I don't want to be a heroic spirit

Hercules opened his eyes, and his eyes, which were filled with divine light, were filled with confusion, as if he had been asleep for a long time.

"Hydra... the immortal snake I slew in Argolis. Why has it reappeared? Could it be that it wants me to revive the myth? However... a trial that has already been completed is meaningless even if it is repeated."

He stood there quietly, exuding a rather astonishing presence, as if he were the center of the world.

So much so that Altria found him effortlessly.

The other person's breath was not so clear from a distance, until she caught the other person's figure with her own eyes at close range, Artoria was able to confirm it.

"This is probably the strongest existence I have encountered since coming to this world."

Nuada the Disobedient, Saint George the Disobedient, Siegfried the Disobedient, Marquis Vauban, etc... should all be weaker than the one in front of them.

However, God Slayers should logically be weaker than the God of Disobedience... The most special thing about God Slayers is that they can always seize that tiny chance of victory and defeat opponents who are far more powerful than themselves.

Artoria walked slowly towards the disobedient Hercules, her feet stepping on the water as steadily as if they were on the ground.

He already held the inverted holy sword in his hand, and the modern clothes were replaced by armor wrapped in cursed black flames. The fighting spirit that continued to emerge with his footsteps attracted Hercules's attention slightly.

"It seems that you were the one who used Hydra to summon me."

"You can say that."

As her fighting spirit continued to grow, Artoria's eyes and tone gradually became cold, with only a chilling murderous intent that wanted to dye the sea and sky blood red.

"Do you need a reason to fight? Or do you need some time to react?"

It was a hot summer day, but there was a hint of chill in the sea breeze.

The sticky murderous intent created an illusion. The stench of blood and bones filled the sea breeze. The dark mud replaced the blue sea, and the deep blood clouds blocked the sun's rays.

However... Hercules would never be shaken by this murderous intent.

After overcoming many trials, his will and spirit have become as firm as tempered steel.

"No need... Let's get started."

385

Chapter 385 Let me praise you for now.

When the roar that seemed to shake the sky sounded.

Just like the miracle of Moses parting the sea, the vast ocean was split into two sides.

Artoria stepped on the void and lotus blossomed with every step. Her figure was elusive, like a ghost.

She left behind a shadow, but her real body appeared beside Hercules in an instant. With a wave of her arm, three sword lights flashed, slashing at Hercules' thigh, wrist and neck respectively.

Hercules' weapon was a club, and the strong wind it created when it was swung was enough to separate the sea and the clouds.

Even though Altria's sword was approaching, there was no trace of panic on his resolute face.

Martial arts at the divine level appeared here. Hercules dodged a sword attack on his neck, used a stick to sweep away the sword light that was aimed at his wrist, and then kicked away the last sword with a powerful kick.

The sheer violence caused Artoria to freeze for a moment.

The next moment, the sweep from Hercules was in front of him.

"Oh!"

The aftermath of the collision created a tsunami, and tens of millions of tons of seawater turned into water droplets and were scattered in all directions, and in an instant a heavy rain fell.

In the center of the battlefield, sticks and holy swords clashed, and the petite woman and the burly man stared at each other through their weapons.

Hercules' club was made from trees he felled in the forest when he was searching for the Nemean Lion. It was not a divine weapon created or given by any god. It should have shattered into sawdust the moment it collided with Artoria's Holy Sword of the Stars.

However, after Hercules ascended to godhood, the club became a symbol of his deity.

Although Hercules learned all kinds of martial arts, he was most proficient in using sticks and bows and arrows.

The power that could move mountains and shake the heavens acted on the holy sword held up by Artoria.

There was a hint of struggle in Altria's expression, as if she was making some choice.

Until...some moment.

On the battlefield, the wind suddenly blew.

At first it was like a gentle breeze blowing through the green fields, but soon it turned into a scorching gale.

The immense and unimaginable cursed energy transformed into an impact, pushing back Hercules's majestic figure.

Although shaken, Hercules' stone-like body did not have a single scratch. Its hardness had long surpassed that of steel. Even without weapons, Hercules could fight dragons and lions with just his tempered body.

He straightened his back, and with his eyes shining with divine light, he looked at Artoria in the hurricane from afar.

"Have you given up?"

"Ah, I give in... In terms of pure strength, I'd call you the strongest."

From the beginning, the two have been competing in physical ability and martial arts skills.

Artoria surpassed Hercules in speed and was slightly better in martial arts, but was completely defeated in strength.

Although they seem evenly matched during the wrestling match, in reality...

"You held back just now, didn't you?"

Seeing that the other party responded to the questioning with silence, the expression on Altria's face became more and more ugly.

"boom!"

The dark flames of cursed energy shot straight into the sky.

Wrapped in pitch-black flames, blood-red lines filled with ominous aura climbed up Artoria's cheeks. Exuding a terrifying aura, Artoria looked like a demon crawling out of hell.

"I'm not going to compete with you now... I'll just crush you into worthless dust."

Hercules slowly widened his eyes, and the next moment, a torrent of black light hit him directly.

A large amount of white fog suddenly rose over the sea.

Hercules' figure flew out from the surging hot steam.

Black Flame's sword pressure followed closely behind, like a jackal biting its prey.

"Nemaean Lion! Grant me a body invulnerable to all attacks and swords!"

Hercules' first trial was to defeat a golden lion.

Legend has it that the lion's fur was invulnerable to swords and guns, and no weapon could hurt it. In the end, Hercules strangled it to death with his bare hands.

Hercules cut the lion's fur with its claws and draped it around his body, which later served him well against malicious attacks.

Even though Hephaestus, the god of fire, later gave him greaves made of orichalcum and Athena gave him a golden breastplate, the lion's fur was still Hercules' most trusted armor.

Chanting the words, Hercules fiercely punched the sword.

A terrifying force exploded, and the sword pressure that seemed to burn the sea was completely shattered by Hercules' punch, which also dispersed a large amount of water mist.

The obscured vision gradually recovered, revealing the speeding black fireball.

Altria, transformed into a flaming meteor, slammed into Hercules' body. Even Hercules could not ignore the long-accumulated impact.

Gritting his teeth, Hercules, pushed forward, chanted the words again.

"O Bull of Crete! Show your invincible strength! Defeat all that stands in your way!"

The seventh trial of Hercules was to subdue a raging bull.

Legend has it that King Minos of Crete promised Poseidon, the god of the sea, that he would offer him the first animal that appeared in the sea. Poseidon was moved by his sincerity and made a strong white bull appear in the sea.

However, because Crete loved this bull very much, he chose to break his promise and offered another bull to Poseidon, which angered Poseidon and made the white bull go crazy. It was not until Hercules appeared and subdued the violent bull with his absolute power.

After reciting the spiritual words, Hercules, who was already very tall and majestic, grew even taller, and a milky white light enveloped his entire body.

"drink--!"

With a roar, Hercules stopped his retreat and directly reached his hand into the high-temperature black flames that could burn the sea.

The next moment, an incredible scene occurred.

The rolling black flames were like a piece of cloth, which was torn apart by Hercules. After tearing open the curtain of black flames, Hercules grabbed Altria's sword with one hand and held the stick tightly with the other hand and smashed it down with all his strength.

"Oh!"

The black flame shattered.

The stick hit Artoria's shoulder hard, and the released energy shook the surrounding sea water into the sky, rolling up thousands of huge waves.

Because of the angle, Hercules couldn't see Artoria's face clearly because it was covered by her bangs.

Then, Altria's deep voice sounded in his ears.

"Hmph! That was a very powerful blow indeed... I'll give you a compliment."

The next moment, a scorching black flame suddenly burst out from the sword that Hercules was holding tightly.

The flames illuminated Hercules' horrified expression. He immediately let go of his left hand and smashed the stick in his right hand again.

However, Artoria's strike was faster than his.

The last come first!

"Turn into ashes amidst the howling!"

The black flame's slash transformed into an extremely huge black crescent moon, erupting with terrifying power that could burn the sky and boil the sea.

386

Chapter 386 This is the day when the gods are brought down.

Shocked, astonished, confused, bewildered.

Hercules lay quietly on the beach of a small island. As the tide rose and fell, the sea water kept covering half of his body and then receded.

He reached out and touched his chest.

I saw a charred and hideous cut on his chest, which looked so thrilling.

On that perfect body that seemed to be carefully carved by God, the cut was so eye-catching.

"I'm actually... injured?"

Hercules found it unbelievable.

If he was injured in a hand-to-hand fight, he would at most be surprised at the opponent's strength.

But... the wounds on his body were caused by a sword or some other weapon.

Hercules slowly stood up, and looked directly at Artoria who was walking on the waves with his eyes filled with majesty.

"What on earth is that sword of yours?"

"Why can it hurt me?"

Stopping in front of Hercules, Artoria asked back.

"Is it hard to hurt you?"

"I possess the protection of the Nemean Lion, the first trial. Weapons forged by humans, gods, and other beings alike cannot harm my flesh... Why can your sword ignore my protection?"

Hercules stared at the sword in Artoria's hand, deeply puzzled.

After Hercules' explanation, Artoria showed an expression of sudden enlightenment.

"I see. So, weapons crafted by humans and gods alike can't harm you? So, the best way is to imitate your mythical form and defeat you with bare hands, right?"

"However, this sword of mine was forged neither by human wisdom nor by divine power. Instead, it was conceived within the bowels of this planet, forged to defeat external enemies who seek to destroy the stars. It is a holy sword of the star that can repel all evil."

"Your invulnerability is useless against my Holy Sword of the Stars."

Although the holy sword has reversed along with its master, and the golden light that originally gave birth to hope has turned into a dark light that devours hope, it is still the Holy Sword of the Stars.

Hercules' power could reject all human wisdom and the power of the gods, but it could not obscure the brilliance of the stars.

Hercules sat by the sea, his hands resting on his knees.

"It seems you're not exaggerating... A star-forged holy sword..."

Hercules let out a long breath and stood up from the beach.

The sky was clear, and the clouds had long been blown away in the aftermath of the battle between the gods.