Chapter 56: Chapter 51: Tribal Courage
Yulian was now twenty years old. Four years had passed in the Pixel World since he invented the paddleboat.
The leader across from him, Yuzou, had a Ghost symbol hovering over his head, which meant the old man’s life was nearing its end.
"I want to take it apart," Yulian insisted.
The elderly Yuzou was silent for a long time before replying, "That is a [Blessing] from the God."
"Blasphemers are put to death by lightning from the heavens."
"..."
A lightbulb appeared over Yulian’s head. "Then how about secretly tearing out a few pages?"
"Blasphemy is blasphemy! Tearing out one page is still blasphemy!"
The old leader roared in anger, "Do you think you can haggle with the God!?"
"Then we might as well take the whole thing apart."
Yulian’s answer surprised not only the old man but also Luh Yao, who was watching from in front of his screen.
This young man had always been afraid that Luh Yao would strike him with lightning, because he had poured all his energy into shipbuilding and rarely worshiped the God.
This made Yulian very apprehensive; he often suspected the God might find an opportune moment to zap him.
However, Yulian was now acting with extreme determination.
He explained to the old leader, "Leader Shahan once wrote the first book, the *Tribe’s Brief History*. But it required a lot of sheepskin, could only hold a small amount of text, and was thick and heavy."
"But this book, a Blessing from the God, is light, thin, and clear. You can write a great many words on it."
"The God must know that we cannot understand the Divine Text. Even the wisest leader, Senjian, can’t make heads or tails of it. The material this book is made of—that might be the true treasure the God has granted our tribe."
The young man pressed his case eagerly: "I’ve smelled it. The Divine Book’s scent is a bit like the dried droppings of a grass-eating animal, and also like the smell of wood ash. Plus, it isn’t indestructible. It looks very thin and fragile."
"If we soak them in water, we’ll be able to see their original form."
"I think it’s made from either dried dung, or from grass and tree bark..."
The old leader interrupted the young man. "And what if it’s not? What if you’re wrong, and this isn’t the God’s intention? What do you think will happen?"
An exclamation mark appeared over Yulian’s head. His body then began to tremble, as if he had just imagined the consequences of being struck by lightning.
Yet his words defied his physical reaction: "If I’m wrong, I’m willing to accept the God’s punishment. I’ll take full responsibility."
"You’ll be struck dead by lightning and turned into a pile of black ash," the old leader emphasized.
"I know."
"Even so, you still want to take apart the Divine Book?"
"Yes!"
Yulian showed a young man’s stubbornness and fiery spirit. "This book means so much to the tribe. If we can learn the technique to make them, we can spread books to every place the tribe has ever been, just like we did with the paddleboats."
"It would be an even more important tool than the paddleboat."
"All the tribe’s knowledge and skills could be passed down through a book like this. Unlike oral tradition, which always suffers from omissions and errors. It would be a Monument everyone can own!"
The old leader said, "This is not something you can do."
"You are too young. Simply destroying a divine Blessing is enough to make you an outcast in the tribe. Even if the God were to forgive you, your tribesmen would not. Every future disaster would be blamed on you."
"..."
A sad expression appeared over Yulian’s head.
"So," the old leader said, "I’ll do it."
An exclamation mark appeared over Yulian’s head.
"You are still young. You created the incredible paddleboat. We all know that you will become an outstanding leader in the future and guide the tribe forward."
"But it’s too soon for you to take on something like this. A dangerous task that no one has ever done before—it’s better if I do it."
"I once arrogantly pursued the Burrower Monsters, which led to the deaths of our Headhunters and Hunters. I also took in the Burrower Monsters and was opposed and cursed by everyone for it... I am no longer afraid of breaking precedent."
"I don’t have long left. If the God finds fault, then let the lightning strike me."
"The tribe will be much more forgiving of a man whose life is about to end."
Yulian said, "But..."
"It’s settled! I’ll take it apart, and then I’ll do whatever you say. I trust you to bring the tribe its next ’paddleboat.’"
Finally, Yulian bowed deeply to the old man.
"Thank you, Leader."
The old man went into the Divine Hall, had a private conversation with Astrologer Shahan inside, and took the green-covered book from the [Blessing] slot.
Carrying the book, he walked to the front of the Monument. Other pixel people saw this and hurried over, quickly forming a large crowd.
"People of the tribe, listen to me."
The white-haired leader said, "This is a Blessing from the God, and it is also the tribe’s hope for the future."
"But we have all been mistaken."
"The God does not intend for us to understand the Divine Text upon it. That is a power beyond our comprehension, and we cannot touch the God’s infinite Wisdom."
"The book itself, which records the Divine Text—that is the true treasure the God has bestowed upon us."
"...Therefore, I will dismantle this book and reveal the true nature of every thin, white sheet within! Of course, I have already asked Shahan to transcribe all of the text from the Divine Book beforehand."
Hearing Leader Yuzou’s announcement, the Garlic Tribe immediately erupted.
"We object! We object!"
"The God’s Blessing is sacred! It cannot be destroyed!"
"Leader Yuzou, you are committing blasphemy! Do you want to be punished by the God’s lightning! Do you want the entire tribe to suffer divine punishment!"
"Dangerous! This is dangerous! Extremely dangerous!"
"Leader, have you gone mad? This is frightening, truly frightening."
Even for a hero as respected as Yuzou, announcing his plan to dismantle the God’s Blessing earned him overwhelming doubt and opposition from the tribe.
At this critical juncture, the Burrow Wizard Senjian stepped forward and came to Yuzou’s defense.
"Quiet down! Quiet down."
The Wizard, holding his Bone Staff and wearing his Stone Mask, said, "The God is omnipotent. I trust no one here would question that, right?"
The crowd instantly fell silent.
"If that’s the case... if the God is omnipotent and omniscient, then the great and benevolent Yao God must know that we, who are small and ignorant, cannot possibly understand the profound Divine Text in the Divine Book."
"So, why would Yao God bestow upon us such a profound treasure?"
With just a few simple sentences, the Wizard had seized control of the narrative.
He continued, "We use water and soil to grow our food, cut down trees to build our homes, and harvest wool to weave our clothes."
"We ride camels into the forests and deserts, we build boats to travel on the water, and we have achieved things our ancestors could never have imagined."
"All of this stems from the God’s love for the world. Yao God watches over every single one of us."
"Yao God knows us better than we know ourselves."
"He knows our weakness and our ignorance. He has Insight into our fears and our aspirations. He witnesses our diligence and our failures."
"This Divine Book is Yao God’s reward and test for us."
"In the past, the tribe was punished with torrential rains and Hurricanes. You haven’t forgotten that, have you? Yao God despises laziness and sloth. Yao God has always hoped that we, his people, could flourish like a dense forest, unafraid of wind and rain."
"If we simply let this Divine Book sit in the Divine Hall, serving no purpose, how is that any different from sloth?"
"It is sloth and arrogance that will cause Yao God to unleash the fury of His Thunderbolt!"
The Burrow Wizard looked at the people around him. "So, who here still thinks we shouldn’t take action and make good use of the God’s Blessing?"
The pixel people of the Garlic Tribe were utterly silent.
Even Luh Yao, in front of his screen, couldn’t help but sigh in admiration.
’A brilliant sermon.’
’Wizard Senjian certainly proves he was the leader of the Burrower Monsters for many years. That LV4 Wisdom is truly effective.’
’In terms of Wisdom, Yuzou was a bit lacking.’
’But Yuzou’s decisiveness in bold experimentation and his courage to break new ground were qualities no previous leader of the tribe had ever shown.’
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