"Galaxian Explosion!" x2 "Heavenly Treasure Wheel!" With their actions, Kanon, Saga, and Shaka showed Abel exactly what their choice was.
Yet even the combined assault of the three top Gold Saints could not touch him in the slightest.
Abel simply extended a single finger and effortlessly caught their thunderous blows.
"To actually make me feel a hint of pain—you're truly impressive." Looking at Saga and the others, Abel's face showed a rare expression of appreciation. "If you submit to me, I'll grant you the highest honors of Corona Saints."
The strength of these three pinnacle Gold Saints far exceeded that of his own three Corona Saints. They were only a few notches below the Heavenly Warriors of the heavens themselves. If he could bring them under his command, it would greatly increase his chances of seizing the earth.
But to the three Gold Saints, Abel's praise rang hollow and grating.
"So this is the true power of a god?" The man known as the incarnation of a god, Saga, felt powerless for the first time. Only now did he realize how naive he had been thirteen years ago. To think he had plotted to assassinate Athena and take her place—thank goodness he had failed. Otherwise, humanity might truly have been annihilated by these gods.
Though Saga was currently in his "blue" state and thus somewhat weaker than his "black" self, even black Saga was at best on the level of a Heavenly Warrior. Defeating a god of Abel's caliber was simply impossible.
In the last Holy War, neither White and Cecil—both prodigies—had been able to defeat the Twin Gods of Sleep and Death. And though Abel had been stripped of his divinity, it had not weakened him in the least; he was still no match for ordinary Olympians.
Even Ares was only marginally stronger in Abel's presence. And right now, Abel had not even donned his God Cloth.
"Saga…" The three Gold Saints Abel had previously knocked down struggled to their feet.
A god's attack was no joke; a single blow had left Shura, Camus, and Aldebaran with serious injuries.
"Master Shion, when will they arrive? We can't hold on much longer." Kanon gathered what little Cosmo he had left and asked the others through it.
After dealing with Abel's three Corona Saints, the Gold Saints had split into two groups. One, led by Saga and Kanon, was to intercept Abel. The other, led by Shion, was to find a way to seal him.
But as things stood, Saga and the others had been overly optimistic. Their strength was like fireflies trying to outshine the sun and moon before Abel.
Abel was simply toying with them. Even so, he had gravely wounded three capable Gold Saints with a single casual move.
Shaka had long since opened his tightly shut eyes—he had no choice. The gap in levels was too vast; whether he wanted to conserve strength or not, the situation demanded otherwise.
"Could it be we have to use that?"
At Shaka's words, even Saga and the ever‑lawless Kanon's faces changed drastically.
That legendary shadow technique, Athena's Exclamation. It required three Gold Saints to perform and was said to rival the Big Bang itself—a threefold ultimate combination attack.
But because of its overwhelming power, Athena had banned it. Anyone who used it would be stripped of their Saint status, their soul branded with something worse than a demon's mark, doomed to eternal damnation.
Thus, for Gold Saints to resolve to use it required tremendous courage.
"But even if we use that, it might not even hurt him." Kanon glanced miserably at Abel on the high platform. He hated to admit it, but that was likely the truth.
Before the Gold Saints could make up their minds, Abel spoke, his words sending a chill through all of them.
"Athena's Exclamation? You actually plan to use that against me? Don't you know that before my Divine Wall, even a god's techniques can be reflected?"
"That's right—you guessed correctly. I can freely read the thoughts in others' minds. In my presence, you have no secrets. Whether you truly submit to me or just pretend to, I can see it all at a glance."
"Damn…" Sweat poured down their foreheads. Abel loomed over the Gold Saints like an insurmountable mountain.
"And yet you still refuse to surrender. Is it that you're hoping for this?" Abel pointed toward the palace entrance. Following his gesture, the Gold Saints saw three figures approaching.
"They're here at last." The Gold Saints let out a slight breath of relief. The other team, searching for a way to seal Abel—Shion, Aiolia, and Mu.
When they saw Shion and the others approaching, clad in a strange Cloth, Abel's eyes filled with mockery. "So this is your plan? To actually try sealing me? How laughable… Do you really think the Altar Silver Cloth has the power to seal me?"
"Have you forgotten?" Abel paused, then continued before the ashen‑faced Shion, whose plan had been exposed. "I was once one of the Sanctuary's guardian gods."
"Do you think there's any secret of the Sanctuary I don't know?"
"And what if we do know? We won't know if it works until we try." Shion forced himself to stay calm. What a blunder—he had forgotten such a crucial detail. Unlike the Twin Gods of Sleep and Death, Abel had originally been one of the Sanctuary's guardian gods, just like Athena.
That was precisely why the former Temple of the Sun God still stood behind Athena's Temple.
But beyond that, there was no other choice. They could only pin their hopes on the power of the Altar Cloth.
"Saints of Athena…" Abel shook his head as if he had heard something ridiculous. "If you don't believe me, by all means, try it."
"But as the price for defiling a god, you will all die."
"Mu, Aiolia!" Shion shouted. The two Gold Saints immediately launched their attacks at Abel.
At the same time, the other Gold Saints unleashed their strongest techniques against him.
"Ignorant." As the combined assault of several Gold Saints came at him, Abel merely uttered the word calmly, without even raising a hand.
A golden substance, like a wall, sprang up before Abel, reflecting every one of the Gold Saints' attacks back at them.
The Divine Wall—one of Abel's ultimate moves, said to reflect even a god's attacks.
"Now's our chance—go!" Shion instantly teleported to a spot the Divine Wall could not cover. From one side of the Altar Cloth, he grabbed a handful of unidentified talismans and scattered them at Abel.
"This is Athena—" When he saw the talismans drifting toward him, Abel cried out in shock for the first time.
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