Outside Doma City, a crowd of forest people gathered under the towering giant trees.
They wore rattan armor, held spears inlaid with emerald green crystals, and stood majestically on the undulating roots like mountains.
Young and middle-aged warriors from all tribes in the forest gather here. They are the bravest hunters and warriors in the entire forest.
Looking around——
The vast sea of people is not only 30,000, but also 20,000!
This is the first time since the day of the First Judgment that such a large army has been organized in this land.
In the tribal era when writing had not yet been invented, such a huge number was unimaginable.
Looking at the endless army, Tun Nan felt his heart surge.
Instigated by the rising and falling emotions, he stood at a high place and raised his strong voice, shouting excitedly towards the tiger and wolf warriors who were like a sea of forest.
"People of the forest——!"
"The sinners not only burned our sacred tree, but also took away the sacred soil given to us by the Tree of Insof! They also had the audacity to steal the most precious treasure in the sky and the holy relics belonging to the ancestors!"
"In order to save the forest from disaster, in order to avoid the third day of judgment, we must take back the sacred objects in their hands! Take back our holy land! Solve the root cause of this disaster once and for all for our descendants!"
"It's time to put an end to the grudges at the beginning of the Awakening Era!"
The deafening roar shook the entire forest and the hearts of all the forest people present.
That was also the ability given to him by the Tree of Insof -
The ability to inspire people!
Each pair of eyes looking at him were ignited with boiling fighting spirit, and they let out loud roars in response to their common leader.
"Oh oh oh!!!"
Seeing the roar of the mountains and the tsunami, the tribal chiefs standing in the crowd felt something was wrong, but they all had a sullen face and did not raise objections or say anything more.
Tun Nan is right.
They have tolerated the criminals time and time again, only to have the latter take advantage of them again and again.
In this case, it is better to settle the old and new accounts together and completely solve all the troubles.
As for whether Tun Nan has other intentions...
In the face of the threat of the Third Judgment Day, these can be put aside for the time being.
At least now, they need a leader who can lead them to victory!
Facing the surging crowd, Sakwe, a member of the priests, stood behind Tunnan.
For some reason, he suddenly regretted welcoming the ancestor into their tribe.
Perhaps what caused the disaster was not the holy object that fell from the sky, but on the contrary, it was the ancestor who came to the earth to look for the holy object and try to help the people on the earth avoid the disaster.
But it's too late to say anything now.
Sagui sighed in his heart and looked at the young people howling like wild beasts.
What the Tree of Insof gave them may not be entirely a blessing.
For example, now, someone is using the bridge connecting them to turn everyone into beasts...
…
There was a storm outside Doma City, and the city surrounded by giant trees was also desolate and solemn.
For the Doma people who were still in the tribal period, there was no essential difference between war and hunting, except that the targets of the crusade were different.
Men are responsible for fighting, while women, children and the elderly are responsible for logistics.
Under the leadership of the priests and maids, the tribesmen in the city tied sharp crystals to wooden sticks of different lengths.
The sinners in the valley are good at using bows, arrows and swords, and have also used barbaric methods to tame wild lizards with bad tempers and low intelligence. Javelins and spears are the best to restrain them.
In addition, there are many priests who have awakened their "spiritual powers" and stand in the "orchard" to pray.
That is one of the roots of the holy tree. It is not only the place where the holy tree stores nutrients and incubates seeds, but also the granary of the city of Doma.
They prayed to make the fruits condensed on the roots ripen quickly, and with the help of children, they picked them into frames, mixed them with roots of other plants, ground them into powder, and dried them to make dry food rich in sugar and nutrients.
These dry rations are all military rations.
Under the will of the leader, the entire Doma tribe completed the transition from cash crop production to war preparation almost overnight, without causing the slightest turmoil.
And this is also one of the social characteristics given to forest tribes by "psionic energy".
The rights of the entire society are almost monopolized in the hands of spiritually awakened people, and spiritually awakened people have spiritual connections with each other.
In a sense, the alliance has similar characteristics, but the form of expression is different and the "residents of Vault 404" do not monopolize the power and resources of the entire alliance.
However, these profound sociological experiences are still too early for Doma City.
They had just come down from the tree shortly after being driven back to the tree by the neutron plume. At best, they were simple-minded, at worst, they were not very smart. At best, they could only be used as samples for research.
But not being smart also has its advantages.
Although Tunnan suddenly came up with the idea of "hijacking the ancestors to control the tribes", he has not yet realized that the "Insof Tree" can actually be used to consolidate power.
Not only does he respect the Tree of Insof, his respect for the ancestor is engraved in his bones.
Even if the ancestor had lost the value of living, he only wanted to imprison him instead of killing him in a treacherous way.
In other words, he is a person with a bottom line, and once he has a bottom line, he is destined not to become Zaid.
It's not just Tunnan.
In addition to the believers who are swayed by fanaticism, among his people, there are still those who simply believe in the ancestors.
These people are willing to sacrifice their lives for what they believe in, not because they don't believe in the set of sutras they recite.
It is precisely because of this that even when the flames of fanaticism are about to spread throughout the forest, their internal error correction mechanism is still functioning.
And it plays a positive role.
The roots of the sacred tree, the entrance to the temple.
Looking at the maid coming up the steps, the guards standing on both sides clenched the spears in their hands.
One of the shirtless captains of the guards stepped forward and asked angrily.
"Is the founder awake?"
That was not a question sent in the language of the forest, but a higher language given to them by the Tree of Insof.
To outsiders, it sounds like a short or long sound of birds.
However, every spiritually awakened person with the same cultural background can understand what the cry means.
Dora answered in a soft voice.
"Already awake."
The captain of the guard continued to ask.
"What orders does he have?"
Dora continued in a soft voice.
"He doesn't like the food in the tribe. He wants to eat wild fruits from the south, and I have to pick them myself."
To the south is the direction away from the Forbidden Forest Valley.
Although dangerous beasts are active there, generally speaking, they cannot harm the temple maids who can communicate with the Tree of Insof.
Communication based on the soul makes it almost impossible to lie. The guard did not ask any questions, but nodded respectfully and stepped aside.
The leader gave the order.
As long as the ancestor does not leave the temple, no matter what the request is, the ancestor must be satisfied as much as possible.
As long as they can do it.
And it will not threaten the safety of the entire temple...
Dora nodded slightly, passed by a group of guards, and went straight to the south gate of the tribe.
Nothing she said was false.
I just didn't finish what I said.
…
At the same time that Dora left the temple, Ye Shi, who was sitting in the temple, was staring at the direction of the entrance of the temple with bated breath, and carefully paying attention to the footsteps through the dark corridor.
Fortunately, the fading footsteps did not come back, but disappeared at the entrance of the temple.
Ye Shi breathed a sigh of relief, finally relaxing his tense nerves, and lay down on the woven rattan bed.
"The rest will depend on her performance."
He gave Dora many tasks.
In addition to picking berries in the south, it also includes looking for a silver-gray scientific research ship.
In fact, he didn't know how to describe his car. After all, no matter in terms of appearance or coordinates, there was nothing corresponding to it in the culture of the Doma tribe, or a "reference object" that could assist understanding.
Fortunately, at this time, Dora's special function of "telepathy" came into play, establishing a spiritual connection with him who was gesturing randomly with his fingers, and saw the scientific research ship through the fog of the ocean of consciousness.
That's exactly where she went!
Ye Shi didn't know what she meant by "seeing", but in short, it was good that she could understand what she meant.
As long as he goes near the scientific research ship, he can get in touch with Jiang Xuezhou and let the latter understand his situation and help him come up with some bad ideas.
Whether it is choosing a new magic stick to end this war, or brokering negotiations between the Qiu people and the forest people in the name of the ancestor, there is a lot of room for maneuver.
If it really doesn't work, you can just think of a way to rescue yourself first.
It seems to be a good idea to uncover Tunnan's conspiracy by yourself.
In short, no matter what, Ye Shi believed that Jiang Xuezhou could make the right choice.
In the hyperspace channel where they could not observe each other, they had cooperated in a tacit understanding like today.
"But then again...it feels like I have nothing to do with you anymore."
Lying flat on the bed, Ye Shi stared at the fireflies flying above his head, thinking about a series of things that might happen next. He suddenly realized that he seemed to be in the "BAN position" again, and couldn't help but complain.
.
When he was in the hyperspace channel before, he was somehow managed by Kerry, but this time it seemed like he couldn't do anything.
Somehow he even had the illusion that he was in a similar position to Luo Yi at this moment.
Although everything started because of him, this is a problem destined to be solved by those who come after him.
The temple maid named Dora was the one he chose.
And his intuition told Ye Shi that there might be similar existences in places he couldn't see - a group of protagonists who were either chosen by fate or trapped in them.
This will be a holy war launched in the name of the "Ancestor" and the "Tree of Insof".
I don’t know how people thousands of years from now will describe this epic story.
Just as Ye Shi was thinking this, a soft creaking sound suddenly came from above his head.
The sound was like leather boot soles on the wooden floor, but to his ears it sounded like harsh ridicule.
Of course, maybe that's just his self-righteousness.
The being who made the laughter probably didn't mean to be sarcastic, and there was even a hint of appreciation in his words.
"...You little guys are so funny and you never let me get bored."
Ye Shi had a ghostly expression on his face, jumped up from the bed as if he was electrocuted, and looked around suspiciously.
"who?"
The sound disappeared instantly, as if it had never been there.
Just when Ye Shi himself began to be undecided and wondered if he was hallucinating, the creaking sound with complex meaning floated into his ears again.
Or rather it floated directly into his mind.
"Oh? Can you hear me?"
The voice seemed to have a hint of surprise.
Ye Shi was about to ask a question when he suddenly felt a twist under his butt.
The bed board made of vines seemed to come alive. The vines twisted and began to grow upward, wrapping around his ankles and even his legs.
Ye Shi was suddenly startled and was about to release electricity.
That slow voice floated into his mind again, as if it predicted his reaction.
"Don't be nervous, I won't hurt you... I'm just curious, let me take a good look."
The vines continued to grow upward, and in just a few breaths they had spread all over his body.
Surprisingly, although the vine had rough bark, it did not hurt him.
"You have a familiar smell...a bit like my children, but it seems different...well..."
The slow voice seemed to be lost in thought, and after a long time, he slowly continued to speak.
"I see, I probably understand...you finally accepted them."
"Not bad, not bad, you have finally become a little enlightened... Although they are all the same, the process may be different."
He was saying something uncontrollably, and his tone was like seeing something that happened a long, long time ago.
However, it seems that for some reason, He has not seen through everything, and there are still things that cannot be seen.
Listening to the muttering to himself, Ye Shi felt creepy and his hands and feet were cold.
He is awake!
And noticed him!
That is what Ye Shi is most worried about, even more worried than the bloody conflict between the two tribes!
After all, the only thing that can really threaten them on the entire planet seems to be that indescribable existence.
Ye Shi felt that he had been very careful, but he didn't expect that his whereabouts would eventually be exposed.
But when did it start?
Listening to His meaning, it seems that He has been observing all this for a long time...
In order to understand the situation at the moment, he swallowed hard and spoke calmly.
"Are you Gaia? Or...the Tree of Insof?"
"are you talking about me?"
The dry voice smiled softly and continued slowly.
"The names you call me are always changing, but I am who I am...well, how should I explain it to you."
The ambiguous answer left Eleven Night confused.
Even confused.
He originally thought that Gaia would hate him to the core, but he didn't expect that it didn't mean that at all.
He didn't seem to care at all about what had happened.
Even if the three-year war almost completely killed this planet...
"Actually, whether it's Gaia or the Tree of Insof... they are all me, and they are not me. But if you want me to explain it to you in detail, the difficulty is no more difficult than when you are trying to get the one named Dora.
Girls understand what a research vessel is 'smaller.'”
"It's not that I look down on you, your understanding of 'psionic power' is not as good as that of the children living in this forest, although the 'smart people' among you seem to be already using this ability, and it is systematic and large-scale.
The utilization of... haha."
There was a hint of mockery in that voice.
This was probably the first time he had truly heard the meaning of "ridicule" in His tone, as if they had done something more boring than self-destruction.
Yes.
To Him, their self-destruction was far more interesting.
He gradually lost interest and said lazily.
"I will not do something thankless and meaningless. If you are curious, just go find the answer that is meaningless to you... Anyway, it is not that you have never succeeded."
"Come on, you stupid materialist."
The vines wrapped around him gradually faded away and turned into a flat bed again.
Everything is like nothing happened.
It was as if the bed coming to life was just his imagination, just like everything he saw in the hyperspace channel.
But even so, the feeling of being restrained still clearly remained in his skin and hair.
Without saying a word, Ye Twelve immediately jumped out of bed and looked around alertly.
Finally, he found the source of the sound!
In fact, it is not a "sound" at all, let alone any note.
It was a pure consciousness from the beginning, and its source was the "frescoes" on the walls around the temple!
The moment he tried to understand those words, he realized His existence and established a connection with Him——
That is the ability given to him by the perception attribute!
He sensed His presence!
The ideas in his mind gradually became clearer, and a flash of enlightenment suddenly emerged in Ye Shi's heart, and he looked in a certain direction of the temple - somewhere on the mural.
It was an unfounded intuition. He felt that someone was looking at him and whispering behind his back, saying something that would not hurt his back even if he stood there.