Bright bonfires burned in the wilderness, reflecting the metallic light into people's eyes. In front of the shining gold and silver light, the gray and black flint was inconspicuous, with an ordinary silence.
Chihuaco, an old militiaman, looked at it intently for a moment, and somehow felt that Flint looked familiar. he asked hesitantly.
"The fire stone that symbolizes the ancestors? A stone that can burn?"
"Exactly! This is a gift from our ancestors. It is the fire that the brave and decisive frog obtained from the ancient sacred mountain! The fire was spread in the land by agouti, so that stones can burn. And the soul of the ancestors, Watch us in the flames!..."
Chief Kallan shook his head with a look of fascination on his face, as if he was communicating with his distant ancestors.
"The flint in the mountains is a gift from our ancestors and a blessing from our ancestors! We Mayo people use flint to make fires for cooking, to drive away wild beasts, to resist the cold wave in the north, and even to refine these shining golden stones. And flint is easy to dig. The firepower is also sufficient, which is much easier than cutting down trees. With them, the tribe does not need to spend too many tools and manpower to cut down trees and burn firewood!..."
"Easy to dig, very powerful, able to smelt gold and copper..."
Puap kept his ears bent and tried to listen. After a while, he remembered what he had seen at the Black Rock Mountain Mine and suddenly came to his senses.
"God bless you! Isn't this flint the coal that His Highness mentioned?! The Black Rock Mountain Mine uses this black stuff to burn the hard-to-burn iron. It is transported from the Qinganbat Mining Area every time. I You still have to bring someone to pick them up, which is a lot of manpower! Well, His Highness seems to pay special attention to the messy rocks, coal, iron, etc..."
Puap's thoughts were like lightning, his eyes flashed, and some thoughts emerged in his mind.
Necali was in charge of the Department of Industry and Mines. Over the past few years, the number of his subordinates had continued to increase, almost equal to that of the commanders of various regiments. As for Black Wolf's personal guard Mavik, he got the position of the person in charge of Black Rock Mountain and is now prosperous. He can at least be regarded as the commander of a thousand-man battalion. Even he himself was able to make a comeback thanks to the discovery of iron mines. And now this tribe has gold, copper, and flint... This is a huge achievement!
Thinking of this, he took two steps forward, leaned into the old militiaman's ear, and whispered.
"Old man Qi, these flints are of great use to Your Highness! Please ask carefully, where are they and are there many?"
"okay."
Hearing this, Chihuaco nodded. He looked at Chief Karan and asked solemnly.
"Friends, we have the order of the great chief. We are looking for the holy land of seabirds, and we are also looking for divine things...Do you want to trade these flints?"
"Well..."
Upon hearing the envoy's inquiry from the lake, Chief Kalan's expression froze and he looked a little embarrassed.
"Friend, of course there are ancestral flints near our tribe! But after the tribe has used them for many years, there are not much flints on the ground, and it is too troublesome to dig them underground..."
"Then... where are there a lot of flints?"
"Haha, friend! Fire stones are scattered from the sacred mountain. Naturally, they are the most abundant in the sacred mountain!"
Chief Kallan laughed and replied without thinking. This question is really a bit silly. Without the divine power of the sacred mountain, how could the stone burn?
"...the sacred mountain containing fire is located in the far north of our Yoremu tribe and northeast of the brother tribe Yome! Once a priest from the tribe came back from paying homage to the sacred mountain and told us: The sacred mountain is the place where fire originated, and it contains The deepest divine power. The land there is dry, not a blade of grass grows, the birds and animals are extinct, there are flints scattered everywhere in the open air, and towering mountains of flints!..."
"The scattering of flints is also centered on the Holy Mountain and distributed throughout the north. Not far to the north of the Yumei Department, there are two large flint fields, containing flints that will never be used up for generations!..."
Speaking of this, Chief Kallan's eyes showed yearning and a hint of hidden greed. Then, his expression changed, first he made a proud declaration, and then he made a serious inquiry.
"In the vast wilderness and mountains, no matter to the east or south, there is no flint. Only in the north, only on the land of our Mayo and Yaqui people, can we have this kind of gift from our ancestors! This land, then It is the fertile land passed down to us by our ancestors! And the despicable Sri people who dare to invade our land are destined to die under the curse of their ancestors!...Friend, our ancestors witness! You will help us and constantly bring new weapons and supplies. , fighting the Sri people in the north?”
"Yes. Witness our ancestors! Friends, we will come back as friends!"
Chihuaco looked solemn and swore in the name of his ancestors. The two lowered their heads at the same time, touched each other with the antlers on their heads, and then touched the gourd bells in their hands, making a sacred "ding bell".
After that, Chief Callan waved his hand. The grand banquet started in the open air, reflecting the mighty and dazzling stars and the swaying waves of the sea.
The warriors and warriors on both sides laid down their weapons, greeted each other, and exchanged the food they carried with each other in accordance with tribal etiquette. The Kingdom brought corn tortillas, salted fish and tequila, while the Mayo people brought black bean puree, pumpkin, and a strange-flavored tea bean.
Everyone had a good meal and was in great spirits. Then, the warriors of the kingdom stepped on the drums and danced a war dance with a distinctive rhythm; the warriors of the tribe shook their wooden bells and sang short and high-pitched tunes!
"Ahaha! Friends have come from afar, the fir trees are rustling. Let us light the fire and dance around the fire ring. Ahaha! The ancestors' eyes are watching, and we dance by the flames!...Ahahahahaha !”
The location of the Mayo people is already on the edge of the Great Basin of North America. They interacted a lot with their northern neighbors and were influenced by their musical style, which was somewhat similar to the Apache tribes of the Great Basin.
The tribal warriors sang in unison, the melody was simple and repeated, and the pitch gradually became higher. The desolate and simple song floats far between the mountains and the wilderness, accompanied by the beating pace, like a herd of wild cattle galloping in the wilderness, it is unforgettable!
The bonfire was burning brightly and everyone was singing happily all night long. Chihuaco danced all night, and his old waist almost broke in half. It was not until the afternoon of the second day that the fleet replenished some water and prepared to move northwest.
Chief Kallan came to the beach in person to see off the fleet on the lake. He stayed up all night and was still in high spirits. At this moment, he looked at Chihuaco, who was about to leave, and at the strong ship of the tribe in the lake. After thinking for a while, he finally made up his mind!
The chief wearing a deer head waved to the warriors behind him. A young tribal warrior, barefooted and carrying a spear, came to the old militiaman in two steps and smiled plainly.
"Friend, he is my nephew, Cavado. You can call him 'Mountain Bird'."
"Ah? Friend, your nephew? Is this going to..."
Chihuaco looked surprised. He looked at the young man in front of him and had some vague guesses.
"Well, according to custom, when you meet a close tribe from afar, you have to exchange young people from the tribe. Friends, if you continue to go north, the languages of each tribe will become more and more difficult to understand. And the words of the Sri people are even more different from ours. Completely different. Although Shanniao is young, he understands many tribal languages. His mother was snatched by my brother from the Sri tribe... Take my nephew with you, he will be helpful to you. ! From now on, he will be a member of your Lake Tribe."
"...thank you, friend."
Chihuaco pondered for a while and then chose to agree. As the fleet continued northward, it really needed a local translator. He nodded sincerely and smiled at the young tribe warrior. Then, he looked at Puap and whispered instructions.
"Lao Pu, you can make a warrior."
In the desolate Northland, it has always been the custom of many Northern tribes to exchange young people from the tribe with trusted tribes. Behind this custom, there may be a function of exchanging blood and preserving seeds to prevent inbreeding.
"...Fine!"
Huitu Puap touched his chin, looked at the warrior behind him, and also summoned a trusted Prepecha warrior.
"Putu, the gray cat warrior, you are one of my tribesmen. If you are not married yet, please stay here! I will leave you more property. You can marry more wives and have more children, and you can take root here." ..."
The gray cat warrior Putu looked at the Yurem tribe, which was so poor that only gold nuggets were left, with a grimace on his face. He was speechless for a moment. However, in this era, the orders of the family patriarch cannot usually be violated. After a while, he could only nod helplessly.
"...Alright, Chief. I'll do whatever you want."
"Well! When you have free time, walk around more and see how big the gold and copper mines are. There is gold and copper here, and His Highness will definitely pay attention to this place... In a few years, the kingdom will definitely Someone was sent!”
"good!..."
Each side exchanged a young soldier and said goodbye. Chief Kallan looked at the tribal fleet in the lake and disappeared at the end of the vast coast. After a while, he took a deep breath. Then, with a smile on his face, he pulled the young gray cat warrior Putu and declared with a heroic smile.
"Gray Cat, let's go! Haha, the tribe will hold a party tonight. Whichever girl you like, she will be your wife! If one is not enough, you can choose another one!"
"Ah? This, Chief Deer Head...uh, no, Chief Kallan, you..."
"Let's go! Since you have joined the tribe, you are a member of the tribe from now on. Come, tell me first about the situation of the tribe in the lake!..."
The sea and sky are vast and the water is pale. It becomes increasingly dry along the way, and there are no clouds or rain in the sky. The kingdom's fleet set out to sea from the bay occupied by Jorem's tribe. In just five days, they traveled four to five hundred miles and arrived at the territory of the Yomei tribe.
The Yomei tribe is a large tribe with a population of more than 8,000 people. Together with several affiliated small tribes, it can even reach 10,000 or 20,000 people. They controlled the outlet of the Yaqui River and occupied the rare fertile land beside the Yaqui River, so they called themselves Yaqui people. Here, the fleet anchored again and replenished some water from nearby tribal villages.
As the most powerful tribe along the coast, the Yome tribe was very wary of the arrival of the fleet in the lake. The next day, their chief did not show up, but sent hundreds of heavily armed tribal warriors to inquire about the purpose of the kingdom's fleet.
Chihuaco, an old militiaman, took "Mountain Bird" Cavado with him and met with the warrior leader sent by the Yome tribe. He answered calmly.
"We are the envoys sent by the great chief of the lake tribe in the far south to find the holy land and the sacred mountain! We are excellent friends with your brother tribe, the Yorem tribe!"
"Looking for the Holy Land and the Holy Mountain? The Holy Land in the sea has nothing to do with our tribe. But the Holy Mountain in the northeast is a gift and blessing from the gods. It is the ancestral land of our Yaqi ancestors! Foreigners, if you want to go to the Holy Mountain, you need to obtain the tribe The permission of the chief and the priest!...As for the Yoremu tribe, although they are the same as our ancestors and came out of the sacred mountain, they have no close relationship, let alone our brothers!"
Hearing this, "Mountain Bird" Cavado's face showed a hint of indignation. He blushed and opened his mouth to retort, but suppressed it and just stood there sulking.
Chihuaco was stunned when he heard this. He looked at the expression of the leader opposite and recalled Chief Kallan's words, and gradually gained some clarity in his heart.
"The relationship between the Yorem tribe and the Yome tribe...the relationship between these two tribes is probably not that simple!...Chief Kalan is not a simple person..."
"Foreigners! Once you get here, do you want to continue heading north?"
"Yes. I heard that the holy place where seabirds gather is further north."
"Holy land for seabirds? Further north? ... That's the land of the Sri."
The warrior leader of the Yome tribe wears a deer head and looks serious. He carefully looked at the clothes of the tribesmen in the lake, and then looked at the eagle feather crown on Chihuaco's head.
"What is your relationship with the Sri people further north?"
"Huh?... Our tribe in the lake came from the sacred mountain in the wilderness. I don't know who the Sri people are..."
The old militiaman pondered for a while and answered calmly. Similar to the Aztecs, the ancestors of the Prepechas were also wilderness tribes from the northwest, but they arrived on the Mexican plateau earlier.
"Huh? You are also from the Holy Mountain tribe?! Tell me some legends about your ancestors and let me hear them... Yes, the Holy Mountain is the source of all wilderness tribes and the center of the vast world. Listening to your language, it should indeed be a tribe from The tribes that came out of the sacred mountain are not the same as the despicable Sri people!"
The warrior leader listened carefully for a while before nodding in approval. The Nahua tribes in the far south are actually three to four thousand miles apart, and they have some linguistic similarities with the coastal tribes in the far northwest. The long history contained in this makes people think deeply and think about it for a long time, but there is no way to verify it.
"The distant tribe in the middle of the lake, the flames of our ancestors shine on us! I am the deputy leader of the Youmei Tribe, 'Mountain Eagle' Weihuo, since you are also a branch of the tribes in the Shenshan Mountain..."
"Mountain Eagle" Weihuo thought for a while and promised cautiously.
"The Holy Mountain is very far away, and outsiders are not allowed to go there. In fact, even I have only been to the Holy Mountain once. It is too desolate, no crops can be grown there, no tribes live in it, there are only vast flints... The flints contain Divine power, we Yaqui people are loved by the sacred mountain and have a huge flint field. I can allow you to go to the ancestors' flint field not far to the north of the tribe to worship!"
