Chapter 228: Testing the Sword on Black Adam (Third Update)

Lightning illuminated Kratos' fierce and domineering face, making his sneer appear even more mocking.

Yes!

Atreus was indeed mocking the clueless Black Adam.

After all, Black Adam was no true god, nor did he possess any special anti-god template or divine-slaying powers. With only borrowed strength, how could he possibly compete with Atreus?

As someone who had long wielded the power of the six gods, Black Adam was highly sensitive to divine energy. But his past undefeated experiences, combined with his arrogance, had blinded him, causing him to underestimate his opponent.

Indeed, who would expect a true god to walk the Earth again after the age of gods?

For others, ignorance might lead to fearlessness, but Black Adam was starting to feel a little rattled.

He had been in the modern world long enough to have some understanding of other pantheons. However, the bald, muscular figure before him didn’t match any of the gods in his memory.

Most people only remember Black Adam for his brute strength and powerful combat abilities. But his six divine powers also included the wisdom of Thoth (Zehuti), the ancient Egyptian god of wisdom and the moon. This granted Black Adam exceptional perception and analytical abilities, especially regarding the unknown.

When he fully channeled Thoth's power and still couldn’t figure out Atreus origins, genuine fear crept in.

On the surface, they both wielded the powers of multiple gods.

The difference was that Black Adam had to juggle the combined powers of six gods, as if serving six demanding lords simultaneously, while Atreus had his own formidable strength as a base and simply gained the power of four additional gods as a bonus.

With his senses completely suppressed by Atreus, Black Adam could only barely discern that Atreus had far superior control over the element of wind. Additionally, the flying chariot beneath him was infused with oceanic power, along with some kind of acceleration force and a power similar to Thoth's.

It was this wisdom-based power that suppressed Black Adam’s perception, rendering even Thoth’s abilities useless.

As they say, those in the same field often become rivals.

It was obvious what was happening here.

Black Adam was being outclassed in three areas: Horus’ speed, Thoth’s wisdom, and Aton’s divine power.

This left him with only one option—close combat.

Against most opponents, Black Adam wouldn’t hesitate, thanks to Shu’s endurance, Amon’s strength, and Mehen’s courage, which made him nearly unbeatable in hand-to-hand combat.

But this didn’t apply to a true god, especially one who clearly excelled in physical combat.

Illusory swords constantly flickered around Atreus, a clear sign that he wasn’t some scholarly god.

“Who... Who exactly are you!?” Black Adam shouted, his voice full of intensity, though the subtle change in how he addressed his opponent didn’t go unnoticed.

Atreus didn’t answer directly, his smirk widening. “Black Adam, I liked you better when you were being defiant.”

“You...!” Black Adam was almost choked by the insult.

As a villain, Black Adam certainly had a dark past.

Thousands of years ago, Teth-Adam had been a slave in Egypt's Kahndaq, where nearly all his family had been murdered by a tyrant—except for his nephew, Aman.

While attempting to escape imprisonment, Adam was fatally wounded, but Aman refused to abandon his dying uncle. This act of selflessness moved the wizard Shazam, who transported them to the Rock of Eternity and shared his power with Aman, healing Adam in the process.

Upon their return to Kahndaq, Aman wanted to use their newfound powers to free their people, but Adam sought only revenge on the tyrant for his slain family. In the end, Adam killed Aman and claimed his powers, using them to slay the tyrant and then massacre the Council of Wizards. He believed this was a necessary sacrifice for the greater good. However, the wizard Shazam eventually managed to imprison Black Adam.

It wasn’t until recently that Black Adam was accidentally freed.

Now, with Atreus playing the role of Kratos, Black Adam was feeling a long-forgotten fear—the same fear he had felt as a slave under the tyrant’s oppressive violence.

His thick lips trembled involuntarily as he stared at the radiant Kratos, unsure of what to say.

Instead, Atreus turned to Superman and shouted, “Superman, do you want to take this guy down?”

Superman, who had initially been furious when Black Adam emerged and killed a building full of people without hesitation, paused. When he realized most of the dead were from Vought, and after spotting the mutated body of The Deep among the rubble, his perspective shifted.

It was yet another company, like Lex Luthor’s, trying to create monsters using Kryptonian DNA.

In fact, there weren’t many innocent people in that building.

The disgust and shock of Black Adam’s massacre quickly faded in Superman's mind.

After a brief hesitation, Superman shook his head.

Atreus tilted his head, then looked back at Black Adam. “Since Superman doesn’t want to take you down, I’m not that interested either. How about this—you take one of my sword strikes, and if you survive, you can leave.”

Atreus slowly rose from the chariot, walking on air.

In the void before him, lightning gathered beneath his feet, supporting his winged boots.

And from his back, he unsheathed a sword nearly as tall as he was.

Logically, a sword that massive should have been impossible to ignore. But until now, everyone had been so captivated by his mastery of lightning that they’d failed to notice it.

When the great sword was finally unsheathed, everyone’s hearts skipped a beat, as if they were suddenly thrust into a grand battle.

Throughout history, many gods and legendary heroes had been revered for their incredible feats.

But none of them had ever wielded a sword like this one.

Especially in the Greek pantheon—who among them was known for using a great sword?

Greek bronze swords couldn’t even be made that long; they’d break before you could use them.

Even someone like Black Adam, who had been sealed for millennia and lacked much modern information, had never seen such a sword. And even Natasha, a highly informed and skilled agent, had never heard of it.

Yet, the clashing sounds of battle, the thunderous roar of charging horses, and the cries of millions locked in combat echoed through the air the moment the sword was drawn.

The very atmosphere trembled, the elements scattered.

A sword with such a presence was no ordinary weapon.

(End of chapter)