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Chapter 92 - Glimpses Of Hope

  Before the enlarged Catito can land on Poseidon, the sea king resists by concentrating water at the cat's rear, propelling it upward into the air. Meanwhile, after sending Cerberus to aid Wei, Catato focuses on dislodging the trident from Steve’s grasp. Just as he’s about to free it, Poseidon resummons the weapon into his hands. Suddenly, a towering wave rises, morphing into the shape of a whale before crashing down onto Catato and Steve. With his trident pointing forward, Poseidon manipulates the massive water form toward himself.

  Steve is knocked unconscious from the crash, while Catito miraculously lands inside the massive body of water, avoiding injury. Meanwhile, Catato leaps high from the water and delivers a powerful dropkick with his enlarged lower body, slamming into Poseidon’s chest. At the same time, a group of Freedom Faction souls, having arrived through portals, swarm Poseidon, targeting his fists and forcing him to call off the water.

  “You guys finished with the other levels already?” Steve mutters weakly, his voice barely audible as a fellow faction member cradles him in their arms.

  “Yes! The Imperial Order folks are here too!” the souls reply. “And just in time to save Cerberus!”

  The massive dog stands, though barely, with only its lone husky head remaining. The other campsite cats have also joined the fray, but at Catito and Catato’s command, they stay out of the battle, fearing further losses. When Catito points to the deceased CATOTO – whose body, unlike the souls and other creatures in Hell but like his siblings, does not dissolve into essence – the other cats fall silent and comply.

  As much as they long to retrieve their fallen brother, the battle rages too fiercely for a safe opening. Meanwhile, members of the Imperial Order press Zeus back, forcing distance between him and Wei, who struggles to rise to his feet.

  Stronger than Steve by over a hundred thousand essence, Wei had chosen to let Steve handle Poseidon, who was already occupied with the cats and Cerberus. Wei’s plan was never to kill the thunder champion on his own – just to hold him off long enough.

  Now, he calls out to Steve, commanding the Freedom Faction souls to switch their focus to Zeus. Joining forces, Wei and Steve prepare for what will be their ultimate attempt to take down one of the divine enemies.

  “Kirl one and get stronger. That’s the onry way,” Wei says.

  Steve hesitates, concern lacing his words. “How many of our faction members are we sacrificing for this?”

  “Sorry to say, but as many as we need.”

  Steve closes his eyes and lets out a sigh, heavy with burden and guilt. “Let’s get started then,” he says.

  Despite having never worked together before, their skills, honed to the level of leader ranks in their respective factions, are evident. As Steve dashes in, skillfully dodging water streams rising from below, Wei moves silently behind Poseidon, leaving a trail of smoke in his wake. By the time Steve engages the sea king, sparring with ice blades jutting from the barrel holes, Wei has already encircled them both.

  Steve, already struggling to match Poseidon’s strength, deliberately allows the sea king’s water-boosted punch to land in his stomach, sending him flying out of the smoke. As the lava hardens around Poseidon, Wei jets upward and fires a stream of water fused with lava at Poseidon, who is just beginning to spin with his trident, preparing to break the hardened lava and clear the smoke. The attack lands, and lava quickly hardens around Poseidon. Wei jets downward, bringing his triple-bladed sword down in a strike, while Steve cyclone dashes back in, the ice blades aimed forward.

  As their weapons near Poseidon, water erupts from beneath, engulfing all three. The current pushes them upward, with Poseidon now free, swimming toward Wei. Having trained underwater before, Wei quickly repositions himself, bracing his blade for impact while his other hand heats Poseidon’s stream with lava. Sensing the heat, Steve propels himself out of the stream with a cyclone, hovering in the air as he observes the battle below.

  Wei readjusts the width of his blades, narrowing the space between them so that they resemble a single-bladed sword. The impact of the clash is softened by the molten stream, which also slows Poseidon’s movements. Wei spins, hurling his sword at the sea king, then jets out of the stream. Just after Poseidon raises his guard to successfully deflect Wei's sword, Steve propels himself through the stream, guns drawn, and fires point-blank into the sea king’s exposed head.

  Steve, consumed by bloodlust, relentlessly fires ice bullets into Poseidon's head. Despite the barrage, Poseidon remains unyielding, seizing Steve with both hands. Reacting swiftly, Steve jets out of the water, but Poseidon maintains his grip. With a powerful swing, Poseidon forces them both into a spin through the air. Still caught in the motion, Poseidon suddenly dives midair with a well-timed water dash, slamming Steve hard into the ground, the impact shattering his back.

  In desperation, Steve encases his hands in ice to free himself from Poseidon’s grasp and summons a cyclone, sending both of them back into the air. He propels himself toward the enlarged Catito for a cushioned landing. Meanwhile, Wei, joined by the enlarged Catato, unleashes a stream of water fused with lava at Poseidon. Thanks to Steve’s icy cyclone, Poseidon is still spinning uncontrollably and unable to reposition, taking the full force of the amplified attack.

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  Poseidon crashes to the ground after being pushed out of Wei’s attack range. He quickly launches water shaped like sea creatures forward, using them as distractions while he dashes toward the souls. In an unexpected move, a line of cyclones erupts from behind Poseidon as he nears them. Catito sweeps his large tail, destroying the sea creatures, but Poseidon reacts in time, leaping toward the enlarged cat. A water stream propels him forward, his trident held above his head, ready to thrust.

  Suddenly, the small Catato falls onto his back before enlarging, catching Poseidon off guard and pressing him to the ground. Poseidon, now on all fours, would normally have been able to push against the weight of the massive Catato with ease. However, as water erupts around his arms, freezing them in place, he struggles to move. Meanwhile, Catito, back at his normal size, leaps onto his brother with the help from Wei, enlarging himself once more. Sitting atop Catato’s belly, their combined weight isn’t enough to crush Poseidon just yet. But as Steve and Wei charge downward in a cyclone and water stream, the pressure intensifies, further weighing down the cats and steadily forcing them toward the ground.

  Even with a surge of water from beneath, Poseidon fails to shake them off. Catato blocks the initial blast with his massive form, forcing the water to cascade down toward the center. As it falls, it gets sucked into Steve’s now-powerful cyclone, adding to the weight. The moment Catato feels the last of the resistance fade beneath him, he and Catito signal for Steve and Wei to halt before returning to their normal sizes. What was once the sea king is now nothing more than a large pool of essence.

  “For CATOTO!” Catito shouts, the cry later echoed by all the cats, their voices tinged with both anger and sadness.

  “Death by a cat’s ass. What a tragic end for such a divine being,” Steve says, crawling on the floor.

  “Come on, ret’s absorb the essence. We need it for Zeus!” Wei suggests.

  While both collect the essence, Steve clutches onto Wei’s shoulder, his eyes fixed on the battle between their factions and the thunder champion. He bites his lip in anger as he watches what seems to be a bloodbath unfold, though he can’t deny that their efforts are effective in holding Zeus back. Unbeknownst to him, tears silently stream down his face.

  At Wei’s command, the faction members scatter, clearing a path for their leaders toward Zeus. Despite his broken back, Steve stays behind, perched atop the enlarged Catito, ready to support from a distance. Meanwhile, the campsite cats retrieve CATOTO’s lifeless body, dash all the way to his crib, and gently place him inside. They give their brother one last look before returning to rejoin Catito and Catato.

  “My brother! How dare you!” Zeus roars, his fury causing thunder strikes to crash randomly from the sky.

  “I’m back, and this time, I won’t run,” Wei declares, his eyes burning with determination.

  Curved streams of lava rise around Zeus, hardening into jagged pillars. At a flick of Wei’s fingers, they converge on the thunder champion. Unmoved, Zeus holds his bolt high, testing Wei’s strength. As the pillars collide with the bolt, a massive explosion erupts, scattering thunder strikes in every direction and shattering the pillars.

  “Looks like you’re still not strong enough,” Zeus taunts.

  Undeterred, Wei summons more lava streams, forming spiraling pillars that swirl around Zeus. This time, they strike at varied angles and intervals, moving like tendrils closing in on their prey. Zeus once again stands his ground, thunder bursting from his body as he strides toward Wei. Suddenly, a line of icy cyclones erupts in front of him. He halts just in time, but the lava pillars from behind strike simultaneously, sending him spiraling into the cyclones.

  “Time for my secret technique,” Steve announces.

  The cyclones shift erratically, some ascending while others descend. Trapped between two opposing forces, Zeus feels an intense pressure, his body straining as though it’s being ripped apart.

  “For our brother, CATOTO!” Catito roars.

  Seizing the opportunity, the cats amplify the souls’ powers, launching a barrage of attacks at the airborne Zeus. Weapons and elemental forces converge relentlessly, denying him any chance to regain his balance. Like a ping-pong ball, Zeus is battered in every direction – back and forth, and sometimes up and down.

  As the cyclones finally dissipate, a new attack from Steve, amplified by Catito’s boost, slams Zeus to the ground with explosive force. The cats quickly join in, unleashing a coordinated onslaught against the thunder champion. Despite their exhaustion, they press on relentlessly, channeling every ounce of strength into their attacks.

  Finally, Zeus succumbs, his formidable form dissolving into a shimmering pool of essence.

  “Steve and I wirl gather Zeus’ essence. The rest of you, correct the essence of our forren comrades,” Wei commands. “With this, the two of us wirl be abrle to rivarl any opponent!”

  The crowd responds with a weak cheer, their voices heavy with grief and exhaustion. Slowly, they shift to mourning their fallen faction members before scattering to gather whatever essence remains. Meanwhile, the cats gather around Catito and Catato. As they take count, it becomes clear that Catute of campsite number eight and Catoti of campsite number ten didn’t make it to level zero. Together, the campsite cats meow in harmony, their deep, resonant voices rumbling through the air as they mourn their fallen siblings.

  The large gate finally slides open, allowing the surviving non-elite souls to return to their previous locations. Christine, her shoulder dislocated and a knee broken, limps toward the gate. She pauses, turning to gaze at the battlefield one last time. Tears stream down her face as she sobs quietly, then forces herself to move forward, disappearing beyond the gate.

  Suddenly, portals materialize on the ground, summoning groups of nerds who hurry to tend to the injured. Among them is Pete, his voice rising above the chaos.

  “For the second time, Hell now has warriors capable of rivaling Heaven! This time, not just one, but two. We finally have a chance!” he proclaims.

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