Chapter 439: Haste makes waste
"Holly, what on earth is happening?"
Raphael was on the verge of losing it. Ever since returning from the demon realm, all his actions had been guided by Du Ge, leaving him no chance to interact with the outside world. As a result, the information he received was fragmented and chaotic.
It was like being swept along with the tide, completely unaware of the truth, and this feeling made him very uncomfortable.
"Didn't you see? The Moon God has gone mad. She won't listen to my explanations at all," Du Ge said, not looking back. After blocking the Moon God's attack, he suddenly launched a seven-orifice touch at the frost dragon.
The Moon God intercepted the attack meant for the frost dragon but neglected what was behind.
The frost dragon, its rear scorched by the Sun God's fire, let out a miserable howl and spewed a large mouthful of cold flames at the Sun God's chariot, which Phila blocked with the Sun God's divine power.
Phila stood atop the chariot, using the Sun God's body to shield his vital points, occasionally unleashing divine power to assist Du Ge in attacking the Moon God and the frost dragon. His eyes shone with excitement and fanaticism.
After his appearance was ruined, his mind had become twisted, and his desire to become a god overshadowed everything.
He believed that only by becoming a god could he fully restore his appearance. If the Sun God's power wasn't enough, then he'd use the Moon God's power, and if that wasn't enough, there was still the Elemental God...
So, these ancient gods had to die."Why didn't you let Julia and me awaken the Moon God earlier?" Raphael glanced back at the Moon God and questioned.
"Raphael, I'm in the middle of a battle, and you're distracting me," Du Ge said with dissatisfaction, glancing at him. "If you and Julia tried to awaken the Moon God and she decided to kill you both, could you withstand her?"
"..." Raphael was stunned.
"Raphael, it's good to be righteous, but not foolish," Du Ge said earnestly. "Alright, if you still want to protect this world, go with Phila to confront the Moon God from behind. We need to lure her to the demon realm. She's been forcibly awakened by me, and the Moon God's temple should still be fighting for control of her body. It's better for her to kill there than to harm the human world. This is a strategy of driving the tiger to swallow the wolf. Evil gods are adept at disguise, so be careful not to be bewitched by her."
Raphael looked back at the Moon God again, seeing the murderous intent in her eyes, and nodded. "Alright."
With that, he flew up to the top of the Sun God's chariot to join Phila in dealing with the Moon God, though he still couldn't give up hope. "Moon God, do you remember me? I'm Raphael, who fought alongside you six thousand years ago..."
What greeted him was a sharp moonbeam, and the furious Moon God didn't want to exchange a single word with him.
Raphael had forgotten that he was holding the Sun God's left leg, while Phila held the Sun God's body. In the Moon God's eyes, they were the evil gods, the true god-devourers.
The Moon God was chasing Du Ge, and being hit by the seven-orifice touch was just one reason. The most crucial was that she had seen the Sun God's head.
She once believed that ancient gods were immortal. But now, the Sun God's death instilled a deep fear within her. Anyone who could kill the Sun God could kill her. She couldn't allow anyone who could harm her to exist in the world, let alone let these god-slayers use her divine body in battle...
Not only did she not receive a response from the Moon God, but she was also attacked by her. Raphael finally believed that the Moon God had been corrupted by an evil god. He sighed and activated the divine power within the Sun God's left leg, joining forces with Phila to attack the Moon God.
Even in death, the Sun God was still the Sun God. The divine power contained within his body, accumulated over countless years, was equivalent to the Moon God's power. Until it was exhausted, it was enough to withstand a Moon God of the same level.
Two fists couldn't fight four hands. The Moon God couldn't split herself to attack, especially with Du Ge using some despicable techniques that left her defenseless.
Du Ge's techniques not only contained the Sun God's power but also the Power of Poseidon...
...
Du Ge drove the Sun God's chariot ahead, with the Moon God riding the frost dragon in pursuit. One gold and one silver, they streaked across different nations like two meteors.
During the chase, Du Ge felt his divine power slowly recovering. The Forest God's poison could only suppress divine power temporarily, not forever. His control over his divine power became increasingly agile, turning him back into that omnipotent tentacle monster.
Countless people on the ground gazed up at the sky. Concerned about his reputation, Du Ge would release a thousand rays of holy light to blind others before using the seven-orifice touch. Thus, no one but him and the involved party knew what he did to the Moon God, and the Moon God herself certainly wouldn't speak of it.
Du Ge had long noticed that the Moon God, unlike the Sun God, couldn't teleport. Therefore, his ultimate move was always effective.
It was only because the Moon God's body was strong enough that the Sun God's power, capable of scorching the earth, hadn't cooked her insides to medium rare. Instead, she remained lively, albeit with an increasingly flushed face...
As for judgment, Du Ge had long given up on it.
The two sides were already like fire and water. No matter how sharp his words or how effective his psychological tactics, the Moon God would never admit to any of her crimes. But Du Ge didn't believe that without the Justice Sword, an ancient god couldn't be killed.
If a creature truly couldn't be killed, then there was no point in resisting Pan-Universal Entertainment. After all, this was just a game field chosen by Pan-Universal Entertainment.
While fighting the Moon God, Du Ge wasn't idle. He manipulated the Power of Poseidon, condensing it into vapor, leaving line after line of text in the sky.
Messages like:
"The Moon God has been corrupted by an evil god. Everyone, stay indoors to avoid accidental harm."
"Don't trust any ancient god. Only we humans can protect the world."
"Great ambitions require great sacrifices, dare to change the sun and moon."
"The demon realm's army is gathering. The Sun God's angelic army has already gone to the junction of the demon realm and the human world to intercept the demon army. Those with aspirations can go to the war between gods and demons to exert their strength and protect the human world."
"For the light, for the future of humanity, I will lead the Moon God to the war between gods and demons. If one day I die, remember my name, Holly Arlaus, King of the Du Ge Dynasty."
...
What is propaganda?
It's simply about controlling the narrative, putting the blame on the other side first.
As long as some people believed his words, it was his success, and his attributes would increase.
Moreover, doing so also served as an advertisement for himself, letting the Alien Star warriors below know that the one fighting the Moon God was also an Alien Star warrior. His Paul martial soul was always shining, calling for people from Qi Yuan Star to come and help.
For those not from Qi Yuan Star, it also showed them the consequences of provoking ancient gods, deterring them from rashly awakening ancient gods, leaving the remaining three hundred thousand mental power still his...
Killing multiple birds with one stone.
Relying solely on the angels for propaganda was too slow.
...
"Damn, it's him again?"
In a certain Magic Academy, a pure and beautiful girl in a white mage robe looked up at the sky and couldn't help but curse, startling the prince who was trying to court her.
"Lilith, do you know the person being chased by the Moon God in the sky?" The prince looked up at the sky and asked with a frown, "The Du Ge Dynasty, why have I never heard of this name?"
"I don't know him." Lilith glanced at the staff in her hand, then at Du Ge, who was fighting the Moon God in the sky, her expression so dejected she was about to cry.
She had just used her beauty to incite the prince to usurp the throne, and Du Ge was already fighting the Moon God. It seemed he had even taken down the Sun God and had already sparked the war between gods and demons. Was the gap between people really this vast?
With a great demon king like Du Ge around, what was the point of the rewards set by Pan-Universal Entertainment? Why not just hand the rewards directly to him?
"Lilith, the person in the sky said the ancient gods might have been corrupted by evil gods. I think there's no need to investigate the ancient gods anymore!" The prince glanced at Lilith, his expression suddenly turning cold.
"Indeed, there's no need." Lilith sighed. "Illian, gather the strong ones in the country, and let's head to the war between gods and demons! I think we should contribute to protecting humanity..."
Du Ge had made his intentions clear in the sky, clearly calling everyone to the war between gods and demons for a decisive battle. After witnessing Du Ge's strength, Lilith, no matter how ambitious, had to forcibly suppress it.
She didn't even dare not to go to the war between gods and demons. Du Ge was indeed kind to his own people, but he never showed mercy to his enemies.
Rather than waiting to be settled by him in the future, it was better to go now, maybe even leaving a good impression on him...
...
There were many Alien Star warriors who shared the same thoughts as Lilith. When the power gap was too large, resistance only meant throwing away one's life without any meaning. The most crucial point was that Du Ge had a history of distributing resources.
Isn't it better to stay alive?
...
In the Feather Forest.
The Elf King Wang San stood shoulder to shoulder with a seraph, chatting and laughing.
When Du Ge and the Moon God streaked across the sky.
The two of them looked up simultaneously.
"Du Ge?"
"The Sun God's chariot?"
Two voices rang out at the same time.
The seraph frowned. "Damn it, how can a mortal drive the Sun God's chariot? Raphael? Damn it, what on earth is happening? Alan, I might not be able to take you to Boderuna. I need to catch up and see what's going on?"
With that, she spread her wings, ready to take off.
Wang San's voice rang out timely: "Elena, can you take me along to see? You know my abilities, maybe I can be of help!"
The seraph named Elena glanced back at Wang San, nodded, and wrapped an arm around his shoulder, spreading her wings to chase after the Sun God's chariot. Her face was particularly serious. Just now, in a fleeting glance, she seemed to have seen the mortal driving the Sun God holding what was clearly the Sun God's head...
If it was the Sun God's head, that would be terrifying!
Elena was one of the twelve archangels, always traveling outside, unaware of what had happened in Boderuna. She was one of the three archangels who had luckily escaped Du Ge's grasp.
She specialized in speed, but even so, she couldn't catch up with the Sun God's chariot and the frost dragon. Shortly after taking to the sky, she lost sight of both.
"Elena, let's go to the war between gods and demons!" Wang San pointed at the lingering water stains in the sky. "That's where they're headed. We should hurry. I suspect something major has happened there, and there's no need to return to Boderuna..."
Elena was initially hesitant, but as soon as Wang San finished speaking, she made up her mind and flew towards the direction of the war between gods and demons.
...
The chase lasted a day and a night, with another day's journey to the war between gods and demons. Du Ge's divine power had fully recovered.
Moreover, whether it was due to his propaganda along the way or the angels from Boderuna spreading the word, Du Ge's attributes had significantly increased.
He was no longer as embarrassed dealing with the Moon God as before, and he seemed to handle it with ease.
Du Ge's divine power indeed couldn't match the Moon God's, but let's not forget, they still had half a Sun God assisting them. The divine power contained within the Sun God's three remaining limbs seemed endless, with little depletion even after a day of battle.
Most crucially, the frost dragon wasn't a deity. After being repeatedly pierced by the Sun God's power, its internal organs had suffered severe injuries, and it was flying slower and slower.
Now, the frost dragon was covered in a layer of moonlight, likely the Moon God lending her divine power to help it fly and heal its injuries.
"Raphael, do you know the locations of any other ancient gods' slumber?" Du Ge handed the chariot over to Nobu and Eddie to drive, standing on the roof and asking Raphael as if making small talk.
"I don't know."
Raphael shook his head with a gloomy expression.
Seeing the Moon God healing the frost dragon, he finally realized that the Moon God might not have been corrupted by an evil god, and everything was orchestrated by the man beside him. But at this point, he was riding a tiger and couldn't get off.
Raphael's biggest worry now was that Holly and the demon realm's Du Ge were in cahoots.
With the Sun God fallen, if they led the Moon God to the demon realm and she also fell, only three ancient gods would remain in the human world, likely unable to resist the demon realm's invasion.
Then he would truly be the sinner of the human world.
At this moment, the Moon God seemed to realize that she couldn't kill Du Ge on her own. So, when passing over a forest, she hesitated for a moment, then suddenly changed direction, riding the frost dragon decisively southward.
Nobu and Eddie, unaware of what was happening behind them, continued to drive the Sun God's chariot forward, quickly widening the distance from the Moon God.
Raphael couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
"Damn!" Du Ge cursed, quickly flashing back to reclaim control of the Sun God's chariot from Nobu, bringing it to a halt. But with this sudden change in direction, he knew he couldn't catch up with the Moon God anymore.
"Phila, what's in the south?" Du Ge asked.
"The sea," Phila replied.
The Sea God!
Du Ge instantly understood the Moon God's intent. He looked in the direction the Moon God had left, his face changing unpredictably, but he didn't drive the Sun God's chariot to pursue. He hadn't forgotten the power gap between them. Even if he caught up, he couldn't win, and letting the Moon God and Sea God unite would be walking into a trap...
"Du Ge, what do we do?" Nobu asked. "If the Moon God awakens the Sea God, and they join forces, we might not be their match."
"The scariest part is if they awaken the Elemental God and Earth God too," Phila added gloomily. "Then, even all the angels in Boderuna combined wouldn't be their match..."
Too greedy!
Du Ge sat in the Sun God's chariot, lost in thought.
If, after killing the Sun God, he hadn't been so hasty and had slowly dealt with Raphael, first leading the angelic army to the war between gods and demons to spark the war, would the situation be better than now?
Although doing so meant losing the forty thousand mental power for awakening ancient gods, at least he could ensure getting the thirty thousand mental power for sparking the war between gods and demons...
The world was so vast, and it was never easy to get all the mental power rewards from Pan-Universal Entertainment into his hands.
The most crucial point was that if the four ancient gods gathered, proving they hadn't been corrupted by evil gods, the upright image he had built for himself would instantly collapse, and all his attributes would likely be knocked down...
Without the recovery brought by attributes, relying solely on divine power and skills, he might be able to deal with Alien Star warriors, but he definitely couldn't defeat four ancient gods united.
For the first time, Du Ge had pushed himself to the brink.
Indeed, greed is the original sin.
The Alien Star battlefield with deities wasn't something that could be handled with a rush strategy. He had been too arrogant!
This incident also served as a wake-up call for Du Ge. If dealing with the deities of the Alien Star battlefield had so many loopholes, what about Pan-Universal Entertainment, which was stronger than deities?
Could he really resist with just a soul-splitting skill?
Ten planets, with an unknown history of struggle spanning hundreds of years, had no capable person ever emerged?
Winning a few times on the Alien Star battlefield made him feel he could take on Pan-Universal Entertainment. Too blindly confident, too optimistic!
"Du Ge, what are you thinking?" Nobu asked.
"I'm reflecting," Du Ge glanced at him, gave a faint smile, and said, "Let's go. Don't worry about the Moon God anymore. Head to the war between gods and demons..."
At this moment, Du Ge had completely regained his composure.
"Don't care about those ancient gods anymore?" Phila asked. "The Moon God knows we killed the Sun God. Once they unite..."
"I know," Du Ge interrupted him, smiling. "But the safety of the human world is more important. Ancient gods may abandon the impending war between gods and demons for their own interests, but we can't. We must keep the demon realm's army out of the human world."
"..." Phila looked at Du Ge as if he didn't recognize him. Had he forgotten his identity as an evil god after pretending to be the God King for so long?
Raphael was suddenly shaken: "Holly, you..."
"Raphael, I know what you've always been thinking. You've never believed in me, but divine revelations can't be false." Du Ge smiled, turning to look at him. "As we near the war between gods and demons, the Moon God giving up the chase further proves she's been corrupted by an evil god because she won't fight the demon kings but will wholeheartedly deal with me, the true hope of humanity."
He sighed deeply, smiling bitterly: "Being a hero is too hard. If I could, I'd rather always be an ordinary boy!"
Raphael's throat felt dry: "But if she's been corrupted by an evil god, wouldn't it be easier for her to kill you if she joins forces with the demon kings in the demon realm?"
"Raphael, you're too naive!" Du Ge looked at Raphael with pity, shaking his head. "Ruling the human world in the name of ancient gods, people won't resist. Once the people know they're evil gods, what's the point of corrupting ancient gods? All human heroes and postnatal deities will rise against them. Throughout history, people have never lacked courage. So, they must be ancient gods. For this image, they might even pretend to fight the demon realm's army..."
A heavy black pot was firmly placed on the ancient gods.
Raphael knelt in front of Du Ge in pain, his face filled with sorrow: "God King, I was wrong. I shouldn't have doubted you."