Chapter 2647: Mayfly World (Twelve)

The situation had come full circle again, and thankfully, such a large project wasn't something that could be started just by saying so—the finalization and amendment of the design alone took a substantial amount of time.

Pamela, Strange, and Stark all put forward their own demands, and Xu Shang-Chi was in charge of modifying the drafts. After Shiller brought Peter over, Peter also joined in the revision work.

The magicians were busily hauling raw materials, and although the building materials hadn't been fully decided upon, if a greenhouse was to be built, quality soil and fertilizer were indispensable, so they started with that.

Due to the significant height difference, the plan to build a high-rise from flat ground had been essentially scrapped, then they proposed several other ideas. Stark suggested they just enclose Shambhala completely, allowing them to build however they wished inside.

Strange felt that the villagers' traditions should still be respected, and that even if the materials inside were different, the exterior should match the style of the village as closely as possible. If that didn't work out, they could split it into dozens of small greenhouses disguised as village houses.

Xu Shang-Chi still considered more modern architectural approaches and his innate talent for infrastructure transformation, thinking that it wasn't ideal for the village to be so dispersed. It might be better to relocate all the villagers to one place and then figure out a way to hollow out the mountain to create an interior plain, making it easier to build any structure.

But these ideas were hardly feasible. Enclosing Shambhala would leave nothing for tourists to see, not to mention marketing issues. The villagers also wouldn't be pleased living under a cover.

Turning it into so many small greenhouses was grossly inefficient and wouldn't achieve industrialized planting. In the end, the villagers would still have to plant manually, and you could forget about them getting rich.

As for the grand project of hollowing out the mountain, let's not even mention that Kamar-Taj only possessed interior territorial rights, akin to those of foreign embassies. Shambhala's territorial sovereignty belonged to China, and it was definitely impossible for China to let these magicians undertake such a massive project, as it involved changing the landscape.

In the end, it was Pamela who suggested a compromise that everyone could reluctantly agree on—growing the World Tree.

This was one of the specialties of All Things Green. On DC's Earth, many of the centuries-old colossal trees were incarnations of All Things Green, which could be considered miraculous spectacles used by All Things Green to proselytize. Naturally, Pamela was capable of this as well.

This approach had many benefits, because although the three villages spanned an elevation of about two thousand meters, if they could be connected vertically, that distance of around two kilometers wasn't considered extraordinarily far.

The problem was that building a straightforward, two-kilometer elevator was too ugly, and even if it was hidden inside the mountain, the villages were also separated by some distance horizontally. In the end, it would still result in an unsightly crisscrossing of branches.

However, from this term, one can see that there's a natural life form that isn't considered unsightly, even with many tangled vertical and horizontal structures—that is, a large tree.

Human reverence for trees is traceable, for wherever there are trees indicates that the water, soil, and landscape can support a community. Didn't the Sherpa people manage to thrive at a convergence of air currents, initially drawn by the lush greenery that differed from other locales?

Although the three villages were all above the snow line, under the protection of magic, there were still plants there, with the verdant green amidst the vast snowscape drawing particular compassion. If there could be a magnificent tree towering into the sky, it would likely become a spectacle acclaimed by all of humanity, and the tourism resource issues would naturally take care of themselves.

But this was Marvel, and Pamela's abilities couldn't be used here. The magicians from Kamar-Taj had to find a way, and it would undoubtedly be a troublesome matter—not something that could be solved by simply planting a seedling and clicking bone meal on it like crazy.

The magicians of Kamar-Taj almost never practiced plant magic, or else they wouldn't be panicking about growing saffron. Since their magic was borrowed from magical creatures, they were particularly incapable of farming—after all, you couldn't expect Mephisto and his subordinates to engage in any agrarian pursuits, could you?

According to Xu Shang-Chi's understanding, China had many such talents; even if Chinese magicians didn't specialize in farming, they made an effort to ensure that their abilities would be suited for it.

After all, the Weather Witch holds a book of solar terms, and whenever she notices a place not receiving timely rain according to the almanac, she promptly sorts it out physically to bring harmony. Flame magicians, when pushed to a corner, find a merit in burning straw, and there's a saying circulating in the Chinese magic realm, "As a magician, you must keep an eye out for work."

But Strange was stubbornly unwilling to seek help, insisting on finding a solution by themselves. In the end, after much debate, it was Martin who came up with a possibility.

Traditionally, tasks dealing with plants and animals were handled by Ancestral Gods, essentially shamanistic deities, the original human beliefs that governed such domains.

Their connection with Egyptian civilization meant that they visited Shiller's High Tower to seek advice. The moment farming was mentioned, Khonsu immediately perked up.

Ancient Egypt was one of the earliest agricultural civilizations in the world, with the fertile soil on both sides of the Nile giving birth to a highly vigorous and splendid Egyptian civilization. There were many Egyptian Gods responsible for harvest in the Divine Realm, and hearing that they were needed, they rushed over without delay.

However, it was unfortunate that the Egyptian Pantheon was recently doing quite well. After humankind entered the stage of interstellar exploration, aside from Wakanda, other African countries had essentially given up progress, content with the status quo.

Their technological advancements were unlikely to catch up rapidly. With Wakanda contributing significantly to humankind as an elder figure in human civilization, the others were calculating that if the rest of humanity embarked on interstellar migration, it would be quite pleasant to have Earth to themselves.

Or perhaps they didn't want the entire Earth and settling in Africa wasn't so bad, in case something happened one day, they could be the last hope for the human race.

Actually, Africa isn't that poor, or to be precise, its people aren't particularly destitute, just relatively primitive. The vast majority of countries operate on a small-scale farming economy; as long as there's food to eat from tending the fields daily, life is decent enough. Such a lifestyle may not look dignified by modern data standards, but it's certainly far from a living hell.

After all, the African continent is incredibly vast and the soil quite fertile. The warm and wet conditions are also favorable. In a bid to build its reputation, Wakanda constructed several aerial transport routes across Africa, significantly reducing logistics costs. They even leased advanced agricultural machinery at very low rents, so now in Africa, as long as you're willing to farm, you won't starve, although it's primitive, it's much better than those countries ravaged by war.

So, the international community didn't really mind their mediocre performance; having Wakanda was enough.

This led to a further revival of faith in Africa. When everyone had food to eat and lacked ambition, of course, they started praying to deities and worshipping Buddha, right?

The Egyptian pantheon held a respectable place within the African deity framework. Although modern Egyptians largely ceased their worship, these primitive faiths never really vanished. Lately, the animal gods and natural deities were living quite comfortably.

Because they weren't short of money, their price for taking orders was even higher. Hearing that it was a task from Kamar-Taj, they opened their mouths wide like lions, planning to fleece them thoroughly in one go.

They also knew that their type of primitive deity system was hard to find, a perfect seller's market. Thus, they decided to sit tight and wait for a good deal, fishing for some nice items from Kamar-Taj.

Strange was infuriated by their price gouging, but the prices they asked were not entirely unacceptable, especially since Kamar-Taj had funds to spare and excess energy that allowed the students to spend extravagantly. He gritted his teeth and was willing to pay the sum.

Just as Strange was about to make up his mind, Martin quietly approached him and informed him that the Aztec ancestor gods also had this ability and were asking for much less – nearly half of what the others demanded.

The situation in Mexico wasn't as good as Africa's. Almost all other countries in the Americas were in America's backyard. After starting the interstellar exploration arms race, America wasn't just idling away, the once overlooked railway projects became crucial due to the advent of aerial transport technology.

No country was happy to have such a large-capacity direct line to such a powerful nation, because this technology could not only transport goods but also deploy troops. Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and other countries protested vigorously, but to no avail.

America's rogue advantage was fully manifested at this moment. It didn't care whether the rest of the world was happy or not. The Sky Train was built fiercely; it provided job opportunities, revitalized the logistics industry, and opened up international trade routes. Once built, it was a done deal.

This resulted in countries like Canada and Mexico, with their vast lands and sparse population, being forced to start unifying with America in terms of geography. After all, when the railways were all interconnected, national distinctions naturally diminished.

Internationally, there were protests against this soft annexation, but honestly, no one's hands were clean. China was also extending its Sky Train south to Southeast Asia, west with high-speed rail over India's head, and north through the Mohe and Siberia, connecting with Russia's aerial railways.

In Europe, a complex network of aerial railways was all interconnected. Pressured by the cosmic exploration arms race, everyone seized the chance to build, and if there was any route conflict, they'd just connect them up. In the end, it was difficult to tell who belonged to whom.

This technology was just too easy to build — no need to cut through mountains or navigate waterways, and the costs were minimal with open-source technology. Internationally, except for a languishing Africa, the sky was covered with a dense network.

Mexico's location was excellent, situated in Central America and serving as a bridge linking North and South America. After America's massive construction projects, it was financially strained, so it resolved to turn Mexico into the largest logistics and warehousing hub connecting both Americas.

With a sparse population and longstanding historical issues, Mexico couldn't find any pillar industry despite its excellent farming conditions. Now that the big neighbor had spoken, they could only happily accept.

The Mexicans were very receptive to the idea; after all, who would prefer farming when they could work at a cool station? Most young people abandoned the land, heading to cities for logistics jobs.

This further led to the decline of primitive beliefs and even ancient cultures. Many sporadic Aztec sites were destroyed because they blocked the necessary paths for warehouse operations; the locals justified it, saying that people need to eat, after all.

Martin, seeing the dwindling number of wandering gods, felt pity and decided to facilitate the deal, pushing the rates quite low. They hardly took any money, only hoping that Kamar-Taj would help the Mexican people preserve the culture of their ancestor gods and not completely forget about the glorious civilizations that once existed on this ancient land due to the rapid progress of urbanization.

How could Strange disagree with that? He immediately instructed Martin to initiate the growth of the World Tree, but revitalizing the ancestor gods' civilization was indeed necessary. With one more pantheon, there would be one more path, and nobody could price gouge anymore.

However, to revitalize a deity system, someone experienced was required. Strange looked around, then back to the Egyptian pantheon.

Thinking of Shiller's complicated history with the Egyptian gods, he waved his hand and declared, "You are now the Pope of the Aztec ancestor gods. Go and lead your civilization to its former glory."