Avatar Challenge (6)
Constellations' temporary bodies are incredibly weak. They're fake bodies that can shatter without issue anyway—just regenerate them if they break. Silent Starlight had forbidden the direct exercise of divine influence through their true forms, and since there was no need to wield power in the material realm...
Some gods descended with temporary bodies as massive as mountains, others as steel golems... but the trivial strength of those bodies paled in comparison to a deity's true authority. To be precise, they could make their temporary bodies stronger if they wanted. But they simply didn't feel the need to put in the effort.
The constellation I was observing—the Owner of the Blue Breath—was no different. A temporary body hastily slapped together just for communication. That's why it nearly got taken out by that tentacle just now.
However... one question lingered.
"So you're an incarnation of the Star Cluster. I owe you one."
"It's nothing at all-wa yo! More importantly..."
It was only natural that destroying a temporary body wouldn't harm the deity's true self. A monster god hostile to all life wouldn't overlook something so obvious. So why had it confidently thrust out that mutated right arm?
"A body that designates a single target and unleashes divine authority... It must be a fragment bestowed by a being beyond Planet God level...!"
"Planet God?! Ah, haha! Is that all you could come up with? The one I serve is far greater."
"...So that's why the constellations suddenly severed their contracts with their apostles."
The enraged blue dragon and the deity in its temporary body exchanged words. The apostles assumed combat stances. From above, I interpreted their conversation.
"We simply felt the power of that truly great one and gained enlightenment."
"You must not have been in your right mind. Did it taint your spirit?"
"Heh heh... If it's the power bestowed upon me by that great one, it's simple enough."
Surprisingly forthcoming. Truly great one. Enlightenment. Bestowed power. Zaag-Nakril? That mortal was probably just bait. Manipulating or brainwashing a single mortal's memories and infusing them with power was child's play.
Constellations abruptly cutting ties with their apostles? They likely descended in temporary bodies, got ambushed, and suffered mental corruption.
A way to brainwash gods in temporary bodies? Trivial for a fragment from a deity influencing hundreds of star systems. Exploit the mental link between the temporary body and the true self—ride that connection in reverse and exert influence. Simpler than I'd thought.
"Do you think you'll get away with this? Turning countless deities against you single-handedly... No matter what that 'great one' you serve is, it can't face us all."
"Huh? Did I say the one I serve is alone?"
"What?"
Of course, it only works on half-baked Single Planet Restricted Spirit Bodies, the lowest rung of immortals. Even they could weaken the corruption by resisting from their true forms. It seemed limited to one target at a time... but the fact that it worked on a god at all spoke volumes about the danger of that right arm.
The deity here in incarnation form was probably Planet Spirit level. And an entity capable of granting that purple tentacle to such a being...
"We've clashed with your kind since time immemorial. And I'm just a mere vanguard?"
They had something—or someone—they believed in.
* * *
Even a weakened god is still a god. The lowest of immortals. There's only one way to instantly corrupt the mind of a Single Planet Restricted Spirit Body in a temporary form: a fragment from a higher-ranking deity. Just as the monster had said.
The 'great one' had transformed its right arm into a purple tentacle, making it possible.
"A vanguard, eh? Then Zaag... that mortal was your underling?"
"That worm made perfect bait. I planted a tantalizing scent, and the gods came crawling in on their own. Heh heh."
"You targeted the moment they descended in temporary bodies to scout potential apostles!"
But if a Galaxy Spirit-level being had appeared, Silent Starlight would have noticed... which meant an exceptionally strong Planet Spirit lurked somewhere. From a mortal's perspective, the galaxy was vast, so outliers could emerge beyond the federation's reach. Like that Cthulhu trace I'd seen before. The purple tentacle had been a bit repulsive. Just a little. A faint flicker of displeasure amid the unease.
Then the monster god in its temporary body turned its gaze to Beatrix and Yuna.
"Hmph... I was just pondering how to approach you. So you're the apostles of a Galaxy Spirit from another dimension?"
"...?"
"Our goal is this galaxy. No need to clash with some distant powerhouse... You're surely watching through that 'information body' of yours..."
The man grinned slyly and glanced obliquely at the sky. Coincidentally locking eyes with my view through the AI information body.
"Join us, or form a non-aggression pact? Out of respect for your rank, I won't touch your apostles."
Beatrix and Yuna's faces stiffened. Their eyes trembled, a hint of anxiety flickering across their features. Probably worrying I'd switch sides. Wondering how to handle it if I did.
Apostles agonizing like that was cute. Amusing, even. But a god who couldn't inspire faith in their apostles had no reason to exist, did they?
Constellation Whispering Star Cluster requests the first apostle to convey these words.
Yuna's face lit up upon receiving my message. Her mind eased, she boldly spat at the hostile constellation.
"...Hah. Don't talk nonsense!"
"Oh ho?"
"...is what our Star Cluster Lord says to tell you-wa yo..."
She'd shrunk under the deity's glare but still delivered the line. Good enough. A huge improvement.
The monster's crimes: mental corruption of constellations via mortal bait. That purple tentacle resembled the fragment from Sky-Supporting Great Tree's monster god. I'd gotten all the intel needed.
"Heh heh. Fine then. If you cherish these worms so much, I'll slaughter them all until you swear to withdraw from this dimension..."
Constellation Whispering Star Cluster orders an attack on the outer universe's monster god!
"Bite and tear it apart-wa yo!"
"...Together!"
Kwachik— Pwack!
As expected of a stealthy infiltration via temporary body—its head exploded in an instant. It didn't even resist, relying on its right arm. Discarding a pawn without care, perhaps.
The fake body crumpled lifelessly to the ground. Yet that tentacle right arm writhed on, still alive.
* * *
The terror on Gaiana Planet ended swiftly. The truth behind the two constellations' sudden contract severances came to light, backed by testimonies from me and the other constellations.
"We truly have no face to show! To think the warning our Star Cluster Lord passed on last time was real..."
A man prostrated before my temporary descent for a detailed explanation. Chief of Staff of the Ability Special Defense Command, was it? He'd probably received the report on the purple tentacle before.
I waved it off mid-explanation and dissolved my temporary body. That covered it. The Owner of the Blue Breath could handle the rest.
As my golden dust scattered, the man cautiously rose and began the briefing.
"As I just informed the Whispering Star Cluster, I'm Chief of Staff Ryu Wei from the Federation Special Defense Command. I'd appreciate a summary of everything you've uncovered so far."
"That Zaag-Nakril was bait. Traces show Sword on the Ash Heap sought him out in a temporary body, and the malicious constellation approached in disguise..."
"Nakril underwent a thorough scan—his memories are jumbled, and his body mutated by abilities internally..."
"The prime suspect, yet he was just a thoroughly exploited victim."
Other constellations' apostles, Gaiana Planet officials, Yuna, Beatrix, and more gathered in a grave-faced meeting. I glanced at it briefly before pondering.
Every mortal holds the potential to touch divinity. Sword on the Ash Heap, victim of the monster constellation, started as a mortal. The Owner of the Blue Breath ascended as a dragon through cultivation.
"We're investigating why the victim passed ability detectors. It's an unregistered ability, so it might take time..."
"The missing constellations were likely mentally corrupted by a stronger one's power."
"My lord, the Silent Sentinel, rates that possibility highly as well."
Only a deity can stand against one with personal power. So...
"In the end, our Star Cluster Lord was right-wa yo. We should have been more vigilant-wa yo."
"You didn't take it seriously at first either..."
The apostles whispered in one corner of the room. Like my first kin and Galaxy Spirit, Naiserria. Elevating those cute apostles to gods would make things safer. For now, hold off. They'd received fragments of my body in exchange, evolving into higher species. Rushing it would lead to death—like paper soaking up moisture, their evolution proceeded gradually.
"We'll report this to high command as is. The federation's about to get noisy again..."
"Lately, it feels like something big's brewing. Hmm."
However, if this federation cluster's stability were threatened... I'd forcibly ascend the apostles to divinity, no matter what.