After slaying the heretic god, Su Mo suddenly sensed a strange power—one that carried the nature of a summoning.
If his guess was correct, this summoning came from none other than the Mother of all Godslayers—the one who presides over the rebirth of those who kill the gods—Pandora.
Under normal circumstances, when a new Godslayer defeats a Heretic God—often by sheer luck—they're left on the brink of death. It's in this near-death state that they're easily drawn into the twilight realm that lies between life and death… a place known as the Netherworld.
It's a liminal space, a rift between the mortal world and the underworld. And it's there that the ritual of a Godslayer's rebirth is performed.
However, Su Mo's situation was anything but normal.
Far from being near death, he hadn't even suffered a scratch. Not even a flicker of red warning light blinked on his timer. And in his current state, there was no way a deity like Pandora—whose domain was far removed from his tier—could forcibly pull his soul into the Netherworld.
And so, an awkward impasse arose.
If Su Mo refused the summoning, Pandora would be powerless to do anything.
The ritual of rebirth couldn't proceed. And in the Netherworld, the frantic Pandora was racking her brain, desperately searching for a way to get his attention.
Only for Su Mo to suddenly, and quite nonchalantly… accept the call.
Without a moment's hesitation, he stepped into the Netherworld, guided by the summoning force, and arrived right in front of Pandora herself.
"Thank goodness!" Pandora let out a long sigh of relief.
To her, every Godslayer was her child. And if one of them refused to acknowledge her… she honestly wouldn't know what to do. Thankfully, this one hadn't rebelled—at least not entirely.
As for Su Mo, responding to the call wasn't a matter of obligation or sentiment. His goal from the start had been to obtain the power of a Godslayer.
So, the moment he sensed the summoning, he simply followed its thread straight to the Netherworld.
The moment he stepped into that shadowy space, a purple-haired girl—no older than her mid-teens and styled in twin-tails—hurled herself at him and wrapped her arms around him.
"You're so slow! I thought you were going to ignore your mommy's call!" She pouted, clearly displeased.
Although Su Mo hadn't responded slowly by any normal measure, the fact that he was the first in thousands of years who could ignore her had understandably made her nervous.
"…And you are?" Su Mo pressed a hand against her forehead, pushing her gently away.
Even though he recognized the character from his past life's anime, he wasn't exactly used to being hugged out of nowhere.
But despite being brushed off, the girl didn't seem offended. She stepped back, placed her hands on her hips, and proudly introduced herself.
"Wherever gods and mortals dwell, I shall appear. I am the witch who bestows all calamities—and the faintest glimmer of hope. I am the Mother of Godslayers… Pandora! You can call me Mommy if you like!"
"No thanks." Su Mo rejected her instantly.
What self-respecting person would call a girl who looked like she was barely fifteen mom?
"Ehh? That's so mean…" Pandora's head drooped in disappointment. But then again… this wasn't her first rejection.
She was starting to think being refused might just be the norm.
Just then, a cold, somewhat familiar voice echoed through the Netherworld:
"The witch who bestows all strength upon her children… so this is where you've been hiding, delaying your return to the myths. Turns out, you were in the middle of one of your rituals."
It was Verethragna.
Though he had fallen in battle and should have returned to the realm of the gods, he was still here—bound by the Dark Rite of Pandora.
Only now did he finally realize what Su Mo had meant when he declared his intention to seize his Authority. And with that, the truth of his situation became clear.
"Indeed, Lord War God," Pandora replied with a teasing smile. "You were just defeated by this child, after all!"
Pandora beamed with a proud and satisfied smile—clearly delighted by Su Mo's victory.
"Defeat…" Verethragna fell silent for a moment. Then, he suddenly burst into hearty laughter.
"Hahaha! Yes… a crushing defeat! One so absolute that I can't even find the words to protest. I won't be forgetting this anytime soon!"
The War God of the Zoroastrians accepted his loss with surprising generosity and pride.
"In that case," Pandora said, her voice warm but ceremonial, "please bestow your blessing—and your hatred—upon this child."
"To the seventh Godslayer—fated to be the youngest Devil King—offer your sacred Word of Power to him!"
Although the Godslayer Rebirth Ritual was mandatory and couldn't be denied, even by a Heretic God, Pandora still addressed Verethragna with a certain level of respect. After all, he wasn't one of the detestable steel-hearted war gods she loathed.
"Sacred Word… you mean my Authority?" Verethragna's voice carried a hint of confusion.
"It's only natural for the defeated to yield their treasures to the victor," he continued. "But… with power like his, does he even need my Authority?"
Verethragna's memory of Su Mo's strength was still vivid—and unforgettable.
He had remembered his name. Deeply. Permanently.
From the very beginning, Su Mo had declared that he would defeat him and seize his power. But after witnessing firsthand the overwhelming might that eclipsed even that of the gods, Verethragna found himself questioning something fundamental—
Would his own divine Authority even be useful to someone like Su Mo?
Yes, the powers of a god were mighty. But compared to that radiant giant of light Su Mo had become, they were on an entirely different level. Not even in the same realm.
For the first time in history, a Heretic God was beginning to doubt whether his Authority was even worthy of the one who slew him.
And the one questioning himself like this wasn't just any minor deity—it was Verethragna, the war god of fire and victory, famed for his divine martial strength.
If his past opponent, Melqart—the storm god he once clashed with—could hear this, even he would start questioning reality!