Orion shook his head in response.
Expecting such a reply, Aegis of the Arctic Deity continued, "After their first battle, the 'Nine Greed Gods' lost two of their own due to the 'Seven Great Gods' planned attack to eliminate them one by one. To fill the remaining spots and properly contend with the 'Seven Great Gods,' they chose the most qualified god they could think of, which was Naka."
"Considering the alliances Naka had forged with several other gods and the mortals he had taken care of, all numbering into a considerable force, they saw this as a chance to bring over what they viewed as a threat to their side and strengthen themselves to the point that the 'Seven Great Gods' would no longer be a problem. Trying to swallow up such a force in one bite, you could say that the 'Nine Greed Gods' were living up to their name."
"Nevertheless, an invitation was sent out to Naka to inform him about the spot reserved among the 'Nine Greed Gods', but…" Aegis of the Arctic Deity paused before a loud sigh echoed through the space.
"But Naka rejected their offer without a second thought. The 'Nine Greed Gods,' now seven but remaining nine just in name, hadn't expected Naka's rejection. Although they were furious, as gods who had been alive since time immemorial, they knew better than to stir up a problem they would find difficult to handle. As such, they merely kept an eye on him, watching his every move."
"Meanwhile, as Naka's alliances grew bigger by the day, their territories grew smaller under the constant attacks of the 'Seven Great Gods,' all of whom were reclaiming their territories and giving them back to the humans. In response, the 'Nine Greed Gods' sent an invitation to Naka once more. However, it was immediately rejected again. But, as gods who had fought and survived the 'Great War,' even rising to the top, they were undeniably persistent. So, they sent out an invitation again, and it was at this time that they learned of Naka's alliance with the 'Seven Great Gods.'"
"After discovering this information, the 'Nine Greed Gods' decided to end Naka and the forces he had built over the years because he had become a threat they could no longer ignore. However, since Naka was a god whose strength and origin were relatively unknown, they saw no other means than to confront him head-on, and they did."
"However, contrary to their expectations, the battle of the remaining 'Nine Greed Gods' against Naka ended up in a stalemate. Fueled by the fury of the embarrassing defeat, the remaining 'Nine Greed Gods,' now numbering eight, decided to destroy his alliances. However, their efforts to draw Naka's alliances to their side ended in futility."
"Seeing no other way to deal with such an issue and with the 'Seven Great Gods' still swallowing up their territories little by little, the 'Nine Green Gods' decided to face him head-on once more and disintegrate the alliance directly. Since they were already aware of his strength, they devised a plan," Aegis of the Arctic Deity said. He paused again, sighing deeply before he continued speaking, "And one of them involved wiping out two-tenths of the several races that Naka had under his protection."
Upon hearing Aegis of the Arctic Deity's last words, Orion couldn't help but gulp down a huge amount of saliva.
"As you could already guess, after Naka learned about what had happened, he went all out, killing about three of the 'Nine Greed Gods' and reducing their numbers to five. Witnessing this, the 'Nine Greed Gods' retreated. Unfortunately, Naka didn't seem too keen on letting them go and decided to make an example out of them."
"He let the world know about his alliances with the 'Seven Great Gods,' before they pursued the remaining weakened 'Nine Greed Gods' to every corner of the earth and across the skies also," Aegis of the Arctic Deity said, "Seeing that they were being pushed into a corner, the remaining 'Nine Greed Gods' decided to take matters into their own hands and retaliate. Do you want to know how they retaliated?"
Orion shook his head quietly in response to Aegis of the Arctic Deity's question.
"As retaliation, the remaining five of the 'Nine Greed Gods,' seeing there was nowhere they could hide, whether on earth or in the heavens, did everything in their power, using up their last remaining strength to create another world below the earth with the help of the Divine Mysteries that penetrated into this world. They then took away every animal from the earth below the earth with them. But it was already too late by the time they could find and stop them. They had sealed themselves up in a place that is now called 'The Lower Heavens,'" Aegis of the Arctic Deity responded.
"Of course, although humans were the only beings that previously inhabited the earth, the animals still made up a huge percentage of it. As such, Naka and the 'Seven Great Gods' decided to do everything to break into the Lower Heavens, and release the animals once more into the earth. However, it was easier said than done. The 'Seven Great Gods,' who were all man-made gods, had difficulty efficiently using the Divine Mysteries. As such, Naka bore the main burden of the task. Unfortunately, even he was unable to break into the Lower Heavens."
Upon finally hearing an explanation for where the animals went and why he could not see even a bug, Orion couldn't help but be stunned, his eyes widening in disbelief as he stared dumbfoundedly at the large golden pair of eyes above him.
The fact that the animals disappeared this way made Orion contemplate the immense power required to accomplish such a feat.
He couldn't help but ponder the extraordinary strength of the 'Seven Great Gods' and Naka, considering their ability to go against the 'Nine Greed Gods' and even kill five of them.