Chapter 124: Finally Seeing Saori

As time passed, Scorpio Aikarat finally revealed himself, transforming from an invisible figure into a normal human being. Yet, as he looked at Feng Zhe, all traces of fighting spirit had vanished.

The ordeal of the Holy War had clearly matured Ikki’s features; he nodded in acknowledgment. Ignoring Distor, who was emanating a corpse-like aura, Ikki returned to the Scorpio Palace with Aikarat.

Before leaving, Aikarat remarked, “The next palace, Sagittarius, won’t be so easy to handle.”

Feng Zhe smiled, suddenly recalling something. “If I’m right, your body turns transparent intermittently because of poisoning. Although bloodletting and transfusions have partially treated it, they’ve only addressed the symptoms, not the root cause.”

“To truly cure the poison within you, the best remedy is to acquire the goddess’s blood and infuse it into your veins to neutralize the toxin.”

Aikarat’s eyes brightened at this revelation—the altar before him actually knew how to heal his affliction. But then, thinking of the goddess’s blood, his spirits sank. The current Athena was just an infant; even when she grew, the divine blood would never be granted to him.

---

Elsewhere, Aquarius Hyoga had also arrived at the Sanctuary and encountered the previous generation’s Aquarius Gold Saint, Mistoria.

No matter what Hyoga said, Mistoria, a paragon of virtue within the Sanctuary, refused to let him pass through the Aquarius Palace.

Hyoga, unwilling to fight the former Aquarius Saint, was effortlessly frozen by Mistoria’s Ice Ring technique.

At that moment, Shijinmo entered the Aquarius Palace, carrying Athena Saori, but both collapsed to the ground upon entering.

It turned out that Saori had been poisoned by the Samiel toxin from the Demon Palace rose, a deadly poison no one could cure except the 13th Saint of Ophiuchus.

Exhausted, Shijinmo entrusted Saori to Mistoria’s care before fainting.

As Mistoria reached out to touch Saori, his arm was suddenly frozen—he turned to see it was Hyoga who had thawed himself.

Feeling the chill radiating from Hyoga, Mistoria believed his words.

Hyoga asked Mistoria to hand over Athena, declaring she was the future goddess he was sworn to protect.

Mistoria agreed to give her up but insisted on testing Hyoga’s qualifications first.

If Feng Zhe had been there, he would have rolled his eyes—Athena was on the brink of death, and yet these Aquarius Saints were concerned with testing a junior’s ice mastery. Classic Aquarius behavior.

Hyoga then unleashed his Diamond Dust attack, but Mistoria easily deflected it. Hyoga quickly followed with his Aurora Execution technique.

This time, Mistoria was the one on the defensive, shocked by Hyoga’s ability to withstand such an assault.

Hyoga explained that Aurora Execution was a technique passed down to him by his master, Aquarius Camus.

At this, Mistoria realized that this Hyoga before him must be the third-generation Aquarius Gold Saint.

Growing more exhilarated, Mistoria decided to test the ultimate level of ice mastery: absolute zero.

Both Saints assumed the starting stance of Aurora Execution, causing the temperature in the Aquarius Palace to plummet as their icy energies clashed.

Had Feng Zhe been present, he would have scolded them for risking Athena Saori’s life by freezing the entire palace.

Though the battle seemed evenly matched, Hyoga eventually collapsed.

Mistoria understood that Hyoga had held back at the critical moment, allowing Mistoria to win.

“Why do you not maintain a heart of cold detachment?” Mistoria asked.

He then instructed Hyoga to leave the Aquarius Palace with Athena.

As Hyoga stepped forward, Mistoria was instantly frozen to his knees, even his Gold Cloth encrusted with ice.

He thought to himself that if Hyoga fought at full strength, he might not stand a chance.

---

Meanwhile, Feng Zhe entered the Sagittarius Palace.

Upon arrival, he narrowly dodged a golden arrow fired at him.

At that moment, the Sagittarius Gold Saint Gestalt appeared before him.

The centaur-like Gestalt raised his golden bow and fired another arrow.

Feng Zhe once again evaded by an incredible angle and countered with a punch.

To his surprise, Gestalt’s speed was astonishing, and his equine lower body was extraordinarily agile.

Moreover, these golden arrows alternated between real and illusions, making it impossible to tell which was genuine.

These arrows bore the power to slay gods, a supreme gift Athena had bestowed upon Sagittarius.

Feng Zhe was determined not to become a casualty of this divine wrath, but no matter where he dodged, he was always struck by Gestalt’s arrows—even stopping time proved ineffective.

This was the first time Feng Zhe encountered a power immune to temporal manipulation, and an unfamiliar unease gripped him—as if a Damocles sword hung perpetually overhead.

Then Gestalt drew a single golden arrow, distinct from the ones before.

“This arrow has been preserved by generations of Sagittarius Saints, bestowed personally by Athena. No matter where you are—across time or space—it will find its mark...” Gestalt declared.

With a swift whoosh, the arrow, carrying a sound like the breaking of air, shot forth.

---

Just as Feng Zhe faced certain death, a shield suddenly materialized in his hand.

It was the Athena Shield that had protected him countless times.

As the arrow and shield were about to collide, a girl appeared between them.

Feng Zhe was stunned but powerless to intervene, watching as the goddess’s arrow aimed for the girl’s forehead.

Suddenly, the arrow halted.

Then, sharply reversed course, it struck the wall instead.

“To the young men who have come here, Athena entrusts you with this mission...” The inscription was the final words left by Sagittarius Aiolos 230 years ago.

Hyoga, who had arrived with the girl, read the message and tears welled up.

The girl turned to Feng Zhe with a bright smile.

“Long time no see, Alex!”

Before him stood the future Athena who had traveled through time—Saori Kido.

Gestalt now understood the girl’s true identity: Athena herself.

As the most loyal Saint, Gestalt knelt before her, repentant.

Saori forgave Gestalt, bringing him to tears.

The gentle, vast cosmos she emitted was the true mark of a deity.

Indeed, after the Holy War, Saori was no longer merely the young lady of the Kido family but had completely merged with the goddess Athena.

Feng Zhe reflected that he had encountered many incarnations of Athena—the fragile yet resilient Sasha from LC, the Sleeping Beauty Sasha from ND, and Saori from Afnir’s timeline.

Among them all, the strongest cosmos radiated from the Saori before him.

“Miss Saori, forgive my rudeness, but your presence in this timeline causes space-time to distort and collapse. If this continues, this entire timeline will cease to exist...”

Saori was clearly aware of this, yet for Seiya’s sake, she was willing to bear the consequences.

“I know. For Seiya, everything is worth it...”

At that moment, Feng Zhe felt like shouting into the void...