Chapter 205: The Minotaur's Soul Blazes Brightly (4.3k)_2
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"I don't know!"
Thetis ground her itching silver teeth and snorted, turning her head away.
Luo En hurried forward with a sheepish smile, promising earnestly.
"Consider it another favor I owe you, does that work for you now?"
He knew that the Sea of Okeanos was connected to the Netherworld, but the specific path was unclear to him. Find adventures at empire
His own teacher, Circe, might know.
However, considering Hecate's relationship with that foolish bird, Luo En dared not reveal his movements to Circe to avoid startling the enemy.
Therefore, after thinking it over, he could only think to ask Thetis for guidance.
After all, the sea nymph was renowned for her wisdom and learning, and she was most familiar with him near Cyprus Island.
Seeing that Thetis still wore an impassive face, Luo En extended a finger.
"Two, two favors!"
Thetis looked at the unexpected visitor before her with a wan expression and asked with a furrowed brow.
"Do you have to go to the Netherworld?"
"Yes, I must go!"
"Does it have to do with the Goddess of the Underworld Moon, Hecate?"
"More or less..."
Luo En nodded, equally helpless.
After all, it was indeed Hecate who first came up to investigate the imbalance of life and death which then led to a series of events.
Finally, after careful consideration, Thetis sighed softly.
"All right, I'll take you there..."
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Two days later, Primordial Ocean, Atlantis Continent, beneath the sea at the site of the old ruins.
Three towering giants, each with a hundred heads and a hundred arms, stood over the desolate ruins like three colossal pillars steadying the seas.
The remaining Atlanteans had been stripped of their human forms, all turned into half-human, half-fish creatures, imprisoned within that dead realm.
Worse still, due to Zeus's curse, some Atlanteans had been stripped of their intellect, unable to maintain even their half-human, half-fish shape, and had degenerated into irrational humanoid Sea Beasts, fighting and devouring each other in the pitch-black abyss of the ocean trenches.
"Pfffft!"
A series of ripping sounds of flesh came from the deep crevice at the bottom of the sea, as murky blood rose to the surface, drawing swarms of deformed monsters to fight and scavenge.
Briareus, the leader of the Giants, glanced over in boredom and quickly lost interest.
As usual, it was just some of the fallen ones fighting in the trench.
He then refocused several heads' gaze back to the underwater ruins of the Kingdom of Atlantis, continuing to monitor the surviving Atlanteans.
Meanwhile, two inconspicuous "Sea Beasts," sensing the icy gaze that had been on them vanish, breathed a sigh of relief and cautiously approached the darkest part of the crevice.
As the crevice came to an end, the "Sea Beast" on the left transformed back into Thetis.
"We're here!"
The Ocean Goddess pointed to the dark red patterns at the bottom of the fissure and warned in a serious tone.
"So this is the entrance to the Netherworld from the sea..."
Luo En, who had been disguised as the other Sea Beast, reverted to human form, touched the tangible dark red light screen and the inner brass doors with his hand, and marveled at the immense divine might they contained.
According to Hesiod's description in the "Divine Chronicle," the hell of the Netherworld—Tartarus—was enveloped by triple dark veils and three walls of brass, with the brass gates made by Poseidon, where the defeated Titans were imprisoned, guarded by the Giants.
This was quite a covert passage for entering the Netherworld from the Mortal World.
Owing to her close ties with the Sea King and the Queen of the Sea, Thetis was one of the few who knew about it.
Besides, even if something went wrong, it seemed like they could lay the blame afterward on that good brother-in-law, or some of the Atlanteans who lost their reason in the trench.
The two schemers with the same thought exchanged glances, nodded secretly to each other, and then approached to touch a few secret symbols on the bronze slab.
Shortly after, three giant walls cast from bronze shone with patterns, the bricks contracting like living creatures, opening a narrow passage.
Following that, a blue vortex spread downwards along the fissure, and Luo En and Thetis, caught within it, leapt out just in time, landing at the rocky entrance of a pitch-black path.
Surroundings were dim, with only the drifting blue phosphorescence bringing some light.
And as they landed, deathly airs like black fog, as if sensing life's breath, transformed into dark serpentine shadows, swiftly entwining and corroding these fresh intruders.
Hum!
However, a pure and solemn thrum vibrated from Luo En, with the golden halo behind him aligning to the sixth cell, a tuft of golden flame rising up, illuminating the surroundings.
The serpents formed from deathly air instantly dissolved as if they were snowflakes under the blazing sun.
At the entrance of the path, Luo En looked down at the holy fire in his palm, placed his hand on his chest, and a hint of relief flashed in his eyes.
Fortunately, Hestia's holy fire had driven away the surrounding deathly airs.
Otherwise, his entry into the Netherworld as a living being would definitely have been affected.
"Cough, cough..."
Hearing some suppressed coughing behind him, Luo En snapped back to reality and quickly cast a blessing curse from the lineage of Aiaia upon Thetis, who was not quite accustomed to the environment of the Netherworld.
Of course, in terms of effectiveness, this level of protection could only ensure that Thetis could move normally, definitely not comparable to the high-grade divine protection on Luo En that could effortlessly dissipate large swaths of the deathly airs.
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