Myth: The Ruler of Spirituality

'Indeed, this debate was never going to be simple.'

His expression clear, Iapetus was surprised for just a moment before he found the situation unsurprising.

Zeus altering the debate topic before didn't seem to be his main goal, that was at best a side objective; he certainly had other ideas, and the arrival of Zephyrus confirmed this.

But all these were internal affairs of Olympus... Dividing his attention in three, Iapetus couldn't help but counter:

'I see, someone is waiting up there above the assembly, but what does that have to do with me?'

Indeed, both on the surface and in essence, the arrival of the God of West Wind had nothing to do with him.

Even though through Andrea's mouth, Iapetus had made many a statement that clashed with the Divine Court's harmony and values, for a Primordial Titan, he shouldn't be so troubled over a debate in the mortal realm as to provoke the Divine King's censure.

After all, he was merely sticking up for his son, no matter how you looked at it, Zephyrus wasn't there for him.

'It seems unrelated if we speak in conventional terms. However, the revelation of fate tells me that what's about to happen here is closely related to you—so I suggest you at least watch the whole process of this assembly. What do you think?'

'...Then I'll wait a bit longer.'

Although the God of Speech was unaware of the existence of the Golden Apple and was also ignorant of the fact that the skill most masterly wielded by many a goddess was displaced anger, he thought it over and nodded in agreement.
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Iapetus felt as if he had fallen into a trap; he had only come to watch a debate, how had he ended up encountering Gaia?

Encountering Gaia wasn't a problem; he just wanted to dodge some cravings and hassle, so how did he end up participating in the debate personally?

A mere mortal debate had never been of concern to him, but why did the Divine King intervene, and clearly, something else was bound to happen afterward?

Regardless, the debate wasn't over yet, so the God of Speech, adhering to the principle of seeing things through, refocused his energy on this pastime of his.

It must be said, this human prince named Odysseus had some skill. If he hadn't been influenced by other factors, he might have performed even better.

······

Outside the battleground of the contestants, whether deep in the sea or among the spectators, the conversations between deities continued.

And on the floating platform, the verbal duel over whether the Destruction of the Bronze Age was just had been going on for several water clock times.

If it hadn't been for Apollo's last-minute neglect of duty, it would already be afternoon in the human world now.

But as clouds gathered, the fierce sun was obscured, and the cool winds of autumn took away the sultriness of the venue.

During the debate, the focus of the argument shifted several times. When Odysseus countered 'the justice of humans' with 'gods create all spirits', Andrea swiftly pointed out his opponent's flaw.

First, do all gods acknowledge 'he who creates life owns it'? Clearly, they do not. After all, Bronze Humanity was created by Prometheus; by such logic, they would undoubtedly belong to the Forethinking God rather than Olympus.

Further, if the gods believe that 'issuing the command' counts as partaking in creation, and so the Divine King commanding Prometheus to create humans means that Bronze Humanity also belongs to the Divine King, then two problems arise—one, the catastrophic flood did not just kill humans, other lives created by the Ancient Gods were also lost. Divine Court's slaying of others' creations could hardly be considered just.

On another note, if 'issuing commands' is also considered participation in creation, then the current generation of humans are still made by gods. After all, according to legend, Deucalion and Pitha, who survived the great flood, created the new humanity under the guidance of the gods. So if the destruction of the Bronze Age by gods can be just, then the gods destroying the current age could also be called just.

Andrea's words were sharp, but as her opponent, Odysseus naturally had his rebuttals. A debate is not a discussion of right and wrong, but a verbal war. Thus, he countered each point Andrea had raised.

Firstly, the gods annihilated Bronze for a reason – Prometheus and the deceit of the Bronze Age sacrificed are precursors; it wasn't without reason or cause, and in current times, no god has committed such a transgression, nor did all kings and aristocrats unite against the Deity, so the gods destroying the fourth generation of humans is simply an invalid premise.

Moreover, he had heard that the heavens and earth have no will of their own, but They can provide revelations of destiny, guiding gods and humans onto the right path; nature does not impart knowledge, but by observing changes in everything, the movement of Stars, humans can learn principles to push civilization forward.

Therefore, revelation may not contain subjective will, and the truths perceived by humans could be the manifestation of rules. So even though Deucalion and Pitha were guided by a deity, the creation of the fourth generation of humans might not be directly related to gods, so Andrea's accusation falls apart.

As for the deaths and injuries of other lives during the Bronze Age, humans don't know whether the gods who created those lives agreed to their destruction, nor do we know if they resisted, do we? Besides, it's said that the inhabitants of the distant Silver Moon City claim to be remnants of the Bronze Age—does this not suggest that the Olympian Gods might have considered other deities' opinions, slain those in agreement, and spared those cherished by dissenting creators?