In Tanbei Canyon, after their leaders yielded one after another, the remaining defeated soldiers had no more burden on their minds. They threw down their weapons and accepted the Greeks' incorporation and judgment.
Unexpectedly, however, the Greeks merely gathered up their weapons, mercifully left them a day's worth of rations and a good amount of medicinal supplies, then stationed troops at the mouth of the canyon.
During that time, the enemy did not strictly restrict their movements. They even allowed them to set up tents on the spot, let the Holy Maiden Martha organize people to treat the wounded, and even sent a medical team from the Academy of Athens to assist.
While the Greek medical officers patiently treated the wounded, they often murmured similar lines under their breath.
"This was an unjust war," "the Persian prisoners survived only by the grace of His Majesty Theseus," "the war is over, and the merciful king will send them home." Words like these gradually calmed the uneasy Persians. Slowly, they accepted the brainwashing, and even the way they looked at the Greeks lost its hostility, taking on faint traces of gratitude instead.
"It seems the empire truly is nearing its end."
Standing on a gentle slope, the great Persian hero Arash looked around and took everything in before shaking his head with a helpless sigh.
"Not necessarily. Persia's lands still remain, and my Immortal Army still remains! As long as I return to my homeland and you give me some time, I can still raise an army of hundreds of thousands!"
The valiant Darius I stepped out from the forest and grunted in rebuttal.
After Cyrus, this Persian king had expanded the empire's territory without pause, proving himself abundantly martial. A large portion of Persia's current domain had been conquered by Darius I himself.
To praise his own achievements, he had his deeds carved into a cliff in three languages: Elamite, Persian, and the Babylonian dialect of Akkadian. Later generations would know this as the Behistun Inscription.
Its first line read: "I am Darius, the great king, king of kings, king of Persia, king of the provinces, son of Hystaspes, descendant of Arsames!"
That alone showed this Persian king's pride and confidence. This defeat clearly was not enough to make him submit completely.
"Father-in-law, it's no use…"
The handsome Xerxes approached while supporting himself against the rock wall, bitterly shattering Darius I's illusion.
"Greece cannot be conquered by relying on the Immortal Army alone. In the war against Rome, our army of three hundred thousand was almost wiped out. Those who returned alive did so only thanks to that Majesty's mercy in the Land of Nothingness. And this time, the Greco-Persian War launched with the full strength of the nation has ended in an equally crushing defeat. The one leading the army was once again that King of Greece, and even more shamefully, we are only alive now because of his charity.
"Look at the men below. Even if we return to Persia and rebuild the Immortal Army, how many of the surviving soldiers would still be willing to pick up weapons and follow you into battle again?
"Whether through fear or kindness, they have already submitted to the Greeks completely.
"I guarantee that if you dare mention rebellion, these soldiers who have just eaten a hot meal and are waiting to go home will tie you up on the spot and deliver you to the Greeks.
"Even if we make it back, as long as that Majesty is still alive, the moment you set your sights on Greece again and the two armies meet, the soldiers who received his grace will turn their spears against you…"
Arash gave a bitter smile of his own and nodded, pointing toward the Meteor Archers behind them in the forest, who were sitting on the ground and wolfing down their food.
"That's right. Even though they are the elites of the army, after everything that has happened, even I can no longer guarantee I could order them to keep fighting for you."
It had to be said that this Greek king's handling of prisoners had taught them a lesson. By using leniency to break down the enemy's will to resist, then adding education and brainwashing on top of it, he had achieved a remarkable effect.
"Besides, judging from Lord Mithra's reaction, the Pantheon has already been destroyed. Whether Persia itself can be preserved is now the question."
Xerxes thought back to the God of Light's shocked expression when the Tower of Babel suddenly collapsed, and the answer he had blurted out without thinking. A deeper sense of helplessness settled in his heart.
"That shouldn't be possible. With the Great Lord in the Pantheon, how could it have been taken so easily?"
Darius was still unwilling to accept it, frowning as he murmured.
Hearing this, Arash and Xerxes instinctively began to think. Then, as if realizing something, their expressions froze, and they looked at each other in silence.
At that same moment, in Thermopylae.
"What? Cyrus isn't in the camp? He secretly returned to Persia three days ago?!"
The medical teams from the Academy of Athens returned one after another. When Ana heard the important intelligence they had indirectly gathered from the Persian wounded, her expression shifted, and she abruptly rose to her feet.
Meanwhile, in the Sea of Chaos.
"The hour of twilight has come. Sound the song of despair. This is the end. All things shall perish and return to ash! Outshining the Sun, Sword of Flames!"
Amid the murderous chant, Samael drew a streak of crimson from the Magecraft array. Blazing fire shot into the sky as the dark-red greatsword pressed down. The sea churned violently, while boiling Ether and searing air rapidly parted, raising towering waves to either side.
"My salvation and my glory rest in God. The rock of my strength and my refuge rest in God! God has granted me a sharp sword, immortal flames coil around me, and a single spark shall set the prairie ablaze. I am justice! I am judgment!"
Michael's soul nearly fled in terror. He hurriedly chanted, and the dark-red cross sword in his hand ignited with boundless radiance. A cross-shaped band of light like a star rose against the fiery demon sword that had dyed the sky scarlet.
Boom!
The two swords clashed, and Michael was blasted into the sea, forming a massive whirlpool. Two streams of fiery power spilled outward, making the seawater boil without end. Every sea creature within dozens of miles was shattered into blood mist and reduced to pulp. Even the vast clouds of rising sea fog carried a faint scarlet tint.
Tch…
Seeing the blood-red tendrils sprouting from the base of Laevatein's branch-like hilt and quietly spreading toward his arm, Samael frowned. He turned his hand and threw the demon sword that wanted to devour its master back into the Magecraft array for sealing.
A pity. His cross spear was being used to bind that troublesome Pandora. Otherwise, he would not have needed to take out Laevatein to deal with this.
Still, the might of the Blazing Demon Sword was beyond doubt. After taking that blow, Michael was basically at the end of his rope. He would not escape!
Especially since the sea was Samael's domain!
The Ancient Serpent sneered, folded his wings, and descended to the sea. The oceanic protection within him surged, and the raging waves of the Sea of Chaos became as obedient as cats and dogs around him. The rolling tides beneath his feet were as steady as flat ground.
At the same time, his opening and closing cross-shaped star pupils swept the area casually. Michael, who was trying to hide underwater and evade detection, had nowhere to conceal himself.
Whoosh!
Realizing he had been locked onto, the Child of Light felt a chill run down his back. He frantically beat his wings and burst out from beneath the water. His three remaining half-wings desperately stirred the Ether, accelerating as hard as they could in an attempt to flee the area covered by that monster's divine will.
Hmph! Trying to run?!
Samael summoned a golden bow into his hands. His arms drew it back, and the bowstring and bow body creaked under the strain. A pitch-black serpent-shaped mark coiled around the light arrow formed from Ether, its point aimed straight at Michael as he fled for his life.
It's over!
As the sharp sonic boom exploded, the battered Child of Light sensed the killing intent behind him condense into something almost tangible, along with the divine lock that left him no place to hide. Despair spread through his heart.
Wait! That's…
Yet just as Michael was driven into a dead end, the mist ahead churned violently. An airborne vessel with a sphinx sculpture at its prow burst out from the chaos.