Chapter 9: Chapter 4: Prophet
In many ancient cultures, a prophet is someone who receives divine revelation and conveys the will of a god. By that definition, this pixel person who found the [Energy Staff] undoubtedly fit the bill.
In this pixelated game world, Luh Yao also needed someone who could understand his intentions—even if it was just a small part. That was far better than letting a group of little people guess blindly. He definitely didn’t want another baby showing up in the [Sacrificial Offering] slot.
Luh Yao clicked [Yes].
The screen displayed a message.
[The Garlic Tribe has its first Prophet. Under the Prophet’s guidance and influence, everyone’s intelligence has slightly increased.]
Following Luh Yao’s action, a white light shone from the little person’s body, and the question mark above his head turned into a lit-up lightbulb.
The word [Prophet] appeared above the pixel person’s head.
The Prophet knelt and worshipped before the Divine Statue, then walked out of the Divine Hall.
The moment he appeared, all the pixel people surrounded him, as if they knew he had received the God’s favor.
The Prophet said, "The Sacrificial Offerings our God requires are miraculous items that we cannot comprehend or control. Everyone, keep an eye out from now on. If you see anything like that, offer it to the God, and you will receive the God’s Blessing."
"The Prophet is right!"
"Listen to the Prophet!"
"Miraculous items! Let’s find miraculous items!"
"A miraculous wild boar! I know of one, a white one! No one has ever caught it!"
"I’ve seen a miraculous fish in the water! It eats all meat and bones! It’s super miraculous, the Lord God will definitely love it!"
Luh Yao looked speechlessly at the last two pixel people to speak.
Sure enough, they were both wearing leather vests. Even without any marks or names, Luh Yao could tell at a glance that they had to be the Pig Fish Brothers from before.
Their obsession with pigs and fish was as conspicuous as a firefly in the night.
Although the Prophet told the others about the characteristics of a Sacrificial Offering, no pixel people made any similar discoveries over the next three hours. Most of them returned to their normal lives: planting garlic and berries, and then eating them.
Soon after, two new babies were born in the tribe. The pixel people began to assign members to take care of the two newborns.
The only one Luh Yao could control and guide was the Prophet. However, he could only move the Prophet to a designated spot. Whether the Prophet would understand anything, or what he might discover, was all up to his own insight.
After observing and fiddling with the game for a while, it was already 6:30 PM, and Luh Yao’s stomach started to growl.
He went downstairs to a small eatery, ordered fried rice with green peppers and shredded pork, and wolfed it down before rushing back.
On the computer screen, the Garlic Tribe had undergone a new change.
A black bear from who-knows-where had barged into the tribe. It had destroyed two farm plots and a house, and the corpses of two pixel people lay on the ground.
Most of the little people were hiding behind the Divine Hall, trembling with fear. The Prophet stood at the edge of the Divine Hall, holding the tribe’s two babies in his arms.
The black bear was two to three times the size of a pixel person, making it a kind of Giant Monster to them. It was currently tearing at the corpses on the ground.
Luh Yao was furious.
’Man, I finally get two newborns, and I was counting on the population boost to raise my Faith. And you show up and kill two of my people right off the bat? You got a death wish or something?’
’Eat some of my heavenly justice!’
Just as he was about to whip up a bolt of lightning, he suddenly noticed something was off.
Two of the tribe’s pixel people were confronting the black bear. They wore leather vests and carried wooden clubs. One in front and one behind, they circled the bear, continuously smacking its head and rear.
As they moved, they shouted.
"The power of the pig!"
"I’m as nimble as a fish!"
Judging by their words, it was obviously the Pig Fish Brothers.
Luh Yao was in a bit of a bind.
’If I use lightning now, the two little guys might get blasted to smithereens, just like that Horned Helmet Leader from before. I need them to create some distance first. The tribe’s population can’t take any more losses.’
Luh Yao decided to watch a little longer.
The two pixel people were very agile. They coordinated, one in front and one behind. One would strike with his club and then retreat, while the other attacked, keeping the bear beset on both sides.
The wooden clubs didn’t do much damage, but they did annoy the bear, and flames of anger appeared over its head. It dropped the corpse and began to frantically chase the two pixel people. This time, instead of continuing to kite it, they both fled toward the forest.
Luh Yao understood.
’The two of them are trying to lure the bear away to prevent it from harming anyone else.’
’The Pig Fish Brothers usually seem a bit unreliable, but when something this serious happens, they really step up.’
Luh Yao immediately selected the Miracle [Lightning], predicting the bear’s path toward the forest and trying to keep the blast as far away from the Pig Fish Brothers as possible.
A bolt of silver lightning struck down from above!
The black bear was hit in the head by the Thunder Strike and was instantly killed, its charred body smoking.
The Pig Fish Brothers also fell to the ground under the lightning airstrike. But after a few seconds, they climbed back up, apparently still alive.
Luh Yao breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing the black bear killed by the lightning, all the pixel people raised their arms and cheered, smiley face symbols appearing above their heads.
Only the Prophet had a question mark appear above his head.
Luh Yao clicked on the question mark.
The Prophet was thinking: ’How could a bear come out of the deep mountains? I’ve never seen such a big bear around here. Where did it come from, and why did it suddenly attack the Garlic Tribe?’
He handed the babies he was holding to a person next to him and walked all the way to the bear’s charred corpse.
Then, an exclamation point lit up above the Prophet’s head.
"It’s not a bear!"
The charred bear corpse transformed into a dead pixel person. The people of the tribe immediately panicked.
"It’s a Demon Believer!"
"Someone who has Faith in the Demon turned into a bear! That’s why he attacked the tribe! He wanted to destroy the Divine Hall and attack us!"
"A man-eating Demon! How terrifying!"
"A Demon! A terrifying Demon! There’s a Demon here! I’m leaving!"
At that, 3 pixel people immediately fled in all directions.
The population in the top-right corner instantly dropped to 25.
The Faith Value also dropped by 3 points. Factoring in the 20 Faith Value spent on using [Lightning] and the replenishment from the [Energy Staff], the Divine Hall now had a total of 7 Faith left.
Luh Yao scratched his head.
’A whole day of hard work, and I’m right back where I started.’
’Being a God isn’t easy.’
What concerned him more was the newly introduced Demon Element.
’It sounds like Demons are in the opposing faction to Gods. My tribe has barely been established, and a Demon Believer is already attacking. I don’t know if this is a random event or if I’m being targeted.’
’One thing’s for sure: I’ll have to deal with Demons in the future.’
The Prophet found a letter on the Demon Believer’s corpse.
"The letter says: ’Target is the Forest Tribe. While the Forest Tribe’s Hunters are away, kill as many people as possible.’"
The question mark above the Prophet’s head turned into a glowing lightbulb again.
"I understand now. This Demon Believer who transformed into a black bear went to the wrong place. He mistook our tribe for the Forest Tribe, which is why he attacked us. Their target is the Forest Tribe, so we are still safe."
Only then did the other terrified little people calm down.
Then, the pixel people started to repair the destroyed houses and farm plots, all getting busy.
Luh Yao opened the Divine Hall interface and saw that the [Garlic] in the [Blessing] slot hadn’t disappeared, which meant he still couldn’t give them any remote assistance.
The [Sacrificial Offering] slot below it was empty, and the tribespeople hadn’t sent any new Sacrificial Offerings.
To his surprise, two more pixel people entered the Divine Hall.
—Great God, two of your Believers have performed a feat far surpassing their peers. Would you like to transform them into Heroes?
[Yes] [No]
