The Spirit Realm's Rebellion
The Spirit Realm's war was a foregone conclusion. Bodiless Main God-level spirit deities had no chance against a High Lord. If the Dimensional Lord got serious, he could wipe them all out in under ten seconds. The sudden shouts of "dog of power" and "freedom and equality in the Divine Realm"—phrases that had nothing to do with his own life—had sent his rage soaring. But after taking one deep breath, he spoke in a calm voice.
His attempt at mercy was met only with more curses and insults. If anything, their momentum grew even stronger as they forced out their weakened authorities. The killing intent from dozens of spirit god-kings—who had once commanded over a hundred million followers each—intensified.
"Shut your mouth—! Even if only our spirits remain, our will shall never break!"
"We will never forgive you for clinging to that unforgivable bastard and changing the universe!"
"We will never abandon freedom. Even if our spirits are annihilated, we will restore this twisted universe that has fallen into regulation and control!"
Boom—! The explosion warped the surrounding space, attempting to damage the Dimensional Lord's body. But as long as his dimensional authority was fully active, nothing short of innate divine power exceeding his own could breach the dimensional barrier.
Looking at the spirit god-kings flailing beyond my dimensional barrier, I almost feel sorry for them.
From the records, those whose bodies had been lost and whose wills had been immediately sealed still didn't understand the difference between a spirit deity without a body and a Main God. Authority released without a physical form was purely intangible. If the opponent's authority or divine rank was significantly stronger, it could inflict no damage at all. To overcome that gap, one would need to target the opponent's physical body like Hwi of Omniscience, but that was never easy.
To add extra activation to their authority so it can surpass the physical durability granted by the difference in divine rank. But that slows them down due to computational strain, and if they close in for melee while I'm just watching, who would do that?
They'd be finished off instantly by long-range attacks. The Dimensional Lord let out a sigh.
"Our noble will to resist to the death will never change—!"
The circle of divine power above his head transformed into a circle of magical power, manifesting the path of sorcery.
Attack of the Gigantes Clan
Magic Type: Necromancy / Resurrection of the Dead / Restricted Law Magic, All-Purpose Wide-Area Attack System
Manifestation Effect: As a 9th Circle spell, this is the pinnacle of black magic in the necromancer lineage. It summons the spirits of giant gods who were defeated by the gods in ancient times and sealed in the deepest abyss of the Demon Realm, then commands them to attack. The summoned giants, being of divine origin, are unaffected by holy power and instead exhibit god-slaying properties. As they are spirits, they take no damage from physical matter. While reinforcement auras can inflict minor damage, their enormous size makes delivering a fatal blow extremely difficult, making them nearly impossible to exterminate. Ultimately, they are nearly invincible against physical attacks and are mainly used against high orcs who lack knowledge of divinity or magic.
Restriction: To use this magic, the caster must summon the giant gods through necromancy and defeat them. It was designed for decisive battles against the divine race. Aside from extremely rare top-tier species like High Elves—who specialize in aura or magic—it cannot be blocked.
After the first manifestation, the protagonist spoke a single line:
Rumble—! Rumble—!
Giant gods ranging from several hundred meters to over two kilometers in height were summoned from the abyss and appeared in the Spirit Realm.
No matter how many times I see them, they're huge, reliable, and overwhelmingly strong against divine races that only rely on brute force.
The giant race were originally ultra-high-ranking sentient beings born from planets themselves. They possessed resistance to the divine power of spirit deities and boasted absurd size, strength, durability, and regenerative ability.
On a planetary surface, even a god of equal rank would find it nearly impossible to face one alone. It makes perfect sense that the basic structure of the Substitute Gods' planetary biological armor is based on the bodies of the giant race.
Although they had become spirits, their fundamental traits remained. The Dimensional Lord poured abundant magical power into them, making the spirits almost fully materialized.
Their spirit rank isn't much lower than these giants, but since the physical force is overwhelmingly superior, victory is guaranteed.
When hundreds of powerful giant gods appeared and surrounded them, the spirit god-kings' momentum shattered in an instant. Ironically, because they were similar types of spirits, the gap in power became immediately clear. There was no need to even mention the difference in combat strength between bodiless spirits and the spirits of giants supported by magical power on the level of a High Demon God.
"W-wait—! Why is a Main God using the giant race, our enemies—?!"
"This is cowardly—! Act like a proper Main God and face us yourself!"
"Understood. Capture them—!"
The giant gods snatched the fleeing spirit god-kings with their massive hands and slammed them straight into the ground. Screams from the spirit god-kings began echoing everywhere.
Boom—! Boom—!
"Graaaagh—! You brute!"
"Kyaaaaagh—!"
The giant race's combat pattern against divine beings was extremely simple: grab flying gods out of the sky with their hands, slam them into the ground, and stomp on them until they stopped moving. There was no need to worry about not being able to reach them.
They're ultra-high-ranking sentient beings created for planetary self-defense, so they naturally possess atmospheric control authority. They can fly and manipulate air to grab targets directly. Their mobility is also superior within a planet's territory since they move using the land as a base, making them faster than divine races, and their strength is on a higher level.
If a divine being engaged a giant god in close combat one-on-one on a planet's surface, their body would be shattered instantly. The situation changed in outer space, of course. This was why half their forces were usually lost when suppressing giant gods on planets to prove their worth to the Divine Realm.
Yet most of the spirit god-kings were being swatted and stomped like flies caught in a swatter. Meanwhile, some spirit deities were skillfully dodging while flying around, and others were using spatial movement and authority to evade while even attempting counterattacks. Even the captured ones were enduring remarkably well despite the giant gods jumping up and down on them.
Crackle—!
The Dimensional Lord could hardly believe his eyes. His dimensional barrier was melting. His barrier—which surpassed even the highest spatial authorities and wasn't a mere physical wall—was melting away like a candle.
Something is fusing with my dimensional barrier. The same authority as my dimensional power? That's impossible—! Even I, who specialized in dimensions and obtained sorcery, went through so much trouble. Who could be doing this?
A hidden impact was transmitted, and suddenly a sense of crisis flooded his forehead. A metallic clang erupted, followed by a proportionally massive scream echoing through the air.
It's a spatial attack using dimensional barriers, but the level is lower than mine—! Damn it! But there's no time to dodge.
Kaaaaang—! Clang—!
A tremendous roar exploded from the Dimensional Lord's body where it had been struck.
"Auuuugh—! What the… what is this—! Your body is like some kind of armor! Why is it so hard—! Uwaaagh—!"
"It was a direct hit to a vital point but it didn't work—! Kyaaaaagh—!"
With tremendous rebound force, he snatched two transparent spirits that had leaped out from space.
If I hadn't had the biological armor and Machine God form, I would have taken serious damage.
It was a mistake to trust the dimensional barrier too much, but fortunately the biological armor had blocked it well. Since these opponents had no bodies, they couldn't apply physical restrictions, but the Dimensional Lord was a dark sorcerer.
Whether spirit or ghost, their essence is spiritual in the end. They cannot escape my control.
Using his spatial domination, he suppressed the two faint divine silhouettes and analyzed their authority.
My dimensional authority is manifesting in a weakened state, around Main God level.
The only divine race capable of copying an opponent's authority to this infinite degree was the Almighty God Tribe, but at this level, they posed no threat to him.
Booooooooooom—!
"Grrrrrrk—!"
"Aaaaaaaaagh—!"
He partially materialized them so they could feel pain, then slammed them into the ground with full force. The resulting roar, shockwave, and screams were enough to shake the entire Spirit Realm. The combined physical strength of a High Lord's body and a Machine God form was in no way inferior to the giant gods. Moreover, the Demon Adamantium that had been refined once again by Hephais, the Goddess of Alchemy, fused magical power and divine power almost perfectly, further enhancing the body's performance.
It still can't compare to Hwi of Omniscience, but it surpasses ordinary Creator Candidates.
When such power slammed them into the ground with full force, the impact was like being struck directly by a meteor. Watching the spirits become momentarily incapacitated to the point their forms nearly scattered, he looked around.
Unexpectedly, they aren't being subdued so easily. It's becoming a close fight.
Even though they were outnumbered, several spirits were visible linking their powers in parallel even in spirit form. They were spirit god-kings who had once possessed over a billion followers. Led by them, the tide was slowly beginning to turn.
But now it was getting annoying. Time for a swift, comprehensive cleanup. Besides, dragging out the subjugation too long would make it difficult to use them as subordinates later.
"By the terms of our contract, I deem you worthy opponents and hereby request your aid. The enemies are spirit god-kings—! Come forth—! O ancient lords of the giant race! The Advent of Gigantes Lords!"
Oooooooong—! Oooooooong—!
Ten colossal entities revealed their forms in the air. They were the god-kings of the giant race. Moreover, they were the highest-grade giant god-kings manifested from the Main God Star of the 499th Master Universe. Originally, no giant god exceeded a hundred meters, yet these beings—each over ten kilometers tall—materialized in the Spirit Realm and leaped down to the earth. The ground shook violently.
Rumble rumble rumble!
Rooooooar!
Having received the vitality of the Dimensional Lord, who had reached High Lord status, their bodies had nearly recovered and were almost fully materialized. Clad in shining armor that covered their supremely developed physiques, the pressure they exuded was no joke. They had recovered so much power that one might worry they would attempt to escape the abyss like the spirit deities of the Otherworld.
I've given the Cyber Realm a clear warning this time, so they won't try anything like that. But if it does happen, I'll replace the administrators entirely.
After all, simply being an Absolute Good granted him considerable influence in his universe, making such actions possible.
At the sudden appearance of the super-giant god-kings of the giant race, the spirit god-kings stood frozen in shock while the giant gods hurriedly bowed their heads. A thunderous voice rang out.
"Contractor. I thought our power would no longer be needed. What is the matter?"
"If you transform into the god-king of the giant race, wouldn't those divine beings pose no problem at all? With your current power alone, you should be able to subdue them easily. Why do you need our strength?"
It was a natural question. The Dimensional Lord could polymorph into the god-king of the giant race, and that power and size were incomparably greater than those of an ordinary giant god-king. There had been no need to deliberately summon the contracted giant gods like this. However, he had learned something from this incident: the higher the position, the more important justification became.
The Cyber Realm acted that way because the desertion of the contracted Otherworld spirit deities could become a serious stain on a High Lord. Therefore, I must eliminate any room for such accusations.
Since these beings had also contracted with him, bringing them into his domain and managing them would prevent incidents like this. Moreover, although their divine rank was low, they were beings who had honorably died protecting the Middle World. He had to treat them with respect. Of course, this consideration came because they had treated him fairly even when his karma had been evil.
At those words, the spirit god-kings' faces filled with utter shock while the giant god-kings smiled gently. Their expressions intersected.
"I understand. Those are truly favorable terms—overseeing the divine race that stole my star."
"We are always grateful that you give us, the defeated, another chance and treat us with courtesy. Then we shall do our best to assist you this time as well."
Thud—! Thud—! Thud—! Thud—!
When the giant god-kings, fully armed in armor and standing over ten kilometers tall, began to move, the highest-ranking giant gods—who had been hurriedly confronting the spirit god-kings—retreated, looking like mere dwarves in comparison.
"First, we shall teach them proper etiquette toward their superiors."
"The rest of the giant gods, step back and only guard the perimeter. You will get hurt too."
At ten kilometers in height, they were the size of entire mountain ranges, so their weight was equally terrifying. Every step they took shook the earth and pressed down on the spirit god-kings.
These were beings I had contracted with great difficulty for decisive battles against the Divine Realm. They are so powerful that even without goodwill toward facing divine races, it would have been difficult to subdue them.
Even ordinary planetary giant gods were formidable enemies that a single divine being could not face alone. Therefore, the god-kings of the giant race from the Main God Star were opponents that bodiless spirit god-kings could never withstand.
Whooooosh—! Boooooooom—!
The sound of hands swinging as if swatting mayflies produced roars and explosions incomparable to before. Spirit god-kings who couldn't even scream were sent flying. The sight was so satisfying that he couldn't help but smile.
My heart feels completely refreshed. These former powerholders who failed to adapt to the new karmic order, became obsolete, and then started a rebellion—how ridiculous that they would try to play the part of noble revolutionaries. Let's beat them first and talk later.
In any case, even if the Otherworld spirit deities had possessed bodies, escaping would have been impossible.
To leave the Spirit Realm, one would need authority surpassing the Creator God who made this place. They're hiding well, but once discovered and subdued, the spirit deities—enticed by the condition of being employed in the Divine Realm—will forget their fear and swarm like bees. No matter how vast the Spirit Realm is, discovery is only a matter of time.
Bang! Boom! Uwaaa! Kyaaa!
Watching the spirit god-kings' screams being buried under the explosions as they were trampled by feet too wide to escape, he waited leisurely for the outcome. That was all there was to it.
Once they're found, I'll have to go retrieve them myself.
He had ordered the other spirit deities to subdue them if found, but it was obvious they would cause a major incident in the process.
Let's wrap this up and go back. There are so many headaches here that I'm actually starting to miss the Divine Realm. It hasn't been that long, but it feels like I've been away for an eternity. The stars that need to be compensated instead of the Devotion Pledge should be mostly prepared by the Antares units by now, so I need to finish that up. I also need to restore Granzoa to Main God status. And the enhanced Blessed Breastmilk should be ready soon. If I can just wrap up these matters properly, not only my body and computational power but even my divine power will surpass that of a Creator God.
As expected of the Spirit Realm—a place where the defeated and criminal gods were gathered—it was a complete pandemonium. Compared to them, the goddess group who had caused a series of incidents in the Divine Realm—including a collective rebellion and searching for the Chief God of the God Realm's weaknesses—looked like model citizens. Moreover, they were a great help in increasing his divine power, so the thought of treating them well gradually bloomed in his mind.
After living in such a harsh world, it almost seems normal to stab someone in the back depending on the situation.
That was why goodwill arose toward those who were at least helpful.
Let's not expect too much from those things either. But if they cause trouble, I won't let it slide. Know that you will never escape the management of the giant god-kings.
The Dimensional Lord made that resolution as he watched the spirit god-kings being flattened under the continuous stomping of the giant god-kings.