Chapter 325

"I dare not, I dare not!"

Hearing Wang Yang tell him to sit in the front row, Tian Dadao waved his hands incessantly, bending his waist even lower. His voice was filled with fawning respect, and he wore an expression of being overwhelmed by an unexpected favor:

"Before the Divine Envoy, we are all servants serving the Divine Envoy. How can there be any distinction between a tribal chief and anyone else! The Divine Envoy need not mind me; I, little Tian, will just find a place to sit myself!"

Xiao Baoyue glanced at Tian Dadao.

Wang Yang smiled and said:

"We are all servants serving the Pan King; no one can boast before the Pan King.

Although the Pan King teaches us to keep a humble heart, he has never abolished the order of respect and inferiority.

As the head of a tribe, the tribal chief holds a noble position and bears heavy responsibilities; it is only right to sit in the front to listen to the Pan King's true Dao and set an example for the tribespeople.

Let the children see that elders should be respected; let the young and strong understand that their duties should be honored;

Let you yourself, in your future governance and conduct, be able to act according to the Pan King's will,

This is the service that the Pan King delights in."

Tian Dadao's expression faltered slightly, then he immediately kowtowed:

"The Divine Envoy is right! I will strictly follow the Divine Envoy's instructions!"

After speaking, he nimbly climbed up, hunched his body, and took small steps around to the first row in front of the altar, sitting beside the little shaman. He held his back straight and listened with extreme seriousness as Wang Yang spoke of how the Pan King had descended, how he had unsealed his soul mark, and how he had made him understand his mission. He also suddenly realized why the Pan King had arranged for him to go on this mission, and why he had been made to come to the Yidu Barbarians at this point in time—it turned out that all of this had been arranged long ago, all in preparation for the great flourishing of the Yidu Barbarians!

Tian Dadao was sometimes focused, sometimes nodding; the more he listened, the more respectful and convinced he became.

In the middle, Wang Yang cleared his throat, and Tian Dadao immediately ordered his subordinates in a loud voice to bring fresh water, also bringing a portion for Xiao Baoyue.

When Wang Yang drank the water, Tian Dadao bowed and stepped forward, his tone full of fawning eagerness:

"The Divine Envoy has been exhausted by the journey and has been preaching the true Dao for so long; it is inevitable that you are tired. Why don't you rest first, and then come to preach after eating?"

Xiao Baoyue looked at Wang Yang, wanting to remind him with her eyes, but Wang Yang didn't look at her at all. He put down the pottery bowl and smiled faintly:

"No need."

"Then I will go and arrange the banquet first, to welcome the Divine Envoy later—"

"No need, you go back and sit down, we will continue."

The smile on Tian Dadao's face stiffened for a moment, then he quickly piled on a warm smile again:

"The Divine Envoy must eat something! And it shouldn't be too simple. The Divine Envoy's arrival is the blessing of our Yidu Tribe! It is a great joyous event! Even if we don't have a banquet, we must prepare some decent food, so everyone can have a lively time together. Firstly, to celebrate as a tribe and pay tribute to the Divine Envoy. Secondly, to share in your blessings. Otherwise, everyone will feel uneasy in their hearts..."

Tian Dadao originally wanted to join in the fun by turning back and inciting the crowd, saying, "Everyone, isn't that right?" but he felt that going too far was as bad as not going far enough, so he held back and didn't say it.

Wang Yang said gently:

"The tribespeople are thirsting for the true meaning; how can I prioritize my own hunger? After everyone has tasted the flavor of the true Dao, I will naturally dine with you."

Xiao Baoyue:...

Tian Dadao was deeply moved! He exclaimed:

"The virtue of the Divine Envoy is truly beyond what ordinary people can reach! Having someone like the Divine Envoy as our Divine Envoy is truly the blessing of our Yidu Tribe!!!"

Xiao Baoyue:...

"Then let it be as the Divine Envoy instructed—preach first, eat later! Then the Envoy, please continue speaking; I will go and make arrangements and return immediately."

Wang Yang called out to stop Tian Dadao:

"Tribal Chief, sit peacefully; everything has its own arrangement."

Tian Dadao was puzzled and asked cautiously:

"May I ask what the Divine Envoy means by 'arrangement'..."

Wang Yang smiled slightly, his voice calm but carrying an unquestionable power, and spat out four words:

"God's arrangement."

Tian Dadao responded submissively, not daring to say more, and returned to his original seat after bowing. His heart was full of confusion, not understanding what Wang Yang meant at all.

He had originally wanted to sit in the back row, mix in with the crowd, and slip away when no one was paying attention! Who knew that Wang Yang would insist on him sitting in the front row.

He waited patiently for a while, and while Wang Yang was drinking water, he again suggested that Wang Yang rest first, but Wang Yang refused!

He then logically brought up the matter of the banquet, but unexpectedly, he was refused by Wang Yang again!

Then he wanted to use the excuse of arranging meals to escape, but he still wasn't allowed!

Tian Dadao was a bit depressed; could it be that Wang Yang had become suspicious of him? That shouldn't be! He had pretended to be so respectful and so obedient; could it be that he still didn't believe him? Or perhaps he was keeping him by his side to make him continue listening to his preaching, so that he would become even more convinced of him?

He had wanted to chat with the little shaman in private, but found that the little shaman was listening with full concentration and had no eye contact with him, so he gave up on that plan.

He continued to pretend to be fanatical, listening to Wang Yang talk about how the Pan King, after becoming a god, had undergone tribulations and bitter cultivation, how he had passed through one thousand three hundred and twenty-three tribulations, entered the netherworld nine times, crossed the sea of suffering seven times, and finally attained the supreme Dao, becoming the highest god in the world. He was stunned as he listened, and as for the others, their mouths couldn't even close.

Especially the little shaman, who felt like a frog in a well seeing the sea, or a summer insect seeing ice! He felt that he had believed in the Pan King all his life, but had always lived in a fog, and had never seen the true face of the Pan King! Only now did he know that what he had learned before was truly shallow and ridiculous! No wonder the Divine Envoy said he wanted to preach the true Dao; it turned out that this was the real Pan King! This was the supreme god that people were willing to serve and follow!!!

The more the little shaman thought, the more excited he became, and the more joyful he felt; without realizing it, he actually shed tears again.

Wang Yang then used the Pan King's affairs as a metaphor, saying that tribulations are necessary for tempering:

"The Pan King never lost faith in the extreme cold, never abandoned hope in the raging flames, never deviated from the true Dao in the illusion, and never wavered in his heart in the heavenly thunder! It is precisely because he endured all the suffering and withstood all the tempering that he was able to transcend himself in trial after trial, and finally achieve supreme glory, becoming the highest ruler in the world!

People are tempered in suffering, and swords are ground on stone! But ordinary people only know how to grind their swords, and do not know how to grind their bodies!

All living beings in the world, some retreat in the face of difficulty; some collapse in spirit after tasting the first bitterness; some lose their original heart in the midst of tribulations, like a broken boat sinking in an angry sea!

All of these are like ordinary iron and broken swords, buried in the dust forever!

Only those who have been hammered a thousand times without breaking, and have gone through ten thousand difficulties without bending their will, can become true steel swords, shining for thousands of years..."

After several large bowls of chicken soup were poured down, Tian Dadao was left with his blood boiling and his heart stirred! Wang Yang stood up, his voice becoming even more impassioned:

"Tribespeople of the Yidu Tribe! People of the Pan King!

All your past suffering! All your poverty! All your scars! All your tears! Are the quenching that must be gone through before a precious sword is born!

This is the mark of forging glory! It is the Pan King wanting to temper your roots and bones!

Only gold that has been tempered by fire shows true purity! Only a soul that has been washed by suffering can be without blemish!

Every drop of blood you have shed will not be shed in vain—it is the seed of future prosperity!

With heaven and earth as the alliance, and mountains and rivers as the witness, I, Wang Yang, declare in the name of the Pan King!

The Yidu Tribe will surely flourish! And will eventually—flourish!!!"

Wang Yang spread his arms wide, and the sunlight spilled onto him, as if he were plated with a layer of pale gold.

Xiao Baoyue was amazed, and without allowing herself to think carefully, she once again transformed into a rhythm master.

The whole audience was in tears, crazily following Xiao Baoyue and shouting:

"The Divine Envoy is above! Yidu flourishes!"

The shouts echoed under the sky, like a tide, like a wave, one wave more urgent than the last, one wave higher than the last! Even the nearby birds were startled, flapping their wings and circling in the sky, as if cheering for the Yidu Tribe's shouts!

Tian Dadao was also shouting along, even his neck was shouted red.

To tell the truth, he was already a bit unable to distinguish whether he was acting or really wanted to shout. Anyway, he only felt all the blood in his body rushing to his head, and his spirit was extremely excited! But he did not lose his reason; he listened to the deafening shouts behind him and looked at the figure standing calmly on the stage, and couldn't help but feel even more wary...

Amidst the incessant waves of sound, Wang Yang made a gesture to the little shaman, who was tear-stained and shouting until his voice was hoarse. Summoned by the Divine Envoy, the little shaman was trembling with excitement! He rushed toward Wang Yang, and when he stepped onto the altar steps, he even almost tripped!

Wang Yang whispered something into the little shaman's ear. Because the shouting under the stage was too loud, Wang Yang had to repeat several parts. The little shaman nodded repeatedly and said a few words to Wang Yang. Xiao Baoyue and Tian Dadao saw Wang Yang and the little shaman whispering and both wanted to know what they were saying, but they couldn't hear, so they could only stare at them, hoping to see some clues from their expressions.

Soon, the little shaman left, and Wang Yang continued to preach the greeting gesture required by the Pan King, stipulating that from now on, as long as they were believers of the Pan King, they must hammer their shoulders with their right fists when they met and say to each other, "My God is above." And he specifically emphasized:

"The fist must be clenched tight, not loose. If it's loose, it won't show piety to the Pan King; the shoulder hammering must be forceful, not light, or it won't be able to carry the Pan King's entrustment!"

While speaking, he demonstrated it himself:

"Come! Everyone follow me and do it! Right fist hammers shoulder, shout 'My God is above'!"

The tribespeople had already been ignited by his preaching, and at this moment, they all followed his example, raising their right fists and hammering them onto their shoulders. For a time, the area under the altar was filled with the sound of "thump thump" shoulder hammering and the prayer of "My God is above."

Xiao Baoyue watched and found it interesting, thinking to herself, where does this guy get so much drama!!!

He's still so playful between life and death! He actually made up a barbarian ritual and is teaching the barbarians to perform it on the spot!

But when the messy sounds gradually became uniform;

When the sound of shoulder hammering and the prayer formed a strange harmony;

When the whole audience responded in unison, the shouts rolling and converging into a torrent!

When this highly unified rhythm made people breathe and tremble along with it, as if being swept into some invisible vortex—

Xiao Baoyue suddenly understood that Wang Yang was not teaching them to perform a ritual, but teaching them to obey.

Wang Yang's intention was of course much deeper than Xiao Baoyue thought. A unified fixed gesture can not only help strengthen collective consciousness and collective identity, consolidate the authority of the god, and make the tribespeople accept suggestions and discipline unconsciously. At the same time, it can also use herd mentality to penetrate daily life, and through constant repetition and constant infection, deeply implant the suggestion into the blood, becoming an instinctive reaction before thinking.

At the same time, this gesture is distinct and easy to learn, and like a virus, it is easy to copy and spread. When most people are making the same gesture, those who are unwilling to follow the crowd will be invisibly isolated, watched, and even treated with hostility!

And individuals are easily lost under group pressure, merging into a unified mode of action.

Thus, more and more people are making the gesture, and fewer and fewer are not. Individual differences are gradually erased, just like trees being pruned of all side branches, leaving only the bare main trunk pointing in the same direction.

Such a main trunk is not beautiful, but it is powerful.

Powerful, and easy to control.

——————

Note: "The Langya Surname" Chapter 218: "... but because there is no recognized leader, the power of these three tribal chiefs is not very great, and they cannot control the entire Yidu Barbarian Tribe at all. This is too unstable! Even if the imperial court reaches an agreement with the three tribal chiefs, the decision-making and political orders cannot be implemented. Under such conditions, how can trade be conducted?"