The Earth God Enki spoke soothingly:
"Moreover, giving them a lesson isn’t necessarily a bad thing."
He controlled all the waters, the earth, and wisdom, appearing as a Wise Man, wearing a fish-shaped crown with flowing living water, with silver-white beard woven with rivers that could speak. His robe, blue-green and adorned with shells, constantly seeped with sweet springs forming a miniature canal network. His right hand held a clay scepter carved with Life Runes, while his left hand supported a spiral clay jar filled with the Water of Wisdom. His pupils were a translucent deep-water color, and wedge-shaped script could be seen moving beneath his skin. The most unique feature was the virtual shadows of two living rivers suspended at his shoulders: the Tigris River glowed gold on his right shoulder, and the Euphrates shimmered with silver on his left. When he stood, irrigation channel patterns naturally formed at his feet, and the droplets at the ends of his hair transformed into swimming fish.
"A good thing? What do you mean?"
Marduk suppressed his anger and humbly sought advice.
Regarding his uncles, Enlil and Anu, he could dismiss them, but he still held some respect for Enki, who governed the earth, all waters, and wisdom as his father.
Enki’s eyes flickered, and he mused:
"To tame these beasts on the ground, one must prepare both grace and a whip. Without experiencing a long night, how would the people Desire the coming of Light? Without experiencing the horror of Divine Punishment, how would they revere us? Without experiencing the fear of Death and chaos, how would they sincerely pray to us? They’ve enjoyed peaceful days for too long; it’s time for them to remember who truly is their master."
"You’re right, I’ve had enough of their arrogance and disrespect. Beasts should behave as beasts, obediently kneeling on the ground, offering Devotion to the gods, as they should."
Beside him, Anu chimed in agreement.
Clearly, the decline of Eridu, Uruk’s insincerity, and the reduced offerings and worship from humans had also left the two Great Gods dissatisfied.
Obviously, they were the rulers of the World, the leaders of the gods.
But in the hearts of humans, their status was inferior to the younger Moon Goddess Sin, Sun God Utu, and Venus Goddess Ishtar.
Moreover, the various Babylonian city-states, which originally acted individually, seemed to be moving toward unity and gradual integration.
This sparked vigilance in the hearts of Anu and Enki.
Back then, the Pantheon of Gods of Babylon united to defeat Mother Goddess Tiamat and wrest Great Authority of the World from her hands.
They certainly didn’t want to see such a thing happen again.
Even if humans lacked the courage and capability, they didn’t want to hear voices of defiance.
Therefore, giving them a lesson was perfectly reasonable.
Upon hearing supportive voices, a smug expression appeared on Enlil’s face, and he sneered:
"In my opinion, destroying Uruk City is far from enough; I might as well unleash a great flood, drowning all these disobedient beasts and then recreate a batch of obedient, god-fearing new humans."
"No, that’s too extreme."
Anu and Enki shook their heads in refusal.
They merely wanted to suppress the restless city-states and re-establish or solidify their own faith, not truly annihilate humans.
If they did that, they would have to expend a great deal of Magic Power for Creation and creation, resulting in disproportionate cost and reward.
Enlil’s eyes flashed, he proposed again:
"Then let me strike once more and help you deal with those disobedient city-states?"
"Our family affairs don’t require you to trouble yourself."
Anu and Enki shook their heads and refused with practiced smiles.
As if joking, everyone knew that Enlil’s thirst for blood was heavy, and he rarely left anyone alive.
If you solved the problem for us, the cities we guarded would likely be left barren.
By then, the entire Babylonian Divine Era would be reduced to just your Nippur City ruling alone, would we not be making a wedding dress for you?
Hearing the constant pushing away by his kin, Enlil couldn’t help but reprimand:
"This won’t work, that won’t work, what do you want then? Do you plan to continue watching these beasts show contempt for us on the ground?"
He had already struck hard to suppress those restless city states and faiths.
It couldn’t be that he’d attract trouble, only for these guys to win favor among humans and strengthen their own faith?
Seeing Enlil’s dissatisfaction, Anu opened his mouth and said:
"Punishment should indeed exist, but need not be so harsh; let our affiliated city-states and demigods represent our Divine Will and reshape our faith."
"Demigods? City-states? You mean Hammurabi of Babylon City, Gilgamesh of Uruk? Or that half-dead Eridu?"
Enlil raised his eyebrow inquiringly, the tone full of mockery.
Anu, Enki, and Marduk on the throne stiffened in response, showing awkward expressions.
Though nominally still the Guardian Gods of these three cities, they’d long lost control over them and the demigods within.
As for other territories, even with stable faith, they could hardly mobilize sufficient military to block the currently powerful Assyrian forces, reinstating the Divine Power of the Three Pillar Gods and King of Kings Marduk.
After pausing to ponder, Marduk tapped the armrest with a finger, and slowly spoke:
"Though there’s hardly any useful manpower within Babylon, it’s not necessarily absent outside."