Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

Aweit clenched his teeth, the pain rendered him speechless. The High Priest had once suggested that he drink special holy water before the ceremony, which he flatly refused; now, he somewhat regretted that decision.

"Release the hummingbird as tribute to the Guardian God!" Looking at the King's performance, Quetzal's face was stern, yet a smile lingered in his heart. The days were long, and he would eventually have the opportunity to make the King take the holy water. And the holy water was the perfect tool to control the King.

This was the final step. The Elder Priests handed a red hummingbird over to the King. Aweit reached out with his right hand and gently let go. The hummingbird traced a path of red lightning, soaring from the blood-red Great Temple towards the golden sun. From death to the sun, this was the destiny the Mexica believed in.

The nobility and samurai cheered and bowed once more. The sacred steps were completed, and under the approval of the Chief Divine, King Aweit was officially enthroned!

After the cheering of the masses, envoys from each State stepped forward in order, presenting their State's tribute. This coronation ceremony had been somewhat rushed; many tribute items were still being collected or transported to the capital. The envoys only presented symbolic gifts to the Great Temple.

The Aztec Empire was centered around a tri-city capital, similar to the administrative organization of the Huaxia's Yin Dynasty, also fitting the Celestial Empire's concept of the "Five Domains."

"As ordained by our ancestors: within the State is the royal domain, beyond it, the noble's domain." The entire Alliance could simply be divided into: the Royal Reserve, the Internal Domain, and the External Domain.

The Texcoco Lake District of the three capital cities was the Royal Reserve, the remaining seven States of the Mexica were the Internal Domain. Further away, the subdued Vastec, Mistec, and Zapotecs were the External Domain, while the neighboring Tarasco, Tlaxcala, and Otomi were the border States.

"Within a hundred li, tribute is demanded, within two hundred li knives are offered, within three hundred li straw apparels, within four hundred li millet, within five hundred li rice."

Similar to the Huaxia's "Five Domains" era, in a Stone Age with low productivity and no large livestock, long-distance transport was extremely difficult. The Alliance's levy on tributes had to be adjusted according to distance, also varying according to the city-state's resources.

As the High Priest Quetzal loudly declared, dozens of City Lords from the Mexica's states came forward one by one with respectful demeanors. Due to their proximity, the internal domain usually provided larger quantities of lower-cost items, more inclined to the needs of ordinary warriors and military nobility.

The plains city-states provided a large supply of crops, including corn, beans, pumpkins, herbs, sweet peppers, and cocoa. There was also an assortment of meats, such as deer, turkeys, household rabbits, dogs, wild ducks, quail, honey, as well as river prawns and ant eggs.

The forest city-states supplied a variety of timbers including sandalwood and pine rosin for burning, charcoal for heating, and planks for construction. Xiulote paid attention to the mentioned sturdy hardwoods like ironwood and oak, excellent materials for making high-quality longbows.

The mountain city-states provided various stones, including obsidian for crafting stone tools, granite and volcanic rock for construction, and limestone for engineering. Alongside the stone were affordable tin ores, daily use rock salts, and high-quality clay.

All city-states provided various cotton blankets. The sizes ranged from one meter to several meters, lavish and diverse in style. The edges of the blankets were adorned with various silks and feathers, while the blankets themselves portrayed images that reflected the aesthetic preferences of the Mexica people.

Xiulote carefully observed, the most common motif was the symbolic skull, followed by the valiant eagle and the jaguar, then the grand sun, and the serpent symbolizing the Feathered Serpent Divine.

The river-side city-states presented the King with blankets densely stitched with duck down, making them exceptionally soft and comfortable. Aweit touched them and nodded in satisfaction, deciding to take them back for his beloved daughter.

The northern city-states inherited the Toltec's craftsmanship. They could weave various exquisite and luxurious garments. Typically, the front of the clothes would string bright feathers, the back embroidered with exquisite flowers, and the shoulders and hems were embedded with gleaming gold, silver, and gemstones. These garments would ultimately be awarded to the King and the wives and concubines of the nobility.

Aweit specifically kept several small women's luxury dresses.

The southern city-states, close to the rainforest, contributed a large amount of exotic fruits including pineapples, bananas, custard apples, chirimoyas, pomegranates, avocados, and plums. Along with the fruits came various beautiful flowers, especially potted roses that were the brightest. Some were purple, others a soft red, some white as snow, all with a rich and elegant fragrance.

Aweit nodded and accepted them too. He planned to create an extra rose garden in Montezuma Palace, for Alisa to enjoy.

The border city-states focused more on military equipment, their tributes were various cotton armors, shields, and javelins. The cotton armor was compressed into several dense layers, front mounted with tough crocodile skin, and the back decorated with feathers. Most shields were woven from wooden strips, or with more challenging rattan. Leather-covered wooden shields were more expensive. The drapes of the shields were attached with various colored feathers. Javelins were usually made of wood, their tips charred with fire. Advanced javelins were fitted with sharp stone blades.

From these tribute equipments, Xiulote could discern the military readiness of the Empire's border...