Shepherding Humanity

Xu Zhi returned to the house, entered the kitchen, and started boiling water. He was thirsty and wanted a cup of tea.

The fire of civilization had been sparked.

The young Bugape was hairy, with a tall, muscular physique that resembled those of Westerners, and so Xu Zhi named him Gilgamesh, after their mythical first king. He had high hopes for him.

He even gave him the termite genes that the Bugapes could not assimilate during testing – it was evident that Xu Zhi had only the greatest of expectations for Gilgamesh.

Whether or not he could truly ascend was now up to him.

Next, Xu Zhi relaxed in front of the house, sitting cross-legged by the door and studying the courtyard. "The area of the yard is 500 to 600 square meters. The sandbox takes up only 100 square meters. I should also start clearing weeds from the other areas.”

Xu Zhi thought a moment and turned his words into action, though he did not have a purpose in mind for the extra space yet.

As for expanding the sandbox, he thought that it wouldn’t be necessary for a while. An excessively large area would be difficult to manage, the current size of the sandbox was already enough.

Knock knock!

A moment later, someone started knocking on his front gate.

Xu Zhi put down the hoe and opened the gate. Chen Xi stood outside, carrying quite a lot of food in her arms. She looked at him curiously, then turned her head and intently stared at the yard. “Oh? You're doing some gardening?"

"Yes, just trying my hand at it. Exercise is good for the body." Xu Zhi picked up a towel and started wiping off his sweat. She couldn't see everything in the sandbox, and thought he was just doing some gardening.

"I didn’t think you were really serious when you said you were going to take up farming. You’re a college graduate who has worked for a foreign company! What’s more, you’re supposed to be terminally ill, right?"

Chen Xi scratched her head, looking at Xu Zhi's chiseled upper body with its well-defined muscles, and blushed heavily. "Big brother Xu Zhi, I’ll put the food here! Do you need help? I’ve helped mother plant rice seedlings at home before. Your garden has been abandoned for a long time, and it's also 500 to 600 square meters, right? Your family is really rich. But right now, you’re all by yourself, it’s too much for you to handle!"

"There’s no need."

Xu Zhi chuckled. "It can’t be helped. The yard is big enough, I'll just cultivate a random piece of land and plant some interesting seeds. Who knows? Maybe I’ll get some marvelous flowers."

"–Oh." Chen Xi let out a curious gasp, then patted her chest and assured him: "Then have fun gardening! Let me know what you want to eat! Mother and I will be sure to make it for you!"

Then she cheerfully skipped away.

But not before leaving a final thoughtless comment that left Xu Zhi stunned: "You were so depressed before. Now, you’re suddenly full of life, and even your hair has grown back. This is what they call the final burst of vitality before dying right? I'll be sure to take good care of you during these last few days of your life."

Uh-huh?

Just because my hair grew back, you say I’m going to die?

"What the f***? Is this meal supposed to be my last supper? This disrespectful little girl! I'm only in the middle stages of stomach cancer!" Xu Zhi groaned. As he glared after the girl, he started opening hix lunchbox.

Inside was a well-prepared meal consisting of poached eggs, carrots and stir-fried greens with meat. It was a simple home-cooked meal that smelled far too delicious.

Xu Zhi joyfully dug into his food.

"That girl is a really good cook. I’ll take full advantage of her offer and have her come over every day to bring me food…"

Cancer patients need to take special care with their diet, especially when it’s stomach cancer. Delicious and nutritious meals like this was just what Xu Zhi needed. He ate so well that he found himself laid flat on the garden’s lounge chair afterwards, feeling too lazy to move.

After relaxing a while, he started his chores, and cleaned up the garden area as planned.

He was covered in mud after working in the yard and methodically began to wash his clothes and wring out the water. When done, he hung his clothes on the clothesline in the yard to dry. "Whew, I'll have to go into town one of these days and get a washing machine."

……….

The next day, Chen Xi was back as promised to deliver her lunchbox.

Xu Zhi looked at her cute round face that was filled with sympathy for his terminal illness, and felt that he was absolutely OK with this.

He was relaxing at home while enjoying some garden work. He even had someone to take care of him and deliver him delicious food daily, making him feel that the world was full of good will. Could there be a more idyllic farm life than this?

No there could not.

Thanks to this exceedingly pleasant and peaceful lifestyle, Xu Zhi was beginning to feel like an enlightened ascetic.

For Xu Zhi, it had only been a short day, just enough for three meals and a light nap. But for the sandbox, one hundred long years had gone by. For the Bugapes whose average lifespan was only forty to fifty years, two generations had passed.

Had the callow Bugape from that time handed over the torch of civilization, and died of old age?

No, not at all.

He greatly surprised Xu Zhi.

Xu Zhi had carefully documented the progress of their civilization.

In the first decade after Xu Zhi's departure, Gilgamesh led the Bugapes as they continued their retreat. He learned to wield the power of fire and was amazed at its miraculous versatility: fire cooked food, fire drove away wild beasts at night, and fire provided warmth when it got cold.

The use of fire represented the birth of civilization.

And the Sword of Damocles Xu Zhi had left behind was an invincible weapon in this giant primordial forest. Gilgamesh used the sharp weapon to slay countless great beasts, giving his tribe room to breathe. They began to fight back.

In the second decade.

Gilgamesh was nearing his thirties and was in the prime of his life.

He had become a tall and majestic leader, and the tribe’s most powerful hunter. His people called him the Hero King. He used fire-fallow cultivation to burn down forests, leaving behind fertile land, and started the planting of crops. This was the start of agriculture.

He was peerless, brutal, and arrogant; the Great Beast of Wisdom had placed the Three Treasures of Civilization in his hands. He knew full well that civilization was built on the inheritance of knowledge and culture, and boldly developed the Cuneiform system of writing to record history. He considered himself the father of civilization, and recorded his grand history of shaping civilization in an epic that he boldly named the Epic of "Genesis”.

Though he was callous and tyrannical, he was also full of charisma.

In his tribe, he had a hundred and thirty-one beautiful wives. They bore him many strong and healthy offsprings who inherited his stature and wisdom.

But the Bugapes only had a thirty to forty years lifespan, and Gilgamesh was soon in his late thirties.

The great hero had reached the end of his life span. The Hero King who had boldly wielded the Sword of Damocles was now old and decrepit.

In a wooden treehouse, red hot flames blazed within the fireplace, dissipating heat waves..

"This is the flame of civilization, granted to me by the Great Beast of Wisdom. It’s just so bright and beautiful, like a crimson flower dancing in the wind."

Gilgamesh sat calmly on a giant chair woven from the hide of the great beast Arrah, his gaze thoughtful and introspective. His once tall and mighty body had turned old and sluggish. Turning his head, he admired his hunting trophies.

The heads of various monstrous beasts lined the wall, their powerful expressions fierce and unyielding, striking terror into the hearts of all who looked at them. These savage, unstoppable beasts had all fallen before him.

This wall was a record of his heroic life of conquest.

He had had a glorious and blessed life.

He had fulfilled the dreams of his youth.

He was content.

"It has been determined that the tribe’s next leader will be my son, Agga of Kish, who is no less capable than I am. He has the ability to lead the tribe to future glory."

Gilgamesh could clearly feel his vitality ebbing away. Death is the inevitable end that all living creatures must face, and he had resigned himself to his fate. He silently took out the Blood of the Conqueror and sighed: "I no longer have anything to fear. The Great Beast of Wisdom had said that only the greatest warrior in the world can drink this and survive, and if you do, you will gain unsurpassed power."

"I am the greatest warrior in the world, am I not?"

"We shall see!!!" The aging hero stood in a trance, with a slightly lost expression in his clouded eyes. He remembered the glorious years of his life and wept. Silently, he pierced his arm, and poured the Blood of the Conqueror on the wound.

Pain beyond measure assaulted him.

Gilgamesh struggled.

The hero in his twilight years fell to the ground. He had been in many battles over the years, but never before had he experienced such pain. He rolled around on the ground, gasping violently. After what seemed like an eternity, he rose to his feet. He had survived. The black hair that covered his body slowly receded, revealing sculpted muscles. They were also gone from his face which now had the perfect beauty of a god’s.

His hair was no longer grayish black and had turned snow white. He also had fine ivory skin, the same color as that of termites. Coupled with his white hair, he had the majestic appearance of a frost giant from the realm of fantasy. His physique was that of a Greek god’s, with beautiful, streamlined muscles that radiated strength.

"This power…"

The strapping, white-haired young man slowly stood up. "The Blood of the Conqueror… Such unimaginable might."

Crack.

He lightly squeezed a nearby handrail that was made from the sturdy bones of a great beast and it instantly shattered.

At this time, Agga of Kish, son of Gilgamesh, was standing tall on a dais within the tribe. He raised the Sword of Damocles up high and proclaimed himself the new chief.

Agga of Kish was wise, talented and virtuous. He would be a more worthy and benevolent chief than his tyrannical and arrogant father. Gilgamesh also knew this, and was willing to hand over his position to his son once he grew old. He wanted his tribe and civilization to prosper after his death

But now, it was different…

It was completely different.

Even if the kind and beloved Agga of Kish had great respect for his father and would never want to rob him of his position, Gilgamesh was still unwilling to tolerate any possible challenges to his rule.

"I am back. Therefore, the position of chief is mine."

On this day, blood was spilled as wails resounded within the Sumerian tribe. The Hero King Gilgamesh started his second life by killing his own son and regained his position as chief.