"In the end, a Main God is merely a somewhat more powerful being within a single world. The ultimate end of the divine path is to transcend the Main God, merge with the Laws of a world, and enter the Star God Tier, becoming a God of All Gods."
"But even Star Gods and Dominators, the ultimate beings of their respective worlds, are nothing more than ordinary when compared to the vast, boundless Star Realm."
At this, the God of Truthās expression turned helpless. He sighed and continued, "The Power of that Black Flame World... We were helpless against it, unable even to glimpse the true face of their Dominator. In the end, the entire previous generation of the Dragon Race was wiped out."
"Itās easy to imagine, then, that the Power of the Black Flame World could not have been cultivated from a single world alone."
"Perhaps it has already corrupted countless worlds, and its Deities may have long surpassed the Dominator stage. Otherwise, its Power could never have been so great that the mere aftershocks of its Energy could corrupt other Deities."
"You have all felt the Law Power of the Black Flame. Its essence is clearly one of ultimate chaos and bloodlust. According to the Oracle from the Master of Truth, the source of its Power is likely related to the Laws born at the creation of the Star Realm. It wouldnāt be an exaggeration to call it the manifestation of the Star Realmās primordial chaos and Dark Law within the Material Interface."
"How could we possibly resist such a Power with our simple methods? For years, it has seemed as though our Oakland World was spared because we blocked the Star Road. But I ask you all to think..."
"Could it be that the Power of the Black Flame is so tyrannical, and it has corrupted so many worlds, that it simply couldnāt be bothered with us?"
"After all, the Dragon Race fled the Oakland World at the first opportunity. And what happened in the end? Iām sure you all know."
"Even after entering the Star Realm, the entire Dragon Race was precisely located and annihilated in the Star Sea. A Power that can do that... how horrifying is that? How could an enemy with such means be unable to descend into the portion of the Star Realm just outside the Oakland Continent?"
"The only reasons they havenāt destroyed our world are that we are perhaps too insignificant, or that their attention was entirely focused on the Dragon Race. Of course, I donāt deny this might also be related to the Master of Truthās protection over us."
"But no matter how you look at it, the Power of the Black Flame is already beyond our comprehension, beyond our ability to resist. Therefore, as I see it, the only path left is to sustain ourselves through continuous battle."
The God of Truth laid out everything he knew and suspected, plunging the assembled Deities into a heavy silence.
Indeed, the Power of the Black Flame was simply too terrifying.
Even now, the memory of the moments before their demise was enough to make these Deities tremble with fear.
Finally, the Beastman Forging God sighed and spoke up.
"The Star Realm is vast, and crises are everywhere."
"Setting aside the threat of the Black Flame, the very reason the Dragon Race came to our world during our age of ignorance is worth deep consideration."
"Sustaining ourselves through battle and fighting against the current is indeed our only path now. But thereās no need to lose heart. Before our Ascension to Divinity, did we not face countless hardships and crises?"
"We are simply retracing the path of a mortalās Ascension to Divinity all over again."
The God of Forgingās words immediately eased the silent atmosphere.
"Indeed. I quite agree with what Monique said."
"Weāve all endured a great deal to get from being mortals to where we are now as Deities."
"This is no time to lose heart."
"After all, we are all now under the protection of the Master of Truth. The Master of Truth has even allowed his Deputy to inherit the Ancient Power of the Dragon Race."
"As long as we proceed with caution in the Civilization War, we still have a chance."
The Deer-headed Deities spoke up again.
"That may be so, but we have yet to meet the one who inherited the Dragon Raceās Power."
"And we donāt know if, empowered by the mysterious Master of Truth, his strength has improved significantly compared to the previous generation of the Dragon Race."
The Deities all turned their gazes to the God of Truth in unison.
The reason was simple. The God of Truth was the first deity to be revived, and he had met Lince.
In response, the God of Truth looked helpless.
āAfter all, if Iām being honest, based on what I saw when I first met Lince...ā
āThereās still a significant gap in Body Type between Lince and the previous Space Dragon. He hasnāt even reached the stage of the Ancient Deities yet.ā
āI donāt know what the Body Type and Power of the previous Space Dragon were like before its Ascension to Divinity, but based on my preconceived notions...ā
āI feel that as the inheritor of the Dragon Raceās Power, even with help from the so-called Master of Truth, Lince shouldnāt be much stronger than the previous Space Dragon at the same Tier.ā
āAfter all, the Power of a Bloodline is continuous. In a world with Magic Power, the original Bloodline is often the strongest.ā
āLince is merely an inheritor. It makes me feel a bit uncertain.ā
āBut even with my doubts, his Power should be considerably greater than that of an ordinary deity.ā
The God of Truth was about to offer the other Deities some positive thoughts, but just as he hesitated, something happened.
Suddenly, the expressions of all the Deities, including the God of Truth, changed in shock.
A piece of information, similar to what a Player might see or hear, flashed through all of their minds.
"Well, speak of the devil."
"This inheritor of the Dragon Race is quite interesting. He initiated a Civilization War the moment he awakened."
"Itās just that, according to the information from the Master of Truth, the opponent this Dragon Race inheritor has chosen is... rather inconceivable."
At that moment, a deity from the Human Race camp frowned.
"A world with no Magic Power? Without any Extraordinary Power?"
"Can life even be born in such a world?"
"I suppose the vast Star Realm really is full of endless oddities."
"In a world without Magic Power or Extraordinary Power, I canāt imagine how weak its lifeforms must be. And yet, under such conditions, this civilization can still travel the Star Realm?"
"And what are these āIntelligent Mechanismsā? Based on the information, they sound a bit like creations of Alchemy."
"..."
The Deities burst into discussion. After all, since their very creation, they had only ever known a world with Magic Power.
Therefore, in their eyes, any world capable of sustaining life must possess Magic Power.
Without Magic Power, how could mortals strengthen themselves? How could a prosperous civilization possibly exist?
This gap in their knowledge and understanding filled the Deities with curiosity about the āIntelligent Mechanism Starā.
As a result, they were all quite interested in the war against the Intelligent Mechanism Star.
"So, whatās the verdict, everyone? Are we going or not?" one of the Deities asked.
"What else is there to say? Of course weāre going."
"This is an Oracle from the Master of Truth, after all. And this inheritor of the Dragon Race is clearly the Master of Truthās favorite. If we donāt go, weāll needlessly offend him, and that certainly wonāt end well for us."
"That goes without saying. We are already under the Master of Truthās protection. Thereās nothing more to discuss. We will do as he commands."
"Besides, we ourselves received great boons from the Dragon Race back in the age of ignorance. Given the current situation, thereās no reason to be coy."
"Letās just hope this new inheritor of the Dragon Race truly has the gravitas of his predecessors. Otherwise, our future interactions will certainly not be pleasant."
Some Deities sighed, and others hesitated, but all of them understood the reality of their situation.
The God of Truth merely smiled at their discussion.
"You can all rest assured on that point. I have, at the very least, met him."
"In terms of personality, I found him to have a certain dignity."
"If that werenāt the case, he wouldnāt have established an Empire in another world, much less gone to such great lengths to revive us Deities."
"Right now, Iām actually more curious about how far he has progressed. However, itās only been fifty-odd years, so I suppose we shouldnāt have expectations that are too high."
"Still, the fact that the Civilization War has successfully begun is good news in itself."
"It is time for us to make our move."
"..."