After work, start to speedrun the other world-Chapter 440 - 167 What God Is Next? _2

And the God of War, upon hearing this, also revealed a satisfied smile. This guy really... wanted to fight as well. Otherwise, it was hard to understand why Ahtal would be so cooperative. If not for that desire, he could have just stayed silent and waited for the Goddess of Life to handle all the problems.

"Then let’s fight somewhere else," he said.

"No problem," Xi Mu nodded, and together with the God of War, headed towards the exit of the tribunal. As they passed by the spectator seats,

Xi Mu suddenly paused, looking towards the Goddess of Life who had appeared before him and averted his gaze from her resignedly reproachful eyes.

The God of War beside him also tilted his head up, pretending not to see the Goddess of Life’s scolding look, knowing well that what he was doing was wrong.

"Since you both are so eager to fight, I won’t stop you," the Goddess of Life sighed lightly, observing Ahtal’s surprised expression, tapped his forehead, and then turned and vanished on the spot.

No matter what she personally thought, if Ahtal and the God of War both wanted to fight, even if she could stop them once, she would not be able to stop them every time.

So she could only acquiesce.

"Are you satisfied now?" Brayfil came over, looking at Ahtal, who was rubbing his forehead, "You really rejected the kindness of the Goddess of Life outright."

"It’s a pre-existing... pact," Xi Mu, lowering the hand that was massaging his forehead, explained to Brayfil. "Having a chance to fight with the God of War is too rare an opportunity; no one can resist it."

"Only someone with a head full of battles like you could not resist," Brayfil shook her head, came up to Ahtal’s side, "Next, I will take you to familiarize yourself with the environment of the Arena of the Gods and also fill you in on the essential background information."

She hummed lightly.

"If you die, I’ll be responsible for collecting your body. You can tell me where you would like to be buried."

"If I die, bury me in the Magic Kingdom," Xi Mu smiled, then left with Brayfil and the God of War.

The three of them disappeared into the sunlight outside the door, their long shadows gradually fading away.

"Is battle really so captivating?" the God of Beauty and Art emerged with a hint of puzzlement, completely unable to fathom the thought processes of Ahtal and the God of War. The world held so much beauty, yet they were fixated on inflicting lethal harm on each other.

"That’s the impulse of power for you," said a man with a painterly demeanor, holding a palette. "The reason the All Gods can remain alive without getting bored is due to the primal impulse carried by power, which keeps the gods continuously vibrant."

In the high heavens, there had never been any news of a god committing suicide out of boredom, nor had it been heard that gods felt their lives meaningless.

And this was the primal impulse that came with power—they could follow the Dao inherent to their birthright power, which prevented them from feeling the emptiness of existence’s meaning.

But humans do not possess this impulse. After satisfying the needs of survival and experiencing most conceivable things, they often fall into a state of confusion, most evident in lottery winners.

Suddenly coming into an immense fortune, they can indulge in everything life has to offer, only to find themselves in a state of emptiness, which can lead to suicidal tendencies.

Of course, this is not to say that humans will inevitably commit suicide after acquiring great wealth. On the contrary, most people actively seek the meaning of life. Among them, those who stand out become demons or witches, possessing an urge similar to that of the gods.

That is to say, they have a clear purpose in life, following their chosen paths.

...

...

Arena of the Gods.

No... more accurately, the Gods’ Duel Arena.

Located in the realm of the God of Duel, it is the world’s highest-regarded duel arena, where meaningless scuffles among gods have always taken place.

Without the concept of death, the gods simply could not duel to the death.

Thus, the Gods’ Duel Arena has always been similar to an athletic field, a place for gods to spar when they are idle and bored.

But today was different.

At this moment,

inside the arena.

"...Exciting for a god!" The God of Duel crossed his arms, his muscle bulging mightily, and veins coursing across his skin like blue snakes.

He... was aroused.

This wasn’t because he had encountered a beauty that made him lose control of his physiological reactions. It was purely because he could witness a true duel between gods and demons.

A duel in which gods might die—a spectacle he had been yearning for since he became the God of Duel.

"What a nutcase," a scoff came from not far away. The God of Duel looked over to see Ahtal approaching.

"If you can’t help it, go find the Goddess of Pleasure."

"Ha... I’m excited," said the God of Duel, lowering his arms from his chest and smiling at Ahtal, "You’re clearly excited too."

Xi Mu: "..."

The style of the gods in the high heavens is somewhat strange, related to the fundamental impulses of their powers, like how the God of Duel feels excitement for duels, and the God of War feels excitement for war.

Of course, this isn’t always the case... definitely not, just like the God of Blood may be infatuated with handsome men beyond escape, the underlying impulses of their own powers don’t have much of an impact, with most of their attention being engrossed in men.

"Right, your duel is not with the God of War," pointed out the God of Duel, indicating another entrance to the arena, "The Combat God is the enemy you need to face first."

"Is the God of War planning to make his appearance at the end?" Xi Mu asked, puzzled, but his steps were already moving closer to the Combat God.

The voice of the God of Duel came from behind.

"Because there is only one of you, if the God of War went first, there would only be one round."

"..." Xi Mu paid no attention to the voice coming from behind. Being able to grind a bit more experience was good, waiting for the Witch of Death to invade the high heavens, trying to capture the Three Goddesses of Fate, there wouldn’t be a chance for such wholehearted combat.

Feet, stepping on gravel.

With a sudden change in scenery, giant stone pillars rose from the ground, turning the land beneath into a boundless ocean.

An inexplicable cold wind blew, instantly freezing the boundless ocean.

"The environment isn’t very favorable for me," Xi Mu observed his surroundings, realizing that this environment seemed to be tailored against him; most of the power he used came from flames, and yet the environment was the ocean with strong cold currents blowing.

However, this environmental influence didn’t really affect him.

"Game rules, fight to the death in the Ash Kingdom," he said, raising a finger wreathed in Ash Fire, opening the kingdom within his heart.

Flames engulfed the arena.

In that instant, the air was ignited, and flame became the absolute mainstream of the world, incinerating everything tangible.

From the outside looking in.

The arena was suddenly enveloped in Ash Fire, and terrifying high temperatures instantly evaporated the massive amount of seawater; white steam surged out like a tsunami, rushing towards the direction of the spectator seats, and in a blink, burst out of the Duel Realm.

Most of the Duel Realm was shrouded in mist.

The environmental advantage was instantly nullified.

As expected.

The Combat God immediately started moving, rapidly closing in on Ahtal’s direction; when the ocean and cold currents were added to the environment, Ahtal would subconsciously try to take back control.

And that also meant Ahtal wouldn’t start with the domain of "death," so he didn’t need to worry about facing the power of "death" directly.

During this time, he could withstand Ash Fire and engage with Ahtal, but he needed to end the battle quickly.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t last long in the Ash Fire.

Flames surged.

The Combat God burst out of the flames, throwing a punch at Ahtal, with both timing and angle well mastered.

"In the face of absolute power, technique is meaningless," Xi Mu dodged the attack by stepping aside, then extended his palm and gently gripped.

The Ash Kingdom, which had been spread across the entire arena, contracted in an instant, and his body also burst into Ash Fire, as if he were about to completely incinerate himself.

The concentration of Ash Fire soared in that moment, surpassing the endurance limit of the Combat God, setting his body ablaze. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Then.

Light pierced through, engulfing the Combat God, shooting towards the sky, disappearing at the ends of the heavens.

Xi Mu lowered the Sword of Light, unraveling the unfolded Ash Kingdom, leaving behind a land of melted lava.

He turned his head, looking towards the spectator seats filled with All Gods.

"Which god is next?"