Chapter 702: 'Animal World' and 'The Bible'

Chapter 702: "The Animal Kingdom" and the "Bible"

Golden Galon Port.

A pattering downpour had washed the dust from the streets, and wisps of thin mist rose from the dark red square bricks, shrouding this harbor—still unreached by the morning sun—in a hazy, foggy veil.

Aboard the cargo ships docked at the pier, sailors were clearing the decks, while merchants dressed in silken robes checked the goods to be transferred to the warehouses with the port affairs officer.

After a brief vacuum of order, tranquility had returned to this harbor town; at the very least, order in the port district had been largely restored.

Institutions including the security bureau, fire station, port authority, clinic, and court were resumed their duties under the coercive, carrot-and-stick approach of the "Iron Men."

After all, having a job to do and a salary to collect was far more comfortable than squatting in a bedless warehouse.

The nuclear-powered submarine "Dolphin" had docked at the pier once more, bringing not only supplies from French Fries Port this time, but also researchers from the scientific expedition team.

Previously, the players of the Burning Brigade had seized a massive hoard of relics left behind from the Prosperity Era in the Governor’s Mansion that required valuation, and the scientific expedition team was the only unit interested in these "sacred relics" and legally permitted to acquire them from the players.

Sometimes, Fang Chang could not help but maliciously imagine whether these fellows would deliberately depress the prices, relying on their "exclusive franchise."

But even if they did press the prices down, there was really nothing he could do.

These spoils of war were submitted as "quest items," not commodities to be freely traded.

No matter how little they gave, he could only accept it.

However, the offer given by this broad-minded lady researcher did not disappoint him; it was even so high that it caught him somewhat by surprise.

"...A total of 9.17 million silver coins."

Having finally finished photographing and registering the last piece of war booty, the researcher extended her index finger and tapped twice on the unfurled holographic screen, archiving the collected data.

"Hiss..."

Standing to the side, Fang Chang heard the number and could not help but suck in a breath of the damp air. The researcher happened to hear him and cast an inquiring gaze his way.

"What is it?"

Concealing the secret delight on his face, Fang Chang talked nonsense with a perfectly straight face.

"Nothing... I mean, this is too little. We went to immense trouble to get these things, could you add a bit more?"

The researcher spoke with teasing amusement.

"We have a strict calculation formula and auditing process for unscheduled reclamation projects. No matter how much effort you put in, it will not affect their surplus value. I advise you to give up."

"Alright."

Fang Chang gave up decisively.

This person was named Han Mingyue, a little popsicle recovered from the Great Desert ruins by the Thorns Brigade stationed around Pioneer City.

The reason she was called a little popsicle had nothing to do with her age, but rather because the time displayed on her hibernation pod was eighty-one years—not even a full century.

The background information concerning her spanned a full five pages on the official website, mostly compiled by the players active around the Pioneer City area.

Fang Chang had glanced through it briefly, and the key information he extracted amounted to roughly three lines—

She was once a resident of the now-abandoned Vault 288.

Her specialty was data restoration and archival organization.

Likely influenced by Rama, the leader of the Thorns Brigade, she was currently engaged primarily in sociological research regarding the Brahma Province.

Whether it was "Brahma Province" or the "sociological direction" itself, both were considered relatively obscure fields within the scientific expedition team.

Yet it was precisely because of this, as one of the few capable talents in this field despite her shallow seniority, that Yin Fang had still dispatched her here.

Shifting her gaze back to the spoils of war that filled half the warehouse before her, Han Mingyue extended her gloved right hand and picked up a silver-gray memory card from the shelf.

That memory card was only the size of a thumb.

A light of intense interest flickered in her eyes.

"...But to be honest, I didn't expect you all to actually find this thing."

Fang Chang glanced at her fingertips; the object looked like a memory card, placed together with other game cards featuring colorful covers.

"Is there something special about this card?"

"More than just special!" Han Mingyue said in a cheerful voice. "Let's put it this way: the project I am currently researching was missing exactly this piece of the puzzle... regarding the origin of the Thousand Clans and Thousand Gods."

The origin of the Thousand Clans and Thousand Gods?!

A color of intense interest immediately surfaced in Fang Chang's eyes as well, and he said at once.

"I am all ears."

Han Mingyue did not speak; instead, she pulled out a holographic computer pen, attached an expansion interface, and inserted the somewhat aged memory card into it.

Watching the pale blue holographic beam with anticipation, Fang Chang originally thought he would see something astonishing, but he never expected that what met his eyes would be a robust yak.

The yak was running, its burly muscles pulsing with the breath of life, billowing dust drifting around it, yet the ground beneath its feet could not be seen.

At this moment, the camera began to zoom out ahead of it, gradually revealing the herd of cattle behind it and the vast, endless grassland.

Then, a vigorous, deep, and thoroughly convincing broadcasting voice began to echo.

"On the grasslands by the banks of the Everflowing River, the most lethal thing is not the claws of the hyena or the teeth of the lion, but the running herds of cattle. Even the fiercest beasts must steer clear when encountering them..."

To be fair, as a documentary, these few short shots were quite striking, and the voiceover's entry was reasonably standard.

Especially considering that two hundred years ago, these images might have been presented by immersive virtual reality equipment, the actual expressiveness would perhaps be more shocking than a third-person perspective holographic projection.

But...

What did this have to do with the Thousand Clans and Thousand Gods?

Fang Chang was a bit dazed.

Standing beside him, Han Mingyue stared straight at the flickering holographic light and shadow, just as if she were gazing at a cultural relic.

"The original footage of 'The Mysteries of Nature: The Yak Chapter'... Although there is still some data loss, it is already the most complete memory card we can find at present. It's truly a miracle it was preserved so well! Please try to look in similar places as much as possible in the future."

"I will, if conditions permit..." Burnt outside and tender inside by the title of that documentary, Fang Chang could not help but ask, "It's just that I don't quite understand... What does this 'animal kingdom' have to do with the Thousand Clans and Thousand Gods?"

Han Mingyue narrowed her eyes slightly and said with a smile.

"A herd of cattle running under the fierce sun... Don't you find this very familiar?"

Fang Chang froze slightly, blabbing out.

"...The Sun-Bearing Divine Ox."

Han Mingyue gave him an appreciative look.

"You are very perceptive."

Holy crap?!

Fang Chang was entirely dumbfounded.

"But..."

Looking at his hesitant expression, Han Mingyue could guess what he was thinking without even asking, so she smiled faintly and said.

"You want to ask how a popular science documentary became the origin of the Thousand Clans and Thousand Gods, right?"

With a bizarre expression, Fang Chang nodded his head.

"Perhaps my imagination is insufficient; I simply cannot fully envision this process..."

"It's not that hard to understand. You just need to abstract 'holographic cartridges' as something beyond the grasp of knowledge and experience."

Seeing Fang Chang's face still etched with confusion, she paused for a moment before continuing.

"In ancient times, a forest fire or a bolt of lightning was enough to make a particularly intelligent or lucky ape-man the tribe's prophet or shaman. But as people gradually mastered the art of making fire and lost their awe for the flames that consumed all things, those sacred roles—prophets, shamans, keepers of the flame—slowly faded from the center of the historical stage."

Fang Chang furrowed his brow slightly, pondered for a moment, and said,

"You mean someone used these popular science images—like the Blue Coats or something—to package themselves as priests or prophets, deceiving the survivors on this land."

Not surprised by his line of thought, Han Mingyue spoke in a gentle tone.

"That's a rather utilitarian interpretation, and of course it can't be ruled out. But the existing evidence leans more toward a completely opposite explanation."

"...What explanation?"

"It wasn't the deliberate act of any individual, but rather an unconscious, spontaneous formation by the collective during the long process of social evolution."

Fang Chang was momentarily stunned.

"Spontaneous formation?"

"Exactly."

Han Mingyue nodded slowly, gazing at the flickering holographic images, and continued.

"A work of art can be created by one person or a few, but a culture widely embraced by people usually emerges spontaneously during social evolution. To understand the origins of 'a thousand tribes, a thousand gods' in the Bolo Province, we have to start with the first survivors who fled to this land."

Fang Chang asked in confusion,

"Were there no native survivors on this land?"

Han Mingyue paused, looking at him oddly.

"Are you joking? During the Prosperity Era, this was an ecological reserve... Apart from a few tourism workers and researchers, how could there be any native survivors? Would you want to sleep with lions and buffalo?"

Fang Chang: "...?"

Seeing his utter ignorance, Han Mingyue sighed, turned off the "Animal World" playing on the screen, and spoke slowly.

"It seems I need to start from the very basics with you..."

...

The greatest difference between the Prosperity Era and the Old Age was not just the technological gap, but the earth-shattering changes in everything from production and lifestyle to ideology and culture—changes unimaginable in the old times.

The most typical example was administrative division.

Thanks to the free migration of people, extensive development of outer space, and global ethnic integration, people's attachment to land was no longer as strong as in the old era. They identified more with the identity of "human" than with their own bloodlines, even beginning to debate whether to grant the honor of "being born human" to AI with "social attributes."

The people living on this planet were fully prepared to embrace the future, only one FTL engine away from setting foot among the stars.

Against this backdrop, in pursuit of efficient allocation of land resources, the Human Union abolished the old administrative divisions early in the Prosperity Era, replacing them with larger, more locally adapted regions.

The Luoxia Province, for instance, was a product of this "enclosure movement."

Once a vast desert, it was transformed by desalination devices and inexhaustible energy into farmland capable of feeding the world's population and satisfying their palates.

The Bolo Province was similar, but its planning direction was the complete opposite of the once-uninhabited Luoxia Province.

In the old era before the Human Union was established, it housed the world's largest slum, with a wealth gap that was the most extreme globally.

If Luoxia Province was an undeveloped wilderness, then Bolo Province was a wasteland ruined by its own inhabitants.

Thus, when the Human Union was finally established after many twists and turns, and the four major industrial zones in central Zhongzhou along with the space elevator project began construction, the region immediately sparked a prolonged and unprecedented "Great Migration."

A massive number of poor people left their impoverished homes in search of a better life, riding maglev trains wave after wave across the Zhuobar Mountains to the dreamland in central Zhongzhou. Together with immigrants from other administrative divisions, they accomplished a miracle in Human Union history—a super-large urban cluster built around the space elevator.

Conversely, the depopulated Bolo Province, under the influence of the population siphon effect, underwent a sweeping "de-urbanization" movement.

In fact, similar situations occurred elsewhere, but Bolo Province's case, due to many historical issues, appeared more striking in macro data.

According to verifiable data, by the mid-Prosperity Era, the population of the entire Bolo Province had dwindled to 0.3% of its late Old Age level, starkly contrasting with the eastern and western provinces, which still retained large "urban clusters generating positive economic effects."

Considering that maintaining the low-usage public facilities was costly, and that it was better to give the locals money and a ticket to move to the central urban clusters to enjoy life rather than let them live in "priceless but dilapidated houses," the Human Union authorities simply designated Bolo Province as an "ecological reserve." Under the banner of "We must build not only a heaven for humans but also a heaven for animals," they used administrative intervention to fast-track this unprecedented de-urbanization movement to its conclusion.

By the mid-to-late Prosperity Era, the de-urbanization of Bolo Province had ended ahead of schedule under active Human Union intervention. On its 4 million square kilometers of land, fewer than 50,000 people remained, mainly tourism workers and researchers.

After demolishing most old urban buildings and shanties, the Human Union returned this blessed land—spanning tropical, subtropical, and northern temperate zones—to nature, retaining only a few cultural sites, tourist areas, self-driving routes, and research facilities.

The maglev tracks built for the migration were gradually dismantled as the migration goals were achieved, leaving only a few underground lines that did not hinder wildlife migration.

This place was like a giant wildlife park.

Long before the Wasteland Era began, it had already been dismantled...

After briefly summarizing what happened on this land during the Prosperity Era, Han Mingyue paused and continued.

"...What happened next probably doesn't need my explanation. The Three-Year War broke out, the space elevator collapsed, the beautiful life shattered, and the super urban cluster in central Zhongzhou turned into a hell on earth that even the Post-War Reconstruction Committee couldn't handle."

"A massive number of survivors flooded from the four industrial zones into surrounding administrative divisions, like Luoxia Province and Bolo Province... Because of Bolo Province's status as an 'ecological reserve,' this land became the sole survivor of that war. Even Luoxia Province had a hive drop, but not a single one fell on these 4 million square kilometers."

Fang Chang looked at her in astonishment.

"Not a single one?!"

"Yes," Han Mingyue nodded. "Obviously, the colonists didn't think it necessary to pay special attention to this zoo. Besides, without concrete buildings as culture media, it wasn't suitable for slime molds to reproduce quickly."

She paused and continued.

"Because it wasn't particularly targeted by hives and had a pleasant climate, many survivors chose this place as their first refuge... According to my research estimates, at least tens of millions of people successfully fled here."

"Clearly, this already de-urbanized land couldn't support such a population. Food, medicine, energy, housing, even safety became scarce. To compete for survival, people began to imitate the beasts of this land, casting aside civilized restraint in their hunger."

"At first, it was just poaching, then robbery, even cannibalism... I'm putting it mildly, but based on the materials I've gathered in the Great Desert, this place may have descended into complete lawless wasteland even earlier than the eastern and western provinces under the War Reconstruction Committee's care."

Imagining that apocalyptic scene, Fang Chang swallowed involuntarily.

"What about the local garrison?"

Han Mingyue said succinctly.

"The Human Union's army was formed in a very short time. There were fires to put out everywhere, and they had to maintain the front lines five light-years away. How many could be spared for this 'zoo'? According to my research, some troops did enter the region, but the order they could maintain was limited to a few temperate coastal areas on the east and west coasts of Bolo Province."

"Moreover, with the loss of organization and supplies, their own survival became a problem. You couldn't expect those people to keep the balance of order forever—they themselves were on that balance, and it was already good enough if they could slow down its collapse."

She paused and continued.

"What the military did at that time isn't the focus of my research. Let me return to my point: these 4 million square kilometers may have entered the wasteland earlier and completed the transition from a lawless society to an orderly one sooner, giving rise to various large and small settlements. These settlements, in the form of tribes, spread along the Yongliu River and gradually expanded outward..."

"Due to the barriers of the Zhuobar Mountains and the Bolo Sea, mutants and most aberrations failed to migrate into this area, and aquatic mutants stopped east of the Baiyue Strait. The main pressures on local survivors came from some wild animals and a few aberrations."

"Although civilization had regressed systematically, there were still many old-era experiences and technologies left behind. These survivors, with low literacy but rich survival skills, expanded their territories much faster than primitive people. Soon, like the survivors in Luoxia Province, they formed various large and small feudal kingdoms."

"In this process, not only did their population explode, but they also found something to house their souls..."

As she spoke, Han Mingyue took the memory card from the computer pen and waved it before Fang Chang's eyes.

"Faith."

"Whether worshiping an abstract god or a doctrine, in the classical period before the Enlightenment, it was almost the only tool to unite the ignorant majority. It could temporarily make people stop pondering the three questions—'Who am I?' 'Where do I come from?' 'Where am I going?'—suppress primitive instincts, and keep a vast system running like gears."

Fang Chang's Adam's apple bobbed.

Though he had anticipated this, hearing a professional dissect it layer by layer still stirred a sense of awe within him.

"So the thousand tribes and thousand gods is a lie?"

Han Mingyue said in a lighthearted tone.

"It can't be called a lie, more like a coincidence... A large number of holographic projection devices were left here, mainly to introduce the wildlife of the Boro Province to tourists. Relying on energy storage equipment, they likely operated for a considerable period during the first fifty years of the Wasteland Era. It's understandable that second- and third-generation survivors, who opened their eyes to the wasteland, mistook them for divine miracles—after all, the fathers who could explain things to them over and over had an average lifespan of less than thirty years."

"Try putting yourself in the survivors' shoes for a moment. You're a survivor who has lived in a world of ice and snow since birth, huddled at the ticket gate of some cultural center with your father's relic, sheltering from a blizzard."

"At that moment, the AI recognizes your presence. An endless warm grassland appears before you, and then a majestic voice begins to recount tales of the old days. The Boro Province of the past was a paradise where even rats could live a vibrant life..."

Trying to imagine the situation the survivors faced back then, Fang Chang struggled for a while but still couldn't put himself in their place. Finally, he shook his head.

"...No matter what, I wouldn't think of myself as a descendant of rats."

A lion or a tiger, maybe.

Han Mingyue teased with a smile.

"Of course, human ancestors can't be animals, but you could easily worship it as something akin to the Great Antler Deer God... Don't overestimate yourself. The only reason you didn't is that you've had a good education and truly understand what you've learned."

The inexplicable holographic lights were just the beginning.

When miracles become reality, they are no longer mere miracles but prophecies delivered by the gods.

Besides, later on, the scenes in those holograms did come true.

In the 50th year of the Wasteland Era, the winter ended, and the ecological environment of the Boro Province gradually returned to what it had been half a century earlier.

For the survivors living along the Eternal River at that time, there was no doubt that the totems they worshipped had manifested their power.

Though the end of winter was merely normal climate change and had nothing to do with their prayers...

"I know," Fang Chang said with deep emotion. "But come to think of it, the thousand tribes and thousand gods really were artificially divided."

After all, two hundred years was too short a time for a group of people to naturally evolve into a new subspecies.

Unless it was pure black technology like the Vlandians or mutants.

Without the aid of science, they would need at least a thousand years of racial isolation for the Sun Tribe and Moon Tribe to develop distinct physical differences.

As if compelled by an obsessive need for precision, Han Mingyue corrected his loose wording and continued.

"To be precise, it's a limited self-identity formed under collective unconscious behavior. You can see that their skeletal features are not much different from the survivors who fled to the Luoxia Province. Excluding the effects of nutrition, air humidity, and light exposure, they are essentially the same people."

Fang Chang nodded thoughtfully.

In fact, not to mention other players, even he occasionally subjectively applied Earth-based experiences. But if he thought about it carefully, reality and the game were two completely different dimensions.

The wasteland of the Boro Province was probably a "classic start."

That is, a typical wasteland formed purely by the collapse of order, without the intervention of transcendent forces like Vault dwellers, strategic weapon strikes, mutant slime hives, or mutants.

As for the Xilin Empire, it was just a ripple in the rise and fall of history.

Without external interference, the survivors here might have continued their traditions for centuries or millennia, until an accidental "Renaissance" or a "great historical discovery" of the past gave them a new spiritual anchor, replacing the outdated "thousand tribes and thousand gods theory" as productivity developed.

But another extreme possibility couldn't be ruled out: the local survivors might fall into another spiral in the long cycle. By learning from the mistakes of the previous cycle, they would nail shut the loopholes that could break the cycle with oak boards and nails, thus establishing a more permanent and logically rigorous "theory of rule," making the waters of the Eternal River forever stagnant.

Which possibility was more likely was unknowable.

After all, only history that has happened is the necessity within history.

As for what the future holds, only future generations will know.

In any case, for the scientific expedition team, they were a good sample to observe.

Placing the memory card containing the "primitive scriptures" into a storage box, Han Mingyue looked toward the harbor outside the warehouse door, her spirits lifted.

"...Barring any surprises, there should be traces of early survivor settlements or shelters nearby. This might help me complete the part of my research that I hadn't touched on before—the influence of the only remaining order during the Three-Year War on the social evolution of the Boro Province wasteland."

Hearing Han Mingyue's words, Fang Chang spoke instinctively.

"You mean Lowell Camp?"

"Wait, Lowell Camp is here?!" Han Mingyue's eyes widened in surprise, then she said excitedly, "Great, can you take me to see it?"

Fang Chang nodded.

"No problem."

Because the second phase of the offensive had been advanced, the camp was currently under their control. Before the Xilin Emperor got serious, they could probably enjoy a period of calm.

If they wanted to conduct scientific research, now was the perfect time.

Just as Fang Chang was about to call for a vehicle to take her there, GoodNameWasTakenByADog suddenly walked over.

He walked quickly, his face full of seriousness. Before Fang Chang could ask, he spoke rapidly.

"Something happened at Lowell Camp!"