The rising sun rises from the sacred mountains in the eastern valleys and illuminates the fertile plains of the lake district in the west. The plain was covered with deep red traces of fighting, extending to the end of the river. In the center of the intertwined traces is the endless Mexica camp, like a hunter in a red spider web, enjoying the peace after hunting.
The army camped in the open air, simple in shape, but full of chilling. More than 20,000 elite legions were stationed in the camp, guarding a large number of prisoners. The patrolling elite warriors spread out for several miles with bows and sticks in hand, guarding the southeast direction.
First, the loud cry of an eagle was heard in the distance, and then the fierce figure of a jaguar warrior appeared. Wearing colorful leather armor, they escorted enemy warriors with their wrists bound. These elite battle groups have no shortage of meat on weekdays and have night vision capabilities. They are the only troops that pursue overnight. In order to capture the prisoners, they chased them all night long, sparing the worthless militiamen, and finally returned with satisfactory results.
Shulot was sitting cross-legged in the large tent in the center, handling the complicated military affairs after the war, and listening to the warriors' reports one after another. Even though he had not slept all night, he was still in high spirits and kept all the military information in his heart. It wasn't until the smoke rose from outside the tent and the guards brought steaming tortillas that he relaxed and stretched his waist and looked at Orosh next to him.
"So, in this battle, we suffered more than 1,500 casualties, defeated 30,000 Chapala Legions, and captured more than 10,000 prisoners?"
The majestic jaguar warrior nodded. He looked at the calm young commander and said with a pleased smile.
"This is a victory blessed by God, and it is also an epic that will be sung and sung! Nearly 50,000 warriors lined up on the plain for a decisive battle, shouting so loudly that even the birds flying by were frightened by the sound of fighting and fell! Well, Let the poets write down their poems: The Lord God looks at the battlefield of the divine battle and blesses His Majesty the Divine Enlightenment. He sends down the thunder of incomparable power and gives the Mexicaans their destined victory!"
After laughing, Orosh recalled what he had seen and heard in the battle formation and made a brief summary.
"The Chapala Legion is actually quite brave, and the militiamen are as fearless as dogs. Only when the wolves are commanded by foxes will they be destroyed in one battle and completely defeated. Of the 30,000 enemy troops, less than one-third can escape back to the lake area. One, that is, the three thousand warriors of the Feather Legion and more than six thousand militiamen who have lost their fighting spirit. After this battle, the Chapala Lake area can no longer pose any threat to the back road!"
Shulot thought for a moment and smiled knowingly. After experiencing this great defeat, the Chapala Lake District will be in violent turmoil internally, and chaos will arise externally, and it will never be able to take care of itself.
The Yu family who fled back was mainly responsible for the defeat, but he was the only commander who retained the main force of the samurai. There were not many choices left for him. Regardless of whether the envoys sent have played a sufficient role, when news of the destruction of the main force in the lake area comes out, the Guamar dog descendants migrating to the north and the Tekos tribe resisting in the west will inevitably respond and attack the weakest enemies.
"Then, there were about ten thousand enemy soldiers who were seriously injured or killed in battle, and the warriors did not count them carefully. We did not have extra wound medicine. If the injured Chapala people cannot walk on their own, they will always return to dust, so it is better to Sacrifice on the ground.”
Shuluo nodded calmly. On the battlefields of the Middle Ages, without medicine and transportation capabilities, serious injury meant death. This is often the case even for one's own warriors without special status, let alone captured enemies.
"The last more than 10,000 enemy troops are now our surrendered troops or prisoners. In the camp, there are about 3,000 Chapala warriors who were captured and surrendered, including the Sky Legion. They are all worth reorganizing with great efforts. The surrendered There are two thousand skilled archers in the militia, which are rare elites and can be put to good use."
"The remaining 6,000 Chapala militiamen are a huge problem. They will create too much burden on logistics, and they are also an extremely unstable young group that requires sufficient manpower to suppress them."
Speaking of this, Orosh paused briefly. He looked at the resolute young commander, with an indifference that ignored life and death in his eyes, and an unhidden coldness in his words.
"According to the alliance's practice, when the army is out on an expedition, once a big victory is achieved and there are too many prisoners, a large sacrifice will be made on the spot after the war. Offer your life to the Lord God and thank the God of War for his blessing!"
Hearing this, Shulot lowered his eyes slightly, and the balance in his heart swayed from side to side, constantly weighing.
When working on an expedition, logistics is always the biggest pressure. The hinterland of Tarasco has been conquered by the enemy. In addition to the fortified noble manors, the countryside is full of refugees, young and old, and weeds in the farmland. The long supply line starts from the capital city in the lake, goes down the river, passes through the river mouth fortress, and then reaches the frontline Huayamo Fortress. Every piece of food delivered to the front line is very precious, which is the basis for the legion's expedition.
At this moment, these more than 10,000 unstable prisoners caused more trouble to the Legion than when they were enemies.
After a while, Shulot shook his head and made up his mind.
"Olosh, religion is reforming, and the Lord God wants to show mercy. If the Alliance wants to establish a solid rule here, it cannot leave too much bloody hatred. Killing prisoners will once and for all, but it will lose the hearts of the people. Since I stand on a high On the mountain, we should focus on the distance. It is better to release the captured militiamen and let them spread the bravery and kindness of the Legion to the distant Lake Chapala area."
Orosh first loudly agreed. Then, he frowned slightly and suggested in a low voice.
"Your Highness, simply letting the prisoners go will not have the effect you expected. The sun burns blood and runs together, and light and killing go hand in hand. We always have to screen the prisoners and reward and punish them."
Shulot pondered for a while, then finally looked solemn and gave the order loudly.
"Then summon the army priests, sacrifice the enemy's wounded, and hold a grand conversion ceremony for the prisoners! I will personally officiate, with Etalik and Natalie as my deputies, and let the religious warriors participate. Let Eze Pan told the militiamen that as long as they believe in the Lord God, they are the people who are protected by God and can be released tolerantly! If they are unwilling to change their faith... they will be dealt with according to customary procedures."
Upon hearing this, Orosh saluted respectfully, bowed his head to accept the order, turned around and strode away.
Soon, the priests built a high platform, lit a blazing sacred fire, and sang ancient songs. The religious warriors, wearing armor and showing fanaticism, formed a broad circle. This is the beginning of the sacred ceremony.
Full of fear, crying and howling, the Chapala captives were escorted by thousands of Mexica warriors and gathered into the ceremonial camp. Then, the Tarascans who had already surrendered came forward to greet them. They used the accent of the Lake District to comfort the prisoners of Chapala and relayed His Highness's will: as long as they convert sincerely, they will be forgiven!
The prisoners slowly grew quiet. The sacred chants are carried by the wind to the far reaches of the Lake District. When the sun rose into the sky, Shulot wore solemn sacrificial clothes, climbed to the highest altar, and sang ancient sacrificial texts.
Then, the blue holy fire was lit, and the priests prayed loudly to the Lord God and danced wildly. The warriors waved their weapons, banged their shields, and shouted wildly. Finally, the gunners lit the fuses of the wooden cannons, letting the God-given weapons thunder again, resounding throughout the world! Amidst the shocking thunder, tens of thousands of prisoners crawled on their knees in horror. They bowed to the ground in fear before the flames of the Lord God and the roaring wooden beasts.
Then the temple guards blew the death whistle to announce the sacrifice. The Divine Blessing warriors then walked calmly, dragging in thousands of injured enemy warriors and hundreds of captured Chapala nobles. They showed no mercy, waving sacrificial daggers in front of the sacred fire, allowing vitality to flow and life to return to the earth. The priests used the blood of the Silver family to prepare the converted blood wine, placed it around the holy fire, and then summoned the sky warriors in the front row.
In the grand and exciting ceremony, Horta was the first to step forward with trepidation. He raised his head in fear, looked at the glorious and solemn His Highness on the high platform, then lowered his head and drank the blood wine. The strong fishy smell melted in his mouth. This was the taste of a glorious nobleman, and it was also the ending of the Baiyin family. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but tremble in his hands and feet, knelt down in front of the holy fire, and handed his hair to the priest in front of him.
The old priest wielded an obsidian dagger, cut off the head of the Sky Family, and threw it into the blue fire. Burnt smoke rose up, taking away part of the young family owner's soul. The old priest said a short prayer with a kind smile on his face. Horta followed the words that seemed to have magical power, and sang to the sun in the sky, praising the supreme god.
"Praise the Lord God Huitzilopochtli! He is supreme and omnipotent. Those who believe in God will be saved... No matter where he was born or what his bloodline is..."
In the irritating smoke, Horta burst into tears and read the last sentence in a daze. Afterwards, two thousand surrendered sky warriors came forward one after another, drank wine, cut their hair, converted and saluted. They followed the succeeding head of the family, and from then on they were loyal to the alliance and embraced the Lord God.
Only a few dozen warriors refused to convert, so they were immediately dragged away by the temple guards and sacrificed to death. The samurai who refused to surrender suffered the same fate. The low screams were drowned in the high-pitched prayers and disappeared without a trace.
After the Chapala warriors came the captured militiamen. As the militiamen witnessed the consequences of refusal, they were filled with the desire to return home. Most of them converted to the Lord God obediently, knelt on the ground in awe, chanted inaccurate names of God, and prayed to the blazing flames.
The conversion ceremony was grand and long, accompanied by chanting that gradually became louder. Until the sun sets in the west, the name of the main god "Huitzilopochtli" has resounded in the wilderness and is deeply engraved in everyone's heart!
After standing for half a day, Shulot sat down cross-legged. His expression was solemn, like a sacred sculpture, and he did not say any unnecessary words. Orosh took his place and announced loudly that all the captured Chapala militiamen had converted and surrendered to the glory of the Lord God. Except for the archers, the remaining six thousand prisoners will be released on the spot as promised!
Then, the surrounding Mexica warriors separated to the left and right, leaving a passage to the west. Seeing that the release was coming as promised, the Chapala militiamen couldn't believe it, and no one dared to move for a while. They looked at each other, complex emotions changing on their faces, urging each other with their eyes.
Ezpin repeated it again in Tarasco dialect, asking the militiamen not to flee to the south, but to go west to their hometowns.
Only then did a bold prisoner stand up. He chanted the name of the main god loudly, looked around nervously, and walked out of the crowd step by step until he was more than ten steps away from the Mexica warriors, and suddenly ran quickly to the west.
Seeing this scene, the prisoners in the camp fell silent. They were uneasy and watched the warriors outside to make sure that no one was out to arrest or raise their bows to shoot arrows, then they suddenly became restless. The Chapala militiamen walked with their heads bowed, reciting the names of their newly learned gods as if they were reciting protective charms. They were like a herd of panicked deer, scattering in groups and then running quickly towards the west until they became small dots on the horizon.
Horta knelt on the ground and looked at the militiamen heading west, showing deep envy. Then, he glanced at His Highness who was smiling on the high platform, and suddenly felt a sense of closeness and some inexplicable trust.
"Perhaps, being loyal to the Alliance and following His Highness will be the right choice..."
The young Sky Family lowered their heads, held the sun amulet around their necks, and prayed softly that this was a gift from His Highness.
Shulot smiled and watched as the six thousand militiamen chanted the name of God and were released one after another.
He knew that most Chapala people were only in awe for a while and would resume their belief in the Three Gods as long as they could escape back to their hometown. However, this experience will be like a seed, planted in their hearts, waiting for changes in times to sprout one day in the future. It is also like a brand, engraved deep in the souls of the militiamen, forever distinguishing them from the people around them.
"After taking care of the threats in the back and dealing with the immediate matters, it's time to head south to the royal capital!"
Shulot stood up. He looked toward the southeast sky with bright eyes.
Going southeast from the battlefield, only a few days away from the battlefield, is Qin Congcan, the capital of Tarasco. Many soldiers of Chapala's regiment fled. The results of this battle will quickly spread to the capital, to the south, and then to the southeastern front line. The battle situation will change again, and new fighters will arrive.
Then, Shulot turned around, looked at the way to the northeast, and then calmly walked down the high platform. Punch out hard and break the enemy's arm, then quickly retract it to prepare for the next wave of attack. And the next attack will be the enemy's key point!
On the second day, the main force of 20,000 Mexica left camp and headed north. Under the observation of Tarasco's scouts, they returned to Huayamo Fortress in the northeast with 5,000 surrender troops. For more than ten days, the army has been continuously training and dispatching, maintaining a minimum level of contact with Qincongcan City, a hundred miles away to the south.
But in the southeast of Qinchongcan, outside the small city of Patzquali, the traces of the Mexican army became more and more active. Longbow hunters continued to attack civilians transporting food, but the royal capital of Tarasco lacked warriors and had no troops to send. When the warm March comes with the spring breeze, the grain route to the southeast will be difficult to maintain!
