How strong was Al?
It had always been a mystery.
The tribespeople wouldn't ponder this question. They almost unconditionally revered and worshipped the Four Mothers and their proxy in the mortal realm, the Everchosen, the shared Son of the Four Gods. Under Al's command, the tribe won every battle and had never suffered a defeat. No Beastman would ever consider a question like:
In a fight between a Khorngor Bodyguard and the Everchosen, who would win?
Even a centaur as mad and violent as the Bloodmother's Chosen was still ridden beneath her adopted son...
And humans had a deep-rooted tradition of attributing sanctity to commanders and rulers. Strictly speaking, every place in this world had such a tradition.
Therefore, the "Beastlord," whose appearance was slightly "petite" compared to those formidable Beastman warriors, standing above all beasts, was obviously
a very normal thing. From religious faith to secular authority, no one would question the legitimacy of a boy ruling the tribespeople.
This would be very hard to imagine in the other world. In a nomadic faction, if the old leader died and the heir was young, an open internal rebellion and bloody power struggle would be practically imminent.
Even within agricultural civilizations with relatively more stable power successions, various conspiracies arising from reasons like "the monarch has not yet come of age" were endless. A person who appeared young, even if they displayed genius-level astuteness and charismatic charm, would inevitably be underestimated by others.
This was why Al had always liked sticking with his adoptive mother, the centaur girl.
Even with the dual guarantees of the Four Gods' blessings and the ruler's authority, and the tribespeople always showing absolute obedience to the Everchosen, Al had long existed in a psychological state of feeling "not safe enough." Therefore, every time he went out or strolled around, he almost always took the centaur girl with him. His adoptive mother's martial prowess and prestige were the boy's safeguard and the extension of his authority.
This mindset was probably akin to Chancellor Cao (Cao Cao) meeting the Xiongnu envoy.
He didn't dare treat this world as a simple game, or an epic story where a merchant forcibly pressures the editors to destroy the world just for a financial report.
Before Al learned to use his innate and acquired, continuously growing gifted powers, perhaps even a tiny bunny girl could cut off the Everchosen's head with a short knife—see Fan Qiang and Zhang Da.
Thus, after Al himself mastered power, he no longer needed to have his adoptive mother accompany him constantly.
Because now, he had added a third layer of guarantee to his rights and safety—one grasped in his own hands.
The phantom of a Blue Raven flew from Al's fingertips, hovering in the air. The red-robed mage trembled all over, his gaze dead-locked onto the Blue Raven phantom, moving along with it.
At the right moment, Al gently tapped his fingertip onto the red-robed mage's wrinkled forehead, which was trembling with excitement. A wave of blue light blossomed from his body, simultaneously enveloping the four mages within it.
The four let out exclamations of awe in unison. Countless images and fragments, impossible to describe with words, flashed and streaked like flowing light before their eyes and in their minds, containing knowledge, secrets, truths, taboos...
Endless treasures!
Endless power!
Endless... temptation!
And...
Endless danger.
The mages hungrily used the endless treasures they could only observe and absorb in this single moment to fill their boundless desire for knowledge. They sank into the boundless ocean, willing to drown and swim within it for all eternity.
But any emotion, once exceeding its limit, becomes extremely dangerous.
Time passed very quickly. Subjectively for the mages, they felt as if unimaginable epochs had passed, or perhaps just a fleeting moment. In reality, it was indeed the latter. Only a split second had passed when Al snapped his fingers and sat back down on his throne.
"That is enough."
The boy's voice awakened the mages from the massive comprehension that an ordinary person couldn't fathom one billionth of even with an eternal life, but with one exception.
The green-robed mage remained standing stiffly in place, head tilted back, eyes rolled white, emitting a magnificent blue light outwards.
His body was constantly trembling slightly, his fingers unconsciously gripping his pants tightly, his lips moving continuously.
"The knowledgeable are not trapped, the wise are not confused... All-Knowing... All-Knowing! Truth! I have seen the visage of the Omniscient and Omnipotent One!" The green-robed mage's tone was rapid and manic, his face revealing an expression of fanatical craving.
The boy raised an eyebrow, his voice rising slightly in pitch.
"I said, enough."
The other three mages silently spread out, facing their abnormal green-robed companion.
"I have seen the Visage of Truth!"
The green-robed mage suddenly let out a piercing shriek!
Intense blue light erupted simultaneously from his mouth, nose, ears, and eyes! His entire figure became blurry, obscured and enveloped by the blue light.
He tilted his head back and fell to his knees. A fissure tore open on his chest, and his entire body began to crack and shatter from the chest outwards, like a broken porcelain vessel.
Al pursed his lips and said nothing. Sitting on his throne, he waved his hand. The green-robed mage's head let out a poof sound like a dud bomb, and his entire body fell backwards down the steps.
During this process, his body rapidly charred and withered, shattering onto the ground, turning into piles of ash and residue that no longer resembled their original form.
The other three mages looked at each other in dismay, all able to feel the fear of their companions.
Al shook his head and said coldly: "Knowledge is infinite. His overly obsessive pursuit trapped him in a danger from which he could not escape."
"Curiosity, the desire for knowledge, the driving force of civilizational progress, I value them highly... but extreme emotions bring not only blessings, but also disaster."
The three mages, who had restrained their desires and proactively detached themselves from the magnificent sights Al displayed to them, said nothing. The purple-robed mage's face still carried a trace of the relief of surviving a catastrophe. Just a moment ago, he almost chose to ignore Al's warning like the green-robed mage, continuing to explore knowledge within the All-Knowing One's blessing, until he himself became a part of that knowledge.
The red-robed mage was the first to snap out of his lingering fear. He took down his hood and solemnly knelt on one knee.
"By your glory, under your grace, we were able to satisfy our thirst as seekers of knowledge."
Al
looked at that pile of ash that no longer resembled human form, sighed with deep regret, and said: "Our cause shall become eternal, extending into the next life of the world. I hope that when I enter Bilbali... you all will be there to welcome me." Having spoken, he rose from the throne.
The other two mages also knelt on one knee to the boy. "The foresight of the Supreme Fledgling Eagle guides us in exploring the truth."
"By your glory!"
The boy smiled, not asking the three to stay. Mainly because their act of infiltrating the tribe inherently carried certain risks, and they had even lost a person because of this matter.
So the three mages also wisely chose to leave. There were still a series of follow-up tasks and cleanups to handle. When they reached the main doors, Al's voice came from the throne.
"Learn restraint!"
The three bowed deeply toward the throne once more, turned around, and left escorted by Beastman guards.
Al crossed his legs, lying sideways on the throne in an undignified but very comfortable posture, looking up at the vaulted ceiling in deep thought.
Just like those believers who failed challenges or couldn't withstand the blessings of the Four Chaos Gods would turn into Chaos Spawn, the faith of the Four Mothers, while much gentler, wasn't without its dangers.
The Bloodmother's believers ran the risk of losing control, sinking into the domination of the desire for slaughter and destruction, turning into war machines; the Reveler's followers might demand more "satisfaction and happiness" due to intense greed; the Loving Mother's faith was mostly fine for now, at most making a person's personality a bit eccentric, perhaps due to the Loving Mother's own sacrifices.
As for the followers of the All-Knowing One, the biggest risk was exactly what just happened—like the green-robed mage, being dominated by the thirst for knowledge and curiosity, unable to control the heart's desire to explore any possible knowledge, even taboo and highly dangerous knowledge.
The All-Knowing One had warned him. At the current stage, things were still relatively fine. But when Chaos surged back and the faith of the Dark Gods revived, those among his Four Mother believers who stepped onto extreme paths would highly likely choose to abandon the Four Mothers and throw themselves under the command of the Four Gods.
This was something he had to strictly watch out for in the future.