The Weight of Fate

The war in the Otherworld had ended, yet good fortune always invites misfortune. When the past changes, so does the future. ‘Even if something good happens in the past, it does not guarantee a better future. In most cases, if one lacks the power to maintain that fortune, things only grow worse. And the higher one climbs, the farther one falls.’

The Grey Absolute knew this truth better than anyone. Because the seal had been his own creation, he was the first to sense that it had shattered.

“So Yggdrasil really broke this quickly? Is fate truly unchangeable?”

But none of that mattered anymore. The ranking war had reached its final stage.

When the Black Flame Absolute suffered a devastating backlash from the recoil of his racial authority, the ceasefire collapsed instantly. Even under the combined assault of everyone present, the Yuil Yongsinje had eliminated the eight Absolutes one by one. Now, only the Golden Absolute remained.

Even in his injured state, the Golden Absolute—still ranked first—displayed power equal to his opponent. Given the golden attribute that symbolized immutable brilliance, a prolonged battle was expected. Yet every other combatant had already been eliminated.

The Black Flame Absolute’s body, stripped of its divine spirit and driven into a frenzy, had been smashed to pieces by the Golden Absolute and the Yuil Yongsinje before being hurled outside the battlefield. What was truly astonishing was that even moving purely on instinct, the body still held the fourth rank. This was partly because the other eight Absolutes had deliberately avoided direct confrontation.

No matter how strong the Black Flame body was, it could not possibly defeat the higher-ranked Golden Absolute, Daeshin, or Yuil Yongsinje on instinct alone. It had charged in recklessly, endured, and ultimately been beaten senseless by the top three before being sent flying.

“It held on longer than expected. That only made it more vicious,” the Grey Absolute muttered.

The Black Flame Absolute’s body was now little more than a tattered rag, clinging to life by a thread. Recombining with its divine spirit for another attempt was theoretically possible, but the injuries were too severe. Even if the spirit returned, nothing would change.

All that remained was a one-on-one duel between the Golden Absolute and the Yuil Yongsinje. Given the current momentum, the Yuil Yongsinje would likely secure a comfortable victory. The request from the Wind Family was complete.

‘More importantly, the original ranking measurement was frighteningly accurate. Even with my interference, the lower ranks remained exactly as they were.’

Since none of the other 10 Mainstays had voiced any complaints, even if the Black Flame Absolute lodged a protest, the results would stand. The request for revenge had been fulfilled.

Yet a lingering regret remained.

“Is it only possible to delay fate? How truly pitiful the ending is.”

In the past, when he had been the Main God of the Divine Realm, he had been judged by the Golden Absolute after his defeat and erased by the Black Flame Absolute. And that defeat had come at the hands of the newly ascended Hwi, the All-Powerful Splendor.

‘There are plenty of excuses—being caught off guard, having my weakness in close combat exploited—but the fact remains that I lost. And not even to a clear enemy, but to a concentrated assault from the surrounding environment.’

In the end, it meant that even as the Magic God of Dimensions, the highest position he could reach was that of a top-tier Main God. His power overflowed, but his political skill and management of his surroundings had been a complete failure. Without dignity befitting one’s station, downfall was inevitable.

Setting aside his origins as a despised human, his previous self had possessed an exceptionally reclusive and erratic personality—even among eccentric dark mages. No matter how he thought about it, the limit for someone like that had been a mere top-tier Main God.

Yet to become the Lord God? The other Creator Gods and established factions would never allow it.

“You don’t even have the strength to survive on your own. Why crawl out again?”

Unless one grew strong enough through long, grueling training and cultivation—enough to make a catastrophic personality irrelevant—fate could not be changed. His personality had already made the position of Main God precarious. Becoming Lord God would only make things more dangerous. The higher the position, the stronger the opponents one had to face, and failure at the level of Lord God would have far greater consequences.

Moreover, the 499th Master Universe was under special joint management by Jinri himself. If a Creator God affiliated with the 499th made a mistake, they could face direct judgment from Jinri. It was a crisis within a crisis.

“Why didn’t you just learn from the scolding ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and training of the Black Flame Absolute’s spirit…?”

The divine spirit of the Black Flame Absolute had once been Silence of Truth, the greatest sage of the Absolute Realm. He had been powerful enough to possess two of the 108 origin titles simultaneously. In the past, he had freely wielded every type of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠authority, reaching the level of the 10 Mainstays, and had been hailed as the greatest sage in the Absolute Realm.

‘He was on a completely different level from the Magic God of Dimensions, who treated magic and authority merely as tools to maximize combat power. Originally, the position of peak sage—the Grey Absolute—should have belonged to him. However, even without much physical training, his body had reached the level of the 10 Mainstays, which became his downfall.’

The physical talent that surpassed even the supreme intellect of a sage was the perfect aptitude for becoming the Black Flame ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Absolute, a phenomenon that had not appeared in nearly 500 billion years.

‘For Jinri, there was no other choice but to force the issue even if he resisted.’

The Grey Absolute had desperately desired the position, and there had been many qualified candidates. But no one had actually wanted to train the Black Flame Absolute.

“The Authority of Black Flame carries the risk of going mad from fighting spirit and killing intent. Not only can one not form a clan, one cannot even have subordinates. One must live and fight alone for eternity. On top of that, the Black Flame Absolute must stand at the forefront of every battle. Who would willingly take that role? Even I would hate it.”

Of course, everything afterward had unfolded exactly as Jinri predicted. The supreme reason and wisdom that Silence of Truth possessed as the greatest sage had completely suppressed the Authority of Black Flame.

‘He took the authority that had only known how to rampage alone according to instinct, controlled it, analyzed it, and established it properly.’

His physical ability allowed him to manifest Pahoton—which used to shatter whenever the Black Flame Absolute wielded it—by fusing fighting spirit and killing intent, granting it true supreme destructive power. He had even refined the Authority of Black Flame, which only the Black Flame Absolute could use, to the point where it could be passed down to the entire Black Flame Race.

In this way, all eight seats of the Absolutes had been filled, and development accelerated. All of these achievements proved that he had been the greatest sage.

Of course, due to the influence of the Authority of Black Flame, he never looked the part in daily life.

“The only sage capable of surpassing Master, the Origin of the Mage God, is the divine spirit of the Black Flame Absolute. He is also the only being the Magic God of Dimensions would accept as a teacher.”

The Magic God of Dimensions had already reached the peak of the 11th circle. Unless he could ascend further, there was no room for more growth. Having learned from the Origin of the Mage God, who possessed the ultimate magic, there was neither need nor meaning in seeking another master.

‘From this point on, magic alone is not enough. Having revealed the limit of his power—that he cannot defeat a Hero God of equal rank—he will inevitably fall. The Creator Gods of the 499th Master Universe are that strong.’

Unless he created magic powerful enough that no one could ignore him, he would not be able to survive among them with such a glaring weakness in close combat. Of course, changing class to something like a holy demon god or another lineage would solve some of the problem, but the Magic God was the strongest in pure destructive power within the sage lineage. He could not abandon that offensive capability if he wished to stand at the peak.

The correct path was to maintain the state of Magic God while reinforcing his abilities as a sage and his physical capabilities.

‘His close combat ability is the worst and he has many weaknesses, but the Magic God is strong. If the situation is set up properly, he can defeat anyone. But my past self does not qualify. Being at the very bottom, it is difficult to receive opportunities to shape the situation as one wishes. He will be swept along by his surroundings. Well… now that he is somewhere in the middle, maybe it will be a little better… but no, it still won’t work.’

That was why he had sealed both the Black Flame Absolute and his past self together in a permanent seal. He had calculated that at least two people working together would be able to escape. Of course, it would be difficult at first, but during that struggle, his past self would grow strong enough to be worthy of the position of Lord God.

‘I chose the method of a joint permanent seal, but I never imagined the Black Flame Absolute would destroy Yggdrasil—which cannot be broken by internal force—with absolute power and escape.’

Of course, it had been condensed and fired in a simplified form and was therefore incomplete, but now he understood why the seal had broken so easily. The problem had been compressing Yggdrasil into a single-person Absolute Distance Koa bullet and then stuffing the Magic God of Dimensions inside as well. He had been too greedy.

“There is nothing to be done now. I will leave the fate of my past self to his own efforts. Shall I finish handling my own business? Right then—! It is time for the hunt. Let us see who becomes the prey. Koa!”

Around the body of the Grey Absolute, spacetime bombs compressed to the size of sand grains poured out like an explosion.

Shushushushushuuut—!

Each one was an ultra-small spacetime bomb capable of disassembling all matter. They spread thickly across the surroundings like a deadly fog from which no one could escape. Even a member of the 10 Mainstays could not endure within it for long.

‘If they enter the cells or respiratory system and trigger destruction, the body will disintegrate. The only defense is to avoid contact entirely.’

Yet the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one who charged recklessly into that fog—ignoring the ranking war entirely and even leaving the designated battlefield—was none other than the Black Flame Absolute.

It was astounding to watch him cleave through the Koa vortex—which could destroy even a 10 Mainstay body—with Pahoton and charge forward. The fighting spirit and killing intent radiating from his body were devouring the Koa whole and crushing it.

“I’m getting tired of saying this is impossible.”

“Grey—! To reduce me to this state… I will definitely kill you!”

The roar filled with the Black Flame Absolute’s killing intent and fury shook the ears. This was an extremely memorable sight and line. It was only natural—it was the final desperate struggle his past self had made when the Black Flame Absolute had erased him.

‘Everything has been completely reversed. My revenge has succeeded perfectly.’

Yet his dissatisfaction only grew.

“Aaaargh, damn it—! I have to see that bastard’s face again. This is exactly why I wanted to end this tiresome reincarnation immediately, but the finish is so unsatisfying it keeps bothering me.”

He truly hated having to deal once more with someone who was inherently superior to him and whose face he never wanted to see. But if he disappeared now, he could not stop worrying about his past self.

‘Without a doubt, he will rely on his half-baked power, run wild as he pleases, and meet a miserable end.’

What he needed was not more strength, but the dignity befitting a Lord God. That was not something that could be taught by others. He had to crave it himself and emulate someone worthy.

‘Dignity is obviously not something Master, the Origin of the Mage God, or I can teach.’

The spirit of the Black Flame Absolute would have been perfect, but because he had been too greedy and failed, he would have to watch over things a little longer.

‘After all, I did make him a Lord God.’

For a member of the 10 Mainstays, delaying or slightly altering the fate of a Lord God was easy.

“I have no lingering attachments, and the revenge I wanted is complete… but now I have to clean up the mess? The world really isn’t that simple. And they say revenge only begets more revenge? It really is chilling after so long. Well then, shall we see who dies? Hehehe—!”

Whooooooong—!Weeeeeeeeeng—!

The body of the Grey Absolute, wearing a faint smile, spread both hands and began to spin. As rotation was added to the fog, it transformed into a massive vortex. Then it sharpened into the shape of a drill, taking on a precise form. It resembled an enormous awl.

He had endlessly overlapped Koa to explosively increase the destructive power of spacetime destruction.

Gogogogogogogo—!Puhahahahaha—!

The colossal drill-shaped mountain of Koa began advancing toward the Black Flame Absolute, who was charging through the fog. Overwhelmed by its tremendous force, the Black Flame Absolute hesitated for a moment, then swung Pahoton behind his back and brought it down with all his might.

Kwa-ga-ga-ga-ga-ga-gang—!

The Koa drill mountain vanished with a tremendous roar upon direct impact, but another immediately appeared, engaging Pahoton in a fierce, evenly matched battle.

As the Black Flame and Grey began a fight to the death even after the ranking war had ended, the Wind Family Origins, terrified by the aftermath, hurriedly deployed additional forces to erect defensive barriers. After all, this was a duel between beings who each possessed 1,000 trillion units of divine power and held the highest absolute authorities. A mistake could very well blow away the entire Absolute Realm.

Minimizing collateral damage from battles between the 10 Mainstays was also one of their primary duties, so even the Origin of the Mage God was not exempt. Moreover, this was a battle between two of the 10 Mainstays—one known as a berserker and the other bearing the nickname of Mad Grey. No matter who won, it would not end quietly. The lower ranks had already been decided, and the match to determine first and second place was still ongoing.

In such a situation, there was naturally no one bold enough to cause trouble.

‘The basic duty of the 10 Mainstays is the development, maintenance, and management of the Absolute Realm.’

‘If one takes advantage of the ranking war to cause chaos such as war, the punishment will be increased under the charge of insolence. The terror that the mad Grey ranked tenth would immediately come to enforce it has spread. As a result, both the Absolute Realm and the Master Universes remained extremely quiet and peaceful. Peaceful enough to hold the inauguration ceremony for the Magic God of Dimensions as Lord God.’