Shang thought that assumption to be stupid, but he could see where they were coming from.
Yes, the barbarians were very simple-minded, almost like beasts. They even lived in tribes and just followed the strongest one blindly.
"So, you think that the barbarians' minds become more similar to beasts," Shang said.
"Correct," George said. "We don't know it yet, which is why we are running the tests. Some deaths or some heightened aggression would be acceptable, in my opinion, but decreasing the warrior's intelligence would not make them stronger but weaker."
"They wouldn't even be able to create any sort of True Path, which would force them to follow the barbarian path to the end, which means they will just become beasts. That's not our goal. We want warriors."
"I see where you're coming from," Shang said, "but I really doubt that side effect actually exists. I've been using that technique for ten years, and I haven't changed."
George and Jerald raised an eyebrow each.
"Okay, bad choice of words," Shang said. "What I meant is that I didn't become dumber."
"We know," Jerald said, "but the things we saw in those barbarians' minds are very worrisome. We saw their lives and how horribly they performed in school. They were being taught the most basic things, but they still-"
"Wow, wait a second," Shang said as he interrupted Jerald. "What did you just say? Schools?"
Jerald furrowed his eyebrows. "Yes, schools. We've seen the schools in their minds."
"What schools?" Shang asked in shock. "There are no schools for barbarians."
"Shang, we've read their minds. We saw the schools. There are schools," Jerald said.
"No, there are not!" Shang shouted. "I've been at the northern border where all the elite and talented barbarians go, and not even one of them talked about any sort of school. How would schools even be possible? Everyone lives in a stupid fucking tribe with the most backward ideologies."
"I led over ten of the most talented barbarians for months, and I've taught them basically everything they know. They didn't even know about the most basic concepts, and I had to teach them all of these concepts."
"Even more, they learned the concepts pretty quickly as soon as they actually listened to me."
"They are definitely not dumb. They are just extremely uneducated since there are literally no schools anywhere. I've never heard anyone mention any schools in several months, and I was surrounded by the most talented barbarians!"
Jerald and George furrowed their brows.
That didn't seem right.
Jerald's Inquisitors had inspected the minds of several barbarians, and the Inquisitors' loyalty couldn't be questioned.
This meant that whatever the Inquisitors reported had to be true, and the barbarians' minds also hadn't been altered in any way.
For a while, there was only silence.
Then, Shang got an idea. "Have there been barbarians that didn't see any schools?" he asked.
"Yes," Jerald answered, "and they are even dumber than the rest."
"So," Shang said, "what if the schools are only a front?"
"A front?" George asked.
"Yes, a front," Shang said. "As I've already stated, I've been with the most powerful barbarians, and I know how they live. They didn't go to any school, and I would assume that, if there were schools, the most talented barbarians would go to them."
"I severely doubt that the trash barbarians on the southern border got something like an education while the talented barbarians in the north got nothing like that."
"However, what the Inquisitors have witnessed in the minds of the barbarians probably isn't fake, which means that there are some schools for the trash barbarians."
"But then, why would these barbarians with an education get sent to die on the southern front? That seems like a stupid waste of resources."
"Unless the school they went to somehow managed to weaken the enemy, right?" Shang said.
Jerald scratched his chin as his brows furrowed. "So, you're saying that the weak barbarians in the south go to school so that the Skythunder Kingdom thinks that the barbarian strengthening technique makes them dumber, dissuading them from using the technique ourselves?"
Shang nodded.
George and Jerald looked at each other for a while.
"I mean, it could be possible," Jerald said as he looked back at Shang, "but this plan seems too strange to be real."
"I can tell you that there are no schools!" Shang said. "I am sure that the talented warriors didn't visit any kind of school, and I can assure you that they learn quite quickly when you teach them."
"Additionally, I know exactly how the technique works since I've been using it for a decade. I even used it in unintended ways. For example, I've absorbed beasts one level above myself."
"I've seen how the technique interacts with my body, and I can tell you that my mind can block off all the foreign Mana in my body. When the foreign Mana starts to reawaken, it tries to take over my mind, but this is not some kind of subtle takeover."
"No, it directly attacks it, and my willpower has to resist its force. This is not some war over resources where it gains control over some, and I get control back. This is a stalemate. It's one frontline."
"If the wall in my mind breaks, I will turn into a beast. This means that the foreign Mana didn't even reach my mind. If it did, I wouldn't be here right now."
"If it can't even touch my mind, how is it supposed to change it?"
"I can assure you that there is no way that the strengthening technique has some kind of subtle effect on someone's mind," Shang said.
Jerald and George looked at each other again.
"Alright, I believe you," Jerald said. "I will ask some of my Inquisitors to review the things they have seen in the barbarian's minds. I'll tell them to look for any clues that the schools might be fake and designed to fool us."
Shang nodded. "Thank you."
Jerald nodded too. "If this actually proves to be true, I'll have to commend the Grandmountain Kingdom. They actually managed to stop us from making use of this technique for maybe even centuries."
"I mean, they are Mages, just like you," Shang said. "They're not dumb."
"True," Jerald said.
Jerald summoned his Communication Crystal and gave several orders.
The three of them talked and planned some more, and Jerald got his answer the next day.
Yes, there were a couple of subtle signs that made the schools seem a bit fake.
For example, the teachers were teaching simple things, but they were explaining them in complex ways. One could say that the teachers were all very bad at teaching.
Sure, there might be some bad teachers in a normal school, but they couldn't literally all be bad.
After reviewing everything, Jerald decided that the barbarian strengthening technique would also be introduced.
And finally, all the matters regarding different techniques and the warrior path were taken care of.
From now on, Shang only needed to concentrate on his own power and the threat of the Council and other Dukes.
After talking about everything, Shang left the room and searched for a place to train.
From now on, he could fully focus on his own power.
He was no longer being hunted.
He no longer needed to run from Zone to Zone.
He could walk around openly.
He had powerful beasts all around him.
After over ten years, Shang could finally put his entire focus on his power.
And he would take advantage of this opportunity!
