Mengya still had reservations about seizing the throne. He persuaded Xu Zifan to let him go back and talk to the Tiger Clan Chief, urging him to seriously mobilize the clan's enthusiasm and stop being so perfunctory. Xu Zifan readily agreed. There's a saying, "He won't turn back until he hits a brick wall," and Mengya was exactly like that now, so let him try it himself.
Based on Xu Zifan's understanding of the Tiger Clan, they relied heavily on the dense forests surrounding them and considered themselves more resource-rich than other tribes. Therefore, they were dismissive of Xu Zifan's suggestions about farming and raising livestock. Such a tribe wouldn't change their minds until they saw other tribes faring much better off, and Xu Zifan had no intention of wasting his breath trying to persuade them. He wasn't a philanthropist; he'd only teach them out of kindness, and it was none of his business if they didn't want to learn.
So he said to Fierce Fang, "Most of the Tiger Clan members are arrogant, xenophobic, and dislike cooperating with others. If we want to temper their character, we have to make them suffer. Besides, it's a fact that the Tiger Clan chief harbored ill intentions towards me before, and other tribes are watching. I can't forgive them like this. Do you understand?"
Mengya nodded. "I understand. So what do you mean?"
"I plan to build a city using the bricks I've fired. It's a large-scale project, and it'll be hard work. If the Tiger Clan wants to show their sincerity, they can come and fire bricks or build the city walls, and they'll receive half the pay of everyone else," Xu Zifan said calmly. "If they can persevere, they'll become more resilient people in the future, and I won't hold the past against them. Other tribes will see this and will willingly accept them as allies. This is the most suitable arrangement. You can go back and ask them if they're willing."
Mengya knew the temperaments of the clan leader and the young clan leader well, and guessed that they were 99% unwilling. After a moment of silence, he asked, "If they are unwilling, what will you do?"
"Ignore them, that's it."
"That's it," those three words conveyed so much. It seemed as if the Tiger Clan hadn't changed at all, but in reality, other tribes were striving to change, which would cause the Tiger Clan to fall behind and perhaps even perish. But Mengya knew that Xu Zifan had already shown great mercy by not punishing the Tiger Clan chief as he had treated the Wolf Clan, so he simply said, "I understand. I'll go back now. Be careful."
Xu Zifan then smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I look forward to your early return."
Mengya nodded and resolutely turned to leave. Now that Xu Zifan had Sada and Mowen protecting him, and Xu Zifan himself was stronger than them, he no longer needed to stay here. He wanted to go and solve the problem of the Tiger Clan, where there were still kind-hearted and amiable people.
Zhui Feng and Meng Ya returned to the Tiger Clan together. As soon as they entered the tribe, the beastmen who saw Meng Ya showed hostility towards him and questioned, "Traitor! You dare to come back?"
Some of the females looked at him with incomprehension and disgust, while only a few looked at him with tolerance. Fang said in a deep voice, "I pleaded with the Wise One and came back specifically to tell the clan leader. I'm going to find the clan leader."
Mengya had only taken two steps when Bai Yi stopped him. "Heh, if it weren't for you, the Wise One would be one of our Tiger Clan. He swore an oath to our Tiger Clan's Beast God, and you're the one who sent him away! Mengya, don't you think you deserve to be punished?"
Mengya narrowed his eyes. "You want to get struck by lightning?"
"You're asking for it!" Bai Yi instantly transformed into beast form and pounced. "Everyone, attack together and teach him a lesson!"
Zhui Feng hurriedly stepped in to block him, "Bai Yi! Haven't you caused enough trouble already? Everyone, calm down. Meng Ya is back to help; he's one of our people!"
"Clan members? What? Traitors?"
"Teach him a lesson and kick him out. We don't need traitors."
"Yes, he can secretly send the wise man away, and he can also secretly do other things afterward. Nobody trusts him."
The crowd began to chatter amongst themselves, and Mengya's heart sank as he looked at the familiar faces. Just then, the Great Shaman pushed through the crowd and walked over; he looked as if he had aged ten years. He looked at Mengya, sighed, and said to the crowd, "No one should cause trouble. Everyone go about your own business. We need to know what message the Wise One has conveyed to us."
The High Priest's status was second only to the clan leader, and even Bai Yi dared not cause trouble in front of him, taking a step back. Since he had retreated, the others naturally followed suit.
Mengya and Zhuifeng followed the Great Shaman into the chieftain's hut. The chieftain, with a stern face, stared at Mengya and asked, "What is it?"
Mengya said directly, "The wise man is willing to forgive the Tiger Clan, but they will have to accept some punishment. Our people can go and make bricks and build city walls, and receive half the pay of others. Once the city is completed, the punishment will end, and we can enjoy the same treatment as other clans."
The chieftain took a deep breath, not daring to say anything carelessly about the Wise Man, and instead targeted Fierce Fang, "Is this what you call pleading? Fierce Fang, you grew up in the Tiger Clan, you're a Tiger Clan member. What have we ever done to wrong you that you act like we're your sworn enemy, ruining our lives? You've been by the Wise Man's side for so long, I don't believe your pleading will be useless. We haven't even harmed the Wise Man, so why are we being punished? Wasn't the lightning that struck Bai Yi enough? We've become a laughingstock across the entire continent!"
The clan chief's anger flared at the mention of being struck by lightning, his face contorted with humiliation, and his eyes filled with murderous intent as he stared at Mengya. If it weren't for Mengya, Xu Zifan wouldn't have been able to escape, and even if he had been struck by lightning, it would have only happened within the Tiger Clan, and no one else would have known. The Tiger Clan wouldn't have ended up in such a passive situation. All of this was caused by Mengya.
Fierce Fang said coldly, "This is all I can do. If we don't accept the punishment, the Tiger Clan will not be able to learn the knowledge taught by the wise man and will be left to fend for themselves from now on."
"Do you think we're afraid? Even before the wise ones existed, our tiger clan was just as powerful. It's the fox and rabbit clans that should be worried. We..."
"We don't need these things if we're guarding the forest." Bai Yi burst in, lifting the curtain. He had been listening outside, and finally couldn't hold back when he heard the wise man abandon them. "I even met him in the forest before and brought him back to the tribe. I shouldn't have..."
"shut up!"
"Bai Yi!"
The clan chief and the high shaman spoke at the same time, frowning and glaring at Bai Yi, afraid that he would say something disrespectful and be struck by lightning, in which case he would lose his position as the young clan chief.
Chasing Wind continued, "You think you'll be fine if you don't pick him up? You have no idea how strong the Wise Man is. His previous weakness, like a female, was just a test. A few days ago, twenty wolf beastmen ambushed the Wise Man, and with a single move, he trapped them all. Those beastmen were like being locked in something invisible, facing something terrifying, fighting each other in terror, exhausted but not daring to close their eyes. That's the power of the Wise Man. He doesn't need anyone's protection. Without you, without Fierce Fang, he can go wherever he wants. No one can restrain him. He could even wipe out our entire tribe in an instant. He's a god descended from heaven. You've all forgotten that!"
Except for Fierce Fang, everyone else looked shocked. The clan leader couldn't believe it. "Is this real? How is this possible?"
Zhui Feng nodded vigorously. "I went to see those wolf-men. They're still imprisoned, but there's nothing around them. If it weren't for the Wise One's intervention that day, all five beastmen present would have been severely injured by the wolves. Wolves are masters of coordinated group attacks, but the Wise One subdued them before they even had time to react. If the Wise One wanted to wipe us out, we probably wouldn't even know how we died."
The high shaman closed his eyes and silently recited a prayer, lamenting, "We should have supported the wise man; that would have brought us glory and wealth. It's too late to say anything now. Chieftain, listen to Mengya."
The chieftain was in turmoil. He listened to Mengya's suggestion: to do hard labor and only receive half the pay in front of everyone? To let all the tribes see their Tiger Clan as slaves, at the mercy of others? Was this right? How could the Tiger Clan ever live in peace again? Who would respect them? What difference was there between this and tearing off their own dignity and trampling it into the ground?
Bai Yi cried out in a panic, "No, no! Our Tiger Clan is not weak. The Wise Man said he wouldn't retaliate against us. We only refuse to learn his knowledge if we don't accept punishment. We can live well just like the forest, can't we? If we go, we will be ridiculed and never be able to hold our heads high again. Father, Great Shaman, we can't go! Will our Tiger Clan still be the Tiger Clan after this?"
The clan chief rubbed his forehead with a headache. "Let me think about it. This concerns the entire clan, and they may not be willing either. I need to consider it."
The shaman sighed again, "Chieftain, we can't afford to make another mistake. The Wise One won't give us any more chances. This is our best chance. If we can get through this, there will be better days ahead."
The clan chief waved his hand, "Let's talk about it tomorrow. We can't make a decision so easily."
Mengya had anticipated this outcome, and he could even guess that the chieftain would still refuse after careful consideration, and that seventy percent of the tribe would refuse, just as he had just seen. Most of the tribe didn't think there was anything wrong with it, still treating this world as it was before, and ignoring the changes in the outside world. He presented his pre-thought-out plan, "If anyone is unwilling, then let those who are willing come with me. Whether to change should be a choice for the tribe members themselves."
Bai Yi scoffed, "Like you? Hmm? Going to other tribes to live at the mercy of others, becoming a traitor to the Tiger Clan? No one will betray the Tiger Clan like you."
"I did not betray the Tiger Clan; it is you who are harming the Tiger Clan." Fang glanced at them and turned to leave.
Zhui Feng whispered, "Meng Ya really begged the Wise One. He's helping the Tiger Clan. Clan Chief, Great Shaman, please consider this carefully and don't... make another wrong decision."
"What do you mean?" Bai Yi retorted angrily.
Zhui Feng didn't even glance at him before heading off to chase Meng Ya. Bai Yi was furious and sneered, "The wise one is really something. Zhui Feng has only been gone a short while and he's already siding with him?"
The High Priest took a deep breath. "Bai Yi, if you don't watch your mouth, it'll get you killed sooner or later." He stood up and slammed his cane on the ground. "Chieftain, for the future of the Tiger Clan, we must heed the Wise Man's orders. We really can't afford to make the wrong choice this time. The Wise Man possesses strengths we don't know about. Mengya even mentioned brick-making and city wall construction. Although I don't know what those are, they must be beneficial to the tribe. He knows so much more. If other tribes learn those skills, but the Tiger Clan doesn't, what will become of the Tiger Clan?"