Chapter 610: Fate

Just as Hela's voice fell, a tall, armored female figure appeared before the palace.

She seemed to have shrunk her body, only twice the size of a mortal, tall and athletic, exuding a wild, leopard-like temperament. Her features were stunningly beautiful, skin as white as porcelain, and her glacier-blue eyes blazed with fury.

Just as in myth and legend, among the Nordic giants, males were generally hideous to the extreme, while females possessed unparalleled beauty, much like the description of Asuras in Hindu lore.

"Hela, are you and your father ready to launch a rebellion against the Aesir?"

A shadow passed through Hela's eyes: "The Aesir's rule over this world has ended. And whenever I wish, I can kill you, Skadi! But today, I am merely here to observe."

At that moment, Skadi's gaze shifted to Li Mochen, her brows growing even more severe.

"I recognize you, the newly risen Lord of Fate! A powerful deity still lingering in the mortal realm. You have colluded with Hela and Loki, haven't you?"

"You could say that."

Li Mochen had already summoned the Tianming Sword, and alongside it, six other swords gleaming with cold light circled around him. At the same time, streams of sharp sword qi burst forth from the blades, quickly forming a massive sword array.

That was the Six Yao Immortal Swords, from which derived the simplified version of the 'Six Harmonies Imperial Immortal Array.'

This set of immortal swords had passed through twelve dynasties, nurtured for forty-seven thousand years. Their sword intent and spirit had been honed and strengthened to the extreme over that time.

After bringing them back to the Primordial Dome, Li Mochen invested some mythical materials to enhance them, successfully elevating them to high-grade mythical armaments. They were only inferior to his main sword, the Tianming Sword, but surpassed his backup sword, the Divine Order Sword.

Before he could forge a new 'Zhou Tian Star Sword' as his primary weapon, this set of 'Six Yao Immortal Swords' was the most suitable substitute!

From the memories of Emperor Tai Ru and the royal inheritance texts, Li Mochen had mastered the complete method of wielding them, along with a full set of sword techniques. The only regret was that he had not grasped conceptual divine powers like 'Kingly Authority' or 'Kingly Governance,' preventing him from unleashing the sword array's full potential.

However, even at seventy percent of its full power, this sword array was enough to handle today's great battle.

"But rest assured, no one will interfere in our fight today. Of course, you, Princess Skadi, will have no chance to seek help either—"

Boom!

Before Li Mochen's words faded, a spear of ice descended from the sky. When it touched the edge of the 'Six Harmonies Imperial Immortal Array,' it was shredded by the sword qi generated within. Yet upon shattering, the spear released astonishing cold, covering the Six Yao Immortal Swords and Li Mochen's entire body with a layer of frost.

In an instant, crimson flames blazed over Li Mochen's body, dispelling the cold that could have plunged him into absolute zero.

At the same time, the Blood Crown on his head emitted a blood-red light. The power called 'Equality' instantly pulled Skadi's rank down to his level, divine rank fourteen.

This former Winter Goddess, a powerful mountain giant, possessed awe-inspiring talent. She had undoubtedly attained the status of a chief god, to the point where Li Mochen could not defeat her without using the 'Equality' divine power.

"Is that all you've got? With just these tricks, you think you can kill me?"

Skadi had already revealed her giant form, standing fifteen hundred meters tall, feet on the ground, head touching the sky, bringing down two axes a thousand two hundred meters long. The overwhelming force was such that Li Mochen dared not face it head-on, directly using Stellar Teleportation to flash a kilometer away. The axes missed, but the 'Source Force Slash' they swept out carved a massive crater five kilometers in diameter and seven hundred meters deep, shaking the entire demiplane violently.

Skadi was unperturbed; her assault was relentless. The two oversized Viking axes in her hands moved like nimble knives. Though seemingly clumsy, their variations rivaled those of swords and sabers, and she swung them continuously, as if her strength were inexhaustible.

This was one of her abilities—the manifestation of the 'Earth' divine power.

In ancient times, Antaeus, son of Gaia and Poseidon, was a renowned strongman. As long as he maintained contact with the earth, his strength was endless and invincible. Even Heracles could not defeat him until he managed to lift Antaeus off the ground, killing the earth giant.

Skadi, a mountain giant, now at the chief god level, was stronger than Antaeus in his time, and even surpassed Gaia of that era in strength, though her 'Earth' divine power was only at a high level.

At this moment, she drew endless power from the earth, leaving Li Mochen utterly unable to contend. He could only threaten her from the side with the Tianming Sword, constantly dodging and shifting with Stellar Teleportation.

Meanwhile, ice spears rained down from the sky, and giant hands reached out from the ground, filling every inch of space, leaving Li Mochen no chance to catch his breath.

In the distance, mud and stone giants of equal height to Skadi were taking shape, armed with swords, spears, or axes, their features resembling Skadi's, all clad in black source force armor.

"You will pay for your ignorance—"

Skadi's gaze was cold and ruthless, gradually filling with excitement and battle lust.

All Nordic races were warlike and狂暴, and mountain giants were no exception. Li Mochen's resistance had begun to excite her, who had been in seclusion for thousands of years.

But at that moment, the Tianming Sword was suddenly covered in black-and-white radiance, and Li Mochen's figure entered the time-space gap along with it.

Dual Forbidden Style: Positive-Negative Poles!

Skadi, however, was unconcerned. Her twin Viking axes also tore through time and space.

"You are not the only one who masters time-space secrets, foolish new god!"

Her axes successfully blocked the Tianming Sword, but the annihilation energy bursting from the blade made Skadi's expression change. The blazing white light and shockwave exploded, causing the mountain giant to stagger back. The blades of her Viking axes were devoured by the annihilation energy, as if bitten off by a beast.

At the same time, a rain of fire spears fell from the sky.

Skadi initially paid it no heed; this was her demiplane, where her ice power was at its peak, easily extinguishing all supernatural flames.

But when the fire spears remained steadfast and continued to fall, Skadi began to take them seriously, realizing this was a combination of magical forbidden spells and divine power.

The power of this rain of fire spears was even greater than the Sun God Baldur's solar arrows!

She had to divert more power to suppress and neutralize them, even using ice spears to counter. At the same time, a point of black light was rapidly approaching her abdomen.

It was Li Mochen himself, traveling through the time-space gap like the Tianming Sword. The Six Yao Immortal Swords had temporarily merged into one, gathered in Li Mochen's hand, their sword might rivaling that of the Tianming Sword.

"Get lost!"

Skadi temporarily abandoned one axe, producing a small knife. But relative to her size, it was still a hundred meters long. Its broad blade could swat Li Mochen like a fly as he struck.

Yet when Li Mochen's Six Yao Immortal Sword collided with the knife, an overwhelming force, at least six times greater than Skadi's, gouged a deep pit in the knife's surface.

At the same time, Skadi's body was uncontrollably knocked into the air.

"What?"

The former Winter Goddess was taken aback, but her body had already flown into the air uncontrollably.

Hela, watching from behind, looked at the 'Mandala Bracelet' on Li Mochen's wrist, made from the bones of her brother's offspring.

Yet Hela showed no resentment; her brother Jörmungandr had always been imprisoned, unable to bear offspring normally. These so-called descendants were merely hybrids bred from Jörmungandr's blood and other mythical creatures while he was immobilized.

Moreover, it was not Li Mochen himself who ultimately killed the hybrid.

What concerned her was Li Mochen's use of this mythical artifact, absorbing the mountain giant's power during the fight and releasing it all at once.

This was a planned move to knock Skadi into the air, severing her connection to the ground.

It was a clever tactic, clearly premeditated by Li Mochen, who even used the power of 'Fate' in the process. But if Skadi had known more about this Lord of Fate, she would never have fallen for it.

Yet now that it had come to this, Hela could already see the outcome for this powerful mountain giant—

"You forget this is my divine realm!"

Skadi remained calm, snorting angrily as countless stone hands rose from the ground. Though she had lost her connection to the earth's power, she still retained the ability to manipulate earth and stone.

Skadi tried to return to the ground, but found it difficult. Li Mochen's ice divine power had covered the earth with a thick layer of ice, and summoned fierce winds that filled the space with countless wind blades, constantly shattering the stone hands and rendering her efforts almost futile.

His ice divine power, combined with forbidden spells, left her helpless. He even twisted time, creating obstacles for Skadi.

After that, Li Mochen's tactics and style in battle changed drastically. The Tianming Sword continuously unleashed massive sword beams, while the Six Yao Immortal Swords stirred up towering sword qi.

Li Mochen himself closed in on the mountain giant, using the powerful war divine power covering his body and a series of mighty forbidden spells, fighting hand-to-hand.

The shockwaves from their clash spread in all directions, destroying everything in the demiplane.

The scene made Hela's pupils contract as she watched from behind.

She understood André Li Wieldenstein's tactics well. He was again using his boundless, endless divine power from his 1.7 billion believers to wear down his opponent.

What surprised Hela was that Li Mochen's physical and magical strength was far greater than she had imagined! His true power was at least forty percent higher than her estimate.

...

After two full days and three nights, the shattered demiplane finally fell silent. Skadi's massive body lay on the ground, her ice-blue eyes devoid of life, blood flowing out to form streams and pools.

Even without the earth's support, Skadi's own strength and endurance were terrifying. She fought Li Mochen without reservation for two days and two nights before gradually exhausting her strength.

During that time, Li Mochen suffered three severe injuries, nearly allowing Skadi to return to the ground. He relied on his life-and-death divine power and vitality to barely hold on until Skadi's strength waned.

In the final night, the former Winter Goddess did not attempt to flee. The pride and honor of a giant warrior woman made her fight to the end. She was ashamed to flee or even surrender in single combat, which would have been a great humiliation, causing some of Li Mochen's preparations to come to nothing.

Now, as Li Mochen stepped onto the ground, he felt endless primordial energy surge into his body from the earth. At the same time, he sensed explosive strength within himself.

The Scarlet Dragon Armor had replicated everything from Skadi, granting him the formidable power of both 'Skadi' and the feathered serpent 'Kukulkan.'

Li Mochen sighed inwardly, judging that if he were to fight Skadi again in his previous state, his chance of defeat would be as high as 97%. Her absolute strength still surpassed his. He had less than a 3% chance of winning through various strategies and tactics.

But there was no 'if' now; he had won this battle.

Li Mochen then gathered his thoughts and began to manipulate the chaotic threads of fate around him.

At the same time, the Moon Rabbit, wearing a peculiar garment covered in various mystical rune arrays, jumped onto Skadi's body. With a wave of her hand, she drew the blood spilling from Skadi toward her.

"Are you trying to weave her fate?"

Hela watched Li Mochen's actions quietly, a look of speculation on her face. When she clearly saw the Moon Rabbit, her pupils were filled with surprise.

"She is not a being of this world? You want her to replace Skadi?"

Li Mochen did not answer, continuing to weave the threads of fate. Hela's guess was essentially correct; he was indeed having the Moon Rabbit replace Skadi's original trajectory in the river of fate, thereby gaining the recognition of this world.

In the past, even the mighty 'Zeus' needed to be born through Rhea's womb to gain the world's acknowledgment; the fierce 'Odin' needed to be born into this world through the 'Jotun,' seizing their original fate.

For the Moon Rabbit to become a god in this world, she had to gain the recognition of this world's source essence.

This was crucial, affecting whether the Moon Rabbit could draw power from her own laws and divine duties, and also the strength of her divine power and spells related to earth and mud.

The source of this world was powerful, which meant it had a strong suppressive force on beings from other realms.

During this process, Li Mochen also sensed a boiling murderous intent and malice from behind, and he understood immediately.

"Does this displease you, Princess Hela?"

Hela did not answer, but her brows were tightly knit, and the arm holding the sword hilt was taut with muscle, as if on the verge of striking.

Behind her, two faint figures appeared: her servants, the male attendant Ganglati and the female attendant Ganglot.

"You should know you cannot stop me, and Loki would not agree with your actions."

Li Mochen replied calmly, his expression serene: "I can only say that the demigod I have chosen, though from another realm, will also protect this land, care for her future believers and subjects, and fight against those who seek to harm this world."

But if she truly could not accept it, then they would have to fight. The Tianming Sword in his sleeve was already vibrating rapidly, ready for battle.

Hela's chest heaved, her expression shifting. After a long moment, she finally released the sword hilt.

"Lord of Fate! I hope you remember your words."

"Unlike your father, my reputation has always been good; I have never broken a promise. You have looked into that, haven't you?"

Li Mochen smiled, then continued manipulating the threads of fate, weaving and grafting—just as he had anticipated. Over three hours, he clearly felt the world's rejection of the Moon Rabbit diminish, growing weaker and weaker until it was nearly gone.

Next, she would need to replace the fate of another ancient mythical creature.

Only then would the Moon Rabbit have a firm foothold in this world.

By replacing the mountain giant 'Skadi' and the next target, Li Mochen expected that she would not trigger the world's suppressive force until she reached the quasi-god-king rank.

The Moon Rabbit remained seated cross-legged, absorbing nutrients from Skadi's essence blood.

This former spirit pet of Li Mochen had a thin bloodline of the 'Heaven-Baying Hou', which he then continuously purified and refined until now.

The innate ability of the divine beast 'Heaven-Baying Hou' is to acquire the mana and knowledge of others from their flesh and blood essence.

As far as Li Mochen knew, the most powerful being in the 'Heaven-Baying Hou' lineage was one who existed simultaneously in both Buddhism and Taoism as 'Long-Ear Dingguang Immortal Lord' and 'Dingguang Tathagata', suspected to be a Great Luo Golden Immortal, that is, a being at the Divine King level.

Li Mochen then began to collect Skadi's remains; the eyes and bones of the mountain giant were excellent materials for artifact forging. This was also the reward he had promised Anthony, whose Type III 'Mechanical War God' was in dire need of a strong skeleton. Anthony had been troubled by this for a long time, having tried several plans without satisfaction, unable to produce high-strength materials to support the 'Mechanical War God's' frame.

And the skeleton of a main god-level mountain giant would solve all the problems Anthony faced.

"What about the next target? How do you plan to deal with it?"

Hela asked, "Loki can help cover for you, but if we rely only on our own strength, we can't guarantee success."

"So we need to wait a bit longer."

Li Mochen looked up at the sky, "We have to wait for another ally I've invited."

After seizing Skadi's power, the anxiety in his heart had greatly diminished. Even if he were to fight head-on against several pantheons now, Li Mochen was confident he could contend with those at the Divine King or quasi-Divine King level in the material plane.

He indeed needed time to adapt to and understand the new power within the Scarlet Dragon Armor, especially the authority called 'Earth'.

Li Mochen's 'Yin-Yang' divine office actually contained the power of 'Primordial and Acquired Earth Element', and at a very high level. However, the 'Earth' of the Five Elements was quite different from Skadi's three divine authorities: high-level 'Earth', ultimate 'Mud', and ultimate 'Rock'.

Li Mochen had to comprehend their mysteries to fully unleash their power.

Moreover, Skadi also possessed the divine authority of ultimate 'Strength', which was of great significance to him.

This could precisely fill the gap Li Mochen had as a war god. He had always wanted to synthesize the 'Strength' mastered by the ancient gods and modern mechanics to forge his own new divine authority of 'Strength'.

But regarding the former, he seemed to lack talent in this area and had never found the way in, remaining only at the elementary level.

And Skadi's understanding of strength was undoubtedly profound. Analyzing her achievements on this path could provide him with immense help.

Afterward, Li Mochen sat down in this broken demiplane, closing his eyes in contemplation. With two strands of merit purple qi on him, his comprehension ability was elevated by two levels, and he was proficient in the Earth element, so his initial progress would be extremely smooth.

Beside him, Hela's eyes flickered, and then she summoned a pure black throne out of thin air. As she sat down, both she and the throne became encased in ice.

At the same time, a giant dog covered in flames stepped out from the void. It coiled its massive body around Hela, lolling its tongue and watching the surroundings with a vigilant gaze.

That was the hellhound 'Garm', Hela's war beast, a fierce divine hound with a powerful divine rank.

Due to the influence of the Aesir, almost all Norse gods and warriors had a tradition of keeping war beasts, and Hela was no exception.

This land had not granted her true immortality, only immortality against the Aesir. So she always had to remain vigilant to avoid being killed by those outside the Aesir.

Two days later, Li Mochen opened his eyes again and looked at the sky of the demiplane. He saw a twinkling star rapidly descending, its light growing brighter and brighter.

Hela, who had also awakened, narrowed her eyes and uttered two ancient Greek words: "Ὑπερίων" (Hyperion)!

A Titan god considered by the Greek gods to have power surpassing the second-generation god king 'Cronus', who ruled over 'Sky' and 'Time'. He was also one of the bloodline sources of the Wieldenstein family.

...

Australia, Yarra District, South Melbourne.

When the air raid siren sounded over the city, Rebecca pushed open the window and looked up with a terrified expression.

The power of magic was surging over Sydney, and powerful sources of force from several directions tore the clouds in the sky to shreds.

The magic tower array above was creaking under immense pressure, and the magical shield protecting the entire city of Melbourne had visibly distorted.

"Why again? My God! Hasn't the Magic Goddess's Weave been established yet?"

In another room, Rebecca's mother, Colonna, let out a desperate shout: "Rebecca, Melli, hurry up, get out here OK? Grab your bags, Clammy, bring those boxes from the kitchen. Yes, the ones marked 'Individual Rations'."

Rebecca unhesitatingly picked up the bag placed by her bedside and hurried out the door.

Inside the bag were spare clothes and personal items she had prepared, some food, and many things to ensure her personal safety—including a level twelve defensive artifact, a full set of level ten leather equipment and a one-handed sword, and several magic scrolls around level ten—all finger-sized, improved with modern technology, very convenient.

Melbourne had been in turmoil for three months, with continuous supernatural battles and a severe deterioration in public order. So her father had specially prepared these for her, kept in one bag for easy carrying. This would allow her to defend herself in any situation and easily access the city's various shelters at any time.

When Rebecca arrived in the living room, she found her mother Colonna already wearing a set of soft armor. Her mother had been a member of the school's martial arts enthusiasts' club during her student days and was a level seven magic swordsman at twenty-two. Unfortunately, after marriage and childbirth, she couldn't advance further into the outlaw level and was now only at level nine.

But seeing Colonna's heroic posture, Rebecca still felt very reassured.

"Is it serious this time, Mom? Do we have to go to a shelter?"

They lived in a high-end apartment building. The building's protection level was very high, only slightly inferior to the residences of the very wealthy.

"I don't know."

Colonna's eyes held confusion and worry for the future: "But it's always right to be cautious. Your father just called, telling us to leave this building as soon as possible. No place is safe now. Can you imagine? The Parliament House in Canberra was breached just two days ago."

She didn't know that her words caused great unease in her eldest daughter, whose attention had turned to her youngest daughter, who was still not appearing: "Melli! How long are you going to take?"

Then, the next moment, a door from the corridor opened from inside. A twelve-year-old girl, exquisitely dressed, walked out. She pouted, her eyes full of dissatisfaction: "Colonna, I don't like those hard things. Can't we just have bread and milk?"

"We need to carry at least ten days' worth of food, Melli! If you don't want to eat, you can go hungry."

Colonna didn't spoil her daughter and didn't bother with her youngest. She grabbed both daughters and left, followed by a maid who was also fully armed and carrying the box of individual rations.

They took the stairs. Although the building's elevators were still reliable before the magic tower array was destroyed, the problem was that everyone in the building had to go to the underground garage or other shelters.

So waiting for the elevator could take ten minutes.

After reaching the underground garage, Colonna didn't enter the shelter on the lower level. Instead, she grabbed both her daughters, activated the 'Swift Wind' speed of her armor, and ran briskly out of the garage.

They had three cars, but driving on the road at this time would be suicidal. The streets outside were surely blocked and chaotic. Even magic motorcycles with short-range flight capabilities would be at a standstill.

"Are we going to the nearby church? The Eastern District Cathedral of the Church of Light?"

Rebecca asked curiously: "But I think the church of the Lord of Fate would be safer. Let's go there, Mom?"

She knew her mother was a follower of the Lord of Light, since childhood.

In the supernatural battles of this world, the churches of powerful gods were indeed safer than ordinary shelters.

But her sister sneered: "Don't be ridiculous, Rebecca! The Lord of Fate you believe in has been a god for less than a year. What power can they have? Do you want our whole family to die there?"

Rebecca looked displeasedly at her sister and then retorted sarcastically: "Better than your Venus! The goddess of love, beauty, and desire!"

She emphasized the word 'desire' heavily, making her implication clear to anyone, and causing Melli's face to flush with shame and anger.

'Venus' might bring people love and beauty, but to some extent, she was also synonymous with promiscuity.

But Rebecca didn't think she was wrong at all. Andre Lee Wieldenstein had always been her favorite idol. She loved her idol's outstanding knowledge and his unparalleled fighting skills. So when her idol became a god, Rebecca immediately registered as a follower at the Church of Fate.

In her eyes, Andre's image was nearly perfect, not to be defiled by anyone.

"Rebecca, you can't treat your sister like that!"

Colonna scolded sternly, but then her tone also carried dissatisfaction: "But Melli, can't you choose another god to believe in? Does it have to be Venus? I know you've recently taken a liking to dressing up and caring about your appearance. But the Andre your sister believes in is also very good."

Compared to the licentious Venus, Andre, who was excellent in both character and learning, had no blemishes in his mortal days, and became a god within ten years, was undoubtedly a more worthy object of faith.

Colonna thought that if she were ten years younger, she might also abandon the Lord of Light and convert to the Lord of Fate, who had the beauty of Apollo.

"I don't want you to interfere!"

Melli turned her head away angrily, while Rebecca continued to persuade her mother: "Go to the Church of Fate, Mom. It's located in that nine-story building on Stephen Square. It's less than two kilometers from here after we turn. The Church of Light isn't safe either. Didn't they say that half a month ago, a grand cathedral of Light in Australia was destroyed by evil spirits? But the Church of Fate has always been safe. Although the news media didn't report it, I've communicated with fellow believers online, and they say the Church of Fate is the safest in all of Australia. They are very glad they converted in time this year. Especially during the disaster in northern Brisbane, many shelters and churches were destroyed, but the Church of Fate was unharmed, not a scratch afterward."

Colonna shook her head with a bitter smile. The Lord of Fate was a worthy object of faith, but in times of disaster, he might not be a god to rely on.

Melli was right about one thing: he was too young.

Although rumors said he had fought against the Lord of Light and independently suppressed two war gods, Colonna thought this couldn't be true. It was likely a rumor spread by the clergy of the Church of Fate to elevate their god's status.

Colonna also resented this, considering it a blasphemy against the Lord of Light.

But just as she was sprinting at full speed, with the Eastern District Cathedral already in sight, she sensed movement from her communication device.

Colonna had a mobile phone. Over the past seven years, these devices, originally the size of a brick, had shrunk to a third of their original size and become widely popular, affordable even for relatively wealthy middle-class families like theirs.

But in this environment, mobile phones were unreliable. So her husband had spent extra money to acquire a communication artifact for emergency contact between them.

Colonna unhesitatingly opened the artifact, and her husband's image was projected beside them—to save money, this artifact could only be used by the couple.

"Don't go to the Eastern District Cathedral, Colonna."

The man in the image was also running at full speed, his expression extremely anxious: "Go to the Church of Fate in South Yarra now. You should still have time."

"The Church of Fate? Why?"

Colonna was stunned, but she decisively turned around. Her husband, Smith Holder, worked for the city government as a senior administrative officer, so his information sources were broader than ordinary people's.

"I'm a bit far from there."

"No! It must be the Church of Fate!"

The man's voice was firm and brooked no argument: "This divine war is on a large scale. At least seven Power Angels, three Cardinals, and over a dozen unidentified minor gods have appeared. In this city, only the Church of Fate can protect our safety."

Colonna frowned. She looked ahead and saw that the Church of Fate was still at least two kilometers away. After turning left earlier, she had already run a long distance.

Now, the magical shield above them was creaking, and the divine power of those gods had permeated the city, putting immense pressure on her.

"Can't it be the Church of Knowledge? I'm right next to it. I read in the newspaper that this church's safety rating is ranked fifth."

And the Church of Fate was ranked twenty-second, at the bottom among the公认的 powerful gods.

"No! Listen to me, okay, dear? If necessary, you can use a magic scroll. Don't worry about saving money, dear."

The man smiled bitterly: "Those newspapers didn't tell the truth. In fact, the Church of the Lord of Fate is currently the safest in Australia. You may not know, but the Lord of Fate has very limited influence within the Australian government, and he is also hostile to the major churches and family forces here. They will never publicize this in the media. Only the Church of Fate can guarantee absolute safety. This was said by my boss, our mayor himself. His family converted to the Lord of Fate seven days ago."

At this moment, Rebecca, held in Colonna's arm, raised her eyebrows slightly and then looked at her sister with a triumphant expression. She thought to herself, indeed, whether in his mortal days or as a deity, Andre was the best.