Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

Chapter 1393 - 948: Moonlight Fades West, the King’s Philosophical Reflections

"... Witnessed by the Chief Divine! Tikalo, so with everything you’ve said, it means accepting the surrender of the Naval Commander of Hidden Serpent City has three advantages! One is to cut off sea route support, striking a blow to the morale inside the city, hastening the fall of Hidden Serpent City. Another is that with the planning of an insider, we can try to round up the city’s Priesthood and Divine Descendants all at once..."The night was deep, the shadows flickered in the grand hall, and moonlight spilled from the ceiling. Black Wolf Toltec furrowed his brow, pondering over Tikalo’s cautious suggestion. Regarding these two military advantages, he was somewhat dismissive. With his capability as the Black Wolf Toltec, under the current circumstances, wanting to breach the city and annihilate the tribe—what difficulty is there?!

"Hmm... The most crucial advantage is the third one. Acquiring a few ready-made large Maya ships, retrieving two of the kingdom’s longships, and having a batch of ready Maya shipwrights... to support the conquest further to the East and the expansion in Cuba with transportational naval forces!"

Thinking of this, Black Wolf stroked his chin and pondered for a long time. He still had a letter from His Highness instructing him to gather shipwrights and carpenters from city-states along the way to be sent to Golden Bay City to serve the kingdom’s Eastern Shipyard.

He knew that shipbuilding, unlike constructing siege machinery, is a real technical job; it’s not about brute force creating miracles, nor do they get discarded after one use in battle. Building large ships requires a long time, from materials to the frame to the hull, all involving complex processes and specialized talent.

Summoning a tribal camp takes only a few months, or even days, to pull them out and send them into battle. But to build a coastal naval force and produce usable large ships takes years!

"Two years, almost two years! The kingdom’s Eastern Shipyard has not yet produced a single longship... Hmm, His Highness said the first batch of longships is almost finished, but there are only ten... Oh Chief Divine! This naval warfare is truly troublesome!..."

Thinking of this, Black Wolf widened his eyes, reached out, grabbed Tikalo’s collar, and harshly rebuked him.

"Tikalo! Tell it like it is! Were the Maya shipwrights of Hidden Serpent City captured along with you?! You old fox, why are you so careless in your affairs? Carelessly exposing the fleet’s whereabouts is truly deserving of death! Deserving of execution!"

"Ahem! Ahem! Respected Black Wolf Legion Commander... indeed, there are a few leading backbones among the shipwrights of Hidden Serpent City, whom I planned to present to His Highness as Maya Pan master craftsmen... But the other shipwrights should have been seized from other Maya city-state fleets..."

Mayan merchant Tikalo shifted his posture, trying to break free, but he could not budge Black Wolf’s grip. With a bitter smile on his face, he could only answer with difficulty.

"Black Wolf Commander, you know! ... Shipbuilding takes time, among the Hidden Serpent City fleet, only three Maya oar-sail ships were modeled by shipwrights under Papu Priest, and the rest were forcibly drafted..."

"Chief Divine bears witness! In a waterside camp east of Hidden Serpent City, there are over a hundred craftsmen constructing five oar-sail ships, with a large stockpile of well-dried timber! ... All of these are resources Hidden Serpent City’s Chief Priest painstakingly gathered from various city-states and nobility... Now, as long as Papu Priest leads the naval forces to surrender, all of this will be yours, will be His Highness’s!"

"Over a hundred craftsmen, five oar-sail ships under construction, and a batch of excellent timber?"

Upon hearing this, Black Wolf Toltec pursed his lips, his eyes flickered for a moment, and then he let go of his grip.

"Tikalo, witnessed by the Chief Divine! Did you see this with your own eyes, or did you hear it from that Papu?"

"Uh... Papu Priest said it! But I suppose he wouldn’t dare lie to His Highness and you..."

"Hmm... I know!"

Black Wolf Toltec stood up, expressionless like a ruthless alpha wolf. He surveyed the surroundings, his gaze falling upon the bloodstained palace walls, focusing on a wooden carving of the Feathered Serpent Divine, his eyes growing fierce. Then, he ignored Tikalo standing beside him and walked directly to the carving, instructing his trusted aides on either side.

"Someone! Bring my legion commander’s bronze greatsword!"

"Yes! Sir!"

A moment later, Black Wolf Toltec held a bronze greatsword over a meter long, silently holding his breath for a few moments before letting out a booming roar!

"Papu! Die! ..."

The heavy greatsword swung swiftly, accompanied by the explosive rush of wind, slashing down hard on the wood carving!

"Bang! Crack! ..."

The force of this strike was immense, and the angle was so precise! It was an incredible blend of strength and skill, splitting the human-sized wood carving cleanly in half with a single blow! And such a terrifying strike, if it landed on a samurai in leather armor, would certainly cleave him in two just the same!

"Ah!"

The head of the Feathered Serpent Divine spun and rolled, landing not far in front of Tikalo. Faced with such an unparalleled display of martial prowess, this pure killing technique, cold sweat involuntarily beaded on Tikalo’s smooth brow.

"Respected... Black Wolf Legion Commander..."

"Hmm?! Do you have anything else to say?"

Black Wolf Toltec’s gaze pierced over, that undisguised, almost beastly intent to kill striking fear in Tikalo’s heart. He had intended to mention Papu Priest’s terms for surrender, but given the current situation, there was no way he could speak them aloud.

"Ah! I shall go plead directly with His Highness..."

With the words on the tip of his tongue, Mayan merchant Tikalo struggled to smile, respectfully lowering his head.

"Chief Divine bears witness! Respected Black Wolf Commander... I’ve disclosed everything, it’s all up to your decision!..."

"Hmm."

Black Wolf Toltec lowered his eyes, his expression remaining sternly silent for a long time before speaking coldly.

"Wuta!"

"Chief!"

"How many days have the envoys been gone, reporting the victory over the Sacrificial Lake City to His Highness?"

"Chief, the first batch of envoys reporting the victory have probably already arrived at Golden Bay City. As for the second batch reporting detailed battle reports, they just left yesterday morning..."

"Can you catch up to them? Take this guy and get to Golden Bay City as soon as possible!..."

"Uh! Take him?"

Red-haired trusted aide Wuta turned around to look at the emaciated Tikalo, who trembled from standing too long. First, he widened his eyes, then shook his head vigorously like a rattle drum.

"Chief! How could such a skinny old fox possibly keep up with a wild wolf running in the woods?! Impossible, definitely impossible... unless..."

"Hmm? Speak!"

"Unless I take two brothers and tie him to a pole, carrying him like cargo!..."

"Ah! Ah this..."

Upon hearing this, Mayan merchant Tikalo broke out in sweat and began trembling again. If he were carried to Golden Bay City in such a manner by a few red-haired barbarians, his body, which had just emerged from a dungeon, might as well be buried along the road. Such an inglorious death would be a disgraceful affair for a Serpent Divine Descendant who had weathered countless storms, leaving him with no face to meet his ancestors...

"No! You’re too rough-handed! He must arrive at Golden Bay City intact, to meet His Highness properly!..."

Black Wolf Tortoise shook his head and, glancing at the shaking Tikalo, ordered.

"Find some Totonac militia who are good walkers! Prepare one of those, oh, a small Maya shoulder sedan that can walk through the jungle for him!..."

"Let the Chief Divine witness! Wuta, you lead a team of scouts as escort, and you must personally deliver him to Golden Bay City, into the hands of His Highness’s trusted aides!"

"Yes, Chief! I’ll prepare immediately and depart at first light!"

"Hmm!"

Black Wolf Tortoise nodded and gave his final instructions before trusty aide Wuta left.

"Remember! Tie him on the sedan! During the journey, he must not contact anyone else!..."

"And! Muzzle him! Don’t let this old fox talk!"

"Got it, Chief!"

The moonlight was cool as trusted aide Wuta quickly disappeared within a few steps. Behind him, Mayan merchant Tikalo, also under the escort of several trusted aides, exited the deep palace hall. His trembling sweat-drenched appearance was like one who had walked away from a beast’s den, on the edge of life and death, which indeed was the case...

"Heavenly Serpent Divine, bless me on this arduous journey... Finally, I can go to meet His Highness!..."

"I wonder, what could be the situation over there with His Highness at this moment?..."

His murmuring whispers, carrying Tikalo’s questions, floated towards the Western horizon hundreds of miles away. The West, bathed in vast misty moonlight, was also where the lantern-lit patrols of Golden Bay City wandered beneath the moonlight.

In the palace at the center of Golden Bay City, a splendid and enchanting dream, like fleeting clouds and rain, had just begun to awaken. Those traces of mysterious exploration lingered on the king and engraved in his heart, allowing him a moment of clarity and enlightenment.

"Young woman Yilian... woman... the woman who belongs only to me, the proclamation from the Colima Mountain Region..."

Xiulote raised his head, gazing at the moon overhead as it moved westward, feeling a complex emotion that was both called responsibility and possessiveness, mixed with a lust for power. He then struggled to get up, gently set aside the entwined limbs of the girl, and silently stood beside the bed, watching the woman who had fallen asleep from exhaustion.

"Hmm... my woman, there is now another... a kitten from the Colima Mountain Region..."

Xiulote reached out, stroked the sleeping "kitten," ruffled her short hair, and pinched her slightly chubby cheeks. After pursing his lips, he glanced at the red marks on the bed, paused silently for a moment, then tenderly wiped away the girl’s tear marks and covered her with a cotton quilt.

"Mmm... hmm?...

Mountain lion... so fierce... don’t bite me..."

"..."

Listening to the kitten’s murmurs in her sleep, Xiulote remained silent for a while. He touched the painful marks on his body, gently shook his head. The kitten was obviously not very clever, remembering things differently from what happened... He smiled, donned his robe, and walked towards the window, watching the soft moonlight fall.

A moment later, a wisp of priest’s divine smoke rose languidly from his hand, relaxing him entirely. The divine smoke communicated with ancient sages, transcending time and space, leading the king’s profound gaze to the further Western direction. In the layered mountains he couldn’t see, there were two hundred thousand Colima Mountain Region tribes, and even more, only nominally subjugated Southwestern Tecos Tribes...