In the Obsidian Hall, Metis, who had just returned, did not bring only the joy of relief.
With a hint of seriousness in her deep eyes, she revealed another grim reality to Hades on the throne.
"Hades, wisdom and the processing of the world are one," her voice was like a cold stream—pure and meticulous.
"Now that I (wisdom) am completely separated, although the curse is lifted from you, it also means that the calculation and coordination capabilities of the 'Negation Realm' system have been greatly weakened. The burden of the world now requires you to bear it directly, with purer power and will. The stress... has increased."
She didn't need to exaggerate; Hades already knew the change.
It was like huge machines originally operated by complex computers now needing manual maintenance, with sharply increased costs and risks.
"We need to accelerate," Metis concluded, her gaze meaningfully directed towards the vast and chaotic land beyond the Underworld.
The ice in Hades's violet eyes seemed to thicken.
He immediately turned his will to Eros, to check the progress of her work in 'promoting the union of gods and mortals and increasing the number of demigod beacons'.
As a result, for the first time, a clear crack appeared on his eternally frozen face—an emotion called anger, like a volcano suppressed for hundreds of millions of years, suddenly erupting.
On earth, the union between gods and mortals could not be described as lacking progress; it could only be said... it was no different from before Eros was born!
Those demigod heroes, who should have been born more easily thanks to the authority of the love god, as 'beacons', didn't even have a shadow!
Eros's so-called 'work' essentially consisted of wandering the Underworld, causing trouble, and expending all her energy on teasing Catia and avoiding work!
"Eros!"
Hades's voice was not piercing, but like a cold wind from the deepest corners of Tartarus, instantly sweeping through all of Hades.
All gods and souls who heard this sound couldn't help but shiver.
Thalia and Eros herself, who were joking around, both froze in place.
The next moment, Eros's pink-orange figure was forcibly restrained by an irresistible force, dragged through the space of Hades, and thrown directly onto the cold ground before the Obsidian Throne.
She looked up in terror and met Hades's violet eyes, which seemed to burn with dark fire.
This was no longer absolute rationality, but monstrous rage.
"What about your 'results'?" Hades didn't even ask; he just stated it directly, but each word carried a weight that made Eros tremble, and even her 'female imp' arrogance was completely extinguished.
"I... I..." Eros wanted to defend herself, but any words seemed pale before the majestic rage and the facts.
Hades didn't even give her another chance to speak.
He slowly raised his hand, and the laws of the Underworld condensed and manifested, transforming into a shadow consisting of a 'palm', like a substance.
No extra reprimands, no long sentences.
Amidst Eros's terrified screams, at the moment the shadow palm fell precisely—
Smack!
A sharp and loud clap sounded in the silent hall, accompanied by Eros's pained cry and a sob choked with shame, announcing Hades's simple and direct punishment.
Hecate, who had just been summoned and was about to report on her work, happened to witness this scene.
The goddess of roads and magic was stunned for a moment, then suddenly lowered her head, her shoulders trembling slightly uncontrollably, biting her lip to keep from laughing.
She still remembered how arrogant and tense this little love goddess had been in the Underworld before.
"Hecate." Hades's cold voice sounded.
Hecate immediately suppressed her smile and responded solemnly: "Your Majesty."
"Record it," Hades commanded, still looking at Eros, who was constantly struggling and crying under his divine power.
"The entire process."
A flicker of understanding appeared in Hecate's eyes, and she immediately raised her hand. Dark blue magical light condensed in her palm, forming a pure water mirror, accurately reflecting the scene of Eros before Hades, enduring the gods' shameful punishment.
Every clear sound, every tearful plea of "I was wrong!" "I don't dare anymore!" from Eros, was clearly recorded.
The punishment didn't last long, but for Eros, it was an incomparably long period.
When Hades finally stopped and dispersed the shadow palm, Eros was already lying on the ground, sobbing quietly. The burning pain in her buttocks and the great humiliation in her heart completely stripped her of her composure.
Hades looked down at her, his voice returning to its usual coldness, but the threat was more terrifying than any anger:
"Work, done immediately."
He paused, his gaze gliding over the mirror in Hecate's hand, which had recorded everything.
"Next time you disappoint me..."
"I will invite Olympus and all the relevant gods you can remember to 'appreciate' this... 'supervision record' made by Hecate."
Eros's cries abruptly stopped, and she was seized by intense fear.
A video of being spanked in public shown to the Greek gods?! How would she get along in Chaos in the future?! That was even scarier than being beaten in Tartarus!
"No——! I was wrong! I'll go to work immediately! Right now! Immediately!"
She almost scrambled up on hands and knees, ignoring the pain, transformed into a panicked pink ribbon, and instantly fled the Hall of Hades, looking utterly terrified and eager to descend to earth to 'work hard'.
Hecate put away the water mirror, bowed to Hades, and quickly withdrew, but the slightly twitching corners of her mouth showed that she was still trying hard to suppress a smile.
The main hall fell silent again.
Hades leaned back on the throne, unconsciously tapping his fingertips on the armrest.
The anger had subsided, but the pressure remained. Eros was just a minor episode; the real task was how to more effectively sustain this increasingly heavy world after the separation of wisdom.
His gaze fell again upon the vast and unknown void in the mirror, and the suspended world bubble.
After the severe punishment of Eros, it was obviously unrealistic to expect her to efficiently 'produce' demigod beacons in the short term. The plan to launch demigods was temporarily blocked.
His furrowed brow and the faint waves of divine power unconsciously emanating from his entire body, caused by the overload of calculations, were noticed by Metis beside him.
Looking at him, the King of Hades, always known for his absolute rationality, stuck in a dead end, thinking like a mortal with a problem at this moment.
Metis's eyes couldn't help but smile, a mixture of helplessness and concern.
She slowly stepped forward, approached the edge of the throne, extended her slender fingers, and gently smoothed the furrows on his brow.
Her movement was natural and intimate, with a sense of care that had been lost and then regained after hardship.
"My king..." Her voice was soft, but carried the wisdom that knew everything.
"If you lose me (wisdom), will you become a fool?"
Hades's train of thought was interrupted by her, and he raised his eyes to look at her.
Those eyes were no longer cold calculations, but reflected her smiling face.
The curse was gone, and he felt the hidden closeness and mockery in her words more clearly at this moment, which slightly stirred him.
Metis didn't wait for an answer; her fingertips slid down, gently tapped his heart, and pointed to the huge world bubble suspended in the mirror.
"Why do your thoughts always boil down to 'delivery' and 'invasion'?" She tilted her head slightly, her smile a little sly, as if reminding a student who had forgotten a simple answer.
"Why go to all the trouble to take the initiative and send our precious 'variables'?"
"Couldn't you... let this world 'take' itself?"