The Incomprehensible Eight Founders

The war in the Otherworld seemed destined to reach a surprisingly swift conclusion. No matter how powerful a racial authority is, activating two transcendent authorities at once can’t possibly come without a heavy burden. The Sage of Omniscience was also in poor condition. Her rapid surge in power after becoming the Demon King had shattered her fine control over her body. It’s only a tiny mismatch between mind and flesh, but against someone like the Shuddering March, it’s more than enough of a fatal opening. On top of that, she had dozens of clones possessing the same strength as her main body. There could be no more troublesome opponent.

Yet the Incomprehensible Eight Founders truly lived up to its name as an absolute authority. Even while injured, it refused to allow any serious wounds. No—watching her forcibly harmonize body and mind in the face of a life-threatening enemy only made it clearer why this power was ranked second in overall utility across the entire Absolute Realm. And being second in every category meant that, in terms of comprehensive power and practicality, it was effectively unrivaled.

The admiration came unbidden. While his own authority was little more than a reflexive defense carved into his body, she activated hers entirely by will. That activated power transcended the user’s body and intent, supporting them supernaturally as it slowly pushed beyond the maximum strength a Demon King should be able to display. The authority and body were merging, gradually overwhelming the clones of the Shuddering March.

Attacks that should have caused serious injury were reduced to light wounds. Even those light wounds were either completely nullified or redirected without any damage at all. The way she controlled the barrage of attacks—turning them into flowing water and drifting wind—was breathtakingly beautiful. In just a little longer, the Sage of Omniscience would stop bleeding entirely. Once she mastered the art of counterattacking at the very last moment, the tide of victory would turn. And that would mean the Shuddering March’s defeat.

Of course, the Shuddering March still had hidden trump cards, so things wouldn’t end so simply. But for now, that was how the battle would conclude.

Using the detailed data he had just acquired, he ran a simulation of a fight against Almighty Hwi. The result was unconditional defeat. No matter what magic he used, he could wound Hwi but never deliver a fatal blow. The moment Hwi grew accustomed to battle with a body and talent trained by the Incomprehensible Eight Founders, it would be over.

The most terrifying part was that very talent. That incredible gift raised his combat power during battle against an opponent and inevitably led to victory. If you don’t possess the same talent, does that mean the only way to win is with a one-hit kill?

Then what if I activate the Authority of Black Flame?

He ran the simulation again, this time with himself using the Authority of Black Flame against Almighty Hwi. Surprisingly, his win rate rose to fifty percent. It was partly due to the destructive power of the Authority of Black Flame, but also because Hwi had not yet reached his full potential. Even in victory, however, he would be left in such a ruined state that it would be impossible to tell who had truly won. There was no way he could gain the support of the gods of the Main Divine Realm like that.

Both the Origin of the Mage God and his future self had concluded this was the best possible outcome. That was why they had ordered him to set a trap at this exact moment. It was an undeniable fact. Even acquiring the Authority of Black Flame had only been possible because he had passed the Eternal Judgment on the Wind Star of Black Flame. There was nothing more he could have done.

Yet somehow—though he didn’t know how—he had engraved the defensive aspect of the Incomprehensible Eight Founders into his body. But what would happen if I applied both the defense of the Incomprehensible Eight Founders and my own magic? There was no data. He would have to test it himself…

Almighty Hwi and the Shuddering March had stopped caring about their surroundings and were now pouring out desperate attacks. The fusion of holy demonic power and demonic energy created claws of magic with maximized destructive force, while ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠dozens of the Supreme Demon King’s clones unleashed a storm of the same. The two forces tangled together, forming a tempest of pure destruction. Jumping into that would require entrusting one’s life to someone else first.

If I get caught in it with my bare body, I will definitely die. The defense of the Incomprehensible Eight Founders doesn’t activate according to my will yet, and its level is still unknown. The moment those attacks exceed what I can endure, I’ll die with no way to stop it. I cannot die right now. The commission isn’t complete yet. I can’t waste a life that defies reality.

In the end, charging in was out of the question. There had been no practice runs for the decisive battle against Almighty Hwi. The only option was to unleash every preparation he had made in a single instant, preventing any adaptation or growth.

Is the only answer the one-hit kill and complete victory that Truth emphasizes as the conditions for passing the Eternal Judgment? And on top of that, I have to achieve further growth? Forcing myself to do all this on my own is going to drive me insane.

The restoration of the Divine Realm had been completed as planned. Even under the aftershocks of those two’s full-powered attacks, the realm’s divine protection combined with his own dimensional authority kept it from collapsing. Only now could the temples truly be called part of the Creation Realm.

I had been planning to deal with those shabby old temples in the Divine Realm anyway, but I put it off because of the expected backlash. Thanks to Lokina, I was able to take care of it.

Feeling fatigue from unleashing his full creative power, he sank deeply into the Throne of Glory. With the restoration of the Divine Realm finished, he had processing power to spare. He immediately replaced the Sage of Omniscience with Almighty Hwi and began another simulated battle against himself.

In a virtually created dimensional space, his simulated self and Almighty Hwi clashed endlessly. Even with the Authority of Black Flame active, my win rate is still only fifty percent. Against the same ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Incomprehensible Eight Founders, I have no chance. My 11th-circle magic cannot inflict a fatal wound on that body. But if I want to win overwhelmingly, I have no choice but to raise my odds while the Authority of Black Flame remains inactive.

Yet with only his magic and current physical ability, there was no way to win. He watched helplessly as his simulated self desperately tried to create distance, only to be mercilessly torn apart by Hwi’s pursuing fist. The sight made his stomach churn, but he recreated the scenario and fought again. Defeat followed defeat, yet he refused to give up.

Even if he won while unable to control the power with his own will, that would not be true victory. Such a being could never earn the support of the other gods. Knowing that the only moment he could perfectly defeat Almighty Hwi was now—while he was still a newly ascended Creator God with immature body control—he had no intention of stopping.

The Dimensional Mage God continued his endless attempts within the virtual space created by his creative ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠power.

Watching him, there was one god who wore an utterly fed-up expression. Though she sat motionless on the Throne of Glory, Lokina—thanks to the authority of the Flipside Lord—knew exactly what he was doing.

He’s at it again. When does he ever rest? After activating that much creative power, any normal being would be completely drained. Since moving his real body is difficult, he immediately jumps into virtual training? No wonder I can’t keep up.

Whoever the opponent was, he was repeating virtual battles against a being with an overwhelmingly powerful body. Even though it was obvious he was no match, he kept trying. No matter how many times he was defeated, he repeated the process as if the pain meant nothing. The time he could endure gradually increased, yet the final result never changed. Even as the grueling, painful hours continued, he pondered and challenged himself again and again.

Though it was virtual, his body died countless times. Yet he showed no emotional change whatsoever, as if the agony had nothing to do with him. Only an absolute determination that he must do this radiated from him. It was almost impossible to understand what kind of training could produce such composure.

Moreover, by her own senses, the restoration of the Divine Realm had only just been completed. It was a project that had taken an entire week even with every Main God pitching in and her own full effort. Yet the Dimensional Mage God had finished it in an instant ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and immediately begun virtual training. Even more astonishing was the extreme composure he maintained while repeating such intense training without the slightest pause. Combined with his burning desire to grow stronger, there was simply no stagnation in his progress.

Normally, someone with that level of talent as a battle god would see their growth slow to a crawl, yet he was overcoming that limit through sheer extreme repetition. Watching him activate dimensional authority enhanced by the Flipside Lord’s power, she finally felt like she understood the reason behind his seemingly inexhaustible creative strength.

Meanwhile, the Hero God had been instantly transported to the moon. He looked around with a deeply moved expression. An endless silver plain stretched out, filled with a staggering number of Transcendents. They were the Transcendents born from the Upper Main God Star. The planet had originally held roughly one trillion sentient beings. The number of Transcendents alone exceeded one million. Every single one of them—those who had been active and those preparing for their final moments—had been dragged out. There were even people clutching blankets with looks of utter disbelief, clearly having been on their deathbeds moments ago.

What pleased him most was that the highest-ranking Transcendents who had been forcibly summoned to the Divine Realm earlier and received its support had already broken through the wall of mortality. Over a hundred thousand of them had reached the realm of Lower Gods.

Looking at them, the Hero God felt a surge of confidence in his own accomplishments. Then he spotted familiar faces rushing toward him—his old comrades. Although only about a week had passed in real time, for him it had been over a century of training inside a specially created dimensional space. As a result, he had easily ascended to Intermediate God and formally sworn his loyalty.

Seeing them again after nearly a hundred years, the human sense of time still lingering within him made the reunion all the more joyful.

“My friends—! It’s been so long! You’ve all become Lower Gods too! Congratulations!”

“……”

There was no reply. Instead, they only increased their speed.

Thud thud thud thud thud—!

“Huh?”

“Die, you bastard—!”

“Why did every human have to become a eunuch because of you?! We almost got beaten to death before we were even selected!”

Furious voices filled with condensed rage flew at him alongside kicks and swords, but the result was utterly anticlimactic.

Crack—! Thud—!

“Whoa—!”

“Guh—!”

With a casual wave of both hands, the Hero God sent their attacks flying into empty air and hurled their bodies backward like dry leaves. Watching his former comrades—the Sword King and the Fist King—scream briefly as they flew away without even understanding what had happened, he snorted in amusement. How pathetic.

“Hah—! Making such a fuss over becoming eunuchs for just one month? Would you rather have died instead? Just endure it. And look at you—barely able to use your bodies, let alone manifest authorities, yet you still dare to attack me? I’ve completed proper training and become an official Intermediate God of the Creation Realm. Did you really think the attacks of Lower Gods who aren’t even affiliated with the Divine Realm would work on me?”

These people were in almost the same state he had been in when he first arrived in the Divine Realm—unable to manifest their authorities and barely able to control their bodies. No matter how many Transcendents there were, they were no match for him. He had fully established his authority inside the space granted by the Dimensional Lord, trained with the Beast God who stood above even Main Gods, and received recognition for it.

The rank evaluation of his Indomitable authority had surprisingly come back as Superior Grade or higher, with plenty of room for further growth. Once he replenished his divine power, he was confident he could rise straight to the highest rank, and that evaluation had been officially acknowledged. If he handled this matter well, becoming a Main God directly below the Round Table might not be a dream at all.

He transmitted his will to every Transcendent using his divine power. Having been appointed as the person in charge and granted the highest level of support from the Divine Realm, this was child’s play.

“Listen carefully, everyone. This selection process was only granted after countless pleas. It is an opportunity you will not get again. If you fail this time, it would be better for all of you to beg to be killed instead, so focus. And above all, I am not your opponent.”

Sweeping his gaze over the startled faces of every Transcendent, he turned around, bowed respectfully, and shouted.

“Intermediate God of the Dimensional Divine Realm, directly under the Main God—Indomitable Hero God—greets the great Main Gods of the Dimensional Mage God. Everyone is ready.”

The moment the words left his mouth, translucent figures began to appear. One by one they multiplied until they formed a perfect line. Their number reached two hundred.

“Let’s begin.”

“I don’t understand what meaning there is in such a sloppy selection process, but I suppose we’ll find out from the results.”

“Even with the indirect help we’re receiving now, the difference is more than ten times greater than when we were the highest ruling clan in the past. To think this is merely the Creation Realm of the 499th Master Universe… it’s unbelievable. Is this the effect of Sangharama’s title ‘Garam’ that specializes in divine race growth? An absurd authority and growth support. No wonder we were helpless.”

“The Dimensional Mage God said he would decide whether to officially accept us as Main Gods affiliated with the Divine Realm based on the results of this operation.”

“There’s no helping it. It’s similar to how we nearly ruined everything during the Eternal Judgment.”

“Besides, there isn’t a single existing Main God weaker than we are now, so we need to produce results that make sense. It’s only natural.”

“But how is fighting Lower Gods and Transcendents supposed to count as results for the Divine Realm?”

“You’ll understand once you see the outcome. There’s no need to question it, just as always. For now, carry out the orders.”

Though there was plenty of chatter, the moment they fully materialized and lined up, all conversation stopped. Their translucent spirit forms became clear, revealing thirteen pairs of wings of light on their backs. The Main God standing at the very front opened his mouth and transmitted his will.

“It is an unprecedented privilege for Main Gods to personally instruct Transcendents or mere Lower Gods who are not even affiliated with the Divine Realm. Furthermore, by the grace and protection of the Dimensional Mage God, Lord of the Divine Realm, you will not die even if killed, nor will you suffer injury even if wounded. The training effect will be applied to the maximum. This is an opportunity any god would risk their life for. Moreover, he has instructed us to face you with utmost sincerity for the greatest training effect. Therefore, do your best to endure and fight back. The preliminary round will end the moment every one of you has become a Lower God or higher. We begin.”

Kwaaaaaaaaang—!

The Lower Gods didn’t even need to respond. Along with a vibration that shook the entire moon, the two hundred Main Gods descended upon every Transcendent summoned to the lunar surface for the selection. Almost simultaneously, the Hero God drew his divine sword with a resolute expression and activated the Indomitable authority.