The atmosphere in the ancient hall where the God Realm Committee was located was extremely tense at this moment.
In the main hall, all six current God Kings of the God Realm—except for the Asura God—were present and seated in rows.
Below the main hall, 34 out of the 36 major gods in the gods' domain were already listed.
With the return of the Ice God, the Angel God ascending to God King status, the Rakshasa God perishing through self-sacrifice, and the Sea God being imprisoned, only 34 main gods remained in the God Realm.
All the major gods wore solemn expressions and emitted deeply focused auras.
Behind the main gods, numerous secondary gods and tertiary gods nearly filled the hall's area.
This was a gathering of the gods, an extremely rare sight in the history of the God Realm.
The last time such a grand event occurred was when the Dragon God War ended and the God Realm's order was fully established.
Every god present knew that a momentous judgment shaping the future of the gods' domain was about to be handed down today.
Countless complex gazes intertwined and eventually converged on the black figure standing at the center of the hall.
Despite being under countless stares, the Evil God's face—which usually wore a charming and unrestrained smile—was now calm, with faint traces of fatigue and even relief.
He took a deep breath, swept his gaze across the entire room, and paused briefly when it landed on Qian Renxue's cold face. A bitter smile flickered deep in his eyes.
"Ladies and gentlemen," the Evil God's voice resounded through the hall. Gone was his former frivolity; his tone was one of quietly accepting everything.
"I believe you all already understand why we are holding this emergency meeting in the God Realm."
"Today's agenda: thoroughly investigate and resolve the unresolved case of the previous generation's Angel Gods' fall!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the hall fell into a deathly silence. What Chen Yi had questioned outside the hall had already spread, and every god now knew that the Evil God had been aware of the Angel God's death at the time.
Despite these gazes, the Evil God continued speaking. Before all the gods, he unhesitatingly recounted the long-buried dark past.
The Angel God had keenly sensed the Asura God's killing intent and reported it to the Evil God, who held central power in the God Realm. However, the Evil God had forcefully covered it up. Later, on the outskirts of the God Realm, the Asura God colluded with the Sea God Poseidon to launch a surprise attack on the Angel God. Ultimately, the Angel God's divine body was destroyed, her authorities were split, and she was completely annihilated.
The Evil God, who held central power in the gods' domain, had actually detected everything shortly after the battle began but chose to remain silent.
Even later, when the Destruction God repeatedly investigated, the Evil God secretly intervened multiple times, causing the tragedy to be completely concealed and remain an unsolved mystery to this day.
"...That is the truth of what happened back then." The Evil God's voice was terrifyingly quiet.
"I, the evil one, as a God King, deliberately broke the law, sheltered the murderer, ignored the tragedy, repeatedly obstructed investigations, and concealed the truth. My sins are heinous and undeniable."
He raised his head, swept his gaze across the entire arena once more, and finally fixed it on Chen Yi and Qian Renxue before slowly turning toward the other God Kings.
"I, the evil one, will gladly accept any judgment from the gods' council..."
Having said this, the Evil God appeared as if he had laid down an eternal burden, replaced almost by a sense of liberation and peace.
After a short silence in the main hall, even more intense commotion and incredulous whispers erupted.
The gods already knew from Chen Yi that the Evil God had been aware of or tacitly approved the matter at the time. But when he admitted not only awareness and tacit approval but also concealment, obstruction, and cover-up, the shock was immeasurable.
Especially the ancient gods who had survived from the earliest eras—they had witnessed this Evil God King holding the scales of judgment when the God Realm was first established. He was known for his selflessness and fairness, having adjudicated countless disputes and established the authority of the God Realm's laws.
They could not understand how someone who had once been a just and impartial enforcer of the law had fallen into such a state.
"Evil!" The Goddess of Life's voice trembled with uncontrollable emotion as she asked coldly.
"Why... why did you do this?!"
"You must have known it was wrong! You could have stopped it!"
Faced with the Goddess of Life's questioning, the Evil God fell silent. He slowly lowered his eyes, hiding complex emotions. After a while, he finally looked up, stared at the Goddess of Life, the Good God, and the Destruction God, then let out a long sigh.
"From the beginning of time until today... after countless lifetimes of gods, what remains for me... is only you."
Though spoken quietly, these words struck the hearts of the Goddess of Life, the Good God, and the Destruction God like thunder!
They understood immediately.
Since stepping down from his position as the law-enforcing god, this oldest God King had seemed to play around in the human world, displaying a charming and unrestrained demeanor. In reality, he was using this method to resist the decline of divinity brought by eternal godly life and to maintain his humanity.
He regarded the other four God Kings born alongside him as his only family and the last anchor to preserve humanity within the cold sea of divinity.
For the sake of this friendship, he ultimately betrayed his own beliefs, the laws of the gods' domain, and even his own conscience.
This choice stemmed from the human tendency to stubbornly uphold loyalty and justice, but because he was a God King, it led to tragic consequences.
Chen Yi quietly sighed in his heart.
From a human perspective, the Evil God's act of protecting old friends went against personal morality.
The problem was that he was not an ordinary human. He was a king of the gods, possessing the power of the gods' domain and ruling over all worlds.
Every choice he made affected the very foundation of the gods' order. His bias had led to the tragic death of another god and the concealment of the truth for thousands of years!
For a God King, maintaining the balance between divinity and humanity while preserving the highest godhood was almost an impossible dream.
The Evil God had tried, but in the process he lost his way and committed a grave mistake.
However, that was by no means a reason to conceal, condone, or obstruct the investigation.
If it was wrong, it was wrong.
As if sensing Chen Yi's thoughts, the Evil God turned his gaze toward him again. There was no resentment in his eyes—only a calm and composed expression.
"The evil one knows his sins are unforgivable and is prepared to accept any judgment."
The Good God slowly stood up. A serene calm lingered on her gentle face.
"I was already aware of this matter and indirectly obstructed the investigation several times during the destruction and pursuit."
"I too... have committed sins. I am prepared to accept the gods' judgment alongside the evil one."
Even the Good God had confessed her own sins!
These words made the atmosphere in the hall even heavier. Good and Evil—these two were the most authoritative God Kings in the gods' domain.
Their influence ran deep, and even Chen Yi, who now possessed astonishing power, could not match their prestige.
The simultaneous confession by the two oldest God Kings carried immeasurable influence and subsequent effects!
The Destruction God suddenly stood up. His usually cold, hard face twitched slightly, his eyes filled with conflict.
He glanced at the Evil God, then at the Good God, and finally at Chen Yi.
He should not leave the trial of these two to Chen Yi. Chen Yi had just forcefully killed the Asura God not long ago, and the aura of slaughter still lingered. If he were to judge the most renowned ancient God Kings—even if the process was fair—it would easily give the gods the impression of tyranny and stir up their latent fears and unease.
"Ooh..."
Just as the Destruction God opened his mouth to propose a judgment plan, a faint laugh broke the silence.
It was the Evil God. He looked at the hesitant Destruction God as if wanting to say something, then at the silent gods. A complex smile appeared on his lips.
"If no one will judge me," the Evil God's voice resounded through the hall, "then I shall... judge myself."
The Evil God scanned his surroundings, gazing at the gods with various expressions, and finally fixed his eyes on Qian Renxue's golden-black pupils, which burned with the flames of revenge.
"The sinful Evil God, possessing the power of oversight, sheltered the murderer, ignored the tragedy, repeatedly obstructed investigations, and concealed the truth, causing justice to be delayed for thousands of years and the oppressed souls to remain unjudged..."
"His sins are unforgivable!"
"According to the ancient laws of the gods' domain, those who deliberately break the law and commit even graver sins shall fall into eternal hell!"
He turned his head, scanned the room once more, and finally asked quietly, "Everyone... what do you think of this punishment?"
"Eternal hell?!"
The hall fell into chaos! Countless gods cried out in shock!
This punishment... was too severe! It was even more cruel than the punishment Chen Yi had given Poseidon!
Eternal hell meant having most of one's divinity and memories stripped away, being thrown into endless reincarnation, experiencing suffering across countless lives, tasting the bitterness of all beings, and cleansing one's sins.
In each reincarnation, they would lose divine protection and become no different from ordinary people, experiencing birth, aging, illness, death, love, hate, separation, and all kinds of misfortune and suffering.
No one knew whether the true soul that returned after countless reincarnations would still be the same god.
There were dangers far beyond imagination! It could even be called a slow death that was longer and more painful than the complete annihilation of body and soul!
The Evil God had chosen such a cruel punishment for himself.
The Good God smiled quietly. Her voice remained as gentle as ever, but her unwavering resolve did not change.
"I... will do the same."
"Evil! Good! You—"
The Destruction God finally could not hold back. He let out a low roar, and a rare flash of concerned appeared on his usually cold, expressionless face.
What he wanted to say was to demand that the two relinquish their god positions and be imprisoned for ten thousand years... He was willing to accept any conditions.
But eternal hell? The price was far too great. He had never imagined punishing his two beloved friends, with whom he had spent countless years, in such a way.
The Evil God looked at the Destruction God. For a moment, gentleness appeared in his crimson eyes. His smile lost all evil and dignity, leaving only pure emotion.
"Destruction, as I said... from the beginning of time, you alone have been everything to me."
"Besides, if one does wrong, one should be punished. This is the retribution I deserve."
He stopped looking at the Destruction God's pained, struggling eyes and instead turned to all the gods in the hall, his voice regaining its dignity.
"...If no one objects to this verdict... then so be it."
The Good God approached the Goddess of Life, gazed at her slightly reddened eyes, reached out to gently wipe away nonexistent traces of tears from the corners of her eyes, and spoke softly.
"We are merely undergoing a trial, not dying, so there is no need to worry."
She paused, swept her gaze across the corridor at familiar and unfamiliar faces, and finally spoke clearly.
"In the lower world's Five Elements dimension, Evil and I noticed two beings with considerable potential. After we depart, our divine positions will be inherited by them."
"At that time, please take good care of them and ensure the divine positions are not tarnished."
The Evil God stepped forward and stood shoulder to shoulder with the Good God. He gave the Good God a smile unlike any he had ever shown before—as if he had cast off all pretense. Then he turned to the gods and bowed deeply.
"Everyone... until we meet again."
"We... shall go first."
The moment the words were spoken—
Boom!
Two indescribably dazzling sacred lights suddenly erupted from the Evil God and the Good God.
Two beams of black and white light rose, instantly enveloping the entire God Realm Council Hall. Most gods could not help but close their eyes.
Only God King-level beings could barely discern the two figures gradually turning transparent at the center of the light.
As the sacred light that had illuminated all worlds slowly faded, the central spot in the hall where the Evil God and Good God had stood was now empty.
Judgment like pure crimson crystal and a heart filled with transparent gentleness.
Beside the two sacred relics, the God King thrones belonging to Evil and Good now stood silently, ownerless, quietly awaiting the arrival of their successors.
The Destruction God stared blankly at the two empty thrones, then at the floating thrones and super artifacts. His body shook uncontrollably. He opened his mouth but found no voice would come out.
The Goddess of Life clenched her fists tightly, her knuckles turning white. Tears welled in her emerald-green eyes, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall.
Chen Yi and Qian Renxue exchanged glances, reading the complex emotions in each other's eyes.
Thus, with the departure of the two oldest God Kings, the unresolved mystery spanning thousands of years came to an end.
The two stood up simultaneously, bowed lightly to the empty thrones, and performed a solemn sacred ritual.
"...To the God Kings."
"Send off the God Kings."
Immediately after, the Goddess of Life, the Destruction God, and all the gods in the hall bowed their heads in unison. Their solemn voices became a surging torrent echoing throughout the ancient temple.
"Send off the God Kings!"
…