The Kuyō experiment had, for the time being, come to an end.
The results were mixed.
Three of the experiments ended in failure, while only one produced some degree of success.
Among them, the plan to establish a connection with Kuyō through the core of a Divine System Magic Caster had demonstrated a certain degree of feasibility.
But false faith was ultimately fragile.
The risks involved were also extremely high. If they continued making reckless attempts, the consequences could become disastrous.
Therefore, after weighing every factor, they concluded that this approach should not be pursued any further.
Surshana reflected on the gains and losses of the experiment.
Ever since returning to the Theocracy from the Roble Holy Kingdom, all six of them, Surshana included, had immediately thrown themselves into researching Enhela and the Divine Right of Kuyō.
However, just as Naohara had predicted, calling their progress minimal would have been generous. They had achieved virtually nothing.
As a creation of Kuyō, Enhela could easily resist the effects of World Items and the Power of Faith.
As for ordinary low-level methods such as torture and interrogation, they were completely useless against him.
As a result, their research had reached an impasse, leaving them unable to take the crucial first step.
Faced with such a predicament, the Six Great Gods inevitably grew anxious.
What unsettled them most was the thought that Kuyō had somehow altered Surshana's memories without him even realizing it. Such an astonishing feat was enough to make them deeply uneasy.
After all, under the current circumstances, the reason the Five Gods could maintain their present state and avoid the erosion of their faith was entirely due to Surshana's existence.
If anything were to happen to Surshana one day, the remaining Five Gods would have little chance of escaping unscathed.
Faced with this grim situation, the Six Great Gods thought long and hard before finally devising an unconventional solution.
They would conduct experiments involving faith.
They would deliberately have people worship the Devourer of the Nine Worlds and attempt to obtain information through that connection.
There was no denying how bold this approach was.
After all, this was the Devourer of the Nine Worlds, the ultimate monster that fed upon worlds!
It was an existence they should have avoided at all costs, yet they had chosen to do the exact opposite.
Instead of keeping their distance, they had deliberately tried to establish contact with it.
Objectively speaking, this was completely unlike the way the Six Great Gods normally operated.
Yet they went through with it anyway.
Those who succeed do so because they are willing to take risks.
From the great inventions of humanity's past to the innovative technologies of the modern age, they all shared one thing in common: the courage to try.
Only by daring to step beyond the comfort of convention and seek new ways of thinking could one achieve success.
And that was precisely what the Six Great Gods had done.
"By using the assistance of a Talent to establish a brief connection, we did manage to obtain some information."
Alah Alaf.
The God who represented life and light was the first to break the silence, speaking in his usual calm, unruffled tone.
Before them, four incomplete limbs floated silently in the air.
The Six Great Gods had cleanly dismembered Enhela's body, dividing it into five tightly sealed parts.
The sealed left hand, the sealed left foot, the sealed right hand, the sealed right foot, and the most important part of all, the head.
They were all pieces of Enhela's body, and indispensable mediums for rituals dedicated to Kuyō.
For this purpose, they had recruited a number of volunteers, altered their memories, and turned them into devout followers of Kuyō.
Azmodan had been one of them.
"Even now, I still don't understand how faith can make someone willingly give up their life."
With a sigh, the God of Wind's distant, wistful voice slowly echoed through the air.
As a veteran cat lover, Kikotenshin Nekonyan's affection for cats ran bone-deep.
Even so, he would never willingly put himself in danger or allow himself to be hurt merely for the sake of a single cat.
He himself came first. That much was beyond question.
He knew Azmodan's past very well.
Because of a mistake when envisioning the deity within his heart, Azmodan had suffered a great deal of unfair treatment.
Or rather, most of those who had participated in this plan had experienced some form of hardship in their lives.
And yet, when this same group of people had been told the details of the mission, there had not been a trace of negativity in their eyes.
Instead, their excitement had been obvious.
That was what Kikotenshin Nekonyan could not understand.
"Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings when the dawn is still dark."
The God of Water gave an answer that did not really address the question.
The Six Great Gods had manipulated faith for hundreds of years, yet they had never truly tried to understand what faith itself was.
They were merely its users, not its creators.
"All right, enough philosophizing during the meeting. I'll handle the follow-up matters. Let's discuss what we're going to do next."
"Should we share this information?"
They would compensate Azmodan and the others as much as possible for their sacrifice.
They could grant them additional titles as heroes, resurrect their families, guarantee them a comfortable life for the rest of their days, and so on.
As the saying went:
[The hymn of humanity is the hymn of courage. The greatness of humanity is the greatness of courage.]
Those who had willingly given their lives for their plan deserved respect.
Surshana brought the conversation back on track.
What they needed to discuss now was the information they had gained from this operation.
Personally, he had no objection to sharing this information about Kuyō with the Sorcerer Kingdom.
However, he also needed to consider the thoughts and feelings of his companions.
The Six Great Gods were a closely connected and indivisible whole.
In the truest sense, if one prospered, they all prospered. If one suffered, they all suffered.
Before deciding whether to share the information, he needed to hear what the others thought.
"Give it to them. We still owe them a favor over the Enhela incident, after all."
"Agreed. Allies should share intelligence with one another."
"I have no objections."
"Do whatever you think is best."
"In that case, why don't I go to the Sorcerer Kingdom and deliver the information myself?"
For a moment, the six deities present each voiced their opinions.
But the instant someone uttered that final suggestion, everyone turned their gaze toward the same person as though they had planned it in advance.
"Ahem... Why are you all looking at me like that?"
Finding himself under everyone's scrutiny, the God of Wind looked slightly guilty and unconsciously cleared his throat.
"...Tch. Fine, fine. I won't go. Happy now?"
In the end, the God of Wind reluctantly conceded. He lowered his head dejectedly, still muttering under his breath with obvious dissatisfaction.
Only then did the other Five Gods slowly look away.
At this point, sending a random dog would probably be better than sending this guy.
"Let's send Zesshi Zetsumei. She's the most suitable."
The God of Fire made the suggestion.
They did not actually expect Zesshi Zetsumei to succeed, but that did not matter. This was only an idle move on the board to begin with.
With the information they had obtained this time, there should still be enough time.
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