Cultures and Races (Part 2)

Idan's eyes slowly opened to the sight of stalagmites and stalactites; his body which had been motionless for a while, remained at the center of fellow Goldorns. Then a notification rang in his ear and he listened intently to the voice that spoke.

*Congratulations, you have entered the sensory realm and gained 400 ounces of sensory energy.*

"I guess I'll go see that Old Goldorn for more info on that later," he thought.

The Western jungles of the southern continent and home to the Harans. Harans from the Dimoa tribe stood out in an open field arranged in orderly lines while one Harans walked around the column screaming haughty words at them, and all they could do was just remain upright and bear it.

"Give me Push-ups!" An Instructor, wearing a dark furry cloak over his dark red skin barked. The Harans obeyed. Their upper bodies were exposed, and their lower bodies were covered in rough leather pants. They proceeded to lower themselves to the floor, hands stretched to the muddy earth as they pushed themselves up and down, paired with their exercises.

Eventually, nighttime came, and the instructor Haran, who had spent the whole day barking orders, now stood in front of a campfire watching its burn and flicker. He huffed, taking a spear sitting next to him on a log of wood, and with one swift motion, he struck the grass before pulling it out.

Suddenly, something in the dark, empty night tugged at his chest, switched to the time of broad daylight, causing him to close his eyes, twitching and yet unaware of the one standing next to him.

"Horim." Himlo called his name and heard the voice," The Adult's shut eyes sprang open, and he turned his gaze and then kneeled.

“Where am I?" He asked, head resting on the soil.

Himlo looked at him and then answered, "This is the Intermediary, where I can communicate with you without having to make myself visible in the physical."

"I take it that this gracious act requires something of utmost urgency?

"Indeed this gracious act was done to give you a series of tasks," Himlo replied.

"And what would these tasks be?" Horim asked while his head was still bent.

"The instructions are simple. Select the best out of your tribal warriors and give them each a marking of their choice."

"But why?" Horim probed.

"It's simple, you don't need to know the details. However, these marks must only be given to the strongest, the most versatile, or useful from among your ranks. If there is one not remarkable in your numbers then do not choose to give any of them these marks.''

"But I can't see these marks," Horim pointed out.

"True," Himlo affirmed before closing the distance between himself and his descendant then touched the forehead. Horim's eyes glowed for a while then started to dim.

Within his memory were 6 images of distinct marks, each having a meaning behind its structure, "These are all marvelous, Ancestor," He complimented the beauty of the marks; some had a combination of shapes, others had a combination of strange objects, and one included a beast.

"Good,” Himlo smiled as his figure began to dim; Hor's vision blurred, and a matter of seconds was all it took for him to realize that he was back in the jungle all alone.

*Congratulations, you have been given 150 ounces of sensory energy and a new title called Marker. With the Marker title, you can design marks on your fellow tribesmen which will aid them and give them special features.*

"That seems alright, but what is sensory energy, tho?" He thought, having been numbed to the voice which his father had once claimed to hear.

"Well, that's another question for another day.” He chuckled, taking the shaft of his spear, and resumed training.

When morning came, a large number of Harans gathered at the hut of the tribe leader, a hut made from mud shaped to form capsule-like bricks and joined together before being pointed; the roof on top was rough and made entirely from dried leaves.

Eventually, Hor came out of the hut, meeting his people. He stood in front of them, surveyed their numbers to be around three hundred, then spoke, "I have news for you, one that could potentially increase our strength and crush our opponents," He announced with a loud, clear voice.

"Tell us!" One Haran claimed.

"I have only a few in mind who have overshadowed their peers in all areas of combat, and today, I am here to bestow their gifts.”

“What gifts?” One Haran asked.

“These gifts are simply Unique marks bestowed only upon those who have earned it.

As for the rest of you, there is still a chance to earn these marks."

He then placed his hand on the ground and took a leftover stick before using it to draw a picture of 6 marks given to him by Himlo before picking a group of people from the crowd while the others watched.

Stemming from that day a new practice known as mark giving was born. The marks given to Hor worked by a strange process.

All needed was that the marks gathered and infused power into the bodies of the Harans who used them making them even stronger than they initially were.

Back in Shawn's location,

*Ding! Congratulations you have earned 1,800 CP for completing the energy quests.*

*Ding! Congratulations, you have earned 1,200 CP for witnessing a new change in the evolution of beliefs, cultures, and traditions.*

"Hmmm, good one. I think that I should proceed with creating a new continent." Shawn said to himself while he looking at the map shown by the system before changing his mind, "On second thought, how about I place a chain of islands for a new race?”

He located the continents in the north, south, east, and west (beast) then decided that he would create a bunch of islands south of the eastern continent.

However, before hoping to create the islands, he had to wonder which race he could place there, and so he thought about the races that had already been placed on the continent.

"System, can you show me the races in the world? It's hard to keep track, "

*Races

Goldorns - Northern Continent

Humans - Northern Continent

Elves - Northern Continent

Orcs - Northern Continent

Harans - Southern Continent.

Dwarves - Southern Continent.

Thorns - Southern Continent.

Mana Beasts - Western Continent.

"Can I add a new race?" he asked.

*Yes. However, since it isn't part of the quests for this rank, then the next rank with the quest will have fewer issues to fill."*

He looked at the race's interfaces and noticed that only Kobolds and goblins were left.

"Can I make a new race by using them?" he asked a second time but changed the question slightly.

*No, you can't; your world is still in Rank 3 and not yet developed. Developed worlds have a higher amount of slots,* The system replied.

"I'll leave those two races then. I have other plans for them" He said.

"Also, I think that it's time to increase the world population," He added.

*You can increase the population of the world by using a population boom which will cost 6,000 CP.*

"What 6,000CP!" He screamed.

*Oh, stop acting dumb; money is to be spent; unfortunately, you can't store all your points cause they need to be spent. Hahaha.*

"You are always trying to rip me off," He complained.

*And why are you always trying to act like a pauper?*

"Forget it." He frowned, "What are the benefits of this population boom, how does it work?" Shawn asked.

*As its name suggests, typically, the birth rate could be double, triple, or quadrupled for a century at minimum. Each level only increases the cost as well as how long the time increases.*

"So what am I paying for?" Shawn asked.

*Oh you're paying triple.*

"Now I know that you are truly trying to rip me off,"

*Well I just calculated and gave you the most suitable one with the current world population.* The system replied.

"What if I wasn't?"

*Then you could always ask*

"Explain the costs to me." He said.

*Double for one century is 3,000CP, Triple is 5,000CP, Quadruple is 7,000CP. An increase of 50 years adds 500CP.*

"So, cost-wise, you gave me Triple for 200 years?"

*Yes!*

"I hate to say it, but it seems fair and almost as if you read my mind," said Shawn before he proceeded to say, "Initiate the population boom!" He said.

He heard the sounds of coins being withdrawn from between his ears and saw his balance go from 15,975 CP to 9,975 CP.

He looked at his quest bar and then the world info.

*Complete all Quests

1 Earn at least 35,000 CP - 23,800/35,000.

2 Witness a new change that occurs in the world - 1/1

3 Create 2 new realms - 1/2.

4 Create 2 new energies to place into the world - 2/2.

5 Have 8 higher beings - 4/8.

6 Give yourself a name to be addressed by the races- (It can be together or a separate name for each race) - _

7 Complete at least 15 quests - 13/15.

8 Set rules concerning certain aspects of the world - _ *

*World Info

Name of World - Ornio.

Sentient Races - 8

Number of Realms - 3

Population of Sentient Beings - 1,400,000

Population of Animals - 200,000,000.

Number of Overseers - 6

Number of Higher beings - 4

While scrolling across the quests tab he remembered that he hadn't completed the tasks of being addressed by the races.

"For the races in the northern continent, I want to be called the Eye that watches Worlds and for the races in the western continent I want to be called the 'Being in the Shadows.'"

*Affirmed.*

*Ding! Congratulations, you have earned 400 CP for your contribution to deciding how you will be addressed.*

"Why is it 400CP?"

*Because you only choose two names and not multiple. Also, it should have been 300, but the names are long, so an extra 100 was lent.*

"Who knew that the system could be so generous?"

*I am generous, but sometimes you don't know how to spend wisely.*

"And here we go again with the insults; you're the scammer, remember?"

"I should get on with watching the other four races," He huffed to himself.

“Logging host out of the world in 3...2...1"

Good thing that Shawn was prepared but when he woke up, he wasn't prepared for what he saw next.