Absolute Refusal
His thoughts had just reached the Otherworld War when a sudden chill crawled up his spine. At some point the other 10 Mainstays had filled the sky with dozens of activated Absolute Weapons, their eyes glittering with naked curiosity. One nod from him and they would unleash a coordinated barrage. Not a single one of them was inferior to him in total combat strength. They were so evenly matched that battles came down to compatibility, luck, or how one felt that day.
What would happen if I took dozens of Absolute Weapon strikes from equals with zero defense? The mere thought triggered a grave warning from Always Coin Heads that it would equal death. Come to think of it, deliberately allowing attacks that don’t even need to land is the height of stupidity. Even a member of the Black Flame Race would die instantly if they mistimed an assault aimed solely at vital points. Without Origin’s title, which provided absolute support for recovery and life as long as Fighting Spirit remained, a direct blow to the head or heart would kill even the Black Flame Race.
Coldly considered, this was an ultimate technique that should only be used in the most desperate situations. No sane person would ever activate it. “No! I won’t do it!” the Black Flame Absolute roared. “You bastards! Put every last weapon away! Are you really planning to go all the way with me? If you actually attack, I won’t let it slide!”
At the Black Flame Absolute’s frantic threats, the other 10 Mainstays clicked their tongues, unable to hide their disappointment. Even the Golden Absolute, leader of the Golden Alliance, had cautiously drawn his own Absolute Weapon. The technique intrigued them that much. Grumbling complaints erupted from every direction at his perfectly reasonable refusal.
“Tsk! So it’s possible to eat weapons with your body, but you don’t want to prove it. Planning to keep it as an exclusive secret art of the Black Flame Race? Why not test it and reveal it right away? I’ll treat you to something nice later.”
“The lower races use it so casually for victory, yet Origin shows weakness. How disappointing.”
“Why avoid the path of physical innovation? It looks like it would be incredible if properly refined. We’ll help with the verification, so just do it already.”
“Exactly! Do you have any idea how rare an ultimate technique is that can instantly neutralize five equals? This is your chance to add an Absolute-rank art to the Black Flame Authority, isn’t it?”
“If you can even eat Absolute Weapons with your body, Truth itself might acknowledge you. It’s a clear opportunity to gain the right to speak on matters of Truth. Rank battles are important, but the right to speak matters more, doesn’t it?”
They still refused to give up, continuing to urge him while some kept their Absolute Weapons out. The Black Flame Absolute’s body shook with fury. After countless rank battles and clashes driven by personal gain, he had long since stopped being sure whether these beings were comrades or enemies. Yet here they were, openly trying to drive Absolute Weapons into a fellow Absolute’s body just because they were curious about a new Black Flame technique. They weren’t even hiding their blatant desire to eliminate him easily during the next rank war.
These bastards talk so casually because it’s someone else’s neck on the line? The Black Flame Absolute seethed. And that damn Dimensional Mage God—how does he keep creating such useless techniques? Something wild and powerful befitting the Black Flame Race… though that’s not exactly something to brag about either. No matter how he looked at it, neither these people nor that man sat well with him. He silently vowed that he would deal with all of them one day.
Meanwhile, Almighty Hwi was in extreme distress. The main goddesses of the Goddess Blood Alliance, the Spirit Gods of the Otherworld, and several primordial War Gods had surrounded him and were unleashing a simultaneous onslaught.
“Guh—!”
The gap in divinity was so vast that none of the strikes were fatal. Yet the attacks were so powerful and heavy that injury was unavoidable. Some even carried curses of god-slaying, making it impossible to endure them with his body and break through. On top of that, the overwhelming pressure from Highest Creator God Realm–level forces and the sheer number of transcendent authorities pouring from the round table—enough that he had given up counting—left him dumbfounded.
The number of Main Gods possessing Creator Candidate–level authorities seated at the round table was simply unbelievable. The Main Divine Realm itself could not exceed forty, yet here there were already hundreds. The Almighty God Tribe’s ability allowed them to activate every authority and obtain immunity, but even that had its limits. This number was simply unmanageable.
“What the hell is this?! Just which Main Gods have thrown in with the Dimensional Mage God? And why are their authorities ones even I don’t recognize? Who are you people?!”
Watching the struggling Almighty Hwi, several Main Gods wore expressions of long-held grudges finally being resolved.
“Hehehe—! In terms of the divinity, base power, and operation of our authorities, we are equal to these Origins here. With this much high-level divine realm support and long-range bombardment, there’s no way you can handle it alone, young Origin of the Almighty God Tribe!”
“Shall we settle some of that old grudge from the Spirit Realm battles?!”
All the Main Gods defending at the round table were Origins from the 500th Master Universe. When the divine realm had suddenly shifted and the Creator God’s abrupt assault appeared, the main goddesses of the Goddess Blood Alliance, the Spirit Gods of the Otherworld, and the close-combat specialists among the primordial War Gods had immediately rushed out to intercept. Allowing that Creator God into the divine realm risked the newly rebuilt realm being shattered once again; they had no time to hesitate.
The other Main Gods had hurried back to the round table—the heart of divine realm defense—only to be stunned. They found these beings sitting brazenly in the ruling seats of the round table—seats not meant for ordinary divine realm administrators—preparing flawless defenses.
“Those who have defected from the 500th Master Universe shall be appointed to the highest seats of the round table based solely on their divinity and abilities.”
They carried a direct order from the Dimensional Mage God written in the simplest possible terms; therefore they were not enemies. The defenders themselves had not been in the divine realm long. They had initially wanted to raise a fuss about these arrogant newcomers who had not even announced their arrival, but in this emergency the newcomers were lending their strength to protect the divine realm. There was nothing they could say. The intruding Creator God’s power and killing intent were far too ominous to ignore.
The 500th Master Universe Origins deliberately ignored the primordial War Gods and Spirit Main Gods glaring at them with murderous eyes. Even they felt somewhat ashamed for suddenly occupying high positions like parachuted personnel, yet they could not retreat.
Still, we were Origins of our race. We can’t grovel from the bottom.
The Dimensional Mage God, Main God of the Divine Realm, personally permitted this. Let’s see who wins.
It could be called the stubborn pride of the elderly, but they had confidence. With over two hundred of their number present, there was little reason to feel inferior. Although the Dimensional Mage God had prepared their promised positions, it was up to them to defend those seats. Their current direct combat strength was inferior, but they had gained confidence that they would eventually surpass the others. Only those possessing the highest qualities and authorities could become Origins of their race.
The difference between our divine power and the divine power support we’re receiving is like the ocean and a stream.
With such tremendous divine realm support, failing to surpass their past level would make them utter fools. They simply had to endure the strengthening period using the thick skin and brazenness they had honed through long years of political life, narrowly avoiding civil war while seizing the initiative.
“Hmm—! Choosing the 499th Master Universe was clearly the right decision. I like it very much.”
“The ‘Garam’ divine race growth support and system provided by the 499th Master Universe’s Creator General is truly unrivaled. It’s practically a two-circle advantage.”
“No wonder we and our children couldn’t endure it. The 500th Master Universe’s Creator General really needs to awaken.”
The primordial War Gods and Spirit Main Gods now openly criticized the 500th Master Universe among themselves, and there was nothing the newcomers could say in return. From the round table, the divine realm’s ego itself warned that if those occupying the core of the current barrage of authorities withdrew, they would be unable to stop the Creator God.
Yet these were external newcomers who had only just arrived. Moreover, they were the very Origins from the 500th Master Universe who had attacked as enemies mere moments ago, now sitting at the round table. Under normal circumstances such a situation would never be tolerated, but the emergency of a Creator God charging forward madly without reason allowed everything to pass as smoothly as a snake slipping over a wall.
Still, there was no choice. Their resolve and fighting spirit to endure for now and settle the score later surged like a tidal wave. Faced with that ferocious killing intent, the 500th Master Universe Origins deliberately looked away, yet they could not stop their shoulders from instinctively hunching.
Whew! I’m only doing what I was ordered to do, but this is really making me sweat.
Are all the War Gods of the 499th Master Universe monsters? How is there not a single Main God who looks manageable?
This is going to be difficult later.
We have to grow stronger somehow. We can’t live our lives watching our backs in the divine realm.
We’ll show them the power that allowed us to rise to the highest position even within the Master Universe’s Creation Realm.
Though their authorities were strong, they keenly felt the gap caused by insufficient training. Yet it was also the moment when their stubborn pride fully ignited.