Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

The river flows vast and strong, spring rain falls gently. The Long River of Tarsus comes from the East, witnessing the comings and goings of the Mexica fleet, and observing the spring plowing of various tribes along the way.

At the end of the Long River, in the desolate Trascal Basin, columns of smoke from slash-and-burn agriculture gradually rise. After only a few days, the wisps of smoke quickly dissipate in the spring rain. Old weeds and shrubs are burned away by the mountain fires, revealing fertile fields, nurtured by rain and dew, awaiting cultivation.

The Long River quietly flows through Trascal Land. Each day, in the mountain regions of the Four States, the elderly and weak of fleeing tribes come out and surrender to the Mexica army outside the mountains. They no longer have the food to support them until next spring. Neither can they abandon their hopeful fields to escape into the mountain forests once more. They can only obey and become tribespeople controlled by the Mexica Alliance.

At this moment, beside an humble village, the tribesmen of Tlaxcala bow their heads as they hold crude farming tools made of wood and stone. They take advantage of the softened earth after the rain, laboring to plant corn and beans with all their might. Occasionally, a team of Mexica Warriors, armed with greatbows and long spears, patrols along the mountain paths and rivers. The faces of the tribesmen then show deep fear and submission.

After the conquests and turmoil of the eastern expedition, a long-lost order is gradually being established in the western and southern parts of Trascal Land, among the remnants of the Telascallan people.

In the western Weisoqinke State, the first group of eight thousand Mexica settlers has migrated from the densely populated Texcoco Lake District and settled in more than a dozen villages outside Oak Tree City. They occupy the fertile lands once owned by the nobility of the Cloud Serpent in the East, urged by the Mexica nobility to waste no time in spring plowing. Most of this group of settlers come from the first group of small nobility who were reassigned from the Lake District and include Alliance Warriors rewarded with land after the eastern expedition. They are the first group of Mexica people settled in Trascal Land.

Once the Alliance King and the Great Nobility finish their consultations, more nobility will be reassigned here, bringing tens of thousands of people from various states. They will spread out within the Four States, completely occupying the Trascal Land, which has lost more than half of its population, and gaining control over all the local tribes!

In just one more generation, Mexica nobility and settlers will firmly take root in the Eastern Basin, bringing with them the faith in the Chief Divine. The once mighty and glorious Tlaxcala Four States Alliance will vanish completely with the disintegrated Cloud Serpent faith, fading away in the basin's gentle rain.

Sparse drizzle falls from the bright sky; it is the first rain heralding the coming rainy season. In the southern Tepeyacak State, the military farms outside Water Valley City fill again with the able-bodied Totonac people forcibly relocated there.

The Head Warrior Bertade wears leather armor as he personally leads hundreds of personal guard warriors to inspect the spring planting condition of fifty thousand acres of farmland in various camps.

"The Black Wolf's eastern advance guard has already reached the eastern coastline. In these dozens of miles of military farms, we have thirty thousand elderly Telascallan refugees, twenty thousand Mistec prisoners, and eighty thousand able-bodied Totonac people... A total of one hundred and thirty thousand prisoners are guarded by ten thousand Alliance Warriors and Militia!"

"These young men and women prisoners are urgently needed commoners and agricultural slaves for the Kingdom; a batch is transported west along the river every month. The tens of thousands of laborers responsible for farming will be relocated on a large scale only after the autumn harvest this year."

In Bertade's mind, grim thoughts swirl as he walks through a large military farm camp. In this large camp, one hundred Mexica Warriors and four hundred Militia oversee around eight thousand prisoners from various tribes, responsible for cultivating more than forty thousand acres of land.

The camp is encircled by a sturdy wooden fence, crowded with huts within, while boundless farmland stretches out beyond. A twenty-man team of Dog Descendant Warriors, leading hairless dogs, patrols between the fields and the camp. At the camp gate stands over a dozen tall wooden poles, each bearing a hanged fleeing prisoner.

The morning sun illuminates the camp under a clear sky. Low prayers arise from the camp's center. Bertade pauses, watching for a while, a slight smile appearing on his face. Thousands of prisoners are divided into small teams, praying under the guidance of the Chief God Priest, expressing gratitude for the Chief Divine's blessings before they have a simple breakfast.

"Honored Saint Eagle Head Warrior, the two thousand Tlaxcala farmers left from last year serve as the backbone in each camp. They act as team leaders, directing other prisoners in spring planting and reporting camp conditions to the warriors. The supervising Warriors and Militia live in a separate fort on the other side; every day, they oversee the prisoners farming on the outskirts of the fields."

"The Alliance's Chief God Priest visits morning and evening to lead the prayers of the prisoners and listen to their confessions, thereby stabilizing their emotions. We also ration the prisoners' food, ensuring that while they can farm, they have no extra energy to escape!"

The camp commander, an experienced Fourth Level Mexica Warrior named Huoqia, once supervised surrendered armies in the Prepetcha Lake District and is familiar with veteran Militiaman Chiwaco. Currently, with his head bowed, he reports about managing the thousands of prisoners to the highly revered Saint Eagle Head Warrior.

"... After several months of monitoring, camp order has stabilized. Tlaxcala's elders and weak are the most compliant. Their Divine Descendants have been sacrificed and killed by the Alliance, their warriors either eliminated or surrendered, and their Cloud Snake Temples burned down, leaving them no courage to resist. As for the Mistec prisoners, most are from minor tribes. Having witnessed the fall of the Rain God Temples, their faith has collapsed, and they have piously converted to the Chief Divine. Likewise, they are accustomed to obeying noble bloodlines and have diligently completed their farming tasks..."

Saying this, Huoqia paused, a hint of killing intent flashing across his face.

"As for the able-bodied Totonac people captured by the eastern advance guard, they still need much tempering to learn the Kingdom's rules! They are not yet adequately intimidated by the Alliance; the spirit of resistance in their hearts has not dissipated. Moreover, their deities, especially the Feathered Serpent, are highly at odds with the priests' teachings... The prisoners hanged on those poles are all Totonac people!"

Upon hearing this, Bertade lifts his head to glance at the praying prisoners within the camp. He ponders for a moment and then issues commands.

"We must reinforce the indoctrination of the Totonac people! Have the Chief God Priest come over and conduct another selection. Those resistant to converting, those not devout enough, draft them into the next convoy of transferred prisoners. This convoy will fill in the vacancy of laborers in two Kingdom mines, putting young prisoners to work as mine slaves..."

Hearing the term 'mine slaves', Huoqia feels a cold tremble within and nods respectfully. As the Kingdom excavates deeper into its mines, producing ever-increasing amounts of copper, iron, and coal, the demand for mine slaves rises by thousands. Huoqia is well aware that each mine slave typically survives only about four years under the harsh labor conditions in the mines.

"We need to select a group of Totonac people whom we can favorably treat as examples of aligning with the Alliance. Those prisoners who have sincerely converted should receive thirty percent more food and the authority to manage small teams!"

Bertade's gaze deepens, his expression remains calm and unperturbed. Within him is a clear, orderly path of thought.

"After half a year under the command of the military camp, those transferred back to the Kingdom should all be followers of the Chief Divine, obedient to the order. The Kingdom's grand road-construction project has already begun. Any prisoners not meeting the requirement should be screened out, prioritized as slaves for mining, quarrying, and road construction!"

"As you command, Saint Eagle Head Warrior!"

The military camp commander Huoqia bows deeply. Bertade extends his hand, pats the man's shoulder, and offers a smile of encouragement.

"The Chief Divine has bestowed glory, and the Kingdom is invincible! All tribes of the world will be conquered by us one by one. Those willing to convert to the Chief Divine's faith and follow His Highness's commands will be accepted and assimilated by the Kingdom, restoring them to the honored unity of the Jiao People's descendants! Meanwhile, all defiant tribes, irrespective of their rank or noble bloodline, will turn into firewood and fuel to ignite the Sun in the sky, becoming mine slaves, construction slaves, agricultural slaves, and even sacrifices atop the pyramid!"

Bertade's speech is somber, his face remains calm, but determination shines brightly in his eyes. He turns to the north, gazing toward the towering mountains with a hopeful smile.

"The Black Wolf's mere diversion force can defeat the Totonac people and capture eighty thousand able-bodied men. The unification picture of the world is already close at hand! Your Highness, do you think this way too? What kind of grand picture do you hold in your heart? I am willing to take up the pen for you, journey to the furthest ends of the earth, and erect your Divine likeness..."

The clouds drift freely, and a light spring rain falls again from the slightly darkened sky. New corn sprouts emerge from the vast fields, bringing joy upon sight—they are the hopeful seedlings of spring.