1223 Reaching Level 3 Godhood - Greater God
When the Minotaur's eyes snapped open, they glowed with a vicious, blood-red hue, signaling a primal rage that left no room for reason or sanity. The sight alone was enough to chill the blood of those present, a clear indication of the danger they now faced. Without hesitation, the Minotaur acted on its instinctual rage, swatting Marli away with a powerful sweep of its front leg. Despite her divine status, the sheer force exerted by the ancient monster overwhelmed Marli, a testament to the Minotaur's formidable strength and the deep-rooted power of ancient beasts.
"Open the fucking portal!" Marli shouted desperately at Raphael, realizing the immediate need for an escape. However, their means of escape, a pyramid-shaped golden artifact capable of opening portals, was beyond Raphael's reach, having been knocked away in the chaos.
As Raphael stretched out his hand, attempting to retrieve the artifact, it inexplicably flew further away from his grasp, as if pulled by an unseen force. "Intruders must be punished, don't you think?" Silvaris's voice echoed ominously through the maze, his tone laced with vindication. The greatest thief of all time was making his stance clear; he would not tolerate the goddess and the executioner of the pantheon disrupting his meticulously crafted dungeon games.
Silvaris's disdain for the gods was well-known, his hatred for them unmatched. Now, with the Minotaur fully awakened and standing tall, its imposing figure dwarfed both Marli and Raphael, casting a shadow of impending doom over them.
"Shit," Marli cursed under her breath, quickly gathering her composure to release her aura once more in an attempt to subdue the ancient beast. The green light and mist that emanated from her spread throughout the vicinity, enveloping her in a cloak of divine power. Yet, this time, her efforts were futile; the aura that once held sway over the Minotaur had no effect, leaving them vulnerable to the wrath of a creature whose power and anger knew no bounds.
"Its coming at me," Marli said as the ancient beast lunged at her. Driven by desperation and the looming threat of defeat, Marli channeled her Celestial energy into a series of spells, her hands weaving through the air as she summoned bolts of emerald light aimed at the Minotaur. The bolts, infused with her godly essence, sizzled through the air, crackling with potent magical energy. "Take this, you monstrous fuck," she hissed, her frustration evident as the spells struck the Minotaur, only to dissipate against its impenetrable aura, as if it were swatting away mere annoyances.
Raphael, not to be outdone, drew upon his own arsenal of spells, his fingers tracing intricate symbols in the air as he invoked a barrier of shimmering golden light around them. "Hold, beast!" he commanded, the barrier pulsing with the strength of his conviction. Yet, the Minotaur, with a roar that shook the very foundations of the maze, charged through the barrier, shattering it like glass, a testament to its indomitable will and strength.
In a moment of dire necessity, Raphael reached into the folds of his garment and produced a small vial, the golden liquid within glowing with an otherworldly light. "This is the last bit of Zorian's grace I have," he revealed, his voice grave.
"It's now or never," she agreed, steeling herself for the culmination of their desperate stand against the Minotaur.
Without hesitation, he brought the vial of Zorian's grace to his lips and consumed the last remnants of the golden liquid he had reserved for subduing the God of Darkness in dire situations. As the liquid vanished down his throat, a transformation began to manifest around him—an ethereal sun materialized behind Raphael, casting an otherworldly glow that bathed the maze in its radiance. His eyes ignited with a golden light, a testament to the divine power of Zorian, the god of the sun, now coursing through his veins.
However, Silvaris's laughter, mocking and filled with derision, echoed through the labyrinth. "You just wasted the last bit of grace you had for nothing," he taunted, reveling in the perceived futility of Raphael's sacrifice.
Undeterred by Silvaris's mockery, Raphael summoned forth a large sword, its blade shimmering with the power of the sun's grace. This godly weapon, conjured from the depths of his newfound strength, enabled him to temporarily ascend to the might of a level 6 godhood. The sword gleamed with a light so intense it seemed capable of cleaving through the very fabric of reality.
As the Minotaur charged with unparalleled fury, Marli intervened, her hands weaving through the air as she called upon her own divine essence. From the ground, emerald veins surged forth, wrapping around the beast in an attempt to hold it in place. Her spells strained against the Minotaur's raw power, seeking to bind it long enough for Raphael's strike to land.
The critical moment arrived when Raphael, empowered by the grace of a god, raised his sword for a decisive blow. But fate had other plans. From the shadows Gaya fired another perfect shot. The bolt exploded upon impact, unleashing a blinding light that enveloped the battlefield. Raphael, caught off guard by the sudden assault, missed his swing, the sword cutting through nothing but air.
The Minotaur seized the moment, its immense strength snapping the vines that held it. With a roar that shook the very foundations of the maze, it lunged forward, its charge unstoppable. Marli, caught directly in its path, bore the brunt of its wrath. The beast's onslaught was merciless, crushing her beneath its might, causing her to cough up blood as the force of the impact sent her reeling.
Attempting to recover from his failed strike, Raphael found himself caught by the Minotaur's tail. The beast's tail, powerful and swift, struck him with such force that he was sent flying, his body slamming against the maze's walls.
"That's for what you did, bitch," Gaya snarled from a distance, her voice filled with satisfaction as she witnessed the immediate retribution for their actions.
The Minotaur, unrelenting in its fury, lunged at Raphael with a ferocious intensity. Its massive leg came crashing down, aiming to crush Raphael beneath its weight. The sound of bones breaking echoed through the maze, a gruesome testament to the Minotaur's strength.
"Argh!" Raphael growled, pain lacing his voice as he struggled beneath the beast's oppressive force, his body bearing the brutal consequences of the Minotaur's wrath.
Before Marli could muster any form of defense, the Minotaur turned its attention towards her. With ruthless efficiency, it stomped her repeatedly, each blow delivered with a vengeance that seemed personal. Marli's screams filled the air, mingled with the sound of her coughing up blood, a vivid portrayal of her suffering.
Silvaris's laughter, cold and mocking, resonated throughout the labyrinth. "You shouldn't have come here," he taunted, taking perverse pleasure in Marli's plight. His voice, dripping with scorn, underscored the folly of her ambition.
"Maybe this is all the God of Darkness's plan," he mused, his amusement evident. "He's safe within the Pandora's box while you're getting stomped to death."
As the Minotaur continued its assault, relentlessly stomping on Marli, Silvaris's laughter grew louder. "In the fight of god versus god, the God of Darkness just outwitted both of you." His words carried a weight of truth that was hard to ignore, especially as Marli, in a dire state, continued to puke blood, her body gruesomely mangled by the relentless stomps of the Minotaur.
As if sensing a shift in the tide, the Minotaur paused, its head tilting upwards before letting out a thunderous roar. A suction force, powerful and unseen, began to extract the golden aura surrounding Raphael. The grace of Zorian wisped into the Minotaur's open maw, fueling its growth. With each gulp, the beast grew larger, its power amplifying before their very eyes.
Silvaris's laughter mocked Raphael's plight, "This is why the gods avoid the ancient beasts." Amidst her agony, Marli spat out a defiant declaration. "If I'm going to die, then he should die too." With great effort, she reached for the Pandora's box, intending to unleash the God of Darkness as her final act of vengeance. Her hands trembled as she tried to slam the box down, to open it and release its captive.
But Gaya who was invisible had other plans.
"Not today, bitch," she snarled, and with precise aim, fired another bolt. The projectile hit the Pandora's box with such force that it sent the artifact flying away from Marli's desperate grasp, thwarting her last-ditch effort to turn the tables.
Then, in a moment of eerie silence that followed the chaos, the Minotaur shifted its gaze downwards, locking eyes with Marli. The air around them seemed to thin as the beast began to suck Marli's soul, marking the end of Marli.
As the Minotaur sucked her soul, Marli's body began to age rapidly, her once youthful and powerful form withering away before their eyes. Green smoke, the essence of her being, wisped into the Minotaur's mouth, a visual representation of her life force being drained.
The atmosphere around them intensified, with the sound of thunder rumbling in the distance and the air becoming heavier, as if nature itself sensed the fall of a goddess.
Watching this scene from a distance, Gaya stopped in her tracks and observed the grim spectacle. "Fuck, it's creepy," she muttered, her voice a mix of awe and horror at the sight of a goddess's demise.
Meanwhile, Silvaris's voice, filled with a sense of macabre satisfaction, echoed once more. "Never thought I'd see a goddess die in the hands of my boy, but it's worth the wait," he said, his tone indicating a twisted sense of pride in the Minotaur's actions.
Once the mintour completely sucked away Marli's soul, her body turned into a mummified mess. After having completely absorbed the soul of a goddess, the mintour's gaze becam shifty as it gaited around before falling down. Its belly glowed in green light before it fell to its sleep. Although it was an ancient beast, absorbing the soul of a goddess still had its effects. In the mintour's case, it became exhausted and went into deep slumber.
But at that moment, the pandora's box trembled and suddenly exploded into bits and pieces. From within a dark smoke appeared.
"Thats one way to make an entrance," Gaya said as she saw Michael stepping out of the black smoke with his eyes glowing in pitch blackness. At that moment, Michael stood there not as the level 2 Demi God but as level 3 Greater God since he completed the quest of God Slayer II.
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