The Desperate Contract and the Approaching Catastrophe

Meanwhile in the Spirit Realm War, an extremely urgent situation was also unfolding in the sealing chamber of the Spirit Realm Waiting Area. The highest Main God, who had executed hundreds of supreme gods as if swatting flies for committing crimes, was now holding the rebel Main Gods accountable for their failed uprising by crushing their bodies with divine power as if to shatter them entirely.

“You’ve processed all the criminal targets, so there should be no objections or lingering regrets, correct? Die cleanly like proper Main Gods and become the foundation of the Divine Realm. A fresh start as spirit gods at the Main God level isn’t bad at all.”

The gods of light from outside realized to their bones that the Main Gods of Light handled situations even more brutally than the demon gods these days.

Even if they are unforgivable sinners, deciding to kill them and turn them into spirit gods is far too hasty.

In that case, the Main Gods who had launched the rebellion would meet the same fate. To survive, they continued their desperate pleas and frantic efforts to keep their heads from being crushed.

At first they offered to pledge loyalty, but when asked how anyone could trust rebel gods, they were left speechless and their request for even an apprenticeship was rejected.

Each time negotiations failed, the violence escalated. One Main God was on the verge of being trampled and shattered beneath a foot, while the other two faced the imminent threat of their skulls exploding under a merciless grip.

The gap in divine power was simply too vast, and against that strangely overwhelming physical strength, resistance was impossible. All they could do was endure.

If they died and their rank fell, they might never become Main Gods again in the Spirit Realm. That knowledge alone made their resistance desperate.

“Oh? You wish to serve as intern gods who only maintain the most basic vitality?”

“Yes! If you’ll only accept us, we will work without pay until we earn promotion!”

“Managing spirit gods is supposed to be extremely difficult, I hear?”

“I will do that as well.”

“I will make myself a faithful laborer for the Divine Realm.”

In their frantic panic, not even knowing how they had ended up in this situation, the words tumbled out uncontrollably.

Only then, seemingly satisfied, did the highest Main God release them. As the rebel Main Gods healed their damaged bodies and regained some composure, they were stunned by the contract conditions they had just agreed to.

In the name of Main Gods, they had volunteered to work without compensation.

Originally such a demand would have been an outrageous tyranny. Yet the gaze still carrying a faint killing intent as it watched them left them no choice but to submit. Every twitch of those fingers produced another metallic click, making it clear that the slightest resistance would result in immediate execution and vitality recovery.

“You will manage the spirit gods until every one of them establishes their position using their original divine power. You will be treated as mercenary gods until your intern period ends. This is the price of your failed rebellion. Once you fully advance to intermediate Main God, I will grant you the right to challenge for the position of Divine Realm Management Main God. Win, reclaim your seat, and restore your honor.”

“Understood.”

Even so, they thought the highest Main God of Light was showing a degree of mercy in his own way.

Rather than disposing of them immediately for failing the rebellion, he was giving them an opportunity like this?

Since they had nearly reached intermediate Main God even while trapped inside the vitality-draining power of the Guerrilla Volcano, they believed they could easily defeat and claim the Divine Realm Management Main God position.

The Dimensional Lord clicked his tongue in pity as he watched them sigh in relief, still clinging to such optimistic thoughts that their rank would not fall.

Tsk! My Divine Realm Management Main Gods have killed so many Main Gods that eight intermediate female Main Gods now possess Lord Slayer. Four management female Main Gods possess computational power exceeding the upper tier and are nearly upper level themselves. Even a decent upper Main God stands no chance. On top of that, the Star Creator God from the Almighty God Tribe serves as an upper female Main God. Please don’t give up and work hard.

It was ridiculous that they believed they could immediately become a Divine Realm Management Main God when they knew nothing about the true state of his divine realm.

Main Gods are too expensive! I’ll only allow Round Table gods at best.

He felt a twinge of pity but ignored it. There was some surplus vitality, but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠he needed to conserve it so he wouldn’t struggle later. Employing near-intermediate Main Gods for practically nothing could be considered a success.

Why not kill the rebels? What benefit is there in killing them?

The reason he had slain all the supreme gods here and recovered their vitality was because they carried excessive vitality compared to their rank, creating too much waste.

The Main God of the Spirit Realm Waiting Area had seemed flustered when they were suddenly killed and turned into spirit gods, but he couldn’t hide his delight at the overflowing vitality.

The Dimensional Lord had already grown sick of their excessive misconduct. After living squeezed by the pocket-money-like vitality provided by management gods, suddenly receiving dozens of times more left them both joyful and dumbfounded.

The most important reason, however, was to take these rebel Main Gods alive and bring them with him.

Roughly half the divine power they possess was absorbed by killing the gods here, so it must be returned. But if the recipients are neatly organized like this, there is no need. Still, if they demand it, I will need to have a refreshing conversation with them.

The difference between a true Main God and a Main God level entity was overwhelmingly vast. In a situation where the Divine Realm needed even one more Main God after the certification battle to continue developing, there was no reason to reduce their Main God combat strength.

Of course a failed rebellion cannot simply be overlooked, so forcing them to work without pay is only natural. Additionally, requiring them to defeat the current Divine Realm Management Main Gods before receiving normal Main God treatment should be understandable even to the Main Divine Realm.

Placing them as subordinates under the Dimensional Lord might even be considered excessively harsh.

This is because the notoriety of my Divine Realm Management Main Gods is currently shaking the entire Main Divine Realm. Yet should I be happy about this?

Shaking his head to clear his momentarily complicated thoughts, the Dimensional Lord sent all the newly accepted Main Gods and the local Main God to the office to compile a list.

Looking at the complete list of excellent spirit gods that the fat god had brought in the past to prove his usefulness, it won’t even fill half the required number.

The vacancies in the divine realm of the Dimensional Lord, who had rapidly advanced to the second stage, were enormous—especially among higher gods. Fortunately the Divine Realm Management Main God positions were nearly filled. Had he killed them all for plotting rebellion, even maintaining the current state would have been difficult.

With the number of gods this short, there must be as many Main Gods as possible. More than half the positions below supreme god need to be filled before the divine realm can function normally and the Main God Star can develop.

Yet he could not accept them recklessly like the con artist Main God of the past and lose the initiative, making the selection process even more difficult. When he factored in the stars he would have to grant the female Main Gods as the price for their Devotion Pledge, the future looked bleak.

With the pain of divine power cancellation surging in as well, his nerves grew even sharper and irritation flooded him.

Rumble! Boom boom boom!

That was why he advanced by shattering the defensive barrier blocking his path as if it did not exist. Although it was a divine power barrier created by the temptation-type female Main Gods to protect themselves, they were only intermediate Main Gods. Before the output of a highest Main God three stages above them, all defense was meaningless.

Even without special techniques, he could break through with pure waves of divine power alone, and counterattacks held no meaning.

As he passed through the authority defense constructed like transparent glass, his target came into view immediately. Yet the condition was strange. Inside a translucent crystal resembling quartz, the figure of a female Main God who had completely lost consciousness could be faintly seen.

He casually checked her condition and found it appalling.

“Whew! As expected. There was no way she could remain fine after absorbing miscellaneous divine power more than twice her own.”

If it had been divine power granted by a single god it would have been manageable, but because it was received in small portions from many supreme gods, the energies were colliding instead of fusing properly. Still, as a female Main God she was absorbing it bit by bit, though it was impossible to tell when the process would finish.

She must have used her last strength to create a transparent crystal barrier capable of blocking even upper Main Gods before losing consciousness.

One side of the female Main God’s hair burned fiery red while the other was pitch black. They all possessed long hair, reasonably beautiful faces, and decent figures, yet in this state they looked so frail that it was questionable whether they could bear and raise many gods.

Seeing this, most of the female Main Gods of the past must have favored a slender impression, emphasizing balance with only slightly bountiful breasts and hips.

If the current female Main Gods boasted explosive voluptuousness and strength as women in their prime, these felt more like beautiful young girls.

They look so young it’s hard to imagine what the management gods here saw in them. Since they are not of the demon god race, their authority itself is unlikely to be temptation-type. The machine female Main Gods were even slimmer than this at first but improved greatly after recovering their divine power, so these should be the same. Since they still haven’t fused the received divine powers, they are only at the level of ordinary Main Gods. For now there seems to be no danger, so I will forcibly make them my subordinate Main Gods.

Cases of Main Gods coming to the Spirit Realm were nearly nonexistent at present, making them precious resources.

The current situation leaves no leeway to accept refusal or accommodate every condition. The goosebumps crawling across my skin since earlier are a sign that an absurd event is about to unfold. I need to organize this place quickly and leave.

The battlefield situation he had lightly examined with his dimensional authority was staggering.

“Grind… Just what are these absurd divine powers? After struggling to the death to reach a maximum output of fifty billion, countless Creator Gods with innate divine power exceeding one hundred billion are gathering? Does that mean I’m still at the very bottom there? Moreover, there were that many titled Absolute Beings outside? And they’re all Creator God level with over one hundred billion? If I’m not careful I might ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠get dragged into something truly filthy.”

If they were Creator Gods from an outer universe he might be able to avoid them. Partial title release might allow him to deal with them. But if they were Absolute Beings holding the same title with more than twice his divine power, even escape would be impossible.

They won’t fully open their titles either, but even partial release would put them on par with me. Moreover they will possess specialized authorities similar to my magic, leaving me with no advantage. Rather, with my current divine power being less than half of theirs, I am truly in danger. The higher-ups overflowing with power will handle the strength aspect anyway, so I must escape this brutal battlefield.

Even the Preliminary Creator God, All-Powerful Hwi, was rampaging and stirring up some incident. The killing intent overflowed so heavily that the emotions intertwining among such high beings seemed capable of tearing space itself apart.

The fighting spirit radiating from the powerhouses at the center of both sides threatened to encroach upon the mind of anyone who merely looked at it, even though it remained still.

To a battlefield judged to be at least on the level of Creator Gods, the Dimensional Lord—who was not even a true highest Main God—was in genuine danger.

To organize his end, I must survive no matter what stigma I receive. I have no intention of leaping into such worthless power struggles and emotional fights and courting danger. Since the higher beings started it, let the higher beings clean it up. If they dislike each other that much, they should simply duel one-on-one until one perishes. What kind of outrage is this?

They said more than half the causes of human wars were emotional conflicts among the ruling class, and this was exactly that.

Swish—!

The Dimensional Lord stretched out both hands, piercing the crystal core and placing them against the women’s lower abdomens.

“Since what one desires is never easily attained, it holds value worth challenging for.”

The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wind howled. Originally it would have been best to imprint the magic directly inside the womb or the circle of divine power in the lower abdomen, but he lacked the leeway to do so now.

Whoooong—!

As expected, the crystal cores were rapidly absorbed by the women. He immediately stored them inside the Creator God’s jewel. That place was like a prison for Main Gods from which even a Creator God could not easily escape, so even after absorption ended they would have no other options.

I’ll have to slowly persuade or threaten them later to wrap this up cleanly.

That was not the current problem.

“Chiii—! This is driving me insane. What the hell is coming? It’s already this bad, so what exactly is it?”

The Guerrilla Volcano’s authority surged over his body like a tidal wave, threatening to tear him apart. He could block it immediately, but his Combat Foresight and Sacrifice Tolerance—honed through countless crises—issued urgent warnings. If he refused the trial meant to make him stronger, there would be no future.

The prediction is that beyond the dozens of Absolute Beings with titles and over one hundred billion in power, an even more dangerous opponent remains. No matter how they look, if even one of our Creator Gods appears the situation will end. I hope it finishes quickly.

He had already used all his magic and authority to avoid detection by the Absolute Realm, so he was enduring here with nothing but innate divine power. It felt like death. If he had not merged with the machine god, he probably couldn’t even move.

Still, obtaining five spirit Main Gods was some consolation.

“Is there something more dangerous than Absolute Beings who possess Creator God level titles?”

He asked himself, but there was naturally no answer. Yet something even greater was clearly approaching.