The red sun sets in the west, reflecting the setting sun in the sea and dyeing the jungle along the coast red. Between the jungle coasts, the wide Tonalá River is reflecting the deep green forests along the way, floating with quiet golden waves. The long river runs through the dense jungle, flows through a hidden and busy tribal village, and then flows northward into the endless and wide Gulf of Mexico.
In the Nahua language, Tonalá means "where the sun rises." Therefore, "Tonala River" can also be called "Sunrise River". The "Tonala Village" at the mouth of the river is located eighty miles east of Hidden Snake City. It can also be called "Sunrise Village". The Tonala Sunrise River meanders for more than 600 miles from south to north. It is not only the natural dividing line between the later states of Veracruz and Tabasco, but also the first half of the connection between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Coast. One of the waterways.
Sixty or seventy miles upstream from the mouth of the Sunrise River in the Gulf of Mexico in the north, you will find the ruins of the second ancient city of the Olmec era more than 2,000 years ago, La Venta. Two to three hundred miles further south and upstream, there is Malpasito, an ancient sacrificial city-state of the Zoque tribe in the mountains and forests, which has been inherited for more than 700 years. Going further south from Pingshui City, passing the mighty Malpaso Lake, and walking for another two to three hundred miles, you will reach the sacred source of the Sunrise River, an ancient mountain city that was extremely prosperous in the classical Mayan era, and has been passed down for more than a thousand years. Chiapa de Corzo!
Therefore, this sunrise river of more than 600 miles connects the ancient city of the Olmec era at one end and the ancient city of the classical Mayan era at the other end. At the same time, it is influenced by the Olmec culture and the Mayan culture, and it is also a natural blend. The people of the mountains and the jungle have both cultural characteristics, the semi-Mayan Zoque tribes in the mountains and forests.
The source of the Sunrise River is in the Yuanshui City area, which is roughly the higher part of the Chiapa Mountains in the middle. From this area, the flow direction of the river changes from south to north, then from north to south, and merges into the southern section of the Grijalva River system. From here, it is the second half of the waterway connecting the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Coast. In fact, from the Grijalva River system around Yuanshui City to the Pacific coast, the shortest river is only less than four hundred miles!
In short, the Sunrise River - the ancient city of La Venta - Pingshui City - Yuanshui City - Grijalva River, this north-south waterway of more than a thousand miles is the world of Central America, connecting the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific coast. The shortest path!
Since the classical Mayan era, this thousand-mile waterway has been an extremely prosperous trade channel, connecting the commodities and goods of the plateau tribes, the seaside tribes, the cloud tribes and the Mayan tribes. And when the power of the Mayan tribes declined five hundred years ago, this thousands-mile-long waterway has always been in the hands of the Shanlinsok tribe, but it lost the prosperous trade in the classical era...
"Witness the Lord God! Papu! You and the navy of Hidden Snake City have been stationed in this water village by the Sunrise River... Are you so stupid and so ignorant that you want to seek refuge in the Suoke people in the Chiapa Mountains in the south? Ministry? Or are you blinded by the leaves and want to seek refuge in the Mayan states on the eastern coast?!..."
In the large wooden house in the water village of Sunrise Village, the slanting sunset shines into the dim and reddish afterglow. Timberwolf Mayaquin held his head high and his chest was facing away from the red sunset, as if he were the shadow of the sun. He squinted his eyes, looked menacingly, and looked like a hungry coyote, staring at the priest Papu in front of him.
"Ahem! Timber Wolf, my old friend, don't get excited..."
"Pap! With the orders from the Death Temple and the Black Wolf Leader, I will ask you one last time!...When will your navy surrender?..."
When old friends meet again, Priest Pappu has a smile on his face, while Timberwolf Mayaquin has a fierce look on his face. At this moment, he was alone in the water village controlled by Papu, but his words contained an undisguised threat.
What gave him this confidence was not only the dark green Mexica battalion commander's uniform on his body, the sun hummingbird's talisman around his neck, but also his noble status as the envoy of Marshal Black Wolf under the Temple of Death, and the fact that he was sixty miles away to the west. The vanguard of the Kingdom Legion!
"Uh... Timber Wolf, my old friend... How could I be so unwise to seek refuge with the Sauk people hiding in the mountains and forests, or to surrender to the weak and divided Mayan states?... Witness the Lord God! I have already given my My soul is dedicated to the supreme and powerful Lord God! And my loyalty has been dedicated to the powerful and respected God of Death..."
Faced with Lin Lang's merciless rebuke and questioning, Priest Pap kept smiling and did not show the slightest dissatisfaction. After thinking for a moment, he lowered his head and filled Timber Wolf with a glass of precious Xtabentún, which is a rare honey vanilla wine produced in Dongfang Honghu Town. The special thing about this kind of mead is that it is made from the white sap flowers of the aromatic plant Ketabenton and extracted from the sweet nectar, which gives the mead a wonderful taste and unique aroma. It is the favorite of the seaside priests. Good wine!
"Phew! Not bad, delicious! ...Full of it!"
Timberwolf Mayaquin opened his big mouth and drank all the precious ketabantong wine in one go. Seeing this heroic drinking method, Priest Pap's eyes flashed and his movements were hesitant. After a moment of hesitation, he lowered his head again and filled the forest wolf with another large glass of mead!
"Haha! Delicious! Burp!..."
"Uh... Timber Wolf, do you want more?"
"Of course! Why, Pap, are you feeling distressed?"
"…no no…"
"Haha! Come again!..."
Seeing the hesitating Priest Papu, Lin Lang laughed loudly and drank one cup after another. He had rarely drunk this delicious mead before. It came from the Maya land in the east. It was very expensive and only circulated around Hidden Snake City.
The change in the expression of Priest Pap next to him was not because he felt sorry for the preciousness of this kind of mead. It's just that as the mead shared by Maya and the priests of Hidden Serpent City, Ketabentong wine itself has a significant calming effect, and even has a slight sense of confusion, making it easier to communicate with the gods. If you drink too much...
"Haha!...Pap! Now that you have made up your mind, surrender quickly!...Don't be like a water beetle, wandering around in the pond mindlessly, like a woman who can't make up her mind!...Hiccup!..."
"Well...witness the Lord God! Timber wolves and water beetles may not be mindless, they are spinning around! They may also be wandering around, thinking that the shadow of the sun in the water is themselves!..."
Hearing Timber Wolf's ridicule, Priest Pappu smiled and filled Timber Wolf's glass of Ketabenton wine. Then, he looked at Lin Lang, who was shaking his head and was obviously confused, and said with a smile.
"Timberwolf, those water lily beetles are the messengers of the God of Rivers and Lakes. They run on the water so fast that they are faster than any small boat in the world!..."
"Huh? Water beetle? Dangling around?...Water lily beetle? That little thing like a louse?...Haha! What a mess! Only you priests of false gods would observe and worship little things in the water. Bugs! And a true seaside warrior should be like a coyote, running and biting in the jungle!..."
Timberwolf Ma Yakun was dizzy and shook his head vigorously, trying to wake himself up. But the potency of this mead far exceeds its taste, and it contains more than just alcohol...
"Damn it! Is this wine so strong? Come on, fill it up again! I don't believe it... Hiccup!...His Royal Highness's royal flag has arrived at Jihu City, and has even been erected on the towering Fireworks God Mountain!... Pappu, powerful Your Highness is waiting for your audience. That is your most precious and last chance! If you can't deal with the warriors under you, let me bring the battalion over and sacrifice all the disobedient Hidden Snake City warriors. Sacrifice!…”
"Damn it! If you ask me, His Majesty the Death God is too merciful! Why should I give you a chance to surrender? Isn't it just over sixty miles away?... Witness the Lord God! I led a battalion on a one-day raid , it only takes one night to wipe out all of you! Ouch!..."
The forest wolf stuck his tongue out, his eyes gradually blurred, and he even began to howl. Seeing this wolf-like wanton madness, Priest Pappu pursed his lips, and murderous intent gradually filled his eyes. He looked at Lin Lang silently, and unknowingly, his hand had already pressed the obsidian dagger on his waist.
"Haha! The Coastal Legion is about to be formed! I, the Forest Wolf, Maya Kun, will also become the battalion commander of a thousand men of the Kingdom Legion, and will be officially accepted by the Kingdom!...Haha! What does the Chief Priest of the Hidden Snake Holy City mean to me if I lose the title of Coyote City Lord? So what about the location?!... As long as I follow the Black Wolf leader and conquer the Mayan city-state on the eastern coast... Haha! Everything I lost before can be regained in double the amount! Wow!..."
At this moment, Lin Lang suddenly turned his head and stared at his silent old friend, as if he had some kind of beast-like intuition. He widened his eyes and looked at Priest Papu fiercely, as if he were looking at an easy-to-get grass rabbit. Then, he first let out a dangerous howl and then laughed wantonly.
"Ouch! Pap! Either surrender or die! Hahaha!..."
"…Why!…"
After hearing Lin Lang's threatening words and seeing the other party's arrogant attitude, Priest Pap was silent for a moment and suddenly sighed silently. And with this sigh, he seemed to suddenly lose all the accumulated strength and all hidden murderous intent.
"Witness the Lord! Lin Lang, don't worry! My navy can still be controlled... When I lead the navy to surrender to His Highness, you will share the credit! We are all old friends of the seaside tribes. Now, it’s time to take care of each other...Hmm, Timber Wolf? Timber Wolf?! You pretend...cough! Forget it, he should be drunk. Chu Chute, take him to a nearby side room to rest! Be careful, don’t let him The warrior leaders of Hidden Snake City saw..."
"Yes! Lord Priest!"
The leader Chu Chute nodded respectfully, supported the forest wolf Mayakun, and walked out of the big wooden house. The last light of the setting sun gradually turned from a deep dark red into a distant black shadow in front of me. And a low voice came from behind him in the last breath of the setting sun. I don't know if it was meant for him or someone else.
"Chuchute, remember!..."
"From today on, don't call me Lord Priest anymore. I'm not a Quetzalcoatl priest...call me Chief Pap!..."
Hearing this, the leader Chu Chute was suddenly startled. In the shadow of the evening, he stopped and did not look back to see Pappu's expression. He just supported the drunken Linlang, felt the ups and downs of his heartbeat, and nodded calmly.
"Yes! Chief Pap!...The Lord God bless us!..."
Note: The Easter Egg Chapter is a related map, marking the waterway connecting the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean.
(End of chapter)
