I cannot mute the sound without the buttons

I used to be able to swipe down from the top right corner of my iPhone (13, 15) and reduce the sound level to 0. This gesture produces 0 noise and I like it for that reason. Since the 18.3.1 version, it looks like the volume can only be brought down to a minimum, but NOT mute. Either provide a mute button, or let me control the volume 100%. It is also a good thing to have two ways to do things in case one of them breaks (eg buttons).