novelSusiti Chapter 2157 - 1563: What If Potatoes Were Introduced to Mongolia? (Part 2)
Chapter 2157 - 1563: What If Potatoes Were Introduced to Mongolia? (Part 2)
"The Seven Stars are the seven Shaman Gods that protect us. Besides them, there is ’Alten Gadas’, the Golden Nails Pole Star, indicating directions in the wind and snow. The Three Dog Stars, ’Ancient Japan Nao Hai’, indicate precise times at night... Yes! Direction and time are the most important during night herding, so they must be worshipped at any time during the night to guide the herdsmen...""Of course, the Mongolian Tribes are similar to our Jurchen Tribes in worshipping those sacred mountains, rivers, lakes, and seas. Like the ’Little Holy Lake’ in the north, this Black Water Great River, and the eastern and western ’Divine Mountain’. They also worship fire; those who die of plague or their livestock must be purified by fire. Lastly, like us, they worship ’Shangxinmaodu’, the sacred great tree, ’Shangxi Tree’. Important alliance oaths are made under the ’Shangxi Tree’, witnessed by the Tree Spirit! In this way, those who violate the Tree Spirit will be cursed and punished by it..."
Hearing Ali’s narration, Zuwaro stroked his chin, deep in thought. The gods worshipped by this small Mongolian tribe, like those of the Mountain and Rokube parts, are primitive and diverse, filled with the flavor of natural worship. Moreover, the Mongolian Tribes are accustomed to blood sacrifices, which aligns perfectly with the belief in the Chief Divine, doesn’t it?
"Tenggeri Eternal Sky, sky, sun, and natural disasters... Chief Divine Huitzilopochtli, sky, sun, and war... Also, worship of the Sun and Moon Light, worship of Divine Mountain and Great Lake... In this way, isn’t the Chief Divine and Eternal Sky extremely compatible?"
Zuwaro muttered to himself, his heart stirred by a sense of noble mission! On this vast prairie, the powerful Mongolian Tribes herd tens of thousands of sheep, occupying grasslands supposedly stretching thousands of miles, yet living in extreme hardship, maintaining an uninhibited pure natural worship... Are they not the most suitable tribe for the Chief Divine’s belief? And if these tribes could convert to the Chief Divine...
"Ali! What do you think, if we leave a Priest here to preach, what would happen?"
Upon hearing this, Ali’s complexion changed slightly, he coughed, and said in a low voice.
"Cough! Ancestor High Priest, I understand your intention. But the Mongolian Tribes and our Jurchen Tribes are different, really different! If you leave a Priest here... I’m afraid by the time we come back next, he’ll have already become a sacrifice on the altar, beheaded, and his skull made into a Magic Artifact!"
"What? Killed, made into a Skull Ritual Artifact?!"
"Yes! Ancestor High Priest, many other faiths have already infiltrated the Mongolian Tribes. This small remote, weak, poor Mongolian tribe, likely only has some local priests, believing in the ancient Tenggeri Eternal Sky... But those strong Mongolian Great Tribes in the south have the Yellow Sect’s belief, with lamas stationed there! If the lamas discover our Priest preaching among the Mongolian Tribes, there’s no doubt they would mercilessly kill him! Just like they have eradicated White Sect monks..."
"Yellow Sect? Lamas?"
"Yes, the Gelug Sect from Wusi Tibetan, Tibetan Secret Sect... Right! They are monks, but not quite like the monks of Han Land and Japan. They are particularly good at preaching among the upper Nobles, deeply influencing the Mongolian Great Tribes, even extending their preaching to the Haixi Jurchen Tribes... They master many strange ’spells’, making Magic Artifacts with human bones, often engaging in live sacrifices. Once they encounter other competing sects, the lamas will likely persuade the Nobles to mobilize the Great Tribe’s Cavalry to kill without mercy!"
"Tibetan Secret’s Yellow Sect monks preaching to Mongolian Tribes, Haixi Jurchen? Are they the competition for the Chief Divine’s faith?!"
Upon hearing this, Zuwaro squinted his eyes, rare fierceness appeared on his face. He gazed at the pyramid-like Oobao, paced for a moment, then suddenly turned to ask.
"Ali! What do you think, if we have the Chief God Priest introduce potatoes that can be cultivated to these Mongolian Tribes... would they abandon the Yellow Sect and convert to the Chief Divine?"
"Huh?! Introducing potatoes to the Mongolian Tribes?"
Hearing this, Ali’s expression changed several times, and his voice trembled slightly.
"Ancestor High Priest, this! This isn’t right, is it?"
"Chief Divine witness! I have realized it... These impoverished Mongolian Tribes view cattle and horses as mobile ’fields’. The population size of their tribe depends on the number of ’sheep fields’, fundamentally depending on the expanse of the grassland! However, relying solely on shepherding, it takes hundreds of acres of grassland to support one tribesperson! This method of sustaining the tribe is much more challenging than farming..."
Zuwaro pondered, analyzing the Mongolian Tribes he observed, his eyes flickering with the light of belief.
"These ’nomadic’ tribes are like packs of wolves on the prairie, surviving dependent on sheep! Yet, when faced with cold spells, white disasters, plagues, or even tribal battles that destroy too many sheep... they will have to suffer large casualties! Whether slaughtering others or themselves... Ultimately, their ’sheep fields’ are too fragile, incomparable to real fields! Is that correct?"
"Ancestor High Priest, you speak truth! The Mongolians are like wolves on the prairie, living dependent on livestock, without any food reserves. Any natural disaster or man-made disaster that drastically reduces their livestock equates to reducing their population!"
In front of the sacrificial Oobao, Ali clasped the Chief God’s Amulet around his neck, offered a low prayer, and continued.