Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!-Chapter 1534 - 1075: Xiulote’s Devout Prayer—With My Blood, I Bless My Children!
The scorching sun hangs high, flowing forth, its rays never ceasing. It sets over the Granada Mountains on the eastern side of the Atlantic Ocean, then swiftly crosses thousands of miles and rises from the Tlaxcala Mountains on the west side. Soon, the dawn of the rising sun casts upon the top of the Cloud Serpent Fortress, while the black flag of the God of Death flutters near the altar on the peak.
"Praise the Chief Divine! May You bring forth the dawn, illuminate my path, and guide my future!... I am the Divine Revelator blessed by the divine, destined to lead the world... The grand age of navigation has already begun. In this world, only I can see through the mist of history and discern friend from foe. I shall walk always on the correct path, clearly perceiving the trajectory of history, and create a glorious future for the Jiao People and all populations!"
The spring breeze blows through, April on the Mexican Plateau is filled with warmth, even the morning light is bright. Xiulote, draped in a white robe, stands at the highest point of the Cloud Serpent Fortress by the altar, and prays sincerely toward the rising sun in the East.
After a moment of prayer, he draws the Obsidian Dagger from his waist, cuts his left palm, and lets red drops of blood fall upon the altar as an offering to the Chief Divine.
"My Supreme Main God, you should protect your citizens! May the great alliance stand united, may the God King and I dispel our differences, may the Maya conquest of the Black Wolf sail smoothly, may the Snake Island of Cuba capture white fish..."
"May my wife Alisa forgive my arrangements, may my eldest son Xiu Hua excel, may my second son Shaokang be peaceful and joyful, may my eldest daughter Light Snake shine gloriously..."
"Lastly, may my third son Yanshan avoid disaster and grow up in the Kingdom of the Lake! May my fifth and sixth children, Fei Ling and Fei Yu, also be safe and sound born in the Seaside!"
Xiulote raises his left hand, watching the blood drip down, reciting the names of his wife and six children, his face filled with genuine devotion. It is not until the ancient altar is soaked with red that he, under the concerned gaze of Guard Commander Ecatl, applies healing herbs to stop the bleeding and wraps it tightly with prepared gauze.
"Family Head, blood is the source of a Samurai's vitality... A noble King like you should refrain from casually expending vital essence..."
"Ecatl, this is a sacrifice to the Chief Divine, and it is also my most important prayer! No other sacrifices can replace my blood... Since I have come here, if the Chief Divine truly exists, He shall hear my call and offer some protection!"
Xiulote's face looked somewhat pale as he spoke strangely and even somewhat offensively towards the Chief Divine, yet his expression remained gentle with a smile. Then, his smile turned solemn as he gazed toward the valleys of the southern mountains and the tributary of the Tarsas River, asking in a deep voice.
"Ecatl! Have Yilian and Yanshan been sent to board the logistics fleet to the Kingdom of the Lake? Is the envoy dispatched to the Chief of Colima aboard as well?"
"Family Head, everything has been arranged! I personally watched as Princess Yilian and Prince Yanshan boarded the longship. The fleet is escorted by hundreds of trusted aides, flowing downstream westward, taking little more than half a month at most to smoothly reach Zicao County in the southern part of the Kingdom... And the Kingdom Envoy sent to the Colima Mountain Region also boarded the ship with your letter of greeting to the Chief of Colima..."
"Hmm, good! May the Chief Divine protect, protect my children as they grow healthy! Whether Xiu Hua, Shaokang, Light Snake, Yanshan, or the unborn Fei Ling, Fei Yu..."
Upon hearing Ecatl's report, Xiulote nodded solemnly and closed his eyes to pray sincerely once again. A month ago, the daughter of the Chief of Colima, the lively and athletic Yilian, successfully gave birth to his fourth child, also his third son.
In accordance with the shared traditions of the Mexica and various Colima tribes, respecting the Divine Mountain and flames, he named his third son "Xo·Xiuhton·Tepētl," meaning "the towering mountain of light and flame," or Yanshan. The simple and memorable nickname is actually "Son of the Volcano."
Besides the newly-born third son, the Silver Raven sisters Liuyao and Liuyu are both pregnant with his children. The younger sister Liuyao is nearly six months pregnant, while the elder sister Liuyu is just under three months. He will definitely not witness the birth of these two children when he arrives at the Lake Capital City, so he left the names in advance.
In line with the Silver Raven tribes' tradition of worshiping flying birds, the fifth child of the younger sister Liuyao is named "Xo·Miquiztli·Quauhchīchīltic," "the bright Chagel Bird long feather flying in the sky," or Fei Ling.
As for the sixth child of the elder sister Liuyu, it is named "Xo·Miquiztli·yahuitlpapalōtl," "the bright Raven long feather flying in the sky," or Fei Yu.
These long and complicated names are not just to fill words. On the contrary, every term in the name must reflect a certain emblematic divinity. As for whether it is a boy or a girl, it's not very important; only the ending in the full name in the Navajo language needs to be slightly changed.
"O Chief Divine! I offer my blood and vitality to You! May my children shoulder their responsibilities, grow up to each handle their own tasks! May they not conflict among themselves, not harm each other as siblings!"
Xiulote, with closed eyes, earnestly prays, reciting this most sincere blessing. Not until the sun rises high and the blood on the altar has dried does Xiulote, drenched in sweat, stop.
"May the Chief Divine protect us! Protect the lineage of the Holy City!..."
Guard Commander Ecatl stood by, praying softly. He rarely saw the Family Head so devout, and it was hard to guess the King's thoughts at the moment. It wasn't until the prayers were over that he wiped the sweat from the Family Head's face, attempting to offer comfort.
"Family Head! This time, returning to the Lake Capital City, you need not be overly worried... The God King has dispatched five hundred noble Eagle Battle Groups and five hundred noble Jaguar Battle Groups, a total of a thousand Alliance nobles, to Trascal Land to formally welcome you!... Such a grand welcoming party, so many military merit nobles awaiting you, is unprecedented in the history of the Alliance! And since the God King has made such a public announcement, it signifies a certain promise, not the kind of hidden intent with immediate betrayal..."
"Moreover, Princess Alisa has also sent an envoy, bringing her handwritten letter to comfort and persuade you... Your four-year-old son Xiu Hua Zotl has already been officially conferred by God King Aweit as the Sun God's son this New Year festival, celebrating your conquest of the Eastern Totonac Alliance and the heroic achievements in stabilizing the thousand-mile Seaside!..."
"From these actions of the God King, it seems that ever since you completely pacified the Seaside, establishing the million-tribe Seaside Alliance... his attitude towards you is not as harsh as it was at the beginning of last year. Instead, it is mainly to appease and win you over!..."
"Hmm... the welcoming noble battle groups, Alisa's letter. The Sun God's son, Xiu Hua Zotl... Haha! Ecatl, you still don't understand my teacher!"
Upon hearing Ecatl's comfort, Xiulote displayed a slight smile, slowly shaking his head. He gazed at the bandaged left hand, where spots of red gradually spread, like seeing a real wound through layers of mist...
"Witness, Chief Divine! I established the Seaside Alliance, quickly integrating the Totonac tribes and pulling up two military corps... It seems my teacher is quite wary of me! He truly regards me, his student, as an equally serious opponent. This red wound is not only on my palm but has long since been stamped in Aweit's heart as well!..."
"By sending such a grand formation and showing such respect to me... this really means my teacher has made a firm decision! I am his most outstanding student, what can he hide from others that he can't hide from me?... Establishing my eldest son Xiu Hua as the Sun God's son of the Alliance... This is truly a masterstroke in politics! The real hidden ploy is waiting behind it..."
"Ah? A hidden ploy?!... Family Head, do you mean? You might be in danger?!"
At these words, Ecatl's eyes widened, worry manifesting on his face. Yet Xiulote smiled gently, showing no sign of concern.
"Ecatl, this hidden ploy is not to kill me, but to kill my political life! By presenting myself, allowing Aweit to possess control over me, he naturally will not kill me. What benefit is there in killing me? It would only plunge the world into chaos, causing an internal conflict in the Alliance, ruining all our great endeavors..."
"Then, Family Head, what exactly does King Aweit want to do?!"
"The rising sun! Such beautiful light..."
Xiulote pressed his lips together, silently gazing at the sun. The rising sun was gentle and approachable, allowing one to gaze directly. But the midday sun, too bright and dazzling, was too difficult to look at for long.
"The noonday sun! Yet so dazzling and distant..."
After a while, as tears of sharp brightness flowed, Xiulote lowered his head, softly reciting, his voice full of rue, a hint of regret, yet filled with inner calm, as if seeing through time.
"How can two suns stand together? Only with the passage of time... if my prediction is correct... Aweit intends to strip me of the Alliance heir's status, and establish my eldest son, his grandson, as the first heir of the Alliance!..."
"Only sunset and dawn can coexist in the sky... Aweit has indeed conceived a plan for generational succession! Counting the years, this year he is 41, and Xiu Hua is 4... He wants to lead the Alliance and serve twenty more years as the Supreme God King, and whether I'm 24 or Chimalpahin is 13, we might all be too old. Only when passing on to Xiu Hua, the age is just right, much like the predecessor monarch Montezuma, passing on to a grandchild..."
"And only under such conditions, ensuring my safety, my son's succession... would Alisa personally write to me, comfort me, and persuade me to return to the Lake Capital City sooner..."
"I'm afraid that the day I enter the Capital City will mark the beginning of my loss of Alliance succession rights... and my future afterward would be living a blissful life like an immortal within the grand Temple and elegant palaces of the Capital City with Alisa, never to be released by the God King from this beautiful cage till death!..."
