Chapter 69: The World Tree Grows Again! The Birth of Heaven and Earth!

Mephistopheles returned to the Underworld, heading back to the Contract Hell with a satisfied smile. He patiently awaited the absorption of the Underworld land, which would subsequently enhance the World Tree. This enhancement would elevate both the Underworld and the Contract Hell, furthering his own advancement.

For Mephistopheles, he had reached his peak. This was why his soul contracts were more about amusement than progress; he saw no further potential for growth. However, the current situation was different. With his Contract Hell bound to the Underworld, it had become a part of the Underworld, giving him a new opportunity to advance.

As the World Tree improved the Underworld, Mephistopheles felt confident he could ascend to the level of a God-King. Eventually, when the Underworld transformed into a true mythical world, his potential would be boundless.

"Hehehe," Mephistopheles chuckled at the thought. A demon who had barely escaped a shattered mythical world now had the chance to become an Ancient God. His happiness was palpable, and now all he had to do was wait.

"Well~~~" Mephistopheles reclined on his throne, contemplating, "Once the World Tree's growth is complete, I should resume Lord Hades' tasks."

Using the Contract Hell as a core, he could gradually enhance it, feeding back into the Underworld and the World Tree. This reciprocal growth was crucial for his progress, filling him with enthusiasm.

Unbeknownst to Hades, his subordinate's thoughts were irrelevant to him. His focus was entirely on the World Tree's absorption of the Underworld land.

The Underworld land, created by Hades to replace Tartarus, was immense in essence. Enhanced by Mephistopheles' methods by one-tenth, it was even more impressive. The World Tree's absorption process was slow and meticulous, gradually converting the Underworld land into a tremendous amount of world power, infusing it into the Underworld. As this power flowed in, the World Tree began to shake, absorbing it completely over three millennia.

After the Underworld land was fully consumed, Hades felt the vast amount of world power being absorbed by the World Tree, prompting it to grow anew. Initially, the World Tree increased in size and strength, but this was merely a superficial change. The true transformation lay in the birth of Heaven and Earth.

The divine power and laws representing Heaven and Earth began to form within the Underworld, although still in a nascent stage. "Heaven and Earth," Hades muttered, observing the embryonic forms. The World Tree's growth was nurturing Heaven and Earth, but the process was fraught with difficulties.

Hades knew he had taken a shortcut by using the World Tree as the core of his divine realm, the Underworld. Normally, the World Tree would only now be reaching the initial stage of nurturing Heaven and Earth, with much more growth required. However, because he had prematurely created the Underworld, nurturing Heaven and Earth was now exceedingly difficult.

The key issue was that the World Tree was already an integral part of the Underworld. The embryonic Heaven and Earth needed to harmonize with the Underworld to continue developing. If Heaven and Earth had been nurtured first, then the Underworld created, there would be no issue. But this sequence was impossible for Hades; he couldn't have achieved his current power otherwise.

To solve this, Hades needed a vessel to contain Heaven and Earth. Without it, Heaven and Earth couldn't be fully nurtured, regardless of the World Tree's growth. This was akin to needing a crucial component to complete an upgrade, no matter how prepared one was otherwise.

Despite this, the absorption of the Underworld land's world power had been completed, enhancing both the World Tree and the Underworld, which in turn augmented Hades' mastery over divine laws and power. This brought Hades to the 20th level of a Chief God, but still far from becoming a God-King. "Essence," Hades whispered, "I must reclaim my essence to break all constraints and truly reach the level of a God-King."

However, Hades now faced the problem of finding a vessel to nurture Heaven and Earth. This wasn't something he could solve easily, as such a vessel was unknown to him. He floated among the World Tree's branches, watching the entwined clear and turbid breaths, symbolizing the nascent Heaven and Earth. Temporarily setting aside this issue, Hades decided to focus on reclaiming his essence first.

For now, the growth of the World Tree had brought significant improvements, enhancing his chances of success in his ultimate goal.

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