MWM Chapter 563

The River Styx marks the boundary between life and death. Due to the laws of the Underworld, it can only be crossed by a specially crafted boat. Otherwise, any who attempt to cross will be dragged to the bottom and transformed into souls doomed to eternal damnation.

The shores of the river are adorned with red spider lilies, the only flowers in the Underworld. These flowers bloom without leaves, and the leaves grow without flowers, never meeting, forever separated by fate.

On the riverbank, countless lost souls wander. These are the people who, in life, neither did good nor evil. They simply drifted through life, accomplishing nothing, squandering their time.

As a result, after death, they neither ascend to heaven nor descend to hell. Instead, they are condemned to wander the boundary between the living world and the Underworld, endlessly lamenting their wasted lives.

In essence, they are the souls of those who merely “existed” without purpose.

“All the boats have been withdrawn. It seems Pandora has already realized we’ve entered the Underworld.”

Leo scanned the area with his divine sense, but there was no sign of Charon, the Underworld warrior responsible for ferrying souls across the river.

As the commander of the Underworld, Pandora had clearly noticed that Athena and all the Saints had entered. She wasn’t foolish enough to leave one of her warriors guarding the river. Instead, she had them retreat, believing that if the Saints couldn’t cross the Styx, their efforts would be futile.

“The Styx is no ordinary river. Forcing our way across could be unwise,” said Shaka, who had a deep understanding of the Underworld.

“If that’s the case, maybe we should go back and bring some boats,” suggested Taurus Aldebaran.

Leo shook his head at the suggestion:

“Mortal boats won’t float on the Styx either. Don’t worry, I’ll handle this.”

He walked to the edge of the river, activating his Nine-Tomoe Yin-Yang Reincarnation Eye, then began to absorb the Styx’s water into his Tsukuyomi World.

Like a dragon drawing water from the heavens, the river’s waters were sucked in at an incredible rate, along with the countless souls struggling within its depths.

Inside the Tsukuyomi World, Leo had not yet fully refined the Soul Tomb, but he had enough control to make some modifications. His plan was to transform the Soul Tomb into a place of reincarnation, much like the Underworld itself. Seeing Hades’ creation gave him the idea to simply copy its structure.

While he couldn’t absorb and refine the entire Underworld into his Tsukuyomi World, he could certainly take in parts of it—its landscapes, rivers, and, most importantly, its countless human souls.

In less than ten minutes, Leo had absorbed the entire Styx and the souls trapped within it into the Soul Tomb of his Tsukuyomi World. He even sent part of his essence into the Soul Tomb, creating a new river to contain the Styx’s waters and its souls.

After draining the Styx, he wasn’t satisfied. He then absorbed the souls of the lost ones wandering the riverbank, those condemned for their purposeless lives.

“All right, we can move forward.”

With the riverbed now a barren expanse of black stone, there was no longer any threat of drowning.

“Hades may have the twin gods, but our Sanctuary has a Pope as powerful as a god!”

Athena and the Saints marveled at Leo’s feat of draining the Styx dry, their hearts filled with admiration.

The First Prison: The Silent Judgment Court.

“Lord Rhadamanthys! This is terrible! Athena’s Saints have drained the Styx and are heading our way!”

A small, frightened Underworld warrior rushed into the courtroom.

Wearing the robe of a judge, Balron Rhadamanthys’ eyes widened as he shot to his feet.

“What? They drained the Styx?!”

The Styx was a river governed by the laws of the Underworld, and even the Specters couldn’t cross it without the specially crafted ferries. Rhadamanthys had been certain that the Saints, even if they entered the Underworld, wouldn’t be able to cross the river. He hadn’t anticipated that the Saints would simply drain the entire river.

“Quick, inform Pandora immediately!”

Rhadamanthys ordered his subordinates urgently.

Moments later, the Underworld soldier returned:

“Pandora has commanded all warriors stationed in the Second Prison to retreat and regroup at Hades’ palace.”

“She must be preparing for a final battle with all our forces at the palace,” Rhadamanthys muttered.

It was clear now that Athena’s forces were formidable. Instead of risking defeat by spreading out their forces, it made sense to gather everyone in one place for a decisive showdown.

Though it felt frustrating, Rhadamanthys followed Pandora’s orders and led his warriors in retreat.

By the time Leo and the Saints arrived at the Judgment Court, it was completely deserted.

However, Leo wasn’t bothered. He simply opened his Tsukuyomi World again, absorbing all the souls awaiting judgment, and even transferred the unique courtroom itself into his world.

Moving on, they entered the Second Prison, the Violent Storm Hell, where the souls of the greedy were endlessly tormented by violent rain.

Once again, the Specters stationed there had already retreated, and Leo collected another large group of souls.

At the end of the Second Prison, they encountered Orpheus, the legendary Silver Saint who had been missing for years, and who was said to possess power surpassing even that of the Gold Saints.

With the power of the Nanming Lihuo Sword, Leo revived Orpheus’ lover, and thus, another powerful Saint joined the Sanctuary’s army.

One by one, they passed through the Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Prisons, until they finally reached the Eighth Prison, the Ice Hell. This was where Leo made his greatest gains.

In the other prisons, the souls he collected were mostly ordinary human souls, but the Eighth Prison was filled with the souls of Saints who had once fought against Hades in previous Holy Wars. They had been imprisoned here for their resistance.

The quality of these souls far exceeded all the others he had gathered so far.

It was a bitter fate for Athena’s Saints. Even in death, they were locked in the Eighth Prison, unable to reincarnate after their sacrifices.

After passing through the frozen wasteland of the Eighth Prison, the Sanctuary’s army finally arrived at the end of the Underworld, standing before Hades’ palace.

Waiting for them there, wielding her Spear of Pandora, was this era’s Pandora. She had gathered every Specter and tens of millions of underworld soldiers, skeleton warriors, and demons, all ready for battle.

The moment she saw the army of Saints, Pandora raised her spear and gave the order:

“All warriors of the Underworld, kill these intruding Saints! Bring me Athena’s head as an offering to the great Lord Hades!”

“Yes, Lady Pandora!”

Under the command of the Underworld’s two strongest warriors, the Specters led the charge, followed by an endless horde of lower-ranked soldiers, skeletons, and grotesque underworld demons, all rushing toward the Sanctuary’s army.

(End of Chapter)

Series Navigation

<- PreviousNext ->