Chapter Summaries

Hermes completed a Divine Artifact by burning his spirit and blood to fuse extraordinary materials, while Ryan sensed that its birth had stirred the world’s laws. Hermes named its apparent power as turning false lives into real existences, though he did not understand why the artifact had changed.

• Hermes exhausted the Hellfire and used Soul Fire, his blood, and his spirit to finish refining the materials.
• The world’s laws resonated with the artifact’s birth, and Ryan considered destroying it before deciding against it.
• Hermes repeatedly clenched his hand against the forming artifact, suffering a shattered arm as the silver-white, black, and blood-red object solidified and healed him.
• Hermes recognized that the artifact had acquired a new order he called Reality and Illusion, with life and wisdom as additional functions.
• Ryan asked what the artifact did, and Hermes said it could probably turn false lives into real existences.

Hermes completed the Philosopher’s Stone, a Divine Artifact that projected beings from his memories and let him borrow their powers and authorities. While recovering, he realized it could reproduce gods from an illusory world but wondered whether to test it on a Primordial God—or summon the figure he longed for most.

• Hermes activated the newly forged Divine Artifact, which projected Lachesis and then a different version of Hermes from his memories.
• Hermes explained that the artifact turned memories into reality and could imitate a projection’s powers, while Ryan recognized its potential and called Hermes a “Little God King.”
• Ryan reminded Hermes that he owed gratitude for the help in creating the Divine Artifact, and Hermes accepted while privately deciding to call it the Resurrection Stone as an alternative name.
• Hermes rested by a stream and discovered that the artifact could reproduce gods from the illusory world and let him borrow a portion of their authority, but could not summon the Midgard Serpent because it had never existed there.
• Hermes considered projecting a Primordial God but hesitated over the danger, while privately longing to summon another figure even more.

Hermes used the Philosopher's Stone to investigate the World Extinctioner and discovered that it had destroyed a real world, then abandoned the dangerous summoning. He instead recreated the Gold Gathering Ring from the illusory world, gaining an artifact that resonated with his powers and offered a path to stronger alchemy.

• Hermes used the Philosopher's Stone to trace the World Extinctioner's identity and abruptly stopped when he glimpsed its destruction of another real world.
• Hermes concluded that the World Extinctioner was an enemy of Khaos and considered warning Midgard Serpent so the Great Divine Powers could deal with it.
• Hermes decided not to summon the World Extinctioner again and used the Philosopher's Stone to recreate the Gold Gathering Ring from his memories.
• Hermes recognized the ring's name and its connection to material exchange, then combined it with the Philosopher's Stone.
• Hermes saw the two artifacts' compatibility as a chance to create a high-level alchemical Divine Artifact.

Hermes successfully summoned a projection of Uranus, the sleeping First Generation God King, to protect him while he dealt with Hell’s followers. The summoning also stirred Uranus’s dormant will, which calmed after receiving information from the mortal world, while a distant god urged the Primordial Water to shrink faster.

• Hermes chose Uranus over Zeus and Cronus and summoned a projection of the Sky Dominator with the Philosopher's Stone.
• Hermes sent Uranus's projection into the heavens to protect him without disturbing the original Uranus.
• Hermes's summoning stirred Uranus's sleeping will, briefly raising the risk that the Sky God would awaken.
• Uranus's will settled after receiving information about the mortal world, and the God King's dread on Mount Olympus disappeared.
• A vast will in the distant void watched the shattered world and urged the Primordial Water to shrink faster.

The Ancient Snake watched Nodrassil purify sacrifices and strengthen the Nine Hells while keeping Poseidon captive. On Navarin Island, Hermes summoned the serpent and offered altered memories about the destruction of an illusory world, leaving the serpent to examine what he had brought.

• Nodrassil absorbed corruption from the Nine Hells and purified it with Leonor's Spring, helping stabilize and strengthen the realm.
• The Ancient Snake taunted the captive Poseidon, sealed his mouth, and planned for Asmodeus to deal with him.
• The Ancient Snake noticed Hypnos was still missing but sensed that he was not imprisoned.
• Hermes summoned the Ancient Snake on Navarin Island and offered a crystal containing edited memories of the world-destroying shadow and the illusory world's destruction.
• Hermes reflected that Mnemosyne was absent from the material world's history despite the apparent survival of her memory authority.

Hermes sent the Midgard Serpent a Memory crystal he claimed came from Lachesis, and the Serpent and Asmodeus viewed its visions. Asmodeus concluded that the fragments warned of a world-destroying being, while the Serpent privately wondered how Hermes had glimpsed Hermenu and considered what reward to give him.

• Ryan doubted Hermes had obtained a genuine segment of Fate from Lachesis and suspected he was using the Goddess's name to lend authority to his discovery.
• The Midgard Serpent received Hermes's Memory crystal and invited Asmodeus to view it, asking him to take Poseidon away afterward.
• The first Memory showed a great hand destroying the world as thunder rose from the earth, and Asmodeus judged it a possible warning about Khaos's future.
• The crystal revealed a second vision of ruined worlds in the void, which Asmodeus interpreted as evidence that a Foreign Domain world-destroyer existed.
• Asmodeus said Hermes's discovery deserved a reward, while the Midgard Serpent wondered how Hermes had glimpsed Hermenu and said it would choose the reward carefully.

Asmodeus and the Midgard Serpent discussed Tartarus’s growing power and the possibility that Khaos was feeding it fragments from beyond the world. In Olympia, Chiron arrived as an envoy from Silver Moon City to question the city’s rulers on behalf of the Bishop Council.

• Asmodeus decided to have Mephisto handle the believer’s request and discussed the World Extinctioner with the Midgard Serpent.
• The Midgard Serpent pointed out that Tartarus had grown stronger despite the Nine Hells absorbing its power, and Asmodeus reasoned that Khaos was feeding it undigested foreign powers.
• Asmodeus concluded that the Goddess of Fate had warned Zeus to make him regulate the mortal world and accelerate Khaos’s consumption of the Foreign Domain.
• The Midgard Serpent warned Asmodeus that a powerful, intelligent demon calling itself the Demon Prince had arisen in the Abyss and claimed it would destroy Hell and unite the Abyss.
• Chiron arrived in Olympia as an envoy from Silver Moon City and told the church guards that he had come to deliver the Bishop Council’s questions to the city’s rulers.

Chiron delivered Silver Moon City’s accusation to Olympia, but a palace confrontation interrupted his message with an attack. Hestia recognized the danger in his words, ordered him brought to her temple, and hurried to Mount Olympus to confront Zeus.

• Chiron entered Olympia’s palace and was challenged by a devout former regent to explain his purpose.
• Chiron declared that the Bishop Council of Silver Moon City demanded to know who had authorized the judgment of Achilles and warned Olympia that it would face consequences.
• An armored general attacked Chiron before he could finish his declaration, and Chiron prepared to defend himself.
• Hestia heard Chiron’s message and recalled Zeus’s refusal to return or reclaim the Sword of Laevatain.
• Hestia sent an oracle ordering the temple to bring Chiron to her and isolate him, then flew toward Mount Olympus.

Hestia learned that Zeus had summoned the gods for an important announcement, while beneath the mortal world Dark Elves discovered a creature bearing a Corruption Scar. Zeus met Erebus to discuss the Dark Elves and his plans to enter the Abyss, leaving Erebus eager to learn what had become of the plane there.

• Hestia visited Zeus's palace, where guards told her Zeus had summoned the gods of Heaven, Earth, the Underworld, and the ocean before departing.
• A Dark Elf scouting party found a caterpillar marked with a Corruption Scar and recorded the discovery before withdrawing into its cave.
• Zeus and Erebus watched the Dark Elves, and Zeus praised the species' abilities and Erebus's skill in creating them.
• Erebus questioned Zeus about why he wanted to enter the Abyss and recalled Zeus's earlier visit to the Underworld.
• Erebus considered the long passage of time within Tartarus and decided Zeus's interest could help him learn what had happened to the plane in the Abyss.

Zeus questioned Erebus about the Dark Elves sacrificing Ancient Evil Things, but learned that the Golden Apple Tree could safely absorb only their weaker power, not Typhon’s legacy. Zeus then invited Erebus to explore the Abyss with him, and Erebus agreed to send the Five-Colored Dragon Mother while pursuing his own reasons for entering.

• Zeus asked Erebus whether the Dark Elves could safely hunt Ancient Evil Things and sacrifice them to the Golden Apple Tree.
• Erebus explained that the Golden Apple Tree could purify weaker Ancient Evil Things, but Zeus could not safely absorb the power he had taken from Typhon.
• Zeus decided to enter the Abyss himself, hoping to find the source of his ominous premonition and gain power from Tartarus.
• Zeus invited Erebus to join the expedition, and Erebus agreed to send the Five-Colored Dragon Mother as his servant.
• Erebus planned to explore the Abyss to seek a way to control the Lightless Zone’s growing power and prepare another escape route.

Heracles obtained a star-traveling vessel in Silver Moon City and prepared to continue his journey, but Zephyrus appeared with a fourth trial: face the Sphinx at the shattered heavenly pillar. Heracles recognized the location as one he already intended to visit, and Zephyrus introduced Dionysus as his helper.

• Heracles obtained a floating metal spindle from Silver Moon City after accepting a special request, while Prometheus explained why the commission had seemed contradictory.
• Heracles and Amon prepared to leave Silver Moon City, and Heracles sensed Zephyrus nearby and went to meet him.
• Zephyrus saw how much Heracles had grown and praised him for defeating the Hydra and other Demonic Creatures.
• Zephyrus assigned Heracles the fourth challenge: travel west to the Sphinx and overcome its riddle through wisdom.
• Heracles recognized the shattered heavenly pillar as a place he already planned to visit, and Zephyrus named Dionysus as his helper.

Heracles welcomed Dionysus as a companion aboard the Silver Shuttle, and Dionysus marveled at the vessel as they entered the starry sky. Dionysus explained how heroic spirits served Athena there and revealed that Perseus and his family held great influence, leaving Heracles with a clearer picture of the half-brother he hoped to meet.

• Heracles introduced Dionysus to Prometheus and Amon, welcomed him as a companion, and asked the group to respect one another's private pasts.
• Amon warmly shook Dionysus's hand, and Dionysus accepted his friendship.
• The Silver Shuttle broke through the clouds into the starry sky, where Dionysus praised its power and Heracles said Silver Moon City's ancient god had once traveled there.
• Dionysus described the Hall of Heroic Spirits, Athena's fighters, and the way famous mortal heroes such as Perseus gained power and titles in the stars.
• Dionysus told Heracles that Perseus, Andromeda, their family, Pegasus, and other followers had ascended and that Perseus commanded many heroic spirits.
• Dionysus explained that Zeus had expanded Perseus's faction in the Zodiac Star Territory as part of his conflict with Athena.

Dionysus explained the starry sky’s expansion and Perseus’s growing importance to Heracles, who began to mention what Siren had told him. Their journey was interrupted when heroic spirits trapped their Star Shuttle, and the Golden Armor Hero decided to detain its mortal alchemists after suspecting their craft had produced a sign associated with star gods.

• Dionysus explained that the starry sky had expanded and that Perseus’s importance had grown with it.
• Heracles said that Siren’s account of Perseus might be true, but an invisible net suddenly trapped the Star Shuttle and slowed it.
• A warrior reported to the Golden Armor Hero that his forces had captured what appeared to be a mortal alchemical creation with the Earth-Shaking Golden Net.
• The Golden Armor Hero initially ordered his warriors to make the alchemists leave, dismissing them as faithless Spellcasters.
• Seeing starlight gather around the shuttle, the Golden Armor Hero recalled the star gods’ radiance and wondered whether alchemy could explain divine authority.
• The Golden Armor Hero decided to imprison the alchemists and investigate how they had violated divine authority.

Heracles entered the Zodiac Star Territory by mistake and faced arrest by the Golden Armor Hero, who used the rules as a pretext to seize him. After Heracles broke the golden net, the Golden Armor Hero branded him a Blood Sun Believer and prepared to fight.

• Heracles apologized to the guardians and asked them to release the Star Shuttle so he could return to the mortal world.
• The Golden Armor Hero recognized Heracles, accused him of boasting about killing Typhon’s descendant, and demanded that he leave the shuttle for an examination.
• Heracles realized the Golden Armor Hero was provoking him to attack or submit to indefinite detention, then decided to see how important he was to the God King.
• Heracles snapped the golden net without attacking anyone, and the Golden Armor Hero retreated among the gathered heroic spirits.
• The Golden Armor Hero invoked the Piscis Austrinus constellation projection, accused Heracles of Blood Sun contamination, and declared that he would execute him.

Heracles defeated the Golden Armor Hero and learned where his leader was, then set out while Amon and Dionysus stayed behind. At the same time, Nike complained about her duties overseeing the heroic spirits and decided to keep putting off their problems.

• Heracles blocked the Golden Armor Hero’s constellation attack, shattered Piscis Austrinus with four punches, and broke the hero’s halberd.
• The Golden Armor Hero told Heracles where his leader was before his heroic spirit body broke apart.
• Amon reassured Heracles that Dionysus would protect the others, and Heracles left to fulfill his promise.
• Nike listened to a report about Olympian heroic spirits causing trouble in the Zodiac Star Territory and told the Regional Gods she would handle it.
• After the Regional Gods left, Nike grumbled about Athena and Zeus leaving her to manage the heroic spirits, then chose to delay taking action.

Perseus learned that the Golden Armor Hero had failed to capture Heracles and destroyed the Heroic Spirit in anger. When Heracles arrived at the Hall of Heroic Spirits, Perseus welcomed the chance to seize him, while Heracles prepared to fight the forces guarding the Hall.

• The Golden Armor Hero entered Perseus's Great Hall, where Perseus's aura forced him to his knees.
• Perseus learned that the Golden Armor Hero had tried to capture Heracles without first reporting the discovery, then kicked him into Spirit Body Shattering.
• Andromeda Ande entered the Great Hall, and Perseus dismissed the Golden Armor Hero as an incompetent mongrel coveting divine power.
• Perseus sensed a powerful human demigod approaching and decided that Heracles had delivered himself to his door.
• Heracles reached the Hall of Heroic Spirits with the Golden Armor Hero's directions and surveyed its defenses.
• Heracles armed himself with the remains of demons and advanced toward the guards, determined to keep his promise to the Sea Demon.

Heracles fought his way through the Hall of Heroic Spirits toward Perseus, destroying its defensive formations and shooting down Perseus’s Pegasus with a poisoned arrow. Perseus donned the powerful Perseus constellation armor and confronted Heracles, demanding that he surrender.

• Heracles broke through the spirit guards’ first formation and smashed the Pegasus battle formation as he advanced toward the Hall of Heroic Spirits.
• Heracles spotted Perseus near the great crystal and fired a Hydra-poisoned arrow through the remaining defenses, striking Perseus’s Pegasus when Perseus used it as a shield.
• Perseus summoned his Divine Armor, forged from fragments of the Hall of Heroic Spirits, and blocked Heracles’s second arrow with his arm guard.
• Perseus confronted Heracles in his armor and offered him a chance to confess and earn a constellation title.

Heracles confronted Perseus in the Zodiac Star Territory, rejected his claim that he could define who counted as a demon, and attacked him as their battle escalated. Meanwhile, Amon, Dionysus, and Prometheus watched from a hidden Star Shuttle until Amon spotted an unfamiliar red light approaching through the void.

• Perseus challenged Heracles to surrender, but Heracles struck him with his club, and their weapons and defenses proved evenly matched.
• Heracles questioned Perseus about the demons he had killed and showed him a bone instrument connected to Medusa; Perseus defended his right to label her a demon.
• Heracles rejected Perseus's demand and resumed attacking, growing stronger as he fought while heroic spirits surrounded him.
• Prometheus stayed aboard the hidden Star Shuttle as Amon and Dionysus watched the fight; Dionysus believed it might end without a clear victor.
• Amon noticed a faint red light moving through the distant void, and Dionysus realized he did not recognize it.

Dionysus recognized the approaching celestial body as the Ancient Evil Thing called the Star of Death Omen, drawn toward the demonic aura and Fallen Corona at the Hall of Heroic Spirits. He stayed behind while Amon returned to the Star Shuttle, but the Star of Death Omen noticed them and shed a fragment in their direction.

• Dionysus identified the red celestial body as the Star of Death Omen, an Ancient Evil Thing born from Typhon's legacy.
• Dionysus judged that they could not defeat it and told Amon to return to the Star Shuttle while he stayed behind to protect the others.
• Dionysus recalled the Star of Death Omen's origins and history, concluding that it was drawn toward the remains of demons near the Hall of Heroic Spirits.
• The Star of Death Omen approached, its immense body and strange melody pressing on Dionysus as it continued toward the distant battlefield.
• The Star of Death Omen trembled as it passed their position, cracked open, and shed a fragment onto its trail.

Dionysus tried to destroy a fragment of the Star of Death Omen with Zeus’s lightning, but the Ancient Evil Thing revealed its trap and attacked him. Amon took the corruption meant for Dionysus and, knowing he was doomed, asked Dionysus to kill him; Dionysus could not bring himself to act.

• Dionysus used Zeus’s scepter to bind and drain the Star of Death Omen’s severed fragment with lightning.
• Amon warned Dionysus as the fragment opened a fissure and launched a parasitic streak of light at him.
• Amon shoved Dionysus aside and was struck by the Ancient Evil Thing’s origin power, which began corrupting him.
• Dionysus caught Amon and realized the corruption had fused with his body and would soon replace him.
• Amon asked Dionysus to kill him before the evil power could take over, but Dionysus hesitated.