I created the myth of the Great Old Ones.

Lu Ban called out, and the boy, who was even younger than Lu Ban, looked smug.

"From now on, if you follow me, you'll have soup to drink and meat to eat."

Birmingham puffed out his chest.

"You think you're someone's big brother? With your head, you'd better watch out or you'll get carried off by a winter wolf."

Someone nearby made a mocking remark.

"Get out of here, don't tarnish my image in front of my little brother."

Birmingham rolled his eyes.

It seems that his only subordinate is Lu Ban.

But it doesn't matter anyway.

Lu Ban felt the cold of winter in the Black Forest. This cold was neither the magical attack of the South nor the physical attack of the North, but a kind of cold that froze everything from mind to body, even making thinking sluggish. It was hard not to think that there was an extraordinary power at play here.

The dark forest all looked the same, and even the roads were covered in snow. If the commander hadn't known the way, the entire team would probably have gotten lost in this unchanging scenery.

Just as Lu Ban was wondering how much longer they would have to walk, the dark forest in front of them suddenly lit up.

A large open space appeared before Lu Ban, who saw that it was a small town.

Chapter 261 The Living Forest

The layout of Heisong Town is different from other places.

It's an ordinary little town with a network of roads leading in all directions. A single road runs through the entire town, and buildings are built along the road, standing side by side.

Black Pine Town is more like a fortress than a city.

Surrounding the town are high walls covered with sharp wooden spikes. Beneath the thick wooden planks, rangers in leather armor stand guard at the gate, and on the high tower, they appear to be in a state of readiness for battle.

This is a small town located on the edge of the Black Forest, which can be considered the deepest part of the Black Forest where ordinary humans live.

Lu Ban could see the older men working, cutting down trees in the Black Forest to make timber for transport. There were also animals drying fur, meat, and various herbs. It looked more like a temporary outpost than a town.

"There are people here all year round. They only stay here when it is relatively safe. In two days, they will leave and return to the outside of the Black Forest."

Birmingham explained.

"Why don't they live outside the Black Forest? Wouldn't it be safer there?"

Lu Ban couldn't help but ask.

"This place used to be outside the Black Forest..."

Birmingham's voice turned low.

"The Black Forest is a living thing. Every wave of demonic tides is an expansion of the Black Forest. Trees will grow in the areas swept by the demonic tides and eventually become part of the Black Forest. This is why we must resist the demonic tides."

"So, this town was originally a small town outside the Black Forest, and was gradually swallowed up by the forest because of the arrival of the demonic tide..."

Lu Ban suddenly understood.

It seems this is the true form of pollution in the Night Kingdom.

When the Blood Moon arrives, the demonic tide will slaughter humanity and pollute the land. The Black Forest will take the opportunity to expand, covering the earth like a fungal carpet. Perhaps this alien realm was originally a normal planet, with the Black Forest being only a small part. However, with each invasion of the demonic tide, the Black Forest eventually covers most of the land. Once the Black Forest has completely occupied the last inch of pure land, the Night Kingdom will also fall into eternal night.

He glanced back at the deep forest, where perhaps it had once been farmland, a school, or a home.

But now, it's all bad soil.

This is why the Kingdom of Night needs to resist the demonic tide. Avoiding the demonic tide and having the residents retreat outside its influence is indeed a solution, but this will inevitably lead to the land being submerged, eventually leaving them with nowhere to retreat.

"Peace will survive if we seek it through struggle, but it will perish if we seek it through compromise."

Lu Ban sighed.

"Well said!"

When Birmingham heard Lu Ban's words, his eyes widened, and there was a sense of satisfaction in them, as if he thought, "He truly is my little brother."

"If everyone had your awareness, there would be no need to worry about the demonic tide destroying us, because even if one of me falls, there are still thousands upon thousands of me."

"Is there anyone still unwilling to resist the demonic tide?"

Lu Ban understood the meaning behind Birmingham's words.

"Many people don't have a clear understanding of the Black Forest. They think it's just a monster. They live in the safe inland and have lost their sense of crisis."

Despite his young age, Birmingham has a patriotic and ambitious demeanor.

As for the town of Kushui that Lu Ban had visited before, the people of the Hai family there were ignorant, apathetic, and numb. Now it seems that the safe environment there actually allowed cults to thrive.

Beset by internal and external troubles, the Kingdom of Night is in grave danger.

Lu Ban saw that the commander was talking with a mage and the steward of Black Pine Town.

"You must leave here immediately and head to Black Castle. The red moon will rise soon, the demonic tide will arrive, and it will become even colder here, with more monsters. With your weapons, you simply won't be able to defend yourself."

The commander spoke to the steward of Black Pine Town in a commanding tone.

“We will be leaving tonight. There is one last batch of materials to load onto the truck. These rangers will also be going to Blackburg with us.”

The manager pointed to the herbs and animal hides that had not yet been collected, as well as the unprocessed timber.

"This wave of demonic tide is eternal darkness. The demonic contamination will reach the front lines tonight, and there is no time to lose."

A mage looked at the patch of sky peeking through the trees and said solemnly.

"Eternal Darkness? Isn't the Demonic Tide the Frost?"

Lu Ban blurted out the question subconsciously.

Upon hearing Lu Ban's words, the mage looked over curiously.

Who told you that?

The mage, the commander, and the steward of Black Pine Town all stared at Lu Ban.

Birmingham was speechless, but after a moment of hesitation, he stood in front of Lu Ban.

"He might just be confused..."

"Get out of my way."

The monk said something that rendered Birmingham completely immobile, unable to utter a single word.

The monk looked at Lu Ban; the man had deep blue eyes and looked to be about the same age as Lu Ban.

"According to the observation hub, this demonic tide is eternal darkness, the sixth of the twelve demonic tides. When eternal darkness arrives, the entire world will be plunged into darkness without light. If one remains in darkness for more than a period of time, one will be devoured by demons."

The mage's words caused the others to look on with fear. Sometimes the demonic tides come once a year, sometimes several times a year, and in recent years, there have been at least three times a year. The veterans among the rangers have experienced many demonic tides and are well aware of the terror of each one.

"And what about Frost?"

Lu Ban wasn't afraid; he'd never seen anything like it before, so he treated it as a lesson in science.

"Frost is the third wave of demonic tide, and the winter wolf is the master. The howl of the alpha wolf announces the arrival of the demonic tide. In the frost, the temperature will drop below freezing. The low temperature alone will kill most creatures. The breath of the winter wolf can destroy most of the barriers."

The monk explained vividly, causing many people to stop what they were doing and gather around to listen.

"According to the observation center, a large area of ​​long night has appeared west of Blackburg, which is a sign that eternal darkness is coming. As for frost, the current temperature is far from the harsh winter when frost is coming."

He took out a map, which showed that most of the map was the Black Forest, with one section circled, and the locations of Blackburg Fortress and Blackpine Town were also visible.

This is already deep in the Black Forest, and the city can only be seen on the edge of the map.

Just looking at that intricate forest is suffocating; it's a world where humans are far weaker than monsters.

"The monsters we hunted before..."

Lu Ban thought of the gray wolf with six legs and four eyes.

"These monsters are everywhere in the Black Forest. It's probably because the long night covered the Black Forest that they fled from their original habitats."

The monk explained.

"I see."

Lu Ban nodded.

Although he still felt that the voice he heard in the "Madman's Knowledge" was not false, perhaps the frost was hidden in the darkness.

On the other side, the mage watched Lu Ban leave and gave the commander a wink.

"I need to request the observation data from the Gray Tower over the past year. Perhaps this demonic tide is truly unprecedented."

Chapter 262 Shadow

It was already afternoon when we left Black Pine Town. The afternoon sun could hardly penetrate the towering tree canopy, and the entire forest was once again shrouded in gloom.

"No one knows exactly what Eternal Night looks like. Some say it is a shadow, some say it is a giant black wolf, and some say it is a man with a completely black body. But one thing is certain: if Eternal Night and its kin are watching you, your shadow will begin to writhe."

On the way back to Blackburg, the mage, perhaps intrigued by Lu Ban's words, began to recount information about Eternal Night from his horse.

His name is Jonah. He is a mage sent by the Gray Tower to resist this demonic tide. Having experienced the last demonic tide, he is considered a veteran.

"The shadow will start to move?"

Lu Ban pretended not to understand, but actually wanted Jonah to say more.

"Simply put, when you stand still and your shadow starts moving on its own, it means you've been targeted."

Jonah said in a deep voice.

"That's why we need to stay in the light when facing the eternal night. Only in this way can we confirm their movements. Strong sunlight can resist the attack of the eternal night, so the night after the demonic tide begins is crucial."

"How do we kill Eternal Night?"

Lu Ban asked another question out of curiosity, and Birmingham, who was next to him, had given up trying to stop him and instead listened to Jonah's story with Lu Ban.

"Hehe, Eternal Night cannot be killed. The leaders of the twelve demonic tides cannot be killed. Or rather, there may not be anyone in this world who can kill these guys. When they appear, it usually means that all the creatures in this entire area have been completely killed. In fact, there have been zero eyewitness reports about the source of these demonic tides so far."

Jonah gave a wry smile, somewhat helpless.

"And what about the frost? What is the frost afraid of?"

Lu Ban persisted relentlessly.

Since it's free, I might as well ask a few questions.