Chapter 329 - 302: Rules of the Book Tower
Hearing Zhou Xian’s verdict, the pair immediately grew frantic.
"When did we ever act on our own? What kind of bullshit rule is this!" the man yelled, his neck flushing red.
"Yeah, right! Like you’re so perfect! You dare say everyone else’s hands are clean?" the woman cursed. "I saw someone picking fruit who snuck a couple for himself halfway through. I saw another person slacking off while everyone else was busy. You’re just targeting us!"
At these words, the expressions of many in the surrounding crowd of onlookers changed, and they began to chime in with accusations.
"Don’t just sling mud. People with dirty hearts see dirt everywhere."
"You think you’re justified for leaving the group on your own? If everyone acted like you, how could the team ever stay united?"
The crowd murmured, each person adding their own two cents.
Zhou Xian remained expressionless. He walked over and, amidst the man’s roars and the woman’s shrieks, pulled another two bags of mushrooms from each of their pockets.
"The evidence is irrefutable. What is there to argue about? Team 26 didn’t even gather mushrooms today."
"Who said you could touch me?! I’ll accuse you of rape!" the woman shrieked, suddenly collapsing to the ground and throwing a tantrum.
But all she received were the cold, indifferent stares of the crowd.
She thrashed on the ground for a long time, but not a single person came to "uphold justice" for her.
Her movements grew slower and slower, her desperation more and more apparent.
"Sister, help me," she pleaded, searching for an ally among the women in the crowd.
"Who’s your sister? Don’t be disgusting," the woman she’d called out to retorted, looking annoyed. "It’s bad apples like you who ruin the reputation of all women."
The couple left under the pointing fingers and judgmental stares of the crowd.
In reality, the consequences they faced went far beyond this.
In the current environment, it was difficult for ordinary people to survive alone.
That was why so many people chose to band together, and the same principle was behind joining the Qin Alliance.
Because the Qin Alliance was too large, it was divided into smaller squads for operations.
Normally, squad members were permanent.
𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚
Teams were typically formed based on the closeness of relationships and the proximity of living quarters.
In a situation like this, one’s reputation was exceptionally important.
If their reputation was ruined, not only would their original squad expel them, but other squads would also be unwilling to accept someone with a bad name.
The performance of one’s teammates could genuinely determine whether one’s entire family would go hungry the next day.
"Captain, I was wrong! We’re willing to accept the punishment. We’ll hand all these mushrooms over to the team," the man finally realized the gravity of the situation and said hastily.
"You don’t know you were wrong; you just know you’re about to be punished," Zhou Xian said, shaking his head. "Since we have rules, we must enforce them."
Upon hearing this, the man’s body trembled, and his face turned ashen.
Watching the disgraced couple’s retreating figures, many of those present felt a chill in their hearts.
This incident served as a wake-up call for them all.
If you broke the rules, the Qin Alliance would truly punish you.
...
That evening, Qin Ziwen closed the portal.
He summoned Zhao Pu. "How is the resource collection going?"
Zhao Pu reported, "This time, we harvested over 2,500 jin of fresh fruits and vegetables. We also felled many trees. The trees on the Island are generally not very large, mostly wind- and salt-resistant species like coconut palms, casuarina, and banyan trees. None of them are very good for shipbuilding."
"Mm," Qin Ziwen said, quite satisfied. As long as there was a harvest, it was good.
Qin Ziwen said, "As for the fruits and vegetables, distribute the harvest according to contribution. Keep the seeds and seedlings for planting."
"Yes, Alliance Leader."
"Right, there’s one more thing I need you to announce." Qin Ziwen then explained the effects of the new building, the Hundred Schools Book Tower.
Zhao Pu was a little surprised to hear this, but he adapted quickly.
After all, he had seen so many strange buildings that one more which could consolidate knowledge into books didn’t seem like an impossibly novel concept.
’I’m just curious,’ Zhao Pu thought, ’what level would my surgical skills reach?’
Ten minutes later, Zhao Pu stared at the book in his hands, "Intermediate Surgical Skill," his eyes flickering slightly.
’My skills... are actually at the level of Intermediate Surgical Skill?’
Zhao Pu smiled. ’I guess this is an affirmation of my twenty-year medical career.’
The next day, when news of the Hundred Schools Book Tower spread, the six-story tower instantly became a popular hot spot within the Qin Alliance.
Many people had assumed a certain skill of theirs would meet the standard, only to find after trying it that most of the knowledge they possessed couldn’t be converted into a book.
"How is that possible? My marksmanship didn’t even reach the beginner level," Jiang Shan said with a complicated expression.
"You must have been slacking. I got lucky; my marksmanship condensed into a book! I guess this is the tower’s affirmation of my skill," Cao Biansheng said with a laugh, holding an azure-colored book in his hands.
Because so many people wanted to enter the tower, the entrance became congested, and a long line formed.
From a distance, watching the lively scene, Jia Liangcai straightened his clothes and bowed deeply. "Congratulations, my Lord, on obtaining such a Marvel. This tower is profound. It can transform a person’s strengths into written tomes and help readers master them, saving them a decade of arduous study. It is a divine tool for cultivating talent, the very foundation for establishing our power.
"If this continues, my Lord’s subordinates will surely be brimming with talent." After a brief pause, Jia Liangcai continued, "However, as marvelous as this divine tool is, it absolutely must not be treated as a public school, where anyone can come and go as they please. This servant humbly requests that we establish a system of ’reward by merit and exchange by talent.’"
"Go on," Qin Ziwen said.
"First, access to the tower should be exchanged for merit. Those who are loyal to you, my Lord, and have made contributions should be granted a certain amount of time in the tower based on the scale of their achievements, allowing them to view tomes of a corresponding level.
"Second, knowledge should be exchanged for books. If a talented individual is willing to condense their own skill into a new volume for the tower—be it a secret crafting technique, medical insights, or martial arts enlightenment—upon successfully creating a book, they shall be permitted to view one book of the same level for free. This is what I call ’exchanging skill for skill, and wisdom for wisdom.’ In this way, the tower’s collection will grow richer by the day, and the hearts of the people will be completely won over to your side, my Lord."
"I think Old Jia is right," Qin Ziwu, standing nearby, voiced his agreement. "Big Brother, letting everyone use the Celestial Star Arrow Gallery and the Martial Arts Arena was one thing. After all, we really needed to increase our combat strength back then.
"But this tower helps people learn things quickly. If the loyal and the disloyal get the same treatment, what do the loyal people get out of it? I think they should either have to trade merit for it or trade knowledge for it. We can’t just let them read for free. And I don’t think that’s too much to ask.
"They can go to the Celestial Star Arrow Gallery and the Martial Arts Arena to train their skills. Once they’ve honed a skill to a certain level, they can use it to trade for knowledge of the same level. Plus, this would also indirectly monitor their skill progression."
Qin Ziwen nodded. "Alright. Liangcai, you can announce this rule later. Register everyone who managed to create a book in the tower today. Hmm... since it’s the first day, everyone can look at the books for free today. The new rule will be officially implemented starting tomorrow."
One day wasn’t enough time to learn much anyway. While these books could accelerate the learning process, they weren’t as absurd as skill books in a game, where you just slap your hands together and, DING, you’ve instantly learned it.
Letting them experience the allure of the tower would only give them more motivation.
As for whether the books might be stolen, there was no need to worry. The books in the tower could only be read inside it. The moment they were taken outside the range of the Hundred Schools Book Tower, they would automatically disappear and return to their shelves.
...
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