Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

Chapter 1932 1403: Flower Battle Chess and the Ze Tian Hexagram Image!

The vast sea surges endlessly, the 7,000-mile Gulf of Mexico converging with the comings and goings of fleets, from the northern savannas to the dense jungles of the east. This is the north of Central America's world, like the "Ren Meridian" of the world, symbolizing a connected coastline.In the south of the world, another crucial "Du Meridian" is still locked in a struggle of 100,000 legions! If the Madre Mountains crossing all of Central America is the "spine of the world," then the Oaxaca Central Plateau, formed where the long Madre Mountains meet the Mixteco Mountains, is like the "tailbone of the world."

At this moment, Cloud Mountain City, besieged for a year by four Mexica legions, is located in the center of this mountainous plateau, at the most critical "tailbone point"! As for the two kings who personally stirred the winds and connected the "Ren and Du Meridians" of the world, they sit at the center of this world's chessboard, playing another "genuine game."

"Xiulote, cannon strikes tiger!"

"Move the ship to capture the cannon."

"Tiger eats the ship!"

"Advance the ship to eat the tiger."

"Haha! Xiulote, you've lost a tiger and a ship, I only lost a tiger and a cannon! Your military strength has weakened quite a bit!..."

"...Teacher, your sharpness is strong and unstoppable, taking me by surprise, truly as brave as a fierce tiger!…"

"Ha! As a Commander-in-Chief, this is how it should be! The chessboard is like the battlefield, once you've locked on to your target, you should press forward without hesitation, regardless of the cost, just like a heavy Obsidian Club breaking through formations!... But as for you, Xiulote! Whether fighting or playing chess, you always focus on logistics and defense, seeking stability first, then waiting for the moment of least cost to strike... Unlike a young man, and unlike our Mexica people's brave style!..."

"Ah! What the teacher says is true! But having sufficient logistics is always good. And avoiding the sharp edge, weakening the enemy's momentum, strictly defending oneself. Although it may not lead to a great victory, at least it won't lead to a big defeat, nor will many warriors die…"

"Ha ha! Xiulote, oh you!... You invented this chess game, clearly understanding that once a 'warrior' crosses the river, there's no retreat. Yet you are still so cautious, sparing with the lives of warriors. Your kind-hearted nature... advance the pawn!…"

"Capture the pawn..."

Hearing Aweit's comment, Xiulote smiled and shook his head. As always, he defended on this game of "Flower Battle Chess," even when there was an opportunity to risk a victory, he remained seated, unmoved. Meanwhile, Aweit continued attacking relentlessly, occasionally forcing exchanges, truly unstoppable, brave and advancing, leaving no room for doubt!

This set of "Flower Battle Chess," on a nine-by-ten grid board, is undoubtedly the precursor of later "Chess"! The besieged southern army, with its daily entertainment lacking, led Xiulote, besides divination and writing, to invent both "Go" and "Chess."

The black-and-white "Go" focused on calculations, quite liked by the Alliance Priests. Meanwhile, the more war-themed, representing martial prowess, "Chess," was dubbed "Flower Battle Chess," becoming a favorite distraction for Military Nobles simulating war, and it took the camp by storm.

Of course, on the Central American battlefields, with crisscrossing rivers and undulating mountains and no chariots or horses, here 'ships' replaced chariots, and 'tigers,' symbolizing Jaguar Warriors, took the place of cavalry. The rest, 'cannons,' 'soldiers/pawns,' 'guards/escorts,' and 'generals,' all remain unchanged, representing 'firearms,' 'warriors,' 'Imperial Guards,' and 'generals' respectively. Only 'princes/elephants' turned into 'Sacrificial Priests,' symbolizing the special War Priests in the military.

When these two types of "chess" emerged, Aweit was the first to get the news and, with great interest, quickly learned to play. Clearly, he preferred the martial "Flower Battle Chess," enjoying this brand-new "War Game"!

With Aweit's intelligence, there was no Alliance noble in the entire camp who could match him, even without going easy on him. In the end, it was only Xiulote, the "inventor" of the chess game, who could "barely" hold an even match with him.

No matter what new tactics Aweit devised, Xiulote maintained a stable "win four, lose six," "barely" keeping pace with his progress. Like in this game, after seeking an advantageous exchange at the start, Xiulote never showed any flaw, and both sides were left to a slow board-grinding struggle, each taking one piece at a time.

"Capture the tiger!…"

"Move to take the ship…"

"I don't need the ship! Capture the cannon again!…"

"Capture the ship…"

The two of them went back and forth, battling intensely for half an hour. By the endgame, Aweit only had "one pawn, one cannon, one advisor, and one general" left, while Xiulote was left with only an old "general" and a pair of escorting "Sacrificial Priests." Finally, Aweit placed a "Palace Heart Soldier" and managed to checkmate Xiulote joyfully!

"Haha! Xiulote, I've won this round again!!..."

Aweit laughed heartily, capturing the "general" with his cannon amidst Xiulote's sigh and wry smile. He held the golden "general" piece in his hand, playing with it for a moment, relishing the pleasure of defeating his student, still feeling a little unsatisfied.

On the entire scented wood board of "Flower Chess," the "pawns/soldiers" were made of rosewood pieces, while the "boats, tigers, cannons, priest, advisors" were made of silver pieces, and only the unique "general/king" was a golden piece! After all, this "Flower Battle Chess" was still a "war game" among the Mexica nobles. According to the Alliance's decades-old military tradition, rank must be distinct within the army, and even the chess pieces of a war game must be as clearly recognizable as the various ranks in the army.

"Xiulote, at the start of this game, did you really make a mistake, or did you intentionally let me win?..."

"Teacher, I didn't think that much. I started the game with my usual defense like the previous round, and I didn't expect you to find this flaw... But next time, I won't make such a mistake again!..."

"Hahaha! That's how war is; a win in one move leads to victory step by step, and a loss in one move leads to defeat step by step! However, the Alliance's great enterprise is already established; even if a step or two is misplayed, as long as lessons are learned, the world can still be completely swept clean!..."

With that, Aweit's expression turned cold, and he looked towards the mountains in the southwest, speaking in a deep voice.

"Witnessed by the Chief Divine! Just like this Cloud Central Tribes Alliance, even if the Mixteco people and Zapotecs band together, they still have less than half our pieces! A defeat of the Western Army allowed that Yun Chen Leader to capture a 'pawn,' but so what? As soon as this Cloud Mountain City falls, Yun Chen will lose the 'Sacrificial Priest' that guards the corners, and he will lack an 'advisor'. Surrounded on three sides, his demise is already ordained!"

"Teacher, you're right! Last night, on a whim, I officially performed a divination. The hexagram image was Li below Tui above, 'Ze Tian Guai'! This hexagram signifies water above heaven; the water in the heavens will flow downward. Taking away one Yin from the five Yang, removal is not difficult; it just requires a 'decision'! As long as punishment is decisive and the morale is rebuilt, it will certainly result in loss first and benefit later, a small defeat followed by a great victory!..."

"Hmm? The divination's hexagram image is Ze Tian Guai? Decide to lose first and then to win?..."

Upon hearing this, Aweit remained silent in contemplation. The "defeat" they were discussing had occurred last month when the Western Army attacked the Ometepec after capturing the Mixteco Coast, and then advanced north to attack the key area of the Mixteco heartland in Puctitlan!

You must know, once the Western Army captures this key area of Puctitlan, it will be able to join forces with the Eastern Army in the Northwest, completely severing the last seaside connection passage between the lowland Mixteco and the Zapotecs Tribes. Subsequently, as long as the Western Army moves slightly northward from Puctitlan to block the mountain pass, it can together with the Central Army, trap the Yun Chen Leader stationed at Huajuapan in the Mountain River City, as a bird in a cage in the Mountain River Valley!

Faced with this deadly trap, the Yun Chen Leader naturally would not sit idly by. He secretly dispatched elite troops, first challenging northward, to deceive the Central Army's Commander, Giant Bear Stanley. Then, he personally led five thousand elite warriors southward, launching a surprise attack on the vanguard of the brave Western Army, consecutively capturing the River Bean City and Ometepec of Prince Montezuma II.

Caught off guard, Young Montezuma, despite fighting personally and demonstrating the tenacity of the "Second Brave General of the Royal Family," still had his military formation defeated and retreated back to River Bean City. In this battle, an eight-thousand-strong Royal Legion was defeated, with at least fifteen hundred warriors perishing, making it one of the battles with the heaviest casualties since the Alliance's southern campaign in Cloud Central. However, the Yun Chen Leader didn't gain much from it; it is said that he was personally shot in the shoulder by the valiant Little Montezuma wielding a greatbow!

Meanwhile, the central army of the Mexica persistently pressed north of Mountain River City, making the Yun Chen Leader dare not leave for too long, nor did he have the time to pursue and expand his victory. After driving back the Western Army in one battle, he hurriedly led his army back to Mountain River City to continue facing off against Giant Bear Stanley.

"Hmm... The Western Army advanced rapidly; although their military edge is sharp, they are indeed very exhausted as well. No matter how sharp the obsidian sharp fragments are, they cannot continuously kill five men with a single swipe! Considering it, Leaf Fruit City, Xianggou City, River Bean City, Ometepec... The Western Army has, in the southern campaign, already captured four Mixteco City-States, facing a setback at this fifth City-State; it balances out the merits and faults, with merits outweighing the faults!..."

Aweit's expression flickered as he first set the tone. That is, the overall performance of the Western Army was commendable, and as long as they hold River Bean City and conduct a good rest, they would once again be able to achieve military successes. As for the responsibility for this defeat...

"Certainly, Young Montezuma, as the vanguard, causes the deaths of fifteen hundred warriors in one battle, surely bears some fault. The southern campaign is at a crucial stage, let's suppress the fault for now... Once the southern campaign wins, we can then evaluate the merits and faults of the military. After balancing the merits and demerits, the remaining accomplishments will be distributed in Cloud Central!..."

Upon hearing this final statement "distributed in Cloud Central," Xiulote raised an eyebrow, with an expression of understanding. Aweit had mentioned before that after the conquest of the Mixteco people, half of the Cloud Valley would be divided and bestowed upon the sons born to him and Alisa. And now, Alisa has given birth to twins, the misdeeds of Young Montezuma were timely delivered into his hand. Next, naturally, the supreme royal power represented by the Divine King and the divine power of Prophet Xiulote would collaborate, grasping all post-war distribution decisions! And the core of political power lies in "personnel" arrangements...

"Witnessed by the Chief Divine! Revered Divine King, in the next grand ceremony of the entire army, I will explain the hexagram image of the Chief Divine to the nobles!… Just as you said, the Western Army was blessed by the divine favor, and the mistakes lie only with a few individuals. The merits and demerits of the generals offset each other, and the Divine King, 'Zhonghang Wujiu,' just and impartial, everything will be rediscussed after the war!..."

"Good! Very good!... Xiulote, my most outstanding student, my highly respected military Sacrificial Priest... The enlightenment of the Chief Divine, indeed only you could truly comprehend it!... Haha!"

Note: The surprise chapter is a map of the Southern Expedition.