Knight Lord: Start with Daily Intelligence

The Dwarven Crown of Vengeance is one of the most well-known artifacts in this world, tracing back to the early days of the Empire when Emperor Sigmar fought alongside the Dwarven High King. To commemorate the great victory of the alliance, the High King ordered his Rune Master to forge rune blades.

The Rune Master tasked with forging these swords was Alaric, who created some of the most powerful weapons ever used in battle. It took a full century to forge them, and eventually, all the rune blades were gifted to each of the Empire's Elector Counts.

Some say that Alaric's century of arduous forging in the workshop drove the Rune Master into obsession and paranoia. His fellow Rune Smiths considered the rune blades to be the greatest weapon achievement, but Alaric himself felt that there was still room for improvement, that he had not yet reached the pinnacle of his craft.

Alaric constantly sought a new rune, and over time, he discovered a variant of the King's Rune—the Rune of Ages. This rune could not only preserve and refine the wisdom of each bearer and pass it on to followers, but it could also allow the bearer to control their own destiny. Anyone who carried this rune would become the master of their own fate and the fate of their entire race.

So, the Dwarven artisan master came to the Grey Mountains, where he built a massive forge deep within the mountains, using the lifeblood of the mountains—the volcanic lava—as fuel. Day and night, he forged a strange ore he found deep within the Twisted Arbor, until he created a shimmering crown engraved with the Rune of Ages.

As Alaric gazed upon the artifact he had created, his mind cleared. He had previously been blinded by madness and obsessive paranoia. The Crown of Vengeance would not grant the wearer the power of destiny, but would extract the evil intentions from the wearer's heart, not even the slightest trace of malice would be spared, turning him into a vessel for evil, used to store the collective malice extracted from each previous wearer of the crown.

Alaric was horrified by the evil he had created, but he understood that the Crown of Vengeance could not be destroyed. Therefore, he decided to hide this evil object. He went to the Black Forest, to the Howling Hills full of roaring winds, and threw the Crown of Vengeance deep into a Dwarven mine that had been abandoned before the War of the Beard. There, Alaric found a place to seal the Crown of Vengeance forever. Alaric carved out a secret chamber with living rock, placed the Crown of Vengeance inside, and then sealed the entire room with the most powerful runes.

The Crown of Vengeance remained perfectly sealed for centuries. Even when the mine entrance collapsed later, the main body of the mine remained intact. But then a powerful earthquake shook the Howling Hills, and stories spread of the discovery of new veins of mithril and the wealth of the ancient mine. A team of Dwarven miners was sent to investigate the area. In the end, they discovered far more than they had expected. They discovered those undiscovered veins, and also explored the previously damaged ancient mine. What happened next is unknown, because only one dwarf from that team of Dwarven miners emerged from the mine, covered in blood, mentally deranged, and spouting nonsense.

Soon after, a group of Night Goblins came to this mine, seeking new earth fissures and caves to inhabit. There they found the mad dwarf and the remains of his dead companions. The lone miner was captured by the Greenskins, who learned from the mad dwarf's roars that a powerful artifact would be found somewhere in their new lair.

Thus, the Crown of Vengeance was unleashed, and every few centuries, an evil force bearing the Crown of Vengeance would emerge, unleashing a terrifying bloodbath.

This artifact has become the Empire's and the Dwarves' most terrifying nightmare.

Its origin and disappearance are greatly related to the Grey Mountains.

So, it's not without reason that Su Li thought of the Crown of Vengeance when he saw a crown.

Ron smiled and said, "Lord, you really overestimate us. If it were a monster wearing the Crown of Vengeance, I'm afraid even the Emperor leading an army wouldn't be able to win. In fact, this is the Guardian Crown of Eldrazor, the Elven God of Duels. When the wearer is engaged in a one-on-one duel, they can actively activate this crown periodically, allowing their stamina and endurance to recover to a certain extent."

Eldrazor, the Elven God of Duels, is somewhat similar to Violet. He is the Lord of Blades and also a God of War, obsessed with superb war arts, but his status among the gods is still very low because he uses any means necessary to win.

This also involves the division of the Elves, the rebellion of the Dark Elves, and other historical events.

Su Li was not interested in the Elves' overly distant historical disputes, but the effect of this Guardian Crown pleased him greatly.

The orthodox use of the Guardian Crown is unquestionable. Activating it periodically during combat allows warriors to recover a certain amount of stamina and endurance.

However, Su Li was more concerned about its one-on-one combat effect, wondering if this Guardian Crown could be effective in knightly training.

Su Li smiled and looked at Freya. If there weren't so many people, he would have had to invite this proud female knight, whose eyes always carried a hint of contempt, to try out the effect together.

However, the war had just ended, and there were still many things to deal with, so Su Li smiled and put away this [Guardian Crown], and said to Commander Constantine, "Thank you, Commander Constantine, for the combat memento you gifted me. I really like this gift."

Then Su Li beckoned to Ron, took the Steel Sun War Banner, handed it to Commander Constantine, and said with a smile, "This is a gift I prepared for you, to commemorate our glorious victory in this battle."

Constantine clearly recognized the Flame Sun Knights' iconic banner. He took the scarlet banner with both hands, looked at the golden sun with sixteen rays on it, and said excitedly, "Thank you, Lord, for your generosity. This will be the pride of me and our entire Sunburst Knights."

"It's good that you like it." Su Li smiled, and then said calmly, "Now let's get down to business. What are the spoils of war from this battle?"

Constantine immediately said, "There are indeed many spoils of war. There are as many as tens of thousands of crude weapons and simple armor made by Gnolls and Goblins."

"Don't underestimate these things. After being taken back to the Black Forest Stronghold for remelting, they can bring us a large amount of Starmetal and Vibranium."

As he spoke, Constantine took down a huge cleaver from behind him. This cleaver was crudely made and had huge gaps in it, and it was obviously not a weapon for proud knights like the Sunburst Knights.

"This is a huge cleaver I seized from a Goblin Warleader. Its workmanship is not worth mentioning, but the materials used are very surprising. I feel that there are at least three pounds of Vibranium in it, and there is also a Flame Gem on the handle."

Dogelin also took out a dagger from his waist and said, "You also found Flame Gems? There is also a Flame Gem on my dagger."

Hildu took down a short spear from the wall and said, "This is what I seized from a Goblin elite soldier when I was chasing them. There are actually three Flame Gems on it."

Su Li's eyes lit up and asked, "Does this mean that there is a ruby mine in the Green Dragon's territory in the Blood Pine Forest?"

Dogelin nodded excitedly and said, "Very likely. This kind of Flame Gem is called Fire Opal in our Dwarven world. It is a type of corundum that contains powerful flame essence and the lava power of the earth. Engraving such a gem on a forged fire-attribute rune weapon can significantly enhance the effect of the flame power. Moreover, after hitting an enemy, it will leave a flammable mark on the enemy. Subsequent attacks on the enemy, even ordinary physical damage, will also be accompanied by some flame burning."

In fact, judging from the performance on the battlefield, the effect of this Fire Opal is more comprehensive than what Dogelin said.

The reason why Forest Goblins are heavily equipped with this gem is because Goblins, like Greenskins, like all kinds of cool gadgets.

Even an ordinary weapon, inlaid with this Fire Opal, will have a cool red light on the weapon when dealing heavy blows and combos. When slashing and stabbing, it will leave a fiery red light, with the sound of whistling flames, increasing fire damage.

What Dogelin said is just that the Dwarves used superb forging skills to converge these characteristics into rune weapons, making their flame characteristics more powerful. When fire-attribute knights use rune weapons, even ordinary attacks can burst out with bright and scorching light, adding more powerful flame damage.

The number of Fire Opals that can be obtained in this battle is probably not small. It can almost be expected that the strength of the fire-attribute knights will definitely be further strengthened in the future.

Just imagine hundreds of fire-attribute knights wielding flaming blades and slashing at the enemy's ranks, that is not something ordinary armies can resist.

Su Li then said, "Soldiers can keep weapons, armor, and other spoils of war for themselves, but all equipment containing Vibranium must be handed in. Our territory must also make the ban clear. Anyone who privately hides Vibranium or smuggles this important military asset will be executed, and the collateral liability system will be adopted. If one person hides it, the entire team will be punished, and those who shield them will be punished with the same crime."

"Of course, to recover Vibranium, the territory cannot rely solely on severe punishment. Let the quartermaster set up rewards. Anyone who sends in Vibranium weapons and armor will be rewarded with 3 gold crowns, and an additional 16 gold crowns for every additional pound of Vibranium!"

Orschtein nodded in agreement and said, "No problem, I will rectify military discipline and clarify the ban. Prohibiting the concealment and smuggling of Vibranium is the common system of the Empire, and the soldiers will understand. What's more, our territory rewards soldiers who hand in Vibranium, and I believe most people can make wise choices. Those who insist on taking risks, even if they are killed, others will not object."

A weapon containing one pound of Vibranium will have 19 gold crowns upon surrender, which is a very considerable value. It is equivalent to nearly half a year's salary for an elite knight, almost two years' salary for a knight, and even equivalent to six years' income for ordinary armed attendants and free people without food or drink.

You can't compare the lord's generosity with the black market price of smuggling.

Handing over Vibranium to the territory, this reward is already very generous. They take it openly and honestly, and they may also get military merits, glory, and praise.

But if they are greedy and choose to take the risk to hide it and smuggle it out of the territory in the future, then they are really putting their heads on their belts. Not only may they be discovered by layers of inspecting officials and soldiers, but they also have to worry about their relatives, comrades, and comrades-in-arms noticing, and they may even be revealed by the lord's intelligence system. No matter what the reason is, death awaits the hiders.

Su Li felt that in this situation, anyone with a little sense would know how to choose.

For ordinary free people, going to the battlefield to fight desperately once, and getting a Vibranium weapon, they have gained six years of income without food or drink, they should be satisfied.

This is enough for him to change his destiny, try to buy a farm, or buy one or two slaves/female slaves.

So people in the Empire love to go to the battlefield, because going to the battlefield really has rich rewards.

In the transcendent world, as long as they have a chance to come into contact with it, they may have a chance to change their destiny.

After these Vibranium weapons are all recovered, it is enough for the dwarves of Black Forest Territory to create several or even dozens of sets of Vibranium rune armor.

These are four monster legions, even if dozens of kingdom knights pulled out all the soldiers and slaves in the territory, they may not be able to win the terrible scale.

The wealth they left behind should be able to arm a dozen of the most elite knights.

And those smelted steel can create hundreds of sets of excellent-grade dwarven heavy armor.

Then Su Li turned to look at Dogelin and said, "My friend, are you interested in staying in my territory for a while? I can send an invitation to your Redbeard Fortress, please you to serve as a casting master in my territory for a while."

"During this period, you can forge Vibranium rune armor and dwarven heavy armor to your heart's content. More importantly, every day you are in the territory, I will supply you with two pots, no, three pots of Troll Brew!"

"In this battle, we killed more than forty trolls. Their blood and livers are important materials for brewing Troll Brew!"

Su Li didn't understand what Barros meant when he told him that troll blood had the ability to quench thirst.

Until this summer, a slave in the territory got lost in the forest of the ranch. When the druid sent him out of the sacred forest, the slave was already exhausted from the long exposure to the sun and lack of water. His lips were chapped, and his throat was so painful from the long-term lack of water that he was extremely thirsty.

As a result, the druid asked the dwarves for a small tube of troll blood and gave it to the slave. He quickly recovered, his chapped lips became moist, his sunburned skin gradually returned to normal, and his originally hoarse and painful throat was able to speak clearly after a short time.

Troll Brew brewed with troll blood is much higher quality than ordinary dwarven beer. A cup of dwarven beer can support a dwarf for a few days in extreme cases.

Troll Brew can be said to be the energy source for the dwarves, which can make them energetic and full of energy. A cup can drive away their fatigue of the day.

Dogelin couldn't help swallowing when he heard this. His round eyes widened excitedly and said, "Then... then okay. I will write a letter to the patriarch, explaining the situation here. There are no wars in Redbeard Fortress recently, and the patriarch wants to take the fortress to recuperate, farm, and develop. I think it's really not a big problem for me to stay in Black Forest Territory for a while."

Redbeard Fortress and Blackwood Fortress are neighbors, close enough to be considered adjacent. Though humans might find the distance considerable, dwarves can traverse it in a single cycle. Dorgin's visit here doesn't significantly impact Redbeard Fortress's security.

Dorgin assured, "Before I came, the Chieftain instructed me not to rush back until the Green Dragon is completely defeated."

Su Li nodded with a smile, saying, "That's good. After this battle, we can continue to strengthen our alliance. In fact, you don't need to return to Redbeard Fortress; you can station troops in our territory."

"This would be like Redbeard Fortress sending an army to be stationed in our territory, assisting us in defense. Similarly, Blackwood Territory will send an army to be stationed in Gray Rock Valley below the Gray Mountains, helping your dwarves patrol."

"This way, we can not only solidify our alliance but also complement each other's military shortcomings."

"This...this..." Dorgin was somewhat moved. Dwarven Rangers were always considered heretics in Redbeard Fortress, at least eccentric individuals.

But here in the Empire, humans have always treated them as friends.

Moreover, life in Blackwood Territory is indeed much better than in Redbeard Fortress, with plenty of roasted meat and fine wine.

The presence of three or four squadrons stationed here doesn't significantly affect Redbeard Fortress's security, yet it secures a reliable and powerful ally.

Dorgin couldn't find a reason to refuse.

He could only say, "I will write to the Lord and convey your suggestion to him."

"Of course, this matter requires the consent of the Redbeard Clan Chieftain. I will also send a diplomatic minister to Redbeard Fortress to explain this matter."

However, the exchange of troops must wait until the battle with the Green Dragon is over.

Su Li didn't dwell on it and instead asked, "Besides the spoils we are sure to find, have we discovered anything special?"

Knight Orstein solemnly said, "What you've simply stated is enough for us to sort through for a long time. The monsters are bound to have various spoils, including the ingredients used by the gnolls to make poison, such as venomous insects and poisonous herbs."

"The goblins have obtained strange gadgets, scraps, and parts. Although their effectiveness is unstable, they are bizarre and cannot be ignored."

"There are also rocks, minerals, gold coins, jewelry, and so on collected by trolls and giants in their lairs."

"All of these are estimated to be worth 8,000 to 15,000 gold coins."

So little?

Compared to the demon legion, these monsters are simply paupers! This is four legions, possibly tens of thousands strong. They marched out of Bloodpine Forest in a mighty force and were almost completely wiped out, yet the spoils are only worth a little over ten thousand? On average, the weapons, equipment, and materials on each monster add up to less than two gold crowns.

But Su Li thought about it and realized it was normal.

After all, the demon legion had excavated an ancient dwarven ruin, and the dwarves' wealth even surpassed that of the Empire.

The monsters in the forest, however, are minions of the Green Dragon, and their wealth might have been plundered by the Green Dragon first.

Su Li smiled and said, "The poorer they are, the more wealth there will be in the Green Dragon's lair, and the greater our gains will be when we finally recoup our losses in victory!"

"But even a broken ship has three thousand nails. Such a massive monster legion must have some special items on them?"

Rong En took out a gray bag from his chest and said to Su Li, "There are some. I found this magical seed on a large number of monsters."

Su Li opened the gray bag and took a look. His eyes widened, filled with surprise. The gray bag was filled with a kind of amber-like, crystalline seed, emitting a faint green light. As if imbued with Jilen's magic by the forest, each one presented an exquisite spiral shape, like the most perfect geometric pattern in nature.

Their shells were not made of ordinary plant material but were translucent, as if carved from jade, with patterns of light flowing inside, pulsating with the seed's breath.

Su Li carefully reached into the bag, feeling a subtle warmth on the surface of the seeds, as if they contained a small sun inside. He carefully took out a larger seed, and found that its shape was like a miniature forest, with trunks and branches winding across the surface of the seed, with details so exquisite that they were breathtaking.

"What kind of seed is this?"

Rong En said, "I don't know. We interrogated the prisoners about the effects of this seed. They said that as long as it is buried in the ground and watered with blood, a huge wheat ear will grow within a day, yielding half a kilogram of wheat."

"But I always feel that there may be a problem with their planting method, it's too crude. Perhaps we can let the sisters of the Church of the Dawn Goddess take a look."

Su Li raised his head in surprise: "This effect is already amazing. It's simply a supply artifact for marching and fighting."

But if this is considered a wasteful way to use it, how amazing would its true effect be?

And Su Li basically agreed with Rong En's view that these monsters never engage in production and do not understand farming techniques at all. All they do is throw the seeds into the ground and wait for them to mature.

So their planting method definitely did not bring out the true effect of this seed.

"Hilde, please invite two sisters from the Church of the Dawn Goddess over and ask them if they recognize this seed. Also, ask them about the casualties of this battle."

Although most of the priests of the Church of the Dawn are farming and developing in the territory, there are still two elite-level sisters leading a group of novice sisters in the army, taking care of the wounded soldiers together with the knights of the Medical Knights of the Goddess of Life and Mercy, treating their wounds, and comforting the fear and despair in their hearts.