Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!-Chapter 1457 - 1010: Scholar’s Nautical Journal, Conversion of the Sunward Tribe, Sprouting of the Northern Faction
"North latitude 44 degrees, is the Dawn Tribe of the Xiulao people, a coastal Great Tribe with more than two thousand members! The Dawn Tribe’s Sun Shaman Chinook is wise and friendly, and once had a trade supply agreement with the Kingdom. However, the first group of Kingdom’s fleet that passed by the Dawn Tribe was only about two hundred people. This time, there were ten Kingdom longships, fully loaded with seven hundred warriors and sailors! Such a massive military force can overwhelm any Great Tribe on the Western Sea Coast, even shocking Chinook, the Shaman of the Dawn Tribe!"
"Shaman Chinook appeared in person and talked with the leading High Priest Kejie throughout the night. This time, he talked about the Sun, about the Sun Ancestors revered by the Dawn Tribe, and the Sun Supreme God worshipped by the Great Longship Tribe having many ’common’ aspects... Kejie the Priest was pleased to mention that the Dawn Great Tribe was also a descendant of the Jiao People, a ’brother’ tribe of the Kingdom lost long ago... The talks between the two sides ended in sincere happiness and unity. Shaman Chinook represented the Dawn Tribe, while Kejie the Priest represented the Kingdom of the Lake, and both sides pledged a blood oath to upgrade their trade supply relationship to a mutual alliance..."
"After the blood oath of the alliance, faced with Kejie the Priest’s sincere ’request’ to convert to the Sun Supreme God, Shaman Chinook pondered for a long time and then smiled, taking the Sun Hummingbird Talisman of the Chief Divine and placing it around his neck. This symbolic act represented the Dawn Tribe of more than two thousand people embracing the Sun Supreme God... Then, he eagerly invited the Kingdom fleet to leave behind a First Level Preaching Priest named Chagwa, along with several young Assistant Priests skilled in planting potatoes, to spread faith and new crops within the tribe. The supply fleet also replenished some tribal specialty foods from the Dawn Tribe, including kelp, sun beans, wild peas, bear fern, thistle fern... and recruited a dozen or so Xiulao sailors familiar with the Northern Land to help set up kelp farms..."
In October, the Far North land has equal shares of day and night, with the splendid star river hanging high in the clear and distant sky. From ancient times to today, the stars here have been so bright, unaffected by the dense and dazzling lights of human towns. Meanwhile, the guiding North Star hangs steadily at the zenith, almost unmoving in position. It seems like the Chief Divine’s clear and eternal guidance, telling the Kingdom fleet where exactly they are!..."
"North latitude 52 degrees... It’s only eight latitudes away from the Dawn Tribe at north latitude 44 degrees. And the longitude that Your Majesty spoke of, the east-west distance we traveled, covers at least six or seven thousand miles. Longitude calculation, Your Majesty said, requires time, yet it’s unknown when we could create an accurate timekeeping ’clock’ as foretold in the Divine Revelation..."
Scholar Mikki drank the last sip of warm whale soup, looked up at the starry sky for a while, then exhaled slowly, smiling as he spoke.
"Zuwaro, it’s only delicious when the whale soup has kelp from the Dawn Tribe added!"
"Haha! Mikki, any soup with added kelp becomes delicious. This plentiful seafood must be a gift from the spirits of the sea, to be so delightfully rich and flavorful!"
Exploration Captain Zuwaro laughed, casually eating firm whale meat. He didn’t have high demands for food, as long as it filled the stomach and replenished energy.
"Praise the Chief Divine! Zuwaro, after the Dawn Tribe became an ally of the Kingdom, their techniques for cultivating kelp, planting sun beans, and fern can be spread among the coastal tribes and Kingdom Port! We can’t just keep eating whale meat or potatoes..."
"Indeed, it’s good to have more food sources. Sun beans and fern can be grown on coastal saline soil without competing with potatoes for land. Kelp can even be cultivated by the sea ponds, and we might raise fish alongside..."
Exploration Captain Zuwaro rubbed his chin, pondering the unique agricultural heritage of the Dawn Tribe, his smile taking on a deeper meaning.
"Haha! Sun Shaman Chinook is indeed a clever and cunning old shaman. Last time, when we tried persuading him to convert to the Chief Divine, he was reserved, smiling without saying much. This time, when Kejie arrived with seven hundred warriors and sailors from the Kingdom, he smoothly shifted, pledging a blood oath for an alliance and acknowledging faith... What a sly old fox!..."
"Yes, the Chief Divine witnesses! Kingdom’s interaction with the Northern Tribes relies on strength as a foundation. Northern Great Tribes living in such harsh and wild environments have a keener awareness of power compared to tribes in the Southern Plateau and Jungle! Of course, their tribal populations of at most several thousand can’t compare with those southern City-State tribes numbering tens of thousands..."
Scholar Mikki nodded affirmatively. Over the past two years, his understanding of the Northern Tribes has grown deeper. In truth, compared to Highland Tribes and Jungle Tribes, Northern Tribes focus more on food, population, and weapons, less so on tribal land, and their faith is quite flexible.
From their tribal characteristics, the majority of Northern Tribes are pragmatic, nomadic tribes that neglect faith, while the vast Northern Continent is their ancestral homeland. When faced with irresistibly forceful threats, their first choice is to ally and make friends, turning threats into allies. And if an opposing threat is irreconcilable, they choose to migrate as a tribe, leaving their settled territory for the vast inland.
Northern Tribes have a tradition of tribal migration and possess the ability for guerrilla raids in the mountain forest. Therefore, the Kingdom’s interaction with them focuses more on peaceful marriages and alliances, preaching conversion, and cultural integration, while military usage is relatively cautious. More often than not, the Kingdom merely demonstrates its strength, showing the Northern Tribes that it is powerful and not easily provoked!
"North latitude 45 degrees, is the Divine Providence’s Divine Palm Peak. Kejie the Priest, leading the support fleet, held another large prayer ceremony, boosting the fleet’s morale. Not far north of Divine Palm Peak is the Timos Tribe of the Tilamok people, with only a little over a thousand tribespeople. The Female Chief of the Timos Tribe, the tribe’s matriarch Tila, was surprised by the fleet’s size and the number of warriors, displaying both secret vigilance and immense enthusiasm!..."
"The support fleet stayed at the Timos Tribe for three days. Female Chief Tila expressed a clear willingness to accept faith in the Chief Divine!... However, we all know in our hearts they merely added a mighty divine from the south to their worship, still lacking one Divine Palm Peak’s distance from true, singular piety... Through the priests’ discussion on the fleet, we left Preaching Priest Mibolo, who married the Female Chief Tila’s youngest daughter, to guide the conversion of this not-so-large thousand-strong tribe... The fleet also left a few Assistant Priests and twenty warrior sailors to marry Tilamok women, integrating into the Timos Tribe..."
"Hmm? Mikki, I recall, Mibolo is your cousin, isn’t he? Just graduated from Divine Power University?"
Exploration Captain Zuwaro blinked, looking at Scholar Mikki. Mikki scratched his head, furrowed his brows slightly, then nodded affirmatively.
"Yes! Mibolo is my cousin, twenty years old, and just graduated from Divine Power University. Many young priests on this support fleet are fresh from Divine Power University, perhaps related to the first fleet’s priests. After all, there are few vacancies left for priest positions across the Kingdom’s counties, with so many priests of noble birth... Actually, for Kingdom priests from common backgrounds, preaching in the Northern Continent might be the best opportunity!..."
"Hmm... Although the Timos Tribe is poor without much output, it is a medium-sized tribe with a thousand people, controlling a coastline of two or three hundred miles. Kejie left Mibolo there, also left twenty Kingdom warriors, personally presiding over his wedding... Probably out of regard for us!..."
At this point, Scholar Mikki lowered his eyes, softened his voice, and quietly said.
"Chief Divine witness! Zuwaro, I’ve always been a bit uneasy... We’ve flexibly relaxed the doctrines, allowing young priests to marry and have children in the North, allied with various tribes... And the priests along this string of settlements mostly come from Divine Power University, they have countless connections... If this continues long-term, and the seeds grow into pumpkins, intertwining with each other into one entity, will it..."
"Chief Divine protects! Guiding the Jiao compatriots of the Northern Land back to the righteous path of the Chief Divine is precisely the divine duty of Kingdom priests! Even if slightly overstepping the doctrine, it is for the sake of true faith!..."
Exploration Captain Zuwaro likewise lowered his eyes, murmured a prayer, interrupting Scholar Mikki. Their discussion thus ended, burying all future concerns regarding the Northern Land deep within their hearts.
After all, even if the priests of the Northern Continent ultimately rely on various converted tribes, establishing ports in different places and forming a separate northern faction within the Kingdom’s Priesthood... Then, the two who initially explored the northern coast and founded the northern faction would naturally possess the leadership status of such a political faction! If this faction truly forms, for the two as leaders, whether they return to the Capital City or remain in the Northern Land, it would be more benefit than harm!
"Praise the Chief Divine! Beyond the Timos Tribe is North latitude 46 degrees, North Port! This Kingdom’s port, welcoming numerous migrating small tribes of Krasop, is just flourishing with prosperity! And the arrival of the Kingdom’s mighty fleet meets appropriately with envoys sent by the Rivermouth Tribe Confederation of the North!..."
