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Time in Dixing
12 Aug 2020 20:10Time in Dixing: obviously, they do have time (causality works, etc), but the Regent claims they have no time in Dixing and a lot of the timeline stuff there is ... weird. So, my theory is that they do have time, but they have multiple contradictory methods of timekeeping! Perhaps one based on the lava flow, and another on algae blooming, or somesuch, and since they to their eternal regret picked things which don't actually have regular cycles, they have calendrical warfare sectarian disputes!
What about the prison sentences, you may ask? They give the terms in years; surely they have official timekeeping? No – Dixing runs on lava and melodrama, remember? The Regent simply shouts out a sentence length that sounds suitably melodramatic to his ears, then drags prisoners out as he remembers them for further torture/release/what-have-you. Someone sentenced for 1000 years might get out before the person sentenced to 100 years immediately prior. (This also explains why Chu Shuzhi only aged ~20 years during his "300"-year prison sentence whereas Zhu Jiu reacts to Sang Zan as if Dixingian lifespans are similar to humans': Chu Shuzhi was only imprisoned for ~20 years, despite the Regent yelling "300 years" at the sentencing.)
Of course, if the timekeeping is inconsistent, then did the meteor really happen 10 000 years ago? Probably not! After all, the tech level they have 10k years ago is vastly inconsistent with the tech level we actually had 10k years ago. Also, given that the number only has one significant figure (i.e. has been rounded to the nearest 10 000), we can probably safely say it's been less than 10k years; probably more on the 5-6k end*. As for Zhang Shi, well, he is lying to embellish sempai's reputation. It sounds much better if the peace Ma Gui forged lasted 10 000 years than if it lasted a paltry 4 000, no? :P
* The earliest attested sundials (shadow clocks) are c. 3500 years old, though people have likely been telling time with them before that. The earliest metal weapons were of bronze, which is attested in China from 5.1k to 4.7k years ago onward. While they do have cures available in the Alliance which were since lost, there does seem to be enough of a population to avoid total technological collapse, and it's supposed to be closeish enough to our world, so I would have the dirt nap be several thousand years shorter than the impressive and almost certainly exaggerated 10k years.
What about the prison sentences, you may ask? They give the terms in years; surely they have official timekeeping? No – Dixing runs on lava and melodrama, remember? The Regent simply shouts out a sentence length that sounds suitably melodramatic to his ears, then drags prisoners out as he remembers them for further torture/release/what-have-you. Someone sentenced for 1000 years might get out before the person sentenced to 100 years immediately prior. (This also explains why Chu Shuzhi only aged ~20 years during his "300"-year prison sentence whereas Zhu Jiu reacts to Sang Zan as if Dixingian lifespans are similar to humans': Chu Shuzhi was only imprisoned for ~20 years, despite the Regent yelling "300 years" at the sentencing.)
Of course, if the timekeeping is inconsistent, then did the meteor really happen 10 000 years ago? Probably not! After all, the tech level they have 10k years ago is vastly inconsistent with the tech level we actually had 10k years ago. Also, given that the number only has one significant figure (i.e. has been rounded to the nearest 10 000), we can probably safely say it's been less than 10k years; probably more on the 5-6k end*. As for Zhang Shi, well, he is lying to embellish sempai's reputation. It sounds much better if the peace Ma Gui forged lasted 10 000 years than if it lasted a paltry 4 000, no? :P
* The earliest attested sundials (shadow clocks) are c. 3500 years old, though people have likely been telling time with them before that. The earliest metal weapons were of bronze, which is attested in China from 5.1k to 4.7k years ago onward. While they do have cures available in the Alliance which were since lost, there does seem to be enough of a population to avoid total technological collapse, and it's supposed to be closeish enough to our world, so I would have the dirt nap be several thousand years shorter than the impressive and almost certainly exaggerated 10k years.