Winter Lord: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 226 Deathly Black Mist
The black mist, like the sigh of death from the depths of hell, slowly spread and silently licked the entire valley.

It flows without wind, it is formless yet heavy, like a giant black placenta, slowly swallowing the entire battlefield into its womb.

The knights of the Dragonblood Legion stood in formation, their battle aura flowing slowly between their armor, their heavy boots already embedded in the muddy, blood-soaked ground.

Even seasoned knights who had fought countless battles could feel a chill that did not belong to this world.

No, it's the fear of being stared at by some being.

That shiver, as if it were burrowing from the base of my spine all the way into my brain, was a primal cry from reason: Don't come any closer.

"What...what is this smell?" a knight whispered, his voice dry and hoarse.

That wasn't rotting flesh and blood, nor was it the scorching heat of a battlefield.

It was the aura of death.

The archmages of the former mage forest raised their staffs, and a blue wind wall surged forth, whipping up several howling waves of air that lifted the black mist.

In just a few seconds, the thick fog rolled back like a tide, revealing a corner of the battlefield wreckage.

Before they could even catch their breath, the black mist began to writhe and gather again, like sentient blood vessels.

It slowly spewed out from the direction of "that thing," sticky like amniotic fluid, accompanied by murmurs.

"...It moved."

That hoarse whisper of chivalry, barely audible in the wind, stirred up ripples across the entire battlefield like a pebble thrown into water.

The first thing to move was a broken piece of the knight's arm.

It lay quietly in the snow, next to a shattered halberd.

But at this moment, the arm was sliding on its own, making a soft "click" sound, as if driven by some unseen will.

Next came the other corpses.

No distinction is made between friend and foe.

Humans, insect corpses, livestock, broken bones, rotting intestines, and fragmented faces were all wriggling, piecing together, and intertwining.

"Click." A crisp sound of bones reassembling rang out in the black mist, like a signal of some kind of "rebirth".

Then, more sounds followed: "Clack clack clack clack clack..."

The sound was like a million broken bones simultaneously rebuilding themselves.

Under the knights' horrified gazes, the "corpse" before them had completed a new phase of construction.

It's a monster.

A shapeless monster.

Some have three arms but no head, some have their backs split open with bleeding wounds, and some are made up of the remains of five different species stitched together. The sounds they exhale are those of a human baby, sharp and tender, yet tearing at the ears.

One of the flying hands even pierced the insect corpse's face, inserting into its eye socket and becoming an "eye," while the rest of the hand wriggled into a new mandible, slowly snapping shut.

"Ah ah ah ah ah!"

Not far away, a dragon-blooded knight roared and charged out, his red battle aura surging into his spear, pinning a newly assembled monster to the rock wall with a single thrust!
"Drink——!!"

Rocks shattered, blood and flesh splattered, and the roar of victory had not yet been uttered.

"Click."

The monster's chest collapsed and its severed limbs gushed out, but in the next moment, its bones flipped, its internal organs popped out, and it reassembled itself, like gears realigning, and pounced suddenly from the other side!
"later--!!"

At that moment, even the training, battle formations, will, and fighting spirit of the Dragonblood Knights felt an unprecedented collapse of logic.

Even the strongest sword cannot cut through a "dead thing that has come back to life".

No matter how dense the battle formation, it cannot contain a life form that is not within the scope of tactical understanding.

"This isn't right!" a knight roared as he hacked through the corpse of a fleshy worm. "They... can't die!"

It's not just about being "immortal," but rather that any debris from an attack will be transformed into something even more bizarrely reborn.

A Dragonblood Knight, who had just unleashed a powerful attack on an enemy with burning battle aura, discovered the next second that the severed arm, after hitting the ground, not only did not lose its effectiveness, but instead burrowed into another corpse, instantly granting it a new "combat skill reaction".

"Left flank defense! Four missing! Right flank assault team trapped! Requesting reinforcements!"

What echoed on the battlefield was not fear, but calm and urgent reports.

Battlefield commander Gaius gritted his teeth, his crimson battle aura scorching the air around him.

When he personally cleaved a monster that had merged the faces of three comrades in two, he felt a sense of powerlessness for the first time.

Even if it's broken... it's useless.

In less than a quarter of an hour, more than ten people had been lost at the forefront of the Dragonblood Legion.

You have to understand, this is no ordinary army.

Even the lowest-ranking Dragonblood Knight is a high-ranking knight chosen from among thousands, a pillar of the empire.

They are also receiving blood transfusions.

They fought desperately, but what they "killed" was merely nourishment for "even stronger enemies in the future."

They constantly devour, recombine, evolve, and regenerate.

Even the empire's strongest elites only shine for a fleeting moment in its "food chain".

"This can't go on!" Gaius shouted, raising his sword. "All troops! Retreat immediately!"

The sound was like thunder, and the battlefield trembled instantly.

At that moment, no one questioned whether they were being intimidated or making a tactical retreat.

Their lives cannot be wasted in this endless jigsaw puzzle monster.

As the horn sounded its long blast, the Dragonblood Legion began its reorganization...

The knights retreated in formation, with shield guards covering the rear flanks, while the cavalry swept across both flanks to secure the retreat route.

The soldiers rushed back through the snow and fog, their iron boots echoing heavily and urgently as they trod across the cold stone slabs.

"Frostspear City - Return to its former glory complete!"

As the command echoed through the snow, the last Dragonblood Knight stepped through the city gate.

"Guancheng!"

The command, as deep as a bell, echoed across the sky, and the next instant, the massive gates of Frostspear City opened.

The heavy gate, forged from black steel and engraved with seven layers of anti-curse runes, slowly closed with a rumbling sound.

"Crack—bang!"

With a loud bang as the locks snapped shut, the entire city seemed to awaken a long-dormant beast, and layers of magical runes lit up on the walls.

boom--! !

Seventeen magical fortresses deployed around Frostspear City were activated simultaneously. Complex rune arrays appeared on the fortress spires, and ice-blue magical arcs of electricity leaped and intertwined in the air, like a web woven from stars.

The Frostfire Reactor in the heart of the city burst into light with a low hum, and dense magical energy rapidly traveled along the earth's veins, awakening the energy channels.

A layer of extremely cold energy then rose up, extending from the center of the castle like a spider web to every tower, and finally converging in the sky to form a super barrier.

This strongest war fortress in the North has finally revealed its true fangs.

In the distance, from the black fog, the swarm of insects rolled in like waves.

"Lasso activated! Load the Frost Crystal Magic Bombs!"

As the tactical command was issued, the giant magic-powered catapults, arrayed along the battlements, slowly rose. Their massive mechanical arms, embedded with levitation runes, shimmered with magical energy as the first wave of Frost Crystal Magic Bombs was loaded into orbit. "Launch—!"

Whoosh! ! !
The sky was instantly cleaved open, and one after another, icy crystal bombs, trailing long blue-white frost tails, crashed into the writhing sea of ​​insects like falling comets.

Boom—!! Boom boom boom boom!!

Each landing resulted in a localized freeze.

The violent explosion instantly froze the insect corpses within a five-meter radius into ice sculptures. The ice crystals shattered as they exploded, cutting through the surrounding flesh, and the cold current devoured all life in the vicinity like a storm.

But they are still moving.

Even if frozen, even if severed limbs and remains, even if just blasted into pieces.

The next second, it will be pieced together, reassembled, twisted, and stand up again.

It was an extremely bizarre scene.

It was as if the entire sea of ​​insects had been lulled to sleep by "death" for a moment, but it soon awoke from its dream.

On the battlefield, where corpses, ice crystals, flames, and icy air intertwined, they began to silently die and regenerate in a rhythm almost like sleepwalking.

A dragonblood knight stood on the city wall, staring at the endless swarm of insects, and muttered, "This is disgusting... They're not here to fight, they're here to gather."

He suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, as if he himself had become one of them.

The highest watchtower in Frostspear City was swept by a biting wind, its cloak billowing in the air like a burning banner.

Duke Edmund stood atop the high walls, his eyes colder than the sky.

The constantly regenerating insect corpses surged in like a tide, but were temporarily blocked by the fortified barrier of Frostspear City.

But it's only temporary; the barrier won't last long.

The Duke remained silent for a long time before gently raising his hand: "Summon everyone: senior commanders, representatives of the Mage Tower, the commander and deputy commander of the Dragonblood Legion... and those councilors sent from the capital."

…………

At this very moment, deep within that writhing throne, a pair of crimson eyes are fixed on the same battlefield.

"Hehehehehe...hehehahahaha—!"

A chilling laugh echoed through the flesh and blood.

The Witch of Despair leaned against the throne made of insect shells and human bones, her slender fingers tracing lines in the air as if conducting a grand symphony.

He "saw" it.

He saw the corpses wriggle, piece together, disintegrate, and recombine, indiscriminately according to friend or foe, regardless of species; even broken bones and frozen intestines began to spontaneously "construct" themselves.

He witnessed the roars and bloody battles of the Dragonblood Knights, who fought desperately, severing the neck bones of those fused monsters, only to gain a stronger new form in return.

He saw Frostspear City begin to ignite its icy flames, activate its extreme cold barrier, and witness icy crystal bombs raining down from the sky, freezing the insect corpses into shattered ice sculptures.

...But so what?

"Hehehe...hehehehahaha...hahahahahaha!!"

The Witch of Despair laughed out loud, her laughter as distorted as the trembling of a suffocating person's chest.

He covered his mouth, trembling with excitement like a child who couldn't wait to see the ending.

“This…this is my trump card.” He murmured, his tone filled with lustful excitement, “A poison purer than any magic…the resurrection of the dead.”

“Of course,” he gently stroked the writhing joints on the throne, “this poison cannot be spread at will… it can only be activated once by absorbing enough death energy.”

“But now,” his eyes reflected the fallen figures on the snowy battlefield, “it’s enough to take over the entire Northern Territory.”

How many more days can Frostspear City hold out? Three days? Or five days?

He spread his palms out, as if weighing the weight of the empire's last line of defense, a playful smile appearing on his lips.

"More than enough. Enough for me to nurture more mother nests, enough for me to sow this 'gift of the end' into the heart of the empire."

The capital, the entire empire… will all become my incubator and hatchery. The empire's ashes will be the best fertile soil.

The final nest will eventually engulf the entire world, destroying your so-called order, gods, bloodlines, oaths...

One by one, they peeled off the skin, washed the bones, dissected the structure, and then injected the insect embryo.

He stood up, his figure slender and jade-like, his long, trailing dress leaving a trail of crimson, like a goddess descending to earth, or a demon kissing the ground.

"Ha... I'm one step closer to the end."

"Just wait, every one of you—living, dead, remembered, or forgotten—will ultimately be a dish on my banquet table."

Laughter echoed again, frenzied, joyful, and full of anticipation, like a noble priest preparing a baptism for the world of infant spirits.

…………

Frostspear City - Governor's Mansion

Beyond the wind and snow, the giant gate opened.

Inside the conference hall, the dim lights were still on, illuminating the mottled battle flags and Buddhist bas-reliefs on the stone walls.

At this moment, right in the center is an ancient stone conference table, its legs still engraved with the symbolic runes of the empire, but its surface is already covered with cracks from the years and wars.

The imperial emblem and frost emblem halberd are inlaid in the very center, representing the level of the meeting at this moment—the Imperial Wartime Supreme Council.

There were huge lights on the ceiling, beams of cold light hanging down from the top, reflecting on every solemn face.

The heavy curtains were drawn, and the magic array blocked out the wind and snow. Only the faint rumbling in the distance and the occasional trembling of the floor reminded everyone that the battlefield was not far outside the city.

People arrived one after another.

There were high-ranking commanders wearing red and black cloaks with solemn expressions, and also archmages whose robes were covered in snow and who had rushed over in a hurry.

There were also some councilors dressed in the capital's standard uniforms, whose expressions were clearly out of place with the local generals, as if they had not yet sorted out the situation from the chaos.

Louis also quietly found a seat in the corner and sat down.

He had no official status and was not an officer within the Frostspear City system, so theoretically he was not qualified to attend such a high-level meeting.

But this was arranged by the Duke on purpose; he was intentionally grooming him.

When Gaius entered the meeting room, his gaze swept over Louis, and he recognized his younger brother. He winked at Louis but didn't say anything more.

After all, now is not the time for small talk.

Everyone who entered the hall wore a complex expression.

Heaviness, doubt, anger, and above all, a premonition: the decisive moment is fast approaching.

There was no noise, no small talk.

People simply nodded to each other in tacit agreement, then quietly took their seats, their gazes fixed on the still empty head seat.

Until heavy footsteps sounded...

The Duke of Edmund entered the hall slowly, his silver hair at his temples appearing as if frosted in the lamplight.

He slowly sat down in the main seat, his whole being like a mountain, calm and silent, yet the air in the entire conference hall suddenly seemed to sink.

"Everyone is here." He spoke slowly, his gaze sweeping across everyone's faces before settling down heavily. "Now, no one will doubt what we are facing."

No one answered.

Because no one dared to easily define what they saw: corpses coming back to life, piecing themselves back together, swarms of insects surging like waves of blood, the earth like a birthing bed of death.

(End of this chapter)