Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

Chapter 1922 1393: [The Royal Family Guards the Gates], The Brothers Xiulote Raised

"Lord Priest! The raiding fleet launched a surprise attack at night, captured a large ship of the Evil Demons, seized eight white-skinned captives, and set the second large ship ablaze!... But in the end, the second ship managed to escape!...""By the Chief Divine's blessing! I've seen it already. The warriors fought admirably and truly gave their best effort! I will personally report to the Tomate Chief Priest to commend the raiding fleet!..."

"Ah, thank you! Honorable Lord Priest!"

The sun rose to its zenith, casting brilliant rays upon the waters of Gonaibo Bay, sparkling with shimmering waves. The sea here was a clear pale green, symbolizing the shallow seas near the continental shelf. At present, over a hundred canoes of the Taino people, carrying two to three hundred militiamen, were cruising the battle area, seeking potential spoils.

Some militiamen found barrels thrown overboard by the "White-skinned Demons", and upon opening them, discovered a jumble of items, a bit of everything! Some barrels contained tools and planks from the ship, most held ballast stones and iron blocks for ocean-going voyages. Some barrels were filled with precious salt, but the next one contained exceptionally smelly, dizzying pickled fish!

"Ugh! These white-skinned demons are truly peculiar! How can anyone eat such smelly pickled fish?..."

Occasionally, Taino militiamen would paddle small boats back to the revered "Chief Divine Priest" with "spoils of war". The person they reverently reported to was the "ordinary militiaman" who had previously communicated with Shushu. At the moment, he had changed into priestly attire and was standing on a larger canoe war boat, gazing at the chaotic battlefield after the battle with the "Evil Demon Fleet", occasionally lost in thought.

"Huh! These demons' barrels are actually filled with iron blocks? And there's more than one of such barrels? Could this be their ballast for sailing? Can they truly afford to use iron just for ballast?"...

"One barrel of salt, two barrels of salt, three barrels of salt?... Is this salt for the demons themselves, or cargo aboard the ship? The color and quality of the salt seem quite high! It appears this tribe of demons is abundant in salt!"...

As a seaside nation, the Kingdom of Portugal had indeed one of the leading salt industries on the European continent, with a matured salt-drying technique. Both Lisbon and Setubal boasted impressive coastal salt fields. The "salt goods" trade, along with associated "pickled fish" products, were the most common items the Portuguese traded with the various chieftain kingdoms in Southern Africa, the Black African continent!

After all, in this late 15th-century Europe, aside from entrepôt trade, the Kingdom of Portugal itself could only offer "massive amounts of salt", "massive amounts of fish", "a few pearls", and "some ironware". Yes, at present, the sugar industry beginning to develop in the Azores Islands and the Madela Archipelago also had potential as genuine European cash manufacturing machines. This is why King Joao placed so much importance on the Azores Islands, originally a desolate fief...

"Praise be to the Chief Divine! Honorable Lord Priest! Warrior Captain Kepili presents the Evil Demon's totem flag to you! May the Chief Divine's glory shine radiantly, the wings of the hummingbird dance, and may all Evil Demons turn into green smoke!"...

"By the Chief Divine's blessing! Captain Kepili, your bravery was outstanding! The Chief Divine witnesses your valor, the frontlines in Cuba's hot lands and Haiti Mountain Island require such exceptional Chief Divine Warriors like yourself!"...

Under the watch of the Kingdom's Warriors, the captured "Evil Demon Sailors" slowly steered the captured large ship towards the shores of the Marine Tribe. Warrior Commander Kepili personally brought the "Evil Demon's Totem" to offer it to the "Honorable Lord Priest". His respectful manner clearly demonstrated the extraordinary nature of this "Lord Priest"!

In fact, if it weren't for the "Lord Priest" sending envoys for assistance, the fleet from Cuba wouldn't have gathered and embarked so swiftly, nor arrived rapidly within just four or five days to block the Evil Demons precisely!

"Strange! These captured Evil Demons seem to originate from a different tribe or kingdom than the previous batch of captives! The totem of the previous tribe was 'Castle Jaguar'. But now this time, the totem from this tribe is the peculiar 'Blue and White Cross'?"...

The "ordinary militiaman" held the flag of the Kingdom of Portugal, turning it over and over, trying hard to recall from his memory. Unfortunately, the prophecy relating to the East Sea Continent, though mentioned by his brother, was not clearly remembered, nor truly understood.

Indeed! The identity of this "ordinary militiaman" was Xiulote's fourth brother, one of Xiuxoke's current eight sons, Xiu Maoying!

And the reason he's called "Cat Owl" is because he was born at night when owls were hooting, so Xiuxoke gave him this name. Just like his second brother "White Eagle" and third brother "Greyhound", were named after Xiuxoke saw flying eagles and coyotes and decided they were "good names"!...

Fortunately, Xiulote's name was personally given by his grandfather Xutel, using a divine pseudonym. Otherwise, it might have been something like "Xiu Hummingbird", "Xiu Cardinal". A bit worse might be like his fifth brother still studying at Divine Power University, named "Xiu Mole" because their father Xiuxoke saw a mole digging the next day...

As the current fourth brother among the eight, Xiu Maoying was twenty years old this year, having just graduated from Divine Power University. Early last year, he arrived at the frontline combatting the Evil Demon invasion, starting from a First Level Chief Divine Priest.

In Xiu Maoying's heart, his elder brother Xiulote was especially mysterious since childhood, endowed with a divine aura of "early brilliance" and "ancestor reincarnated", earning the deep affection of his grandfather. He never played with his younger brothers, instead frequently discussing important matters with the elders, leading troops in battle even in his teens, constantly campaigning everywhere! For his younger brothers, their feelings for their elder brother were more reverent than close, with quite a bit of the air of an elder brother as a father.

When Xiulote was granted the Kingdom of the Lake, he became increasingly reminiscent of a king. He extensively selected talented priests, generously rewarded brave warriors who achieved merits, never employing people based on familial proximity. He was quite strict, even harsh towards his brothers and kin!

Of course, Father Xiuxoke had enough brothers for him. Even if one or two fell in battle, those who remained, once trained, would become a reliable familial force.

Like his second brother White Eagle and third brother Greyhound, they had always been by Xiulote's side, cast into the Personal Guard Camp for honing. Both participated in the campaigns against Tarasco and Totonac, were injured multiple times in battle, and never received special treatment. And despite the life-and-death struggles and accomplishments in these campaigns, these two brothers currently held the positions of Warrior Camp Commanders of merely a thousand men, truly rising from the grassroots!

Before returning to Tloquiditlan, Xiulote left these two brothers, both in their early twenties, one in the Capital Region of the Kingdom of the Lake, and the other in the Totonac Seaside Alliance. After six or seven years of honing, they could be somewhat relied upon as "royal family members."

As for the younger "Cat Owl" and "Mole," being younger, Xiulote began cultivating them earlier. They were sent to Divine Power University to learn culture, taking the path of the priest. But after completing their studies, they still received no obvious preferential treatment and had to gain experience from the grassroots or even the frontlines.

The fourth brother, Shu Cat Owl, was such a case. Upon receiving a request from his older brother through a letter, he "volunteered" to the frontline in Cuba, specifically the most frontward position, Haiti Island!

At that time, the Western Stone Alliance, with a population of tens of thousands, was under significant threat from the Western Sun and Central Sun Stone sub-alliances and urgently needed external assistance. The Marine Chief was even willing to convert to the Chief Divine, offering his daughter with inheritance rights for a political marriage to gain the support of the "West Island Longship Tribe." In the whole of Cuba, only Shu Cat Owl had a sufficiently high status and the most suitable identity. He also voluntarily "dedicated himself to the Chief Divine" to control a fifth of Haiti Island…

"Hmm… So, it appears the white-skinned demons emerging this time were not the 'Castle Tribe,' as my brother estimated?!… So, are they actually 'Portugal,' west of the 'Castle Tribe,' i.e., the 'Port Tribe'? Or from the north, 'France,' the 'Free Warrior Tribe'? Or even farther north, 'England,' that 'Corner Tribe'?…"

"According to my brother, the initial wave of white-skinned demons could only come from these three tribes! At most, there would be a few 'Merchant City-States' as well…"

The "ordinary militiaman" frowned, while Kepili maintained a respectful demeanor, patiently waiting. Only when the other looked up did he bow and say with a smile.

"Honorable Lord Priest! We have captured this large demon ship… kindly grant it a devout name!…"

"Haha! Kepili, you and your men boarded and personally captured this large ship… following the previous practice with Huitu, you can name it yourself… Alright, alright! No need for such formalities!… Well, since it's the large ship you captured, let's name it after you! Henceforth, this ship shall be known as the 'Leopard Head'!

Upon hearing Priest Shu Cat Owl's words, "Leopard Head" Kepili was overjoyed and grinned broadly. Naming a captured demon ship after oneself was indeed the best reward for bravery and devotion!

Cuba currently only had three large ships: the "Huitu," captured by Huitu; the "Stone Spear," captured by Warrior Stone Spear; and the "Leopard Head," captured by him! Had Red-haired Chabo succeeded this time, he too could have named one "Cha Bo Tree"…

"Lord Priest! Lord Priest!"

As the two talked happily, two small boats arrived almost simultaneously from different directions! The half-breed subordinate of Red-haired Chabo glared, causing the Taino militiaman to shrink his neck, allowing the fierce warrior to speak first.

"O mighty Lord Priest! Big Brother Chabo sent me to inform you… he has found the location of that large thunderbolt ritual artifact, right where he anchored!"

"Oh! You've discovered that large artifact? The cannon dropped from the demon ship?…"

"Yes, Lord Priest! Big Brother sent many sailors to dive and search, continuing until the sun was high in the sky… around noon, the sunlight was best, and one of the brothers with the sharpest eyesight saw the reflection of that cannon!"

"Good! Good! Blessed be the Chief Divine! I must personally go and see it! As my brother… His Majesty told me, the demons' cannons are especially formidable, the bigger, the more powerful! If we can retrieve this cannon, it will be a true weapon of thunderbolt might!"

Delighted, Priest Shu Cat Owl, with the two rowing Priest Apprentices, prepared to head to where the "Stone Spear" was anchored. Kepili quickly reached out, inviting the "Lord Priest" to board his "Huitu." Before boarding, Priest Shu Cat Owl remembered another Taino militiaman who came to report and kindly asked with a smile.

"By the way! You haven't said what 'spoils of war' you've retrieved?"

"Ah! Lord Priest from the west, the impressive son-in-law of the Great Chief… we have just pulled from the water two people tightly embracing, already unconscious from drowning! One of them is a white-skinned 'demon,' terrifying with golden hair and light blue eyes! The other is yellow-skinned, with facial tattoos completely different from all our tribes… by all appearances, they seem to be fierce 'Carib people' from the east!"