Chapter 62 The Goddess of the Bending Moon

As the Queen of the Gods, she could naturally see at a glance whose hand was behind this matter and who was pushing it from behind. Artemis had been quite impressive in recent years. It seemed that the humiliation from her defeat to Hebe in battle had spurred her on. This goddess had spent the last few years on Earth, continuously contemplating her divine powers related to hunting and the forest, providing protection to hunters who entered the woods in exchange for their faith. Her reputation as the "Mistress of Beasts and the Lord of the Wilderness" had spread across the land, and as a result, her strength had increased, allowing her to step into the rank of a first-tier deity. Although she was only a lower first-tier deity, compared to the group of gods on Mount Olympus who were complacent and unambitious, Artemis had shown considerable motivation to achieve this much. Now, Apollo was scheming against Selene, and Zeus was also pushing from behind, all to help Artemis seize the authority of the moon. With the source of the moon, one of the two most important sources of light in the sky, Artemis's potential would greatly enhance, and it would only be a matter of time before she ascended to the rank of a major god. In the pantheon, the last position among the twelve major gods was likely to belong to this goddess. However… Hera's red lips curled into a slight smirk as she focused not just on Artemis, but also on the major god position. Hera's gaze subtly shifted to the young god standing beside Zeus, holding a double serpent staff, wearing a winged helmet, and always wearing a smile. This son of Zeus and the goddess of rain and storms, Maia, the messenger of the gods—was he really as gentle and harmless as he appeared? Hera scoffed inwardly; if that were the case, he wouldn't have been able to ascend to Mount Olympus right after his birth, using his words and charm to manipulate both Zeus and Apollo. Commerce, travel, theft, deception, eloquence—were any of these divine powers simple? Hera had a premonition that Artemis's ascension to the major god position would not come so easily. This messenger of the gods, being another child of Zeus, harbored ambitions no less than any other deity. But so what? Hera sat leisurely on her throne as the Queen of the Gods, watching the farce unfold. Her own children had already become esteemed major gods, and she no longer needed to worry about them. As for Zeus's illegitimate children, she didn't care who sat in the last major god position; it had little impact on her. 'Selene, as the goddess of the moon, how could you have descended from the sky to the mortal realm without permission? This is a serious dereliction of duty!" The show was about to begin. Zeus sat on his throne, his handsome face solemn, and his sky-blue eyes brewing a storm. He looked down at the goddess of the full moon, and the immense pressure he exuded made it nearly impossible for Selene to lift her head. 'What's even more ridiculous is that your reason for dereliction is because of a mortal?" With a snap of his fingers, the earthbound Endymion was instantly transported to the main hall of the gods by the king of the gods. The handsome shepherd looked around in astonishment at the suddenly transformed surroundings and the gods high above him. Having never seen such a scene in his life, he was instantly flustered, standing there in fear and confusion. Is this the mortal Selene is infatuated with? The other gods couldn't help but scrutinize the young man. He was indeed quite handsome, but the blessings of the goddess of youth had long been revoked by Zeus. No matter how beautiful his face was, it wouldn't withstand the ravages of time; it wouldn't be long before wrinkles would cover this young man's face. To risk her current predicament for a fleeting human was truly foolish. 'Endymion!" Upon seeing her beloved appear, Selene's mood instantly turned exceptionally agitated. She struggled to stand and walked to Endymion's side, fearing that Zeus would harm him, and shielded him behind her. '...Selene, where is this? How did you...?" Endymion looked at Selene in front of him, surprised at how disheveled the goddess appeared at that moment. But Selene had no time to answer her beloved's questions. Although she was enchanted by love, she wasn't a fool; mortals had no right to ascend to Mount Olympus. The only reason Zeus had summoned Endymion was to punish her. Indeed, the authoritative king of the gods spoke at that moment. 'Selene, for the sake of this mortal, you have desecrated your identity and duties as the goddess of the moon. To prevent you from continuing down this path of degradation, I have decided to forever remove the temptation of the mortal world from you and grant this shepherd death." 'No!" Selene's heart was wrenched in agony. Enchanted by the power of love, she had lost much of her rationality. Her heart raced with desperation as she thought of ways to save her beloved. Suddenly, a light bulb went off in her head. Selene raised her elegant and beautiful face to look at the king of the gods above, and spoke loudly, 'King of the gods, god of the stormy clouds, I am willing to give up…" 'Selene! My sister, the one crowned with the moon!" The voice of Eos, the goddess of dawn, sounded so abrupt in the main hall of the gods. The rosy-fingered goddess stepped forward quickly, stopping her sister before she could say anything irreversible. 'Awaken from this agonizing, infuriating, and maddening infatuation!" At that moment, Eos could no longer care whether her actions would anger Zeus. She took Selene's hand, her rose-red eyes shining with a brilliant yet gentle light. The dawn's radiance that dispelled the mist enveloped Selene, granting her a moment of clarity in her chaotic mind. The moonlight within Selene also emitted a soft and pure glow, and the peach-gold divine power that had shrouded her eyes seemed to be like a snake struck by a stick, struggling before beginning to wither away. The expression on Aphrodite's face changed suddenly. This unexpected turn of events seemed to indicate that things were starting to go awry. Her emerald eyes glanced towards Apollo, and sure enough, the face of the radiant son was also not looking good. Apollo cursed inwardly. This Aphrodite was truly unreliable; the love magic deployed by a major goddess was actually shaken by Eos, a first-tier deity. If word got out, it would be embarrassing for him to be one of the twelve major gods! ‘What's wrong with you? You can't even handle such a small matter?' Apollo shot a glare at Aphrodite. ‘What does it have to do with me…? How would I know what methods they used to shake the veil of love?' Aphrodite blinked innocently, resembling a pure and harmless lily of the valley, making it hard for anyone to blame her. However, she couldn't help but feel that her divine power had been somewhat unstable and easily fatigued lately. Had she been overexerting herself with Ares? At this point, Apollo had no other choice but to quickly find a way to remedy the situation. He slapped the arm of his throne, stood up, and spoke with righteous authority: 'Goddess of Dawn, the King of the Gods is judging the sinful goddess Selene. What are you doing here stirring up trouble? Hurry and withdraw!" The fierce and domineering flames of the sun shot towards Eos. The scorching heat and the might of a major god would surely leave even Eos, a goddess of light, severely injured if not killed. The goddess gasped in shock and, no longer able to cast the dawn's radiance to restore her sister's clarity, quickly spread her wings and retreated just in time to dodge Apollo's solar flames. Filled with anger and surprise, Eos looked at Apollo. Seeing that he was also gazing back at her, she noticed the cold killing intent hidden in his sky-blue eyes, which resembled those of their father. Endymion, who had been inexplicably brought from the mortal realm, watched the gods who acted so rashly with lingering fear. If Selene hadn't opened a barrier to protect him just now, he would have likely been vaporized by the sun's scorching heat. 'Apollo, how can you act so recklessly in the Hall of the Gods? Do you still regard the other major gods?" The king of the gods also reprimanded Apollo at this moment, but his tone was so nonchalant that it was clear he did not take the matter to heart. 'Great King of the Gods, please forgive my mistake. It was truly the Goddess of Dawn who interfered with your judgment, and I could not stand by and watch," Apollo readily confessed to Zeus. 'Hmm, try to control your temper next time. A major god should possess the demeanor of a major god," Zeus replied, casting a sidelong glance at Eos, the warning in his eyes unmistakable. '...Great Master of Thunder, please forgive my impolite actions in my moment of impatience. I will no longer interfere with your judgment. Please forgive my error," Eos lowered her head in apology. Her gaze fell, and she remained silent, but beneath her long eyelashes lay a pair of eyes filled with resentment. With Eos no longer causing a disturbance, Zeus continued the judgment of the full moon goddess Selene. 'Selene, to sever the root cause of your dereliction, I have decided to bestow upon this mortal who dared to entice a deity the punishment of thunder. Do you have any objections?" The punishment of thunder meant that Zeus would use his lightning to completely annihilate Endymion. How could an ordinary mortal like him withstand the king of the gods' thunder? In less than a second, he would be reduced to dust, and even his soul would be obliterated, disappearing entirely from this world. As for Endymion's opinion, it was irrelevant; everyone present was a god, and humans were as insignificant to them as ants. Their voices could be easily disregarded.