Lucifer's fall indeed took the God of Light by surprise, a fact Ye Wen could sense through the very fluctuations of holy light surrounding Raphael.

Based on the current situation, a massive battle was likely brewing between these two angels, one that would rage until the heavens darkened, with an eighty percent chance of a mutually destructive outcome.

However... the sheer decisiveness of the God of Light stunned even Ye Wen. He listened as Raphael, maintaining his imposing aura so as not to be suppressed by Lucifer, produced a rather "familiar" smile—the genuine smile of the Archangel Raphael himself. That God of Light had actually departed?

"Well now, it seems my initial choice was correct!" Raphael raised a hand, and the rectangular box, which had vanished moments before, reappeared before him. Immediately, the barrier of light enveloped Raphael once more, rendering Lucifer's terrifying might and the nearly all-consuming black smoke utterly incapable of harming the Archangel.

From within the light shield, Raphael waved towards Lucifer. "I didn't expect you to truly break through the angelic limits. No wonder His Majesty the High God always said Lucifer, you possessed the best innate talent among us, and would achieve the greatest heights! What a pity..."

Seemingly genuinely mourning for his former colleague, Raphael showed an expression of sorrow that felt incongruous with his usual demeanor, yet this made the heartfelt grief all the more palpable.

Lucifer remained silent. Facing this former colleague, he held no deep-seated hatred or any intense emotion. In fact, among the few remaining Archangels in the Celestial Host, his opinion of Raphael was the best.

Raphael was warm, cheerful, and exceptionally kind, always showing enthusiastic support to everyone. If anyone sought help from Raphael with troubles, he never cared about the petitioner's status and would exhaust every effort to assist them. Furthermore, because Raphael excelled in healing magic, Lucifer, who frequently engaged in combat, had been saved by Raphael on numerous occasions.

One could say... if it weren't Raphael standing there, but another Archangel, a fight would have erupted long ago, instead of this endless stream of words.

"Farewell, then! The next time we meet, we might not be able to speak so casually!"

Raphael’s figure gradually vanished into the swirling snow. In that short span, the dark clouds Ye Wen had dispersed earlier had gathered once more, and the furious blizzard instantly refilled the world. Lucifer stood amidst the snow, watching the direction where Raphael disappeared, finally letting out a sigh as he retracted the turbulent power he had been emitting.

Then he turned, seemingly nonchalantly, towards Ye Wen. He thought he had hidden his state well, but under Ye Wen’s gaze, nothing could be concealed.

"It's been hard holding back, hasn't it?"

"What?" Although Lucifer deliberately feigned ignorance, wariness flickered in his eyes.

Ye Wen chuckled softly. "Relax, I am not your enemy!" He then produced a pill and tossed it to Lucifer. "The Qi-Suppressing Pill should theoretically suppress the restless energy within your body. I don't know how effective it will be for your specific condition, but it's better than enduring it like this!" Lucifer was certain this Easterner had seen through his current state. Looking at those eyes and recalling the preceding words, Lucifer instantly understood. "Truly a pair of miraculous eyes!" He opened his mouth and swallowed the pill. While the effect was limited, it certainly made Lucifer feel a little better—though the wretched taste bothered him far more.

Lucifer’s face instantly turned shades of blue and purple as he accused Ye Wen with a pained expression. "What is this damned taste? This flavor makes me feel as if I’ve plunged into the very depths of hell!"

Ye Wen took out a small bottle, uncorked it, and sniffed. "It can’t be that exaggerated, can it?" The odor assaulting his nose wasn't pleasant, but it certainly wasn't as dramatic as Lucifer claimed. "Xiaoyao said this pill was very effective, just extremely unpleasant. I thought he was deliberately exaggerating to mess with his own melon-flavored pills!" Lucifer was now too breathless to speak properly, only feeling wave after wave of dizzying taste assaulting his mouth. If he spoke now, he suspected he would immediately vomit. As an angel, Lucifer never needed to eat, and he truly doubted what he would even regurgitate if he did throw up.

In the end, he managed to keep everything down, forced to endure the horrible flavor with a miserable expression while waiting for it to dissipate naturally.

Seeing his plight, Ye Wen relented and offered him a stick of chewing gum. "Perhaps this will make you feel better!" After Ye Wen explained its purpose, the leader of the Fallen Angel Legion rolled his eyes—why hadn't he produced such a thing sooner?

Ye Wen shrugged, too embarrassed to admit that the item was scarce because it came from Earth, so he pretended not to notice and took the lead, guiding Lucifer toward Vakyrie's lodging.

Lucifer had now completely broken with the Celestial Host. What troubled him even more was that due to this sudden turn of events, whether the Celestial Host would still attack the Olympian Gods had become an unpredictable matter.

In that scenario, Lucifer’s position was precarious. He urgently needed a powerful ally to help share the burden. Ye Wen was undoubtedly a suitable candidate, and he also held out hope that the Aesir could prove useful.

Moving smoothly through the snowstorm for a while, Lucifer followed Ye Wen into the hidden cave. After just a brief glance, Lucifer sensed the faint, residual divine power lingering there. Had he not been standing right beside it and investigating intently, he might have missed it entirely.

"The divine power of the Aesir in this snowfield seems utterly merged with the environment; it’s incredibly difficult to detect!" Lucifer couldn't help but marvel. This snowfield truly deserved to be the last stronghold of the Aesir, given how perfectly the climate conditions matched their divine power. This world, blanketed in near-perpetual winter, had become the most natural sanctuary for the Aesir, allowing their survivors to endure.

Under any other circumstances, Vakyrie would likely have been found by another pantheon long ago, and the outcome of that discovery was anyone's guess.

Ye Wen had long realized this too. Although the Aesir possessed various skills, the power of ice and snow seemed ingrained in their very being. This observation sparked some ideas in Ye Wen's mind, though whether he could implement them smoothly remained to be seen.

Returning to the area that resembled a sitting room, Zhang Ling was leaning back in a chair, seemingly asleep. Mino was curled up in a blanket, looking around idly, with the jade Qilin she was using as a pillow still appearing utterly listless.

The only ones acting normally were Chris, who stood up to greet Ye Wen, and Vakyrie, holding a child by the hearth with a vigilant expression.

As soon as Lucifer entered, his eyes immediately fixed on Vakyrie. He sensed the Aesir divine power he had been searching for radiating from this woman... but... "It’s this woman?" He frowned deeply. "Only this woman?" Ye Wen nodded to Lucifer, signaling him to stop speaking; this woman was indeed the sole survivor of the Aesir.

This realization only deepened Lucifer's disappointment. Although he didn't discriminate against female angels—who were sexless by nature but could choose a gender after their fall—he recalled no female deities among the Aesir possessing truly formidable power. The so-called Valkyries were beneath his notice.

Lucifer could now largely confirm that his hope of the Aesir becoming allies rested entirely on Ye Wen. How Ye Wen intended to involve them in the war against the Celestial Host, or how he planned to intervene, would determine whether Lucifer faced the pressure alone or gained a qualified partner to share the load.

As things stood, the only significance of the Aesir's survival seemed to be providing Ye Wen with suitable cover!

"Very well, tell me your plan," Lucifer said, pulling his gaze away from Vakyrie and turning to face Ye Wen. He stared intently, the look in his eyes suggesting that if Ye Wen couldn't provide a sound strategy, an open confrontation wouldn't be impossible.

Ye Wen shrugged, reminding Lucifer of a fact that nearly broke him: "Right now, it doesn't seem like I'm the one asking you for favors!"

Veins seemed to bulge slightly on Lucifer's forehead, but he swallowed his frustration, took a deep breath, and said in as measured a tone as possible, "Perhaps... we should discuss that matter thoroughly!"

Ye Wen nodded, found an open space, waved his hand, and instantly materialized two wide, comfortable sofas. He settled into one of them and gestured for Lucifer to take the other.

After Lucifer was seated, Ye Wen casually conjured a bottle of wine and poured it into a glass. This entire sequence left Mino staring, dumbfounded.

"Before we discuss that, I want to ask something!"

"What is it?" Lucifer lifted his glass with remarkable elegance and took a delicate sniff. "The wine from Mount Olympus... it's very authentic!"

"Hephaestus sent it!" Ye Wen replied with a smile, waiting for Lucifer to slowly savor a sip before he posed his question.

"I want to know, aside from you, are there any others in the Celestial Host dissatisfied with that so-called God of Light?" Lucifer sneered. "Are you trying to incite a revolt among the Archangels under his command?" He found the question utterly ridiculous, doubting its feasibility.

"Why not?" Ye Wen shrugged. "If you could choose to betray the God of Light, why couldn't other angels harbor similar thoughts?"

"That’s laughable..." Lucifer suddenly felt he was insane to even consider cooperating with Ye Wen; this Easterner seemed completely clueless about the situation.

However, Ye Wen raised his index finger and gently shook it. "No, this isn't laughable at all! Don't talk about what you think is impossible. Before your betrayal, didn't many in the Celestial Host believe you would never defect? Who can guarantee that other angels haven't had similar thoughts? After all, you aren't that... well... Angel..."

Lucifer remained silent, swirling the red liquid in his glass. The viscous fluid left streaks on the glass, tinting it a vibrant color.

After a long consideration, Lucifer had to admit Ye Wen had a point. He wasn't Michael, nor Raphael; he couldn't possibly know their true thoughts. "So... even if they harbor thoughts of betrayal, what then? Will they cooperate with us?"

"Of course... immediate cooperation is impossible! At the very least, you must show them hope..."

"Hope?" Lucifer mused for a moment. "You mean... they need to see the possibility of successfully betraying the God of Light and breaking free from his control?"

"Exactly!"

Lucifer smiled. "That says nothing concrete!"

"No, I am just telling you that the environment you face is not as dire as you imagine," Ye Wen said, simultaneously organizing the thoughts in his mind. "As long as you can withstand the initial onslaught from the Celestial Host, the scales of victory will begin to tip in your favor!"

Lucifer nodded; he could now see that point.

"And," Ye Wen continued, "you can now seek the aid of the Olympian Gods... Actually, I think a certain woman might be orchestrating something similar to what you're doing!"

"Oh?" Lucifer paused, then immediately grasped the implication. "You mean... Athena?" Ye Wen had only just considered why Athena was so keen on pitting him against Apollo. She had claimed that Apollo supported Zeus's faction seeking war against the Celestial Court, putting them at odds.

But with a little thought, Ye Wen could see the underlying game.

Apollo certainly favored Zeus initiating war, but Athena herself noted that Apollo primarily followed Zeus's commands. This meant if Zeus didn't want war, Apollo wouldn't relentlessly push him to fight.

Consequently, eliminating Apollo would have no fundamental impact on whether war broke out between Olympus and the Celestial Court. Compared to Apollo, Ares, the God of War, was the one Ye Wen should truly target. In that case, it would have been more effective to manipulate Ye Wen into seducing Aphrodite into his own embrace.

However, upon deeper reflection, Ye Wen realized the core reason Athena manipulated him against Apollo lay in one phrase: Apollo is Zeus's most trusted major god!

This meant that should anything happen, Apollo would be Zeus's vanguard commander. Anyone plotting against Zeus would first need to eliminate Apollo.

Clearly, Athena was not a woman content with her place. She was maneuvering with some agenda! Ye Wen dug deeper, suspecting that Athena might have already struck a deal with Hades. Ye Wen's timely arrival on Mount Olympus, proposing the Sacred War Game, provided the two Olympian powers a perfect opportunity—a superb chance to stall Zeus and eliminate Apollo.

Once he grasped this, Ye Wen felt a degree of admiration for Athena. To be able to leverage his own plan to guide the situation in a direction advantageous to her showed she was indeed worthy of the title Goddess of Wisdom.

If Ye Wen hadn't withdrawn quickly, he might have ended up in a tragic scenario fighting Apollo over a girl, where one had to die. Ye Wen was certain Athena wouldn't pass up this chance; regardless of whether Ye Wen could defeat Apollo, the sister-complex god was doomed.

He even suspected Hades might secretly intervene. Calculated against two major gods, Apollo would surely die in peace, knowing his fate. Of course, this was from an enemy perspective; Apollo himself would hardly agree.

Yet, despite all her scheming, Athena faced one inescapable issue: Zeus's strength could not be underestimated. No matter her calculations, a massive confrontation with Zeus was inevitable.

The other Olympian gods might remain largely uninvolved in this battle for the throne of the Divine King. Moreover, among the major gods, only a few were renowned for sheer combat power.

If Apollo was eliminated, Ares wouldn't fare well either; Ye Wen wouldn't let him live, having Kratos specifically prepared for that brute.

That left Poseidon, whose stance was uncertain. Hades would likely keep an eye on the Sea God. Calculating the remaining major deities who could participate in the fight between Athena and Zeus, there were essentially none left on Mount Olympus. Artemis might count as one, but Athena could easily use her wisdom to distract her.

In the end, the biggest variable lay with Hera, the Queen of the Gods. Athena couldn't find an ally against her. Regardless of Hera's dissatisfaction with Zeus usually, she couldn't possibly stand by while Zeus was killed; she would certainly confront Athena.

Therefore, Athena also needed allies—initially, she favored Ye Wen, even offering her body as leverage, though Ye Wen was uninterested.

But now... since Ye Wen had uncovered Athena's entire scheme, he could leverage it significantly.

Since both Athena and Lucifer desired clandestine actions and both needed allies, uniting them seemed like an excellent path. The ongoing Sacred War could even serve as the flashpoint for a massive conflict between the Celestial Host and Olympus!

All Ye Wen needed to do was add a little fuel to the fire...