The Myth of the Greek Heavenly Demon

Chapter 102 – The Winner And The Loser

There was a saying in South Korea.
The world is out to get me!
It’s the kind of situation where everything seems to go wrong. Like when trolls ruin your promotion match, or when you wait for hours for a limited edition product, only for it to sell out right in front of you, or when you fall, scrape your knee, end up in the hospital, and catch COVID while you’re at it. Moments when it feels like the world is conspiring against you.
But today, no one has probably experienced that sensation—“the world is out to get me”—as deeply as I have.

“I have to admit, gods really are gods.”

The crescent moon shining high above.
Everything bathed in its light seemed to be working against me, trying to bind me. It was a rare experience, even across my three lives.

“The Taiyi Illusion Comfort Circle I saw in the Jeonjin Sect’s highest one looked just like this. If that crazy guy had marked the treasure dungeon, he should’ve opened some traps and formations…”

Consider how I felt when two of the Four Heavenly Kings, who had gone treasure hunting all excited from my tales, nearly got caught in a vine tentacle play.

Anyway, the mythic formation protecting the legendary Jeonjin Sect’s Secret Arts and the power shown by the Goddess of the Crescent Moon were quite similar.
A living forest that draws out nature’s self-preservation to the extreme, engulfing all outsiders who step into that land and turning them into nutrients.
It would take hundreds of years just to design and lay the foundation of the formation, and an incredible amount of natural energy would need to gather for it to operate, likely requiring a millennium.
Yet, here was this goddess casually wielding power greater than that Illusion Comfort Circle, controlling everything in this space with just a flick of her fingers. I couldn’t help but admire her.

“I can manipulate divine power similarly, but only when it’s restricted to my own body and physical materials—like authorities or miracles.”

Just now, when I turned into a snake or when I injected her with that deadly poison, I was able to mimic the flow and control of her divine power, merging it with my own knowledge to create something useful.
Rather, since it was not a physical body but a reflective form that had reached the Supreme Demonic Realm, it became even more compatible and versatile in utilizing divine power, so its stability and efficiency even surpassed that of magic.
In the past, I once misused the bone and muscle-altering technique, Joint Dislocation Arts, and ended up bedridden for three days and nights, but now I could transform into a snake and even replicate snake venom without any hindrance.

“Gods are truly unfair.”

However, creating a sanctuary that would completely obey my will, like the one Ares and Nemesis showed me, was still impossible for me.
Even in martial arts, there were techniques that create a favorable environment for oneself and unfavorable for the enemy, but constructing such an otherworldly realm was beyond reach.
It was a tremendous miracle worthy of being called a divine power.

“So, from now on, I’m going to slowly find out how that’s possible.”

Because I am a diligent demon who never loses the spirit of improvement!

Standing with hands clasped behind my back, smiling leisurely like a talkative villain from an old movie, Artemis glared at me fiercely as she struggled to catch her breath.

“How dare you… do this to the daughter of Zeus… and expect to get away with it…?”

Ha, this young lady still doesn’t grasp the situation.
I shook my head and lightly snapped my fingers.

-Snap!

“Ugh?!”

“Let me guess. Feeling dizzy? Heart racing, lungs about to burst, and no strength in your body.”

Cold sweat, fever, perspiration, dizziness, decline in condition.
Watching Artemis confused by an imperfect physical state unimaginable for a god, I chuckled pleasantly.
The things I obtained, the things I learned, and the things I realized ultimately even worked on the heavenly gods above and this goddess wielding immense power.

“It’s surprising, but the poison I injected into you is nothing special.”

“What? Th-that’s impossible…! It’s not even Hydra’s poison… How could this happen to me…?”

“Are you wondering how a divine body composed of spiritual energy can get affected by poison?”

It was quite natural.
The qi of the demonic path was a perfect antithesis to the divine arts of the divine path.
It sublimates the suffering of worldly desires and the five desires into the energy known as demonic qi.
To a goddess who embodies the concept of purity in the form of divine power, this was nothing short of a deadly poison.

“The torment of the five desires that anyone with intelligence bears. It’s a poison created from that.”

The red dust of the evil world that the silent Buddhas and true immortals of the Taoist path reject and strive to overcome.
The beauty and ugliness of the material world that the Heavenly Demons of the demonic path and the Nāgas of Asura’s path accept and whisper to embrace.
The blessing and curse given to mortals who live swayed by desires and emotions like joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure.

If she had reached the divine realm after endless training, like the old master I met at the peak of Mount Kunlun or the abbot of Shaolin who transcended worldly affairs, such basic mental poisons would be of little use.
For they were ascetics who had long since shaken off the afflictions of the flesh.

“But you were merely born great, not a transcendent who became great on your own.”

Steel, tempered by fire and hammering, remains unyielding no matter how much it is struck, but delicately crafted porcelain reveals any flaw with just a minor crack.
I sprinkled a tiny drop of ink on the beautiful porcelain called Artemis, and the ink spread slowly, seeping deeply into that white body.

“Eek!”

“Oh dear, I told you it’s meaningless.”

Artemis, as if in a final desperate struggle, drew a dagger and lunged at my heart, but the attack, lacking the sharpness and murderous intent from before, was utterly futile.

-Clang!

In the end, as I lightly snatched her wrist and tightened my grip, the dagger fell from her beautiful hand.
Like a midnight waltz, I spun and tightened my grip on her two hands, binding the goddess’s beautiful body to my chest.
In an instant, I entangled her arms and tightened my hold with my own, making it seem as if the Goddess of the Crescent Moon was embraced in my arms.
Artemis was quite tall as well, but compared to my significantly grown self after my transformation, she seemed much smaller, almost like a small doll fitting snugly in my embrace.

‘At this rate, I could almost carry Neri in my arms, let alone Atalanta.’

Whenever Atalanta entangles herself with me, Neri sneaks into bed at night and falls asleep with her head on my chest.
Looking at it this way, today might be the first time I’ve enacted a Greek-style romance, having lived purely until now, unlike a typical Greek.
A Greek-style romance… It was a phrase that strangely overflowed with a chaotic atmosphere.

“Y-you brat…!”

“I told you, it’s pointless to resist.”

Artemis struggled to escape, but her body, already weakened by the poison, had surrendered to me.
When I applied a bit of strength to pull her arm, Artemis leaned her head against my chest, still gritting her teeth.
But her eyes had already melted away.

“I-If it weren’t for the poison…!”

“I wish you’d understand that you brought this upon yourself.”

The power to transform into a snake, the venom that violated her body.
It was all an application of the powers and curses she showed.

“Ha… Haah! Wh-What am I…?!”

“Ha… Really.”

The first thing that struck me was the sharp voice filled with sticky resentment and an unknown heat directed at me.
That voice, devoid of the same momentum and cruel joy as before, combined with a rich fragrance like a blend of mint and sandalwood, was enough to make me feel momentarily intoxicated.
Moreover, the hot body temperature and sweat-drenched body pressing against my bare chest seemed to seduce with every twist, brushing against my abdomen and chest.
And most of all, when my gaze landed on the goddess’s passionately burning eyes looking up at me, bypassing her beautifully prominent nose, and settling on her deeply colored pink lips.
My patience met its limit in an instant.

-Chuup!

“Uugh!”

If a man, or a male, sometimes acts before he thinks, that’s just the way it is.
I immediately swallowed the lips that whispered curses venomously.
If the kiss with Neri was a refreshing affection reminiscent of the blue coast of Passos, and the kiss with Atalanta was a passionate caress between lovers exploring each other.
Then the kiss I was forcing on Artemis now was akin to the fierce violence of biting the prey’s throat.

“Ugh! Ugh!”

In the blink of an eye, Artemis was lifted with both hands held by me and struggled to break free from my lips, but even her struggle became bothersome, so I used one hand to hold both of the goddess’s wrists and the other to grab her white neck, pushing her against a tree to block any resistance.

“Keuk! Wh-wha–?!”

Artemis glared at me with wide eyes, as if she couldn’t believe it, but I growled low, staring at her, wondering if I had ever been this forceful.

“Stay still.”

“Hic… Mm!”

The indulgence that had ended so briefly compared to the impulse that had surged earlier continued once more.
This was my right.
I was the winner of this war.
She was the loser of this war.
I had the right to indulge in the spoils of my labor and toil, and the goddess who had waged an unjust war and lost should quietly submit to my hand.

“Hng… Hng!”

‘Yes, that’s right.’

As I inhaled her breath and parted her pale pink lips, I could savor the goddess’s tender tongue as I slowly tasted her paralyzed mouth.

-Slurrrp!

“Hnng?!”

My tongue gently caressed the smooth, soft teeth like a craftsman’s refined tea set and the sweet, tender flesh like a ripe peach.
The goddess, who seemed to find the sensation strange, wavered as if intoxicated by my breath that blew life back into her, even as she squirmed with nausea.

‘What about this?’

Slowly, the hand that moved behind Artemis’s neck softly stroked down her spine.

“Hyaah?!”

Then, as if struck by electricity, Artemis jerked her head up, and I delightedly watched her eyes filled with confusion.
The female warriors who fiercely charged at me and the assassins who hid daggers behind their backs with hidden intentions.
Seeing them caught in my hands, slowly wavering and melting, was one of my secret pleasures.

And today, the beautiful trophy in my hands, I was sure, would become one of the finest masterpieces as I deeply swallowed the goddess’s breath.

“Hnnnn…”

-Chup! Nom!

The goddess must have been very confused.
The turmoil of desires and feelings unrelated to the Goddess of Purity.
The crescent moon did not know the humiliation of an untouched secret realm being conquered.
Purity did not know how hot and thrilling a man’s touch exploring her skin could be.
Artemis, as a woman, did not know the pleasure of being embraced by a man.
The human turmoil was too hot and intense for the beautiful and pure goddess’s body, where no impurity could intrude.
The impurity that settled in her body became a sweet poison, clouding her mind, and I could tell that she was slowly collapsing because of my presence enveloping all her senses.
Her face, reddening as if deeply intoxicated, slowly lost strength and began to melt away, unconsciously leaning on me for support.

‘It’s just the beginning.’

I smiled deeply, watching the goddess, who was trying hard to muster strength with bleary eyes.