Aztec Eternals

"Swish! Swish! Swish!…"

Eighteen bronze braziers were lit simultaneously at the top of the Temple of Heaven pyramid. This was an important auspicious number in the ritual, symbolizing the 18 months of the traditional solar calendar. In the solar calendar, each month had 20 days, with 5 or 6 unlucky days added at the end to make a year.

The divine symbols of the eighteen months, from the beginning to the end of the year, were: January "Water's End", February "Human Skin Sacrifice", March "Small Night Watch", April "Great Night Watch", May "Drought of the Sun", June "Eating Corn Porridge", July "Small Lord Sacrifice", August "Great Lord Sacrifice", September "Flower Ceremony", October "Fruit Fall", November "Dust Sweeping", December "God's Descent", January "Mountain Sacrifice", February "Flamingo", March "Flag Raising", April "Water Descent", May "Termination", and June "Resurgence".

Each of these months had corresponding god sacrifices and activities. However, after more than ten years of the monotheistic reform, the object of the Alliance's official sacrifices had gradually changed from a multitude of gods to the one supreme main god. The current time was July 1495, which corresponded to September, the "Flower Ceremony," in the solar calendar. Therefore, the priests decorated the altar with flowers to cheerfully send the sacrificed souls to the divine kingdom where flowers bloomed.

"Descendant of the Rubber People, bloodline of the Tiger Claw King, Yun Zhao, a noble of the Mountain and River City, goes to the kingdom of the Sun God! His soul belongs to the main god, Huitzilopochtli, and will transform into a flower in the divine kingdom, enjoying eternal peace and bloom!"

In the midday sun, High Priest Xiu Luote, who presided over the ceremony, chanted loudly, raised the obsidian dagger, and announced the ascension of the soul of the first Cloud God descendant! Soon, the Mistec messenger Yun Zhao, who had once gone to the lakeside capital and participated in the victory ceremony of the eastern conquest of Tlaxcala, felt empty in his heart and rolled down from the Temple of Heaven pyramid, turning into a brightly blooming 'red flower'!

"The main god blesses the Alliance, bringing great victories in the southern expedition!"

"The Alliance conquers the clouds, and the main god shines upon the world!"

"Offer the descendants of the gods as sacrifices! Exchange for the blessing of harvest!"

At this moment, seeing this sacred sacrifice, tens of thousands of Alliance warriors finally shouted out heartily! Their shouts started out relatively orderly, but soon became diverse, only more high-pitched and狂热!

"Roar! The main god is happy! After we die, we will definitely be able to go to the red kingdom and meet our ancestors!"

"Roar! The main god has blessed us! When we go back, our family will become stronger and stronger, and we will give birth to brave sons!"

"Roar! Blood sacrifice to the Sun God, vitality returns to the earth!… Roar!!"

For the Alliance warriors, this "sacred sacrifice" was extremely important, even the most important "final settlement" in this "divine war"! The content of the settlement was conveyed by the priests, the "war dedication" recognized by the main god! This was not only related to the "light of the sun", the "autumn harvest", and the "continuation of the family", but also to the "destination of the soul after death and the status in the divine kingdom" that the devout warriors cared most about!

This was bronze, which was more expensive than silver in the world, three pounds of which were equal to one pound of gold! Only the Alliance headquarters, with its abundant manpower and many artisans, would vigorously mine the copper mines in Wetamo邦, south of the mountain, and use a large amount of bronze to铸造成礼器, which were also printed with complex divine纹饰. The lakeside kingdom would only build cannons and armor, lacking the foundation and foundation to formulate "rites."

Therefore, in the eyes of the God King, he had taken good care of the descendants of his brother, especially his nephew Montezuma II…

"Yes… I obey your will! Thank you! Thank you, Supreme God King!"

At the top of the Temple of Heaven, Montezuma II knelt on the ground. He kowtowed heavily to the God King, gratefully accepted the "Cloud God Scepter," and respectfully kowtowed again to express his gratitude. As Xiu Luote had expected, in front of the supreme and autocratic God King and the cruel and ruthless uncle, Montezuma II did not dare to show the slightest dissatisfaction, and his face was only filled with "full of gratitude!"

"Very good, little Montezuma! The Alliance will provide you with five years of food support and exempt you from five years of tribute… You will not need to send troops for the upcoming Zapotec expedition… Manage the rich cloud coast well! Use gold and gems to build large ancestral temples and sculptures for your father, my brother Asar, on the coast!"

"Yes! I obey you! Great God King!… Uncle!…"

Montezuma II kowtowed and bowed again, his expression one of sincere awe. Then, he took a few steps backward before carefully turning around and walking towards the bottom of the Temple of Heaven pyramid. As he scanned the crowd, his gaze lingered slightly in a few places before quickly moving away, and it was unknown who he was looking at. At this moment, the thirteen steps on all four sides were lined with nobles, warriors, and sacrifices!

The people on these four sides of the steps were clearly divided into two rows. One row was being escorted up,告祭 the main god,归于 the prophet, and then rolling down to their "sacrificial death." The other row was walking up,聆听 the divine will, kneeling before the God King, and then walking down to their "conferment of life."

At this moment, "life and death" alternated on the ancient Temple of Heaven pyramid! This silent and sacred contrast truly imprinted the majesty of the gods in everyone's hearts, like the sun in the sky!

"The two suns are not only not fighting each other, but are working together to威压 the entire Alliance! When will one of these damned hot summer suns finally fall, allowing people to catch their breath?…"

Silent thoughts echoed in the hearts of countless Alliance nobles. At this moment, the高原 sun was so scorching, not at all假, and there was no escape!

"Descendant of the Rubber People, descendant of the God Stone City, Chief Rain God Priest Vico, converted to the main god before his death and went to the kingdom of the main god! His soul will become a hummingbird, flying carefree around the flowers of the divine kingdom for eternity!…"

Xiu Luote announced again, the obsidian dagger in his hand worn down during the sacrifice, and his assistant Yun Tian replaced it with a new blade. Yun Tian Andiwei looked respectful, but had thousands of complex emotions in his heart. He watched the "vivid" burning in the fire, and bid farewell in his heart to the former Chief Rain God Priest Vico, the former high-ranking former friend of the God Stone City who had negotiated with the Black Wolf General.

"Chief Elder… After today's farewell, the old恩 and 怨 will all turn into green smoke!… Seven years ago, you主动 chose Yun Chen, and I was forced to choose His Highness… Seven years later, you are one step ahead of me in going to the kingdom of the main god, but I have to wait a few more years…"

"Today, for the ritual of the sacrifice, to prevent you from shouting, I preemptively anesthetized you with a knife and water, preventing you from leaving behind a farewell poem... Then let me, your old friend, recite one last poem for you!"

"Tlein tlahuiz, zan teicniuhtli..."

"The past is like the dawn, carried away by the light!..."

The sacrifice of the priest Xiuhcoatl was steady and continuous, like the tides of the sea. The investiture of the God-King Ahuitzotl was fiery and passionate, like the flames of the sun. And the "sun" hung above the "sea", even more admired and watched by the nobles. After the investiture of Prince Meng Er, the next to step onto the stage was another descendant of Asall, the equally noble Prince Mi Ho Ti of the Feathered Goose!

"The chief god, through my mouth, invests military merits and bestows nobility! Prince Mi Ho Ti of the Feathered Goose has performed military merits in the southern campaign's fighting and logistical supply, specifically as follows... His fiefdom is transferred from the Sun City of Laqi Kobang to Yeguo City and Xiang Gou City in Ximiste, tripling its previous size!... Generous rewards of spices, cocoa, feathered finery, jewels, gold and silver, bronze sacrificial vessels, and the Cloud Staff!..."

"..."

Prince Mi Ho Ti of the Feathered Goose gritted his teeth, lowering his head as he ascended the Temple of Heaven's pyramid. The sacrifices of the Cloud Descendants were within his sight, the scarlet warmth filled with the traces of death, also foreshadowing the consequences of disobeying the God-King's decree.

"Hmm?"

When the God-King's indifferent gaze fell upon him, Mi Ho Ti trembled all over, finally kneeling to the ground with a "plop", accepting the transfer that could not be refused!

"Yes! I obey you! Supreme God-King... Sun City will complete the transfer as soon as possible, migrating to the mountain valleys of West Clouddom!..."

"Very good, Mi Ho Ti! The Alliance will give the Feathered Goose clan of Sun City one year to migrate. The royal center will also send legions to assist... The fiefdom in West Clouddom is three times the size of your original fiefdom. Although it is a bit desolate, as long as it is well cultivated... After a generation, it will be enough to double your people!... And the Alliance will also support you with food and farming tools, and send priests to assist in conversion, so that you can take root in the land of Mistec well!"

"Yes! Thank you! God-King Uncle!..."

"Mm. Take the staff! Go down!"

"Yes!!..."

At this moment, the "sun's" light shone brilliantly, and no one dared to disobey. All the great nobles bowed their heads to the God-King. And the Alliance's traditional "Big Boss" truly became an absolute "King" under such centralization of power and royal decree!

With the two highest-ranking and strongest royal nephews dealt with, the God-King Ahuitzotl's face also relaxed slightly. Next, according to the already decided plan, a large number of nobles and warriors who had made military achievements in the southern campaign would be invested, and the hereditary nobles of the three southern states of the Alliance would be transferred.

Thinking of this, Ahuitzotl looked around and nodded slightly to Xiuhcoatl, who was presiding over the sacrifice. This long grand festival, with three full days of sacrifices and investitures, had only just begun!

"Descendants of the Gum People, descendants of the Mistec gods... Go to the divine kingdom!"

"Alliance nobles, military merit awards... Invest Cloud fiefdoms!"

The sun slowly set in the west, the sacrificial offerings went up and down, and the warriors kowtowed to express their gratitude. And the cheers and shouts of tens of thousands of people, like an uninterrupted background, drifted far away on the Cloud Plateau. When the night of this day fell, the bronze cauldrons had collected enough divine blood, which was mixed with the prepared wine and distributed to the excited Alliance warriors and the numb Mistec chieftains.

Such a large-scale, bloody, brilliant, and extremely grand ritual of victory in the divine war will probably only be held once more and never again!

Because, after conquering the last remaining Zapotec Alliance, the Mexica royal family will exterminate the deities of all other tribes, gathering all divinity and becoming the only royal family among all the tribes in the world, the royal family of the Olmec "Gum People"!... By then, it will no longer be possible to find deities noble enough to hold a grand sacrificial rite of divine blood!

"Sun God, thank you for your great gift! Tonatiuh, tlazohcamati!"

"Light shines, flames burn, Tlein huelic, tlein tlahuiz,"

The night was vast, smoke curled up, and bonfires lit up the black city of the Cloud Plateau. The most elite warriors of the entire Mexica Alliance were gathered in this sacred place in the clouds. This was the first time that the Alliance's victory celebration for the divine war was not held in the lake capital, but far away, thousands of miles away. Everyone already understood that after the sacrificial rite, the Alliance would inevitably continue its southern campaign, to completely unify the world, the last and most splendid conquest!

"My heart I offer to you, Noyollo nechcopa,"

"Only my blood, only my soul. Zan noyeztli, zan noyollo."

In the ancient black city of the Cloud, the chief god's priests sang the same ancient hymn to the sun. And the Mexica warriors sang along, with no fear and ignoring any opponent, only the devotion and high spirits of the "God-Chosen Warriors"!

"This is real, this is sacred! Ca ye nelli, ca ye huelic!"

"My words are the respect of submission! In tlahtolli momacehual!"

"I am joy, I am the heart! Ti huelic, ti yolotl!"

"Sun God, may you forever hang high in the sky! In Tonatiuh, ca ye icpac!"

The devout singing continued all night until the new dawn arrived and the new sun appeared. And new sacrifices and investitures were about to light up the sky again!

The prophet who presided over the sacrifice and the God-King who presided over the investiture once again stood on the high pyramid. Together, they looked down upon this vast land of Cloud, the warriors and people belonging to the Alliance, the land and city-states!

"Haha! Xiuhcoatl, these are the warriors of the Alliance, the people of the Alliance, the land of the Alliance!"

"Yes! Respected God-King, they all belong to you!..."

"Hahaha! Begin! New sacrifices and investitures!"

"Good! Praise the chief god!"

Xiuhcoatl put on his mask again, letting the sole God-King Ahuitzotl stand on this pyramid, at the center of this highest stage. And he was only looking gently and calmly at his washed hands. Soon, those hands would once again be stained with warmth, once again become scarlet, offering one noble sacrifice after another to the chief god, guiding one departing soul after another...

"Descendant of the Gum Gods, noble of Yeguo City, Yunshi Kawa... The soul goes to the Sun God's kingdom! He will become a butterfly, dancing in the flower bushes of July, enjoying eternal peace and beauty!..."

"Alliance military merit noble, Western Route Army warrior, Kuo Eagle... Slaying the head of the Cloud Dust Grand Chieftain, establishing valiant military achievements!... In the name of the God-King, I invest him as a hereditary noble of the Alliance, with a fiefdom of two thousand acres around Sun City... Bestowing Chinampa floating fields, spice feathered clothing, gold and silver jewels, and bronze armor and weapons!..."

"Praise the supreme God-King! Kuo Eagle Red Falcon, I am willing to fight and die for you!..."

The God-King Ahuitzotl stood at the peak, once again announcing generously. And hearing this investiture, Xiuhcoatl's expression shifted, his gaze suddenly looking over. He saw a middle-aged warrior with a calm expression and of Asall descent, wearing the feathered clothing bestowed by the royal family, kneeling forcefully before the God-King. And the God-King was laughing with satisfaction, reaching out his hand and grasping the other's hair forcefully!

"Good! Very good! Kuo Eagle... From today onwards, you are the captain of my Hair-Cutting Guard, leading two hundred elites selected from the Western Route Army, newly joining the Imperial Guard Corps!..."

"The God-King's will is my life and death!"

"Hahaha! Good!!..."