Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: The First Altar
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Rakrak and his tribe had hunted down five water buffaloes.
There were calls to offer all the sacrifices directly to the altar as they were, but Rakrak said there was no need to go that far.
Seong-un thought the same—no need to be so excessive. Hunting would continue anyway, and feeding the tribe well was important too.
Rakrak was curious about how the Nameless Beetle God had moved the buffalo herd, but for now, he focused on sharing the meat in front of him with his tribe.
Seong-un smiled as he watched Rakrak's tribe carry the hunted water buffaloes.
Seong-un was not a god of livestock or beasts.
The only subdomain he currently possessed was Insects.
In other words, he could be called the 'God of Insects'.
Thus, he had no power to directly control a buffalo herd.
'But if I use miracles cleverly, nothing's truly impossible.'
He had used similar methods in the game Lost World, so Seong-un figured he could move the buffalo herd without issue—and indeed, he had.
Just like in Lost World, everything in this world was organically connected.
Buffalo herds moved while grazing on grass.
So, by deciding where that grass was placed, one could guide the buffaloes.
'Not that I'm a god of wild grasses.'
But Seong-un was the god of insects.
Using his increased divinity, Seong-un summoned a 'swarm of locusts'.
Locust swarms eat grass.
He couldn't create grass where there was none, but destroying existing grass was possible.
By having the locusts eat the grass along the buffalo herd's path first and gradually narrowing their direction, he could indirectly guide the buffaloes east, west, or wherever desired.
'Unlike the game, system support here is pretty lacking.'
The task of 'moving the buffalo herd' had begun long before issuing the oracle to Rakrak.
To be precise, it was timed so the buffaloes reached the hill the day before.
'Now, let's see how they build the altar and offer the sacrifices...'
The first altar was crude.
Even with the bones of five water buffaloes, the altar—simply piled up haphazardly with bone against bone—had four intact buffalo heads placed on it, and one went up alive as is.
Rakrak had never performed a 'ritual' before, so his concept of 'offering sacrifices' was vague, but there were no procedural issues.
What mattered was the very concept of offering sacrifices.
Rakrak's ritual was clumsy and awkward.
After several trial and error, Rakrak hung a water buffalo upside down from the altar and drained its blood.
The blood seeped into the gaps between the bones and buffalo heads.
Rakrak and his tribe bowed toward the altar amid the gushing blood.
It was the sole Lizardman gesture of reverence to a being higher than themselves.
But that was enough.
'In primitive rituals, sincerity is all that matters.'
Bugs crawled into the gaps between the untouched buffalo heads and bones, and they began to slowly rot.
'Overflowing already. Better use it quick.'
I bestowed blessings one by one on the Lizardmen who had actively joined Rakrak in the hunt.
The blessings were the same as Rakrak's.
There was no hesitation on the two blessings.
The first blessing was 'Hard Shell', which transformed the blessed one's skin into a tough outer layer similar to an insect's exoskeleton.
The second was 'Beetle Strength', a blessing that made one as strong as insects with power disproportionate to their size.
The advantage of the 'bugs' domain was being able to grant physical buffs, which helped maintain tribe numbers in combat or harsh environments.
So, physical enhancement blessings were non-negotiable.
The third blessing required some thought: 'Poison Resistance'.
Lizardmen were originally omnivores that ate anything, but aside from bacteria or germs, their resistance to chemical toxins was poor.
To make them eat without discrimination, stacking strengths on strengths seemed best.
'Because... eventually, food resources around here will dwindle.'
Herd creatures consume massively.
Fortunately, Rakrak's tribe knew basic smoking techniques and had stored quite a bit of buffalo meat.
They wouldn't need to forage for a while, so they could focus on building homes and developing their settlement.
'That should increase the tribe's numbers too.'
But that wouldn't last forever.
Rakrak's tribe had settled on a small hill in the middle of the wasteland, and even generously, it wouldn't hold for a few years.
'These guys don't know agriculture.'
They knew to dig up root plants to eat, but not to replant leftovers, selectively breed better seeds, or spare buffalo calves for breeding into livestock.
'I want to teach them via miracles or oracles, but...'
This was the same as in Lost World.
Imparting that kind of 'knowledge' required impossible amounts of faith at his current level.
In setting terms, it 'violated causality', and it seemed to apply identically on this planet.
To directly transmit knowledge in violation of causality demanded an absurd amount of faith resources.
'In that case... just waiting it out is an option.'
The process for 'knowledge' to emerge in a tribe was simple.
Just wait patiently.
Eventually, a smart one would appear among the tribe, or technology would be discovered by chance.
And if that knowledge and tech could be passed to descendants, civilization advanced.
'But no time for that.'
It took too long.
Seong-un knew only a few in Rakrak's tribe wielded bronze swords.
Lost World started at the end of the Neolithic and dawn of Bronze Age, so he knew they had the tech to build furnaces for smelting bronze.
But Rakrak's tribe had split from larger ones, so their knowledge would be imprecise.
'Knowledge and tech can vanish anytime. Especially pre-writing.'
To escape decline, tribes and races needed some form of exchange.
Lizardmen, despite high base stats, were a slow-advancing race.
With the god's existence proven, it was time to make his name known.
'Even if the method's a bit rough.'
Seong-un was already projecting miracles from distant lands separated from Rakrak.
He could move insects, thus buffaloes, and with enough time, zeal, and faith from Rakrak's tribe, other things too.
'It'll take some time.'
In Lost World, it'd pass in seconds, but here he could do it manually, step by step. He could borrow game-like system power for efficiency, but had no intention to.
Curiously, Seong-un didn't find it boring or tiring.
His perception of time already seemed utterly unlike a human's.
'Alright, let's do it.'
Several years passed.
Rakrak and his tribe endured winters comfortably, relying on the spring and the tiny ecosystem it sustained.
And more received the Nameless Beetle God's blessings.
Even the tribe's young children now bore the god's blessings, growing sturdy and healthy.
Those who once found the glossy black scales awkward now humbly gave thanks before the god's blessings—and soon took pride in them.
But good times never last.
Rakrak sensed the hill's slow decline.
As the tribe grew, this small spring could no longer sustain them.
Fish vanished, and root plants left were now bitter-tasting.
Rakrak stood before the bone altar.
Looking at it now, it was hard to recall the pathetic first altar from years ago.
The current altar stood about 8 meters tall.
Built densely from dozens—perhaps more—water buffalo bones, it formed three tiers.
The buffalo heads atop each tier inspired awe.
"Rakrak, you're up early."
"I was checking the altar. Had a restless dream last night."
Rakrak replied, gazing at Jaol who had spoken to him.
Jaol had initially refused to acknowledge Rakrak and the Nameless Beetle God, but not anymore.
Now the entire tribe was covered in black shells following the Beetle God, possessing bodies strong beyond mortal understanding—divine power itself.
Even the tribe's weakest warrior could snap a buffalo's neck barehanded.
Jaol now treated Rakrak as tribal chief like the others.
Since Rakrak became chief, twenty young Lizardmen had been born healthy. The tribe neared fifty members.
"A dream? An oracle?"
"Not sure. It was vague."
Rakrak recounted the dream.
"I saw a distant altar shaking precariously. Looking around, no fish rose to this blessed pond, and digging yielded no roots."
"Not that bad yet."
"Not yet, but our home grows barren. Wasn't the rabbit from two months ago our last?"
Jaol nodded.
"But Rakrak, we still have time. The Nameless Beetle God still sends buffalo herds. No worries while the god cares for us."
"I trust the god. He won't abandon us."
Rakrak gripped his spear shaft and strode up the altar steps.
"But if we fail to grasp his will, we'll betray it... Right?"
"Yes."
"At dawn, I sent Yur and his friends west."
"Ah, that's why those noisy ones are gone. An oracle?"
"Yeah, probably."
Sitting on the altar, Rakrak cast his gaze beyond the horizon.
Then, spotting something, he sprang up.
"As expected. I know why the altar shook."
Jaol tilted her head, and Rakrak pulled her arm.
Matching eye levels, Jaol made out what was at the horizon's edge.
It was a herd of some kind.
Too slow for buffaloes, and too numerous.
Not that it was confusing.
It was a familiar sight.
Long snouts, walking upright on two legs, bodies covered in scales, long tails dragging.
Another Lizardman tribe.
Like Rakrak's once were, they bore Blue Skin.