And around these murals, many intricate symbols were engraved, faintly depicting the sun, the moon, statues, masks, gold and jade, pottery, corn, turkeys, long spears, shields, flames... and even the dead.
Xiulote looked intently for a long time and, aside from identifying common elements like the Jaguar, wind, rain, and water, he didn’t gain much. He turned his head and sincerely asked Jatili for guidance.
"Please, Sage, interpret this and tell me the truth."
Jatili looked at the ancient murals and smiled leisurely.
"Your Highness, the Heritage Slab holds only images, the meanings are vague, and interpretations depend solely on one’s mind, adapting to the times. Once mastery over heritage is achieved, priests and sages wield the power of speech. This is how it mostly is across the world... Since Your Highness asks today, this old man will share the true secrets that are passed down orally within our tribe but never outwards."
"Regarding the four passed Eras, each tribe across the world has its interpretations and distinct durations. In these Eras, following divine beings and symbols, they actually represent the states of our deceased ancestors and ancient sealed civilizations. The further back the Era, the more abstract and vague becomes the mural epics of the tribes, and the symbols bear more similarities. The remote Ages, hard to verify, thus can be corroborated through the commonality in these epics, serving as proof of common origins among the tribes."
The learned elder, his words loaded with complexity, then stretched out his withered palms, caressing the images from the four Eras.
"The first Sun Era marks the rise of our forefathers from the jungles. They kindled flame, crafted stone weapons, drove away and tamed beasts, established settlements, and became rulers of the jungle, just like the Jaguar. The specific details of that process are now unknown, and the origins of our forefathers remain elusive. The first Era, akin to the Mexica myth of the original Sun God Tezcatlipoca, represents the world’s impermanence and the night’s wind, elusive and unknowable."
Xiulote pondered for a long time. His eyes gazed toward the distant northwest, toward the end of the world. Moments later, he solemnly nodded.
"What the Sage speaks is logical. The first Era is elusive, without historical records, and encompasses all people."
Jatili’s face showed a smile. He moved his palm, pausing on a rubber tree swaying in the wind.
"The second Sun Era belongs to the earliest ancestors that all tribes can trace back to—Olmec. ’Olm’ meaning rubber, ’ec’ being the tribe - Olmec, the rubber people’s civilization. Their era dates back two thousand years. Located at the heart of the world, the Olmecs were the first to discover and use rubber, the first to construct grand step pyramids, the first to build towering monolithic palaces, the first to carve sacred sacrifice jade artifacts, and the first to worship the Jaguar and Feathered Serpent Divine."
"During that era, there might have been many wild tribes, many small settlements, many loose powers. But the most civilized and famous were the Olmec people. Now, all tribes worldwide trace their roots back to the Olmecs. The second Era’s deity was the Feathered Serpent Divine Quetzalcoatl, and wherever the Feathered Serpent faith is found, Olmec influence had reached."
Be it the Teotihuacan people of the Highlands, the ancient Zapotec people in the jungles, or the Maya people from the distant East, all originated more or less from the Olmec civilization, bathed in the glory of the second Era!"
"Two or three thousand years ago, that was the era of Ancient Greece and the Western and Eastern Zhou dynasties... Rubber people’s civilization, using rubber tribe."
Xiulote concentrated in thought, murmuring. His grandfather had once told him stories of the Olmec people. The Totonac people from the eastern sea where the Olmec civilization’s ruins lay had also sent ancient Olmec masks during Aweit’s coronation ceremony.
"The Olmec people were the brilliant Ancient Greece of Central America, like Luoyi or Chengzhou spreading clan laws, descendants of the Yellow Emperor... descendants of the rubber people..."
The young king pondered for a moment, his eyes growing brighter. He looked toward Jatili, who also smiled meaningfully.
"Your Highness, from the Great Lake in the west to the Maya in the East, from the Rainforest in the south to the Highlands in the north, all under heaven originated from the rubber people. This is the primary root unifying all people!"
Jatili spoke deeply and resonantly, his words carrying the satisfaction of defining ages. Then, he continued moving his fingers, pointing toward the third Era pyramid.
"The second Era is the origin of all tribes. All parts of the world were originally one entity. It was only at the ending of the Era, after the downfall of the Olmec nation, that they scattered far and wide, forming different branches. The similar yet distinct pyramids found everywhere stand as a testament to the development of these branches!"
"In the legends of various tribes, differences start appearing in the third Era. A thousand years ago, the Maya from the far East established the Feathered Serpent pyramid in Tikal City; the Teotihuacan people of the northern Highlands built the Sun and Moon pyramids; the ancient Zapotecs of the southern jungles erected the Mount Alban pyramid; and the Western lakeside Loma Alta people constructed the lakeside pyramid. These interconnected pyramids of shared origins, they are the second root system uniting all people!"
Hearing this, the young king’s pupils sharply contracted. He had come from the Sun and Moon pyramids and always held these ancient sites in awe. In this era, both commoners and nobility revered and worshipped these ancient majestic wonders, finding in their breathtaking sights a spiritual home.