Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

The hunter Chabo raised his head and walked into the oppressive and serious great hall, summoned by the Black Wolf Legion Commander. He whispered a few words, and a fierce glint flashed in the Black Wolf Legion Commander's eyes.

"Very well! I understand. You may leave now!"

"Yes! At your command, Great Black Wolf Chief!"

The hunter Chabo bowed down respectfully and turned to leave without even glancing at the Alliance's great nobility beside him during the brief report.

"Honorable royal noble Yao Lin, the scouts of the army's vanguard have already arrived in the vicinity of Golden Bay City. According to the latest news, various Totonac tribes, large and small, are migrating towards Golden Bay City."

The Black Wolf pondered for a moment, expression neutral, as he looked at the king's envoy beside him, the middle-aged royal noble Yao Lin.

"The strength of the rebellious Totonac tribes is gathering, increasing! I need to gather the commanders, head to the frontlines, and launch an expedition and cleansing of the Golden Bay City area as soon as possible... Excuse me for not staying longer. Praise the Chief Divine!" After saying this, the Black Wolf General, with a cold gaze, glanced at the Cempoala Divine Descendants prostrating on the ground before leaving.

"Wait a moment! Honorable Black Wolf Legion Commander, please hold on!"

The royal envoy Yao Lin furrowed his brows and stepped forward urgently to block the Black Wolf Torc.

"Witness of the Chief Divine! The Totonac tribes of Cempoala have always been loyal vassals of the Mexica Alliance. They have paid tribute on time twice a year for twenty to thirty years! Over the past decades, the Divine Descendant leaders of Cempoala have been a firm pillar of the Mexica Alliance's rule over the Totonac lands. Even when the Lake Army launched an unprovoked southward expedition, under my persuasion, the tribal leaders of this city did not occupy the forts to resist but surrendered to the Alliance's army instead..."

"An unprovoked southward expedition? Ha!"

Upon hearing this, a dangerous wolf-like glint appeared in the Black Wolf Torc's eyes. He interrupted Envoy Yao Lin coldly.

"Yao Lin, what exactly do you want to say?"

"General Torc, please return the forcibly detained Divine Descendant nobility and hand over the local tribal management authority back to the leaders in the great hall! You must know, they are the most loyal supporters among the Alliance's vassal tribes!"

"Praise the Chief Divine, praise the King, we are loyal to the Alliance!"

Upon hearing this, the local nobles in the hall shouted loudly. Flying Bird Shah, the Great Chief of the Nianshui City Tribe, lifted his head in excited proclamation.

"I am King Aweit's most loyal vassal, leading the surrender to the southward Alliance army! Black Wolf General, how can you unreasonably detain my four sons, occupy my palace, seize the food in the warehouses, and forcefully conscript the tribe's warriors? I will personally go to Tloquiditlan to appeal to the great King Aweit!..."

Hearing this, Torc's gaze turned cold. With a "clang," he drew his bronze sword from his waist, pointing it directly at Chief Shah's position. Without hiding his murderous intent, he angrily shouted.

"Flying Bird Shah, shut your mouth! When I led the army through the Madre Pass, sending envoys to have you respond from the interior, how did you refuse? Who sent the warriors to support when I attacked the Feathered Serpent Ancient City and crushed hundreds of Cempoalan warriors? When the army reached Nianshui City, prepared to besiege, you only thought of surrendering—what kind of loyal Alliance vassal are you?..."

"...Witness of the Chief Divine! Shah, when I entered the city and saw the smallest Chief Temple among your many temples, I knew what kind of person you are!... Guards, take him away and interrogate him strictly! Let him confess his collusion with the Totonac rebels and opposition to the Alliance!"

With Black Wolf's command, two armored and axe-bearing Guajili warriors strode forward. They drew their bronze axes, turning the blunt edge, and mercilessly struck several blows, knocking the Great Chief Shah to the ground. Shah let out a few screams before being dragged away by the two strong warriors.

"Hiss!"

Seeing such a fierce scene, the many tribal nobles gasped, daring not make a sound. Yao Lin opened his mouth several times to try to intervene, but ultimately did not speak.

Among the accusations by Black Wolf, two were most deadly. One was sending warriors to support the Feathered Serpent Holy Land and battle the Lake Army. The other was disrespecting the Chief Divine, treating the Chief Divine as a subordinate deity. Currently, as the Alliance's religious reforms grow stricter, King Aweit ascends as Divine King, consolidating the High Priesthood and increasingly emphasizing faith in the Chief Divine. At this crucial moment, even Yao Lin, being a royal noble, could not speak lightly, lest he be suspected of disrespecting the Chief Divine.

"...Alas! Honorable Black Wolf Legion Commander!"

It was not until Shah's screams faded outside the Chief Temple that royal noble Yao Lin sighed. He lowered his voice, speaking cautiously.

"May the Chief Divine watch over us! Great Chief Shah indeed committed some errors in disrespecting the Chief Divine. But he has always been compliant towards the Alliance, without resisting to the end. The Nianshui City Tribe has always been a pivot for maintaining the Totonac lands' vassal states in the Alliance... Please, Black Wolf Commander, spare him a way to survive. The handling of such vassal city-state chiefs is best sent to the Capital City for the King and the High Priesthood to decide!"

"...Hmm. May the Chief Divine watch over us!"

Upon hearing this, Black Wolf Torc remained silent for a while before subtly nodding. He looked deeply at the king's envoy, the royal noble Yao Lin, sensing some constraints from the Alliance.

Yao Lin, journeying thousands of miles from the Capital City, directly secured the surrender of the over twenty thousand people of the Nianshui City Tribe, truly unexpected for him. According to his original plan, he intended to forcefully attack Nianshui City and sweep through the Cempoalan tribes. Even if it meant two thousand Totonac defectors fell in battle, he was determined to thoroughly eliminate the noble leaders, controlling each tribe within his grasp!

But now, with the Nianshui City Tribe surrendering, they contributed as many as three thousand defectors and retained numerous Divine Descendant nobility. Though this saved the army southward time and reduced casualties, the subsequent handling became tricky.

After all, he did not intend to maintain the traditional vassal system and return this strategically crucial ancient city to the tribal leaders, but planned to integrate it into the expeditionary army's direct control. As for the thousands of able-bodied men of the Nianshui City Tribe and years of stored food, he did not plan to overlook them.

Because, according to His Highness's directive, he was not waging a vassal war of subjugation, only to make the tribes submit; instead, he aimed to completely destroy the upper echelons of the tribes, conduct a brutal clearing, and initiate a unified war to rebuild the faith order!

The Black Wolf pondered for a long time, his expression growing colder. Yao Lin observed this, his expression subtly shifting, his voice also turning deep.

"Honorable Black Wolf Legion Commander, I come from the Capital City, under the king's decree, responsible for mediating the conflict between the Kingdom of the Lake and the Totonac vassal tribes!"

The king's envoy Yao Lin straightened his expression and raised the scepter, personally bestowed upon him by King Aweit. He gazed into Black Wolf Torc's eyes, asking every word before the Chief Divine's statue.

"The Chief Divine witnesses all! The Kingdom of the Lake advanced east, first capturing Five Mountains City, then occupying the Feathered Serpent Holy Land, and controlling Nianshui City. Now, the Lake Army plans to move further southeast to attack Golden Bay City..."

"Black Wolf Legion Commander, on behalf of the King, I must ask you: How long does the Lake Army intend to continue battling the Totonac tribes, and to where, before it plans to stop?"