Judging Poseidon

Poseidon knelt on the cold floor of the hall, his face pale as paper and fine beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

This trial in the God Realm had been convened personally by the usually good-tempered Kindness God King.

When the gods received the notice, most of them had no idea what had happened. It was not until the Kindness God King rose from her divine throne and publicly read out Poseidon's crimes that they understood.

"Sea God Poseidon, while entrusted with the custody of Angel God's Divine Trial, secretly stole Angel God's authority of Purification and used his own divine power to contaminate Angel God's Divine Trial, damaging Angel God's inheritance. His actions gravely violated the laws of the God Realm, desecrated the dignity of a fallen deity, and betrayed this God King's trust."

The Kindness God King's voice echoed through the hall, calm yet icy. Every word was like a blade wrapped in frost, falling upon the Sea God.

The expressions of the gods changed.

Stealing the authority of a fallen deity was among the gravest crimes in the God Realm.

After a deity fell, their authority and divine seat were to be completely sealed within their divine trial, awaiting inheritance by the next successor.

This had been an unshakable rule of the God Realm for countless years. Any attempt to lay hands on the authority of a fallen deity was a challenge to the entire order of the God Realm.

What was more, the Sea God had stolen Angel God's authority. Angel God was a deity under the Kindness God King, and out of trust, she had even placed Angel God's Divine Trial in the Sea God's care. What he had done was practically a slap across the Kindness God King's face.

After reading out the Sea God's crimes, the Kindness God King paused briefly. Her cold gaze swept over the Sea God kneeling on the ground, then she raised her head and looked around at the gods present before stating her proposed sentence, word by word.

"The Sea God's crime is unforgivable. I propose stripping him of his divine seat and casting him into the lower realm!"

The entire hall was stunned.

Stripping a god of their divine seat and casting them into the lower realm was the harshest punishment in the God Realm, second only to the complete destruction of soul and spirit.

Since the founding of the God Realm, only a handful of deities had received such a punishment.

The gods knew that the Kindness God King was truly enraged this time, but they had not expected her fury to reach such a degree.

"This must not be done!" As soon as the Kindness God King finished speaking, the Asura God hurriedly spoke up to dissuade her.

"Kindness, the Sea God has indeed erred, but his crime does not warrant this." The Asura God spoke solemnly, his gaze fixed on the Kindness God King. "Since his ascension, he has guarded the seas of the many worlds under the God Realm and made considerable contributions.

"Although he has committed a grave mistake this time, considering his past merits, he should not receive such an extreme punishment. Destruction, Life, what do you think?"

As the Asura God spoke, he turned his gaze toward the other two God Kings.

The Destruction God King reclined against his divine throne, no emotion visible in his dark purple eyes.

He folded his arms across his chest, remained silent for a moment, then slowly shook his head. "This matter has nothing to do with me. I have no opinion."

The Destruction God King's stance was clear: he would not involve himself in this matter. This was what he and the Evil God King had agreed upon.

Upon hearing this, the Life God King, who had always treated others kindly, tilted her head slightly. A trace of reluctance flashed through her gentle emerald-green eyes.

After pondering for a moment, she followed the Asura God's lead and said softly, "I also do not think such a severe punishment is necessary. Poseidon is, after all, a First-Level God. Even if he has not earned merit over these years, he has endured hardship. To strip him of his divine seat and cast him into the lower realm over a single mistake would be too harsh."

The Life God King's voice was as warm and gentle as water, carrying a power that soothed the heart.

Though she was pleading for the Sea God, her tone was mild, not making anyone feel that she was directly opposing the Kindness God King.

Seeing that everyone had expressed their views, the Evil God King, who had remained silent all this time, finally spoke.

He cleared his throat, his gaze moving between the God Kings before finally settling on the Sea God kneeling on the floor.

"Ahem, it seems everyone has differing opinions on how Poseidon should be dealt with."

The Evil God King's voice was not loud, yet it carried an authority that could not be ignored. He slowly rose from his divine throne, clasped his hands behind his back, and paced to the center of the hall, stopping beside the Sea God.

"How about this? Let me speak fairly. I think Asura and Life are right. Stripping his divine seat and casting him into the lower realm is indeed a little excessive. After all, Poseidon has done some meritorious work managing the seas of the lower planes over the years."

Upon hearing this, a trace of hope flashed through the Sea God's eyes. He hurriedly looked up at the Evil God King, his lips moving as though he wanted to say something in gratitude.

However, the Evil God King did not look at him at all and continued, "But he cannot be let off lightly either. Stealing the authority of a fallen deity crosses the bottom line of the God Realm. If everyone behaved as he did, would the order of the God Realm still mean anything?"

He paused, swept his gaze over the gods present, and slowly announced his own proposed sentence. "First, reclaim Angel God's authority of Purification and return it to its rightful owner.

"Second, this God King will personally abolish all the divine power and cultivation the Sea God has accumulated since taking charge of Angel God's Divine Trial. Since he committed this crime out of greed for Angel God's authority, then he must surrender everything he gained during this time.

"Finally, punish the Sea God by having him guard the Forbidden Divine Land. Unless he passes down his divine seat, he may never leave for all eternity."

After the Evil God King finished, he clapped his hands, seemingly quite satisfied with his proposal.

He turned toward the Kindness God King, his signature wicked smile on his lips. "Kindness, what do you think?"

The hall fell silent.

The gods exchanged glances, each secretly weighing the severity of the Evil God King's proposal.

Reclaiming the authority of Purification was only proper. Abolishing the divine power he had cultivated over the years was severe, but compared to stripping his divine seat and casting him into the lower realm, it was indeed much lighter.

As for guarding the Forbidden Divine Land, it was the sealing site of the Golden Dragon King, located in the most remote and desolate corner of the God Realm. No one set foot there year-round. Sending the Sea God there to guard it was tantamount to exile.

This proposal both gave the Kindness God King an explanation and preserved the Sea God's divine seat. It was a compromise that all sides could accept.

The Asura God secretly breathed a sigh of relief and was about to voice his agreement when the Kindness God King coldly said, "Not enough."

All eyes turned toward the Kindness God King. She remained seated upon her divine throne, her expression as calm as water. Her eyes, which usually held a gentle smile, were now cold as frost, and the oppressive chill radiating from her seemed to lower the temperature of the entire hall.

"Add one hundred lashes." The Kindness God King spoke one word at a time. Her voice was not loud, yet it exploded through the hall like thunder. "Evil, lend me your divine super-artifact when the time comes. I will whip him myself."

The hall erupted in uproar. The gods clearly had not expected the Kindness God King to make such a demand.

One hundred lashes might not sound like much, but the Kindness God King had asked to borrow the Evil God King's divine super-artifact. She would most likely use the Judgment Whip condensed from the power of judgment within the Judgment Scales.

The Evil God King's divine super-artifact, the Judgment Scales, possessed the power to judge the sins of all living beings, sentence the faults of the gods, and determine the rights and wrongs of karma.

The Judgment Whip condensed from its power of judgment would not be easy to endure.

One hundred lashes might even cause the Sea God to fall from his position as a First-Level God.

It was clear that the Kindness God King had truly been enraged this time.

She did not merely want the Sea God punished. She wanted to personally carry out that punishment, ensuring that he remembered this lesson and that every deity present clearly understood the consequences of crossing her bottom line.