Beyond the ancestral feuds of the Three Factions, Sona Sitri provided a detailed breakdown of the world's power structures and the strength classifications beyond the "Satan-Class."
The Three Realms were vast. While they appeared to exist on a single planet surrounded by the infinite void of space, the reality was a "Great World" of a flat-earth nature. This truth, however, could only be perceived by those who reached the God-Class.
Just as the Ten Primary Gods occupied a corner of Heaven, many other mythological factions were active across the globe. Angels, Devils, and Fallen Angels were merely the strongest forces in this specific region. Nearby were the Eastern Myths, Greek Myths, Norse Myths, Egyptian Myths, and other powerful entities. All these factions evolved over eons after the primordial gods returned to the world's source.
War was constant within these mythologies as well. For example, the Eastern Mythos had seen the Great War of the Three Races (Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin), the War of the Magi and Demons, the Investiture of Gods, and the struggle between Taoism and Buddhism. It was far more intense than the Great War of the Three Factions. If not for this internal strife, the Eastern Faction would undoubtedly dominate the world.
As for the local Japanese deities, they weren't even recognized on the global stage. The so-called "Eight Million Gods" were viewed by outsiders as nothing more than eight million pieces of low-level fodder. While a few top-tier powerhouses existed among them, the truth was that they were mostly losers who had failed in the Eastern Mythos and fled to a corner of the world to hide. This was why the Three Factions had invaded Japan so easily.
The reason the Three Factions were desperate for a peace treaty was the realization that they couldn't afford to fight anymore. Their foundations weren't as deep as the Eastern Mythos. If they continued their internal attrition, they would be erased from history the moment another mythological faction decided to invade. Furthermore, history showed that what is long divided must unite. As other mythologies settled their internal wars, inter-mythological conflict was inevitable. To face future crises, the Three Factions had to stop consuming one another.
Ethan nodded as he listened. Seeing Sona talk for so long, he thoughtfully handed her a glass of water to soothe her throat. These ancient secrets were fascinating, but he cared more about the ceiling of power in this world.
"President Sona, how strong were those primordial gods exactly?"
"It's impossible to verify now," Sona took a sip of water, her voice regaining its clarity. "But if their deaths didn't transform into the source of the world, the world would have likely been destroyed by their battles long ago."
She then began explaining the hierarchy of top-tier powerhouses. At the absolute peak, at the level of the primordial gods, were those known as Evil Gods. There were a few in the Three Realms, but not many. They were virtually immortal, only capable of falling in battles against Outer Evil Gods from the void. Because external entities watched the Three Realms, this rank was often called "Evil God," though those who guarded the world were referred to as Beyond Dragon-God Class.
Below that was Super Dragon-God Class, followed by Dragon-God Class, Sub-Dragon-God Class, and Primary God Class.
Primary God Class was essentially God-Class. While not numerous, they existed in every faction under different titles. This was the origin of the "Ten Primary Gods." There were various paths to this level, including: God-Class, Primary God, Heavenly Dragon-Class, Transcendental, and High Deity.
Below God-Class was Super Satan-Class (EX+), while Satan-Class was (EX). Further down was SSS-Class, which Devils called "Ultimate-Class" and Angels/Fallen Angels referred to as "Ten-Winged" beings—Ethan's current level. The equivalent to Satan-Class was "Twelve-Winged," held by the likes of Michael and Shemhaza.
Ethan committed these ranks to memory. He had seen everything below God-Class; it was the levels above that mattered now. The Two Heavenly Dragons, once a vague concept, were now clear: they were merely at the entry-level of God-Class, with several massive realms above them.
"Those above God-Class rarely show their faces in the Three Realms," Sona concluded. "They mostly reside in the infinite void of the universe. Their destructive power is too great for the Three Realms to handle, and this world can no longer provide the energy they need for cultivation. By default, God-Class beings do not interfere in the affairs of the Three Realms, making the 'Super Satan-Class' the current functional ceiling."
Three days passed in a flash. Due to the summit preparations, Ethan's plan to help Rias and the others level up was temporarily shelved. To avoid any "bad influences" or distractions before the big meeting, the "treatment" of the girls was paused. Ethan spent those three days catching up on his own strength.
June 20th, Sunday. 9:00 AM.
Ethan and the girls of the Occult Research Club stepped onto the teleportation circle. After the familiar spatial distortion, they appeared in the living room of a mountain villa styled like a medieval European castle. Ethan scanned the room and saw familiar faces.
At the black marble round table sat Sirzechs Lucifer, the red-haired Satan. Next to him was a cute girl with black twin-tails—Sona's older sister and one of the current Four Great Satans, Serafall Leviathan.
"President Sona, Tsubaki, good morning," Ethan greeted. The two "glasses-girls" merely nodded silently. Everyone, including Rias's group, was uncharacteristically quiet. The presence of two Satans and the weight of the meeting clearly had the girls under immense pressure.
Ethan shrugged. He didn't feel much pressure, but seeing the usually playful Sirzechs and Serafall looking so solemn, he rubbed his nose and stayed quiet.
Soon, two more spatial ripples appeared. Michael, the representative of Heaven and one of the four Seraphs, appeared in golden armor with a gentle smile and a halo. Beside him was a man with short white hair and glasses, looking like a scholar.
Standing behind the scholar was a trendy-looking teenager with flowing silver-gray hair and arrogant eyes. When he looked at Ethan, there was a faint hint of hostility. Ethan glanced back, unbothered. He recognized him: Vali Lucifer, the current White Dragon Emperor. The scholar in front of him must be Shemhaza, the one who took over after Azazel's "disappearance."
As Michael and Shemhaza took their seats, Vali stood behind them against the wall, mirroring Ethan's position behind Rias.
"Allow me to introduce everyone. This is my sister and her peerage..." Sirzechs began. The four Satan-Class powerhouses exchanged pleasantries before getting straight to business.
Each faction had its hawks—those who wanted war— since these leaders were here, internal dissent was clearly under control. Due to Ethan's "butterfly effect," the meeting proceeded much more smoothly than the original timeline. The Fallen Angels didn't even bring up Azazel's death as a point of contention. It seemed every faction felt the external pressure and desperately needed a period of peace and recovery.
With a preliminary agreement reached, the leaders turned their attention to Ethan and Vali—the Red and White Dragon Emperors of this generation.
"Now," Shemhaza paused, "we would like to hear from the two who exist outside our factions but possess the power to move the world. Red Dragon Emperor, White Dragon Emperor... what are your thoughts?"
Vali leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "I don't care about politics. As long as I can fight strong opponents, I'm satisfied."
"Even without a war, there are plenty of strong opponents," Shemhaza noted.
Vali glanced at Ethan. "True enough."
"And you... Red Dragon Emperor? What is your desire?"