Chapter 174 If You Have the Guts, Come and Talk, Ares! (47k)
Chapter 174 If you have the guts, go to the toilet and speak, Ares! (4.7k)
Cyprus.
A thin silver-haired boy, holding a bag in his arms, stumbled and ran fast in the dense forest.
Severe scratches on his arms and thighs, a forehead oozing blood, and a bronze arrow piercing his left shoulder blade...all these traces show that he is fleeing from a hunt.
"Escape? Can you escape?"
A gloomy snort came, and a middle-aged man with messy red hair and a red beard, wearing a Thracian-style green robe, carrying a wooden spear, followed the silver-haired boy slowly, not in a hurry to end the chase, and seemed to be simply enjoying the process of hunting and killing.
Seeing the pursuer behind him approaching again, the fleeing silver-haired boy, or the future god of medicine Asclepius, gritted his teeth and reached into the bag, took out two pottery bottles, and threw them behind him.
The red-haired middle-aged man raised his hand and touched his cheek. His eyes were covered with cloth and there was a faint smell of black and smelly blood. He swung the wooden spear with a grim smile.
Little bastard, you have used this trick before!
The blood-colored light pattern shot forward and smashed the two flying pottery bottles in mid-air.
At the same time, the scarlet divine power spread, and in an instant, it burned violently like a flame, completely burning the fragments of the pottery bottle and the flying powder in it.
Seeing that his last means of self-protection was easily resolved, Asclepius, who had already lost too much blood, looked even paler, and a ray of despair rose in his heart.
Originally, he just accepted the invitation of Adonis, the prince of Cyprus, to come here to treat his hidden illness.
But who would have thought that after he cured Adonis and was sent out of the city by him, he actually ran into a madman head-on.
After learning that he was the doctor who cured Adonis, this guy chased him all the way with a spear without saying a word.
Although he took advantage of his unpreparedness and used a temporary poisonous potion to seriously injure his eyes.
But this not only failed to make him retreat, but also aroused his ferocity and tyranny. He continued the chase game with a cat-and-mouse mentality, forcing the injured Asclepius to flee.
Once the prey resisted, the more excited the expression of the pervert behind him, the more cruel he would be.
The dozens of wounds of various sizes on Asclepius' body were left by the pervert behind him.
If he was not an excellent doctor who could heal himself, he would not be able to hold on for long, and the divine blood in his body would be drained, and he would be exhausted in a cruel way.
But even so, Asclepius was almost at his limit.
Not only were the potions and divine power in his body consumed, but even his physical strength and mental will were on the verge of collapse.
Realizing that it would not be long before he would die humiliated on this doomed escape road, Asclepius gritted his teeth and stood still and looked back.
Fight him!
However, seeing that the weak prey dared to turn around and show its claws to him, the red-haired man immediately showed displeasure and knocked the wooden spear in his hand to the ground.
"Run! Little bastard, run!"
The scarlet divine power shot forward with the red-haired man's cold snort, brushing against Asclepius' cheek, arm and hair, leaving terrible deep pits around.
But even so, Asclepius in front of him remained motionless, but pulled out the half-broken cane on his waist, and took a resolute posture.
Seeing this, the red-haired man suddenly lost interest, and his eyes, which were bleeding under the cloth, looked at the prey in front of him, and a trace of cruelty flashed.
"Want to die? Then this king will fulfill your wish!"
In the gloomy cold shout, the red-haired man swung his arm and threw the palm wood spear in his hand forward, like a red meteor, tearing through the space and falling to the position where Asclepius was.
Sensing the violent and surging divine power coming at him, Asclepius, who was almost suffocated, immediately realized how ridiculous his idea of a desperate fight was.
The gap between the two sides was like heaven and earth.
Once the man stopped teasing, he couldn't even block the other party's attack.
As the dazzling scarlet color quickly filled his vision, Asclepius closed his eyes helplessly.
However, after waiting for a few breaths, the expected pain and death did not come as promised.
Instead, a warm arm patted his shoulder.
"Boy, how long are you going to be stupid? Why don't you leave?"
The old voice echoed in his ears, and Asclepius subconsciously opened his eyes and looked in the direction of the voice.
Suddenly, he saw a blind old man who was two meters tall and had long silver-gray hair. He was holding the scarlet spear with his right hand raised high. His muscles were bulging, and the golden divine power gushing out of his body was constantly wearing away the divinity on the scarlet spear.
——Homer?
Looking at the blind old man's exaggerated muscles that looked like cast iron, and the majestic divinity bursting out of him, Asclepius couldn't help but be stunned.
——Is this... a poet?
"Haha, I just happened to be bored, and here comes another one to die!"
At this time, seeing someone successfully block his spear, the red-haired man laughed instead of getting angry, and the blood on his body became more intense and violent. He immediately turned into a scarlet blood shadow with a burst of air and rushed forward.
Seeing this, the blind old man was startled. Without thinking too much, he immediately kicked behind him. His free left hand quickly drew a series of Hermetic characters in the direction where Asclepius was falling.
"Go to Athens, don't look back!"
With a low roar, the last Hermetic character was drawn, and the magic circle was instantly activated. As the light flowed, Asclepius, who fell into it, was transferred dozens of miles away.
Sensing that the breath did not approach the battlefield again, the blind poet Homer, or Lorne, who came to the rescue in a vest, couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Huh, he finally listened to the advice.
At the same time, without any worries, he threw away the spear whose divinity he had exhausted without hesitation, turned his hands into fists, and hit forward with all his strength, and collided heavily with the bloody figure who rushed forward.
"Boom!"
The thunderous explosion sounded in the air, forming layers of terrifying sonic booms. The surrounding ground was instantly cut off dozens of meters by the powerful impact force, and smoke and dust filled the air.
"Moo!"
Then, accompanied by the dull roar of a bull, the blood-red figure was thrown out like a cannonball.
"Bang bang bang bang!"
The red-haired man wrapped in blood broke dozens of giant trees in succession, and then he let go of the remaining strength and stood still in the flying wood chips.
"Not bad, not bad, I finally met a character worth fighting!"
In the midst of excited laughter, the man raised his head, his eyes covered with cloth strips stared straight at the unbelievably burly old man in front of him, and the phantom of the [Bull] that appeared behind him, and a rare solemnity appeared on his face.
"You are qualified to know my name. I am the King of Thrace - Lycurgos!"
Hearing the other party introduce himself, Loen looked at the red-haired man in front of him who claimed to be the King of Thrace, and his iconic war divinity, and secretly shook his head at the old man's straightforward lying skills.
In Greek mythology, the ancestor of the Thracians was Tyax, the son of the god of war Ares, who was said to have first moved to that area.
Due to their martial spirit, Ares is the most important god of the Thracians, and is a symbol of their unique culture and belief. There is even a saying that this god of war originated from Thrace.
The kings of Thrace in successive generations called themselves the King of the Sun and the one blessed by the god of war Ares.
As for the Lycurgos in front of him, he is the last Thracian Sun King in the legend.
In Homer's Epic, he is described as the son of Boreas, the god of the north wind. In Herodotus's History, he is described as a descendant of Ares. Lycurgos was burdened with multiple chaotic legends, and no one knew the truth, but in any case, he was truly divine.
After him, the grand dynasty of the god of wine was established, sacrifices and sects changed, and the glory of the ancient gods died.
After him, the rebels ascended the royal steps and extinguished the last remaining flames of the god of war, and Thrace was shrouded in carnival from then on.
Yes, he and this Lycurgos were destined to be enemies.
According to legend, when the god of wine Dionysus wanted to pass through Thrace, he was rejected by Lycurgos, and launched a surprise attack on Dionysus and his followers at night. He rushed into the mountains and forests of Nissaum and attacked and killed the crazy woman who was a believer of Dionysus.
There is no doubt that this was a great victory - so much so that Dionysus turned into a bull and fled and was driven into the sea.
Haha, how could he be just a mere city builder king who could force the god of wine, who was already one of the twelve main gods at that time, to this extent?
I'm afraid that even if it's not the real body of some main god, it's the human container that holds the consciousness of some main god.
So, you lied so badly, do you really think I don't know who you are?
If you have the guts, go to the main account and talk, Ares!
While Lorne righteously rebuked this shameless behavior in his heart, he answered calmly.
"Homer, a poet, I'm just passing by..."
"..."
The king of Thrace on the opposite side couldn't help but look black when he heard this.
Poet? Passing by? Ares, you're kidding?
Looking at the blind old man who was obviously lying, Ares, who was on the small account, didn't bother to talk nonsense. He snorted coldly, stretched out his hand and grabbed the wooden spear that fell to the side, then ignited the blood-colored divine flame on his body, and shot towards the opponent who made him excited.
In an instant, the temperature around him rose sharply.
The air was burning, the world was burning!
Everything he saw was hot and scarlet, and Lorne seemed to be in a world that was being destroyed.
Bendis's sacred tree is also a branch of the World Tree [Great Palmwood] in Thracian mythology. After Thrace was conquered and assimilated by the Greek gods, Ares, who occupied that land, made it into a javelin as his own weapon. [Great Palmwood] has disappeared without a trace, and this javelin is the last remnant of a dead world tree.
Feeling the pure will of destruction, Lorne's face immediately became stern, and he fully manifested the phantom of [Bull], while singing the words of God, pushing his power to the extreme.
"I am the strongest and hold all victories in my hands. Whether it is gods or evil beasts - I am the one who defeats all enemies in the face of hostility, I will defeat any enemy in front of me! Bull with shining golden horns, protect me!"
The phantom of the Cretan labyrinth, like a fortress, rose from the ground in front of Lorne, cooperating with the roar and collision of [Bull] to resist the erosion from the dead world.
However, accompanied by a roar of crushing force, the [maze] born on the earth only lasted for a moment before it collapsed.
"Puff!"
The next moment, the blood-red spear with great momentum pierced through the [bull's] neck, making a tearing sound like a sharp blade entering flesh.
"Moo~~"
The golden bull burst into a wail and shattered.
As the main body, Lorne suddenly felt a domineering and violent force and a life-destroying death will, which were raging in his body. He was suddenly struck by lightning, and a strand of golden red blood flowed out of his mouth, and he was extremely shocked.
Damn, how could this happen? !
At this moment, before Lorne could think about it, the blood-red figure with rich combat experience took the opportunity to rush forward, and the palm wrapped in blood-red divine power fiercely grabbed his throat.
"Bang!"
The thick palm passed through the air and crushed a huge tree.
Hallucination?
Ares looked at the broken shadow in front of him and the vines entangled under his feet, frowned slightly, and the blood-colored divinity gushed out, instantly burning the surrounding vines that brought intoxication and frenzy.
With the strong aroma of wine in the air, he turned his eyes, glanced through the cloth, and glanced at the figure who was trying to regulate his breath a hundred meters away, and the [goat] that appeared behind him, and grinned excitedly.
Found you!
To be honest, he hated those flashy tricks the most.
As a warrior, only relying on the natural body, using pure speed and strength, experiencing a fist-to-flesh duel, winning and falling, this is the most refreshing thing!
"Are there any goats that can increase speed? See how long you can escape!"
Ares bent his fingers and grasped, and took the wooden spear into his hand again, and rushed forward with a grin.
In the land of Thrace, he is not only the god of war, but also the god of hunting.
Similarly, hunting wild boars and killing evil wolves are also the tests that Thracian princes must go through before they inherit the throne.
It is an ancient ritual and blessing inherited from the ancestor of the Thracian tribes, the god of war Ares.
By killing evil wolves and wild boars, they show their bravery and also gain concepts and strength from them.
The so-called evil wolves and wild boars are not just simple beasts.
"Evil wolves" are cunning and fierce, hiding in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to take the head of the King of the Sun.
"Wild boars" are ignorant and crazy, born in dampness, unscrupulous, and always maintain unspeakable madness.
What the Thracian princes really hunt are the "black beasts" that symbolize these evil and crazy things. They may be pagan villains, or possessed evil spirits, or savage monsters.
Defeat them and learn from them-
Draw wisdom from cunning, exercise decisiveness from fierceness, understand determination from ignorance, and breed courage from frenzy.
At this moment, Lycurgus, who was leaning over by Ares, had a very high resistance and restraint effect on the power and strength derived from the concept of animal divinity.
In battle, he could peel off, filter, and purify these fragments that he regarded as [evil and frenzy] bit by bit, and learn the corresponding combat skills from them.
The fragments of the cunning man turned into a storm of wisdom, surrounding the body and blowing away illusions.
The fragments of the fierce man turned into the thunder of courage, roaring in an instant, accumulating and exploding.
The fragments of the foolish man turned into the flame of determination, with endless power, burning and healing wounds.
The fragments of the frenzy turned into the glow of courage, illuminating himself and dispelling the darkness.
Therefore, the true Thracian king, the true god of battle, cannot be "polluted" by power, and the only way to defeat him is to confront him head-on.
At the same time, Lorne, who was seen through, looked at Ares, who was not affected by [madness] and rushed straight towards him, and his heart sank. He looked at the ordinary spear in his hand with fear.
There is something wrong with that thing! It must not be touched!
Almost at the moment of making this decision, Loen raised his right hand without hesitation and drew with his fingers in front of him at a high speed.
Hermetic text, linear divine pattern, Titan holy words, primitive letters... and other sacred symbols with transcendent power that existed or appeared in the Greek God Age appeared densely in front of him, like stars in the sky.
At this moment, he finally remembered another field he was good at.
—— The great witch Circe was his enlightenment teacher;
—— The witch goddess Hecate was his extracurricular tutor;
—— The magic goddess Athena had been his sparring partner;
—— The goddess of knowledge and memory Mnemosyne personally baptized his spiritual thoughts,
—— The nine Muses were his subordinates and vassals;
—— He studied in the Temple of Memory and read almost all the mystical knowledge in Greece...
Loen looked at the warrior god who was rushing towards him, and used the power of [Goat] without hesitation to distance himself, while waving forward, with a humorous thought in his heart.
——Sorry, besides being a warrior, I am also a wizard!
Instantly, dense and various divine patterns shot forward like a meteor shower, and the violent explosion and dazzling flames instantly submerged the menacing figure.