Chapter 572: Mixtec Land, the Yellow Bird Leading the Way

The clouds are rolling, and the sea breeze from the east carries moist water vapor; there are mountains and mountains, and the mountains and forests in the south are particularly green and dense.

At this moment, the faint smell of blood spread among the towering temples. Most of the once-high priests of the rain god turned into fallen corpses, and their souls went to the kingdom of God in the clouds. In the ancient temple, the tall rain god sat on the throne. With his deep golden eyes, He silently stared at these heavily armored northern warriors and the wilderness barbarians he had never seen before.

"More than 800 miles from north to south, more than 500 miles from east to west, with dangerous mountains in the eastern highlands, undulating lowland valleys in the west, and dense rain forests on the southern coast. This is the extremely vast Mixtec land! Two highland cities with more than 200,000 people Tribes; four cities in the lowlands, with a population of nearly 400,000; three cities on the coast, with a population of 300,000. Taken together, there are nine large city-states with more than 900,000 tribes! "

Hei Lang's eyes were blazing, looking at the young priest who showed his true feelings, and he was silent in his heart. He thought about the situation of the Eastern Expedition, and also worked hard to analyze the southern attack, accumulating experience for the inevitable southern expedition in the future.

The four states of Tlaxcala are small in size, densely populated, and have relatively flat terrain. Most of the Tlaxcala tribes are concentrated in the core Tlaxcala Valley and the holy city of Cholula. The Alliance army marched eastward. As long as it conquered the passes blocking the north and south, it would go straight into the heart of the old enemy and sweep across the important cities in the north and south. In other words, the various tribes in Tlaxcala must rely on checkpoints and city-states to hold on, fighting for every inch of territory, and there is no room for maneuver.

The Nine Mixtecs are quite different. Their alliance was more loose, the land was vast and the terrain was divided and rugged. Even the population of each tribe is scattered in various mountains and valleys. In the entire Mixtec Alliance, the nine city-states do not belong to each other, and there is no royal capital that is higher than each state and can be conquered in one go. To conquer all the city-states, from north to south, there are nine hundred miles of mountain roads!

The Black Wolf fought from north to south and from west to east for many years. Coupled with His Highness's patient teaching, his vision has changed from what it used to be.

"The Mixtec warriors are not strong. If they fight face to face, the kingdom's army can completely defeat them with one blow! But if they hide in the mountains and defend city-states and strongholds one by one, they will then send out small groups of warriors and militiamen to harass them. The army retreats."

Thinking of this, Hei Lang frowned and fell into deep thought. If the city-states were to be cleaned up one by one, one would not know how many troops would be needed and how many years would it take. He had a vague feeling that the Mixtec tribes might be somewhat similar to the Tekos people in the southwest mountains.

"Faced with such an opponent, military combat is no longer the biggest difficulty. The steep mountainous terrain, long marching distances, difficult food roads in the mountains, and the long-term maintenance of military presence are the real troubles! Forget it, like this This problem should be left to the wise His Highness or the King!"

After a while, Hei Lang shook his head vigorously. As his status rose, he thought more and more and felt more and more that the knowledge in his mind was not enough. But now, we still have to return to the mission given by His Highness when we went south this time.

".Collect intelligence from the south to deter the Mixtec ministries from moving north. If there is an opportunity, try to weaken the opponent's war potential as much as possible."

Black Wolf's eyes became cold again. He stretched out his left hand, grabbed the young priest's clothes, and looked directly into the other person's escaping eyes.

"tell me your name?"

".Respect the Commander of Mexica, I am the priest elder of the Temple of the Clouds, the descendant of the Tiger Claw King, and the sky god Andivi!"

The young priest Andiwei was a little afraid, but he still spoke his name with customary pride. In Mixtec, andivi is cloud, sky, descendant of the sky. This is a sacred name, and only descendants of gods with noble bloodline are qualified to inherit it.

"Are you, at such a young age, a priest or elder?"

Hearing this, Hei Lang was a little surprised. He thought of the alliance's priests and elders, who had not been tested, cunning, and accustomed to killings and blood sacrifices. And these Mixtec people, who have a long heritage, actually allow such a young god to occupy the position of priest and elder.

He shook his head slightly and continued to ask.

"How many warriors and militiamen are there in the Holy Stone City? When will other Mixtec tribes send reinforcements? How many reinforcements will there be from each country, and how long will it take to arrive?"

“.This, this.I.I don’t know.”

"Um?"

Black Wolf's expression turned cold. He stretched out his right hand and took the obsidian dagger handed to him by Red Frog Coca. The sharp blade flashed with the black light of sacrifice. Then, he grinned, and the black light stuck to the young priest's neck, bringing real death pressure.

"last chance."

"This, me"

Andiwei was sweating profusely and his face was extremely pale. His eyes drooped, and when he saw the corpse of the old priest leader again, his fingers trembled.

"I count three! Three! Two! One."

"Ah! I said it!"

The cold blade used a little force and scratched the skin of the neck, oozing out a faint blood red. Andiwei could no longer bear the suffering, and even cried with tears in his voice.

"There are five thousand warriors and ten thousand militiamen stationed in Shenshi City! In addition to the strong men from various tribes who have fled into the city, it is estimated that several thousand more people can be recruited!"

"Um"

Hearing this, Hei Lang raised his eyebrows. In addition to the 3,000 Mixtec warriors eliminated in the ambush, there are still 12,000 warriors and militiamen in Shenshi City. Such a force, relying on a solid city wall, can't be defended if it cannot be defended.

"What a pity! This time we went south, the mountains were rugged and difficult to travel, and it was the rainy season, so we couldn't carry the copper cannons that could bombard the city walls."

Black Wolf sighed in his heart. The Guajili Legion advanced lightly and attacked the Mixtecs in the rainy season. The entire army only carried one month's worth of food.

In order to maintain logistics, the 8,000-man army was divided into three groups, scattered in various parts of the valley to plunder. The army's food supply was difficult, and logistics had to rely on looting along the way. Even arrows were limited, not to mention the heavy copper cannons that could not be used in the rainy season. The walls of Shenshi City were six or seven meters high, the garrison had sufficient manpower, and the morale of the defenders was also high. If the other commander did not make a serious mistake, it would be difficult to take it down.

"What else?!"

". The highland Mixtecs are integrated, and the nobles of Yunshan City in the south must have received the news. Although their reinforcements are not many, only one or two thousand people, they should arrive within a few days."

"Yunshan City? Two or three hundred miles south?"

Black Wolf's eyes flashed, and he glanced at the map on the wooden board. Then, he pointed his finger southwest.

"So, how will the lowland Mixtec and Shanhe City react?"

"How do I know this?"

"Hmm?"

".Ah! Dear General, this time, the various tribes went north to contain the forces of the Mexica Alliance and rescue the Tlaxcalans. It was the leader of Shanhe City, the nominal Mixtec leader, the descendant of God, Yunchen (Yuchi) who called them together."

On the line between life and death, Andiwi's thoughts turned rapidly, bursting out with unprecedented intelligence and wisdom.

"The Tehuacan Valley was attacked, the God Stone City was in danger, and Shanhe City, more than 200 miles southwest, would also be threatened. What's more, the Temple in the Clouds fell, and the priests of various states would be terrified! Leader Yunchen would definitely call up warriors from various tribes in Shanhe City to withdraw the Mixtec Legion that had advanced."

Hearing this, Black Wolf nodded slightly. The Mixtec Legion that had advanced retreated with all its strength, and the major city-states gathered their troops to defend themselves. Naturally, the Mixtec people's containment of the southern army no longer existed.

"The warriors are gathering in Shanhe City, and it will take time to mobilize them. Before enough troops are gathered, the Mixtec warriors in the lowlands and the coast will probably not take the huge risk and sacrifice their lives to come to the rescue."

At this point, Andiwi felt sad. The Mexica people in the north are becoming more and more powerful, conquering all directions and invincible. Facing the terrible northern tiger, when will the divided Mixtec birds unite as one?

"Oh? There will be no large number of reinforcements in a short time."

The black wolf narrowed his eyes, and some thoughts flashed through his mind. Then, he asked coldly with murderous intent.

"Which tribes in the Tehuacan Valley have a large population and flat villages? Where are they located?"

"This me."

Andiwi shuddered. At this moment, he seemed to see endless fire and blood in the eyes of the Mexica commander.

"Speak!"

"Ah! There are about a dozen villages with more than a thousand people in the Tehuacan Valley. The largest villages even have thousands or tens of thousands of people. Their location is, is"

"Andiwi! You yellow bird who betrayed the tribe!"

Hearing this, a middle-aged priest captive could no longer bear it and roared angrily. He knew that Andiwi's next words would definitely include the name of his tribe. And after knowing these villages, it is obvious what the cruel Mexica people will do. As for the yellow bird, it has an ominous sign in traditional mythology.

"Think about your glorious ancestors! The immortal Tiger Claw King is in the kingdom of God, guarding our tribe! Look here! This is the sacred Cloud Temple, the holy place that the gods pay attention to! Andiwei! In front of the supreme rain god statue, how can you do this and bring shame to your ancestors and bloodline?! Aren't you afraid of the endless storms and divine punishment after death!"

"Huh?"

Black Wolf's eyes became sharp, and he looked at the voice and saw an extremely excited middle-aged priest. The priest wore a blue feather crown and seemed to have a high status. The surrounding priest captives all secretly centered on him.

Hearing the rebuke of the middle-aged priest, Andiwei's face showed shame. He lowered his head, trembling all over, and couldn't speak for a while.

"Haha!"

Black Wolf's handsome face showed murderous intent. He drew the bronze sword at his waist, took a step towards the middle-aged priest, and suddenly stopped. Then, he looked at the young Mixtec priest, and once again looked at his fear and shame, and the corners of his mouth gradually curled up, hooking a playful smile.

"Who is he?"

". The elder of the temple priests, the descendant of the mountain god, the flower Ita (ita)"

"Oh? Another elder priest. It seems that he is very dissatisfied with you."

Black Wolf smiled and nodded, patting Andiwei on the shoulder. Then, his expression became fierce, and he threw a sharp obsidian dagger at the feet of the young priest with a "ding" sound.

"I said, I will give you a chance to convert to the Lord God! And now, it is the test of your belief in the Lord God!"

As he said, Black Wolf stretched out his hand and pointed mercilessly at the middle-aged priest opposite, Elder Ita, who was tied up but still roaring.

"Andiwei! Right here, in front of the Rain God, go over and kill him!"