Myth: The Ruler of Spirituality

Even that gaze made her feel a sense of inexplicable familiarity.

...

Spirit Realm.

"Tens of thousands of years" had passed since Hypnos had seized control of the Spirit Realm, and he had begun his plan to enter the dream world.

He first lured some weaker deities into dreams, then let their primary consciousnesses immerse in false dreams, their physical bodies at his disposal. He eroded Olympus with a war among mortals called "Troy," then successively devoured the Underworld, encompassed the stars, and even the Primordial Gods were no match for him.

He ruled over heaven and earth, governed the sun, moon, and stars, but he did not accept the position of Divine King in the current world, simultaneously becoming the master of both the material and spiritual realms. Because the God of Sleep felt that the Spirit Realm should be above the Mortal Realm, not equal to It.

In the end, when Hypnos stood at the pinnacle of Chaos, his gaze turned to the world itself.

"All beings dream; then I shall make the Spirit Realm the 'dream' of the world."

He intended to lull the laws of the world to sleep, to sink into dreams of his own weaving, and then replace them. For a moment, even the God of Sleep was astonished by his own idea. Already possessing everything, he executed this idea without hesitation and then merged his consciousness with the world.

At that moment, a sense of detachment and reality flooded over him, and Hypnos, who controlled everything, felt an unprecedented sense of perfection.

That feeling...

"How does it feel?"

In his reverie, Hypnos heard a familiar voice ask him.

"Good, I feel an unprecedented sense of reality."

He replied subconsciously, yet in the next instant, the God of Sleep's consciousness suddenly awoke. He was now the World Master, who could speak in his ear?

"Who are you?"

He asked, but no one responded to him. Hypnos began to remember, following this familiar feeling. Finally, at the very beginning of everything, he recalled the origin of this sense of familiarity.

It was Laine's voice... Memories from the past gradually surged in his heart, and Hypnos remembered, but with that, greater confusion welled up. Gods were immortal, he had taken the reign of the Spirit Realm, and Laine too should still be alive, but what had become of him? Why did it seem like his existence was completely overlooked?

And there were others... At that moment, the God of Sleep seemed to "understand" something, and as he "awoke," the world also shattered with him.

Everything between heaven and earth turned to ash, his established dominion, the deities he had consecrated, all vanished. When Hypnos came to his senses, he realized he was standing in the center of the Temple of Lops, and Laine was sitting in a chair, quietly watching him.

"Was I not good enough to you?"

Sitting in the chair, Laine asked softly.

"I granted you life, bringing you into this world; I granted you power, making you stronger than what was destined by fate; I also gave you authority, making you the ruler of the third layer of the Spirit Realm."

"Now, tell me, what drove you to do all this, was it simply due to innate influence?"

...

After a long silence, a myriad of doubts flashed through Hypnos's mind, such as why, when he was clearly the deity who controlled dreams, he was so easily influenced by the other, falling into his own dream, but now, even if he got an explanation, it no longer mattered.

If, despite availing himself of every advantage of time and place, he still could not win, then his defeat was inevitable. Yet, upon hearing Laine's words, Hypnos felt flames ignite in his chest.

It's always like this, we're both children of the Spirit Realm, what does what the world gives to me have to do with you!

"Ha... Dreams are the activeness of spirituality during repose, the bridge for communication between spirituality and life. I too am a holy being born of the Spirit Realm, a supreme existence born immortal. Before the existence serving Samsara was born, only you and I had innate divine authority within the entire Spirit Realm. On what grounds do you claim to be higher than me!"

His voice became increasingly intense, and at this moment, he was not just speaking to Laine but seemed to be speaking to the Spirit Realm itself. Divine power surged as Hypnos's voice traveled down from Mount of the Gods, and looking at Laine on his high seat, he said word by word:

"The son of fire shall not bow to the son of earth; I haven't lost to you, it's just that the Spirit Realm has not chosen me."

Evil Gods naturally lack intense emotions, but they aren't entirely devoid of positive feelings; it's just that Hypnos reserved these emotions for the Spirit Realm itself. In his eyes, Laine's significance to the Spirit Realm was like Gaia's to the Mortal Realm, they symbolize 'earth,' the most primal sanctity of the world, yet they should not be rulers, but rather assistants.

But he was different; he was meant to be the king of the Spirit Realm and then lead it to encroach upon the world, just as he did in dreams. With that thought, everything followed today.

Especially as an immortal being, his confidence only grew. Throughout the ages, he had heard the saying 'Laine is the incarnation of the Spirit Realm,' but the God of Sleep never took it to heart. Because until before Samsara began, among all the deities of the Spirit Realm, only he and Laine held power from the moment of their creation, not even Liana possessed this kind of innate authority.

Hypnos didn't know what fate was, nor could he know that in the original history, there was no Liana, but there was him, which is why Chaos only bestowed upon him the privileges the world grants to primordial gods. He only knew that he and Laine were equals.

"I understand... but unfortunately, the Spirit Realm and I were born together."

Rising from his seat, Laine couldn't identify whether his heart was more joyful or angry. In front of him, the God of Sleep scoffed at his words.

Rushing straight towards Laine, Hypnos's figure charged at him, but witnessing this, Laine turned his gaze to the doorway of the great hall.

Even at this moment, Hypnos had not let emotions muddle his head. He appeared to want to fight desperately, but in reality, he didn't resist pointlessly; instead, he sought to escape, plotting for the future. But obviously, he wouldn't get that chance.

Watching the fleeing figure of the God of Sleep in a blink, Laine gently lifted his hand, and a segment of a verdant wooden shaft appeared in his hand. Its 'Gungnir' ability to never miss had been transferred onto other sections, but it still retained a wee bit of primer.

Now, that small bit of primer was ignited. When it was hurled forth, it hit its target as destined. This result was meant to be.

"The Spirit Realm and I were born together, It exists, I exist, we're both parts of 'Laine's' existence. You have refused to serve me. Though you haven't betrayed the father who made you, you've defied the 'Spirit' He displays His divine authority through in the world."

The voice echoed across the seven layers of the realm, and watching the departing Hypnos, Laine calmly delivered his final judgment.

"So be it, I shall expel you from the Spirit Realm. You once resided in the highest heavens, now, I condemn you to the depths of all worlds."

As the words fell, the wooden shaft left his hand, turning into a dazzling light that struck the back of the God of Sleep.

The next moment, led by the destiny of 'Gungnir,' it carried the deity in front of it along its predestined trajectory.

"For thirteen million years, this is my punishment for you."

Standing in The Temple, Laine watched the God of Sleep wrapped in the glow, free-falling from the high heavens, as calm as ever. Meanwhile, outside, as Hypnos plummeted from the mountain, the sky above also began to change.

In the sky of Chaos, besides the physical stars, there were also intangible, illusory ones, together forming the vast starry sky. However, on this day, one of the stars suddenly shone brightly.

It was once a symbol of a deity, illuminating the way in the dreams of all beings, but that was no longer the case.

Under the gaze of all beings in the Mortal Realm, the star fell from the sky, plunging into the Mortal Realm with incalculable velocity.