Mythology: Ragnarok

Agreed asked incredulously, "You mean I've awakened my senses?! Just like that? I've become a magician's apprentice?! But... what happened? I only remember last night my soul seemed to leave my body and go to a terrifying place, where... some kind of ghostly thing crawled into my body, and I desperately tried to escape back. Then my whole body felt like it was on fire, and then..."

Seeing Agreed's incoherent speech, Tutankhamun immediately spoke up to soothe him: "Calm down, calm down, kid. I'll explain everything to you, but you must calm down first."

Agreed controlled his breathing, forcing himself to calm down, before replying, "I'm calm now. Explain to me what happened.

Tutankhamun then explained, “All of this is because you practiced the Styx Soul Forging Manual. The Styx Soul Forging Manual is the supreme soul forging method that I, or rather my true self, created with all my life's learning. It allowed me to crush an era with my absolutely powerful soul, and you only just began practicing it yesterday.”

Agreed continued, "What is the River Styx? And what does it have to do with the soul?"

"Don't rush me, I'm about to explain," Tutankhamun complained, then continued, "I don't know how modern magicians borrow the power of heaven and earth, but in my time, magic was essentially a means of conquering nature and using its power to suppress powerful enemies. True magic masters of that era could rival demigods and become representatives of their own universes, and I, Tutankhamun, was even more terrifying, becoming an existence infinitely close to a nature god! And the prerequisite for all of this is that you must have an absolutely powerful soul! The soul is the key to learning magic; the stronger the soul, the more terrifying the power you can wield. All that I possess is thanks to the Styx Soul Forging Technique that I accidentally created when I was seventy-three years old, which allowed me to stand out in that era of geniuses."

"Then... what is the River Styx? And what's so special about your Soul Forging Technique?" Agreed asked again.

"You can think of the River Styx as the dark side of the universe, the final destination of all life after death. Every soul that dies returns to its birthplace, the River Styx. The River Styx is the dark side of the material universe, another important part of the universe. All newborn souls are born there, and all souls die there completely. Some call it the underworld, others call it the source of life, but undeniably, it possesses the purest soul power. My River Styx Soul Forging technique is the supreme method to steal power from there and ultimately control the River Styx!"

Agreed was suddenly frightened. Stealing power from the dark side of the world, this legendary god of magic was even bolder than he had imagined.

Argreed asked tremblingly, "Then what I saw last night... was that the River Styx?! But why was there no life there? I've heard of things similar to the River Styx in some ancient legends, like the Sea of ​​Souls that gives birth to demons. Is that also the River Styx?"

Tutankhamun laughed heartily and said, "Interesting lad, you know quite a lot, but unfortunately what you've seen and heard is just the tip of the iceberg. What you saw last night was merely a corner of the River Styx. The power of the River Styx is so immense that even gods face near-death experiences if they enter it. You should be glad you withdrew in time last night, otherwise you would have been directly burst apart by the terrifying power of the soul."

Upon hearing this, Agred instantly flew into a rage and shouted, "Why didn't you say so earlier?! According to you, I almost died!"

Tutankhamun scoffed, “Calm down, calm down. What good would it do to tell you? I’ve discussed this with many of my successors, but what happened? After learning of the Styx’s power, they all overestimated themselves and tried to stay in the Styx for as long as possible to absorb its power, resulting in most of them dying on their first encounter with the Styx. So I understand, instead of endlessly reminding you, it’s better to let you maintain that awe and fear of the unknown. At least that way, more of you will survive.”

As for the 'Sea of ​​Souls,' the origin of demons, I can give you a very perfect explanation. The so-called Sea of ​​Souls is more like a small pond than a sea. In essence, it's just a small lake of souls that separated from the River Styx for some unknown reason. It's just that the person who named it had a limited vision, hence the name 'Sea of ​​Souls.' I speculate that the Sea of ​​Souls was likely formed when the demise of some universes caused the soul power contained in the River Styx of those universes to fall into the void and mix together by chance. In fact, it's just a stagnant pool of water separated from the River Styx, or even a speck of dust. After all, the difference between a galaxy and an ocean is enormous. However, it's hard to say now because the existence of demons has actually caused the size of the Sea of ​​Souls to keep expanding.

As for the so-called 'demons,' they are life forms born from this stagnant pool of water. Since the demons' birthplace is separated from the River Styx, even after death, their souls can only return to the Sea of ​​Souls. In a sense, they are a race born with the ability to forge souls using the River Styx. Unfortunately, their 'River Styx,' or Sea of ​​Souls, is too weak, making them appear to be just a group of special creatures more suited to magic than other races.

To seize the limited soul resources of the Soul Sea, demons began to devour each other. Essentially, all prominent figures in the demon realm grew by consuming countless of their own kind. Therefore, demons have no concept of morality; they will stop at nothing to grow stronger.

"But... according to you, the Soul Sea has limitations. If that's the case, sooner or later a demon will devour the entire Soul Sea, and then they will lose all their potential for advancement. And the Soul Sea will then give birth to a unique, supreme demon!"

Tutankhamun clapped his hands and praised, "Clever boy, you understand so quickly. But high-ranking demons are not easy to kill. This is just a theory, but who knows when it will come true? Anyway, later, as the power of the Soul Sea gradually stabilized, the demons had to come to the Prime Material Universe."

Why would they come to the main matter universe?

"Think carefully about what the demon did when it came to the prime material universe, and combine that with the characteristics of the soul sea. Think about it carefully."

Agreed exclaimed as if suddenly realizing something, "They! They're harvesting souls through soul contracts! Harvesting the souls of those in the material world who haven't yet returned to the River Styx to replenish their soul seas! Not only are they strengthening themselves, but they're also subtly expanding their soul seas and reinforcing the entire demon race. They're even bolder than you; they're openly stealing food from the River Styx!"

Tutankhamun laughed heartily and shouted arrogantly, "This is the path of the strong: to contend with the heavens and fight against the gods. The Styx Soul Forging Technique is a terrifying method I created by comprehending the cultivation methods of demons. Just imagine how terrifying your potential will be, since you, unlike demons, can directly enter the Styx to cultivate! In time, you will rule the dark side of the entire universe and then use darkness to rule all light. You will become the master of the entire universe, the supreme... god!"