Chapter 5 - 5: Increase in Clan Members
Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
But this was just the beginning. Lin Xiao first secretly loaded all the True Believer Fishmen skills by the altar, then loudly called for all the Grey Mist Fish People to gather at the altar and reiterated what he had just said.
Following that, a Fishman who had just been promoted from a mere believer to a True Believer grabbed a bone spike and ‘whooshed’ out, moving so quickly that it startled the nearby Fishmen.
In full view of all the Fishmen, this Level Zero Fishman who had not yet been promoted to a First Level warrior suddenly exploded with unprecedented speed and smashed into a wall of sea sand not far from the altar with a ‘boom’. The wall, as sturdy as one of brick and stone, was blasted through, creating a hole big enough to fit a large thigh, as sand sprayed everywhere.
Compared to Lin Xiao’s previous performance, the display of this Fishman was even more persuasive. After all, Lin Xiao was the Tribal Chief, and everyone knew he was formidable, but this Fishman, known by all as weak, had shown such immense combat power that it completely overturned their understanding.
Especially since, as the True Believer Fishmen finished loading their skills one after another and began to try exerting a combat power that was terrifying for a Fishman, Lin Xiao saw the fervent look in the other Fishman’s eyes and immediately jumped out, shouting loudly:
“This is the power granted by the great Lord of the Grey Mist. Believing in the great Lord of the Grey Mist will bestow upon us great strength!”
The evidence was right in front of everyone; not one or two, but so many Fishmen had gained immense power, all of them being the most devout believers of the Lord of the Grey Mist. The effect of so many role models was astonishing; in less than a minute, the remaining thirty-four pseudo-believers all became True Believers.
And out of the original forty-three True Believers, two-thirds became Devout Believers, but most importantly, a whole eight of the already Devout Believers became Fanatic Believers.
Before this, he had only one Fanatic Believer.
After tallying up, Lin Xiao now had a total of nine Fanatic Believers, thirty-eight Devout Believers, and the rest were all True Believers.
As a result, all Clan members were now eligible to load the ‘Salted Fish Charge’ skill.
When loading the same skill, this method, compared to direct forceful loading, brought additional benefits.
Of course, this did not mean Lin Xiao was particularly adept at shepherding his followers; these were all from the first batch of New family members during the Opening of the Divine Realm and had a boost in faith. Any player could do as well, some even better. The real test for him would be the addition of New family members in the future, or future campaigns in the Outland, on how to indoctrinate those conquered natives from the Extra-dimensional planes—that would truly test the capabilities of an emerging Deity.
But Lin Xiao was about to face a new challenge immediately. After the tribe had loaded the new skills, he began to load the Species Card, and suddenly four hundred new Grey Mist Fish People appeared on the northern beach of the tribe, driven by an unknown force, moving toward the Misty Fishman Tribe.
With a thought, a spark of gold light vanished from above the Fishman Leader’s head, and then he issued a Divine-mandate in the name of the Lord of the Grey Mist.
The moment the Divine-mandate was issued, a beam of golden light shot from the Holy Proof in the center of the altar and entered the forehead of the recovered Fishman Leader—who was also a Part-time Tribal Priest. He suddenly raised the Bone Knife in his hand and shouted:
“The great Lord of the Grey Mist has just informed us that a group of Fish People have entered our waters. My children, follow me.”
Lin Xiao was required to teach a major lesson every seven days, so invasions from Different Domains occurred almost every few years. The Fish people were accustomed to this; though the interval this time was short, the Fish People did not harbor any doubts. Having just acquired their new powerful strength, they were eager to test it and were brimming with confidence.
Over a hundred Grey Mist Fish People, led by the Fishman Leader, charged out of the tribe with great fervor, heading north along the beach. Midway, they saw four hundred distressed-looking Grey Mist Fish People heading south; both groups halted simultaneously.
Though the Grey Mist Fish People on the other side were more numerous, their appearance was pitiable; they were skinny, haggard, and bony from starvation, looking as if they were fleeing calamity, and most of them were unarmed.
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Although the Misty Fishman Tribe is small in number, they at least have plenty to eat, with seven or eight groups of fish, shrimp, and crabs being raised within the Divine Realm, which is more than enough for the well-being of the hundred or so fish people.
Furthermore, having just gained skills from combat, they even managed to suppress the four hundred or so Grey Mist Fish People in terms of morale.
Unlike when facing other invaders, perhaps because the enemies were also Grey Mist Fish People and due to Lin Xiao’s spiritual suggestion, the Fish People tribe didn’t immediately shout out calls for battle. After a standoff, the Fishman Leader stepped forward to communicate with the group of Grey Mist Fish People.
Lin Xiao breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this; he was afraid that a real fight would undoubtedly result in a substantial loss of fish people.
Since a fight didn’t break out at the beginning, it wouldn’t happen later. After all, Fang Ning didn’t identify them as enemies at first, and the new family members didn’t initially have a strong desire to fight, though they weren’t lacking in the desire to show off.
As they led the bedraggled group of Grey Mist Fish People back to the tribe, the tribe’s fish people continuously demonstrated their skills, astonishing many of the fish people refugees. When the tribe reached the central altar, nearly a quarter of the fish people refugees immediately went over to kneel and worship. Lin Xiao sensed over a hundred threads of faith for the first time.
Although all were very slight and considered general believers, this represented a good start, indicating a high level of acceptance of faith among the group of fish people refugees.
Given time, through constant exposure and occasional displays of divine miracles, converting this batch of fish people refugees into believers would not be difficult.
Time flew quickly, and ten days passed by. Large catches of fish and shrimp transformed the refugee fish people from their previously unkempt appearance, quickly integrating them into the new tribe.
In their daily exposure to the original tribe’s ways, more fish people joined the worship of the Lord of the Grey Mist, and the number of his believers grew rapidly. Soon, over two-thirds of the newcomers had established a faith connection with Lin Xiao, signifying they had become his new believers, albeit with a low level of faith and considered shallow believers.
But he was not in a hurry. Faith is not something that can be rushed. After all, he has plenty of time. With daily prayers, monthly congregations of believers, and the upcoming base-testing period, he had ample opportunities to spread faith.
That day, under Lin Xiao’s intentional guidance, the tribe began to collect sand and gravel from outside, preparing to expand the tribe.
At this point, Lin Xiao stopped observing. Assured that the clans were developing well and integrating smoothly, he logged off contentedly.
Emerging from the Divine Realm Login Cabin, Lin Xiao’s thoughts were still on the situation within the Divine Realm; he realized that the food supply for the fish people might be running low.
There were originally only four groups of one-star sturgeons, one group of two-star sardines, one group of one-star green shrimp, and two groups of one-star mud crabs within the Divine Realm.
The quantity was neither too much nor too little, sufficient for a few hundred fish people.
However, the issue was that the newly arrived fish people had a birth rate and fry survival rate double that of their counterparts, indicating that it would not take long for the population of the fish people within the Divine Realm to grow rapidly, and this amount of food might become insufficient.
What to do when running out of food?
Of course, buy Species Cards and feed them!