Chapter 27

Chapter 27: The Forebearer of Human Civilization

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

“Where can I get a big broad shelter, a thousand, ten thousand spans wide, a huge roof that all of the world’s poor people can share with smiling faces?”

Xia Ping’an stood on the hill slope and looked down at the forest not far from the cave. He could see the multitude of nests in the trees. He was emotional and could not help but utter this line from a poem.

Further away on the hill, there was another piece of land that they used to bury the dead in the tribe. It was the first time that those who died had a grave and a place to belong and rest in peace. The dead no longer needed to end up like beasts. They could finally leave this world with dignity.

As for the living, they had a place where they could remember the deceased.

What was civilization? This was.

There was still no written word in this era, so they could not carve tombstones. Xia Ping’an taught the tribesmen to place a large stone on top of the grave after they buried the dead as a tombstone. He also told them to place the spear and staff that the deceased had previously used when they were still alive before their tomb. He told the family of the deceased that they could place items that the deceased had used before or things that they could remember him by in front of the tomb or on the staff. Some things could also be burned for the deceased.

The families of the deceased came out one by one to hang the bone necklaces and other items that the deceased wore when they were alive on the staff. Some even hung the clothes and beast skins that Xia Ping’an had taught them to make on the staff next to the tombstone as commemorative items.

Right now, Xia Ping’an was wearing the best tiger skin the tribe had. The bones of the tribe’s hunts hung on a necklace around his neck. He wore a feathered crown adorned with the feathers of golden pheasants and that was woven from juniper straw. In his hand, he held a wooden staff that symbolized his position in the tribe. These were all given to him by the tribesmen.

The tiger skin was from when Xia Ping’an led the warriors of the tribe to hunt a few saber-toothed tigers together. They skinned the tigers, and everyone felt that only Xia Ping’an was qualified to wear them.

The bone ornaments were carved from the teeth of their hunts. It represented the number of ferocious beasts the person had hunted. The more beasts they had hunted, the more bone ornaments they would have around their necks. More bones also meant that they were wealthier and braver.

The women of the tribe gifted him with this feathered crown adorned with golden pheasant feathers and that was woven from juniper straw. The women of the tribe were grateful to Xia Ping’an for teaching them many crafts, allowing them to care for their children better once they were born. Fewer infants died young.

As for the wooden staff in his hands, it was given to him by all the elders in the tribe.

Before, when Xia Ping’an studied history, he had questions as to why the staff became the symbol of status and prestige. Only now did he understand that the wooden staff in his hand was used to beat people in the tribe.

He could use the wooden staff to beat up anyone. Anyone who did not obey his orders would be beaten by him with it. Those that were beaten could not resist and could only await punishment.

The wooden staff in his hands represented the authority to deliver punishment in the tribe. This was the earliest origin of scepters.

Due to the fact that he had extraordinary wisdom, what he said was true. He caused the entire tribe to lead happy lives. He was also not selfish and had taught all he knew to the tribesmen. Hence, the tribe had given him the wooden staff that could be used to beat people. Whoever disobeyed his commands would be beaten with it.

This was an item bestowed upon him by the entire tribe due to his contributions and position. Everyone in the tribe agreed to this.

For a summoner, it was not a good thing for others to know too many details of them merging with the boundary beads. The reason why the Mind Altar coalesced by summoners was known as the Secret Mind Altar was because the less people knew about everything within it, the better. Unless, of course, when they needed to reveal their abilities for mission purposes.

Everyone already knew about Xia Ping’an’s first perfect merge with the divine fire boundary bead. His name had reached the provincial branch. This might garner some fame for Xia Ping’an, but right now, Xia Ping’an was merging with the divine altar boundary bead. It was not convenient for others to know about the details.

Among the three boundary beads used to coalesce a summoner’s Secret Mind Altar, the second divine altar boundary bead was extremely critical. This boundary bead would set a strong foundation for the summoner’s Secret Mind Altar. Its effects were far-reaching.

Before they officially coalesced their Secret Mind Altars, many powerful summoners widened their gap with other ordinary summoners after they merged with the divine altar boundary bead.

Ordinary summoners would obtain 10 to 12 points of divine power after merging with the divine altar boundary bead. Once they successfully merged with the divine being boundary bead and coalesced their Secret Mind Altar, they would be granted a spell summoning slot for the technique Green Guard. Most summoners experienced this.

However, the reason why the divine altar boundary bead was crucial was that it had many possibilities and variations. Ten to 12 points of divine power as well as a spell summoning slot for the technique Green Guard was definitely not everything the divine altar boundary bead had to offer.

The better summoners could obtain more than 16 points of divine power after merging with the divine altar boundary bead. On top of the Green Guard summoning slot, they might also earn an Armor Enhancement summoning slot.

Green Guard enabled summoners to summon a protective barrier when they were executing missions in the wilderness. With the protective barrier, the summoners were safe from all attacks from poisonous bugs and ferocious beasts. Green Guard was very useful. It was said that summoners who possessed it could pretty much treat the wilderness as their home.

Armor Enhancement could enhance any clothing or armor that a summoner was wearing. The effect was equivalent to having another layer of defense on top of the existing clothes or armor that the summoners had on.

In the past, after Mo Yanshao had successfully merged with the divine altar boundary bead, he obtained the Armor Enhancement summoning slot. His achievement allowed him to stand head and shoulders above many others.

Aside from the Armor Enhancement summoning slot, very few summoners might also obtain another even stronger and more useful summoning slot after successfully merging with the divine altar boundary bead. It was the item summoning slot for the Requiem Banner.

Among all the summoning slots, it was the hardest for summoners to earn an item summoning slot. Those who had the Requiem Banner item summoning slot could summon the Requiem Banner and use it to comfort the dead.

The Requiem Banner could ensure that the corpse of the deceased would not be desecrated by corpse explosion technique, corpse alchemy technique, corpse sacrificing technique, undead summoning, and zombie viruses. Even if the corpse was left out in the open, it would not be desecrated by wild beasts and insects. It would even no longer decay until it was buried peacefully for many years. It would be as though the corpse had been mummified. It would become a dry corpse and would not be pestered with bugs.

Summoners who possessed the Requiem Banner could also master corpse manipulation techniques, compelling the corpse to return to its homeland on its own to be buried peacefully.

In various films and television dramas, summoners who possessed the Requiem Banner appeared on the silver screen the most.

For summoners who possessed the Requiem Banner item summoning slot, even if they did not merge with many boundary beads, had low ranks, or were new summoners, their status among summoners would be extraordinary. They would be respected by all and would be sought out no matter where they went.

Since ancient times, in the armies of various countries, summoners who possessed the Requiem Banner were the most revered among soldiers. The love and respect the soldiers had for summoners who possessed the Requiem Banner far exceeded their respect towards summoners with powerful spells.

Even in modern times, in the armies of the various countries, summoners who possessed the Requiem Banner item summoning slot were standard among the armies. They usually served as the army’s priest and guaranteed the army’s morale.

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