Green smoke rises from the pottery pot where salt is boiled and goes straight into the distant sky. Wherever the wind blows, the surface of Texcoco's lake rises like waves, like a changing inner lake. The tide rises and falls in an instant, and only the treasures at the bottom of the lake remain unchanged.
Shulot broke away from Taliyah's arms and slowly stood up. A few moments ago, a strong impulse made him stand up, face the awe-inspiring Avitt, and save the gunpowder manager. But at this time, after the conflict, when he recalled Xingye's promise and reflected on the interference of sex, he became clear in his heart through the baptism of worldly affairs.
He blocked the potter girl who wanted to lean on with his hand and shook his head slightly.
"Talaiya, you are very talented. Do your research on gunpowder."
After saying that, Shulot took a deep look at Thalea who was standing still, then turned around and left alone, with a decisive step.
Bertard sighed. The samurai commander knew the boy well and knew that he had already made a decision, so he could only shake his head and follow closely.
The sun sets suddenly, and the city in the lake alternates between light and dark. There is an everlasting bonfire burning in the high priest's house, which is the eternal light in the young man's eyes.
"Xulot, my child. She is just an ordinary woman. No matter how beautiful she is, she should just give her up. Why should she face the king?"
The high priest frowned slightly, looking at the grandson who had devoted his heart and soul, and his words contained admonishment.
Shulot shook his head calmly.
"She is my valued subordinate and an important research craftsman. I can't let her be taken away. I manage the Institute of Apocalypse, Skyfire Island and the new military camp. My subordinates are followers, priests, craftsmen and new troops. ..Grandpa, I am no longer a child who relies on others..."
"Now, I am a leader, the backbone of tens of thousands of people, and thousands of followers are willing to die. These people rely on me, so I must protect them. Even Avitt cannot handle my important affairs at will. , to separate the group. You once told me that the eagle must dominate the sky, the jaguar must dominate the earth, and the king must dominate all peoples.”
Hearing this, the high priest laughed. He patted Shulot on the shoulder and stopped touching the boy's head.
"When my little eagle grows up, it should lead the mountains and forests and soar across the world."
Afterwards, the high priest watched the most outstanding descendants and taught them carefully.
"My child, continue to hone your ambition. At the core of power, the strong always cooperate and confront, confront and compromise. The alliance only recognizes the strong, and the rules are only used to restrain civilians. You must be strong enough , to inherit everything I have now, to move towards a higher peak.
Remember, in the jungles of Mexica, supreme power does not fall naturally as if it were true. It is always accompanied by fierce competition. As the old proverb goes, only what can be taken by force will be surrendered peacefully... Of course, you need to pay attention to strategy..."
As night falls, the bonfire gradually goes out. Shulot lay on the bed, holding the little green snake in his arms, feeling the softness and coldness, thinking about obedience and wildness, and fell asleep like this.
The next day, Shulot got up early to train as usual. After breakfast, he carried the wooden box and headed to Montezuma Palace.
The North Road advance army is about to go out, and various troops have begun to mobilize. Yesterday, my grandfather promised a thousand temple guards, giving priority to getting familiar with bows and crossbows, and sending a group of priests to accompany the army. Now, he would ask the king for direct samurai.
When he saw Avitt again, the king's face was calm and majestic, and a book of "Noble Law" was open in his hand.
"Xulot, go and talk to Alyssa first. She has been talking about you for a long time."
Xiuluo nodded and went to the backyard garden.
Alyssa was still dressed in white. Seeing the boy, she approached him happily and gave him a gentle hug.
Shulot was silent for a moment and opened the wooden box behind him. He took out the cute eagle that was still sleeping soundly and put it into Alyssa's arms.
"I will be going on an expedition soon. Little Avelot can accompany you."
Alyssa held the little golden eagle and gently stroked its soft little head.
Mengdiao opened his eyes, glanced at the girl in white, and asked "chirp?" in confusion. Then, it recognized the good guy, let out a short and joyful "Yoyo! Yoyo!", and shook its neck.
Shulot sat silently and did not speak.
Alyssa blinked her shining eyes and said.
"Xulot, my herbal medicine learning is progressing very quickly. Thank you for giving me the inheritance of the chief priest. Soon, I will be able to prepare a drink that will make you happy."
Xiuluo nodded and listened quietly.
"Both you and your father have been feeling a little down these past two days!"
Shulot raised his head, looked at the girl's innocent expression, and then lowered his head without saying a word.
"I can feel your mood. My father is depressed and angry. Yesterday, he beat a close guard and then kicked Uncle Gillim out of the palace. He was not allowed to come here for several days."
Shulot raised his head again, a little surprised. Why did Avitt punish Gillim?
"Gillim? Why?"
"Well, Uncle Gilliam seems to have made a serious mistake, and Father was offended and angry."
"That's right...then, what kind of person is Gillim in Alyssa's eyes?"
"Uncle Gillim always has a serious face. He never cares about himself, but cares about everyone, no matter how small it is. He especially cares about his younger brother. Last month, when his younger brother fell ill, he went to the southern city-state and brought back several famous witches. Doctor, I have lost a lot of weight. Fortunately, my brother will recover soon."
Shulot thought for a moment and his expression became solemn. Alyssa suddenly held the boy's hand.
"Xulot, well, I want to tell you that my uncle is nice to everyone here, but he is only hostile to you. You need to be careful."
Shulot looked at the girl's concerned eyes and was moved in his heart, silently lowering his head.
"I can feel your mood. Shulot, you are depressed and a little guilty, and you have been unwilling to look into my eyes. Why?"
Shulot was speechless. He sat next to Alyssa, watching the little golden eagle flutter and take off slightly, smelling the fragrance of flowers on the girl's body, making his heart pure. After a while, he said softly.
"Alyssa, I'm fine. I'm leaving."
Alyssa tilted her head and looked at Xilot for a while, then took out an awkward-looking cotton sachet and placed it in the boy's hand.
"Xulot, this is the sachet I sewed. It contains delicious vanilla pods and refreshing horsemint. Well, you can use it when you go on an expedition."
Shulot took the sachet, looked at the crooked stitching on it, then held the girl's hand and looked at the fingers. He stood silent for a moment, gave Alyssa a hug, then turned around and left quickly.
Seeing this, Avitt walked down from the second floor window. He sat cross-legged in the main hall, picked up the newly printed paper book again, and looked calm.
When Shulot walked into the hall, he did not see the intelligence officer. At the king's signal, he sat cross-legged opposite.
"Dear King, the advance army is about to set off. I need more longbow warriors for the naval expedition."
Avitt nodded slightly.
"Xulot, longbow warriors need the foundation of bows and arrows. The warriors in the entire lake area have been selected, and only more than 5,000 are qualified, and they have all been recruited. I will give you 2,000 longbow warriors, each equipped with two bows. These elites, You need to cherish it when you use it!”
Shulot bowed to the ground.
"Do your will."
Avitt thought for a moment and gave the order slowly again.
"I will give the Northern Route Army an eight-thousand-man regiment. In addition to two thousand longbows, according to your proposal, three thousand royal warriors will be handed over to Barda and will immediately join the advance army. The remaining three thousand warriors will be completed in October at the latest Mobilize, commanded by the glorious noble Te Luo, to join the main force of the Northern Route Army. The Northern Route Army is under your control, and the remaining troops need to be negotiated and mobilized by you and the city-states in the North. "
Shulot nodded respectfully, as it should be. When the alliance center issues a call for war, each city-state decides the scale of its response and cannot directly recruit.
Then, the boy recalled the terrain on both sides of the Leman River and made a request.
"Dear King, I need a group of elite noble warriors. The Jaguar Warriors can serve as elite sentinels of the army and assist in liaison between various departments. The Eagle Warriors will serve as the solid backbone of the battle formation and unify the various warriors."
Avitt thought for a long time before speaking.
"I will give you another five hundred Jaguar Chapter. When the army is dispatched, you cannot lack eyes and ears. But the backbone Eagle Chapter cannot be given to you. They must serve as the core of the legion and unite the 100,000 troops on the southern route. For these alliances Military noble, you must be extremely careful and avoid excessive casualties!"
Shulot understands the influence of these warrior nobles and believes in the combat effectiveness of these elite battle groups. He nodded respectfully and obeyed.
In Aztec culture, the eagle is a symbol of the sun, and the eagle warriors are the guards of the sun god, selected from the real aristocracy. They will only be used at the most critical time. Their status is equivalent to the Yulin Army of the Celestial Dynasty. Their formation is strict and inclined towards defense, and they must not be easily compromised. Jaguar warriors are the guardians of the rain god. The war group is open to the lower-level warriors, who can use them more.
Avitt stared at the young man in front of him and ordered in a solemn voice.
"Xulot, my student, the army directly under the royal family is about to be dispatched. The alliance is advancing in two directions, and the north and south are threatening and pressuring the Tarascans at the same time, forcing them to mobilize during spring plowing. I will hand over the northern route army to you. You have high expectations, don’t let me down!”
Hearing this, Shulot paid homage and promised loudly. He took the cold cocoa from the maid and drank it all in one gulp, letting the bitterness, sweetness and spiciness reverberate in his mouth, and letting the bright red cocoa drip from the corner of his mouth. Then, he bowed deeply, said goodbye and left.
The remaining days of April were spent preparing the army for war and gathering food and supplies. Thulot set up a camp on the west side of the capital at the source of the Leman River. A thousand guards battalions, carrying long bows on their backs, were the first to move in. Then came a thousand temple guards and a group of hundreds of priests. Finally, there are two thousand longbow warriors and three thousand stick and shield warriors directly under the royal family.
In the middle of reorganizing the army, Shulot went to the Divine Enlightenment Station again, took out two hundred crossbows, and delivered them to his trusted temple guards. The crossbow requires less archery skills, but it also requires a certain foundation. Then, he did not leave in person, but sent people to Tianhuo Island to fetch tens of thousands of rockets and hundreds of caltrops that were rushed to be made, which were enough for a big battle.
With the arrival of a new batch of craftsmen and warriors, Tianhuo Island has turned into a large arsenal, and the craftsmen are busy day and night. Of course, the production of gunpowder weapons takes time, and the raw materials for gunpowder also need to be accumulated. This batch of weapons is already the entire inventory.
April is coming to an end and the air is getting more humid. When the first clouds from the east come from the sky, bringing water vapor from the vast sea, the rainy season is just around the corner.
Shulot came out of the camp with his guards, and finally inspected the nearby villages, looking at the vitality and new changes.
The arrival of the rainy season is always accompanied by busy spring plowing. On the land of the Alliance, tens of thousands of farmers begin hard work. They burned the dense forests and wild grasses in the fields, dug in the soil with stone tools, and sown corn seeds, guarding the hope of a year's harvest.
The alliance's village priests set up a shrine. They no longer used the emblems and rituals of the corn god, and uniformly replaced them with the hummingbird and the sun, which symbolized the main god.
"The Lord God controls the sun and illuminates the earth. He ate Quetzalcoatl, the god of corn, and has been in charge of the world's harvest ever since!"
Facing the frightened peasants in the villages, the priests in the capital explained this. They set up a holy fire, offered several kinds of grains as sacrifices, and prayed for the coming and blessing of the Lord God. Everything is the same as in previous years, except that the gods have been changed to create the almighty Supreme.
Farmers remain fearful. They would whisper to the priests, make private sacrifices to the corn god, and even make requests to Shulot in priestly garb. The young priest shook his head and refused, looking calmly at the worried farmers.
"This is an era where myths are spread. Only when the new year's harvest proceeds normally will the stubborn farmers begin to accept the main god. Only several years of continuous good harvests can the farmers be completely convinced. And once the most traditional farmers Only after accepting the Lord God can the new monotheistic faith truly take root in this fertile land."
Facing the vast fields, Shulot thought so. Then, he looked at the eastern sky. The dark clouds with wind, thunder and rain were gradually pressing towards the west. The young man felt the moist east wind and nodded slowly.
Two days later, a continuous fleet of ships arrived. Three hundred large boats and thousands of small boats, fully loaded with food for the Northern Route Army, docked at the riverside camp. Shulot took seven thousand elite warriors on board a mighty fleet and officially announced the Western Expedition!
Thousands of miles of Leman River goes all the way west, and the turbulent river water carries a powerful fleet. The Mexica army marched westward, carrying the warriors' determination to conquer, carrying the glory of the priests and gods, and carrying the king's desire for independence, to the land of the Tarascans.
A few days later, Shulot met with representatives of the local nobles in the western city-state. Everyone feasted and drank heartily at the banquet and got drunk together. Later, he met in private with the nobles who had already agreed, talking about his grandfather's friendship and future promises in exchange for the support of the city-states. Three thousand city-state warriors once again joined the vanguard of the Western Expedition.
The army set off again, and the western expedition fleet crossed the borders of the western city-states. On the most gorgeous boat, Shulot looked at both sides of the river. The river was rolling away, and the scenery was coming slowly. His eyes had seen the mountains, forests and wilderness along the river of the Otomi people on the north bank, and the vague hills and villages of the Tarasco people on the south bank. Finally, two weeks later, he saw the starting point again.
On the banks of the Leman River, the sturdy wooden castle still stands, and the old battlefield is covered with green grass.
