, but it was indeed his hobby, and he did a good job at it. Maybe it was because of the mutation that occurred when Hera gave birth to Hephaestus, or maybe it was some other reason. In short, it certainly gave him an ugly appearance, but it also gave him some abilities that were very different from those of gods.

Like the Cyclops, Hephaestus also had a certain natural talent for casting. However, compared to his skills, he found that his creativity was really limited.

This is also the reason why he teaches humans. Hephaestus found that many of the opinions raised by humans may be difficult for them to implement, but they are valuable inspirations for him.

"As you command, Your Highness, may you always be with me forever."

Among the crowd, there was a person with obviously higher status who stood up and saluted. He took the lead, and the rest of the people quickly left after saluting.

After a while, Hephaestus was the only one left in the field. He clapped his hands and finally looked at the shade of the trees on the side.

There was nothing there, but Hephaestus seemed to be looking at someone and said in a calm tone:

"Come out. Although I don't know who you are and what you are here for, you can come out now. I have lived on Lemnos Island for more than ten years, and you can't hide your tricks from me."

After his words fell, no one responded to him for a moment. Just when Hephaestus was getting impatient, the light and shadow under the shade of the tree flickered, and a strange figure emerged.

The visitor looked a little embarrassed, as if he didn't expect that his peeping behavior would be discovered. He manipulated the light to obscure his figure, and came to this island where gods were said to exist, only to see the casting process of Hephaestus.

The young god was fascinated for a moment, but he didn't expect that he had been discovered by the other party, which made him somewhat embarrassed.

At the same time, after he appeared, Hephaestus's expression also became unpleasant.

He was a handsome young man with blond hair, tall, confident and full of fighting spirit. He was the polar opposite of Hephaestus. One was born to be in the light, the other was abandoned at birth. Although he didn't know the other person, it didn't stop him from feeling bored at the moment.

That's why he prefers to be around humans. In any case, Hephaestus is a god, and he can turn a blind eye to the handsomeness and strength of humans, after all, they will always grow old. But now, the person in front of him was also a god, which made him subconsciously reject him.

"... I'm really sorry, Your Excellency, but I didn't mean to pry. It's just that your skills were so superb that I forgot to show my body."

Apologize sincerely, Apollo means what he says. He noticed the change in the other person's expression, but the young god thought it was because of his own rudeness, so he felt even more embarrassed.

"Actually, I came here to inquire about something."

"Your behavior is not worthy of your appearance. Strange gods, please stop making excuses. We have nothing to say."

Interrupting in a cold voice, Hephaestus rejected the other party's apology without even thinking about it.

Facing this scene, Apollo frowned slightly, but thinking about the purpose of this trip, he still managed to be patient.

"I apologize for my behavior again, but Your Highness Hephaestus, I also hope you can understand my feelings and listen to me tell me about the injustice I have suffered."

"Before I was born, my Mother Goddess and I were persecuted by the Queen of Heaven. She prevented me from coming to the world just so that her children could be born before me. Her plot was shattered, and I finally came to the human world. But this made her even more angry. A huge python with infinite strength was sent by Hera, and it guarded the land, so that my mother who lost her divine power could only wander on the sea to raise me. Now, I want to find That giant python proves to the world that the Queen’s dignity is inviolable, but the same is true of Apollo!”

With a solemn look on his face, Apollo was prepared to be rejected again, but if that was the case, he would have to look for other people who might know what was there.

However, unexpectedly, after listening to Apollo's story, Hephaestus's attitude suddenly changed. He glanced at this strange god and couldn't help but confirm:

"You are saying that you have been persecuted by the Queen of Heaven, and now you want to seek justice?"

"Yeah, that's exactly what I'm going to do."

Nodding, Apollo didn't know why the other party's attitude changed. Maybe he was moved by his words, or maybe it was for other reasons. The reason why he chose Hephaestus as the target of inquiry was because although he was the adopted son of the daughter of Poseidon, it was rumored that his relationship with the Poseidons was not very good.

He did not want the other gods of Olympus to know about his grudge against the Queen in advance, so there were not many people Apollo could ask. As for her mother goddess Leto, she actually knew where Delphi was, but the goddess asked her son to find the oldest temple on his own.

"This is a test given to you by your father." She told Apollo. Although the young god did not want any test, he still agreed.

"Going to trouble the Queen of Heaven...it's interesting, but Apollo, I'm afraid you're not qualified yet."

Looking up and down, Hephaestus quickly judged that this was a god younger than himself. It is impossible to measure whether his divine power is powerful, but how could such a weak divine power be able to fight against Hera. Even if the Queen of Heaven is not as powerful as the King of Gods, after sharing part of Zeus's power, she is still a goddess with extraordinary military power.

"So I came here to seek a piece of news, Your Highness Hephaestus. I want to know the location of Delphi. There, there is not only the whereabouts of the giant python, but also a way for me to gain power."

Leto told Apollo that the giant python that had kept them away from the earth now lived on the plains of Delphi, and there were treasures left by his father there. Apollo had doubts about the father he had never met, but he still believed the words of the mother goddess.

"Sounds interesting. And since you are going to cause trouble for the Queen of Heaven...then I can help you, but in return, you must agree to a condition."

Noncommittal, but to Hephaestus, it didn't matter whether Apollo succeeded or not, as long as he could cause some trouble for the woman. Ever since he came here, the Queen seemed to have forgotten him. Compared with the contempt of other creatures, this made him feel even more unacceptable.

Faced with his request, although Apollo didn't know what grudges the gods in front of him had with the Queen of Heaven, he looked happy and solemnly agreed.

"Of course, if you can answer my confusion today, I will definitely fulfill my promise when you need it in the future. This is the promise Apollo made to you, and I will definitely fulfill it truthfully."