TPWBI Chapter 21

Yang Yi was baffled. He couldn’t understand why Hei Lie suddenly said such a thing.

“After tasting something so delicious, who would willingly go back to blandness?”

Hei Lie swept his gaze over the crowd. Everyone was visibly excited, not just because of the allure of the food, but also from the realization that the world held so many magical and beautiful things.

“Isn’t this a good sign?” Yang Yi smiled. “When people have higher goals that seem within reach, they act with more passion, become more willing to think and try new things. And the results get better too.”

Hei Lie deeply agreed with that sentiment. That was exactly why he had said what he did.

“Why didn’t you tell me that the symbiotic contract can also let you sense the other person’s location?” Yang Yi switched topics without the slightest transition.

Hei Lie rubbed his nose. “I didn’t know either.”

“What?”

“Symbiotic contracts are extremely rare. Very few people can successfully form one, so our understanding of them isn’t that clear.”

Yang Yi’s mouth twitched. He didn’t even know what to say.

The contract was already signed. From now on, they were completely bound together. There was no chance to back out.

“I treasure my life, too. I wouldn’t act recklessly,” Hei Lie said firmly, noticing Yang Yi’s displeasure. “The lack of information is mainly because those who know just don’t want to share it.”

Yang Yi understood. It was clear that he, too, wasn’t willing to lay all his cards on the table.

“We’ll just take our time to figure it out.”

“It’s said that after the symbiotic contract is signed, it will evolve depending on the level of understanding and closeness between the two parties.”

Even Hei Lie wasn’t exactly sure how it worked, which was why he hadn’t brought it up before. Everything could only be known once they experienced it themselves.

Talking about it before the contract was signed would’ve just sounded like a sales pitch.

Yang Yi silently pondered. If the symbiotic contract could “level up”, didn’t that mean the closer the bond between the two of them, the more they’d be able to sense each other’s location?

In that case, if the other person was ever in danger, it would be easy to follow the trail and find them.

His personal safety index just went up a notch!

“What if the two people become enemies?” Yang Yi asked curiously.

Hei Lie gave him a long, deep look. “A contract signed with the gods is not something to be taken lightly or treated with disrespect.”

Yang Yi had just been letting his thoughts wander. If they were both willing to entrust their lives to each other, then no matter how deep the grudge, they’d have to swallow it down.

He quickly put the matter of the symbiotic contract out of his mind and began discussing the future development plans of the tribe with the newly appointed chief.

“I need manpower for building houses, farming, and raising livestock,” Yang Yi laid out his needs.

“Raising livestock?”

“It means raising the young of large animals. Once they’re grown, we kill them for meat. That way, we can ensure a steady food supply.”

“Beasts can be raised by humans?”

“Of course,” Yang Yi replied with absolute certainty. “It’s just that wild beasts haven’t been domesticated, so trying to raise them isn’t easy.”

“Domesticated…” Hei Lie slowly repeated the word, tasting it.

Yang Yi nodded. “Simply put, it means making them more obedient. All animals suitable for raising have to go through this process.”

“In the Western Continent’s trading caravans, they have horses specially used for carrying goods. They claim those horses are gifts from the gods to show they’re different from the rest.”

“That’s absolutely not true. It’s the result of human domestication.” Since arriving here, Yang Yi had heard the most about Hei Lie and the Western Continent trading caravans. “Looks like the Western Continent is far more advanced than the Eastern Continent.”

Yang Yi often heard people mention the Western Continent. He was quite intrigued by the place. He wanted to know just how far they had developed.

“They’re not good people,” Hei Lie said seriously.

Yang Yi was amused by his slightly naive statement.

In a world this cruel, who could really be called a good person?

Without the constraints of law and morality, many actions here would earn someone several years in prison back on Earth, if not get them executed on the spot.

Yang Yi had no intention of debating this point. He continued the earlier topic.

“I brought some fertilized eggs. We can try hatching them. They’re all domesticated poultry and are very easy to raise. As for wild beasts, we should also try to domesticate them. When you’re out hunting and see young ones, don’t kill them. Bring them back.”

“Alright.”

“Hatching eggs and raising chicks need to be done indoors, so we’ll have to build some houses. For now, I’ll provide the materials and we’ll construct a greenhouse.”

Right now, they had nothing. Manpower is needed everywhere. There was no point in stubbornly trying to avoid making the locals overly dependent or in hiding all the supplies in his space.

“You mentioned before that everything you brought will eventually disappear. Is that true?”

“It’s true,” Yang Yi sighed. Just thinking about how all those items wouldn’t last into the future made his heart ache.

He didn’t believe he’d be able to recreate everything he brought within his lifetime.

“I come from a different world. These are all products of that world. After a certain period of time, they’ll lose their function.”

Yang Yi admitted honestly. He didn’t like pretending to be some mystical being, nor did he like living in lies. Having someone he could be honest with gave him a moment of relief.

Even if he now had Hei Lie to protect his life, that didn’t mean he could throw caution to the wind and tell everyone everything.

Hei Lie was silent for a long while. “Your world must be truly amazing.”

“I was just lucky to be born in the ‘future’, riding on the coattails of the people who came before me. My world used to be like this one, too. But ours wasn’t as dangerous, and people weren’t as strong as you all.”

“Will you go back to your original world?”

Yang Yi paused for a moment, then shook his head. “I probably won’t have the chance anymore.”

A million people!

Even the Blackstone Tribe, one of the largest tribes, only had a few thousand.

The tribes here were spread far apart. How could he possibly gather that many people?

Hei Lie’s dark eyes flickered slightly but soon returned to calm.

“You’ll fall in love with this place.”

Yang Yi was taken aback and gave no definite response.

“Even though the items will gradually disappear, the knowledge we possess and the things recreated from it will be everlasting.”

After saying that, Yang Yi very seriously reminded Hei Lie:

“We mustn’t let the people in the tribe grow too accustomed to relying on those items. Before they lose their effectiveness, we must make full use of them and also find suitable replacements.”

Yang Yi was intentionally trying to prevent the tribe from becoming overly dependent on the tools he brought. But with such a huge technological gap, it was hard for people to stay rational.

“I will keep that in mind,” Hei Lie promised.

Yang Yi also made arrangements for the various tasks. This time, he was no longer in charge of assigning manpower and could fully focus on technical guidance and construction planning.

All he had to do was state the number and types of people he needed, and Hei Lie would handle assigning the most suitable ones.

This way, a great deal of energy could be saved.

Yang Yi then went over his other plans with Hei Lie, explaining and clarifying his ideas. Hei Lie would make adjustments to certain details where needed, but their overall goals were fully aligned.

Perhaps it was due to the symbiotic contract that they had an uncanny level of understanding between them. For a first-time collaboration, they worked together remarkably well.

Their personalities and habits were quite different, yet when it came to handling matters, they always managed to find common ground. There was no dissatisfaction or conflict.

And with a shared goal, they often found themselves completely in sync.

What pleased Yang Yi the most was that Hei Lie could accurately grasp the meanings behind his words. Even if he hadn’t heard certain technical terms before, he could still understand the core ideas.

This made it far less strenuous for Yang Yi when explaining some technical concepts. He even had someone to bounce ideas off.

After all, he was also learning as he went and didn’t fully understand all the principles behind the knowledge. Applying things mechanically could easily lead to poor results.

Hei Lie, however, was incredibly eager to learn and even helped teach Yang Yi how to describe things more naturally in the local language, which greatly improved Yang Yi’s fluency.

Aside from an unavoidable accent, his ability to express himself was now not much different from a native speaker.

With the tribe’s overall layout and immediate objectives mostly mapped out, Hei Lie spoke with a serious and solemn expression:

“I request that you grant us more weapons.”

Yang Yi paused for a moment, then smiled.

“So polite?”

During their earlier discussion, Yang Yi had already mentioned bringing out quite a few things. Hei Lie hadn’t shown the slightest bit of embarrassment then.

“When you offer it of your own accord, and when I request it from you, those are two entirely different things.”

Yang Yi hadn’t expected this man to be so particular. “That’s a very admirable quality.”

What he feared most was people taking things for granted. Many resentments often began that way.

“Since you feel the same, I have a small suggestion.”

Yang Yi looked at him.

Hei Lie said, “From now on, whenever you bring out something from your world, conduct a ritual first. Offer it to the gods and ask for their blessing.”

Yang Yi immediately understood Hei Lie’s meaning. A solemn ritual would make everyone cherish the items that he brought more. It would also provide a clearer explanation for their origin.

And if one day he could no longer bring anything out, this would also serve as a way to explain it. Everything was according to the will of the gods.

More importantly, it would help erase the traces of Yang Yi being an outsider who possessed a large stockpile of supplies.

Now that there were more people around, no one could guarantee that hidden ambitions wouldn’t arise.

Yang Yi realized that he hadn’t been thinking thoroughly enough before.

As someone who had once been targeted for elimination by his former tribe, Hei Lie had a much deeper understanding of human nature. And as a native, he also knew exactly how things should be done.

What amazed Yang Yi most was that in a world where the gods were so revered, Hei Lie actually dared to pull off such a deception.

“You’re not afraid the gods will punish you?”

Hei Lie smiled. “You are an envoy sent by the gods, aren’t you?”

Yang Yi thought it over carefully and realized that it made perfect sense.

No one had ever defined what a “god” must be. As long as one possessed great power and could change the world, they could be called a god.

This world wasn’t like Earth, where everything was so clearly categorized. Here, they didn’t divide gods into separate entities. They were all generally referred to as “heavenly gods”, rulers of all things in existence.

“What kind of weapons do you need? And how many?”

Rituals were complicated. Each time had to be properly planned.

Holding rituals too frequently would make them seem less solemn.

“Mainly spears, blades and axes, bowstrings for making arrows and binoculars.”

Hei Lie had tried out Yang Yi’s compound triangle bow. Its accuracy and stability far surpassed that of traditional bows. The further it was drawn, the less effort it took to hold.

But it also had a fatal flaw. It was too delicate and prone to damage, and its firing speed wasn’t fast enough.

The advantages could be overcome through practice, but the drawbacks were fatal.

Wild beasts were extremely sensitive. If the arrow wasn’t fast enough, they’d sense it before it even hit.

So Hei Lie didn’t insist on using the compound bow and instead requested bowstrings, so they could craft their own bows, a much more reliable option.

In fact, even if he had asked, Yang Yi didn’t have any more.

Because compound bows were more intricate, they were also more expensive, difficult to repair if damaged, and hard to replicate, so he hadn’t bought many. What he had stocked up on were bowstrings and recurve bows.

Recurve bows didn’t save as much effort as compound bows, but the tips at both ends curved away from the main body of the bow, which made the draw force curve more balanced and provided greater stability compared to traditional bows.

They were also easier to imitate and reproduce than compound bows, so he had bought quite a few. Not only did this ensure they had more weapons, but it also made it easier to dismantle and reverse-engineer them later.

Yang Yi took out a recurve bow. “Wanna try this one?”

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