Dear Broom Knight.

Chapter 851 This is Travis's Test
"How is that possible?" Hades said in surprise. "It's just that the work of the world's will has become the work of the Styx!"
This was originally a temporary task before the appearance of the River Styx, and it was actually a burden on the world's will itself.

However, if the world had not formed special rules before the appearance of the River Styx, then the River Styx would naturally not cause any trouble and would simply follow the basic rules of the multiverse.

But what already exists, the Styx will only adjust its river properties to adapt to this world.

Almes, don't mistake the River Styx for a real river!
That is the River of Laws!

Every stretch of his river embodies the laws of this world.

Otherwise, how could the devil be born from a tributary of the River Styx?

The Styx River itself has no desire to create.

But if the laws he absorbs exist, then he doesn't care.

The only problem is that the soul, which would otherwise be immediately decomposed, must first travel through the River Styx, and will remain in the River Styx for a relatively long time before it completely dissipates.

The spiritual response from the outside world will change from overwhelming to a steady, continuous flow.

However, it will also become more stable at the same time.

It won't be as chaotic as it is now.

Rather, at the moment when the fetus shines with spiritual light, it will inevitably be entangled with a spiritual entity.

Regardless of the level of spirituality he attracts, he won't be completely devoid of it.

At most, it's so weak that there's not much of a reaction.

In other words, children born in the future will inevitably possess the skills of an apprentice.

As long as you have enough resources at home, it's not too difficult to reach the professional level.

But that's about it; going any higher is basically impossible.

Unlike now, where someone can pull their child with little talent all the way up to level 10.

By then, no amount of resources will be enough to achieve that.

The spiritual response will not embrace him again because of his sudden surge in spiritual power.

Hades thought for a moment and then added, "However, if you gods take away too many souls of believers, it may lead to a decline in the spirituality of the world."

But if you only consider your own interests, that's not necessarily a bad thing.

The more saints you have, the more newborns of your own divine nature will be born in your sacred land.

However, if we consider the world as a whole... if we don't want complete class stratification, we should remember to cramm fewer people into our own divine kingdoms.

Almes paused for a moment, then slowly sighed, "That's not something a weak god like me can consider."

His and Travis's deification is almost a foregone conclusion.

After all, each has its own foundation and support.

However, it certainly won't become some kind of powerful deity; even a moderate level would be difficult.

Unfortunately, the laws they govern have significant limitations.

Especially him.

In fact, his divine office is not without danger... Once it begins to take shape, the Goddess of Wealth will surely see the value of this divine office to her.

However, the chances of her taking action are relatively low.

After all, believers in wealth are definitely the ones who die the most.

She has something to ask of Hades, so she will certainly not harm Armies.

However, by taking a circumvention approach and securing the rights to the laws related to the divine authority of Armes, the Goddess of Wealth will surely comply.

If it were Almes, he would do the same.

After all, even if it weren't for the opportunity to take over this divine office in the future, the possibility of Armes getting involved in commerce through this divine office had to be nipped in the bud.

Meanwhile, on Travis's side, the Lord of Valor isn't necessarily doing nothing either.

They were indeed born to work together.

As for what Hades said, Armes really didn't intend to care... Travis also had to consider the future of the Northern Kingdom, so what was he afraid of?
Besides, it's not his place to worry about the God Kingdom being overcrowded.

Most importantly, it's Travis.

Between the king who represents humanity and the future god... what will Your Majesty Travis choose?
Whether the rules that the King's Alliance set up to benefit humanity will become meaningless from that point onward, Travis's decision is actually very important.

After all, he was the one with decision-making power within the King's Alliance.

Whether Travis has turned to evil to secure a continuous supply of high-ranking followers, or whether he is willing to exercise self-restraint for the sake of the world, are questions he needs to consider.

Hades had said as much as he could.

Fortunately, this can be considered as a way of thinking about the Styx River.

After all, if the world really became like that... when would a standard fantasy universe ever have a population of over a billion like this world?

Stable human kingdoms, where each side exercises restraint and even subtly forms alliances, are the only guarantee for a population explosion.

However, the reason why these countries can cooperate so closely is because their interests are aligned. Even if they have to fight against the gods, they are fighting for the bottom line of humanity.

After all, only with a large population can kings possess sufficient military strength.

Just like the Northern Kingdom, the royal army can obtain a large number of new soldiers from the common people every year... But what if this power no longer belongs to all mankind?
If only a portion of the nobles were willing to kneel before the gods before, then in the future, a large number of nobles will inevitably side with the gods.

The only hope is that the King's Alliance can propose new constraints before these powerful gods become less dependent on faith and develop a considerable degree of goodwill towards humanity.

For example, limiting the number of believers that gods can bring into their kingdom. That's difficult.

In the past, the main reason why the gods had to be restricted by united humans was that their fighting power was not strong enough.

However, the world's will is more inclined towards humanity, preventing them from personally harming humans.

However, if a large number of believers could be brought into the Kingdom of God, the gods would naturally have an easier time.

Even the most forgiving Lord of Storms might not be willing to relinquish this power.

He could choose not to do it, but that would be out of his own free will.

Being forced not to do it would likely incur the displeasure of several powerful deities.

Travis's previous efforts to maintain a friendly atmosphere with the gods are likely to be ruined.

Almes was fine; he just needed to follow Travis's decision.

There's no need for me to be the selfless one, nor to be the hypocrite who... emerges from humanity only to betray it.

Tsk~ As expected, his test was quite easy. The world's will didn't demand much of him, after all, he brought the real Grim Reaper and Hades City to this world.

Of course, he also had to spend more resources on this.

But Armes really didn't care about this.

He's not some reincarnated evil dragon, and the wealth he's accumulated over so many years in the Astral Plane is something that the world's will, which has never even entered the Astral Plane, could never have imagined.

Of course, to be able to scheme against him to this extent, that world's will is truly formidable.

Therefore, Travis, who was already within the scope of the other party's design, will face an even more difficult test in his quest to become a god.

This isn't even a matter of resources and strength.

Rather, it was a test of his character... The world's will could not possibly be unaware of the consequences of the arrival of the River Styx, yet he still very proactively invited Hades in.

Judging from his obvious fondness for humans, he must have been prepared all along.

The fall of the gods back then was probably preparation for this moment.

Otherwise, wouldn't it be better to just drive all the gods off the earth?

That would be enough to ensure that humanity, even with limited power, would not be suppressed by tyranny.

But the world's will still applied such strict laws.

The world's will has indeed given humanity, which it favors, the best path, but it also seems to want to see if humanity is willing to cherish this favor.

"I'll explain everything to Travis, okay?" Armies asked Hades with a serious expression.

“No problem.” Hades shook his head. “The Styx won’t care about these things.”

You can take as many souls as you want, as long as they conform to the rules.

It's fine if none of them are left.

What the Styx needs is not the soul itself, but the power of its own laws to strengthen itself.

To put it more accurately, the procedure must be just.

Wanting to leave the River Styx is fine, but it has to be done legally and legitimately.

The soul itself has no meaning to him; actions are what matter.

Therefore, he despises souls that illegally escape the underworld, and hates even more those who steal souls from the River Styx... They are all villains who damage his power of law!

But he doesn't care how foolish it is to act within the rules.

He wasn't the one who was stupid.

Armies nodded: "As long as it doesn't affect you."

He suddenly glanced out the window with a melancholy look: "Why is Lowry sleeping at this hour?"

If he were here, some things would be much easier to resolve.

At the very least, we can reach an agreement with the Lord of Storms immediately.

That person cannot be forced, but if it is a sincere request from someone he admires, the Lord of Storms will easily agree.

“Although you appear very composed, you seem to actually hope that Travis will choose the human side!” Persephone said softly. “It seems that you do indeed prefer the humans of this world.”

"You mean the Greeks?" Armes suddenly laughed. "No, Persephone, I don't hate them."

The problem with Greece was its institutions, not its people.

However, having grown up under that system, they are bound to be unable to gain my genuine affection.

I know that humans can be changed, after all, their lifespan is finite.

But, Persephone, the system is not something I can touch.

Therefore, I have no choice but to stay away from them.

And the Greeks who grew up under that system were indeed not trustworthy by nature.

You should still remember the lesson Demeter taught you.

Although Demeter helped them grow grains to gain faith among humans, what she brought to humanity was hope for survival.

Demeter never expected that humans would always be grateful to her, but at least they should know how to respect her.

(End of this chapter)