Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!
Chapter 834 - 461: Medical Enlightenment and Priest Heritage

Chapter 834: Chapter 461: Medical Enlightenment and Priest Heritage

The log was deeply nailed into the ground, and a sturdy frame was built. On the frame, a wild deer was firmly tied, limbs spread out, clearly revealing its body and abdomen. At this moment, the injured deer let out a miserable cry, its body undulating and struggling, but it had not died yet.

Female warrior Nashu stood beside, exerting force with her arms, easily pressing down the shaking deer head. The struggling deer soon exhausted its strength in the continuous loss of blood, becoming immobile and a specimen.

The short obsidian dagger was swift, and Xiulote’s hand was steady. He precisely cut open the deer’s skin, severing the muscles, revealing the deer’s rhythmically beating heart without injuring the arteries or the still-breathing lungs above the heart.

"Alisa, my beloved. In Navajo, we never speak of organs separately, such as eyes, nose, ears, mouth, and teeth. Instead, we say, my eyes noinixteyotl, my nose noyacatzotl, my ears nonacas, my mouth nocamac, and my teeth notlancoch."

Xiulote contemplated for a moment before explaining, starting from traditional Navajo concepts and gradually integrating modern medical knowledge.

"The reason we speak this way is precisely because body parts cannot exist independently. They are not separate entities but need to be connected together to form a living whole... Just like all my organs and body parts are connected, forming multiple systems, and then forming me."

"Xiulote, I understand! You mean organs and their respective systems collectively form ’tonacayo,’ which is our entire body! And as the priests said, the vitality in our body comes from the sun, corn, and water!"

Alisa blinked her eyes, showing an understanding smile. She looked expectantly at Xiulote, waiting for her lover’s praise.

In Navajo, ’tonacayo’ refers to the combination of all organs, representing the complete body. But this word can also metaphorically refer to ’complete corn’ and ’the warmth of the sun.’ The meaning of ’tona’ is the sun. In traditional concepts, the human body corresponds to corn and more so to the warmth of the sun. Therefore, whenever the alliance sacrifices to the Sun God or prays for a corn harvest, human sacrifices are needed.

"Indeed! Tonacayo is the human body. And within the entire body, there are nine organ systems, each responsible for different bodily functions."

Xiulote paused for a moment, deciding to simplify the concept of human systems as much as possible, using the language understandable in this era. He steadily extended the short dagger as a teaching pointer, drawing on the deer’s body.

"Alisa, look, inside this deer, there are many organs. In its head, there is the brain for thinking; its limbs have numerous muscles for running fast; beneath the neck is the chest’s lungs, which are breathing; below the lungs is the heart, pumping blood; next to the heart is the deep red liver, brown-red stomach, then the light red intestines, and pale red kidneys... Together, they are responsible for digesting food and excreting; and in the deer’s lower abdomen, are the reproductive organs... well, this is a male deer!"

Xiulote’s expression froze, slightly surprised by the length as he observed a certain part of the male deer’s body. After a few moments, he lightly coughed and summarized.

"In summary, the brain thinks, muscles move, lungs breathe, the heart pumps blood, liver and intestines digest and excrete, and then reproduction. These are seven organ systems responsible for seven bodily functions!"

"Hehe, I understand, it’s quite easy to comprehend!"

Alisa stifled her laughter, glancing lightly and biting her lips. Well, tonight she would take good care of her lover... Then she thought for a while, confused, and asked.

"Xiulote, earlier, you mentioned nine systems in the human body. According to what you said, thinking, moving, breathing, blood circulation, digestion, excretion, and reproduction... that’s seven in total. So, what are the other two?"

"Hmm... The other two are not visible at a glance but are present throughout the body."

Xiulote thought for a moment and gave a not entirely accurate example.

"If we compare the human body to a kingdom and the body’s normal operation to the kingdom’s normal operation, then the eighth messenger system is like the kingdom’s running messengers. They transmit various instructions, telling large city-states and small villages when to plant in spring, harvest in autumn, pay tribute, mobilize, or go to war... Messengers convey orders, regulating all aspects of the kingdom, as well as the human body. From infancy, growing into adulthood, voice changes, body height, and having the ability to sing, all result from the messengers’ guidance."

Upon hearing this, Alisa’s eyes glistened. She fell into a long contemplation, believing every word her lover said, just needing time to comprehend. After a while, she softly asked.

"Xiulote, what are the messengers within the human body? How are they produced?"

"The messengers in the human body... are special vitality produced by organs, cells, or glands. They are tiny, not abundant but significantly impactful..."

Xiulote tried his best to organize the language, describing the concept of hormones in the human body. Then he took a breath and continued explaining the last immune system.

"As for the last immune system, it is the body’s defense system, used to resist the invasion of pathogenic microorganisms and recover from injuries and illnesses. They are equivalent to the kingdom’s warriors and militia. If external enemies invade, they gather from various parts of the kingdom to form a resistance army, fighting to the death with the invaders... The strength of the army determines the kingdom’s survival, and the strength of the defense system determines human life and death. When we get cut, the ability to resist infection and heal the wound, or recover from a cold, depend on the body’s immune system..."

Afterward, Xiulote glanced at his contemplating lover and added a few more sentences.

"In the body’s immune system, warriors and militia are certain special cells. Their production comes from special organs, especially bone marrow, thymus, and lymph... Simply put, the ability to resist and defend against diseases is called immunity, meaning to be free from disease. The so-called immune ability is a kind of... uh... special vitality!..."

Having finished, Xiulote looked expectantly at his lover.

"...Alisa, have you understood what I said about the human body’s messenger and immune systems?"

"Uh... I understand... a little bit."

Alisa widened her eyes, filled with confusion. She first placed her hand on her heart, made a gesture of understanding, then opened her white palm, curled her fingers one by one, and finally extended only half of her pinky finger.

"About a palm... no, a finger... uh... about a fingernail’s worth! Hehe."

Seeing his lover’s playful gesture, Xiulote felt a headache coming.

Although kingdom craftsmen have already ground out a few rare magnifying glasses made of invaluable natural transparent crystals, they are still far from inventing the microscope. Without high-magnification observation tools, there’s no actual visible evidence. Trying to directly popularize modern medical knowledge in this ignorant era is like building castles in the air, unlikely to last long.

Thinking about it, the only feasible way to quickly improve the alliance’s medical theory level is to combine the era’s priestly medical heritage and use traditional cognitive methods to understand and interpret!

Two steps away, Nashu was contemplating. She looked at the pondering prince and tentatively reminded.

"Your Highness, the special vitality produced by organs maintains the body’s operation and health... You mean the ’tonalli’ in the brain, the ’teyolia’ in the heart, or the ’ihiyotl’ in the liver?"

"Hmm? Tonalli, teyolia, ihiyotl?"

Upon hearing these familiar yet mysterious words, Xiulote was momentarily stunned and suddenly enlightened.

"Tonalli," "teyolia," and "ihiyotl," these three terms occasionally appear in sacred prayers, possessing very rich meanings. They symbolize three different special vitalities, passed down through generations in orthodox priestly education. They narrate the Aztec and Central American ancestors’ unique understanding of the human body and the world. If modern medical knowledge is to be widely accepted by people in this era, it cannot do without these heritages.

Xiulote contemplated slightly and made a decision in his heart. He smiled slightly, looked at the cool female warrior, and ordered solemnly.

"Nashu, you have received complete priestly education and learned witch doctor rituals. You shall first explain the priestly heritage’s interpretation of the human body!"