"Your name is Pap? It means 'Messenger of the Moon' in Totonaknahua language?"
"Yes, yes! Your Highness, I am Papu, the messenger of the moon, the servant of the sun, and even more so your servant!...Ah, respected, under the supreme Temple of Death! Praise you! You are the sun god of the sky, the...
The giant serpent god of the seaside is also the dominant god of the jungle and the earth!…”
The king's flag of the black wolf was fluttering on the hill. Shulot was dressed in golden armor and stood in the middle of many guards with his head held high. Two steps in front of him, Pappu was lying on the ground respectfully with his hands bare. Although the corners of his mouth were still open,
With blood stains on his face, he chanted and sang skillfully in his mouth. Words of praise flowed out like poetry, and they were even in standard Mexica!
"Praise the Lord God! Huitzilopochtli is the supreme and immortal, ruling the sea and the sky in all directions!... Praise the God of Death! Shulotel flows like the night star, from death to rebirth!..."
"Haha! Pap, you speak Mexica very fluently! You are indeed the only surviving senior feathered serpent priest in the ancient feathered serpent city, and he escaped thousands of miles away! ... Well, according to the inheritance of the ancient feathered serpent city, your grandfather
Or maybe my father is also a high-level feathered serpent priest, and has received the canonization of the late king Montezuma I?..."
"Ah? Uh! This...I..."
Pappu lowered his head, his thoughts flowing rapidly, and sweat dripping from his forehead. After thinking for a moment, he kowtowed his head twice and replied lying on the ground.
"No, no, no! Your Highness! The moment I listened to the Lord God's enlightenment and met you, as a priest of the false god, I was already dead! ... But now, I am just a warrior of the Lord God and your follower.
We must fight to the death for the Lord God and the Kingdom!…”
"Hahaha! Pap, you are so smart! No wonder, Ti Carlo calls you the old fox..."
"Uh! Fox? This... Your Highness, I... I am your spirit fox! I will sniff out the sacred herbs and vines in the East for you, and make offerings to the great Mexica sacred tree!..."
The sun rose into the sky and the sacred fire was lit. The priests of the main god held their daggers high and sang sacrificial songs. The strict blood oath of conversion was carried out on the beach by the sea!
“Praise the Lord God!… God has come!…”
The army conquered and killed countless tribes along the way. For the conversion ceremony, the main god priests and temple guards accompanying the army were already familiar with it. Soon, groups of captured Totonak warriors, soldiers and sailors
They were escorted to the holy fire, where they were pushed down to their knees by the guards and had their hair cut off. Then, amid the high-pitched chants of the priests, the prisoners drank blood wine and made soul vows to the sun.
, and then use a stone knife to carve the emblem of the Lord God on his forehead!
As for those who were unwilling to convert, the priests of the main god never forced them, they just stretched out their hands and pointed to both sides. Then, the temple guards coldly waved the sacrificial daggers and sent the devout and stubborn souls away...
"Pap, you are very lucky to be able to surrender to me directly! ...And these warriors of Hidden Snake City will go through four rounds of rebirth and death before they have the opportunity to integrate into the upper echelons of the kingdom."
Shulot smiled faintly, pointed at the refuge and sacrifice in the distance, and spoke calmly.
"The first death is the battle on the battlefield and the sacrifice after the war. Generally speaking, we don't like those who are too influential among the prisoners. Therefore, team officers, nobles and gods who have too high status
, will directly choose to execute!...Pap, do you know why we do this?"
"Well…"
Hearing His Highness's sudden inquiry, Papu started sweating again. He suddenly realized that the test for him under the Death Temple had quietly begun. And whether his answer satisfies His Highness would obviously determine his success.
What’s next?
"This... Your Highness... because you are the supreme sun god, snake god, and dominating god... You are extremely tall, with eyes like flames, and possess innate divinity. You are different from all the previous seaside chiefs!... You want to dominate every tribe.
The warriors, who control the power of all tribes, naturally have to bypass these chiefs, leaders and team officers, and take the warriors directly under their command..."
"Oh? Control the power, control the warriors?... Well, it can be understood that way..."
After hearing this, Shulot pondered for a moment and nodded slightly. With a calm expression, he looked at the fierce holy fire filled with blue smoke and the Hidden Snake warriors whose faces were ashen, and continued to speak.
"The second death is a test of faith and a blood oath of conversion. After capturing the warriors of these tribes, the sacred conversion ceremony is indispensable! And the captives who are unwilling to make a blood oath and sacrifice their souls to the Lord God,
Everyone will die in the ceremony... Pappu, why is the kingdom doing this?"
"Uh!.. Your Highness, because the main god is supreme and the most powerful true god in the world!... The tribes on the seaside have been trapped in the quagmire of whispers of false gods since they were young, and were deceived by the priests of false gods... Therefore, only blood oaths can be
Only with death can the believers who are worth saving go to the true path of light, and the lost ones who cannot be saved can die!..."
Pappu carefully looked at Shulot's unchanged expression. He tried hard to recall the "Ali Sutra" he had read carefully, and used his experience and experience as a senior priest to constantly try to figure out His Highness's thoughts.
"Praise the Lord God!... Only the belief of the Lord God is implemented in every tribe in the seaside land and falls into the hearts of every tribesman... This jungle and coast that stretches thousands of miles, with countless scattered and independent tribes, can be regarded as the first
This time, we were surrounded by the connection between the sacred giant snake!…”
"Oh? Faith and tribe, connection and surrounding..."
Hearing such words, Shulot perked up. He took a deep look at Papp, without making any comments, and just continued to speak.
"The third death is when the converted captives are incorporated into the vanguard camp. They have to transport supplies and food, suppress other tribes, experience repeated killings, and even participate in the most brutal siege battles... before they can become true warriors again.
Incorporate it into the kingdom’s military system!…”
"And only the best among them, who have made outstanding military exploits, can accept the fourth death and join the official legion of the kingdom! From then on, military merits are conferred on fields and slaves, and they obtain the title of the kingdom and receive corresponding status and treatment, just like the Mexica warriors
Same!…"
"Pap, do you know what these two tests are?"
"Ah! Your kind and generous Highness! These two tests are the vines climbing the sacred tree, the heavenly road to the clouds, and the test for you to select your followers!..."
Pappu's thoughts whirled, stimulating his wisdom and literary talents from the first half of his life. He raised his head, showed a smile with two missing teeth, and answered passionately.
"Blessed by the Lord God!...Only warriors who have shed blood and sacrificed their lives for the kingdom are worthy of being granted the power of the sacred tree! And they stepped on the numerous bones and climbed out of this road with difficulty. No matter where they were born or what they experienced,
They are all the new upstarts of the kingdom in the eyes of others... They will cherish this hard-earned power and become the vines and roots of the kingdom's sacred tree rule!..."
"Your Highness, you are the sacred tree that covers the world, weaving a network with broad leaves! And all the falcons, tigers and leopards in the world will be under your command, and they will bite into the wider distance!..."
"Haha!...All the heroes in the world will fall into my trap? As long as we keep biting and biting, as long as the war continues?..."
Shulot's eyes flashed, and then he burst into laughter. He stretched out his hand, and under Papu's surprised gaze, he firmly shook the other party's hair.
"Very good! What a smart fox!..."
"Ah! Your Highness! I am willing to swear allegiance to the death and fight in armor for you..."
"Papu, don't worry! Hidden Snake City can't hold on for long. Your value is not just in fighting... The entire seaside land, the vast majority of the Totonak tribe, will soon be under the control of the kingdom! Come up
The millions of Totonak tribes will also be ruled by a great chief for the first time..."
Shulot turned his palm over and rubbed Papu's head. Well, the hair is very thick and the feel is very different from Tikalo. He is a fluffy old fox. For old foxes, they always only look at the current situation and situation.
, changes with time. As for the oath of loyalty, it is naturally meaningless. However, the old foxes are very smart. If they are used well, they will be more useful than the samurai wolves who can only simply fight!
"Facing the first unified seaside, I still have an unanswered question that needs you to answer... If you answer well, you will have a chance to choose your future!... And if you answer
If you are not good, I will not punish you, but I will let you go to the wilderness to preach and be blown by the wind and sand for thirty years..."
"Ah? Answer a question?...What! Go to the wilderness to preach and blow sand for thirty years!..."
Hearing such a terrible punishment, Papp was shocked and his knees suddenly softened. His heart was beating violently, as if he had a premonition of the hardship.
"Your Highness! I...please..."
"That's right! Pap, you answered the previous three questions very well, and you must have understood my intentions... What I want is never just a short-term conquest of the army, but a long-term unity of the hearts of the people!..."
Shulot smiled, patted the old fox's head gently, and gave an order that could not be refused.
"The Lord God witnesses! Pappu, come! Use the wisdom of your Quetzalcoatl priest to think about it for me! ...Give me a brand-new proposal and tell me what I should do to speed up the integration of the coastal tribes and make them feel at ease.