Genshin Impact: Towards Godhood

As promised, Babel convened the meeting.

A somewhat amusing situation occurred: Rama, who proposed the desert reclamation project and was the core of the discussion, had no speaking rights at the meeting.

The proposer and implementer of the plan needed to seek the consent of others, and he had to wait for the elders to inquire before he could speak.

Until they asked, Rama did not even have the qualification to speak.

Even if it was his plan, and he was the core of it.

But that's the reality.

No wonder Babel mocked Rama.

Although he had some fame within the tribe, it was not enough.

Reputation is a valuable resource. It determines how many people are willing to support you and at what cost when you want to accomplish something.

The desert is a relatively simple environment.

You are either a warrior—demonstrating your bravery through numerous hunts and thus earning praise from your tribesmen.

Or you are a sage—using your wisdom during hunts to cause greater losses to the enemy and bring more benefits to the tribe.

In this way, the tribe would recognize your abilities and crown you with the glory that comes with it.

Rama had never participated in hunting. In fact, he was initially taken in as a slave.

The tribe instilled honor and a spirit of sacrifice in them, which essentially meant they needed them to die for the tribe, bound by honor and not demanding material rewards.

It is well known that honor is something that can be paid with a piece of paper and a simple verbal agreement.

Honor is rare and precious, valuable yet low in cost.

The elders expected you to seek honor without needing real benefits. 

They were reluctant to give but hoped you would give everything. Thus, they used honor to bind everyone.

This was also Babel's training path.

Among many children, she showed talent and thus qualified to become a falcon—no, no, this is not quite right. Let's put it another way.

Among the many children trained, she was the only one who finally became a falcon.

Regardless of whether you had talent or not, you first had to undergo rigorous training.

Those who survived were naturally talented.

Those without talent?

Tribal orphans could choose other paths, while non-tribal children captured or adopted could only end their lives prematurely.

Babel gained honor on the path of the falcon, but her excessive honor forced the tribe to grant her power.

Rama should have followed the same path.

But as he grew, he chose to showcase his academic talents.

This was Rama's own choice.

When Rama realized that his peers were all being trained for their bravery, he knew he should be different.

The advantage of being different is that you quickly get noticed among a group.

Indeed, this was the case. He quickly gained the tribe's attention and was trained. During his relatively long growth period, he helped the tribe improve various technologies and created some useful gadgets.

For example, finding oasis with abundant water and grass, improving weapon forging techniques, and more effective medicinal drugs...

Compared to a warrior or two, Rama's talents were naturally more important.

Thus, it was logical that, like Babel, he was accepted as one of their own.

Scholars are more important than warriors because Tanit is not a weak tribe; it has many relatively outstanding warriors.

But they didn't have a scholar who could improve these technologies.

So, Rama immediately shed his slave status and became a desert tribesman.

Improved technologies naturally brought Rama enough honor and reputation, which was mostly very useful.

For example, Asarig and the elders had to treat a sixteen-year-old boy kindly.

But war is another matter.

Would you trust a sixteen-year-old known for making alchemical products or medicines in war?

Would you believe he could lead the tribe to victory, helping them plunder more resources and land?

The elders did not believe so.

A war leader must either be a brave general or a wise sage.

But definitely not a scholar studying mechanics.

The difference is too great.

"He hid his strength, possessing the Vision long ago but never telling the tribe."

Tanit is a matriarchal tribe that worships the Goddess of Flowers, with the highest power shared by the nine elders.

One elder spoke sternly, not caring that Rama was right before him.

"This is disloyal to the tribe."

He raised a question.

Babel did not hide anything. Rama told her about his possession of the Vision long ago, and she did not lie but revealed the truth.

"Disloyal?" Babel raised an eyebrow. "If I remember correctly, my child brought many benefits to the tribe, even more than what you have brought."

"What did he do wrong for you to suspect him so much and label him disloyal?"

"Just because he had a little secret, he's disloyal to the tribe."

Babel's smile was mocking, "So, which of you elders have put everything on the table?"

"But the Vision..."

He wanted to retort but did not continue.

Some see the Vision as the crystallization of faith, but the desert people see it more simply.

The Vision is just a useful weapon.

Since it's a useful weapon, like a longbow or double-edged sword inhabited by a malevolent spirit, it is naturally the tribe's property.

Because weapons must be used for the tribe to be trustworthy.

But Rama hid the fact that he possessed the Vision. According to Babel, he got it much earlier but deliberately did not report it.

Hiding a weapon is naturally a bad deed.

However, the Vision is different from ordinary weapons; it is indeed personal property, not public property of the tribe. To punish Rama for not revealing he had the Vision is unreasonable.

Fairly speaking, Rama obviously had selfish motives for hiding the fact.

Every elder could see it, but as Babel said, it could not be used as evidence for punishment.

The Vision was not something he obtained from tribal hunting, then claimed tribal property as his own.

This was a gift from the gods to him alone.

People should have their own secrets. Even as tribal elders, they couldn't give everything to the tribe.

When I'm an ordinary warrior, I must give everything to the tribe. When I become a tribal elder, I still have to give everything, leaving nothing for myself.

Then, am I not wasting my position as an elder? 

(End of the chapter)