Chapter 346 Cactus

The end of October is always solemn and drifting. It is the chilly wind on the wasteland, and the leaves drifting everywhere in the long wind.

The next few days were uneventful. More than 15,000 southern coalition troops marched in a mighty force and set up camp outside the entrance of the Palms Valley. Afterwards, the Guamare Corps continued to attack the entrance of the valley, consuming wood, stones and logs, and destroying the fences of the camp. The Royal Guard Corps guarded the flag of the Black Wolf and established the Mexica main camp on the hills with sparse trees and difficult to burn.

At this moment, the king was sitting in the main camp. While sorting out the lists of various states in his hand, he was thinking about the next military plan. It is called a list, but it is actually the genealogy of Otomi nobles/clan painted with long flags, feathers and family crests.

Bertard looked calm and stood silently. His eyes sometimes fell on the list, which had many strange markings and symbols, mainly red "X" and "O".

Xiu Luote opened yesterday's battle report, calmly marked the fallen nobles with "X", and then marked the outstanding warriors with "O". He also had another atlas at hand, recording the land and population numbers of each noble/clan. These data are not accurate at present, just some vague estimates with complicated sources.

Now, the three northern states have established a new archdiocese of the Lord God and reported to the capital in the lake, with the old priest Ort as the chief priest of the three states. The Church of the Original God is undergoing a comprehensive transformation and merging with the Church of the Lord God. It won't be long before more priests will come from the kingdom and be sent to various parts of the three states. They will go deep into each tribe to preach and count more specific cultivated land area and population. If the kingdom wants to rule the unruly northern tribes, it must start with registration.

The big tent was quiet for a long time. Suddenly, a fierce noise sounded from the periphery of the main camp, followed by a rapid shout of killing.

Bertard instantly grasped the bronze sword, his eyes became sharp. He strode out of the tent to check and made a guard gesture. Tels came in with a dozen guards holding large shields, covering the surroundings of His Highness.

The sun fell from the ceiling of the tent, facing the king's desk. Xiuluot's expression remained unchanged, and he continued to look at the atlas. After a while, the shouting and killing outside the tent quickly stopped, and after a few shouts, it turned into intermittent screams.

After a while, Bertard returned from outside the tent calmly and brought back a warrior captain who was managing prisoners.

"Hmm?"

"Your Highness, just now a red-haired team of dog race sneaked in and attacked a prisoner camp, and was then repelled by the guards."

The warrior leader replied in a deep voice.

"Oh?"

Xiuluot put down the book in his hand and looked up.

"What's the situation now?"

Bertard patted the warrior captain. The other party immediately knelt on the ground, looking ashamed.

"Your Majesty, two quarters of an hour ago, fifty or sixty red-haired people suddenly emerged from the forest on the east side and attacked the outermost prisoner camp. The prisoners in the camp also clamored at the same time. The warriors killed seven or eight red-haired people, but a prisoner with four slaps escaped in the chaos."

"Which tribe did the enemy come from?"

"The Red Frog scout identified the body and said it was the Red Crow tribe."

"It's the Red Crow again. How many casualties did the warriors have?"

"The enemy's attack was extremely sudden, and the warriors also... also suffered about ten casualties."

"Well, how to deal with it later?"

"A team of 100 people has brought the priest Xiuluo Yiz Kunli and is chasing in the forest. There are more than 200 prisoners in the camp. If four slaps escape, the barbarians with four slaps will be beheaded. The rest of the prisoners will all be whipped ten times!"

"Well. Very good, you can go down!"

The captain of the warriors bowed to the ground and saluted, and left respectfully.

Xuluot stood up and paced slowly in the big tent.

In the Mexica Legion, the war priests accompanying the army would domesticate a small number of Mexican hairless dogs, namely Xoloitzcuintli. "Xolo" refers to the god of death, and "Itzcuintli" means dog, together they mean "dog of the god of death". This medium-sized dog is not particularly powerful in combat, but has a very important religious status. In Mexica mythology, they are the guides of the underworld and can lead the souls of the dead, so they are also very important sacrificial animals.

"Bertard, let the pursuit team come back and don't fall into an ambush."

The king pondered for a moment and gave an order calmly.

"Draw out a thousand warriors from the Otopan Legion and immediately escort 4,000 prisoners south, all the way to the mountain city of Otopan."

In the past few days, the coalition army has been heading north. Led by the guides of Palms and the red frog scouts, the main army cleared the mountains and forests along the way.

A large number of the Guajili tribe that was defeated in the night attack were captured, and more than 4,000 dog warriors were captured. These warriors are the elite of the Eastern Dog Clan, familiar with the life in the wasteland, and accustomed to blood and killing. When they recovered from their fear of the skyfire, they became an unstable factor in the camp.

Xiuluot didn't have time to identify the identities of these warriors one by one, so he simply packed them up and shipped them back to the south.

"Yes, Your Highness."

Bertard immediately went out of the tent to arrange the staff.

"Ters, you guys go out too!"

"Yes, Your Highness."

The loyal shield guards bowed their heads and saluted, and returned to guard outside the tent.

The king walked to the corner of the big tent and looked at the muddy ground. There was a pear cactus, the most common in the wasteland. Most of this cactus was cut off by the stone axe of the Dog Clan, leaving only the remaining thorn stems, which were still growing stubbornly. In the food-scarce northern land, cactus is like tofu in the hometown, the most common daily food.

"The dog descendants in the wilderness, like the cactus in the north, survive in the most barren land. They are tenacious and strong, with strong vitality and sharp thorns."

Xuluot looked at it for a moment and whispered to himself.

"But when you pick the cactus, remove the sharp thorns on the surface, and chew it in your mouth, you will know how crisp and delicious it is."

Thinking of the taste of cactus, the king smiled and continued to sit cross-legged. He opened the atlas of each army and counted the troops in his hands.

When the expedition started in early August, the Royal Guard Corps was full of 6,000 people. Then in the battle in March, more than 1,000 people were lost. Mainly when the Black Wolf attacked the Red Fox Valley, 800 people were lost in one battle. Afterwards, he recruited the Otomi warriors of the three states and selected hundreds of Guakili captives to fill the legion again.

The Otomi Corps of the three states suffered considerable casualties in the continuous battles. There are still 6,000 of the 8,000 Otopan warriors, and only a little over 1,000 of the 3,000 Pams warriors. 1,000 of the 5,000 Guamare warriors were left in the Red Fox Valley, and more than 1,000 were lost. Now there are less than 3,000.

In addition to the loss of warriors, the nobles of each state also suffered heavy casualties, leaving a large area of ​​hereditary territory vacant. How to arrange these territories is the key to establishing the kingdom's rule.

"Buzz!"

Xuluot was thinking, and was suddenly interrupted by a low humming sound. He listened for a moment, a smile appeared on his face, and he put down the atlas in his hand and waited patiently.

Sure enough, a moment later, the curtain of the big tent was lifted again, and Chief Chalkki walked in cautiously, saluting His Highness and the chief warrior in turn.

"Your Highness, I greet you!"

"Chalkki, how is the legion?"

"Your Highness, the twelve stone-throwing wooden beasts have been assembled and are being tested."

Chalkki knelt on the ground, looking extremely respectful.

"How did the Red Monkey Tribe who were guarding the camp react?"

"Somewhat panicked. Their chieftain appeared in person and calmed the troops."

"Continue to test fire and familiarize yourself with the range. When we attack the camp later, the stone-throwing wooden beasts may be useful."

Hearing this, the middle-aged chief paused slightly. He looked up at His Highness and asked tentatively.

"Your Highness, you said 'maybe'?"

"Well, maybe."

The king nodded, looking confident.

"If the catapult can be used, it will take more effort, lose more warriors, and take fewer prisoners. If it can't be used, it will be the other way around."

The gunpowder weapons in the legion still have the scale of a battle left, enough to burn down the camp at the entrance of the valley. Before the dog tribes fully adapt to the sky fire and thunder, it is not difficult to capture the entrance of the valley. The real difficulty is how to prevent the dog tribes from escaping and consume or capture the young men of each tribe to the greatest extent. To a certain extent, the great leader Chichika, who can force each tribe to fight to the death, has solved the most difficult tactical problem of the coalition.

Chalki's eyes flickered, chewing on His Highness's words repeatedly.

Xiuluot's expression remained unchanged, and he asked again.

"Chalki, how is the legion doing?"

The middle-aged chief was stunned for a moment, and then his face showed a sudden realization. He lowered his voice.

"Your Highness, the legion attacked the entrance of the Three Days Valley, and lost more than a dozen nobles who were unwilling to convert."

"Are the rest willing to convert?"

"Yes."

"Very good. Then summon the Guamare nobles to hold a prayer ceremony for the Lord God next to the stone-throwing beast. I will send you a war priest, and it will be done tonight!"

"I obey your will, Your Highness."

"Go down and prepare!"

"Yes."

Chalki kowtowed in awe and left quickly.

Xiuluot looked at the back of the middle-aged chief and pondered again.

After the northern expedition, he would demarcate some direct territories in Otopan and Pams State, leaving a garrison in each. The vast Guamare State in the west will basically maintain the autonomy of the nobles. Therefore, for the nobles of Guamare, only conversion is required, and there is no need to clean up too many.

Up to now, the political goal of the Northern Expedition has been basically completed, and the kingdom has achieved preliminary control over the three states of Otomi. The stubborn nobles who resisted the alliance and conversion in the three states have been almost cleaned up. Both Chalki and Giova have taken control of the situation, and gradually become leaders of the legion who are not worthy of the name. The remaining economic and military goals are to capture as many dog-born people as possible, enrich the foundation of the kingdom, establish forward bases, and control the surrounding tribes.

Thinking of this, Xiu Luote looked to his side.

"Bertard, how is our poet?"

"Your Highness, the poet is still in the enemy camp, negotiating."

"Well. Let the poet relay my words: the wooden beast of the Lord God has arrived, and the Lord God's people are about to be killed. The Lord God's anger cannot be suppressed and will destroy everything. The conditions for surrender are the same as those of the red frog, forming a separate army with a strength of 3,000 people. Give him two days. If he does not make a decision, the legion will summon the sky fire and capture the valley camp. At that time, everyone will be sacrificed!"

"Your will is the destined future."

The warrior leader bowed his head and left silently again.

The king stood up and slowly came to the corner of the camp. He looked at the broken cactus and suddenly smiled brightly.

"Come here!"

The guards immediately rushed in and bowed their heads to obey.

"Deal with this cactus, add oil to the copper pot and fry turkey eggs. I want to eat it in the evening!"