hotmtlnovel Chapter 681: The Night King’s Weakness
Chapter 681: The Night King’s Weakness
Chapter 681: The Night King’s Weakness
His army seemed endless, a relentless tide of the dead that surged forward like a sea, overwhelming everything in its path.
Roar!
One after another, dragon roars echoed through the skies as several great beasts soared into the air.
"Dracarys, Dreamfyre!"
The immense pale-blue dragon Dreamfyre leapt over the Great Wall, soaring like a cloud a hundred meters high, its fantastical flames interwoven with blue and white.
Boom!
The ground below erupted, large flakes of snow exploding as the advancing army of ghouls came to a sudden halt.
Roar!
From the frost-covered city walls, a muddy, weathered dragon crawled forward, defiant. Sheepstealer leapt from the top of the Wall, overcoming its barrier for the first time, and unleashed a torrent of thick, muddy Dragonfire.
Syrax and Sunfyre followed, flying side by side, their golden flames raining down in unison.
With a thunderous rumble, the four dragons attacked together, their Dragonfire tearing through the ranks of the undead like an unstoppable force. The flames carved deep ravines into the snowy ground, scorching the earth and reducing the ghouls to ash.
Roar!
Above the Wall, a young light-green dragon circled anxiously, letting out a shrill cry. Baela pulled hard on the reins, urging Moondancer to join the fray. But the young dragon resisted, reluctant to cross the Great Wall—an unusual disobedience.
Even so, the sheer number of dragons on the battlefield was enough to turn the tide. The army of ghouls faltered under the onslaught of fire.
For the first time, the Night King's expression changed. His ice-blue eyes narrowed, and a shadow of concern flickered across his face. His lips parted slightly, revealing white, frostbitten teeth beneath the fog of his breath.
Roar...
The Cannibal, black as night, let out a long, fearsome howl. His massive body plunged downward like a meteor, his abyssal maw gathering dark-green Dragonfire. His menacing vertical pupils locked onto a lone figure standing on the distant slope.
Rhaegar's eyes, sharp as a falcon’s, fixed on the Night King. His voice was cold and commanding: "Dracarys!"
Boom!
The dark-green Dragonfire, thick as smoke and mist, came crashing down, enveloping the towering slope in a torrent of flame.
The Night King remained unmoved, his icy gaze locked on the man and the dragon above. As the Dragonfire hurtled toward him, he calmly raised his ice spear.
A second later, the Night King was swallowed by the Dragonfire, the flames spreading like a deadly mushroom cloud, scorching the snow and earth alike.
For a moment, his figure blurred within the blaze, the searing fire threatening to consume everything in its path.
‘Did it work?’
Rhaegar rose cautiously from the back of the Cannibal, his eyes locked on the raging flames below. The dark-green Dragonfire roared, scorching the earth and cracking the frozen ground beneath it. If the figure trapped within the fire was the legendary Night King, this battle could be over in an instant.
To end the war, you must first kill the king.
Rhaegar's heart raced. If the Night King fell here, the White Walkers' invasion would collapse. No creature should be able to survive such fierce flames. The figure had disappeared, seemingly consumed by the fire.
‘Why didn’t he even try to avoid it?’
Each second stretched into eternity, and unease crept into Rhaegar’s mind. Something wasn’t right.
And then it happened.
Whoosh!
A smooth spear of ice shot through the Dragonfire, slicing the air with lethal precision.
‘Roar!’
The Cannibal’s green pupils contracted sharply, and the dragon twisted violently, flapping its wings to narrowly avoid the spear. But the danger wasn’t aimed at the dragon.
The spear had been aimed directly at the Cannibal's neck. As the beast dodged, it grazed the dark dragon’s side, tearing through the air toward its rider.
Rhaegar saw the glint of the ice spear reflecting in his eyes, and a chill swept over him. In less than a heartbeat, the spearhead was upon him, the cold biting into his skin.
‘No way to avoid it.’
For an instant, his mind went blank. He ran through a dozen evasive maneuvers in his head, but none of them worked. The spear was too precise, its speed too great. One of them would fall.
Zero point one second left.
The icy spear hurtled toward him.
‘I’ll give it a go.’
‘The Night King isn’t afraid of Dragonfire!’
His body stiffened, neck aching from strain, as he growled, "Let’s face him again, Cannibal."
The Night King’s immunity to both Dragonfire and ice had turned him into an even greater threat. Rhaegar knew he had to hold him off, to prevent the danger from reaching Rhaenyra and the others.
Roar...
The Cannibal’s pupils narrowed further, its wings flapping with renewed intensity as it lowered its head, exuding a powerful, acrid smell of ash.
Rumbling...
From above, the black dragon swooped down, spewing dark green Dragonfire that swept across the battlefield in a devastating arc. The flames seemed unending, carving a deep furrow toward the towering slope where the Night King stood.
Sensing the growing threat of the ash-tainted flames, the Night King turned his gaze skyward, locking eyes with the silver-haired figure atop the dragon.
Rhaegar, suppressing the tremors in his body, flipped his left hand and retrieved a spear. The spear, forged in Valyria, gleamed coldly in his grip.
‘Let’s see if the Night King truly has no weaknesses.’
If the Night King dared to stand his ground, Rhaegar would pierce his chest with the spear Dawn.
This time, the Night King finally moved. He slid off his rotting horse and strode forward, his long strides carrying him toward the blackened pit where the Dragonfire raged.
Roar...
The Cannibal descended, its dark green Dragonfire sweeping the ground. In an instant, the rotting horse and the pale White Walker at the Night King’s side were incinerated, reduced to nothing but ash.
"Retreat, Cannibal!" Rhaegar commanded in High Valyrian, his eyes flashing with caution. The Night King had vanished into the Dragonfire, and Rhaegar didn’t intend to repeat his mistake.
Boom!
The Cannibal, half-airborne, surged back into the sky, its massive body flying high. Unwilling, it glanced back at the battlefield below, its green eyes filled with lingering fury.
At that moment, a sudden change rippled across the battlefield.
Clatter!
Half of the dead collapsed where they stood, falling into heaps that piled up like a grotesque mountain of the dead. As if responding to an unseen command, the remaining White Walkers retreated swiftly, vanishing into the depths of the Haunted Forest.
Roar!
Dreamfyre’s pupils narrowed as it relentlessly pursued the fleeing wights, flames pouring from its jaws, displaying the full destructive power of a mature dragon. The other three dragons followed closely behind, clearing away the remnants of the undead army in a blazing sweep.
Roar...
Meanwhile, the Cannibal veered in the opposite direction, descending toward the Wall. Its massive feet slammed down on the frozen ramparts, the impact shaking the ice-crusted stones.
Rhaegar, beads of cold sweat trickling down his forehead, replaced his spear with a black horn, twice the size of his arm.
Wo...
A deep, sonorous blast echoed from his lips as they touched the dragon horn. The sound resonated across the battlefield, causing the dragons to slow their pursuit and turn back.
Gritting his teeth, Rhaegar tightened his grip on the saddle, his gaze fixed on the blackened pit where the Night King had vanished.
‘Has that half-human, half-demon creature fled?’
After their second encounter, Rhaegar understood the Night King’s true intentions. The attack on the Wall had been a diversion—a mere test. Had Rhaegar not fought with every ounce of strength, the Night King would have pressed further. It was a probe to measure Rhaegar’s resolve.
Hoo!
A cold wind swept across the battlefield, carrying the acrid scent of burnt ash. The remaining wights retreated beyond the Wall, scrambling back into the Haunted Forest, leaving nothing but silence in their wake.
The deep pit behind the slope lay still, void of any movement. Rhaegar exhaled slowly, his chest tight with tension.
‘It was gone?’
Roar!
Dreamfyre’s roar broke the stillness as it turned back toward the Wall, its light blue wings beating against the cold air.
From atop her dragon, Helaena’s clear eyes noticed Rhaegar’s pallor.
"Retreat, Sheepstealer," Aemond called, tugging on the reins and commanding the stubborn Mud Dragon to turn back.
The battle was over. The threat had receded—for now.
The low blast of the Dragon’s Horn echoed once more, signalling the recall of the dragons.