mesbooks Chapter 66 [The Ceiling and the Beginning]
Chapter 66 [The Ceiling and the Beginning]
Everyone is pondering this sentence.
How do we get out of this valley?
Go to some unknown place?
Kahn was the first to break the silence; he stood up and curled his lip.
The iron spear in his hand gleamed in the firelight.
"Go out? Go where? Go to your death?"
"We proved with our blood yesterday that the most valuable creatures in the forest are the powerful prey; with enough weapons, we can conquer the entire forest."
"We're eating meat today, and the wounded have regained their strength. Isn't this the best life we can have?"
Kahn waved his arms, inciting the young hunters, "Terra, has your courage shrunk along with the campfire?"
These words drew a chorus of agreement.
The young men who had tasted the sweetness of ironware had an excited gleam in their eyes.
Mason stepped forward and pointed to the wounded man groaning in the corner.
"And the price? We lost three brothers, and two more may never get back to their feet. Kahn, will we be so lucky next time?"
"Luck?" Kahn scoffed. "Mason, that's not luck, that's skill. And skill needs to be honed through more battles."
Anya stepped between the two and her words silenced everyone.
"The meat will run out, and the forest will one day rage; Terra is thinking about how to ensure our children can see tomorrow's sun; we need salt, our women need more nutrition during pregnancy, and our children cannot eat only roast meat and berries forever."
The thought of plundering and the fear of the unknown left the people of this tribe feeling uneasy.
"We can learn from that dwarf," Mason suddenly said.
"Instead of robbing, let's develop the ability to create all of this ourselves. Bahrain certainly knows far more than we realize."
Kahn frowned but did not immediately refute.
If Bahrain could continuously manufacture weapons for them, that would sound like a good option.
Soon, at Terra's suggestion, Balin was politely invited from his tent to the campfire.
The dwarf had no idea what these humans were arguing about in the middle of the night, and looked impatient.
Mason held up the best iron spear he had ever made in the tribe and respectfully presented it to Balin.
Then, he pointed to the runic battle axe that Balin never parted from his waist, then to himself, and finally made a learning gesture.
His meaning was clear: he wanted to learn how to make weapons like the dwarves.
Bahrain understood, took Mason's iron spear, and flicked the tip with his thick fingers, producing a dull sound.
The dwarf shook his head and snorted.
He took off his battle axe and weighed it in his hand.
"Runes." Balin squeezed out an unfamiliar word from his throat.
He wanted to explain the mystery to these primitive people.
He gripped the wooden handle of the battle axe and brought the blade close to the firelight.
As the dwarf focused his mind, the energy runes carved on the axe blade lit up.
A faint blue halo flowed along the strokes of the rune.
"Waaah—"
Everyone held their breath.
Bahrain stood up and walked to a granite bench that was being used as a stool by the campfire.
He casually swung his battle axe, making only a light stroke.
The axe blade touched the rock, and a flash of blue light appeared.
The granite was cut open, and the cut was as smooth as a mirror.
A chorus of gasps filled the air.
Mason's eyes widened, and he rushed forward, touching the incision with trembling hands.
It was flat, smooth, and still had a slight warmth to it.
This is something that cannot be done by human beings.
Kahn's arrogance vanished, and he stared blankly at the battle axe.
Balin put away his battle axe, walked to a pile of ore for construction, and picked up a piece of iron ore that looked quite good.
He grabbed Mason's hand and pressed it against the surface of the ore.
Bahrain closed his eyes and used his innate talent as a child of the earth to sense the internal structure and veins of the ore.
He wanted to guide Mason, to let him also feel that pulse that originates from the earth.
And with his other hand, he made a flowing, breathing gesture in the air.
Mason followed his example, closing his eyes and focusing all his attention on his fingertips.
He was working very hard, and sweat was beading on his forehead.
One minute.
five minutes.
Ten minutes passed.
There was nothing there.
Bahrain opened his eyes and saw Mason looking confused, so he had no choice but to let go.
The dwarf sighed heavily.
He pointed to his heart, then to his veins, and then pounded his chest with a dull thud.
Finally, he shook his head and pointed at Mason again.
He told them the truth in the most clumsy yet direct way.
This power originates from the bloodline.
It is a natural talent of dwarves.
It is innate.
These four words made Mason and all his supporters realize for the first time that there was a chasm between themselves and the dwarves on the path of craftsmanship, called racial talent.
This is something that cannot be made up for by hard work.
Mason stood frozen in place, looking down at his hands.
These hands, which had just learned to build a furnace and to hammer, seemed so powerless in the face of true supernatural power.
Mason's newly ignited hope was shattered.
"Ha, ha ha ha ha!" Kahn burst into laughter. "I told you, learn? What are you going to learn from?"
"If we can't learn it, then there's only one way—rob!" Kahn's voice boomed.
His followers puffed out their chests, looking defiantly at Mason's group.
The atmosphere was extremely tense.
Just as Kahn was about to speak and force through his plundering plan, Anya stepped forward again.
She simply walked over to the seriously wounded and pointed to their pained faces.
"Whether we're venturing deep into the forest to hunt or exploring uncharted lands to the east, we need manpower; they are the warriors of the tribe, and we can't just abandon them."
"We can't afford any more internal strife," Anya said wearily. "If we continue to split apart, none of us will survive."
Her words calmed everyone down.
Terra finally made up her mind.
"A tribe must walk on two legs."
He stood before Kahn. "I approve of you continuing to lead your hunting party; however, you must operate within the perimeter of the designated safe zone in Bahrain. Your task is to provide a stable food source for the tribe; do not take any risks."
Kahn wanted to argue, but Terra's gaze left no room for doubt.
"That's an order," Terra said in a deep voice.
Kahn thought for a moment, then finally snorted, which was taken as an admission of the outcome.
It's better to have a fight than no fight at all.
Then, Terra turned to Mason and another group of people.
"I will personally select the cautious hunters and clever young men from the tribe to form an exploration team; our goal is the east, the edge of that forest; to find new settlements, to find the salt Anya spoke of, and to find any resources that may be of use to us."
"Mason, I need your wisdom. We may not be able to learn the dwarves' magic, but we can forge our own path."
……
【Celestial Realm】Main Tank.
Lynch observed the entire late-night discussion.
His divine sense could perceive the profound bewilderment and resentment that Mason felt when he touched the ore.
The dwarves' talent is an innate instinct.
For the first time, Lynch doubted his own actions.
The sacred mountain of artisans that he left for the dwarves was a perfectly crafted road.
Every dwarf, as long as they follow that path, learn, and climb, will eventually reach the threshold of their skill.
But has this actually become a limitation?
Does this deprive ordinary people of their right to create something from nothing, to learn from mistakes, and to create from despair?
Just like Mason right now.
He failed, and he was devastated.
But the determination to keep going even in this way, the creative desire that springs from the very core of a mortal for survival, in his eyes, touched Lynch's forging authority far more than any dwarf apprentice's methodical ascent of the sacred mountain.
"A perfect road will stifle the growth of weeds..." Lin Qi murmured in his mind.
A well-planned highway can certainly enable civilization to develop rapidly.
But only in a wilderness full of thorns and forks can one find a new path that no one has ever walked before.
"Then let me see what kind of path you can forge."