When the old and weak voice sounded, Angelica trembled violently. She looked in the direction of the Iron Throne in disbelief. She was no stranger to this voice. It had appeared in her spiritual world more than once, but in the real world, this was the first time she heard the ancient sage speak!
Even the caretaker, who had received long-term training and could always keep calm, could not suppress her excitement at the moment. The young caretaker almost burst into tears. "Ancient sage, you are finally awake?"
"Angelica, thank you for your care over the years, and thank you to all of you." Odin's voice echoed in the empty hall. His vocal organs were so rotten that he could only use crystals as a casting medium and rely on vibrating the surrounding air to make his voice. "But now I have something to say to my old friend. You and the Lightseeker should leave first. Also inform those above to stop the meaningless fighting. These travelers from outside the barrier are our guests."
"Master Bollumpar has gone to the upper city," Angelica said with her head bowed. "He should be meeting the speaker of the Steam Assembly by now."
"No, it's not enough. The Steam Assembly is a responsible person, but they will not easily believe Bollumpar …"
Suddenly, a ray of light appeared in the air. The light trembled and gradually condensed into a small ball and floated to Angelica. Odin injected his mental power into the ball as a token. "Send a few more people with this, and the Steam Assembly will believe you."
Obviously, although Odin had been sleeping silently on the Iron Throne for hundreds of years, his spirit was still active and had been paying attention to the situation in Twilight Capital. He also knew the Steam Assembly very well and knew the characteristics of short-lived humans. The ancient sage had been completely silent for hundreds of years. For humans with only a few decades of lifespan, the last time the ancient sage issued a decree was several generations ago. Therefore, the people of the Steam Assembly would not easily believe the message brought by the caretaker, so he made more arrangements.
Angelica and Wendell took the order and left. Only Hao Ren, Vivian, and a dying ancient god were left in the large hall of the Iron Throne.
"Old friend, long time no see." Odin was the first to speak. "Looks like you're still safe. This is …"
"Oh, my name is Hao Ren," Hao Ren said. "I'm Vivian's friend."
"What a strange name … Where are you from? Has the Nine Worlds reopened? "
Odin was well aware of the end of the Twilight of the Gods. He knew that there was no more life in the Nine Worlds. Hao Ren and Vivian must have come from the outside world.
"We have traveled a long way. Yggdrasil has left its original position, farther than you can imagine." Vivian found the question difficult to explain, so she could only say it in general terms.
Odin was silent for a moment. "How is the world now?"
It was a very broad question, but Vivian knew what he really wanted to ask. She exhaled and said calmly, "The Mythological Era is over. You can probably guess that the Norse gods were the last ones to perish. The rule of the gods has been extinguished, and there are less than ten percent of the survivors. "
"Oh, then it seems that the world is ruled by the demon hunters now."
Vivian shook her head. "No, it's the humans."
Odin was silent for a long time this time. But in the end, he did not ask anything. Instead, he sighed in relief. "Oh, that's good."
Vivian's eyes widened slightly. "I didn't expect you to say that. Didn't you always despise humans?"
"… It's a long time ago, as if it's a previous life." Odin seemed to sigh. "I am indeed like that. We were all like that back then, except for you, the alien. Vivian? Ancestor, you are right. Many of what you said back then was right. We, the outsiders, did not gain a foothold in this world after all. "
Vivian looked at the old man on the Iron Throne in amazement. This Odin was very different from the king of the gods in her memory. The past two thousand years seemed to have completely changed the once proud ruler. She could not help but think of Odin in the Mythological Era. He ruled the humans in the Norse region and used thunderous means to maintain his authority. He was cold, strict, and full of majesty. Although he belonged to the more gentle faction of all the ancient gods, he still never regarded the indigenous people of Earth as intelligent creatures that could be treated equally. He cast the army with human souls, built the palace with human worship, and ruled Midgard with harsh divine law. But now that he heard that humans finally ruled the earth, he sighed: that's good.
"Old friend, you have changed a lot," Vivian could not help but say. "In fact, I can't believe that you are the 'ancient sage' of this Twilight Capital. Although I guessed it, I didn't dare to think so. You actually sat here and protected humans for two thousand years? What changed your mind? "
"It's the efforts of humans," Odin said slowly. "Do you see this city? Those huge machines, those boilers, the power of steam, and the runes everywhere … "
"Of course I see it," Vivian nodded. "Did you teach them that?"
"Only a small part of the runes. The power of steam was discovered by them from the legacy of the giants," Odin said. "Isn't it incredible? I used to think that they were inferior creatures, but they are so talented. "
Vivian frowned. "What happened that year?"
This time, Odin did not speak for a long time as if he needed to recall the earth-shattering war. Finally, he finally said, "On the day the world collapsed, everything was destroyed. When I broke the belly of Fenrir, all I saw was the burning sky and the earth. I looked in the direction of the Garden of Asgard, only to find that the outer wall of the city had collapsed. Then I knew that my kingdom had completely fallen. Then many triangular black aircraft descended from the torn sky. The demon hunters began to enter Asgard and kill all the living creatures, so I could only escape.
"I passed through one kingdom after another, and all I could see was scorched earth. I was seriously injured at that time, but I did not stop for a moment. Finally, I came to Midgard. The kingdom was also gradually being destroyed, but the situation here was slightly better than other places. One of the branches of Yggdrasil surrounded the atrium, and the vine mountains slightly blocked the magic storm from Asgard, so a few cities in the hinterland of Midgard survived. In order to recuperate, I decided to stay here for the time being.
"In the beginning, I never thought of protecting the humans here, nor did I think that I would sit on this Iron Throne for two thousand years. I was just glad that I finally found a place where I could recuperate, and that I had many servants to order around. Although humans are weak and foolish, they are easier to control. That's what I thought at the time, old friend. You should know that many people thought the same way. "
Odin did not have much emotional fluctuations when he recalled these things, but the low and weak voice itself made people feel a strong sense of oppression. Vivian nodded gently. "Anyway, you have become their ancient sage."
"Yes, a lot of things happened in between, and in the end, I was sitting on this Iron Throne," Odin said with a chuckle. "Don't you want to know what changed me? It was everything here. My kingdom collapsed, my people died, and my trusted allies and adopted sons, who were the culprits of the Twilight of the Gods, the divine power that I used to be proud of, did not play a role at all. The glorious kingdoms of Asgard and Vanir disappeared, and the last to survive were the 'mortals' of Midgard, whom I used to disdain. To relieve their boredom, I taught them some runes, and in a short span of ten years, they became as proficient in the use of these runes as I am. I gave them some of the relics of the giants, and they were able to create the power of steam by themselves from the scraps of copper and iron. When the whole world was burned to ashes, they built Twilight Capital with only a few city-states as the foundation. It was even more magnificent than the Garden of Asgard. Even under such circumstances, they still did not give up hope. Old friend, do you know why I changed my view of these 'mortals'? Because I suddenly realized one thing … "
Odin paused for a few seconds and let out a sigh. "They are not inferior creatures. They are the masters of this world. They are weak not because they are born weak. Once we, the self-proclaimed gods, disappear, these humans … will become extremely powerful."
Vivian exhaled. "This world will eventually belong to them."
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