Chapter 1 The Beginning

Never mind whether locking up that group of lunatics from the Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society in the Demon Beast Realm they so desired to enter was akin to 'putting mice in a rice jar.'

Su Zhou still had a question he wanted to ask Raphael as they headed to the Demon Beast Realm's interdimensional gate.

"Although we keep calling it the Demon Beast Realm, surely the Europa Concordant has figured out which side that realm belonged to during the Age of Gods, right?"

The so-called Age of Gods was the Europa Union's term for the era before the severing of spiritual energy when gods walked among humans, equivalent to the time when Heaven and Earth were connected, and humans and gods lived together in the Zheng Nation.

Naturally, just as the Tianchi Realm was once the territory of the Tianchi Dragon King, the Demon Beast Realm must have belonged to a powerful god or gods in the distant past.

"The Demon Beast Realm… Although we haven't sent a large-scale exploration team there yet, based on observations from drones and small satellites, we've noticed that this place is very similar to a location from ancient Mycenaean legends."

Raphael, who had boarded the large transport helicopter with his granddaughter and Su Zhou, didn't keep him in suspense when discussing the Demon Beast Realm. He simply sighed, "That would be the realm ruled by Typhon, the son of Gaia and Tartarus, the father of all monsters."

Typhon?

Hearing that name, Su Zhou raised his eyebrows. As a specialist in the occult, he naturally knew the significance of that name.

The giant with a hundred snake heads, the Titan who defeated the gods, the most powerful of the hundred-armed giants, the father and creator of countless famous monsters.

The Demon Beast Realm was once his territory?

"The Demon Beast Realm is very vast. If we're talking about pure area, it's probably about half the size of Earth—and at its center is a supervolcano that, if it erupts, could reshape the Earth's surface."

This was information classified at level S and above, but there was no need to keep it secret from Su Zhou, especially since the Concordant would need to rely on Su Zhou's power to eliminate the remaining forces of the Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society. So Raphael spoke freely, "Through high-altitude satellite observations, we've noticed that the volcano's shape is very unnatural, with obvious signs of plate displacement and abnormal protrusions. It seems that the ancient gods once lifted it, along with the surrounding crust, and then suppressed or buried some monster beneath it… As for who it is, we currently believe it's Typhon, but of course, it might be someone else."

"That's also in line with the myths. That's how he was defeated."

Su Zhou nodded. He had always been very interested in this kind of topic. "So, that place is full of demon beasts, and they're very hostile to humans?"

"Indeed," the old man nodded.

Then, Su Zhou fell into thought.

Typhon, the giant with a hundred snake heads and two hundred arms, a member of the Titans in the ancient Mycenaean pantheon, was a descendant of Gaia and Tartarus, the gods of Earth and the Underworld.

He once waged war against the Mycenaean pantheon and nearly defeated all the beings within it single-handedly. The gods retreated and fled before his power—although he was ultimately defeated, there was no shame in it. His strength was undoubtedly at the level of a Celestial Venerable, that is, a Grand Divine.

Although he had snake heads, he didn't possess the attributes of a dragon or snake—Typhon was a pure aggregate of monsters and demons, the father of all monsters. His descendant, the Hydra, was a pure dragon-snake.

If the Demon Beast Realm was essentially Typhon's former domain, or even his burial ground, then it would be easy to understand why so many demon beasts thrived there.

Seemingly sensing some of Su Zhou's thoughts and concerns, Raphael took an apple from Theros. The old man took a bite and said with a smile, "Don't worry too much. Typhon won't revive."

"Unlike the Life Tree of the Beast God Realm, our records here state that Typhon was already killed before the severing of spiritual energy, and the gods even took a look before leaving to make sure he was truly and thoroughly dead."

"It is precisely because Typhon died completely that his body nourished that land, which is why the Demon Beast Realm is so fertile, and even has black forests full of demon beasts everywhere."

"I'm not worried about that—after all, if there really is an evil god of that level who hasn't completely died, then it's just a matter of having a Demon Beast Realm mission after the Beast God Realm mission."

Su Zhou shook his head, and Theros handed him an apple—the apple was just an ordinary fruit, not a spiritual fruit, but it tasted just as good. Su Zhou smiled and said thank you, then turned back and asked, "Clearly, the Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society probably already knows this information and has some kind of plan regarding it—otherwise, they wouldn't have put all their efforts into breaking through your fortress."

"What exactly is their goal? Do you have any clues now?"

"Unfortunately, there's no conclusion yet."

Raphael could only shake his head regretfully. "However, the Demon Beast Realm is, after all, the land where a Grand Divine-level being fell, and unlike the Life Tree of the Beast God Realm, the Mycenaean pantheon didn't have much power left to expel his remaining resentment when Typhon died. So the environment of that world is extremely harsh, always filled with death energy and miasma."

"It is precisely because of this that when the interdimensional gate opened, the demon beasts within rushed towards Earth like crazy—even if they have adapted to the harsh environment, the truly safe areas are still extremely tempting to the demon beasts."

"So we speculate that the Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society's goal, apart from using a large number of demon beasts as sacrifices for their various crazy rituals, may also be to induce a large number of demon beasts to attack the Earth world… If they bring millions of demon beasts to attack the interdimensional gate, we will have no other choice but to use thermonuclear weapons—at that time, the interdimensional gate will also be unusable for a long time, and we will almost never be able to catch those lunatics who have already gone deep into the Demon Beast Realm."

Enticing demon beasts to attack Earth, causing a large number of casualties, and then profiting from it while fishing in troubled waters, collecting Heavenly God factors… That plan wasn't entirely unreasonable.

Su Zhou nodded slightly. In any case, no matter what the other party wanted to do, his answer was 'no'—no matter what the plan was, killing everyone who made the plan was equivalent to having no plan.

Naturally, infiltration was the same.

Soon, as the helicopter gradually descended, Su Zhou and the others had arrived at the location of the Demon Beast Realm's interdimensional gate.

The land here was black like charcoal everywhere, and the terrain looked as if it had been plowed back and forth seven or eight times by hundreds of dinosaurs. Clearly, there had been an extremely fierce battle here, and the Europa Concordant was the defeated party.

"Although it's a bit harsh to say, Su Zhou."

Looking down at the battlefield from high in the sky, Raphael, as a member of the defeated side at the time, took a deep breath, originally thinking he would be a bit embarrassed. He quite calmly warned the young man beside him, "If I can confidently deal with or at least stall the other members of the Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society, then the 'Silent One,' Borneff, that natural freak, is not an enemy to be underestimated."

"I don't know what kind of medicine he took or what vicious methods he used, but the huge crimson demon he transformed into is already enough to contend with, or even surpass, the power you displayed in the Beast God Realm."

Saying this, and meeting Su Zhou's gaze, the old man's eyes were clear. "Don't be careless—and don't hold back. He is a monster who has long abandoned his identity as a human."

"Rest assured."

In response, Su Zhou replied indifferently. The young man's tone had no complacency, but was as calm as a waveless lake. "I have always valued my enemies."

"And I never hold back when facing evildoers."

And just as the helicopter carrying Su Zhou landed at the entrance of the Demon Beast Realm's interdimensional gate.

Within the Demon Beast Realm.

The seven-colored chaotic miasma, like a curtain, floated above the pitch-black forest, and between the undulating mountains, there was a biting cold wind blowing. The blade-like long wind stirred the colored smoke that permeated the heavens and the earth, causing it to change like a nightmare.

The green miasma, when inhaled, would cause hallucinations, the red miasma, when inhaled, would cause blood poisoning, the orange miasma, when inhaled, would cause madness, and the purple miasma, when inhaled, would cause blood congestion and arousal.

Naturally, each type of miasma, if inhaled even a little too much, would be enough to kill a beast.

For thousands of years, the demon beasts living on this land had been surviving in such an environment. They had long adapted to this dangerous world full of thorns and barbs, where even the blades of grass had serrated edges, and blood would flow with a light touch. Their bodies had even gradually evolved, becoming strong enough to feed on miasma and blade-leaves.

But now, there was something that was out of place with this desolate world unfolding on a flat ground next to a mountain foot.

That was the temporary camp of the Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society.

Automatic cannons, AI machine gun robots, fortifications built of high-strength concrete, and all kinds of sentry fortresses armed with spells and modern weapons.

Having exhausted everything the organization had to break through the Concordant's blockade and come to the Demon Beast Realm, the Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society could be said to have made all the necessary preparations to deal with any difficulties they might encounter.

Personnel hurriedly walked back and forth in the camp, transporting materials and setting up defenses. And at the very front of this camp, there were two people who looked completely different from the ordinary members of the Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society, standing with their hands behind their backs, staring at the forest in front of them, filled with miasma and deathly silence.

"The place where Typhon fell, the legacy realm of a Grand Divine-level death curse… and with so many vibrant, wild and vital demon beasts—Borneff, you were right, this place is indeed a paradise for our Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society!"

The speaker was an old man, with various tattoos and true words engraved on his body. And the most impressive thing was the pair of huge and spectacular gray wings on his back.

An old man with wings, if you took a rough look, he would really have a bit of an angel's solemnity. But if you carefully observed his eyes, you could see that there was an extreme madness and indifference hidden in this person's eyes.

And beside this winged old man, a red-haired Slav stood silently in place like a statue. Facing his companion's praise, he had no reaction, his eyes and expression were equally indifferent…

No, not indifferent, but as if there was no life at all, a silence.

The 'Silent One,' Borneff.

The Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society, the former Seven Leaders, now the head of the Six Leaders, a monster among monsters, a lunatic among lunatics, even the other leaders of the Heavenly Gods Apotheosis Society would fear this 'person.'

After speaking for a while by himself, but not getting an answer, the winged old man seemed to feel quite bored, so he turned and left—the camp had only just been set up, who knew when the Europa Concordant's Transcendents, or the local demon beasts, would come to raid. Anyway, Borneff was not someone who would care about this kind of thing, he rarely responded to other people's greetings.

His companion had left, but the Silent One remained silent.

He stared at the center of the Demon Beast Realm, that is, the domain of Typhon, staring at the giant volcano where the ancient Titan might be buried.

Then, after a long time, a sigh broke the silence.

"Another painful end…"

The red-haired man's voice seemed to carry endless loneliness. "Even the lives of gods and Titans are so painful. No matter how powerful a life is, it will eventually meet a painful end."

"It seems that this is the destiny of all things."