Chapter 133: Chapter133-Nemesis
The legendary Norse god of war had been reduced to such a state?
Neither man nor ghost, he had lost his physical body somewhere, and now he was as thin as a stick, with deep-set eyes that showed no trace of his former godly prowess.
But thinking of the death goddess Hera, John understood.
However, the next realization made John\'s heart sink.
How powerful was Hades?
What kind of strength could instill such fear in two gods, making them tremble at the mere sound of his voice?
"Enough, leave my palace, and I will spare you."
Hearing this, Tyr fled from the arena in the blink of an eye, as if granted a pardon.
"John, you cannot use the souls in this fight. It would be unfair to Falms."
"I... I understand."
Tyr\'s plight made John realize once again that the figure sitting high in the stands was never a benevolent benefactor.
He was the king of the underworld, a supreme god.
Perhaps the joy of gaining power had clouded John\'s caution, making him momentarily feel a fondness for Hades, which was utterly foolish!
A god is a god.
Unless John could rise to an equal footing, he would always be a mere pawn for amusement.
With this realization, John\'s expression darkened noticeably.
Seeing this, Falms narrowed his eyes, clearly noticing the change in John.
If John had previously been like an unsheathed, sharp sword, now he was a sword returned to its scabbard.
Falms finally put away his contempt, saying in a deep voice, "John, right? I\'ll remember your name."
"No need, because soon you\'ll be dead. Oh, right, you\'ll be a dead dragon."
John took a step forward, and gray-black mist spread from his body, reaching out toward Falms like a giant hand!
Although Falms didn\'t know what the mist could do, he didn\'t want to find out.
With a flap of his wings, he took to the air!
Following closely behind was a wave of scorching flames!
As John prepared to counter with his black flames, Seraphina\'s voice suddenly rang out.
"John, don\'t dodge. Absorb the flames!"
"Absorb?"
John was doubtful, but he chose to trust Seraphina.
He allowed the dragonfire to engulf him, turning his robe to ashes.
However, the expected scenario of being incinerated didn\'t happen.
Instead, the dragonfire surrounding John gradually dissipated, being absorbed into his body.
Falms, watching this, had a feeling—perhaps a mistake—that the black flames around John\'s feet seemed to lighten slightly after absorbing the dragonfire.
"I see... it seems the powers of you [Apostles] are not entirely useless."
Like Seraphina, Hades had seen the truth and chuckled, "It seems the outcome of this battle is already decided."
Upon hearing this, [Deception]\'s eyes lit up with joy, though he dared not show it.
The outcome already decided?
Naturally, the winner would be John!
As a dragon, Falms\' methods of attack were actually quite limited.
Apart from his vaunted dragonfire, he relied on his massive size and strength to crush opponents into pulp.
But now, his dragonfire was ineffective against John and even helped John\'s black flames evolve slowly.
And the rules of the fight, set by Hades, prevented Falms from revealing his true form.
[Deception] could see it clearly, and so could Falms.
In just a few breaths, Falms assessed his situation and realized he was at a complete disadvantage.
This human ant before him was far more troublesome than he had anticipated.
But it made sense.
If John were easy to deal with, Hades wouldn\'t have granted him a portion of his authority.
However, Falms didn\'t believe he was entirely without hope.
As long as he could snap John\'s neck, he would still be the victor!
With this thought, Falms hesitated no longer.
He retracted his wings and crashed heavily to the ground, cracking the red stone tiles.
"He\'s getting serious. Even with his power suppressed, Falms is still a dragon, and his physical strength is immense. This is your disadvantage. Don\'t engage him head-on!" Seraphina warned John while continually strategizing a way to win.
The awkward reality was that while Falms couldn\'t harm John, John didn\'t have a decisive way to defeat Falms either.
In a siege, John\'s strength was undeniable, but when it came to breaching defenses, Qing was clearly superior.
"If I remember correctly, Falms\' true form in a relatively small divine realm is a completely red dragon named Drystan."
"Why are you giving me a lecture now?" John gritted his teeth, wrapping the chaos chains around his arms and bracing them against his chest, barely withstanding Falms\' cannon-like blow!
"I\'m trying to think of Falms\' weakness!" Seraphina bit her lip, looking troubled.
Now that Seraphina had regained some of her strength, her combat power was almost equivalent to an [Apostle], which was still relatively weak among the demigods.
Moreover, with Hades present, he wouldn\'t allow John to rely on external help again.
But if this stalemate continued, John would eventually make a mistake. After all, he wasn\'t a warrior class, and his stamina would eventually run out.
"No, I can\'t think of anything... John, do you have any items that could turn the tide? Think carefully; prolonged combat is not in your favor!"
"If I had something, I would have used it already. Why wait until now?" John roared internally, but then a sudden realization lit up his eyes. "Wait, there is one thing."
At this moment, the only thing that could create a miracle was the authority given to him by [Deception], the Trickster\'s class skill!
"Falms! Saxon asked me to give you his regards!"
Falms\' face changed abruptly, as if he had heard something forbidden.
"Shut up! Saxon is dead; I killed him with my own hands!"
"Yes, Saxon is dead, so now he\'s here to take his revenge. He\'s right behind you. Can\'t you see him?"
"How could... it be?"
Falms felt a moment of doubt.
And so, the lie replaced the truth, becoming reality.
Seeing the enormous white dragon with pristine scales standing behind John, Falms was stunned, his eyes filled with shock.
"No... impossible! You died in our divine realm. How can you appear in the Underworld?"
"If a living person like me can appear in the Underworld, what else is impossible? You see him, don\'t you? Your old friend and your nemesis!"
Yes, Falms definitely saw it.
That was a memory he could never forget.
Those were the days when he was the red dragon, Drystan, perpetually battling the white dragon, Saxon.
Unfortunately, Saxon was larger and stronger, no matter what Drystan did, he was no match for Saxon, who suppressed him completely, leaving him covered in wounds.
Those painful memories resurfaced, awakening the deepest fears in Falms\' heart.
In the next moment, the chaos chains wrapped around his neck.
John looped the chains over his shoulder and pulled down hard, a sharp crack resounding as bones broke!
The searing pain snapped Falms back to reality, and the apparition of Saxon vanished.
He realized it had all been an illusion. But it was too late.
The chaos chains crossed and tightened around Falms\' neck.
Chains that could only be broken by the power of the rules tolled Falms\' death knell.
Despite his best efforts, Falms managed to slip a finger into the gap, breaking it in the process, giving himself a moment\'s reprieve.
But in the next instant, black flames climbed up to his brow!
"Die!"
John gritted his teeth and fought with all his might against Falms.
He could feel the strength on the other end of the chain waning!