The Golden Bow of the Sun

'You finally arrived." Artemis said as she wiped her silver bow, her divine weapon. As the natural goddess of the moon, even without the full authority of the moon, her silver bow allowed her to harness the power of moonlight for battle, complementing her brother Apollo's golden sun bow as a pair of twin artifacts.

'Good day, Princess Artemis." Maintaining politeness was a basic quality expected of Hebe, the daughter of the queen of the gods.

With both goddesses present for the duel, Zeus, sitting on the highest throne, waved his hand to announce the official start of this divine showdown.

At Zeus's command, the killing intent in the eyes of the two goddesses ignited. They exchanged no further pleasantries, moving with the swiftness of leopards to establish a safe distance from each other, as they both wielded ranged weapons.

Artemis quickly nocked an arrow to her silver bow, and arrows formed from the silver moonlight shot forth.

The speed of the arrows was astonishing. Hebe's expression turned serious as she flipped backward onto a massive Roman column to evade the incoming arrows.

A cold smile crept onto Artemis's lips. Her gaze was icy as she flicked her wrist, causing the silver arrow that had been flying forward to suddenly shoot upward, changing direction to target Hebe on the Roman column.

As the natural goddess of the moon, her control over moonlight was no less than that of Selene.

Hebe drew her jade bow, the arrows coalescing in an instant, infused with the purifying power of her divine office to break through all obstacles, while her youthful divinity filled them with unstoppable momentum and vitality.

The arrows, shining with silver-green light, were released, clashing with Artemis's moonlight silver arrows. The collision of divine powers created a massive explosion, filling the arena with dust and smoke.

This first attack gave both goddesses a certain understanding of each other's strength. Their expressions turned serious; she was stronger than expected!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The two goddesses no longer held back, constantly changing positions as they drew their bows. The speed of their shots was so fast that they could only be seen as afterimages. If they weren't gods, such intense shooting speed would have long since left their arms incapacitated.

Light arrows rained down, each possessing incredible destructive power, causing the surrounding Roman columns to shatter and fall.

As the two goddesses fought fiercely, they had no time to worry about accidentally injuring other gods. Many arrows even flew outside the arena, hitting some unfortunate gods who were merely watching the spectacle, resulting in cries of anguish from the crowd.

'O great king of the gods, at this rate, the arena will be destroyed. Why not send them to the mortal realm to fight?" The gods suggested to Zeus amidst the rain of arrows.

'Well…" Zeus had not anticipated that his two daughters would be so formidable in combat. While he was aware of Artemis's strength, Hebe had completely changed his perception.

He raised his hand, enveloping the two goddesses in vast divine power and transporting them to a forest in the mortal realm, while the gods looked on from the clouds.

Hebe and Artemis felt the scenery around them shift, filled with lush greenery. The scent of earth and leaves mingled in the air as they found themselves in a forest on the island of Lesbos.

In a flash of realization, both understood what had happened.

But the battle continued, leaving no room for distraction.

'The forest is my domain." Artemis felt a surge of joy; as the goddess of the forest and hunting, the environment here was undoubtedly a boon for her.

'…" Damn! I've never seen a father so ruthless to his daughter!

Above the clouds, Hera shot a fierce glare at Zeus, seriously suspecting that he did this on purpose!

Zeus rubbed his nose, swearing by heaven and earth that he had simply chosen a random place!

Artemis spread her arms and sighed, her divine essence as the goddess of the forest shining brightly as she drew on the elemental power of the forest to replenish her own energy. This was her right as the goddess of the forest.

She put away her silver bow. After the earlier confrontation, she realized that this goddess's archery was not inferior to her own, making it difficult to defeat her solely with arrows. Therefore, she decided to change her strategy and use divine magic.

'Goddess of Youth, you are not the only one with a mother goddess's protection." A slight smile appeared on Artemis's pure face, her voice becoming ethereal. A grayish veil, like mist, enveloped her, concealing her graceful figure.

She vanished without a trace.

Hebe's eyes widened.

The Veil of Night!

The divine artifact of the Night Goddess Leto!

Leto, daughter of the Titan gods Coeus and Phoebe, who represented darkness and wisdom, ruled over the starless and moonless night. Her divine powers inherently possessed traits of 'forgetting," 'blurring," and 'concealment." This goddess's divine artifact had the same effects; the Veil of Night allowed the wearer to hide their form and block all forms of observation.

This was undoubtedly a powerful artifact. Leto had once used it to evade Hera's pursuit, and among all the divine artifacts in Olympus, only Hades's helmet of invisibility could rival it.

Clearly, this goddess had lent the artifact to Artemis for her victory.

The Veil of Night completely concealed Artemis's form and aura. Even though Hebe had now ascended to a first-tier god, she could not sense where Artemis was.

'Princess Hebe, I have the purification divine power under control." Artemis's voice seemed to come from all directions, making it impossible to determine her location. She had merged with the forest, becoming its master.

'Then let's see if you have the ability to do so." Hebe put away her jade bow. Since her opponent wanted to compete in divine magic, she was ready to engage fully!

'Then let us wait and see."

As soon as Artemis's words fell, the lush trees began to sway, and countless green leaves fluttered down like a rain of greenery, beautiful beyond compare. But Hebe had no time to appreciate it; she sensed the killing intent coming from the entire forest.

The falling leaves surrounded the golden-haired goddess, each seemingly beautiful but hiding deadly intent.

The leaves swirled, making it impossible to evade the countless leaf blades. Hebe raised her hand to summon her golden cup, which granted her some control over water. Gushing spring water formed a curtain to keep the leaf blades at bay. The leaf blades flew, and the spring water surged, turning the scene into a fierce battle.

As Hebe maintained the water curtain to fend off the leaf blades, she suddenly felt the ground tremble beneath her. A sense of danger surged, and she quickly dodged. Just as she leaped away, countless thorns erupted from the ground where she had just stood, chasing after her in an attempt to bind her.

Hebe was forced to keep running through the forest. With every step she took, countless thorns erupted around her. Unbeknownst to her, the area she occupied was already surrounded by thorns, leaving her with nowhere to escape.

A cold light flashed in the eyes of the golden-haired goddess. She summoned her jade bow, drawing it back like a full moon, infusing it with purification divine power to conjure several arrows that shimmered with radiant colors. She released them all at once, and the arrows exploded, destroying the surrounding thorns and leaf blades.

'Very good, but how much can you really destroy?"

As soon as Artemis's voice fell, countless thorns and leaf blades attacked again, the intensity of the assault even greater than before. Hebe's water curtain was shattered in an instant. In a moment of crisis, she had no choice but to shield her eyes and vulnerable areas with her arms.

Artemis infused the thorns with her divine power, binding the young goddess's movements. The silver-glowing leaf blades mercilessly carved scars across her divine body, and in an instant, divine blood splattered everywhere. Hebe was now covered in wounds, looking utterly tragic.

From the perspective of the gods above the clouds, it seemed that Hebe was about to be defeated.

'It looks like Princess Artemis will emerge victorious in this duel."

'After all, Princess Artemis's divine powers lean toward attack, while even though Hebe has ascended to a second-tier god, her domains of youth, purification, and healing simply lack offensive power…"

'Sigh, it seems the outcome is already determined."

Many gods secretly glanced at Hera's expression, fearing that this queen of the gods might take out her frustration on them. They also held a sense of curiosity, hoping to witness the unfolding drama.

However, they were disappointed this time. Hera's expression remained calm, as if the one suffering down below was not her precious daughter.

Apollo watched her demeanor, feeling an inexplicable sense of foreboding.

'You've lost, Princess Hebe. It seems the purification divine power is destined to be mine."

Artemis looked at Hebe, who was suppressed, feeling that victory was already in her grasp. She withdrew the Veil of Night and approached Hebe, her pure and beautiful face displaying a hint of triumph.

She reached out her hand, about to use her divine power to strip Hebe of her purification divine power.

However, just as her hand was about to touch Hebe's forehead, an unexpected change occurred!

Hebe's tightly closed eyes suddenly flew open. The thorns infused with forest power suddenly felt as fragile as paper, and she easily broke free from them. She seized Artemis's hand, her magnificent purple eyes filled with mockery, reflecting Artemis's panicked expression.

'Got you."

A surge of divine power erupted from Hebe's body, her momentum rising rapidly—second-tier upper, second-tier peak, first-tier lower!

Her divine form shed its previous youthfulness, revealing an exquisite beauty that captivated the eyes of the gods, as beautiful and dangerous as a rhododendron.