The Alluring Bait of the Highest Divine Realm

In the Main God Hall of the Spirit Realm Waiting Area, only three desks remained. Once the former highest gods were all purged as criminals, the excess furniture was cleared away. Now only the Dimensional Lord, the highest main god of dimensions, and the two main gods assigned to the Spirit Realm Waiting Area sat there, handling every task themselves.

The Main God of the Spirit Realm had tried to protest the tyrannical measures imposed on another god’s realm, but the moment the Dimensional Lord clenched his fist and the metallic clang echoed, he instinctively lowered his head in submission. Ever since leaving his days as a mercenary god behind, he had come to intimately understand the sorrow of the weak.

‘No matter how difficult things get, the work must be done properly. There’s no defying a higher main god who resolves the problems of the divine realms.’

After being reduced to nothing but work, the Main God of the Spirit Realm Waiting Area was now slowly reaching overload from the flood of tasks pouring in.

‘After spending so long in despair from being betrayed by my partner and the goddesses, I know nothing about operating a divine realm. But if I slack off again, I’m terrified of the Dimensional Lord analyzing thousands of spirit gods at that terrifying speed right in front of me.’

The Dimensional Lord had reviewed the list of outstanding spirit gods they had brought, declared there were far too few, and begun analyzing the complete roster of millions of spirit gods in the Spirit Realm Waiting Area. His speed was so absurd that the hundreds of upper gods responsible for delivering reports and data were left stunned. The mage-origin main gods truly possessed monstrous work efficiency. The sight filled him with admiration, and he secretly vowed to recruit more gods from mage backgrounds later.

‘I should gather mage-origin gods in the future. They’re dozens of times better than regular combat gods.’

After the highest gods who had committed corruption were all swept away, the vitality granted to him had increased more than a hundredfold. He no longer had any excuse to slack off and was pouring his full effort into his duties, yet compared to the Dimensional Lord, he felt ashamed just watching his direct subordinate work.

‘Only after handling the work myself with my sluggish mind and hands that feel like they’re about to cramp up do I finally see the true state of the divine realm.’

In a word, it was a complete disaster.

‘Huuuuh—! There really was a red-light district that recruited demigods? And they came and went freely through the front gate? On top of that, they took a portion of the fixed vitality revenue from total sales? What the hell? Why is the divine realm collecting taxes from a pleasure district’s sales—! And not even from the profits, but forcibly seizing a cut of the gross revenue? That means they don’t care if the businesses collapse or not. Are we demons? Forcing people to hand it over regardless of whether the other party lives or dies—!’

Of course, even gods were not without desires. And because spiritual beings who lived eternally had no need for descendants, the Main Divine Realm sometimes enforced certain enhancements. For gods without partners, the pleasure district was a necessary outlet. The real question was why the divine realm itself directly managed and protected it while collecting “protection taxes.”

‘With the path to recovering divine power through worshippers blocked, they’ve resorted to this madness. If the Main Divine Realm hears about this, we’ll be mocked as the pleasure realm’s main gods for all eternity.’

There would naturally be no formal punishment at this level. As long as the divine realm wasn’t so ruined that it couldn’t pay its tribute to the Main Divine Realm, no one would say anything. That was fortunate, but the damage to their reputation was the truly terrifying part. For gods who lived forever, even a small stain would haunt them indefinitely.

‘Closure is impossible, so first we ban the management tax. In exchange, we’ll discount the vitality we receive by an equivalent amount. Any shortfall will be deducted from the salaries of the gods who visited. If they protest, we’ll threaten them—tell them that if they can’t control their desires as gods, they should just get married. And we’ll say this incident warrants disciplinary action.’

The senses from his mercenary god days were slowly returning.

‘Never take a loss, always secure the moral high ground. That’s the fastest way to survive and rise. And if you have greater power than your opponent, all the better.’

After writing down these instructions for the pleasure district and handing them over, the face of the upper management god crumpled completely. It was clear the man was single and had only brought the patrol cost calculations because he had no choice. Now he looked like he had been saddled with an unwanted burden.

When asked how best to uproot corruption entirely, the Dimensional Lord had simply chuckled and given instructions. The results were astonishing.

‘Require my personal approval for even a single unit of vitality payment. Any corruption requires an approved payment to begin with. Skimming before payment is only possible if rights are guaranteed, so constant supervision will naturally prevent it. Too much work, you say? Then let it collapse.’

‘…….’

Thanks to that, they had worked without end for several days, but most of the corruption had been rooted out. After even resolving the major issue of the pleasure district, they could finally catch their breath.

The Dimensional Lord had finished completely separating the countless spirit gods and now sat with his eyes closed, recalculating. From the occasional mutters, it seemed they were still short.

Eight thousand and fifteen gods was enough to completely fill eight ordinary divine realms. Yet he still called it insufficient. Just how enormous was his divine realm that he could say such a thing?

‘Even a highest-tier divine realm should have some personnel of its own, so it shouldn’t be this short…’

His direct subordinate, who had become a complete follower of the Dimensional Lord after witnessing the perfect corruption cleanup and overwhelming work efficiency, completely ignored his own father’s suffering and had taken on the role of secretary. When the subordinate asked a question from the side, the Main God of the Spirit Realm pricked up his ears.

“How many gods are you short, exactly? If we change the criteria, it should be possible. The standard requiring a completely transparent past and the ability to verify divine power down to a single unit—demanding precise measurement—is too sensitive. Above all, everyone has a private life. Even in a divine realm, we cannot examine things that closely.”

“No. We cannot repeat past mistakes. Any spirit god with an unclear past or poor divine power measurement will be excluded no matter how capable they are. Those who refuse precise measurement will also be rejected.”

He didn’t know why the Dimensional Lord reacted so sensitively, but it seemed there was quite a story behind it. No matter how much of a spirit god one was, accepting precise measurement meant revealing one’s entire past, authorities, and divine power. It was something everyone avoided. Having to disclose nearly year-by-year records of one’s past made it even worse.

Because he stubbornly maintained this standard and verified everything thoroughly, nearly ninety percent of the spirit gods who had desperately gathered quickly withdrew, waiting for the next opportunity.

‘Even I would hesitate if told to reveal my entire existence across eternity. No matter how difficult this place is, I’d have to think very carefully. Everyone has things they don’t want others to know.’

When asked why he adhered to such strict criteria, the Dimensional Lord had simply clenched and unclenched his fist without answering. The gesture was so ominous that the topic was dropped, but it was clear something had happened in the past.

Yet the next words left his mouth hanging open.

“It can’t be helped. We’ll have to do some promotion for additional recruitment.”

“What kind of promotion do you mean?”

“Divine realm advertising. Do you think this universe is so easy that we can afford to be picky?”

Watching the Dimensional Lord furiously create something afterward left him speechless.

‘No matter how short on gods we are, is this really appropriate for the dignity of a highest main god? We were both mercenary gods once, but he truly uses every means available without hesitation.’

However, as he watched the text being written, even he found himself tempted.

The conditions were so good they left one’s mouth hanging open.

‘I am an intermediate main god, so the training reduction my divine realm provides is 16 times. That means they’re offering twice the treatment I receive as a main god of a divine realm?’

In ordinary divine realms, the divine power increase reduction was 2 times for regular gods and 4 times for the main god of that realm. The multiplier doubled with each rank. In a highest divine realm four ranks above, it became 16 times for regular gods and 64 times for the main god.

‘No wonder everyone desperately clings to divine realm ascension. Seeing it in person is simply mind-blowing.’

Furthermore, from the highest divine realm upward, it was possible to appoint management main gods who received twice the support of regular gods. In simple terms, a highest divine realm management main god received the same support as a highest main god of an upper divine realm who enjoyed a 32 times effect.

‘Even though it’s for a highest divine realm management main god, the compensation is unbelievable when you see it with your own eyes.’

His direct subordinate, who had been watching from the side, couldn’t close his mouth either. Unfortunately, as a main god, the direct subordinate ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠only received the standard multiplier of 4 times. Only divine realms of upper rank or higher could appoint management main gods and receive proper additional bonuses. That was why both he, an intermediate main god, and his direct subordinate, who received treatment equivalent to a regular god of an intermediate divine realm, found themselves swallowing hard.

“Do we really only need to defeat the current management main gods?”

He himself was an intermediate main god strong enough to become a main god of a divine realm, so he was fully qualified and confident of victory.

‘If there’s a successor, I’d want to transfer immediately. Just becoming a regular god in a highest divine realm would be the same as my current position.’

But the Dimensional Lord simply stared at him silently before shaking his head. Wrapped in maximum-output light, his face and expression were invisible, making it impossible to read his true thoughts. It was truly astonishing how he could maintain maximum divine power deployment so effortlessly.

“Only after a successor arrives and you reach at least upper main god level—someone who can aim for highest main god—should you challenge them.”

“Pardon? What does that—?”

“There are reasons. Don’t dig too deep. Shall we continue writing?”

Satisfied with the enthusiastic reactions from the Main God of the Spirit Realm and his direct subordinate, the Dimensional Lord immediately continued writing.

The management gods of the Spirit Realm kept stealing glances, clearly affected. They had trembled in fear when the Dimensional Lord slaughtered the criminal highest gods as if swatting flies, but these conditions that defied imagination had swayed their hearts.

And at the final clause, they let out gasps of admiration.

The subordinate wondered why the Dimensional Lord would go through such trouble in the Spirit Realm when these conditions would draw gods from anywhere. Other divine realms would surely protest, but the benefits were good enough to be worth it. Why come all the way to the Spirit Realm?

Watching the Dimensional Lord review what he had written and hand it to the management gods, the subordinate finally asked again.

“Wouldn’t it be better to recruit from other divine realms as well? These conditions would draw gods even if it isn’t the Spirit Realm, wouldn’t they?”

“Do you not understand why I went through so much trouble to make even you—an intermediate main god at best—my ally? If I steal gods from other divine realms, my reputation will suffer. If things go wrong, it will negatively impact my karma as well. Besides, these conditions aren’t as easy as they sound. The opponents you must defeat to become a management main god will not be pushovers. Moreover, the reputation of the divine realm I manage…”

He trailed off as if he could not bear to explain further and turned his gaze back ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to the list of spirit gods. The subordinate decided to set his questions aside for now.

The management gods shouted with joy as they took the advertisement document. It was because the lower gods of the Spirit Realm also needed management. Of course, the management gods of the Spirit Realm Waiting Area could not freely change positions without approval from the Main Divine Realm or a successor, so there was no worry of them leaving. Still, they needed suitable compensation to keep them happy.

The Dimensional Lord clicked his tongue inwardly as he watched the Main God of the Spirit Realm and the management gods become completely hooked by the advertisement he had written.

‘An advertisement is just an advertisement. Who would believe it as written? The divine power support is real, but they should know exactly who the management main gods they must defeat are. Have you ever heard of them? The goddesses who possess Lord Slayer? And for main god level? Their opponents are main god-level beings trained specifically to fight upper main gods. The lower divine realms? I cleared out all the half-baked ones and left only the demigods who could become highest gods with just a slight improvement in karma. Once they enter my divine realm, they’ll find it difficult to secure a proper position unless they truly work themselves to death.’

‘If not for the fact that my divine realm’s reputation is not merely bad but on the verge of complete collapse, I would never come to the Spirit Realm and do something like this no matter how much criticism I received. I must improve the reputation as quickly as possible so the realm can operate normally, but I have no idea how long that will take.’

Thanks to the recent incident just before the goddesses’ rebellion and the two-stage ascension, there was no divine realm in the Main Divine Realm that did not know the circumstances of his own. No matter how good the conditions offered, no one would move without certainty that the divine realm was stable. Therefore, he had to somehow fill the shortage—which was barely over twenty percent of the required divine realm quota—and turn it into a normal divine realm.

‘Because I cannot repeat the mistakes of the past, I am being extremely thorough in my verification. A highest main god of a highest divine realm resorting to advertising in the Spirit Realm… that ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠says it all.’

As expected, having grown by struggling alone, the Dimensional Lord had no connection to the dignity and comfort befitting a highest main god. He could only sigh.