The Unstoppable Advance of the Substitute Gods
In the Spirit Realm War, if there was one thing he needed to understand above all else, it was why those beings were charging forward with such insane ferocity.
The Creator God King and the Origin entities of the clan were far too significant to deploy in a regional war that amounted to nothing more than a nitpicking squabble born from the emotional disputes of the so-called high and mighty. In blunt terms, they were not forces that could be treated as expendable. Under normal circumstances, they were precious resources that had to be protected at all costs.
If they died or were extinguished, restoring them would demand an enormous amount of vitality and time—a colossal loss for the entire divine race.
The Almighty God Tribe of this Master Universe had fallen, yet they remained a prestigious clan in other Master Universes. With their information network, confirmation would be simple.
Simply sitting in the Main God Temple and issuing orders to the clan brought immediate reports. It seemed they had already compiled all relevant data the moment he, the clan’s supreme leader, declared war.
As expected, having supporting clans is excellent. Since I am the clan’s hope, their support is absolute. Very good.
As he kept reading the documents while indulging in self-praise, an absurd mutter slipped out.
“The Creator of the 500th Master Universe permitted the Substitute Gods into undeveloped regions? Even though it hasn’t entered his domain yet? And if they fail to break through the Defense Divine Realm, he’ll allow full access? What is this? In short, he’s telling them to fight to the death, isn’t he? How are they supposed to hold off the Substitute Gods in such a weakened state? Even our Master Universe, which is doing relatively well, feels like it’s tasting death.”
Accepting the Substitute Gods explained why the Creator God King had rushed forward and the Origin beings had taken the front lines.
The current combat strength of the enhanced Substitute Gods equals fifteen Main Gods of the same rank. And that is for beings who have strengthened themselves through endless life-or-death battles over eons. In external Master Universes, it would require over a hundred. Without the Demon God Race, who can pierce planetary-level bio-armor to deliver fatal blows, or the powerful Main Gods of the Divine Realm, they would barely manage a draw.
In this state, if the Substitute Gods truly began eroding the stars and replacing the divine realms with the Creator’s permission, there would be no answer. Even the Creator, who held special affection for the divine race, would likely turn away for the greater and stronger vitality the Substitute Gods refined and offered.
The Substitute Gods have already had their bodies modified, conversation forbidden, and been used as nothing but tools. Having suffered the most miserable experiences, once they completely suppress a region they offer absolute obedience to the Creator without the slightest noise. Beyond strength and loyalty that transcends all races, the vitality they produce—the resource the Creator needs most—is incomparable to what the divine race can offer.
The greatest problem was that the Creators who fell for this fact never changed the ruling race back. The moment the ruling race switched to them, it was truly over. Even the Creators of the Master Universes up to the 498th—who had once shown affection for the divine race they themselves had created—were disappointed by how pathetically the gods collapsed. They now remained completely indifferent, satisfied with the several times greater vitality offered by the Substitute Gods who had occupied and stabilized most of the Master Universes.
Thus, the divine races up to the 498th Master Universe had lost dominion over nearly all regions, fallen to the status of minor races, and were desperately struggling merely to avoid extinction, living in miserable conditions.
At least we, using the knowledge he provided, had the Creator Gods create Main God Stars, allowing our vitality production to match or exceed theirs. But they are still limited to ordinary planets, so the gap is overwhelmingly vast. If it is permitted even once, it will truly be the end.
Profit transcended emotion. Knowing the circumstances, Hwi’s earlier judgment—that inflicting moderate damage would make them withdraw on their own—had been completely wrong.
As long as they retain any strength to fight, they will attack without end.
The terror he felt toward the Substitute Gods he had created to replace the divine race surpassed imagination.
“This means we truly cannot retreat. We must completely reexamine our strategy. We have to see this through to the point of total annihilation.”
Yet he had no intention of yielding.
Whether the 500th Master Universe is completely replaced by the Substitute Gods and its affiliated divine races are wiped out or not, his own clan had to survive first. Only if they survived could they afford sympathy. If he deliberately gave up this place, the Creator Gods would immediately execute him on the spot.
In a war like this, there was absolutely no forgiveness for any race that deliberately caused defeat or provided the cause. No—he himself could never tolerate it.
That was why the additional message bothered him. The elders claimed it was an earnest request from clans of other Master Universes to open part of the Defense Divine Realm if possible, along with news of movements in the Creation Realm.
“Have those lunatics still not come to their senses? They’re only pretending to break through the Defense Divine Realm before retreating? How can you trust the promises of an invading enemy? If anything goes wrong, the entire clan will be annihilated for treason. And all the Creator Gods have been summoned to the Creation Realm and are intensively learning the Creator-class joint ultimate technique ‘Ayuta’? Don’t tell me this is an invasion war?”
His head throbbed. The situation had reached the point where a mere emotional dispute could explode into full-scale war.
The Creator God King of this Master Universe would never concede the territory or rights of the divine race. To stop the Substitute Gods’ invasion, he had casually approved cooperation with the Demon God Race and opened all his own authorities for the divine race’s advancement. He was so overwhelmingly powerful that no one would dare challenge him even if every personal authority became known, and he had even received his title anew for the sake of the divine race.
In this Master Universe ruled by such a being, would they pitifully yield even the slightest portion of the divine race’s territory and cooperate?
It would be faster to simply offer his own neck and beg them to kill only him instead of massacring the clan.
Moreover, analysis of ‘Ayuta’’s purpose showed it was designed to kill higher existences of the second circle or above. Against the enhanced Substitute Gods, an alliance with the Demon God Race could kill two, while the divine race alone could deliver critical damage with four. The fact that all the Creator Gods were mastering it meant they intended to kill every Creator God in that Master Universe and seize the domain.
The justification of a counterattack against invasion would be more than sufficient, and the Creators would ultimately not intervene as long as the vitality they received increased. Furthermore, a lightning strike in alliance with the Demon God Race would enable literal complete suppression.
The moment the Defense Divine Realm collapsed, the probability of triggering an all-out war was highest.
Yet, failing to read such a war situation, members of the same Almighty God Tribe were insisting on opening the Defense Divine Realm for the sake of completely unrelated external clans.
This cannot continue. These old men have been away from the battlefield too long. Now that life is a little comfortable, they’re trying to save face and dragging the entire clan toward destruction.
As expected, the older a god was, the more he needed to remain on the battlefield closest to death. Staying in comfortable inner chambers only caused them to rot, spreading their stench and corrupting everything around them.
Hwi reached a simple conclusion.
“All elders are to participate in the war immediately. This is a wartime order issued by the highest war god of the Almighty God Tribe. Only war gods above a certain age may refuse. All others who refuse participation will be annihilated—along with your entire direct bloodline.”
This was not something that required raising fighting spirit. He simply sent an official order document and ended the communication.
If even one refuses, I will take this opportunity to eliminate them all.
Indeed, he should have cleaned them out back then. Leaving them alive to serve as anchors because the clan’s power had weakened too much had been a mistake.
Asking to consider the enemy’s circumstances with such nonsense? They need to die at the hands of the very enemies they begged consideration for before they come to their senses.
The highest-ranking Main God of the Independent Divine Realm, watching Hwi make such a resolute decision, hesitated before asking a question. The questioner was the ‘Main God Who Reigns Above the Heavens,’ who had achieved great merit this time. Thanks to him, they had caught their breath and seized the initiative. Therefore, Hwi decided to answer in a very pleasant mood.
“What is it?”
“It is a clan matter and a personal question, so I apologize, but were you not also not the official successor, All-Powerful Hwi? Yet how did you become part of the clan’s ruling class? From what I understand, I heard your original status was not favorable.”
“……”
Honestly, it was a very rude question—asking a superior about his painful past.
Under normal circumstances this would be grounds for smashing him, but since his contribution is great, I’ll overlook it. Above all, he seemed genuinely desperate to know.
“It is because I am strong. Among those who followed the training the clan attempted in desperation, I was one of the two who miraculously succeeded. So it is only natural.”
“Did you not receive any sanctions or controls afterward?”
“Ah, that? I did.”
In the past, when they succeeded in the training and completed the transcendent authority known as Almighty Omphale, the elders had been shocked by its effect—raising them by a full two circles, not one. In a panic, they had tried to impose all sorts of restrictions, oaths, and weaknesses.
Come to think of it, most of the Main Gods of the Independent Divine Realm are staring at me. Their eyes were like those of lower gods gazing at a highly successful Main God.
Indeed, most mercenary gods had similar circumstances.
If such powerful beings had done well within their own clans, why would they have taken on the insanely difficult duties of mercenary gods?
They were all beings who had fled or avoided the checks and pressure from their clans. From their perspective, Hwi’s situation was tremendously successful and ideal. He had overcome his lowly status with pure strength and risen to the highest ruling class of the clan.
“How did you overcome it? Even for an incomparable powerhouse, it could not have been easy at all. I am curious about the method.”
This was the core question. They had given up under their clans’ suppression and fled here, yet he had become the ruling class and even held the life and death of the elders in his hands. It was both enviable and intriguing.
It was not difficult to answer.
“I did not overcome it.”
“Pardon?”
They looked utterly bewildered. As expected, the Main Gods of the Independent Divine Realm were fierce and strong but possessed naive sides. Having spent their lives only on battlefields facing direct opponents, they revealed such weaknesses.
Lack of social skills? Or should I call it naivety? Would I forgive someone trying to restrict the power I gained by risking my life?
In a situation where the absence of any more powerhouses capable of becoming Creator Gods meant certain annihilation, trying to tie down the strong had been the act of crazy old men. The conclusion he reached at that time had been simple.
“The moment I received the restrictions, I killed the relevant elders and cleared everything away.”
“Gasp—!”
The Main Gods of the Independent Divine Realm and every Main God listening nearby inhaled sharply in shock.
It was not something to make excuses for or hide. At that time, the two of us who had received the restrictions moved immediately, killed all the relevant parties, recovered their vitality—including those who had approved—and returned it to the clan. We also cleaned up everyone who had opposed or criticized us, seizing the entire clan.
The problem was that most of the highest echelon had self-destructed in the war against him, and with no Divine Realm Main Gods left, the situation had been on the verge of total collapse.
Upon checking, the lower clans were already withering from lack of vitality, so recovering the elders’ vitality had been a godsend.
A king of a ruined country could never be comfortable. Setting aside any glorious sentiments of becoming the clan’s king, he had immediately become a mercenary Main God. Even with such strength, the labor of securing vitality for the clan had brought countless crises and threats of annihilation.
Comparing that time with what followed, he sometimes thought it might have been better to simply accept the restrictions as ordered and live quietly.
Even reduced to just two, feeding and sustaining so many clan members left no time to breathe.
Today was the authentication battle against the Demon God Race, tomorrow against the Substitute Gods, and in the gaps they still had to organize the Middle World.
Since they only accepted missions that offered high compensation, the difficulty had been beyond imagination. Yet it was precisely because of that that he had become this strong.
“You killed them all?”
“Yes. It was surprisingly easy.”
“……”
As Hwi recalled his past, his eyes closed of their own accord and he sank into deep sentiment.
If the clan had not been on the verge of complete bankruptcy, he truly could have lived well as its king. But no matter how much he earned, the clan’s numbers were so vast that it was like pouring water into a bottomless pit. At that time, he could not even tell whether he was the clan’s supreme ruler or merely its servant. Moreover, with a being equal to himself present, the resulting competition had made the period even more grueling.