The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Ice, a drop of blood dripped from the tip of the sword, the blade as bright as moonlight, as clear as autumn water.

The Demon Mountain sheathed his greatsword, dismounted, and placed Black Stone's body onto the cart that carried his plate armor and shield. He had already donned the plate armor, and the oak shield rested against the cart's railing. His hand gently closed Black Stone's eyes.

Jane dismounted, took off her red cloak, and carefully wrapped it around Black Stone's body.

Black Stone's blood had opened the way forward. He would enter the Great Sept of Baelor in King's Landing and receive the highest honors of cremation.

Guarded by Brienne and Zelly, Jane walked up to the young general: "General, please clear the way. We are going to the lands of House Whent."

The young man looked at the Demon Mountain, then at Jane. The Demon Mountain's Ice and Jane's beauty stirred his heart.

The young man turned to the witch beside him and spoke in a torrent of words that none of the soldiers could understand.

The Demon Mountain urged his horse, staring at the young general. He only needed one punch to kill this kid along with his horse. But on the mountainsides of both mountains were archers, with green arrows, which the Demon Mountain was seeing for the first time.

From Jane's eyes, the Demon Mountain knew that the green arrows were all poisoned, with venom that sealed the throat upon contact.

For thousands of years, no one, including the Andals who came to conquer Westeros six thousand years ago wearing the armor of the Seven-Pointed Star, no army had ever conquered the Claw Peninsula by force. Except for the Targaryens who possessed dragons, the Claw Peninsula had never yielded to any force, none!

The treacherous terrain, the green poison arrows, could not be conquered.

The witch said something, and the young general urged his horse to clear the road. The cavalry behind him also cleared the road, moving to both sides of the mountain path.

The blood sacrifice had worked!

The young man was eager to try, but he respected the blood witch's words.

There were not many cavalrymen behind the young man, only a company of a hundred men.

But the horses they rode were all different from the horses the Demon Mountain had seen. They were taller. The color of the horses was also different. They were either pure black, pure yellow, or pure white. The Demon Mountain did not see a single mixed-color horse. These purebred horses were very good, and all of them were taller than the horses of the Demon Mountain's cavalry.

In the Mountains of the Moon, the tribal horses were all skinny and short, fast at climbing up and down mountains, and very experienced at walking on gravel roads. But the horses of the Claw Peninsula were burly and strong, not much worse than the Demon Mountain's most magnificent horse.

The Demon Mountain's horse was one in a thousand. But the horses in these mountains looked like each and every one was one in a thousand. They were even more magnificent than the Demon Mountain's generals' carefully selected warhorses.

Jane got into the carriage, and Denson took the role of standard-bearer, taking the lead. Anguy and Polliver acted as flag-protecting generals, following behind.

Jane's carriage slowly passed, with Brienne on the left and Zelly on the right, and the Demon Mountain following behind.

As the Demon Mountain passed the young general, he suddenly struck, just like an eagle grabbing a chick, reaching out and grabbing the young man. He grabbed the young man's chest, and the young man was like a steel hook had caught him, unable to move. Immediately.

Smack!

With a loud slap, the Demon Mountain slapped the young man's face with his other hand. The young man couldn't even hum, and was directly knocked unconscious, the spear in his hand falling to the ground. The Demon Mountain conveniently clamped him under his ribs.

This happened suddenly, and no one expected it.

Jane, the generals, the mountain tribe warriors, the cavalry and archers, the blood witch, everyone, all did not expect it.

In full view, the Demon Mountain lifted the young man with his left hand, slapped the young leader unconscious with his right hand, and conveniently clamped him under his left rib. Everyone was dumbfounded, and no one reacted. Jane heard the sound and looked back, stunned in the carriage. The standard-bearer Denson in front, and the flag-protecting officers Anguy and Polliver, and the six flag-bearers, all turned their heads when they heard the sound, and were all shocked and unbelievable.

In the midst of everyone's stunned silence, the Demon Mountain stretched out his right hand, lifted the blood witch from his horse, held him with one hand, and knocked the witch's head on his knee. With a muffled thud, the witch was knocked unconscious. The Demon Mountain held the witch with one hand, as if he was holding a scarecrow with a drooping head and limbs.

The entire valley was silent except for the mountain wind and birdsong.

Those magnificent horses also seemed to be frightened, and no horse neighed or snorted in alarm.

"Someone who can speak the Common Tongue, get out here!" The Demon Mountain shouted sternly. "I know that many of you can speak the Common Tongue. You belong to the Crownlands, and many of you must often go to the brothels and casinos in King's Landing, as well as the markets that sell your beast pelts. Someone get out here for me!"

The voice boomed like thunder rolling through the valley. The mountain tribe warriors, both front and back, left and right, were all shocked.

How could one person's voice be so mighty and unparalleled, like a thunderous roar?

The Clegane army's warhorses were already used to hearing the Demon Mountain's roar, but the valley tribe warriors and warhorses were hearing it for the first time. The warriors all paled, and the warhorses were startled, jumping up and down, wanting to escape, but were forcefully restrained by the warriors on horseback. - Their young leader was still in the giant's hands, but that was fine. The valley lord had more than one son. But there was only one witch. In the hearts of the valley people and warriors, the witch surpassed the lord's status and prestige in many ways, an absolute god-like existence.

"No one dares to come out? Are you all such warriors of the Claw Peninsula?" The Demon Mountain sneered. He laid the unconscious witch across the horse's back, picked up the young general, and heard a crack. The young general screamed, awakened by the pain, his entire right hand bent backward, reversed and stuck to his arm.

"Stop!" A cavalryman with a sentinel tree pattern painted on his face came out, speaking in the Common Tongue. "Don't hurt our young lord, or you will all die."

The Demon Mountain squeezed his legs, and the warhorse charged forward, arriving in front of the man in the blink of an eye. He reached out to grab the cavalryman. The cavalryman was furious and stabbed the Demon Mountain's chest with his spear. The Demon Mountain reached out and grabbed the spear, pulled it gently, lifted the cavalryman along with the spear, and threw him away. The cavalryman flew through the clouds and landed on the rocks beside the road, his brains splattered, and he died on the spot.

"Don't threaten us again!" The Demon Mountain's beard and eyebrows bristled, his eyes widened, but unfortunately the mask blocked his ferocity. "If you want a blood sacrifice, then let there be more blood."

"General, calm down!" The young general groaned in pain. "Release Dory Quntina Priestess, and I will guarantee your safe passage into the Whent family's territory."

"Tell them to put down their bows and arrows," the Demon Mountain shouted.

The young general was held in the Demon Mountain's hand, feeling the Demon Mountain's fingers sinking into his body, like steel hooks and clasps, impossible to break free. His entire right wrist was shattered, and his palm was completely reversed. The slightest vibration caused the broken bones to rub against each other, causing excruciating pain, on the verge of fainting, making life worse than death. The left side of his face, which had been slapped, was swollen, burning hot, and half of his body was still numb. A thousand leaf whistles were blowing inside his left ear.

The young general said, "Put down your bows and arrows." Then he added, "Let them pass."

His voice was very soft, lacking energy, his face facing the loess and his back facing the sky, but it did not prevent his cavalrymen from hearing his orders.

A cavalryman made a wailing sound, and then two more cavalrymen made a Dororororo shout. The archers all over the mountainside put away their bows and arrows, and climbed away on the mountain like monkeys. They carried rattan shields on their backs, short bows and quivers, and the quivers were filled with green arrows. They climbed on the mountain as fast as flying, and soon left completely clean.

The Demon Mountain's generals were all shocked.

Archers who could walk so nimbly and quickly on steep mountain walls, they had never even heard of them before, let alone seen them.

The Claw Peninsula was an absolute forbidden area, and it seemed that the reputation was not false. These warriors, in terms of climbing, each possessed unique skills.

"Let your cavalry lead the way in front," the Demon Mountain shouted. The Clegane army passing through other people's army was the most dangerous way, and the Demon Mountain did not want this.

He lifted the young general upright, keeping him in a head-down, face-forward position.

"Cavalry, form a line and lead the way in front," the young general said.

His lips were blue and purple, his face was covered in cold sweat, and he had no armor on his body. His archer warriors were also not wearing armor at all, only protecting themselves with a small amount of leather. This would sacrifice defense, but it would allow them to be as light as flying on the mountain. If they had armor and the like, they would not be able to move as flexibly as monkeys through vines and trees. His cavalry team also mostly did not wear armor, and their bodies were covered with strange patterns, in various colors.

So, the valley cavalry lined up, four in a row, to lead the way.

The Clegane army followed behind.

"General, you must release Dory Quntina Priestess, otherwise, once my brother arrives, you will not be able to pass through the valley entrance, nor will you be able to enter the Whent family's territory."

The Demon Mountain's eyes stared at the young man through the narrow slits of his mask. The young man was not very old, and he did not care about his own safety, but he repeatedly asked the Demon Mountain to release Dory Quntina Priestess. This kid was still too young. If he were placed among people like Littlefinger, Little Devil, or Qyburn, he would not even know how he died.

This made the Demon Mountain feel more relaxed. As long as he had the Dory Quntina witch in his hand, the journey would be safe and sound.

"You shouldn't have said that we can't enter the Whent family's territory," the Demon Mountain told the young man. "I'm going to punish you now."

The Demon Mountain picked up the young man and slammed his head on his chest plate armor. With a loud bang, the young man fainted again.

"Erin, tie him up and send two soldiers to watch him," the Demon Mountain threw the young general to Erin.

Erin caught him, tied him up on the horse, and then a guard laid the young man across the horse's back, drawing out a short knife and pressing it against the young man's back.

Dory Quntina slowly woke up: "Outsiders, you have committed a great taboo on the Claw Peninsula. All of you will have your corpses pecked at by crows." Dory Quntina spoke in the Common Tongue. Many of these people could speak the Common Tongue. The Demon Mountain's prediction was correct.

The Demon Mountain drew out his short knife, reversed the handle, and stabbed it into the priest's mouth. The priest's mouth was immediately full of blood, and several black teeth were broken.

"Every time you threaten me, I will make you suffer," the Demon Mountain said lightly.

The priest's mouth was full of pain, his tongue was almost bitten off, and his mouth was full of blood. He spat out a mouthful of blood, with several broken teeth in it.

Dory Quntina became honest, not wanting to provoke this demon-like giant.

Jane said, "Duke, we must be more careful ahead."

"We have sacrificed Black Stone, that is enough!" The Demon Mountain said.

He really wanted to say that he hated blood witches and blood sacrifices, but Jane and the witch were both blood witches. If Black Stone was not sacrificed, the Demon Mountain would have no chance to approach the young general and Dory Quntina. He was too conspicuous, as conspicuous as the two royal banners. Most of the warriors were paying attention to him. As long as he made a slight move under the strict guard of both sides, the other side would be alert.

Even during the blood sacrifice, the young general and the cavalrymen were very alert and afraid of him!

The Demon Mountain lifted the witch up and let him sit in front, the witch was like a child in an adult's arms.

"Duke, we have already passed the blood sacrifice and have changed from passers-by to friends that they can accept. Why did you suddenly attack?" Jane said softly.

"I don't trust them," the Demon Mountain said.

Jane was silent.

"The people of the Claw Peninsula have their own traditions and rules. In this way, they will not have a good impression of people carrying the three-dragon banner and the crowned stag banner in the future, nor will they have any trust."

"I want to control everything myself, madam. I don't believe in gods, what if he's dozing off!" The Demon Mountain said.

The Demon Mountain's intention was very clear. The valley leader here might abide by the blood sacrifice rules, but he might not. The Demon Mountain could see the young general's greed for his Ice and his covetousness for Jane's beauty. Although the witch gave the young man advice on passing the level, greed was like a seed, once it sprouted, it would break out of the ground.

Sword and beauty, this temptation was enough!

"Putting fate in the hands of oaths and blood sacrifices is not as good as controlling it myself," the Demon Mountain said softly to Jane.

"He desecrated the blood god," the witch said indistinctly to Jane.

She could see that Jane did not agree with the giant's actions, but she would not disobey him. She used a tone of discussion to express her intentions to him. Dory Quntina could see this.

"You firmly believe in your blood god?" The Demon Mountain's heart stirred.

For people of devout faith, this was an advantage, but also a disadvantage.

Whether it was an advantage or a disadvantage, it could be used.

"Supreme," Dory Quntina spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Then, are you still loyal to the Targaryen family?"

"Dragon warriors are still here, but there are no more dragons."

"The Targaryens have been rekindled, and the dragons have returned, and there are three of them."

"I won't believe your words, and we will never trust anyone outside again, ever."

"Then, you won't believe in the blood god anymore."

"The blood god is our eternal god."

"Then, you should know that everything I said is true."

"Draw my knife, sir, prove it to me," Dory Quntina sneered.

"How to prove it?"

How to prove it, the Demon Mountain knew it well. Jane was a blood witch, but she herself had not had the last layer of veil removed from her identity by the witch.

"Cut your palm with a knife and let me see the blood on the knife."

A blood witch could see many things from a person's blood: truth, lies; future predictions; physical ailments; insidious cunning; courage, loyalty... everything was in the blood.

"Your knife?"

"There is a silver knife on my waist. If you are not afraid of being cursed, then cut your palm."

"Okay, I am Gregor Clegane, Duke of Dragonstone..." The Demon Mountain wanted to make sure that every word he said was true.

"Dragonstone? You are from Dragonstone?" Dory Quntina's voice became clear. It was nothing for a blood witch to shed some blood, but it was just as difficult for broken teeth to grow back.

Dragonstone: the origin of the Targaryen family on the continent of Westeros, the residence of each generation of crown princes. Whichever descendant of the Targaryen family resides on Dragonstone is the heir to the Iron Throne.

"I come from King's Landing."

"Then what you said about the Targaryens and dragons?"

"The Targaryens have risen in Essos, and the dragons have been reborn—three of them. This is a top secret on the continent of Westeros. Besides myself and a few trusted individuals, no one else knows. You are the first outsider," The Mountain whispered in Dorna Qwenti's ear.

He reached for the silver dagger at Dorna Qwenti's waist—the witch uses silver needles, and Dorna Qwenti uses a dagger—different tools, same material, same function.

The silver dagger sliced through The Mountain's palm, and fresh blood welled up. The blood on the dagger was bright red. Dorna Qwenti stared intently. After a while, the bloodstains did not turn black.

What The Mountain said was true.

Dorna Qwenti was completely stunned.

The dragon warriors are still here, and the dragons are coming back again?

The Targaryen family has rekindled? Heavens, the dragons are really reborn? Three of them?!

Dorna Qwenti's breathing suffocated, and her whole body was burning, as if in a furnace.

The person in front of her was at least not an enemy, otherwise he wouldn't have told them that the dragons had been reborn, three of them, nor would he have told them that the Targaryen family had been rekindled.

In her predictions, she didn't see the Targaryens rekindled, nor the dragons reborn. She saw nothing.

"Are you also a loyal subject of the dragon clan?" Besides the people of the Claw Isle, there are still many nobles on the continent who are still loyal to the Targaryen family. These are the forces lurking on the continent, and a major reason why the late King Robert feared Daenerys' return. Even though Daenerys was just a little girl with nothing, Robert ordered her to be eliminated—because on the continent, there are still forces that remember the Targaryen family and can't forget them.

Dorna Qwenti's question to The Mountain was difficult to answer. If The Mountain answered yes, he could gain Dorna Qwenti's trust and the friendship of the Claw Isle, making it easy to recruit soldiers, but there was a risk, because it would be a lie. The blood on the silver dagger would not deceive Dorna Qwenti's eyes; the blood would turn black, The Mountain was certain of that.

"I sent the most powerful strategist to Daenerys Targaryen. Ser Barristan Selmy, the captain of the Kingsguard, has also gone across the Narrow Sea to find the Mother of Dragons, protect her, and help her return to Westeros. The dragons have been reborn and will soon return with a large army."

Dorna Qwenti stared intently at the blood on the silver dagger. The color was bright red, just like at the beginning.

This fierce giant was not lying!

Jenny watched as The Mountain easily gained Dorna Qwenti's trust. Her eyes flickered, unable to believe it: This is possible?!

Thanks to [飘尘入世] [醉梦之Kitty殇] for the reward support, thank you, handshake.