Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!-Chapter 583 - 283: Northern Shipyard, The Starting Point of Navigation!

The spring breeze of March filled the world, as the magnificent army marched gloriously forward. The northern wilderness was already covered in green grass, and wisps of cooking smoke rose from the villages among the commoners’ settlements, filling the world with a sense of vitality.

Xiulote stayed at the Rivermouth fortress for over half a month and dispatched a large number of Scouts to the north at the earliest opportunity. Afterwards, he convened priests from villages in all regions, carefully inquiring about the cultivation details of each settlement and the progress of missionary work. Then, before many priests, the King appointed Monkey Kuluka as the overall coordinator of Rivermouth County, that is, the military and political commander.

The First Spear Legion, following the Royal Decree, began to garrison inside the Rivermouth fortress immediately. They were to be arranged on farmland for long-term stationing while also being responsible for the transportation of food supplies for the Royal Army’s northern march. Rivermouth County’s settlements were established earlier and had a satisfactory harvest last autumn. The fortress had already stockpiled a batch of grain and fodder, enough to supply the six thousand soldiers of the Imperial Guard Legion on their way to the Otapan City-State Alliance. Xiulote certainly would not entrust the critically important supply of grain and fodder to the always food-scarce Otomi people.

Without any delay, the King then inspected the Rivermouth Shipyard around the fortress. He gathered numerous craftsmen to explore new shipbuilding design plans.

Rivermouth Shipyard was actually located on the south side of the fortress by Cuitzeo Lake. It was situated in an inner lake, not very large, with simple facilities, but it had accumulated a lot of timber suitable for building large canoes. The Kingdom’s large canoes could carry 40 people and required cedar or oak logs that were at least fifteen meters tall and two to three meters in diameter for the hull. These timber logs, air-dried for many years, were the heritage accumulated over decades by the Tarasco Kingdom, but now they were all benefiting the fiefs around the lake.

At the King’s summons, shipbuilding craftsmen with inherited skills from the Rivermouth fortress and Master Carpenters from the Capital City who came with the army, all gathered in the open-air shipyard, listening to the King’s will.

The midday sun was warm. Samurai stood everywhere within the shipyard, surrounded by a strict escort. Xiulote looked around, carefully assessing the many senior Master Craftsmen standing in the front row. Dressed in Prepetcha attire, they all bowed their heads in full compliance, expressing profound submission. The King nodded slightly and began to speak solemnly.

"Chief Divine’s protection! Today, I’ve summoned all the Master Craftsmen here for a matter that concerns the divines, the Alliance, and all our people!"

"The Feathered Serpent Divine set sail on the Snake Boat to the Great Lake in the East and made a promise of vengeance. The Divine left descendants of the Feathered Serpent on Snake Island in the East and allied with the fair-skinned tribes beyond the lake. These tribes may at any moment sail their great ships from the distant Eastern Lake, bringing endless war, disease, and disaster. Therefore, the Supreme God decreed, and the Alliance resolved, to move eastward to seek traces of the Feathered Serpent Divine’s descendants and to build ships capable of sailing in the Eastern Lake!"

Upon hearing this, the Master Craftsmen of Prepetcha exchanged glances. A low murmur of conversation soon began to spread throughout the shipyard.

Myths of the Feathered Serpent’s journey eastward had been passed down for hundreds of years, known to all tribes under the sky. The Divine Descendants of the Feathered Serpent, the fair-skinned foreigners, and building great ships to explore the distant Great Lake... The Master Craftsmen of Prepetcha were actually skeptical at heart. However, since building these great ships was connected to the Supreme God’s decree, it was a grave matter that could result in the ruin of their families. They had to be careful and put forth all their thoughts and effort.

After a moment, an elder with a weathered face stood up. The elder’s attire was striking, his robe adorned with tree patterns and his neck bearing a sandalwood Necklace. He moved deftly with a dignified yet confident demeanor, representing the many Master Craftsmen as he saluted the King seated above.

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"Most high Majesty, in all the world when it comes to shipbuilding technology, the Maya of the far East are first, and we, the people of Prepetcha, are second! In fact, as long as there is a sufficient supply of copper, we have been able to join timber and planks to construct ships many times larger than canoes, capable of navigating the Great Lake!"

At these words, Xiulote was invigorated. He looked towards the leading elder, inquiring.

"How should I call the Master Craftsman?"

"Your Majesty, I am ’The Carpenter of the Lake’ Pucuta, chief Shipwright of the Rivermouth fortress! My family has passed down the shipbuilding art of the people of the lake for generations. Many of the Kingdom’s Naval Forces’ large canoes were crafted by me and my apprentices!"

Xiulote nodded. ’The Carpenter of the Lake’ Pucuta meant "Forests’ Timber, Craftsman of the Lake". In this era, high-level craftsmen still maintained characteristics of tribal inheritance. Relying on their exclusive mastery of important technologies, they always held a certain influence and status in their locality and even the Kingdom, comparable to that of the military nobility and were also able to command the ordinary craftsmen of their industry.

"Excellent! The army brought two thousand catties of copper with them when we marched northward, specifically for the Shipyard’s use!"

The King declared loudly. Hearing the amount of two thousand catties of copper, the Master Craftsmen all gasped. At that time, two thousand catties of copper were roughly equivalent in value to two thousand catties of Gold Dust!

"Pucuta, you mentioned being able to build ships many times larger than canoes that can travel in the Great Lake, do you have any physical models or design plans?"

At the King’s query, Pucuta hesitated slightly, then took out a treasured parchment scroll from his bosom and cautiously handed it to the King.

Xiulote felt the material of the scroll, which was unexpectedly made of fig tree bark. Similar to the paper made from tree bark by the Maya, it was fairly durable and long-lasting after undergoing preliminary paper-making processes like soaking, boiling, and drying. However, its raw materials were relatively scarce and the manufacturing cost was high.

The King carefully unfolded the parchment scroll and quickly let out a soft exclamation of surprise.