The Divine Council's Peril
The Goddess Department’s full-power release state caused divine power to surge and visibly increase right before their eyes. Yet the higher the deity’s rank, the better they understood just how dangerous this was. ‘Eleven layers of light circles endlessly interlock and rotate.’‘A single mistake in control would make the body explode.’ Though called a full-power release state, it was in truth the act of forcing divine power into overdrive and maintaining it. The higher the body’s durability, the longer it could be sustained, but failure to regulate it would trigger an explosion. One slip and it became self-destruction.
‘A Main God with one billion divine power can destroy an ordinary planet.’‘Five billion would end not only the Divine Realm but the Middle World as well.’ The time limit for full-power release was roughly ten minutes for the highest gods and thirty minutes for Main Gods. Afterward they would fall into divine power exhaustion, yet from what the Dimensional and War God had said, he appeared to have been maintaining it even in ordinary times.
‘Which insane god taught him that as some secret technique?’‘It’s a cultivation method perfectly suited for blowing oneself up.’ The explosive force of a High Lord’s self-destruction far exceeded any High God’s imagination. Thus, watching him was like staring at a live shell on the verge of detonation; cold sweat trickled down their backs. Judging by appearances, he had maintained this state since arriving for work, and they were frantically calculating in their minds how much time remained before he reached his limit.
‘We may need to flee with our families.’ The goddesses were so shocked they could not even close their mouths.
“There is no need to worry about an explosion. By combining solar divine power with dimensional divine power, the full-power release state can be maintained indefinitely. As long as I do not lose my temper or my reason, there is no danger.”
“Oh? Is that so? If it is for training, I have nothing to say, but do be careful.”
“Thank you for your understanding. By the way, the greatest of all Main Gods seems to be late today.”
“The young master has gone to the Main Divine Realm for closed-door training to refine both his cultivation and the arm restored by the Creator God. He instructed us to run the Divine Realm’s round table conference among ourselves for now.”
“Ah, really? Closed-door training in the Main Divine Realm? Excellent! A most opportune time indeed!”
Uuuuung—! The Dimensional and War God’s divine power core expanded violently. The sheer magnitude of divine power that burst forth made everyone swallow their breath.
‘Hup! A divine power rampage triggered by sudden emotional fluctuation.’ The force was enough to draw screams. Even the most composed Main Gods occasionally lost control, and this appeared to be one such moment.
‘He mentioned going to the Mercenary God during his vacation, so he must have encountered the Main God of the Divine Realm there.’‘But how could he possibly meet the Main God of the Divine Realm?’‘Did that sly raccoon pull another scam?’
If he detonated now, even the Main God Star would be obliterated. In desperate haste to calm the Dimensional and War God’s fury, they began soothing him.
“W-what happened?”
If the Divine Realm were destroyed in such a manner, there would be no comedy greater than this. Grind—! The sound of the Dimensional and War God gnashing his teeth reverberated through the round table chamber. The primordial war gods, nearly equal in status to the supreme Main God of the Divine Realm, froze in terror under the crushing pressure.
‘The gap in innate divine power is vast, yet their maximum output appears nearly equal.’‘He is growing stronger at a terrifying pace.’
Goooooo! Killing intent that declared “attack now and you die” pressed down upon everyone. He was fully prepared for combat; circles of light continuously reinforced the Dimensional and War God’s body as they revolved around him.
‘If that power explodes or is unleashed indiscriminately, this round table conference will be annihilated.’ After a tense moment, the divine power subsided as though washed away. He had forcibly suppressed his own emotions.
“Since this is a matter between the parties involved, it must be resolved directly. My sincerest apologies for the disturbance.”
“Huuuh!”
“Huuup!”
At the sudden surge and disappearance of dimensional divine power, everyone remained frozen, unable even to consider fleeing. The highest-ranking deities naturally could not breathe. They were overwhelmed by power nearly identical to that of the Main God of the Divine Realm, the true might of the Divine Realm.
‘Originally, the Main God of the Divine Realm possesses power equivalent to the combined strength of every god in the Divine Realm.’‘Even a difference of mere hundreds of millions places those who have crossed the Main God wall on an entirely different level from those who have not.’
Even if all the gods at the round table combined their strength, they could not handle a mid-tier Main God with five billion innate divine power who struck and retreated at will. And right now, the will to annihilate the Divine Realm itself if provoked rippled through the air.
One of the goddesses finally managed to speak in an attempt to understand the situation. “What exactly was the problem?”
“……”
The light of Dimensional Authority rippled once more, yet it did not surge as violently as before. After a brief silence, the Dimensional and War God began to explain.
“The Creator God who commissioned me seemed to know me quite well. He said the Main God of the Divine Realm had spread rumors throughout the Main Divine Realm that I was a color god, so that even the Creator Gods were aware of me.”
“Ha! That cannot be true.”
“Has he lost his mind? Why spread such rumors in the Main Divine Realm?”
“He intends to bury a Main God who has not even begun yet?”
“Even the Creator Gods know? Then it is over! There is no taking it back.”
“Kuhk—!”
Along with the goddesses’ words filled with fury, the God of Knowledge slammed his own head against the round table. His expression and posture were utterly resolute. Thud—! The round table trembled beneath the God of Knowledge’s head and hands as lamentation echoed in his heart. He was truly aggrieved to the point of tears.
‘That mouth-that-brings-disaster illness has flared up again. I told him so many times to watch his tongue, and he stopped for a while, only to start again.’ The hardships of his mercenary days serving under the Main God of the Divine Realm were about to repeat themselves.
‘Because of his drinking and that loose tongue of his, he made countless enemies. I nearly died resolving those messes. After receiving the Main God Star he quieted down, only to cause another incident—and at such a critical time.’
Seeing the Dimensional and War God’s fury, it was clear this could not be brushed aside. How to resolve the situation was beyond comprehension. They had wondered why he had maintained full-power release even inside the round table chamber; it turned out he had intended to settle matters with the Main God of the Divine Realm once and for all.
‘This is no ordinary malicious rumor. He must have exaggerated it to the extreme, just like his old personality, and spread it like a scam. Even if there was some truth to it, spreading such vicious rumors would make anyone furious. I cannot endure this.’ Watching the goddesses grow indignant and comfort the Dimensional and War God while denouncing the Main God of the Divine Realm, he felt the second-greatest urge in his long life to give up everything.
‘The way the goddesses’ eyes are sparkling with joy is simply absurd.’ The Dimensional and War God could not understand why the goddesses had suddenly become so enthusiastic about his affairs and were now denouncing the Main God. Nor could he comprehend why the God of Knowledge was throwing such a despairing fit. Yet the primordial war gods daring to grip their weapons and radiate fighting spirit inside the round table chamber was unacceptable.
‘Even if there are fifty Main Gods, if it is me—an 11-circle mage with Dimensional Authority—then with enough time I can annihilate them all.’ Even with the swindler Main God of the Divine Realm present, they could never withstand ranged attacks. ‘They witnessed my power clearly during the authentication battle against the Substitute Gods, yet they still dare to display fighting spirit.’
While it was acceptable for the weak to band together against the strong, they needed to be comparable for it to be possible. Right now the outcome would be nothing short of slaughter. ‘They should already know they stand no chance, yet they still direct killing intent at me? These fools have decided to die.’
Enraged by the rumors spread by the swindler Main God of the Divine Realm, his blood was boiling. Though the gap in innate divine power between him and the swindler remained large, their maximum output was nearly equal, and with the power of a dark mage he could even gain the upper hand.
‘If they do not offer a sincere apology and compensation, I intended to end this. Yet he has gone to the Main Divine Realm for closed-door training? And taken his entire family with him.’ Having been scheduled for promotion to Creator God, he seemed determined to enjoy every possible luxury. Bringing even the highest gods who were not yet Main Gods to the Main Divine Realm spoke volumes.
‘He is not even a Creator God yet, but he acts so freely. Since his courage has swelled to this degree, he should not have gone around spouting malicious rumors about me. I will use this opportunity to crush him completely.’ His first targets would be the primordial war gods who, despite being weak, had dared to brandish weapons and fighting spirit.
Goooooo—! His killing intent and fighting spirit surged toward them ferociously. Infusing his words with divine power, he spoke.
“Displaying fighting spirit and killing intent before the God of War is tantamount to a declaration of war against me, is it not?”
“Everyone, put away your divine artifacts and fighting spirit. This is the round table chamber.”
Having read the look in his eyes that suggested he was about to erupt, the God of Knowledge hurriedly intervened. The primordial war gods instantly dismissed their divine artifacts. Then, as if on cue, everyone began clearing their throats and imitating elderly men, groaning and wheezing. One primordial war god even pulled out what looked like a medicine bottle and drank from it. Not a trace remained of their earlier fighting spirit; instead they desperately tried to appear frail, even trembling with residual coughs.
‘These cunning old foxes! Without the swindler Main God of the Divine Realm to pledge loyalty to, there is no reason to risk their lives in a battle they would lose.’ Turning their anger from the superior Main God of the Divine Realm onto weaker subordinate gods would only make them look like madmen throwing a tantrum.
The highest gods wore bewildered expressions, completely unaware of the hidden fighting spirit the supreme deities had just displayed. ‘If I rampage here, it will simply look like the God of War abusing his authority.’ Even the “extreme good” of the highest gods at the round table would suffer a slight negative karmic effect from such behavior.
‘Tch—! I cannot launch a preemptive strike against the weak because of karma? If you want to die, come at me all at once. I will turn you all into skewers.’ Grinding his teeth, the Dimensional and War God withdrew his fighting spirit and killing intent, then turned his gaze toward the center of the round table.
‘Since the person in question is absent, my anger has cooled. Time to handle official business.’ If the Main God of the Divine Realm’s closed-door training was to become a Creator God, a considerable duration had to be expected. Given that he had taken his entire family, at least several hundred years—possibly thousands—would be required.
‘Having obtained the qualifications of a Creator God, he seems to have relaxed completely as long as the Divine Realm does not collapse. Thanks to the natural privileges of a Main God in a naturally occurring Divine Realm, he is even exempt from a full-scale war with the Demon Realm.’ Dragging even the former War God, that parasitic brother-in-law, along to train him—he must be quite determined to pass on the Divine Realm.