A few days had passed.

In the ancient ruins, Eilish had fully stabilized her strength and could now unleash her Fourth Shackle Realm power completely. The same could be said for her elemental abilities.

She was at the Integration Stage with the strength of the Fourth Shackle Realm, far stronger than when she had fought the undead.

Eilish stood up from her seat, and the energy fluctuations around her gradually calmed.

"I need to return now. Souta is probably already in the Champion's Den, so I have to go back to Ekatoe City.

"

She exited the training room, walked through the dark passage, and arrived at another training room. She opened the door and saw Isabella, Amanda, and another girl with the Ninth Head, Alexander.

She knew that Amanda and Isabella had arrived at this place a few days ago. Souta had wanted Alexander to give Isabella some tips on the space element.

Among all the people she knew, Alexander was probably the most knowledgeable expert on elemental powers.

He glanced at Eilish before turning his attention back to Isabella.

"Just practice as I taught you, and you will be able to grasp the fabric of space.

"

Alexander didn't need to train Isabella for long. He simply showed her how to cultivate her space element, and if she followed his guidance, she would be able to master it even in his absence.

Isabella could continue to improve as long as she adhered to his advice, even if she returned to Ekatoe City. Alexander couldn't stay here for too long, as he had other matters to attend to.

"That's all. Don't forget my words, and you will improve faster than before,

" Alexander said. After that, Eilish, Amanda, and Isabella prepared to depart. Eilan was coming with them as well, having reached the Liquefying Realm. His physique was already strong, and his energy control had improved significantly due to his time as a host for an elemental being, which accelerated his progress.

...

Somewhere in Olympus, Souta was flying toward the direction where Lady Echidna lived.

A transmission talisman floated beside his ear.

"I see... So what happened to Bryan?

" Souta asked.

"He's being hunted by the hunters from the Adventurers Guild. Apparently, he saved one of the monsters on their list, so he had to run away. We only know that he's heading to Ambrosie Country.

"

A feminine voice echoed from the other side of the talisman. The owner of this voice was Lumilia, the acting leader of the Dark Oculus Legion.

"Do you have contact with him?

"

"No, we lost contact with him. Brando and Yujin also went to Ambrosie Country to find him. There's too much happening right now, and the hunter faction of the Adventurers Guild is pressuring us.

"

The hunter faction mostly consisted of people who took on monster subjugation quests. Many harbored deep-seated hatred for monsters, having lost loved ones to monster tides or similar tragedies.

"The hunter faction, huh? I can't blame them, but don't confront them. They have a lot of hidden powerful experts,

" Souta cautioned.

"Don't worry; we've been receiving support from various tamers.

"

The two continued to talk for a while before Souta ended the conversation upon arriving at his destination.

He descended to the ground and saw a huge cave, its entrance gaping like the maw of a great beast. The air was thick with tension, carrying a heavy pressure over the surroundings.

"It's here... the den of a Monster Lord.

"

Souta stepped forward and entered the dark cave.

...

In the Champion's Den, Cicero sat in his office, reviewing reports. He glanced out the window and muttered,

"He should have reached that place by now.

"

After this, Souta would be required to gain more achievements. It was only a matter of time before he solidified his position.

To become a Hero of Goddess Athena.

Strength alone wasn't enough.

Many warriors aspired to this position, yet only a few managed to attain it.

Suddenly, a knock sounded.

"Come in,

" Cicero said.

The door swung open, and a warrior rushed into the room.

"Sir, something happened?!

" the warrior exclaimed.

Cicero lifted his head and glanced at the warrior before him. The warrior quickly informed him of the unfolding events.

"What?!

" Cicero stood up from his seat, shock written across his face.

"The three theaters have collapsed?!

"

...

In the three theaters, the battle between high-level experts was nearing its conclusion. They had been fighting for several hours, and the experts from the Gluttony Army were beginning to experience a decline in their energy.

"Huff... huff... huff...

"

One of the experts from the Gluttony Army breathed heavily, staring at the approaching monstrous entity.

They couldn't do anything to stop these monsters. The Thrones were strong and resilient, their high-level energy resistance rendering the Gluttony Army's attacks ineffective.

Even with an advantage in numbers, it would take significantly more to defeat a fifth-stage monster. A fifth-stage monster was vastly different from a fourth-stage; it had undergone

many changes.

The Thrones floated in the air, still radiating an intense amount of energy.

The other experts from the Holy Lands charged forward, launching fierce attacks that inflicted even more injuries on the Gluttony Army's ranks.

Bang!!

Vandal was sent flying to the side of a warrior from Asgard. This warrior was also a Hero-rank like him; however, unlike Vandal, this warrior was at the Eighth Shackle.

"Isn't this strange?

" Vandal asked.

"Strange? What do you mean?

" The warrior glanced at Vandal.

"Our enemies...

"

"Now that you mention it, it is indeed strange. I felt something was off before, but I ignored

it.

" The warrior looked up, staring at the Thrones above.

Although the Hero-ranks from the Gluttony Army were being suppressed, they could have escaped given their numbers. If they had fought with the intention to flee, at least one or two should have survived. Yet, none had, resulting in the current dire situation.

Why?

Swoosh!!

The Hero-ranks from the Gluttony Army continued to fall one by one.

"We've eliminated them.

"

Among the thirteen Hero-ranks, only one remained alive.

"I thought we could take down at least one, but the power of these monsters is beyond our expectations,

" the last Hero-rank of the Gluttony Army said in a hoarse tone, glancing at the

mighty Thrones.

Swoosh!!

The other two experts from the Holy Lands appeared beside him and pierced his body with

their weapons.

Blood spurted as he gazed into the faces of his killers. Then, he drew his last breath, losing all

signs of life.

Just like that, all thirteen Hero-ranks had fallen in the three theaters.

The morale of the lower-level experts surged as they witnessed their allies eliminating the high-level experts of the Gluttony Army.

They fought more fiercely as they cut down the enemies before them.

Vandal looked down at the battlefield, wondering how the Gluttony Army would respond.

Swoosh!!

Some of the lower-level experts from the Gluttony Army seemed to go mad, bursting into

hysterical laughter.

Vandal and the other Hero-rank experts frowned.

"Hahahaha!!

"

"Despair!

"

Suddenly, one of the corpses of the Hero-ranks from the Gluttony Army opened its eyes. Black

liquid flowed down from the corners of his eyes, while a red glow emanated from its chest.

"May chaos take the world!!

"

In the next moment, a powerful surge of mana erupted from all the Hero-rank corpses.

"T—This...?

" Vandal was taken aback.

Various runes appeared in the sky above, and cracks formed in the fabric of space. The lower-

level experts from the Gluttony Army began falling one by one, losing all signs of life within

seconds.

"A large-scale summoning!!

" one of the Hero-ranks from the Holy Lands muttered in

disbelief.

Buzz!!

Buzz!!

The space was shattered.

Everyone, including the Hero-ranks and Thrones, stared at the fractured sky.

An ominous, massive dark sphere emerged from the rift. A seemingly endless torrent of

energy gushed out of it like a tsunami.

Ohm!!

Everyone felt goosebumps prickling their skin as fear began to swell in their hearts. The

ground and air vibrated as the massive black sphere formed cracks on its surface.

"T―This... Best feram! At this level?!

"

"It can't be...?!

"

The Hero-ranks had an inkling of what was to come. The Thrones collapsed to the ground,

overwhelmed by immense suppression.

The lower-level experts felt suffocated. The untamed energy from a higher being was harmful to them. Even if they wanted to run, they couldn't; their bodies were rooted to the

spot.

Black smoke seeped out of the cracks.

Just then,

"Wuuuuuu...

"

A bizarre cry echoed throughout the battlefield. Everyone who heard it felt a stinging sensation wash over their bodies.

Vandal and the other Hero-ranks knew that a being sealed within the massive black sphere

was now breaking free from its restraints.

Something indescribable was slowly emerging from it.

"It's coming!

"

Rumble!!

Massive black tentacles erupted from the sphere, stretching out into the surrounding space.

And at that moment,

"Arghh!!

"

"Nooo!!

"

The lower-level experts let out horrified screams, their minds beginning to unravel.

"I've seen records of this monstrous entity before...

" an Eight Shackle expert muttered, his

face pale as he resigned himself to death.

Honestly, everyone knew their chances of survival were slim the moment they sensed the

suffocating best feram.

Buzz!!

Hundreds of creatures resembling goats with numerous tentacles emerged from the black

sphere, each one radiating powerful energy.

But they weren't the most dangerous of all.

The entity that suppressed everyone on the battlefield remained within the massive black

sphere. Its enormous eye could be seen in the depths of the darkness, gazing down at all.

"Finally... I'm free...

"

A voice, composed of many different tones, echoed within everyone's minds.

The Eight Shackle expert closed his eyes and said,

"It's the Black Goat of the Woods, Shub

Niggurath. A powerful monster lord from ancient times, the Lord of the Wood.

"

From this moment, the war against Gluttony took a dire turn as he unleashed a sealed

monster lord onto the front line.

Looking back at history, today marked the official beginning of the battle of divines. Countless lives would be extinguished without any knowledge of how they died. Those who heard this news felt a heavy gloom settle over the future.

This event would disturb all the divines on the God's Continent.

The flames of war were slowly spreading across the entire continent. Even factions far from

the battlefield were already preparing for the worst.