Throne of the North.

Chapter 797 Divine Essence Burns, Frozen Rivers Thaw
In the snowy northern plains, a towering altar was erected. As Ryan's voice grew louder, the red light in the void gradually distorted the present world, and rough lava gradually formed the shape of a giant.

"Surtur!"

Ryan called out loudly, and the moment he saw him, the twilight guide, the king reborn from the flames—Surtur roared in fury.

Damn mortal, you have no right to call upon me.

"Stop talking nonsense, what I sacrificed was the pure Primordial Essence."

Ryan said irritably, and then continued.

"Make a deal."

Surtur calmed down upon hearing the word "transaction," and a scorching aura emanated from him. To him, Ryan was qualified to make a transaction.

What do you, mortal, desire?

“I sacrificed Tai Su, and of course I want Tai Su, to take control of this part of your divine origin and erase your will from it.”

Ryan waved his hand, and the knights behind him carried out a crystal that looked like a wall. Sealed inside the crystal was a burning, hard lump that resembled stone, bone, and keratin. Upon closer inspection, it also looked no different from cracked lava.

This is Surtur's physical remains that fell into the world of Nidhogg.

[Shameless thief]

Surtur recognized this as his own power. He glared furiously at Ryan, the extreme flames distorting the void, melting the surrounding snowfields, and causing torrential rain to fall, which was vaporized into mist in mid-air.

This great being, the first to awaken, is growing stronger and stronger, and is gradually regaining all his power.

Although they are separated by different worlds of nothingness, both can still influence the continent of Norris.

"Stop talking nonsense. You don't need these things at all, otherwise you wouldn't have left them in Nidhogg. But I need them now."

Ryan just wanted to finish the deal as soon as possible. Although he had revealed a lot to Surtur, making the other party think that he was an equal, no one could say for sure. The power of a god was hard for mortals to resist, and Surtur didn't seem to be a calm and collected person.

[Mortal, you desire my authority, but this is not enough.]

Ryan raised his head and looked at Surtur coldly.

"Surtur, you're not very smart. Tell me, what other conditions do you have?"

Ryan sacrificed the remaining Primordial Raven essence of Mikragard, and on the spiritual panel, it was the same as the divine essence contained in Surtur's physical body. Both were pure primordial power, so how could there be any question of whether it was enough?
It can only mean that Surtur still wants to fleece his lord Ryan.

Surtur didn't care about Ryan's attitude. To Him, mortal emotions were superfluous. Even if He became stronger in anger, He regarded it as a form of power.

Therefore, the dissatisfaction that Ryan expressed, the 'power' he displayed, was too weak.

This is Surtur's vision.

He looked at Ryan, then his gaze drifted to a corner of the North. Ryan followed his gaze, which was roughly in the direction of Dawn Town.

There are many towns in this world that evoke the vastness of divine faith, but there is only one in the North: the town where Archbishop Adriana received a divine decree.

Surtur is actually paying attention to Adriana? She's truly blessed by the gods.

Ryan's thinking was somewhat flawed. As a deity, Surtur did not place that archbishop on an equal footing.

I can sense familiar presences awakening: Ifrit, Fransca—they have awakened, bathed in faith and regaining their strength.

Help me kill them.

"what are you saying?"

Ryan blinked, pretending not to have heard clearly.

"Surtur, if that's the case, there's no need for us to make a deal. All I need is your power and authority to help me, yet you want me to kill a god?"

Once they have fully recovered, they will search for my traces, and they will try to kill me.

Surtur looked at Ryan and didn't think there was anything wrong with it.

"That's impossible. At most, I can try to help you gain the faith of the Dawn, so that you can also bathe in faith and regain your strength like them."

"Don't even think about making me kill a god."

【make a deal】

Surtur readily agreed to Ryan's compromise and deal, which not only gave Ryan a feeling of being tricked, but also made him narrow his eyes slightly, confirming something.

Surtur at dusk was indeed one of the thirteen great followers of the Lord of Dawn in the Eternal Kingdom.

Otherwise, Surtur would not have been able to immerse himself in the faith of the Lord of Dawn and thus regain his power.

That is something only the great beings of the eternal kingdom could do.

However, Ryan still remembered that when he obtained the divine essence of Surtur, the word given on the spiritual panel was "twilight," not "eternity."

This is why Ryan had some doubts about this matter, but now he no longer doubts it. Compared to the words spoken by the gods themselves, which have been speculated about by mortals for countless years, it is obvious which one is more credible.

So, Surtur was indeed a traitor to the Eternal Kingdom?

He betrayed the Lord of Dawn and became the Guide of Twilight?
Ryan didn't understand, but what was certain now was that Surtur and the Lord of Dawn's faction had a very bad relationship.

Pressing down the information in his mind, Ryan spoke:
"Now that the deal is done, hand over this authority to me."

The moment Ryan finished speaking, the wall-like crystal behind him shattered with a deafening roar, and Surtur's body material burst into flames, eventually transforming into a pair of arm armor floating in mid-air. Gone was the violent, destructive power it had possessed before, but Ryan could sense that it could unleash that destructive flame at any moment.

Holding it in his hand, it felt cool and refreshing. Ryan clicked his tongue in amazement and looked up at Surtur to ask a question.

"You're a blacksmith?"

The surrounding void had returned to normal. After the scorching heat dissipated, an even more turbulent cold wind and snow erupted in this sky, as if the North itself was angry and trying to bring this region back into its domain.

Surtur disappeared without answering Ryan's question.

"He has left."

After Ryan finished speaking, the thousands of knights behind him slowly raised their heads. The arrival of a great being was always difficult for mortals to bear, and Ryan had no intention of having the Buck Legion try. ...

Frozen soil collar.

Lake Norte.

The lake's water is very gentle, because Surtur's divine essence was used here by Ryan, melting the ice and nourishing countless aquatic creatures.

This is a paradise for armored bears, where you can see them hunting and playing around the lake every day.

On the north side of the lake, thousands of sharp icicles still hang from the crescent-shaped cliffs, part of the waterfall, still frozen, creating a stark contrast with the gentle lake below.

Ryan's destination was not the frozen waterfall, whose shape was unrecognizable, but the southern part of Lake North Gar, where the waterfall had formed a lake over the years. When the lake overflowed, it formed a river over countless more years.

This river has been frozen for over a hundred years. The power of the North is so domineering that it cannot be explained simply by the cold weather.

Ryan stood at the edge of the lake, at the beginning of the glacier, and placed his arm-armored hand on the ice. In the next instant, a scorching red light permeated the ice, and the ancient, unyielding ice yielded to this divine power without any surprise.

The melted ice turned into icy river water, and Ryan manipulated Surtur's power, subtly controlling the direction of the red light.

On Rhinoceros Horn Mountain, Avril stared in astonishment as a giant red python snaked its way from the north. As the red light enveloped the area, the frozen river below Rhinoceros Horn Mountain, which was covered with snow piled up like small hills, began to melt at a visible speed.

"He actually managed to get a god to help him."

The melting glacier brought the sound of flowing water, and thousands of people from the frozen tundra curiously came out, shaking their heads as they looked in the direction of the river in the distance, before soon falling into a frenzy of celebration.

"miracle!"

"miracle!!!"

The bards probably have all sorts of stories to exchange for wine.

As the glaciers thawed, the armored bears, who had been eagerly anticipating the event, were excited to discover that the water level of Lake Northgard had also dropped. Fish that were once slippery were struggling to leap out of the water. The armored bears, of course, would not let this opportunity pass them by, and quickly ran towards their target, charging at any bear that stood in their way.

"There are so many fish in this lake?"

Ryan was surprised; the water level had dropped by less than half an arm's length, and the lake surface was almost entirely occupied by fish.

"These armored bears even raise fish?"

Ryan, having learned something new, laughed and did not immediately give the mage an order.

Ryan and the other armored bear trainees watched the polar bears from the sidelines, chatting about which bear would get the biggest feast. After waiting for about two hours, the lake had cleared up, and the armored bears reluctantly retreated to the shore, ending their harvest day celebration. Only then did Ryan look to the side.

The Northern mages, clad in thick fur robes, began to chant. The sky gradually darkened with clouds, and large raindrops began to fall, landing precisely in Lake Northgard to replenish its water level.

Lake Norgard does not have a strict flow of fresh water. Although it is huge, it is lifeless because the upstream waterfalls and downstream glaciers are all frozen. The appearance of armored bears is a complementary phenomenon. Later, the trickling streams or underground rivers from deep in the mountains and forests connected to the lake, but none of them could form an underground river system.

Ryan's forest restoration program in the northern part of the Frozen Territory has greatly alleviated the problem over the years, but with the thawing of the rivers, the problem has expanded once again.

The thawed river isn't exactly flowing water. It has a source but can't break through the ice downstream. It's wide and long enough to effectively alleviate the problem, but Ryan still needs magical power to continue to revitalize the thawed Northgard River.

What if the only thing that makes crystal squid viable is the lack of river water vitality?
"Let's throw half of it in first."

Ryan spoke, and the servants who were carrying the crystal squids brought out large wooden water tanks one by one. Just to be on the safe side, Ryan first grabbed a crystal squid and handed it to the white bear next to him, who nuzzled his nose at him. The latter looked at him with bright and surprised eyes.

Is it for me?

After devouring the crystal squid whole, the armored bear spat out the few crystals from its mouth. Then, no longer bothering to please Ryan, it lay down contentedly on the ground, basking in the sun on the snow after the rain.

I'm satisfied.

The polar bear, not yet armored, looked lazy and enjoyed the sunshine, occasionally scratching its belly with its paws before falling into a deep sleep.

Ryan exhaled and kicked the stupid bear awake.

“You look very mature. A mature armored bear should go to the battlefield to celebrate your coming of age.”

As he spoke, the Bear Spirit bestowed its blessing, and the white bear let out a painful roar, its eyes filled with displeasure.

"On my territory, I cannot tolerate anyone who enjoys life more than I do!"

Ryan kicked away the armored bear that was about to give him a bear hug and was about to cry, and waved his hand, throwing hundreds of crystal squid into Lake Northgard.

Among its kind, the 'octopus' slipped and slid into the lake, quickly diving into the depths. It then continued to sense the presence of its true form, which was still to the east, so it moved eastward, guided by the current.

"It really can adapt to fresh water."

Ryan clicked his tongue in amazement. These crystal-shelled squids were clearly nervous about the environment, which was different from the ocean, but they didn't look like they were about to die. This was the best possible outcome.

"Notify the Knight Academy that they can release the crystal squid, and also release another batch of crystal squid in the currently thawed middle section of the river."

"Have the alchemists, magicians, and fishermen observe for half a month. If the crystal squids do not die in large numbers within half a month, then continue to resettle the remaining crystal squids."

"If the crystal squid don't die too many times, and there's even a possibility that they can expand their population, then... we'll have no choice but to continue thawing the glacier."

Ryan glanced at the evasion in his hand. The divine essence had been depleted, but it didn't matter. The Frozen Territory still had a lot of supplies, all of which were taken from Surtur.

Unlike the North Wind Avenue, which only takes half an hour to reach the Northern Knights Academy, a transcendent academy deep in the snow-capped mountains, the winding river takes most of the day to reach.

This is assuming that the 'octopus' is moving forward with a conscious will and at a considerable speed.

Then, unsurprisingly, it struck the ice. The force thawed the glacier, but it wasn't enough to thaw the entire river leading to the East Sea.

Octopus was getting anxious, but at this moment, it had to calm down and think about what other options were available.

Ultimately, unwilling to give up, it returned to Lake North Gar, where the silt at the bottom of the lake is the deepest and the most difficult to find.

The surrounding crystal-shelled squids were reluctant to approach, but soon they were attracted and began to devour the mud and sand covering the octopus.

Clearly, the mud-eating squid and other squid adapted to this drastically different environment much more quickly.

(End of this chapter)