Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

Chapter 2052 - 1499: Captives and Sacrificial Rite Before the Coming Winter Snow…_2

"Truly the protection of the Great Divine Spirit! Such wonderful equipment, while migrating in the northern forests, was beyond imagination! Even the arrowheads are made of iron...""Indeed! Under the leadership of the Shaman Chieftain, our Xiong Kulu Bird Tribe has become more and more prosperous! I really hope to recruit more tribes from the Forest Sea... Compared to the strange Japanese tribes in the south, the simple warriors from the forest are much more likable..."

In the midst of conversation, a dozen Shengshu Jurchen Cavalry had already galloped to the seaside. They dismounted, and without hesitation, took out the shining gold talismans from their pockets for the priests of the Kingdom to count.

"The Chief Divine grants blessings upon you! Over there, the rewarded equipment!"

Having counted the gold talismans, the priests tossed them onto the pile of spoils of war and then pointed to the monk soldiers’ equipment piled nearby. The Shengshu Jurchen Cavalry instantly lit up with joy, picking and choosing according to the amount of gold talismans surrendered, taking some iron helmets, iron armor, and a few tubes of iron arrows.

Although these armors were a bit small, once taken back to the Divine Kutadai Port and modified by the craftsmen, they would become family heirlooms. Of course, the most popular were still the Japanese iron arrows. From the arrowhead to the shaft and the quiver, all were of excellent quality. If one were to make them themselves, who knows how much effort it would take!

"The Chief Divine protects! Everyone, go hand over the gold talismans and exchange them for your own equipment! Why are you still standing there, go!... "

Chief of Harman, Ali, raised an eyebrow, glaring at the Shushu Jurchen Cavalry that followed him. A few trusted followers from the Harman Tribe hesitated, reluctantly pulling out their gold talismans after a long hesitation, and proceeded toward the pile of spoils of war. Judging by their reluctance, it was hard to say if they were hiding any gold.

"Ah! Look at this pitiful sight! Isn’t it just a bit of gold... a bit of gold..."

Chief of Harman, Ali sighed, discarding the captured gold. But seeing the pile of shining gold talismans right before him, his heart raced as his eyes blurred. After all, this was nearly a thousand jin of gold, a thousand jin!

If it could be transported to Kaiyuan, it would amount to a hundred thousand taels of silver! With so much silver brought to the Kaiyuan Market, how many eyes of the Great Ming Border Army would it blind, and how many good things could it buy? That would truly be... um... a dead end!...

"The Chief Divine protects! How much of the thousand jin of gold hanging on the tree has been recovered now?"

"Priest Ali, so far there are eight hundred and ninety-two gold talismans. If there are no new acquisitions, then there are one hundred and eight gold talismans that are missing after the battle..."

"Lost a hundred and eight? So many?... Well, perhaps they scattered in the grass or fell into the river. It’s also possible that some Japanese monk soldiers fled with the gold talismans, which can’t be helped either..."

Upon hearing this, Chief of Harman, Ali froze for a moment, feeling a bit uneasy. In the Kingdom’s various units, if anyone was most likely to hide gold, it certainly wasn’t the devout Kingdom’s Warriors, the simple Shandan Hunters, the brave Shengshu Jurchen Warriors, or even those naive Ainu people sailors, but his dozens of Shushu Jurchen Infantry and Cavalry from the Harman Tribe...

"Ahem! What does the Ancestor Priest say? Should a thorough search be conducted?... "

"Oh! The Chief Priest said, recover as much as you can. Those willing to return it will receive a portion of the rewarded equipment, and those unwilling can keep it. The Kingdom values warriors, and as long as they fight bravely, these small amounts of gold can be considered rewards for the warriors..."

"Ah, praise the Chief Divine! The Ancestor Priest is truly generous! Tsk tsk, as a Great Chief Shaman, one should have such a bold demeanor!"...

Ali said with a smile, leading his horse to find Zuwaro. As he walked along the edge of the camp, he saw a long row of large ships anchored in the harbor outside the camp. Among them, there were not only ten newly captured Japanese guan ships, but even six ship barriers that had been dragged ashore were back in the water.

"Squeak... creak... crack..."

A dozen Japanese craftsmen were busy along the shoreline with the fleet, repairing the Kingdom’s damaged large ships. They patched the hull breached by bed crossbows, cleaned the smoke-blackened decks, mended damaged rudders, and various ship components Ali couldn’t name. More Japanese sailors, under the supervision of the Kingdom’s Warriors, assisted the craftsmen, seemingly very docile, adapting quickly to reality.

"Ten, twenty, thirty... a hundred... two hundred..."

Ali squinted slightly, counting two hundred Japanese sailors and over a hundred Kingdom’s Warriors on the ships. Just these sixteen large ships occupied more than half of the Kingdom’s Warriors. And with the monk soldiers in the camp and the sailors on the ships, there were nearly five hundred captured Japanese, close to the total number of warriors mobilized by the Kingdom. Should all these Japanese captives be taken back to the Kutadai Port? And what about those purchased Japanese craftsmen?...

"Oh Chief Divine! These Japanese tribes are indeed numerous, even more so than the Ainu people! With so many, will there be a separate Japanese division among the Kingdom Port’s factions in the future?..."

Ali furrowed his brow, pondering silently for a moment. The knowledge of different tribal origins and the distinction of non-tribal members was a legacy of over a hundred years of Confucianism passed down to the Shushu Jurchen tribes by the Great Ming. However, this identity barrier seemed nonexistent or hardly noticeable in the Kingdom. The recognition of oneness with the Gummy People and the faith in the Hummingbird Chief Divine were the foundation of the Kingdom’s self-identity.

"Ali! You’re back!"

"Yes! Ancestor Priest, I’ve returned!"

"The Chief Divine protects! You came just in time! I have a task that requires you to make a trip, as cavalry is faster..."

Before the bonfire, Zuwaro smiled, extending his hand, tossing Ali a wineskin filled with spicy tequila. Then, he patted Ali’s shoulder, pointing northeast, and instructed.

"Go to the Beiyu Cold Shore Division, 80 li away, and invite the chieftain and leaders to come, riding your horses..."

"Invite them to participate in the victory sacrificial rite after this battle! It’s set for three days later..."

"We must quickly host the conversion ceremony for the captives, have them convert to the Chief Divine, and filter out the unreliable sincere believers among them..."

"Then, the fleet must swiftly set out, returning to Divine Kutadai Port before the waters freeze in November! The long winter is approaching..."

Saying this, Zuwaro gazed southeast, the white snow-capped peak of Yangti Mountain calmly gazing back at him, facing the deep white seaside. The early winter snowflakes seemed to dance in the expansive Ezo land. Who knows how cold this winter would be. But with the Chief Divine’s protection, the bear raised two years ago had grown, and the Ainu’s Bear Spirit Festival was soon to arrive~~