Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!
Chapter 835 - 462: The Legacy of the Witch Doctor: Tonali, Teyolia, Ihoter

Chapter 835: Chapter 462: The Legacy of the Witch Doctor: Tonali, Teyolia, Ihoter

By the hot spring, amidst the ancient forest, the white egrets fly high above the clouds, and the wild foxes cry softly among the grass. Armor-clad Imperial Guard Warriors wielding war clubs vigilantly patrol the perimeter. The noble ones gather around the dying stag, pondering and discussing, breathing new life into traditional Witch Doctor practices.

Nashu stood tall, her features refined and serene. Upon hearing the command from His Highness, she solemnly nodded, took a step with her long legs, and approached the dissected stag. Then, she extended her slender right hand, unbothered by the blood before her, and precisely grasped the dagger.

"Your Highness, Princess. According to the priestly tradition, every part of our body strictly corresponds with the days of the calendar. Within our bodies, the enlightenment of fate resides, connecting with the entire world."

Nashu’s expression was serious, her voice like smoke, slowly narrating. She spoke of the very foundation of Witch Doctor studies and the worldview of the priests, which is the correspondence between time, fate, and the human body!

"In the calendar, January has twenty days. The first day is auspicious, Crocodile Day, corresponding to the heart. Children born on this day receive the protection of the Divine, enjoying extraordinary fortunes. The second day, Wind Day, corresponds to the tongue. The third day, Palace Day, corresponds to the mind. The fourth day, Lizard Day, corresponds to the liver... these first four days of the month are all auspicious days blessed by the Divine, and they correspond to the most sacred organs in the human body."

Upon hearing this, Xiulote slightly nodded. According to traditional beliefs, the first four days are auspicious days, and the corresponding four organs harbor special powers.

The brain, heart, and liver are temporarily set aside; let’s first discuss the tongue. The leader of the Alliance is called the Great Speaker, "Tratuoani." The etymology of this name comes from the tongue, "Tlachtli," because, in people’s minds, the tongue holds the power to make the masses compliant, symbolizing the power of governance.

After speaking, Nashu paused slightly. She quietly glanced at the white-clad girl who was intently listening, and a faint smile appeared on her face.

"...In a month, there are several ominous days related to death. The ninth day, Water Day, corresponds to the skin. The tenth day, Dog Day, corresponds to the nose. The eleventh day, Monkey Day, and the twelfth day, Grass Day, corresponding to the intestines... These middle four days of the month harbor ominous omens. The organs corresponding to these four days indicate the proximity of death. Of course, there’s also the sixth day, Death Day, corresponding to the hair."

Upon hearing this, Xiulote slightly lowered his eyes. As someone who bears the title "God of Death," he was most familiar with these sayings. Wrinkles on the skin, the smell of age sensed by the nose, unstable and trembling hands and feet, difficulty in digestion, hair turning white... all are symbols of death in Nava teachings. Children born on these ominous days were often seen as cursed and might even be deliberately abandoned.

"Lastly, at the end of the month, there are neutral days neither auspicious nor ominous. The seventeenth day, Earthquake Day, corresponds to the teeth. The eighteenth day, Stone Knife Day, corresponds to the ears. The nineteenth day, Rain Day, corresponds to the eyes. The twentieth day, Flower Day, corresponds to the chest... These last four days symbolize a peaceful life, and children born on these days have ordinary lives. The corresponding organs do not bear special religious significance."

At this point, Nashu glanced at His Highness, smiling with complexity. She was born in those last four days, and her life should have been peaceful and ordinary. But after being selected by the Priesthood in her childhood, her fate changed completely, living only for another person from then on.

"Very good."

Xiulote nodded approvingly, then scrutinized the cold and elegant female warrior, commanding in a deep voice.

"Nashu, continue."

"At your command."

The female warrior bowed her head in salute. Then she muttered and chanted incomprehensible spells, facing the dead wild stag, she touched the stag’s head, heart, and liver, performing a simple soul-calming ritual.

"Your Highness, within our bodies, there are three special life forces, located in three sacred organs. They are: ’Tonali’ in the brain, ’Teyolia’ in the heart, and ’Ihoter’ in the liver!"

"’Tonali’ is situated in the head. When we are born, the Chief Divine grants it to us, placing it within our bodies. This life force controls our growth and arranges our fate. It dictates the vitality and vigor of the body as well as its aging and decay... Priests can influence ’Tonali’ by performing rituals to communicate with the Divine, consuming sacred mushrooms and herbs, even making it temporarily leave the body. When we die, ’Tonali’ remains in our skeletal remains, returning to the earthly soil..."

Upon hearing this, Xiulote stroked his chin, lost in thought.

The concept of ’Tonali’ in religion is akin to human divinity, while in medicine, it roughly corresponds to the nervous and endocrine systems, responsible for thinking, sensing, and body regulation... The inherited Witch Doctor studies emerged from these understandings and practices.

Through generations of practical experience by Witch Doctors and priests, they roughly understand the brain’s role in the human body. To affect the brain’s ’Tonali,’ they use Cactaceae, Mandragora, Psilocybe, Death Vine water, as well as Frog Poison, Scorpion Venom, Snake Venom... to gain mystical insights and treat diseases of the body and mind.

These drugs from plants and animals contain special alkaloids and hormones, capable of affecting the brain and the whole body, efficiently providing anesthesia, sedation, pain relief, antibacterial effects, and even completely altering a person’s mental state.

"Tonali... nervous and endocrine systems... corresponding drugs... Yes, Nashu, continue."

"’Teyolia’ resides in the heart, the seat of knowledge and vitality. It dictates human vitality and posthumous fate. When we die, ’Teyolia’ separates from the body, ascends to the Divine Kingdom’s sky, and enters the afterlife... The fate after death and ’Teyolia’s destination are determined by the manner of death, especially the heart’s final place. Therefore, sacred sacrifices not only satisfy the Heavenly Divine but also promise the Sacrificer’s afterlife..."

Xiulote’s expression grew solemn. The Alliance’s sacrificial rites greatly emphasize the human heart precisely because of the ’Teyolia’ within it. In religion, ’Teyolia’ can be seen as the soul. In medicine, ’Teyolia’ corresponds to the circulatory system. With this realization, the young man loudly inquired.

"Nashu, what have the Witch Doctors discovered in their study of ’Teyolia’?"

"Your Highness, ’Teyolia’ is infused in the blood, the source of vitality in the body. When a person is injured and loses too much blood, they lose vitality and even their soul. Thus, Witch Doctors strive to minimize blood loss during external injuries."

Nashu pondered, recalling common methods for stopping bleeding.

"Applying ink tree leaves, hot pepper grass, yucca juice, honey, or wads of spider webs to external wounds can effectively stop the bleeding. To prevent wounds from splitting, cotton cloth or vines can be used for bandaging. If the wound becomes infected and purulent, green blowfly larvae can eat away the necrotic tissue speeding up healing... Additionally, the Alliance’s High Priests have a secret method for stopping blood, learned from the Mayans, which can handle narrow war club cuts."

"Indeed, as long as green blowfly larvae are bred in a clean environment, they can be used to treat infected wounds. These larvae strictly feed on decayed tissue without affecting healthy living parts. They also secrete chemicals that kill microorganisms..."

Xiulote pondered for a moment, then nodded slowly. The use of maggot therapy is widespread in the Alliance; while it may seem disgusting, it has saved many wounded warriors from infection. He then grew intrigued, smiling as he inquired.

"What is the Mayans’ secret method for stopping blood that can handle narrow cuts?"

Beside him, Alisa blinked, seemingly recalling something.

"Hmm... Is it ants?"

"Correct! The Princess is knowledgeable."

Nashu smiled, giving instructions to a nearby Personal Guard Warrior. Soon, a warrior approached carefully, carrying a sealed ceramic jar. Nashu opened the jar, extended her slender fingers, swiftly pinched and withdrew, then quickly sealed the jar again.

"Hmm? Are these army ants?"

Xiulote looked towards Nashu’s fingers, which held a tropical army ant about the size of half a fingernail, its sturdy mandibles constantly opening and closing, its large head shaking as it struggled futilely.

Nashu gently laughed and brought the army ant to a knife wound on the stag. Smelling the blood, the ant fiercely opened its mandibles and bit down on the wound. Then, with precise dexterity, Nashu pinched, causing the ant’s body to drop off, leaving only its head tightly gripping the wound.

"Just like this!"

Nashu bent her finger and gently touched the ant’s head. Its mandibles closed, enveloping the corner of the knife wound, acting as a natural "suture." This "suture" not only tightly fastens but also carries antiseptic saliva, aiding in disinfecting the wound.

"Your Highness, as long as there are enough army ants, wounds in the body can be stitched. This jar of army ants has been prepared in advance for you..."

Observing this, Xiulote’s face showed amazement and he felt heartfelt gratitude.

"Teyolia, indeed emphasizing blood! Various herbs for treating wounds, maggots to combat infection, ants for suturing... Meanwhile, Europe in this era still extensively uses bloodletting treatments... The medical skills of Central America’s ancestors are in no way inferior to the Western world of this era, perhaps even stronger!"

Of course, in the Mexica Alliance, these precious Witch Doctor heritages are monopolized and controlled by middle and high-ranking priests, serving a select few noble individuals. The great nobility of the Alliance often live to over fifty, with those in their sixties and seventies not uncommon. Meanwhile, the average lifespan in Central America is only in the early twenties. The gap between the Divine Descendant Nobility and the commoner peasantries is vast, from the quality of life to the length of life.

"Your Highness, the last type of life force, ’Ihoter,’ is located in the liver, controlling a person’s emotions and desires, also determining one’s health and charisma. ’Ihoter’ signifies breath, it is ’Qi.’ It is invisible and intangible, its effect extremely mysterious... The priests continue to explore understanding it, with various theories. In rural towns, frying grasshoppers, resembling the liver, is a common snack to enhance ’Ihoter’ in the body... When a person dies, ’Ihoter’ perishes."

Xiulote briefly recalled what fried grasshoppers are. Those are the post-Mexican snacks, Chapulines. They also double as medicine, aiding diuresis, treating kidney diseases, and alleviating gastrointestinal pain. He then pondered the last life force, Ihoter.

"Ihoter, is the breath of Qi, somewhat similar to the ’Yang Qi’ in Chinese Medicine. It symbolizes the mysterious unknown in religion. In medical science, it’s connected to respiratory, urinary, endocrine, and digestive systems. Mysterious unknown... that equates to... that equates to extensive discretionary interpretation rights!"

The young lord straightened up, his thoughts suddenly clear. He lifted his head, gazing at the swirling mist above his head, changing forms, and he softly sighed.

"Like mist, like rain, yet like wind, like clouds, like snow, yet like dreams... To merge two systems, to disseminate medical knowledge of future times in this primitive era... we must draw on the ancient narratives of Chinese Medicine!"