Free Web NovelRed Rock Pass.
The iron horses whinnied softly, like long-silent blades ready to be drawn.
Over a hundred knights of the Broken Fang Knights were now arrayed on the gorge platform.
Their tunics were no longer the deep blue of Frost Halberd City, but cloaked in the special red and blue capes of the Red Tide Territory, signifying their origin from Frost Halberd and their current loyalty to Red Tide.
They were supposed to be stationed here, merely a "buffer point" for Red Tide's northern defense.
But now, they were finally about to face their first opportunity to express their loyalty.
At the front of the formation, a single rider stood in the wind.
That was Reggie Olsen, Vice Commander of the Broken Fang Knights, and once the youngest Extraordinary Knight of Frost Halberd City.
His silver hair fluttered slightly in the morning light, an ice-blue longsword rested horizontally on his saddle, his aura contained yet like thunder.
He surveyed the entire army, his sword-like gaze sweeping over the face of every knight, and he spoke unhurriedly:
"We have just pledged allegiance to Red Tide, and we haven't had a battle worthy of our oath yet. You all remember what Lord Louis has done for us.
The settlement funds for our families, triple the salary, the healing potions sent when we were injured, and even the schooling for your children—everything has been arranged perfectly.
And now, it's time to repay all of it."
With that, he slowly drew his longsword, holding it diagonally across his chest. Sunlight fell on the blade, reflecting a cold, ice-like gleam.
"We are the Blade of the North, the Sword of Oaths."
Reggie's horse slowly stepped forward half a pace.
Behind him, a hundred knights uniformly struck the ground with their sword hilts, the clashing of armor sounding like a hundred iron bells ringing in unison, followed by a synchronized roar that shook the mountain walls of the pass:
"For Red Tide, we fight until victory, or we do not return!!!"
When the scout rode into the castle, bringing back the alarming information, Viscount Zachariah was in the hall arguing with two advisors about the arrangements for the sacrifice ritual.
"My Lord, it's the Red Tide Knights at Red Rock Pass, they're coming this way. It's not a patrol, it's a Knight Order!"
The brief message pierced Viscount Zachariah's heart and lungs like an ice pick.
His face suddenly darkened, and he slammed his hand on the table, rising abruptly, and roared, "Louis?! How dare he!"
His tone was furious, but his eyes held an unconcealable panic.
He had thought that after the Red Tide envoy's visit hit a wall and there was no movement for a month, he had successfully weathered this crisis. After all, they wouldn't dare to force a sale.
But who knew, he didn't expect them to send knights to directly seize it! Was there truly no law in the North anymore?
However, upon learning that the opposing force was only a hundred riders, a hint of disdain flashed in Zachariah's eyes. This boy was truly arrogant; they needed to be taught a lesson.
"Only a hundred men? Do they think a hundred men can step into my territory?"
He sneered, throwing the military report into the fireplace. The paper rapidly turned to ash in the flames, but he felt no warmth at all.
"Gather the entire army," he ordered coldly. "Bring out my 'old friends' whom I sheltered during the insect plague as well. It's time for them to prove their loyalty."
So he donned his armor and ascended to the high walls of the inner castle, looking down at the warriors in the courtyard.
Under Viscount Zachariah's command, three hundred knights were arrayed, awaiting orders. They were all hereditary knights of the Zachariah family.
They had trained and grown up in the territory since childhood, they were his most loyal knights, his most trusted force.
And outside the castle, another force of over four hundred light-armored warriors was quietly gathering.
Unlike the regular knights, their armor was mismatched, but their expressions were fierce and unruly, their eyes revealing an almost beast-like desire for aggression.
These were the Snowsworn who had miraculously survived the insect plague.
They were once the empire's mortal enemies, who had ignited war and bloody snow in the North.
But now, Zachariah had secretly incorporated them under his command, quietly hiding them among his private army.
It was also a secret he could never allow to be exposed.
Once it was revealed that he harbored and privately maintained remnants of the old Snow Country, even if the Red Tide Territory remained silent, the other nobles of the North would never let him go.
At that time, he would not only lose his territory, but even his corpse would not be left intact.
Eight hundred men gathered, weapons clashing, banners waving.
Zachariah ascended the city wall, raised his scepter, and his voice carried across the entire army: "Let them know, the might of Red Tide does not apply to us, the bloodline of the Snow Country!"
The soldiers responded in unison, their shouts like thunder.
The morning frost had not yet dissipated, and the cold wind rustled the Red Tide battle banners.
The hundred riders of the Broken Fang Knights were arrayed before the city, the Red Tide sun emblem shining brightly in the sunlight.
Reggie's gaze swept coldly over the high wall.
Shadows beneath gray-white cloaks stood silently, outlining unfamiliar yet familiar faces in the backlight.
Reggie's eye twitched, recognizing at a glance that they were not ordinary defenders.
He had served in the Frost Halberd Broken Blade for over ten years; he was too familiar with that scent.
Snowsworn.
That name, which should have been extinguished in the insect plague, still lurked in the shadows like a venomous snake.
He snorted coldly, his gaze growing even colder, his voice not loud, but sharp like a blade scraping armor: "Those rats, they haven't all died yet."
A fierce fire was slowly igniting in his heart.
He had a blood feud with the Snowsworn.
He had personally dragged out the bodies of brothers ambushed and slain by the Snowsworn from the battlefield.
He had gritted his teeth and fought his way out of their ambushes, just to leave a sliver of hope for his comrades.
He thought these crawling things had been completely devoured by the insect tide, but he didn't expect them to crawl out of the decaying flesh once again, like sister-in-law insects.
Reggie's hand was already on his sword hilt: "It seems we didn't come to the wrong place."
He slowly drew the longsword engraved with the Broken Blade emblem and pointed it at the tightly shut city gate: "Magic Bomb squad, prepare."
Several heavily armored knights, wearing Red Tide's specialized battle aura cloaks, spurred their horses forward from the rear ranks, carrying heavy Red Tide-style Magic Bomb launchers on their shoulders, the barrels trembling, emitting a "clack" of metal striking.
Reggie stood at the front of the formation, his sword blade sweeping, and roared like thunder: "Breach the enemy gate!"
Boom!!!
The next second, a Magic Bomb tore through the air, striking the front gate like a sudden shower of meteors!
With a thunderous crash, the entire wooden-iron double gate exploded, splinters scattering dozens of paces away, and the defending knights behind the gate were thrown off their horses by the blast. ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
The explosion's impact, coupled with the flames, instantly engulfed several rows of defenders at the entrance.
Reggie's lips curled into a cold smile: "Not bad."
Then he slashed his sword diagonally forward and shouted: "Broken Blade, attack!"
The Knight Order roared into formation, like a moving steel castle suddenly activating, silver-etched longswords raised in a unified charge.
On the city wall, Viscount Zachariah's face was ashen, his body shaking as he fell to his knees, his cloak torn at one corner by the Magic Bomb's aftershock.
He was in a sorry state.
"Frontal assault?! Damn it—are they crazy?!"
He struggled to his feet, watching the hundred Red Tide riders, who broke through the formation like lightning below, his throat tightening.
Three hundred knights had not yet fully arrayed, and four hundred Snowsworn remnants were still repositioning.
He had originally thought there would be at least enough time to build a defense line, but that initial explosive Magic Bomb shattered the pace of the battle.
Reggie charged at the forefront, like a blue-green streak of light weaving through the enemy formation. Where his sword light flashed, blood splattered, like spider lilies blooming suddenly in the snow.
"Watch out!"
The front-row commanding knight cried out in alarm, but before he could organize a counterattack, Reggie's longsword swept with a cold gleam, and a crescent-shaped battle aura slashed through the air.
Boom!
Two leading knights, men and horses, were directly cut in half. Before the bloodline could fall from the severed parts, their bodies had already collapsed. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
"Don't be afraid! There are only a hundred of them! Surround them!" a vicegeneral roared, trying to stabilize morale.
But before his words finished, the two wings of the Broken Fang Knights instantly fanned out!
The heavy cavalry pressed forward, like an iron wall crushing the enemy's front ranks, while the swift cavalry in the rear pierced through the opening Reggie had created with his sword, like a giant longsword cleaving through a torrent of flesh and blood.
Blades sliced through iron armor, battle aura shattered spears, every Broken Blade Knight's movement was as precise and deadly as a textbook, like an efficient slaughter.
"Retreat! Retreat!!!"
The cries of a collapsing army finally sounded, the front line crumbling like a breaking snow levee.
Suddenly, a roar came from the flank: "Kill!!!"
It was a small team of Snowsworn warriors, temporarily formed, clad in gray-white wolf skins, their eyes blood red.
They brandished heavy axes and long spears, charging with furious roars over broken flagstones, utterly unafraid of the battle aura-shaking knight front before them.
The leader even charged forward recklessly, clad in rusted armor, his battle aura swirling like a gale amidst his roar.
But Reggie merely turned back with a cold glance.
He pointed his longsword forward and lightly commanded: "Flank, suppress."
A horn sounded in response, and the left wing of the Broken Fang Knights immediately spurred their horses forward.
Leading them was a female knight, her long spear gleaming like a snake, blue battle aura instantly solidifying into a blade, even cutting an arc in mid-air!
One strike pierced straight through the heart of the leading Snowsworn warrior, battle aura rupturing his body, a mist of blood exploding in the air!
Then several riders arrived in unison, shields advancing like a continuous wall, heavy blows severing the knees and shoulder bones of the Snowsworn warriors, battle axes were knocked away, and before a counterattack could even begin, they became bloody pulp!
These Snowsworn remnants, though brave, found it difficult to form a coherent line under the suppression of the Broken Fang Knights' battle aura, and were defeated one by one.
The last wave of Snowsworn gathered behind the ruins of a stone tower, constructing a makeshift defense, intending to fight to the death.
But they were met by three Magic Bombs fired consecutively by the knights of the Broken Blade's right flank. Flames erupted, and the wails of the remaining soldiers were utterly drowned out by the explosions.
In just a few breaths, the resistance completely ended.
The strong wind dispersed the gunpowder smoke, and the blood and dust mingled into a rusty, metallic stench, permeating the castle ruins.
The knights who had once shouted "Surround them" now lay sprawled across the streets, their armor shattered, their warhorses silently fallen.
And the hundred men of the Broken Fang Knights stood in neat formation amidst the ruins, only a dozen or so wounded, but not a single one fallen.
This was a complete crush, not even a war, but a ruthless slaughter of disadvantaged opponents by high-ranking knights.
And the enemy had only a struggling remnant left.
"Viscount! Hurry! Escape!!!"
Behind the last stone fort, Viscount Zachariah's face was ashen, splattered with the blood of his subordinates.
He grabbed a wounded Snowsworn remnant beside him and roared, "The cellar! Go to the cellar! Take the secret passage to the sacrificial hall! There's still hope there!"
So, under the desperate cover of his knights, he stumbled with ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) over twenty remaining soldiers into the main castle, heading straight for the underground evil god altar that had been sealed for many years.
"As long as... as long as I offer blood to... it will respond... it will still be willing to protect us, the descendants of the old Snow Country..." Zachariah's eyes were crazed, muttering incantations.
Behind him, shadowy remnants moved along the walls, their footsteps chaotic, blood flowing in a line, but none stopped.
Once those Red Tide Knights caught up, there would be no way back alive.
At the end of the cellar on the lower level of the main castle, a faint blue magical light quietly seeped out from a crack.
It was an ancient sacrificial hall, its circular dome built of snow-white bricks, but the cracks were already overgrown with black vines twisted like snakes.
It was densely embedded with countless bas-reliefs.
The inverted statue of the ancient god of the cold abyss, with seven eyes and one mouth, like a dream opening in an icy abyss.
In the center of the stone altar, Viscount Zachariah's face was distorted, kneeling on the ground, holding a still-beating human heart aloft in both hands, his incantations rapid, like a cold wind passing through a crack, stirring up eerie echoes in the space.
"Blood for eyes, heart for body, blood debt for snow—Lord of the Cold Abyss, please—"
"Enough." A deep voice coldly interrupted the echoing incantation.
The next moment, battle aura exploded like thunder, and the cellar's iron door shattered with a crash!
Reggie's battle aura swept through the altar like an extreme cold gale, and dozens of Broken Blade elites entered behind him, swords in hand.
"You shouldn't have come, Louis's dog—"
Viscount Zachariah, kneeling in a pool of blood, suddenly looked up, deep blue runes appearing abruptly in his eyes. He bit his tongue, slammed his palms on the ground, and blood spread like a spiderweb!
Dozens of ancient curse marks instantly appeared on the stone slabs, twisting like tentacles from the deep sea of the Cold Abyss. The air seemed to solidify amidst the vibrating incantations, and malice surged like a tide.
"Blood as key, heart as guide! Deep Abyss Split Word!"
A mass of dark magical intent suddenly erupted, a soul-tearing shriek rushing straight towards Reggie's brow!
That was a mental pollution curse from the ancient god of the cold abyss, capable of tearing a person's will and leading them into the abyss of madness.
But Reggie did not retreat a single step.
"Star Abyss Barrier, activate."
He whispered, the star battle pattern on his forehead shining, battle aura rising from his body like a shield.
Instantly, a transparent, sky-blue barrier was constructed, forcefully blocking the wave of the curse outside.
This was his bloodline talent, Star Abyss Barrier, which could block battle aura and magical attacks. Curses were, of course, also effective.
The evil force impacted the edge of the barrier, creating cracking sounds, but it consistently failed to penetrate.
Reggie's gaze showed no fluctuation. The next moment, he drew his sword and flew forward like a flash of lightning!
Cold blue battle aura exploded, the longsword transforming into a streaking light that broke through the air, sweeping in before Zachariah's horrified curse could even be completed!
"Slash!"
The sword light cut through the magic array and the evil intent.
"Aargh!!!"
Viscount Zachariah's body flew like a rag doll, crashing into the cracked idol, spewing a large amount of blood. His incantations collapsed, and he fainted.
The bas-relief wall of the ancient god of the cold abyss trembled slightly under the aftershocks of the battle aura.
The idol made a "crack" sound, splitting open with a winding crack, as if also wailing softly.
Reggie coldly sheathed his sword, his body's battle aura slowly receding. He turned calmly and ordered: "Secure the scene, collect evidence, and take him back to Red Tide City."
"Yes!"
The elite of the Broken Fang Knights began to disperse and clear the area, dismantling the remaining offering altars and magic circle inscriptions, thoroughly eradicating the entire heretical stronghold, leaving no trace.
