The night darkened gradually, and the moonlight was faint. Clusters of bonfires were lit along the coast. The aroma of roasted and cooked food spread between the mudflats and hills. The Royal Banner of the Black Wolf stood on a small hill, like a kind of solemn will, never moving an inch. At this mont, however, an additional bonfire was on the night hill, and a lot of grain fragrance wafted up in front of the fluttering flag.
Xiulote sat cross-legged in front of the fire, eating roasted soft corn tortillas and chatting with the nearby generals. After racking his brains, the Surrendered General Papu finally spoke up. He mumbled and beat around the bush for a while, then began to talk about the geography of the Seaside Lands.
"Your highest of highnesses! The thousand-mile Seaside and Jungle Lands can rely on four inland waterways, running from west to east, mainly the Earthen Great River of Golden Bay City, the White Hill Great River east of Coyote City, the Hidden Snake Great River of Hidden Serpent City, and the Sunrise Great River of Sunrise Village..."
"Among these, the Earthen Great River links four large city-states. Its specific course is the Golden Bay City River Mouth — Conical House City — Feather Bird City — Mud River City — upstream Mistec Plateau Valley. The lower reaches along this great river are firmly controlled by the Kingdom, counted as the heartland of the new Seaside Alliance!..."
"Next, the White Hill Great River winds and turns, connecting three large city-states through its downstream tributaries. The river mouth of White Sand Village — Ke Shi City — Coyote City — Rabbit Hill City — upstream Zapotek Valley. Its tributaries pass through the Third Ancient Olc City, Zapotes. The Kingdom has also basically taken the lower reaches of this great river, and the jungle tribes upstream have mostly been intimidated by the Kingdom’s might..."
"Further east, the Hidden Snake Great River connects two large city-states, even connecting to the boundless Great Lake between north and south! Hidden Serpent City River Mouth — the ruins of the First Ancient Olc City — Grass Altar City — upstream jungle tribes — further upstream Zapotek Coast tribes. The middle and lower reaches of this great river, Grass Altar City, have been captured by the Kingdom, and the sacred site of sacrifice at the First Ancient City ruins is also under the Kingdom’s control!..."
"More to the east, the Sunrise Great River, along with the Red River of Red Lake Town, connects the upstream river systems and the mountain forest Zoque tribes. The river’s route is the mouth of Sunrise River/Red Lake Town — the ruins of the Second Ancient Olc City La Venta/Sky City ruins — Peaceful Water City — Source Water City..."
"As for the Fourth Ancient Olc City, Hill City, it is connected to Lake Sacrifice City by waterway. These two city-states on the western side of the Great Divine Mountain are not connected to any large water systems, relatively isolated, and both are under the Kingdom’s control..."
The Surrendered General Papu extended his finger and drew the approximate flow of the four water systems in the mud in front of the bonfire, marking the positions of the four Olc Ancient Cities. As a High Priest, he indeed inherited the oldest priestly knowledge. The most valuable of this knowledge was the information on mountains, hydrology, and geography, which was most valuable for military expeditions.
"Respected highness! The Kingdom wishes to rebuild the Olc Holy City; it ought to choose one of the four Olc city-site ruins for reconstruction. In the eyes of the Seaside tribes, jungle tribes, and even the Maya tribes, the most undisputed, ancient, sacred Ancestral Holy City must naturally be the oldest and original ancient city, the first powerful Jiao people city-state... that is the First Ancient Olc City, 160 li southwest of Hidden Snake City, 40 li north of Grass Altar City!..."
Speaking of this ancient sacred city-state ruin, the Surrendered General Papu couldn’t help but be filled with passion. He expressed his excitent and recited the long-inherited sacrificial poetry, praising from the heart.
"Ah! Praise the Ancient Divines, who are the dawn of the First Era! Thousands of years ago, the All Gods erged from the Jungle and stopped there for the first ti!... On the fertile soil by the riverside, the Divines illuminated the Sun, and bestowed the Divinity of the sky and starry river to the Ancient Saints, establishing the first sacred ancient city... And those dozens of tall Divine stone sculptures are the faces of the Divines and Ancient Saints, converging and transmitting the Divine legacy of thousands of years to this day..."
"Thousands of years ago?"
Hearing such expression, Xiulote raised his eyebrows and asked with a bit of surprise.
"Papu, do you know how long this First Ancient Olc City has specifically been inherited?"
"Uh... Your Highness, let calculate. This ancient city also has the long calendar stone tablets, a series of the oldest calendar numbers. In fact, the ancestors of the Maya people also originate from the First Ancient City. And their long calendar stone tablets are the testant of this legacy..."
The Surrendered General Papu lowered his head, drawing dots and lines in the mud, calculating the 20-base long Era calendar. This chronological calculation is not easy, and it has gradually begun to be lost amid the warfare among various Maya factions, Seaside tribes, and jungle tribes. After a while, the Surrendered General Papu finally reached a definitive answer. In front of the generals and Samurai, he suddenly bead with confidence and shouted loudly.
"Blessed by the Chief Divine! Divine favors His Highness! The establishnt of this First Ancient City, up till now, has passed through 7 Baktuns and 4 Ka’tuns and 12 Tuns!... Among these, 7, 4, 12 are auspicious numbers, while 7, 5, 0 is of Great Prosperity! From Auspicious to Great Prosperity, it’s in these eight years... which ans, this is the blessing of the Chief Divine! Within eight years, the most ancient First Ancient Olc City will be revived in His Highness’s hands!..."
"Hmm? An eight-year term, from Ji to Great Prosperity?..."
Observing Papu’s familiar actions, Xiulote’s eyes flickered briefly, remaining noncommittal. He silently calculated, a Baktun being 400 years, a Ka’tun Year 20 years, and a Tun Year 1 year. 7 Bak’tuns, 4 Ka’tun Years, and 12 Tun Years together add up to 2892 years ago, and now it’s 1491... Which ans, according to Papu’s priestly heritage, this ancient First Ancient City was initially established in 1402 BC, precisely during the early Shang Dynasty of Huaxia, a truly ancient city!
In fact, the current site of the First Ancient City, in later generations, is referred to as the San Lorenzo-Tenochtitlan site. It indeed was established in the 14th century BC, during the period of the Shang dynasty in Huaxia. This is an extrely large site, similar to the Great City or Yin ruins, a political, economic, and religious cultural center of the ancient Olc Era, and the oldest large City-State unearthed in later Central Arica!
Therefore, the establishnt of this First Ancient City marks the true rise of the Olc civilization, also the first spark of civilization among the various tribes in Central Arica! It predates the jungle-based Maya civilization and the highland Teotihuacan civilization by over a thousand years, undoubtedly the cultural ancestor of all tribes in Central Arica!
As for this so-called Great Prosperity, eight years later in the 7 Baktuns 5 Ka’tun Years, it would be exactly 2900 years... Of course, for the priests of various tribes, whether it is auspicious or inauspicious often depends on the diviner or the one conducting the sacrificial rite...
"May the Chief Divine witness! The First Ancient City of the Olc Era, established nearly three thousand years ago, is indeed the most suitable Olc Holy City!"
After detailed contemplation, Xiulote finally made the decisive decision, selecting this most ancient First Ancient City as the rebuilt Olc Holy City, as the sacred ancestral land shared by all tribes, to unite the hearts of all tribes!
"May the Chief Divine bless! After being dormant for nearly three thousand years, the Olc First Ancient City is destined to flourish again under the Kingdom’s rule as the ’Holy City Ancestral Land’!"
Under the bright moon and starry river, Xiulote stood up, raised the Divine Staff in his hands, and loudly announced to the gathered generals. In witness of the Divine Mountain, the generals also lowered their heads and responded in unison.
"Praise the Chief Divine! May the Divine bless the Holy City Ancestral Land! May the Divine bless the Alliance, Kingdom, and Your Highness!..."
At this mont, the ancestral land of the world, the origins of the tribes, was designated by the king on the hill under the foot of the Divine Mountain. Xiulote’s eyes glead brightly, seemingly shining with divine splendor. He then looked towards the surrendered general Papu, who lowered his head with hesitation, not daring to look directly, and solemnly asked.
"Papu, in the myths of the Seaside Lands, what is the na of this First Ancient City?"
"Uh... Your Supre Highness! This ancient city is the dwelling place of the All Gods and the foundational site of all saints. In the ancient heritage tablets, it bears only two specific pictorial symbols, one being ’the Original Ancient City’, and the other ’the Ancestor’s Holy City’! Also, in the sacrificial hymns of various tribes, it is extensively praised for its ’ancient’ and ’sacredness’... As for the specific na used by the Olc people thousands of years ago, it cannot be depicted on the heritage tablets, nor recorded in ancient sacrificial poems, and is known to none..."
"Oh? ’The Original Ancient City’? ’The Ancestor’s Holy City’? ’Ancient’ and ’sacred’?!..."
Hearing this, Xiulote lowered his gaze, naturally coming up with a na. Inexplicably, he felt a sense of ancient destiny, a grand pursuit! Of course, so-called destiny and pursuit do have a traceable source. After all, all future imagination stands on the mysterious ancient ruins, stemming from these ’lost’ civilizations...
After a brief reminiscence, Xiulote smiled faintly, his eyes deep and tiworn. He glanced around at the people, and under the witness of the bright moon, starry river, and Divine Mountain, he established the na of the ancient city, also taking on a certain unknown destiny and causation shared by the people!
"Praise the Chief Divine! Good! Very good!... In that case, this First Ancient City to be rebuilt, this Olc Era Holy City, shall be called the ’Ancient Holy City’!..."
User Comments
0 comments from readers