Heavenly Venus Falls, Underworld Realm Appears

The gods naturally paid no mind to Rovi.

But what followed immediately was a continuous roar.

Rumble, rumble, rumble—

The Human Cannon, loaded with the courage of Uruk's people and linked by Enkidu, continuously fell from the sky. Vast swathes of flames heavily bombarded the golden bull hooves of Gugalanna as it advanced, igniting patches of fire within the dense fir forest where tree roots churned forward.

The Bull of Heaven let out a cry of pain. It shook and swayed, its advancing steps faltering.

On the other side, Humbaba of the Fir Forest was also obstructed. The churning, boiling giant trees let out indescribable screams under the cover of flames.

This was a pain that Gugalanna and Humbaba had not anticipated.

If it were normal artillery fire, even a thousand times denser, it would not have caused them any harm.

But at this very moment, the Human Cannon, incited by Gilgamesh, brought forth by Rovi, and linked by Enkidu, filled with the concept in the hearts of all of Uruk, was, to some extent, an attack representing the collective will of humanity on this land—

This was a power that even the gods could not completely negate.

This was humanity confronting Heaven and Earth.

"To think they could achieve even this... those three have completely escaped our control!" The words of the god Anu were filled with gravity.

Just as Rovi could feel, the eyes of the gods, scattered like stars in the high heavens, watched and communicated.

"Those who have angered the gods' might—no matter what, they must die!" A clear voice echoed, different from Anu's distant, vast voice like the sky. This was the voice of the Venus Goddess herself.

"It doesn't matter. As long as the three remain, we can still achieve our goals... Afterwards, I will descend a great flood using the bodies of the Bull of Heaven and the Fir Forest to cleanse the land and let those who resist the gods know their inviolability!" This voice roared like storms and thunder, the voice of Adad, the god of storms and thunder.

They expressed surprise at the mortal realm, yet remained indifferent.

Because the gods knew that this courage could not last.

This extraordinary 'Human Cannon' would only have one volley.

It could only make the Bull of Heaven and the Fir Forest feel pain and delay their steps, but it could not directly inflict heavy damage.

However, what the gods knew, Rovi and the others naturally did not.

For them, this was enough.

The people of Uruk, seeing Gugalanna and Humbaba falter, realized that as long as their side united, they were not invincible.

Even if the courage of before was gone, their hearts had united.

Some intangible concept had been unified and manifested at this moment.

It could be used by Rovi!

This was merely the first move on the chessboard.

As the last of the Human Cannon fell, the colossal divine beast and monster beast finally extinguished the flames on their bodies.

The golden right bull hoof was once again raised high. The bull horns, piercing the clouds, seemed to approach again.

But before the Bull of Heaven, Gugalanna, could formally take a step that would be incredibly far for ordinary people, it suddenly stopped.

Its eyes, high above the clouds, reflected like stars, but as if seeing something terrifying, they trembled slightly.

It—saw Rovi of the Uruk city-state.

A huge roar erupted instantly.

The Bull of Heaven abruptly turned its direction... and ran.

"???"

Everyone was bewildered, completely stunned.

But soon, someone recalled Rovi's past deeds... recalled how he had desperately tried to kill the not-yet-fully-manifested Bull of Heaven.

It left a shadow, perhaps—?

It was somewhat pitiful.

But while the Bull of Heaven wanted to run, someone did not want it to leave.

Its raised front leg suddenly swayed.

Immediately after, as if sinking into mud, its left foot, still planted, tilted and collapsed.

Beneath its foot, blackness spread like a tide, a color that permeated like an abyss.

This was the aura of the Underworld Realm, which had previously been used to imprison the Bull of Heaven but had shattered when it fully manifested and broke free.

It had not dissipated.

Instead, it had naturally fallen to the ground, and at this moment, under the control of the Goddess of the Underworld, it transformed into a restraint that prevented the bull from advancing.

Deep within the underworld, in the Goddess of the Underworld's temple piled high amidst chaos, the golden-haired goddess sitting on her throne opened her eyes.

Before her, specks of faint blue fire flickered and died. The souls of all living beings who rested there after death were now responding to the desires in the heart of the Goddess of the Underworld who protected them.

"I want to help him... the only one who yearns for and loves me."

At the same time.

This is also what I like—

The goddess's face was firm, no longer possessing the gentleness of before.

The fire of the dead burned even more fiercely.

They provided Ereshkigal with immense power.

Thus, the Goddess of the Underworld was finally able to display her own strength.

"Appear... the peaks that tread upon the Underworld's foundation!" Fierce winds roared, and surging air currents lifted the Underworld Goddess's crimson robes and golden hair. The howling death rushed towards the heavens of the Underworld Realm, as if intending to smash this dark Underworld into the human world.

Moooo!!!

The Bull of Heaven let out a roar. This time, what blocked its advance was no longer the abyss-like Underworld Realm, but the black mountain range gradually rising from within it.

The mountains of the Underworld Realm, crashing upwards!

"Goddess of the Underworld Ereshkigal, how dare you aid a mortal who defies the gods—" Anu's scolding voice echoed in Ereshkigal's ears.

"My sister, why are you doing this..." The Venus Goddess's true form also became enraged.

But Ereshkigal simply shut off the channels through which the gods contacted her.

For countless millennia, they had never remembered her.

Their current contact was merely an attempt to exploit her.

Ereshkigal paid them no mind at all.

She only cared about the person who also cared about her!

The Goddess of the Underworld looked towards the human world again.

The Bull of Heaven was blocked by the mountain range surging from the Underworld Realm towards the human world, trapped within it.

And in the west, the situation was similar. Brilliant stars descending from the sky, accompanied by immense and sharp friction sounds, directly covered the cedar forest. Humbaba's countless winding vines were instantly struck and pressed back to the ground.

Ishtar Rin, the vessel possessed by the goddess who manifested the stars, sat atop the stars and let out an impatient sound: "Ahhh, why do I have to deal with something I'm not good at!"

It's not like you didn't take a bunch of my gems...

Rovi chuckled softly.

"Ishtar, you..." Anu, the Sky God, was slightly enraged and shocked.

"Ah, this, no, it wasn't me—my avatar was interfered with by a human, I couldn't control it, really, believe me!"

Anu was questioning, and the Venus Goddess was explaining. By this point, Ishtar Rin had indeed become an independent individual possessing the power of the Venus Goddess.

Ereshkigal used the power of the Earth to block the Bull of Heaven's advance, while Ishtar Rin used the stars from the sky to suppress the movement of the earth spirit.

The power of Earth and Heaven, Heaven and Earth, clashed on two fronts.

This opposing clash was undoubtedly a planned part of their strategy, agreed upon in advance.

During their meeting last night, Rovi had asked Ereshkigal to block the Bull of Heaven at this moment, and bribed Ishtar Rin with a large sum of money to stop the cedar forest.

And next—

"It's time for us, for 'humans', to make our entrance!"

Rovi exchanged glances with Gilgamesh and Enkidu, a smile appearing on each of their faces.

Rovi's smile was full of anticipation.

Gilgamesh's smile was arrogant and confident.

Enkidu's lips curved into a gentle and serene arc.

No one spoke. They simply reached out, bumped their fists together, and parted as if making a pact.

Gilgamesh went towards the Bull of Heaven.

Enkidu went towards the cedar forest.

The clash of heaven and earth was missing the 'human' element in the middle.

They would fill that void.

Absorbing the immense power generated by the collision.

Just like before, in the Monster Forest.

Linking with Rovi, who remained in place.

Charging towards the heavens once more.

And once again... shaking the gods high above.