The Little Golden Mouth

"That's right. In the name of the laws, I confirm once again that all that Hermes has said is my will."

In the Temple of Light, as Hermes formally inquired with Apollo, an invisible will slowly descended.

Under the umbrella of the law, this transaction was invisibly protected.

"Since that's the case, in the name of the Goddess of Justice, Themis, I accept this request—"

With a slight smile, Apollo spoke those words, and Hermes' expression returned to normal.

Lifting his hand to gently touch the back of Apollo's hand, a golden dawn light emerged and then magically condensed into a golden flower.

The flower drifted in the air, and soon after, a matching pattern appeared on Hermes' palm.

This was the mark of the law, a record of their transaction.

"This power, is it from the Goddess of Justice, Themis?"

Looking at the golden flower in Hermes' hand, Apollo couldn't help but furrow his brow.

Recalling the spell Hermes had recited earlier, Apollo, who was known for his wisdom, quickly understood the meaning, "You actually received the approval of Her Highness?"

"Hehehe, it was just a side benefit," Hermes said with a grin.

With a wave of his hand, he dismissed the golden light and casually sat down on a nearby seat.

As the only God of Transactions in the current world of Chaos, Hermes had previously represented Zeus' will to go to the Underworld and negotiate with Hades.

Of course, it was called a negotiation, but in reality, it was just a formality to publicly announce the result of a discussion between the three kings.

Although the trip to the Underworld wasn't exactly enjoyable, it did bring Hermes a special gain.

"Conducting fair transactions within the bounds of the law is recognized by the world."

When Hermes, the God of Transactions, went to seek certification, the ancient Titan, the Goddess of Justice Themis, had said those words, silently acknowledging the legality of his actions.

Because of this, after Hermes returned from the Underworld to Mount Olympus, the number of gods seeking his help had significantly increased compared to before.

"Don't rush to ask about my matters. Since you want me to retrieve that artifact, it seems like you must be very determined to get it. Shouldn't you share more specific details with me?" Hermes asked, briefly touching on his gains before turning the conversation to the specifics of Apollo's request.

"I know you're well-informed, no less than I am. When Hyperion and the other Titans were cast into the abyss, they made quite a few arrangements before they left. You might not know all the details, but surely you've heard something about it, right?"

Apollo, whose golden eyes were focused on Hermes, looked at his younger brother with a gentle smile.

Hermes' current title was "Messenger of the Gods." Though not the highest rank, as the son of Zeus and the rain goddess Maia, his identity still carried considerable weight.

Therefore, besides Zeus, Hera, and the other main gods of Olympus, no other gods had the right to command him.

However, because of this, Hermes was also known as "Zeus' eyes and ears," and his reputation among the gods was not too favorable.

Even though Hermes himself never made reports on others, other gods were still cautious around him.

"Oh, the ancient Titan era? I wasn't even born back then, so I wouldn't know."

Seemingly not catching the underlying test in Apollo's words, Hermes smiled faintly and picked up a fruit from the table.

He peeled a grape and made a face at the sour-sweet taste, speaking in a muffled voice, "If you want me to figure everything out on my own, it's fine, but I can't guarantee when I'll finish."

Although Hermes had already agreed to Apollo's request, there was no time limit set in their agreement.

In other words, whether it was to be completed within a century or delayed for a millennium, it entirely depended on Hermes' own will.

"Alright, let me tell you in more detail."

Apollo's eyes gleamed as he recognized the hidden meaning behind Hermes' words. He smiled in his heart, then said with a serious expression, "Although Hyperion and the others were cast into Tartarus by Zeus, before that, he not only passed on the sun god position to Helios but also split the essence of light in two."

"Wait a minute."

Hermes' brows furrowed involuntarily, interrupting Apollo's words. "Are you saying that this artifact is formed from Hyperion's power? So, it is the essence of light that was split?"

Hyperion was the original God of Light, possessing the divine essence of light, and later, the sun god position was created by him.

Although deposed and cast into Tartarus, Hyperion's essence was not taken away.

Currently, even though Apollo held the title of "God of Light," he, like Poseidon, had not officially obtained the authority of this domain.

However, the difference was that the former God of Light, Hyperion, had been cast into Tartarus, so Apollo temporarily took over his authority.

As for Poseidon, the original Ocean God, Okeanos, and the primordial sea god Pontus were still around. To obtain oceanic power, Poseidon had to face even greater obstacles compared to Apollo.

Smart as Hermes was, he quickly understood Apollo's meaning.

Apollo must have heard somewhere that Hyperion split his essence and sealed it within the sun, which made him interested in this artifact.

After all, if this was true, the essence of light being sealed within the sun meant that Helios, as the current sun god, could slowly absorb and refine it using his sun god powers.

If that happened, the light god position originally belonging to Hyperion would naturally pass on to his son, Helios, and Apollo would no longer have any claim to it.

"That's indeed the case."

Nodding, Apollo looked at Hermes with a thoughtful expression. He seemed to have already seen through the source of Hermes' worries, and without waiting for him to ask, he continued, "The news came from our mother, so the source must be reliable."

Upon hearing the mention of the Night Goddess Leto, Hermes fell silent.

If it was Leto, then her father, the God of Wisdom, was also Hyperion's brother, so it wasn't surprising that she would know about this secret.

After all, it's all about brotherhood. In the world of Greek mythology, brothers were often the ones who would trick each other without hesitation…

With a silent sigh, Hermes finally spoke, "If that's the case, you can rest assured. I'll help you with this, but you should know that if we're discovered infringing on a god's domain and it gets reported to Zeus, our father won't be able to protect us."

This was both a reminder and a warning to Apollo.

Although Hermes had accepted this task, he wasn't afraid to back out if things went awry.

After all, their agreement only mentioned retrieving the artifact for Apollo, not taking on full responsibility for it.

Moreover, in the conflict over the light god position, the real beneficiaries were Apollo and Helios, so the real contest lay between them.

If things went wrong, and Apollo couldn't pull Helios from the sun god position, it would be a rather entertaining situation.

"You can rest easy. As I know, the other half of the essence is currently hidden within the sun. Based on my assumptions, this power has evolved over the years into an artifact. This artifact carries the essence of the sun, and if I can obtain it—Helios' and Hyperion's hold over the sun will surely be shaken."

Lifting a golden lily into Hermes' hand, Apollo smiled confidently, "In the name of destiny, the sun's radiance will inevitably dim."

Was this a prophecy?

Hermes' eyes flickered as, under the omnipresent light in the Temple of Light, he briefly saw countless giant stones carrying heavenly fire falling from the sky.

The earth was engulfed in scorching light, the balance of light and darkness was disrupted, and countless creatures on the earth mourned—this was the vision of the future!

"…"

The illusory scene faded and shattered.

Regaining his senses, Hermes muttered to himself, silently thinking, "No wonder Apollo suddenly has so much motivation. It turns out he received a hint from the Goddess of Fate?"

As the God of Prophecy, Apollo also possessed the power to observe destiny.

But unlike the Fates who controlled destiny, these prophecy gods could only "watch" the future unfold; they had no power to interfere with the laws of fate.

It wasn't that their divine power was insufficient, but their rank prevented them from crossing into another domain.

However, if it were me, I might still be able to help him.

Reaching out to take the golden lily, Hermes added, "I think Helios can still hold on for a while."

No sooner had he spoken these words than Apollo froze for a moment, then his smile deepened.

Here it came—the conscience-poisoned milk from Hermes!