Village Head's Debauchery

"My plan is to introduce you to several divines, including some true gods who will aid in stirring the nests of the opposing forces, forcing them to reveal themselves."

"They'll handle the conflict, and you can choose to step back and enjoy the rest of your eternity in the Paradise Realm, far away from the chaos," the bizarre Will of the Divine Mysteries replied.

"I thought I would have to wait several thousand years for you to reach this level—that was already taking your accelerated pace into consideration. But who would have thought you'd accomplish it all in just three years? Anyone would find that inconceivable. But I expected no less from an Anomaly."

"I made the right investment, did I not?"

'It' hadn't been too direct because 'it' understood that if 'it' were perceived as a threat, it could be expelled from this realm.

'It' sighed inwardly, thinking about how powerful this realm had become in just a few short months.

General Reynold and the others frowned. They knew the bizarre Will had hidden intentions, but they hadn't expected them to be so grand—to involve true gods, the Vylkr spawns, and the Divine Corps.

"Why don't we bring out the spirit beasts gradually?" General Reynold suggested.

"If you noticed portions of Paradise's residents disappearing gradually into the Spirit Realm, wouldn't you become curious once their numbers became significant? Wouldn't you investigate?" the bizarre Will replied.

"I've significantly invested in all of you to show my sincerity. There's no reason for me to plot harm against Paradise, especially knowing its potential."

General Reynold was silent.

Orion didn't respond immediately.

He sent a telepathic message to Ilse and Margona to confirm the bizarre Will's claims.

'I've heard of the Transcendent Spirit Beasts, too, but I've never seen one. There was no way to verify their existence,' Ilse replied telepathically.

'You were always off collecting treasures, so of course you wouldn't have seen them,' Margona responded, her tone amused. 'I actually did encounter one before I knew what it was. I tried to find it again so I could sign a contract and bring it into the Material Realm, but they were too well-hidden.'

'That might be one of the reasons they're so hard to uncover. Still, it would've been a waste of a lifetime if I died facing one, so I gave up after failing to find it again.'

'There was no need to mention this before, as we had only just encountered a King-ranked Spirit Beast. Telling you then would have been too much of a burden. Who would've thought that our first challenge after gaining our own true god would be 'them'?'

Orion was surprised that Ilse had never seen one in her long life, while Margona had only encountered one by chance. He realised it was likely they had remained hidden precisely to avoid drawing attention to themselves.

Just imagining a large number of true gods entering the Spirit Realm to hunt these beasts and forge contracts was enough to make one's skin crawl.

The entire exchange had taken place in an instant.

"Are the true gods you want to introduce me to from other cosmic structures?" Orion asked, his tone curious.

Though Oberon had sensed several divines before his death, who fled once they realised he was facing a Vylkr spawn, he had only encountered a single injured, estranged demigod.

"No. Do you think just anyone can create a cosmic tree like you did?" the Will replied, sighing. "They all reside in secure, layered dimensions within the Material Realm. Though those dimensions come close to being considered cosmic structures, they're not quite there. And I am the Will of the Divine Mysteries overseeing them," 'it' said, 'its' tone proud.

"Comparing layered dimensions to a cosmic structure is boastful talk," General Reynold said, his gaze narrowing at the bizarre Will. "We would need to see it for ourselves to believe you."

"With enough strength—and support from 'me'—it is possible," the bizarre Will replied. "And if you want to see for yourself, you'll need to decide. I won't risk putting them in danger by sharing their location with just anyone."

General Reynold frowned. No matter how much help the Will had given them, he still couldn't trust it.

In his view, Paradise didn't need to act so quickly. They had just reached a new level of strength, enough to ensure their protection and self-sufficiency. In time, Paradise would surely produce more true gods who could display its might to the outside world.

Besides, Spirit Beasts lived long lives. They could protect them within the Spirit Realm until they were fully prepared to bring them over.

Still, this decision wasn't his to make; it depended on Orion.

"I thought you descended because of Avarielle and Margona's actions. How are you involved in all of this?" Orion asked, curious.

No matter how he looked at it, it didn't make sense that the bizarre Will, tasked with eliminating Avarielle and Margona, was simultaneously orchestrating such elaborate schemes. Could that also be one of the reasons they had survived this long?

Margona narrowed her eyes at the bizarre Will. She understood Orion's question perfectly and knew where he was going with it.

"You've likely guessed it already, but I'll give you a proper answer," the bizarre Will said. "While I was handling those conniving brats, I realised that something had interfered with 'my will' in the task I was assigned. It wanted me to test the goddesses' strength, not eliminate them outright. That contradicted my intention."

"It took me some time to notice, but once I did, I broke free of it."

"Though I didn't know why or how I had been tempered in the first place, I decided to continue carrying out the task and simply observe what would happen. That was when I became lenient with my attacks, allowing them to escape under strict conditions."

"Later, when I saw that their powers had waned, I used the Vylkr vines as a cover and took the opportunity to wander through the Material Realm. That's when I found them—the divines who had fled this dimension to another dimension, seeking refuge from the horrors of the Vylkr vines, the Vylkr spawns, and the Divine Corps."

"I decided to support them, in order to uncover what had tampered with 'my Will'. I've made some progress… but I'm still uncertain."

'It' shook 'its' head.

"However, even after thousands of years, there had been no meaningful improvement. Instead, those goddesses faked their deaths and branded their anomalous status onto the young demigoddess. I wanted to take her to the dimension I had discovered, but only after she chose to cleanse herself of that status."

"After all, I wasn't sure if the being those conniving brats had attracted would come looking for her once I moved her to the layered dimension. So, I decided to play it safe. I scattered a few Vylkr spawns here and there to keep her busy and force her to make a decision."

"But she was too devoted. Fortunately, you broke into the Pocket Dimensions. You were also an anomaly. When you arrived, I believed things would finally change, that those hiding behind the scenes would reveal themselves. And sure enough, they did."

"The Divine Corps broke in, and the faked deaths of those goddesses were exposed, leading to everything that happened today."

Margona snorted loudly. "If you could've handled us, you would've sorted it out quickly and gone off on your so-called exploration. The fact that you didn't proves you weren't capable."

Despite her words, her mind—and the minds of the others within hers—was spinning with deeper thoughts.

They had never imagined that such monumental events had unfolded while they were simply trying to survive. At the same time, they all wondered: who could possibly bear such a grudge against them, and be powerful enough to tamper with the original 'Will' of the Divine Mysteries, the same Will that had descended to judge them?

From the bizarre Will's words, the culprits pointed at the beings behind the Divine Corps, but they dismissed the thought.

How could such a young force harbour entities so terrifying?

Even true gods didn't dare attempt something so reckless. Doing so was a feat in itself. There was a reason the Divine Mysteries could oversee the main cosmic structure and keep the divines in check—'it' wasn't weak.

If they genuinely believed this, then they'd also have to consider the terrifying possibility that the Vylkr spawns could tamper with the original 'Will' of the Divine Mysteries.

After all, they could slay gods and Spirit Beasts with ease.

They shook their heads inwardly at the sheer weight of that revelation.

General Reynold, Oberon, and the women listening in all scrunched their faces in disbelief.

They finally understood why the bizarre Will of the Divine Mysteries had behaved so strangely. It truly had a few screws loose.

However, the revelation involving the Divine Corps unveiled a hidden layer of the enemy they thought they already knew.