Chapter 526 (1): A Wise Man Knows Which Way the Wind Blows

“Zip it, please.” Wayne swatted Ines’s hand away and covered Her mouth.

In the Divine Realm of Sun, Ines wasn’t Kaleb’s match, and in the Divine Realm of Darkness, Kaleb wasn’t Ines’s match. To determine a victor, they would have to head to the Astral Plane, and Wayne could already imagine what would happen then: unable to defeat Ines, Kaleb would call Her bestie, Siluk, for help. The two of them might just reach a deuce with Ines, or perhaps the Goddess of Light would show up and humiliate the Goddess of Darkness.

Then, with Aztimor seeking to reap the benefits... The Astral Plane would be such a mess that, forget the Final Judgment, they should all just pick their coffins and lie in them. The thought of it gave Wayne the jitters. No wonder the five goddesses had been one-sidedly overpowered by Elohim back then. Their conflicts were so numerous that they couldn't possibly work together.

Also, he knew how Ines was. If She could tolerate even Aztimor, She would tolerate Kaleb, who had done nothing with Wayne. She just worried about Kaleb and Siluk having other plans when She saw that they hadn’t been corrupted, which was why She provoked Kaleb and dragged Siluk in as a package deal in order to take them both down.

It was the same old trick.

Wayne suggested Ines behave. The trick was useful, but She shouldn’t keep using it. Didn’t She know it would be unwise to manipulate someone brimming with fire elements like Kaleb? What if She had been waiting for an excuse to make a move?

Wayne looked around, seeing scowls, sneers, and sarcasm on their faces. The whole range of divine emotions was represented here.

It was fine. He could still salvage this!

It was imperative to provide distractions when unsolvable conflicts arose. The Final Judgment might be a decent excuse, but it had yet to come for the topic to be effective.

Elian, the Goddess of Nature, I chose you!

Wayne patted Ines on the backside and told Her to sit down properly. It was unbecoming of Her to sit on a man’s lap in public.

Huh? You’re sitting on your husband’s lap?

The point stands. This is a meeting, so be serious!

Also, stop showing off the ring.

Once the four goddesses had taken their seats, Wayne held himself like their leader and introduced himself to the two newcomers, including the situation with the Anointed One and the Lord of Deceit.

Heaven and Hell had been conquered, and the Goddesses of Darkness, Death, Sun, and Moonlight were working together. The only one missing was the Goddess of Nature.

“Elian is arrogant and snobbish, unable to tolerate anyone stronger than her,” Ines said. “Don’t think you can convince her with combat power. That ungrateful woman will only see it as humiliation. I suggest you corrupt her and turn her into your vassal.”

No one objected. Even Sun and Moonlight, who usually opposed Darkness on every turn, nodded vehemently. It was clear how notorious Elian was.

Wayne had never been through the War of Faiths, nor had he joined the Life Alliance. Thus, he had never seen the leading goddess in person, only getting glimpses of Her visage in Aztimor’s memories.

Nothing needed to be said about Her figure and looks. She was a real beauty. Given Her temperament, a haughty queen would be a more apt description for Her than a haughty goddess.

Like sweeping rainstorms and erupting volcanoes in nature, She would destroy every obstacle in Her way with dominant bearing and irresistible might. Then She would reform the landscapes and make all living beings follow Nature’s rules.

Stroking his chin, Wayne nodded at the four goddesses. “I’ve heard a thing or two about the Goddess of Nature’s way, so I’m not naive enough to think that I can persuade Her with my charm. I’ll heed your advice and knock Her to Her knees in the Divine Realm of Nature. Once She becomes my vassal, I’ll have Her serve you tea and call you Sister Goddess. You’ll like it.”

Ines couldn’t be more pleased, Aztimor’s eyes gleamed, and Kaleb and Siluk broke into smiles. All of them were fantasizing about tormenting the prideful Elian.

He had succeeded in redirecting their grievances!

He muttered an apology to Elian. He didn’t want to, but Elian only had Herself to blame for Her past behavior. To overcome the final judgment and to maintain world peace, he had no choice but to sacrifice the Goddess of Nature.

Ines was the first to wake up from Her daydream. “Why are you apologetic to Kaleb but hold no respect for Elian? Has She ever offended you before?”

“Not really. It’s just a necessary evil. Someone has to bear the weight for others to be in peace. If one goddess must suffer for the cause, why shouldn’t it be Elian?”

Wayne sighed. The actual reason was simple: Elian wasn’t at the meeting.

“I know,” Kaleb raised Her hand and said. “It’s because the Goddess of Sun is special, while Elian isn’t. There’s no reason to show her any consideration.”

Ines scoffed, then wordlessly studied the ring on Her finger.

Kaleb fumed. She hadn’t wanted to pursue anything but an amicable friendship with Wayne, but Darkness was too wicked. The woman didn’t deserve Wayne and needed a blow to Her prideful face.

Aztimor’s eyes lit up. She was about to fan the fire when She received Wayne’s telepathic order, forced to remain silent.

She hated this. What was wrong with speaking up for Ines, Her sister? Kaleb had Siluk supporting Her. Ines needed Her, too!

It was a mess. Knowing how risky it was to allow these women to stay like this, Wayne quickly said, “Let’s head to the Divine Realm of Nature now and get things done. We can’t waste more time.”

“Do you know the coordinates of the Divine Realm of Nature?” Siluk asked.

Wayne smirked. “I don’t, but I have someone who does.”

Soon, the five of them made it to the Palace of Eternity on the twelfth level of the Underworld. Wayne had tried his best to conceal the fact that the Underworld had been corrupted so that Siluk and Kaleb wouldn’t notice anything amiss. Kaleb, though, was intelligent enough to guess the truth, but it didn’t matter. The truth would remain in limbo with his plausible deniability.

It didn’t take long for the captive from the Divine Realm of Nature to be taken to them. It was The Destroyer, Juvian the Butterfly of Gravity.

ˉ(°_o)/ˉ

He had been locked up in the Underworld since Wayne defeated him, receiving a beating every three days and a serious beating every five days. Life had been hard for him.

Wayne had imprisoned Juvian to test the waters, and the result was good. The Divine Realm of Nature had not reacted to the subordinate god’s disappearance, which meant that Elian was still in slumber and had not achieved the feat of becoming the Goddess of Life.

It would be five against one sleeping beauty. They had this in the bag.

Juvian looked at the visitors in terror. Death, Darkness, Sun, and Moonlight—all of the goddesses save for the one he worshipped had gathered, accompanied by Wayne, who could rival a god...

For whom had they come together? The answer was obvious: whoever wasn’t present.

Juvian wasn’t one to back down, but he was helpless with all the seals restraining him. He couldn’t even die. However, he trusted his iron will and loyalty. No matter how they interrogated him, he would not open his mouth.

It’s all for the goddess!

“There’s a saying in my home country: A wise man knows which way the wind blows. You should work with us and give us the coordinates of the Divine Realm of Nature, then we’ll treat you right.”

Wayne paused. It felt like he had gotten the wrong script. Those weren’t lines that should come from a hero.

Juvian scoffed at the five god-level beings. Rather than closing his eyes and waiting for death, he snarled and cursed out in an attempt to anger his opponents for a swift death.

“Good. I like someone with a backbone like you.” Wayne gave him a thumbs-up. Since he had gone through the necessary process, he got on with the real interrogation. He tossed a pale octopus out. Landing on Juvian’s face, it reached its eight tentacles into Juvian’s mouth, nose, and eyes.

Juvian’s head snapped back as his eyes turned pale. He couldn’t even make a sound. Under his bulging skin, white foam and tentacles slithered down his neck and spread to the rest of his body in no time.

It’s beyond insidious! Siluk made a face, nudging at Kaleb. “See? That’s what will happen to us.”

Kaleb was tired of the sarcasm. She made a decisive response: “So? Can you resist?”

“...”

“If not, why would you keep bringing it up? Are you riling him up on purpose to draw his attention?”

“...”

Siluk turned away. Even so, She refused to leave Kaleb on Her own.

Once the corruption was complete, Juvian got on one knee and saluted Wayne with one hand on his chest. His expression was conflicted, mixing his loyalty to Wayne and his lingering admiration for Elian. Lips pursed, he said flatly, “My master, Nature is a goddess who values order. She is not your enemy.”

“I know. I don’t see Her as an enemy.” Wayne went up to help Juvian up, patting him on the shoulder. “How’s your new life?”

“I’ve come to understand everything!” Juvian said with excitement.

“The Goddess of Nature will experience the same rebirth. Any other questions?”

“No.”

Juvian nodded. The goddess needed a rebirth, and Wayne could grant Her that. Everything was going in the right direction.

“In that case, stop wasting our time. Lead the way. We shouldn’t keep the Goddess of Nature waiting.”

“This way. I know a shortcut.”

***

Nature was a broad concept that embodied everything in the world. It was a totality incorporating all of the universe. In the broadest sense, it was the natural, physical, material world or universe.

Also included were the things, phenomena, and patterns in nature. In mages’ terms, the whole universe was nature, and the knowledge in the Astral Plane was no exception.

The concept was so broad that life was part of it, too. If Elian could truly incorporate everything, She wouldn’t have been so obsessed with becoming the Goddess of Life; She would just continue to be the Goddess of Nature.

In the sacred text of the Church of Nature, the Goddess of Nature was portrayed as the spiritual manifestation of the land, forest, mountain ranges, rivers, and oceans. Her beauty represented the essence and harmony of nature.

The concept was divided and represented in each level of the Divine Realm of Nature: Cliff of Ranges, Domain of Lava, Realm of Deep Sea, Bastion of Storm, Wasteland of Light, Abyss of Darkness, Marsh of Souls, Ice Cavern of Memories, Desert of Wisdom, Bluff of Will, Island of Thoughts, Dimension of Space, Turbulence of Time, Kingdom of Forest, Ocean of Order, and Source of Life.

There were sixteen levels in total, more than any other Divine Realm.

Some of them were quite pointed attacks on some goddesses, such as the Wasteland of Light, Abyss of Darkness, and Marsh of Souls. Said goddesses should know they were the targets, so there was no need to name Kaleb, Siluk, Ines, and Aztimor.

The four goddesses had every reason to hate Elian. She was arrogant. Though She called Herself the Goddess of Nature, She had expanded the concept of Nature manifold when constructing Her Divine Realm. Not only had She implied their inferiority by incorporating their names, but She had also described them with negative words like ‘wasteland’, ‘abyss’, and ‘marsh’.

She was arrogant, overbearing, haughty, and imperious. Wayne was being too kind when he described Her as a queen. Her past infamy as Nature’s Sovereign was proof of Her oppressive personality.

Call me Your Majesty!

Wayne had few ways to deal with strong, independent women like Her. Based on his success with Silvia and Senna, to win a strong, independent woman over, he had to either call her mom or make her call him daddy.

Wayne had already adopted a mother, Silvia, so he didn’t need another one. He decided to follow his experience with Senna and corrupt Elian into his vassal.

Of course, he was only going to replicate the corruption part. Make Her call him daddy? Tsk, the queen seemed like someone who would be cracking a whip around, overlapping with the traits of a tentacled monster. They were most likely both doms, and two doms wouldn’t fit together.