Chapter 434: Old Stories
"A lone wolf starves; a pack brings down the stag. The Steppe must become our hunting ground, and we, its unstoppable pack."
"And that is not the only reason. We also lack innovation. Tradition gives us roots, but innovation gives us wings. Only those who dare to change will rise above the horizon"
"Empires fall because they cling to the old. We will rise because we embrace the new, shaping it to our will like a smith shapes iron.
"Without innovation, how could our arrows find the gaps in the armor of the Yan legions or the shields of Zhou? Without unity, how could the tribes of the Steppe, scattered as blades of grass, hope to stand against empires whose armies march as unyielding waves? The Yan build walls to cage us; the Zhou fortify roads to march against us. They think their steel, their discipline, their numbers make them invincible. But walls can be breached, roads can be ambushed, and numbers mean nothing against a storm that cannot be stopped.
It is through sharp minds that we create the weapons to pierce their strength, and through joined hearts that we become the storm. If we fail to innovate, we will be left behind. If we fail to unite, we will be trampled underfoot. I believe that if we unite, we can show the empires that the vast Steppe births not only riders but conquerors."
"Each chief of the Steppe that neighbours these empires clings to the rule of their small lands, their ignorance and pride blinding them to the larger battle. Some, in their desperation to crush Steppe rivals, kneel before the Yan or the Zhou, trading loyalty for fleeting favours."
Aeryon said this with disgust.
No one is more hated than a traitor
"They think themselves cunning, but they are like wolves who bite their own tails, weakening the pack. Do they not see? Each time they bow to a foreign throne, they hand over the strength of the Steppe, piece by piece. Each betrayal plants seeds of division, and division is the poison that empires feed us to keep us small, to keep us weak. The Steppe is vast, yet they shrink it with their feuds, their greed, their blindness. If we are to stand against the empires that circle us like vultures, we must cast aside these petty rivalries. One banner for all of the Steppe. That is my dream. All the tribes in the Steppe under one banner
"My banner"
Aeryon paused for a moment