Mecha Era, Punch the Stars

Ju was taken aback by the question.

Is taking the path of physical strength considered a violation of God's will?
After thinking for a moment, Ju said:

“Father, I don’t think we’ve disobeyed the Nest God’s will; perhaps we just accidentally took a longer route.”

Sometimes, we take a detour not to deviate from our goal.

"Instead, it's about avoiding the insurmountable obstacles on the way to the finish line and using time to overcome the difficulties."

"Our next generation may be declining, but perhaps this is the natural order of things, just like tiger cubs may have several offspring, but not all of them are strong and powerful; there will always be weak ones."

"This is probably just normal fluctuation."

"It's also possible that we've used up all the resources in the Southern Orange Hills ahead of time, and we need time to recover."

As the first person to cultivate citrus, Ju Chang's accumulated farming experience is far superior to Cang's.

Therefore, he believes that the current decline in the intelligence and physical health of the next generation is normal, and that the next generation will likely recover.

Cang's strengths lie in his steady approach to things, his occasional ingenuity, and his strong sense of the big picture.

However, the downside is that because he guards the food warehouse for many years, he doesn't have much time to interact with other dog-people. After becoming the leader of East Orange Hill, he spends more time observing, thinking, and then giving instructions.

There is still room for improvement in some aspects.

In addition, his dedication to studying texts made him less physically fit than his brothers. His years of experience in studying texts made him more focused and also more obsessive.

Therefore, he often gets stuck in a dead end of a problem and can't get out of it.

Although Tachibana's remarks did not completely enlighten Cang.

But it did make Cang think more deeply, and he was able to break free from his previous entanglement.

His eyes brightened slightly as he looked down to meet Ju's gaze.

"Ju, what you said makes sense."

"But if we let it go unchecked, there's a very real possibility that our tribe will decline generation after generation, isn't there?"

After a moment of contemplation, Ju said:

“Father, your concerns are not without merit, but our current situation is what it is, and we have reached the limit of what we can do. Apart from waiting for a new outcome, is there any other way?”

Cang said:

"Here's what we'll do: go and visit the other four tribes and observe the overall situation of their new generation. Also, we don't need to rush to send our latest batch of new generation to assist the other tribes. You can take them and try to expand eastward on your own first."

"While it's good that we've been helping each other all this time, it's also created a lot of lazy people. With abundant resources, many people have started to indulge in pleasure."

"Enjoying pleasure is not bad; it can help us relax after a hard day's work."

"But the problem is that large creatures attack us from time to time, and we are always in danger of extinction, so it is still unlikely that we can relax."

"So this time, I want you to be bold and take action!"

At this moment, Ju vaguely understood what Cang meant.

It seems that Cang also roughly understands that a recession is inevitable, and rather than waiting for a more severe recession in the next generation, it is better to proactively change the existing pattern.

The strategy for change was to temporarily cut ties with other tribes and to start pioneering again.

"Does Father believe that our next generation hasn't experienced enough hardship, which is why we're declining?"

Ju asked.

Cang smiled:

"This is also what you inspired me. You said that when a tiger has several offspring, there will always be weak ones, and the weak ones are always the most miserable." "But conversely, is the strongest one in the tiger's den safe and sound? No."

"Of the five tribes, our Dongjuqiu is the strongest."

"But our tribe also has the greatest hedonistic spirit because we are the richest and strongest, and it is easy for us to have enough to eat."

"When I go to assist other tribes, I can enjoy the treatment of a superior dog-person, which is very comfortable."

"Is that enough?"

“We are the first group to become strong. If we think about leading other dog people but instead exploit other tribes, only enjoying without giving, we will eventually become parasites on the trees. The fatter we are, the easier it is for birds to carry us away.”

These words left Ju silent for a moment.

The phenomenon of the strong exploiting the weak is a bad one, and it has only emerged in recent years. It is indeed very likely related to the decline of the younger generation.

As the story unfolded, Cang's thoughts became increasingly clear:
"Ju, you're right. We accidentally took a longer route, but unfortunately, this detour didn't help us overcome the difficulties. Instead, we're getting further and further away from our goal."

"Therefore, you must firmly believe that your pioneering work will definitely help our tribe overcome the difficulties."

"If I could, I wouldn't want our next generation to suffer, but alas, we are just a small race with nothing but wisdom."

"If you are content with temporary wealth and strength, you will not last long."

"Ju, go forth and explore! Go find more magical resources like oranges! The fate of the dog-people race is in your hands!"

Ju nodded slowly, her heart heavy.

Father, you make it sound so simple. Land reclamation is not that easy these days.

All the land that could be expanded has been expanded, and the remaining areas are all occupied by enormous creatures that are twenty or thirty meters tall.

This is no longer something that can be easily solved by simply throwing together a large number of people.

Moreover, this time they also have to lead all the new generation out. If they are wiped out in one fell swoop, the production level of the five major dog-people tribes will directly regress by thirty years.

Three days later, most of the able-bodied people, regardless of gender, left Dongjuqiu, except for the elderly, the weak, the sick and the young.

The Dongjuqiu tribe, which had a population of over 1,500, suddenly dwindled to only 200-300 people, becoming almost deserted.

It was only when other tribes came to ask for strong men to assist with childbirth half a month later that they discovered this unexpected turn of events.

Half a month later, when other tribal leaders, including Jiang, Chai, and Dao, came to ask Cang why he had made such a decision, they discovered that Cang had died in front of the temple, frozen in a kneeling, prostration posture.

The second generation of leaders of the Youchao clan also began to die.

Following Cang's death, Jiang and Chai also passed away from illness within five years.

The third generation, including Dao, Teng, and Liang, took over the other tribes.

The Dongjuqiu tribe never got to see the return of the pioneering orange trees; instead, they faced a massive wave of deaths and gradually fell into ruin.

Although the West Orange Hill tribe was willing to take over the East Orange Hill tribe, they also faced decline. The new generation generally lacked comprehensive wisdom and strength, and could only maintain the status quo, making it difficult to expand. At most, they could send people to harvest the oranges when they ripened.

Of course, due to a lack of manpower for management, production volume naturally declined sharply.

Ten years after Cang's death, the tribe's population shrank again, falling back to two thousand.

The expansion of the deep lake area has also had to be retreated due to the gradual decline of the new generation, in order to avoid being killed by large aquatic creatures.

The extraordinary dawn of Youchao seemed to have just begun, only to be extinguished immediately.

Also in that year, Ju, who had been pioneering in the east, finally led a group of people back to East Ju Hill. (End of Chapter)