Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

The February wind comes from the Highland, bringing a slight chill with its dryness. It's the dry season now, yet the freshly built white walls of the camp are damp, as if it had just rained.

At this moment, a young craftsman in his twenties, tanned to a dark hue, is standing by the stone white wall, studying it intently. He places his calloused hands on the surface of the white wall, feeling the wall's hardness and moisture. Then, using his fingernail, he scratches the surface, leaving shallow marks.

Upon closer inspection, there is already a row of scratch marks of varying depths on the long white wall. These marks seem to express some natural mystery, or perhaps a mysterious Divine Rune, elusive and enigmatic.

"How strange... It changes every day..."

The young craftsman frowns, looking at the scratch marks on the wall, as if trying to discern something. Beside him, there is a large pottery jar filled with river water sourced nearby, with a wooden ladle floating on the surface. The young craftsman spends a moment in thought, then scoops some water to pour over one side of the stone wall. His hand is steady, pouring as evenly as possible, so he pours very slowly.

Within moments, Koskachi strides over, carrying a copper rod, exuding an air of authority. He stands before the white wall, examining it for a moment, lost in thought. Then he draws his rod, takes a deep breath, and swings it fiercely.

"Bang!"

The copper rod strikes the white wall with force, creating a small dent. Observing the surface of the dent, you can finally realize that this neat white wall isn't actually made of stacked stone! Yet, no one knows what methods the craftsmen in the camp used to build such a deceptive white wall.

"Hmm... A depth of one knuckle, shallower than a few days ago..."

Koskachi extends his fingers, measures for a moment, then nods. His face shows a hint of a smile, accompanied by the same curiosity as the young craftsman.

"How strange..."

"Chief Divine bless! Leader, you're here!"

Seeing the newcomer, the young craftsman bows his head, paying respectful courtesy. Koskachi's lips curl into a faint smile, casually accepting the salutation, before chuckling and speaking.

"Chief Divine bless! Tan Bird, you've been overseeing this stone wall for the past few days. Any discoveries?"

The young craftsman before him, named Tan Bird, is one of Koskachi's apprentices. However, he never liked being called "Master" by his apprentices, preferring to be addressed as "Leader." This title, akin to the leader of a wolf pack or a bird flock, made him feel the obedience of others. As the Leader of craftsmen of commoner origin, what he cherished most was the obedience of his subordinates.

"Leader, look at this side, and then look at this side!"

Tan Bird nodded, first pointing to the side of the white wall that was watered, and then pointing to the side that wasn't, explaining seriously.

"The side that's been watered is harder than the side that's not!"

"Hmm?"

Koskachi tapped the front with the copper rod, then the back, stabilizing his strength. Afterward, he used his fingers to measure, indeed finding that the marks on the front were shallower.

"How strange... It grows harder every day; the watered side is harder than the dry side... This creation doesn't match the description given by the His Highness. Could this be some sort of Divine Revelation cement?"

Koskachi contemplated the Divine Revelation from His Highness, stroked his chin, and looked at Tan Bird.

"Tan Bird, how long have we been building this wall?"

"Leader, let me think... Last year, in the bad days before the New Year, I hurried back from the Colima mountains. Fifty or sixty people came back with big sacks, thousands of pounds of volcanic ash. Then, everyone together, we prepared quicklime on site. Finally, we mixed these volcanic ashes with quicklime separately, added stones, and built six or seven walls..."

Tan Bird counted on his fingers as he reminisced, finally arriving at an approximate duration.

"It's now late February; even if it's less than two months... it must be at least a month and a half!"

"A month and a half..."

Koskachi frowned, tapped the white wall with the rod again, listening carefully to the sound, and then murmured quietly.

"Tut-tut. This hardness is somewhat like undercooked earth bricks. Still more brittle compared to stone. Hmm, it's not solid enough inside, but it's better than a few days ago. Truly strange, His Highness said that in five or six days after finishing, it would be as hard as stone, seamlessly fused. It's been nearly two months, and it's still not fully done!"

"Leader, there's no rush. This wall started off as brittle as mud, just like the other walls. At that time, I thought it failed again. Who knew, after a few days it seemed to come alive, continuously hardening, now even resembling some kind of brick... The other walls have been torn down, right now, we're just relying on this one!"

As Tan Bird spoke, a smile rose on his face, eagerly looking at his mentor. Koskachi's brow twitched, he pondered for a moment, then nodded.

"Alright! The volcanic ash sent from various parts of Colima last year was of no use, not even knowing where they randomly dug it from. His Highness didn't clarify exactly what kind of ash is needed! In the end, it's thanks to you making a trip yourself, carrying sacks over, gathering various kinds of ash, busy enough that you didn't even celebrate the New Year. If this succeeds, regardless of what others say, I'll put your name at the top of the report!"

"Ah! Praise the Chief Divine, praise the master... no, praise the leader, praise the old man!"

Upon hearing this promise, Tan Bird immediately kneeled, "bang, bang," knocking his head to the ground several times. Then, he looked up, forehead red from the impact, but his face beaming with joy.