Above The Sky
Chapter 865 - 865 57 The Will of the People Can Be Utilized 6900

865: Chapter 57: The Will of the People Can Be Utilized (6900) 865: Chapter 57: The Will of the People Can Be Utilized (6900) —— Have you heard of the Dragon God’s Emissary?

For the Mountain People, this is a well-known legend.

The first Dragon God’s Emissary made a pact with the Dragon God.

He established the fledgling form of the Dragon Kingdom within the vast Bison Mountain Range, uniting the tribes under his call and creating the most glorious and prosperous era for the Mountain People.

The last Dragon God’s Emissary was born during the years when the Dragon God had departed.

She rekindled the Sacrificial Flame on the Holy Mountain, and with her strength alone, she unified the crumbling Mountain Tribes, maintaining a deterrent against The Alliance for fifty years after her death, giving the Mountain People a reason to stay united.

Until The Empire’s grand army crushed the children of the mountains, pressing all surnames with ancient histories and glories into the dust.

Priest Fiotto first heard of the Dragon God’s Emissary when he was six years old.

His father was the tribe’s great Priest and at that time, the boy sat on a stony platform at the back of the tribe, bursting with fresh flowers.

His mother held him, while his father vividly described the glory of their ancestors.

The Chonglin Tribe is located at the edge of the Midra Autonomous Region, to the west of Rock Armor Mountain in a basin surrounded by many hills and mountain ranges.

The melting ice and snow from the distant mountains traveled across the long stone paths to converge here, creating a rare fertile soil within the Bison Mountain Range.

In summer, the tribe’s back mountain is covered in flowers of all colors, only the Xia Hui Grass from the Holy Ground can outshine the splendid tapestry they form.

The Chonglin Tribe and the Jiamu Sect were once one, their ancestors had produced a Dragon God’s Emissary.

Or rather, among the Mountain Tribes, the reputable large tribes, whether it’s Hanging Peak, Avod, Jiamu, True Bone, or Forest Rock, had all once produced or claimed to have produced a Dragon God’s Emissary.

Priest Fiotto’s ancestors too once possessed this highest honor.

At that time, still a child, the Priest was full of longing.

He wanted to become the leader of the tribe, to become a priest of the Dragon God, to listen to the voices left by the Dragon God on the Holy Ground, to become the Dragon God’s Emissary.

Just like how everyone wants to be somebody important, just like how every child has innocent and lofty dreams, just like how every wish starts off with a shining light.

In Priest Fiotto’s heart, just like all those with dreams, there was a drive to change the world.

But now, that drive, like that of the vast majority living on this land…

had already been worn away to nothing.

Seventy years have passed.

The Empire has had three or perhaps four generations of emperors, going from its former decline to revitalization, and now to its current stability.

It remains the largest and most powerful state on Terra, but the Mountain People decline day by day.

And that child full of hope…

Can’t even ensure that other children have enough to eat.

“It’s time to eat, children.”

The Mountain People with their black-blue hair still walked with a steady step; although old, Priest Fiotto had not reached the frail years yet.

Rattling the bell, doors to room after room opened, and one by one, thin figures gathered from the courtyard and corridors.

“Line up, one bowl per person.”

The Priest stood in front of the big table, scooping out spoonfuls of thin porridge from the large pot.

The children, holding bowls, formed an orderly queue, praising the Dragon God or thanking the Priest softly, while the old man’s expression was without a ripple: “Don’t waste your breath on useless words, go lie down after eating.

Bask in the sun if you want, but don’t run around.”

“Kebo, Harry, you two will come with me to the back mountain later to dig up something edible.

You two eat two bowls.”

The dining hall was silent.

Even swallowing sounds seemed minute.

The two older children named finished their portions and then sat hesitantly in their spots.

“Come here, second bowl.” The Priest raised his voice slightly: “Don’t think about giving it to others.

Do you plan to faint halfway through from hunger, forcing me to carry you back?”

“No…” “Sorry, Grandpa Priest…”

“No nonsense.”

Priest Fiotto shook his head, serving them a second bowl of thin porridge: “After you finish, lead the younger brothers and sisters in meditation for a while, then set off.”

Even the schemers from Fiery Flame Land couldn’t possibly target the entire ecosystem of the Bison Mountain Range.

They could only attack the domesticated cereals of Humans, destroying the weak roots of cultivated plants, corrupting the overly standardized branches, leaves, and flowers that had lost complexity.

In the woods and on the hillsides, there are always some wild vegetables and mushrooms to stave off hunger.

Apart from that, the unappetizing chunky tubers that were once the food of their ancestors when they first explored the mountains will now become theirs.

Although they might be slightly poisonous, if boiled thoroughly, mashed up, and mixed into the porridge, made thin enough, they are always edible.

At this time, there is no room for choice.

The children ate cautiously, every bite of food was hard-earned, each bite had to be chewed, or rather to delay the rhythm of their eating, as if by doing so they could to take just one more bite, and then another.

The Priest watched silently, his rock-grey eyes fixed on them.

—— Why has it come to this?

A voice was asking.

Because of the War.

A War that was forced upon them.

Headed by the Jiamu Sect, the Mountain People have always longed for independence.

They guarded the Iron Dragon Nest, occupied one of the Holy Grounds, they had enough Inheritance to advance to the Third or even Fourth Power Level, they hated The Empire that deprived them of their rights to ascend higher, so when Fiery Flame Land extended an olive branch, those Mountain People wishing for independence immediately accepted.