Origin Paradise!

[Note: Due to the "Civilization and Barbarism" curse, any player in the Frozen Sea world will regain normal physical survival functions. Creatures below Legendary level are expected to die upon opening their storage pouches. Players are strictly prohibited from engaging in any technologically advanced actions beyond their current capabilities. The specific reason is a world-class secret.]

[Note: Due to the lack of a foundational achievement, the heroic status of beings in the Ice Sea World is temporary. When the energy of the Holy Domain is exhausted, the heroic status and the power of heaven and earth will disappear, and peak heroic beings are expected to face a high probability of being surrounded and killed.]

[Note: Named Weapons: When a user achieves something, the world imprints power onto the weapon. Over time, this accumulation makes the weapon stronger or allows it to grow stronger (from Epic to Sub-Legendary).]

[Note: The Ice Sea World is a high-risk world and is not recommended for players below the Heroic Age to explore. The world's durability is at the Holy Spirit level.]

[Note: The Viking hierarchy is: Baron, Earl, King. The True Continent hierarchy is: Baron, Earl, King. During special periods, a Grand Duke may be appointed as the regional ruler. Earls are military leaders. There are no viscounts or marquises.]

[Quest Name: Kings of the Frozen Sea and Demon Hunters]

[Executor-exclusive main quest requirement: Consume wealth and accumulate wealth points (0/100). Wealth points determine the final reward level after the world ends, up to the Mythical level.]

[Main Quest 1: Become a Baron]

[Quest Reward: Legendary Skill Enhancement Scroll *1 (No Animal Companion)]

[Task Time Limit: 90 calendar days]

[Task Penalty: None]

[Note: Barons often served as military deputies and pillars of rule for earls.]

[Hunter Mission Name: Twilight Punisher]

[Quest Description: Kill the individual with the highest reputation among the Twilight player group to obtain a Legendary Gem. This quest can be repeated up to five times. Collecting five Legendary Gems will automatically upgrade the gem to a Holy Spirit Gem.]

[Initial Identity: Viking Freeman]

[Note: The temporary language translation module has been loaded.]

World, begin!

Chapter 664 Storm and War Song

In the year 844 of the Civilization Calendar, a stormy sea occurred.

A Viking longship departed from Blackrock Harbor, deviating from the stable routes pioneered by the Vikings over the decades, choosing instead to sail against the ocean currents towards the western part of the continent of Truth.

With the arrival of winter, the storm seas enter their most turbulent period.

The sky was dark, and looking up, one could see lightning bolts darting through the clouds. Amidst the waves, the bow of the longship suddenly plunged into the sea, stirring up surging white waves.

"reef!"

"We must row, or we'll be capsized by the huge waves!"

At the very front of the longship, a blond, burly man stood on the keel, shouting at the top of his lungs. He had an axe-shaped tattoo between his eyebrows, the honorary insignia of a top-tier Viking warrior captain.

Upon receiving the order, the soldiers on the ship immediately sprang into action. One of them, also blond, was even taller, resembling a bear standing upright.

"Norend!"

The bear-like warrior roared, "We're going to die! Thor is pounding his anvil; he's angry at us!"

The icy seawater stung their faces, and upon hearing this, the thirty-odd Viking warriors also revealed their anger and frustration. Their captain, Norlund, had disobeyed the baron's order not to go to sea in winter, and had incited them to bypass the Golden Oak Kingdom in the northernmost part of the Truth Continent and attack the Thorn Kingdom's coast, which was impossible to reach.

Faced with the wrath of his own kind, Norlund grabbed the bow of the ship with one hand, bursting into loud laughter, his eyes filled with unbridled madness.

"Thor is wielding Mjolnir!"

"Why is he angry? Why does he want to sink us?"

"You don't understand at all. This is his praise. He wants everyone to know that even Thor can't sink this ship!"

"By crossing the storm seas at their most turbulent time, we will arrive at the Thorn Kingdom, which has not been plundered for decades. Only in the most unlikely place and at the most unlikely time can we accomplish the most magnificent feat!"

"Praise the storm!" Norlund roared, his eyes blazing. "Raise the canopy and row hard, especially you, my brother!"

The burly man, who resembled a wild bear, had no choice but to lower his head. In fact, he and his brother Norend were both at the pinnacle of heroism, but there could only be one baronial captain, so the other side was in charge of the longship.

Amidst storms and waves, the longship cuts through the waves.

Every warrior's face was contorted with rage. Their seamless teamwork allowed the keel to cut smoothly into the waves, but at the cost of everyone being almost completely exhausted. The violent shaking caused buckets and food sacks to fly out, but even under these circumstances, the shields and battle axes mounted on the side of the ship remained perfectly still. The axe and shield were the warriors' lifeblood.

A veteran warrior at the pinnacle of heroism loudly reminded:

"Norund, there are no more buckets!"

Without water, even crossing a storm will result in death.

Norlund stood on the keel, his blond hair flying in the wind. He knew what he should do at this moment, and immediately gave a passionate speech to boost the morale of the ship.

"When I lose everything, it's time to win everything!"

"We are of Odin's blood, just as he lost his eyes but gained supreme wisdom!"

"Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!"

The warriors roared in unison, their faith fueling their innate courage to the extreme. The fear in the hearts of the young men who were setting sail for the first time vanished instantly. In the legends of the North, the warrior who conquers the sea becomes fearless.

"Wait, what's that?!"

Enzo, who resembled a wild bear, suddenly stood up, his eyes filled with shock.

Everyone looked over and saw a figure swimming vigorously between the dark clouds and the waves. Every breath, every swing of the arm, every leap out of the water was perfectly timed. The powerful figure seemed to be conquering the sea, and the timing was extremely precise countless times.

In a situation where a single mistake could lead to utter ruin.

This guy actually managed to swim to the side of the boat.

"This is a human!?" Enzo's scalp tingled.

Norlund laughed wildly and shouted, "Is there anyone more courageous and fearless than us?"

"no!"

The soldiers, who were almost exhausted, all turned red-faced, and the icy seawater seemed to hit molten iron, stirring up bursts of white mist.

boom!

A hand gripped the side of the boat firmly and securely.

Norland reached out and shouted, "Someone come quick and pull him up!"

Before the two soldiers could arrive to help, the newcomer had already climbed into the longship and casually tied up his wet, platinum-blonde hair.

“Vikings!” Norrend shouted.

"Vikings!" the other warriors shouted.

Jiang He's expression remained unchanged. In fact, in the local language, Viking means "sea adventurer." Initially, it was not a fixed race or ethnic group, but rather a way of life. Before the Age of Plunder, until its end, the Viking tribes merged with each other, containing various "bloodlines," and there was no such thing as "pure blood."

Of course, as Vikings, they had to worship Odin.

After a long and arduous voyage lasting several hours, the longship finally emerged from the storm.

The sky remained overcast and dark, with no sunlight in sight.

Given their valiant act, the entire Viking crew readily accepted the newcomer, much like the large number of wanderers in the northern wilderness who were an important source of population for tribal strongholds.

The veteran Alcos came with a woolen cloak and a bowl of food: crushed rye bread containing bran, mixed with smoked dried fish, solidified lard and stinky cheese, and a little seawater—the highest standard of living for the Vikings on their long voyages.

"There's no water left. It's up to you." The old soldier glanced at the white snake coiled around the other man's neck.

Jiang He wrapped himself in a wool cloak. Due to the "Civilization and Barbarianism" curse, he was indeed at risk of hypothermia. In fact, when he arrived, he was in a wooden barrel prison at sea. He had just crawled out. According to the customs information in the player's basic information, he was probably a free criminal exiled by a Viking tribe.

As for the food, it's at least very high in calories.

Just as Jiang He was eating, Norland pulled out the thin man who was tied to the stern of the boat.

"I know about the matter of going against the ocean current."

"Tell me more about that Earl Mandarin Duck."

The gaunt man trembled and wrapped his thin shirt tighter around himself as he said, “The Earl of Mandarin Owls… is said to be greedy and cruel. His territory is located on the northern coast of the Thorn Kingdom, at the end of the upstream current. His castle and monastery are built together. Under the guise of supporting believers of truth, he colludes with bishops to plunder wealth. Rumor has it that even the statue of God is made of gold.”

"This count is a powerful druid, and his soldiers are highly respected in the Thorn Kingdom..."

Before the words were even finished, the Viking warriors burst into laughter. The three kingdoms of the Continent of Truth, and even the Empire, had been shattered with a single charge in countless past battles.

Jiang He calmly scooped up the paste. The warriors in front of him were all high-level axe and shield masters, and the five peak warriors were even at the grandmaster level. Moreover, their physiques were quite outstanding, similar to specialists at the same level. They certainly had the right to be confident.

The gaunt man looked in horror at the laughing Vikings around him, feeling only malice in their voices. He had originally been a canal merchant from the continent of Truth, but because of his sins, he had been punished by God and banished to the North. He was no match for these beasts.

"The Mandarin Duck Abbey...is notoriously bad in aristocratic circles. I know there are important figures there, such as Prince Alfred, who was exiled from the Wessex Empire. There are fewer than thirty princes and princesses of this generation in the entire empire. He is very valuable!"

The gaunt man trembled as he revealed his trump card. Imperial monarchs were served by sorcerers who used fertility magic to produce numerous offspring. This generation, however, had a relatively small number of children due to the turmoil.

"Is there anything else?"

Norland looked the other person up and down.

"I swear, I've told you everything I know!"

puff!

Enzo, Norlund's brother, pulled out a dagger and slit the throat of the thin man. The old soldier hurriedly brought over an empty bucket and carefully collected the blood.

"It's just one person's share. We need to see land before tomorrow morning," the veteran said.

Norlund took out the nautical chart and fumbled around for a while before his face darkened. Because of the storm, they had deviated from their original course and it would probably take three days to reach the coast. Once his Blood Warrior cooled down, the long wait without water would be enough for the warriors to cut him to pieces.

Suddenly, a cold voice rang out.

"Direction?" Jiang He asked.

Norlund turned around and found that the swimmer had been standing behind him at some point. As a warrior captain, he knew he would have a hard time surviving in the stormy sea. The fact that the other person had survived meant that he was likely a master of skills from the heroic era, a rare and great warrior.

“There.” Norlund pointed southwest and asked, “Norlund, the warrior captain of Blackrock Harbor.”

"Augustus".

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Jiang He came to the stern of the ship, pointed his finger as a gun, and released the Sin Void Seal. A powerful air burst was released. Even though the real-world impact of the power was weakened in the Holy Spirit level world, it still had the terrifying power to destroy ordinary houses.

boom!

The longboat suddenly surged forward, rapidly covering a hundred meters.

Boom boom boom!

Jiang He continuously released air seals, and the dragon-bone longship seemed to jump on the sea surface, skipping across the water.

But with each impact with the sea surface, a series of "crackling" sounds rang out, and cracks were becoming visible at the joints of the planks. Even Odin wood, renowned for its sturdiness, was nearing its limit.

Norland laughed and said, "At this rate, the ship won't hold up for long. You still have a way, right?"

The next moment, dozens of thorns sprouted from Jiang He's fingertips. Under the soldiers' watchful eyes, the thorns wrapped around the hull, reinforcing it and forming a layer of defense.

This fire-resistant and sturdy plant, if its thorns were removed, would be an excellent material for shipbuilding, since Jianghe can certainly produce special thorns with large cross-sections.

Enzo's eyes flickered.

The old soldier picked up the bull horn and blew the battle horn.

The warriors sang loudly and struck their shields with their battle axes.

Norlund danced around the mast, pious and bold:

"Weapons and warhorses are what warriors rely on."

"But courage is more powerful than any armor!"

"The Valkyrie arrived on horseback."

"Look, look! There's a raven cawing!"

"The gods call upon you, Augustus."

"To Valhalla!"

"Augustus!" Norlund shouted, offering his sincere blessings to the newly established figure.

"To Valhalla!" the soldiers shouted in unison.

Seeing this, Jiang He rubbed his temples. If they got any noisier, he wasn't sure if he would kick these guys off the ship.

……

The continent of truth, the coast of the Thorn Kingdom.

The castle of the Earl of Iris was built on the sea cliff, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. The castle was garrisoned by one hundred professional soldiers all year round. It was surrounded by high walls, and the training ground inside was relatively spacious. A church stood in the center. In this era, the status of formal believers was quite noble.

Inside the church library.

A handsome young man sat in front of the easel, head down, carefully mixing various paints.