LSLFBW: Chapter 132

Shu Lin heard that Qi Bai was going to teach everyone a new skill and asked, “What is it?”

Qi Bai didn’t keep him in suspense. He went outside and wrote the characters for ‘Shu Lin’ on the ground.

“What is this? Is it a totem?” Shu Lin asked curiously.

Qi Bai shook his head. “This isn’t a totem. It is writing. Every word we speak has a corresponding character.”

“Look.” Qi Bai pointed at the ground. This is your name.”

Shu Lin’s eyes darted back and forth between the two characters on the ground, muttering, “My… my name?”

Qi Bai smiled. “That’s right. It is your name. Once we learn all the characters, we can record down everything we think of.”

A hint of confusion flashed in Shu Lin’s eyes. He didn’t understand the meaning, but Yang Luo and Diao Lan both stepped forward.

Yang Luo even bent down reverently, stroking the characters on the ground with both hands as if sensing an invisible aura.

Qi Bai’s gaze was firm. “With writing, everything we do today will benefit our descendants.”

Learning writing might seem tedious and wouldn’t improve everyone’s lives compared to healing methods and hunting skills, but Qi Bai still hoped to teach his people to write.

Of course, it wasn’t just for immediate convenience. More importantly, writing could guarantee the transmission of civilization. In a sense, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call writing the start of civilization.

Let’s not talk about the distant past. Just the loss of the old priest and students of the Xiaoniu Tribe during their migration was a huge blow. Qi Bai didn’t want the Black Mountain Tribe to suffer the same fate.

As long as they recorded everything they were doing, everything could continue even if they were no longer in the tribe.

Therefore, he decided to integrate several other important skills, not just writing. Qi Bai decided to directly establish a school.

The children in the tribe were very quick-witted. Given the right conditions, Qi Bai believed they could quickly absorb this knowledge.

Once the teachers were confirmed, they started to set up the Black Mountain Tribe’s first school.

The house they were currently in was located at the very front of the square, separated from the children’s cave by two huge trees.

Qi Bai walked to the platform made of bricks. “First, we need a huge black stone slab.”

Shu Lin replied, “I know, the type of big slab that you brought when we were studying in front of the school wall, right?”

Qi Bai nodded. “That’s right, but we have more students than before. We need an even bigger slab.”

Shu Lin looked at the area Qi Bai gestured and patted his chest. “Don’t worry. I know where to find such a slab. I’ll go find Xiong Feng and bring it back right now.”

The blackboard was ready. What they lacked now were desks and chairs.

Hu Huo had made some tables and chairs a while ago, but they had all been moved to the children’s house to become their dining table.

He couldn’t possibly compete with the children for tables. Besides, the number wouldn’t be nearly enough even if all those tables were moved over.

After a lot of deliberation, they decided that the tables made from tree trunks, like those used on the mating day, would be most suitable.

The trunks were long, so a single wooden table could accommodate over a dozen people. It was also easy to make.

The presence of such low tables meant stools wouldn’t be necessary. Straw cushions would suffice. The room also had heated walls, so it wouldn’t be cold when many people were present. Sitting on the floor wouldn’t be a problem.

Tu Ya and Dian Lan both agreed with Qi Bai’s idea.

Diao Lan said, “I think we don’t need to make those cushions. Whoever wants to come and learn can prepare their own.”

Tu Ya added with a smile, “That’s right. I would still be willing to learn even if I have to sit on the floor!”

Qi Bai thought about it and agreed. They were currently preparing enthusiastically but the exact number of tribe members who would attend the classes was uncertain.

Judging from the tribe member’s behavior, perhaps more than half would come. They couldn’t possibly make that many cushions on their own.

Once Tu Ya and Diao Lan left, Yang Luo saw Qi Bai gesturing around the room, confirming the location of the wooden table. He hesitated for a moment before asking, “Are you really going to teach this knowledge to everyone?”

Qi Bai stopped, turned around and smiled at Yang Luo. Yang Luo had finally asked the question.

Previously when Qi Bai finished mentioning opening a school to teach every member, Yang Luo had seemed surprised. Then he agreed to the proposal after a slight hesitation.

After that incident, Yang Luo never mentioned it again.

Qi Bai naturally didn’t expect that Yang Luo, who had received knowledge of sacrificial rituals since childhood, to suddenly change his mind. Qi Bai had been waiting for Yang Luo’s question.

Yang Luo slowly said, “My former tribe was incredibly powerful. Every hunting season, our hunting parties would bring back countless prey.”

“My teacher was the tribe’s only priest. His wisdom earned him the respect of everyone in the tribe.”

“You possess even more knowledge than him. You can become a priest like him, no, perhaps even greater.”

Yang Luo looked at Qi Bai with a complicated expression. “But no priest would make the entire tribe his students.”

Qi Bai understood Yang Luo’s meaning.

Throughout history, the ruling class had always firmly held onto the most important resources. In the Beastmen World, the priests’ knowledge of medicine, arithmetic, calendar systems and so on was the key to their stable position. Naturally, they wouldn’t easily impart this knowledge.

This was evident from Yang Luo’s experience. Yang Luo’s former priest wanted to choose the most suitable disciple but didn’t want his sole position to be challenged. He had his students compete. Only the winner could remain in the tribe as the new priest. The other priest students were expelled, forced to find new tribes to survive in.

Yang Luo’s ability to see this clearly was enough to show that he was different from other ignorant beastmen. He had seen power, understood its meaning and knew that power needed to be earned through means.

Qi Bai was deeply moved that Yang Luo was willing to share these things with him. Yang Luo would only willingly discuss these matters with someone close to him, hoping to solidify Qi Bai’s position in the hearts of his people.

However, Qi Bai knew that knowledge was limitless and he couldn’t do anything alone.

Qi Bai smiled slightly. “Grandpa Priest, the Beast God bestowed so much knowledge upon me. I believe that rather than me possessing it alone, he actually hopes that this knowledge can enable his people to live a better life.”

Yang Luo remained silent for a long time before saying with some relief, “Perhaps I really am not suited to be a priest.”

Qi Bai solemnly shook his head. “No, Grandpa Priest. If the priest of the Black Mountain Tribe wasn’t you, I wouldn’t be able to utilize what I know. You are an exceptionally powerful priest.”

Qi Bai was speaking from the heart. After his trip to the trading day and witnessing the chaotic world outside, he understood the value of the Black Mountain Tribe even more. If he had been reborn into Yang Luo’s original tribe, that old priest definitely wouldn’t have tolerated him. The best outcome probably would’ve been expulsion. How could he be allowed to do so much?

After hearing Qi Bai’s words and thinking of the priest students he studied with before, Yang Luo couldn’t help straightening his back.

Perhaps the reason Yang Luo genuinely liked Qi Bai was because he admired Qi Bai’s sincerity.

Regardless, with the priest’s support, the Black Mountain Tribe’s school was renovated in just one day.

Originally, no one understood why Qi Bai had created such a spacious, separate house. Now they understood that it was for the tribe members to learn.

Qi Bai explained numbers to everyone at noon after the tribe implemented a points system, but it was completely different from sitting in a classroom. The sense of ritual alone was vastly inferior.

In particular, Niu Shuo and Niu Xu’s original tribe had priests and they knew this knowledge was reserved for priests. They never expected it to be so easily acquired by them.

So the next morning when Qi Bai arrived at the school with a rectangular wooden box, he found everyone crammed into the classroom.

Those who arrived early sat behind the wooden tables, those who arrived late sat against the walls and those who arrived last could only squeeze into the aisle.

The moment Qi Bai entered, everyone stared at him, making him a bit nervous.

Qi Bai straightened his animal skin clothing and walked through the crowd to the podium.

The podium had the only tall wooden table in the room, serving as a lectern. A huge blackboard was beside the lectern.

No one knew how Xiong Feng and Shu Lin had managed to move such a large rock. In any case, Qi Bai had been startled when he entered yesterday.

Qi Bai took out a white stone, thought for a moment and wrote the characters ‘Black Mountain’ on the blackboard.

All the tribe members sitting below the platform heard this simple opening statement.

“Today, we will learn our name, the Black Mountain Tribe.”

These two characters would be engraved in the hearts of every Black Mountain Tribe member, words they would never forget.

The Black Mountain Tribe’s school was open for around an hour every morning, during which all tribe members could attend classes.

Currently, Tu Ya’s math class, Diao Lan’s herbal medicine class, Shu Lin’s painting class and Qi Bai’s writing class rotated in turn.

Actually, Qi Bai wanted to add some targeted martial arts courses but he wasn’t a professional in this area. It would be better to wait for Lang Ze to return and arrange it.

Learning required constant practice. To make it easier for everyone to write, Qi Bai specially taught them using a small sand tray. It was the same rectangular wooden box he had brought with him on the first day of class.

They shaped the wood into a cuboid, and hollowed out the center to create a deep tray. By filling the tray with fine sand, they could write with twigs and their fingers.

Mistakes were easily corrected. A simple wipe was all it took to reuse the tray.

This sand tray was more convenient than stone slabs and quickly became popular among the tribe members.

From then on, the Black Mountain Tribe had a fixed daily routine.

At dawn, after breakfast, the tribe members would wrap themselves in thick animal skin clothing, carrying their animal skin bundles and head to the school.

The fire walls of the school were already warmed up. Upon entering, everyone would remove their outermost animal skin clothing and take out various cushions from their animal skin bundles. Some were woven from hay, some from animal skin and some simply folded their clothing and placed it under their bottoms.

Then they would carefully take out their wooden boxes, fill them with sand and begin to trace the words and numbers on the blackboard, stroke by stroke.