American comics: From Hogwarts to God on Earth

Chapter 529 Havoc on Olympus

Something terrible is happening on Mount Olympus.

As Rune walked, the bedrock that formed this ancient sacred mountain, once imbued with faith and glory and indestructible, began to hiss as it was exposed to Rune's dark magic.

The edges of the stone curled and peeled off, turning into grayish-white dust. The exotic flowers and plants that once covered it and flourished under the careful care of the nymphs were withering and turning black at a visible speed, shrinking into charred remains.

Even the fish in the stream were disturbed by this terrifying dark magic; how could they withstand such a level of dark magic?

They quickly turned belly up and turned into bones at a visible speed. This decaying flesh and blood made the river water murky and viscous, with sickly, deathly green foam rising to the surface, and emitting a swampy, putrid stench.

Rune paid no heed to the mockery of the gods and demigods, for they would soon pay the price. He walked slowly toward the army, as if stepping into an ordinary wasteland.

The hem of the black mage's robe, formed from shadows, swept across the decaying ground, accelerating the decay process wherever it passed. Almost everything was transformed into pure magic, filling Rune himself.

His face was expressionless, as calm as if he were about to kill a chicken.

"Enough! Blasphemers, stop here!" Ares roared like thunder, but his expression was complex. He felt both fear of the mage and excitement to fight him.

Meanwhile, the mythical creatures became restless, sensing danger.

The chimera impatiently spewed out sulfurous fumes, and its three heads dared not look directly at the powerful dark mage.

The centaur pawed at the ground and breathed heavily, trying to vent its fear with a roar.

The Cyclops, as large as a mountain, roared loudly, trying to retreat, but under the urging of the demigod heroes, it dared not move another step.

Rune stopped, not because of Ares's reprimand, but because he was puzzled by something—although the three main gods were the last to appear, Ares was now at the very front of the group.

Apollo and Hermes, however, merely watched Ares and Rune from afar, observing with indifference.

"Why didn't Apollo and Hermes come with us?" Rune's gaze swept past Ares, past the ferocious army, and landed on the magnificent temple further behind, which had not become dim despite the change of the god-king.

Ares didn't say anything, but he pounded his chest armor hard. His meaning was clear: stop talking and fight first!

Rune sneered. He knew perfectly well what Hermes and Apollo were thinking: they wanted the two to fight it out so they could reap the benefits. It seemed Ares was also seen as an unstable factor by these two gods.

"Coward!" Rune said with disdain, unaware that Ares shared the same sentiment.

Ares was indeed rejected by the gods, but from another perspective, isn't this also Ares rejecting the gods?

Apollo offered Ares an empty promise: he promised the god of war that if he became king of the gods, he would immediately start a war on earth that would affect at least a billion people. Ares agreed.

The sun god considered himself wise, believing that Ares was being deceived by him. Little did he know that Ares himself knew that this condition was nothing but a pipe dream. Even if Apollo were to actually start a war of that magnitude, Ares might very well stop this fool!

Ares was well aware of the contradictions of his divine office. He was the god of war, and his power was determined by the scale of the war. However, the larger the scale of the war, the more people died, and the more people died, the smaller the scale of the war would become.

Therefore, the stronger Ares is, the weaker he becomes.

What Ares truly cared about was the opportunity to fight the other gods while helping Apollo seize the throne! But to his disappointment, the only two gods willing to fight him head-on were Athena and Heracles.

Artemis only knew how to shoot arrows from behind, and when she saw the situation was not good, she actually ran away! Hephaestus was not on Olympus to begin with, and he had no interest in the throne of the gods or the struggles of the other gods. The other gods also had no intention of fighting Ares head-on.

Ultimately, Athena, Hera, Hercules, and other gods were imprisoned. Before Apollo could even deal with the remaining chief gods, the runes came knocking.

"You're right, they're both cowards!" Ares's mouth gaped wide open as he laughed loudly, not caring what impact his actions would have on morale.

If even the God of War himself failed, how could one expect to succeed against the rabble behind him?

"But they are cowards, I am not—" Beneath the helmet, a glint of light flashed in his crimson eyes. "Come on!"

Having said that, Ares finally said no more. His spear thrust forward with a roar, and a torrent of blood-red divine power surged out, transforming into thousands of illusory weapons that tore through the air with terrifying will.

This move embodies the cruelty of war and the rules of destruction, determined to crush everything in its path.

But Rune simply raised his hand. He didn't block; he just casually waved it lightly, as easily as brushing away a flying insect.

However, the result of this swing was devastating.

Without light, without sound, without the violent collision of energy, the surging torrent of blood and the thousands of weapons symbolizing the authority of war suddenly solidified when they touched the space in front of Rune's sleeve, and then all turned into sand-like particles that scattered into the air.

Rune granted Ares the most merciful death, his dark magic clinging to him like a poisonous weed, and then the Devouring Magic was immediately activated.

With his current magical reserves, it would only take him a moment to completely devour Ares, which is also where the Devouring Magic excels most—smashing weaker opponents.

The area turning to sand began to increase, starting with the originally illusory divine power and spreading towards the artifact held by Ares. It then rapidly turned Ares' armor into dust as well, but this was not the end.

Ares noticed that his spear-wielding arm was also turning into the finest dust, drifting away and disappearing. The god of war's expression froze, then was replaced by bewilderment, and finally, anger appeared on his face.

What he wanted was the exhilarating feeling of dying from exhaustion after giving it his all, but Rune didn't give him that chance, which is why this god of war was so furious.

However, when he tried to shout and opened his mouth wide, no sound came out.

One moment he was a war god who looked down upon all living beings. The next moment, only a pile of scattered sand and dust remained on the spot. Even the spear that had accompanied him through countless years of conquest crashed into the ashes with a clang, its divine light gone, and rust instantly covering its body.

silence.

There was only deathly silence at the scene.

If the previous restlessness of the mythical creatures was merely instinct, now not only did the mythical creatures lower their heads, but even the demigod heroes pursed their lips, not daring to utter a single word.