Silence. A deathly silence.
After Indra spoke, the world instantly fell quiet. Even the wind seemed to stop, as if stunned by his shameless words.
This was in front of billions of gods, and in front of all their followers in the Lower Realms. With the weight of the divine host and a presence that could now likely destroy multiple universes, they were now facing a mere human, enduring such humiliation and speaking such aggrieved lines?
Even if she was Su Mo's lover, wasn't being this humble a bit too much of an exaggeration?!
Indra, where is your pride as a War God?! As one of the Twelve Devas, the leader of the benevolent gods, aren't you ashamed to say such things?
Even his colleagues, Prithvi and the newly appointed Surya, Karna, were stunned for a moment upon hearing the venerable god say such a thing.
To cower so completely before a mere human—never mind his colleagues, even his enemies couldn't bear to watch.
There were more than a few hot-tempered War Gods who, though not angered by Canary, were now enraged by Indra's shameful display.
However, a second impulsive god like the one before did not emerge from the divine host.
It wasn't because they had cultivated themselves and learned self-control, but because they had all witnessed the power of Indra's slap.
No matter how they slandered Indra's character or mocked his weakness, no god could deny his strength.
The divine light containing the art of the "Buddha's Palm Kingdom," the hand speed that reached the Sixth Cosmic Velocity, making it impossible for even a three-digit being to dodge, and the power to easily seal a three-digit god—all of it was proof that Indra's strength was not as weak as his actions suggested.
If they, the war faction, couldn't even withstand a single slap from Indra of the peace faction...
...then they had no right to stand before him and question him.
If even such a powerful being was so terrified, his posture so pliant, what right did they have to act tough?
Moreover, the most important factor was the stance of the leader of the billions of gods, the Buddhist World-Honored One.
Faced with Indra's unauthorized action against a colleague and his overstepping apology that damaged the dignity of the gods, the World-Honored One kept his eyes closed in silent meditation, not uttering a single word.
Tacit approval was tantamount to indulgence... In other words, even the Buddha did not object to Indra's plea.
The gods of might could not overcome the barrier that was Indra, and the gods of wisdom understood the terrifying possibility from the World-Honored One's stance.
Since these two types of gods dared not step forward, the other gods naturally dared not act rashly.
For a time, Indra naturally became the representative of the divine host.
The billions of gods were powerless to stop him, able only to stand silently behind him and watch how things developed.
The people from the Lower Realms didn't even dare to breathe, afraid of missing the decisive moment.
In this deathly silence, the first to break the peace was, surprisingly, Canary.
"Seriously, Indra, do you have to go this far?"
While the other gods held back for various reasons, Canary, for once, was finding it hard to maintain her composure.
Having dealt with Indra often, she understood his personality perfectly and knew this useless god had a low bottom line.
But still...
"No matter what, it shouldn't be like this, right?"
She couldn't help but retort.
No matter how shameless he was, he shouldn't embarrass himself to this degree in front of billions of gods. Indra was being too extreme.
Seeing the look in Canary's eyes, Indra covered his face in resignation.
"Don't look at me like you've just seen the pure and innocent class beauty from high school working at a nightclub. That look of pity is a bit too sharp. You might as well just curse me out!"
"No, no, no, you're a far cry from a pure class beauty. At best, you're like a fanservice model going pro. I'm just a little surprised, not completely unable to understand. Don't flatter yourself."
Canary quickly waved her hands.
"Damn, your words are so hurtful!"
Indra looked like he was in so much pain he couldn't breathe.
"You're the one who chose to embarrass yourself. You can't blame anyone else."
Canary's expression remained unmoved.
Seeing her like this, Indra spread his hands helplessly and said with a bitter face.
"I don't want to be this shameless either, but what choice do I have?"
"I know that fool's proposal was outrageous, and I know those guys have no right to meddle in Lord Su Mo's private affairs. Fools like him who can't see reality and still want to resort to force in this situation are indeed numerous among our divine host. For their disrespect, it wouldn't be strange if Lord Su Mo executed them... But, we really do have something we must understand and need to ask you!"
With that, he let out a sigh.
"Since conventional methods are inconvenient, we can only use unconventional ones. But using threats is not only rude, it's suicidal."
"After thinking it over, it seems there's no other way but to kneel and beg you."
By the end, he actually managed to sound righteous and confident.
Even with these reasons, could they, as gods, kneel because of this?
"Are you trying to guilt-trip me?"
Canary paused, realizing something, then spoke in a tactful tone.
"It's a bit embarrassing to say, but I don't have much of a conscience, especially towards a useless god like you. Even if you kneel, I won't feel bad..."
It was less of a guilt trip and more like emotional blackmail. The gods are kneeling and begging you, how can you remain unmoved?
Unfortunately for them, Canary could. At least, when it came to Indra, she felt no psychological burden.
"..."
Your words are even more fucking hurtful!
Indra's face darkened.
What was more shameful than kneeling was that kneeling didn't even solve the problem. Was his pride worth so little to Canary?
Fortunately, he was clever, or rather, had a very clear understanding of himself, so he had already anticipated this situation.
Therefore, upon hearing her response, Indra immediately turned to Athena and the gods of the Greek pantheon.
"Would you still not care if Athena, Orpheus, and your other former teachers knelt with me?"
That's right, Indra was going all-in on the guilt trip today.
He himself might not carry much weight, but the gods of the Greek pantheon were the teachers who had guided Canary's growth. They had an excellent relationship with her. If they knelt and begged her, could Canary still refuse?
"Indra!"
"You bastard!"
"Fuck you!"
Indra's words immediately drew furious glares from the Greek gods.
It was one thing for him to kneel, but he was dragging them down with him.
If the situation weren't so urgent, Athena would have loved to pry his head open and shut him up for good.
However, the angry curses and rebukes were swallowed before they could be spoken.
Under Zeus's thunder, all the gods of the Greek pantheon fell silent. Though their faces were still filled with indignation, none disobeyed.
Father God Zeus's meaning was clear: he agreed with Indra's proposal and was willing to let him use the identity of Canary's teachers to apply pressure.
"?!"
Realizing this, Canary's eyes widened in astonishment.
Wait, what was going on? What could have pushed Zeus to this extent?
Even the hero gods, who were usually independent and wouldn't necessarily listen to Zeus, voiced no objections at this moment.
"So, what exactly is going on?"
What could possibly make the divine host, which usually maintained a basic level of decorum, suddenly become so undignified that even the hero gods had to compromise?
"Hmm, you really don't know?"
Seeing that the confusion in Canary's eyes was not feigned, Indra asked in surprise.
"Know what?"
"The End Emptiness at the center of Little Garden. Wasn't that your doing?"
Indra said.
At the mention of the name "End Emptiness," the billions of gods looked sorrowful.
"The End Emptiness... has already descended?!"
Hearing this, Canary finally understood why the billions of gods had come to visit as a group, why they were all acting like their asses were on fire, why they had blocked the gate the moment she returned, and why Indra was so desperate that he had abandoned his last shred of dignity.
It was Little Garden's greatest crisis, and the gods' greatest enemy, the End Emptiness, that had appeared.
"Strange, isn't it a bit early for it to appear?"
Canary muttered.
When she looked up, she found everyone staring at her. Indra's eyes were practically glowing.
"So, it really is related to you?!"
With all the gods staring at her intently, Canary nodded with a natural expression.
"It's slightly related. So, how far has the End Emptiness progressed?"
"It first descended in the single-digit domain of Little Garden, and now it's devouring the double-digit domain."
When it came to business, Indra's expression became incredibly grave.
Without even taking the time to ask what "slightly related" meant, he described Little Garden's current situation at a rapid pace.
"It's not just the sovereign domains of the double-digits; even the mythological histories they belong to are being eroded and devoured. If this continues, the entire double-digit domain, even the entire Celestial Realm, will become food for the End Emptiness! It will be turned into a dead land!"
As mentioned before, Little Garden was divided into regions and power levels by digits.
The five-digits were the middle layer, six and seven-digits were the lower layer, four-digits were the upper layer—a demonic paradise—and three-digits and above were the Celestial Realm.
In reality, only the regions of the double-digits and below were widely utilized. Although the single-digit region was the absolute core of Little Garden, no one else had ever set foot there, nor were there any structures.
This was because the only recognized single-digit being in Little Garden's history was the End Emptiness. Only it was qualified to reside in the single-digit region, but it had no concept of "residing," and as the embodiment of eschatology, its true form was usually not summoned.
This time, however, all conventions had been broken.
"Descending from the single-digit domain... that means this isn't a clone of the End Emptiness, but its true form as a single-digit being!"
Even Canary's voice couldn't help but tremble with a hint of awe.
Excluding Su Mo, whose depths even she couldn't fathom, the End Emptiness was positioned as the strongest Demon Lord in Little Garden... bar none.
She never thought that one day, she would have the chance to face this supreme being directly.
"That's right!"
Indra nodded.
"Whether it was the World-Honored One or the Twin Goddesses, they were powerless before the true form of the End Emptiness. They were almost killed by its passive counterattack."
Recalling the battle between those Full-Authority Domains and the End Emptiness, a trace of terror flashed even in Indra's eyes.
As a three-digit "breaker" Buddhist guardian god and one of Little Garden's creators, it was the first time he had ever seen a being that could nearly annihilate the pinnacle of Asura Gods and Buddhas—the double-digits—with a passive counter that couldn't even be considered a basic attack.
The memory of that scene made him shudder.
So he could somewhat understand why the War God he had sealed with a slap had been so agitated.
After witnessing such a terrifying scene, it was normal to lose one's mental balance, to be unable to judge calmly, to become hysterical.
To be terrified by the world's top Demon Lord, to seek a solution, only to be slighted by a mere human girl who used "morning temper" as an excuse—who could remain calm?
"The End Emptiness can not only devour the sovereign domains of the double-digits, not only devour the Spiritual Status of Full-Authority Domains, but it can also devour Little Garden, and even mythological history itself!"
"If we hadn't left, all of us, along with our respective mythological universes, would have been completely devoured by the End Emptiness by now!"
Indra said, looking directly into Canary's eyes.
"I see..."
The fox-like girl nodded slightly, then scanned the billions of gods before her, and sure enough, she saw the panic on many of their faces.
"So you're not here to cause trouble. You're here as refugees."
It was different from what the people of the Lower Realms thought, and different from what Canary had seen at first glance.
The reason the billions of gods had gathered before Arcadia, the reason they were so silent and oppressive, was not to apply pressure or to demonstrate their power.
Even if some of them wanted to, those who had witnessed Su Mo take on the entire divine host alone would never allow them to make such a foolish challenge again.
In truth, they were merely the generals of a defeated army, driven out by the End Emptiness. Billions of gods who didn't even dare return to their home, the Celestial Realm. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them stray dogs.
The anger of the irritable gods stemmed not from pride, but from bone-deep fear.
"It's not pleasant to hear, but it's true."
Even Indra nodded, acknowledging Canary's judgment.
Then, he glanced at the divine host behind him.
"Although, some of them haven't accepted that fact yet."