Chapter 298: The Vast North

The afternoon sun penetrates the clouds after the rain and shines on the humid wasteland, evaporating a touch of water vapor. Summers on the northern plateau are always dry, and without the accumulation of plants, the moisture on the soil surface usually cannot be retained for too long. Water is the most precious resource.

Only where streams and springs flowed could crops be grown, tribes fed, and large armies transported. For thousands of years, fighting in the north has always revolved around water. The blood moistens the fertile soil by the river and makes the rare green color more vivid.

Thousands of Mexican legions marched across the dry land, raising clouds of smoke that could be seen from a distance. The high wolf flag fluttered in the center of the military formation, and Shulot wore strong medium armor and moved forward under the escort of the bronze-armored soldiers. He looked around. The faces of the guards were flushed by the sun, and beads of sweat oozed out. He looked behind him. As the army marched, countless drops of sweat fell on the wasteland, and soon evaporated away, leaving only a few white particles.

The army marched tenaciously for many days and covered more than three hundred miles. The scenery along the way was like the same ink painting. The smooth road in the northern wasteland is endless, with only the towering peaks in the east gradually falling behind. Soon, the red sun set low, and today's march came to an end. The warriors found a place to camp by a stream with more plants, and took the time to get water for cooking.

"Bertard, it seems that the biggest difficulty in fighting in this northern land is not the canine descendants, but the long food roads and dry land!"

The king raised the kettle and poured several large mouthfuls of cool salt water. He let out a contented sigh before looking around with emotion.

A shallow stream flows down from the Sierra Madre Mountains in the east, and it flows here with difficulty, finally adding some life to the earth. Around the stream, yucca flowers are in bloom. Tall flower spikes protrude from the sword-shaped leaves, and white flowers bloom brightly on the flower spikes, like white bells. There are a few small dots crawling on the white bell. Shulot stepped forward curiously, but suddenly there was the same white yucca moth, busy pollinating the flowers.

At this time, the sun was setting in the west, and the red sunset dyed half of the sky. The sky is brilliant, the mountains are majestic, the plateau is vast, the fragrance is fragrant, and the flowers are blooming right in front of you!

The king stopped and looked at it quietly for a long time, a feeling of conquest welling up in his heart.

"The plateau is vast and the mountains and rivers are picturesque. This northern land is boundless, but I don't need to build a Great Wall, I just need to hold them all in my hands!"

After hearing the king's declaration, Bertard stood quietly behind his highness without taking off his clothes and armor. When His Highness looked at him again, he smiled and spoke, with warning hidden in his words.

"Your Highness, this march is actually not difficult. There are many rivers from the eastern mountains to the west, and the local Otomi guides pointed out the roads and water sources for us. The really difficult march is to cross Pamus State and enter Guaqui The home of the Li people, the two-thousand-mile-wide Colavea Wasteland! The water resources there are even scarcer, the supplies are even more scarce, and the terrain is complicated and there is no guide. Any large-scale march will be a disaster!"

Hearing this, Shulot was stunned and sighed slightly.

The Colavea Wilderness is the birthplace of the Guakili people, and further north is the U.S.-Mexico border, New Mexico and Texas.

In Xiulote's vague memory, although Colavea is extremely dry, it is the mining center of North Mexico. There are not only large gold and silver deposits there, but also huge open-pit coal mines, as well as open-pit iron mines whose specific locations are unknown. But with the logistical capabilities of this era, it is simply an impossible task to travel two thousand miles north to the wilderness to develop the minerals in Colavea.

"Bertard, I understand what you mean! This land is barren and barren, and it is too far away from the Mexica Alliance. There is no way to occupy it at this time, and it is not worth occupying. The purpose of this northern expedition is to fight the Guakili people , kill and injure their warriors, plunder their Dingkou, and then destroy the tribal alliance of the Dogmen! The large-scale military operations of the coalition will be restricted to the Palms State!"

After marching for more than ten days, the king witnessed the desolation and vastness of the North with his own eyes, and once again clarified the goal of the Northern March. The Northland is infinitely vast and cannot be controlled without fast-moving cavalry. And once they have horses, the canine descendants in the north will become a serious problem for the empire. Everything must be laid out in advance and the pieces must be placed early. In places where the Legion cannot reach, only trade and religion are the keys to checking and balancing the North.

"Have all the captured prisoners been transported to the south?"

Shulot thought for a moment and then asked.

The army has now completely entered the territory of Parmus State, more than three hundred miles away from the mountain city. As the three-pronged legion swept out, good news from the front line continued to come. More than a dozen ordinary tribes of the Guakili people were destroyed by the coalition forces, and more than 15,000 canine tribes were wiped off the map. According to the figures reported by the warriors, more than 3,000 canine warriors were killed, and more than 8,000 young men and women were captured, while the casualties of the coalition forces were only a few hundred.

"Your Highness, the more than 8,000 people captured one after another have been escorted by the Otomi militiamen transporting food, and are concentrated in mountain towns in the south. Then, General Kuruka will arrange the subsequent journey to transport them through Leman River and sent to the hinterland of the kingdom. Finally, Marshal Orosh will personally distribute the canine Dingkou who can farm to the nobles and warriors who have been awarded the land according to the list. "

Bertard explained in detail. Guakili warriors have always been unruly. In the process of attacking the tribe, most of the senior red-haired warriors died in battle or fled. Therefore, most of the Guakili captives are ordinary tribesmen, and their destination is to become serfs of the kingdom. Only a small number of surrendered Guakili warriors will be absorbed by the kingdom's legion after they truly convert to the Lord God.

In fact, according to the degree of hatred of the Otomi people, when fighting against the Guakili dog people, almost no one is left alive. But the king gave a strict order and provided food for the captives. The Otomi legions knew the sacrifice tradition of the Mexica people, so they obediently handed over the captives. In order to appease the hearts of the Otomi warriors, Xiuluot selected the chiefs and heads of the dog tribe and sacrificed them to the Supreme Lord God in front of the generals.

Xiuluot nodded. He looked not far away and saw a desolate village located upstream of the stream. It was dinner time now. There was no smoke from cooking in the village, and no moving figures could be seen. Only faint bones were exposed around the village, and the clothes of the Otomi people were scattered nearby.

"On the way, the state of Pams was completely destroyed, and I don't know how many years it will take to recover."

Bertard shook his head. He had heard the report from the scouts and knew the brutality of the dog tribe. The dog tribes were brave and fierce, and the strong were respected. They didn't even care about the life and death of the old and weak in the tribe, so how could they care about the lives of the Otomi people? The remaining population of Pams State was probably lower than the previous estimate.

The two stood by the stream, watching the sunset while discussing the northern expedition. In the distance, several scouts were running from the north. They carried green flags representing victory, and it was obvious that there was another victory report.

August ended in the fight. The three armies were like galloping buffaloes, rushing towards the camp of the dog tribe, and then completely destroying all obstacles.

The roar of rocks falling into the lake always startled the birds in the pond. Faced with the threat of survival, the remaining dog tribes finally reacted. They reluctantly abandoned the fields that were about to be harvested, packed up their simple luggage, and fled to the north overnight. However, the birds returned to their nests, and the flying water birds had not given up yet. They gathered around the large tribes and listened to the arrangements of the leading birds.

In several fertile places in the state of Palms, the dog tribes gradually gathered in tens of thousands, forming a series of continuous camps. The eight major tribes each gathered their vassal tribes and mobilized thousands of warriors. The leaders of each tribe discussed day and night, quarreled and roared, and decided the future of nearly 100,000 Guakili people!