The Record of Unusual Creatures

Hao Ren did not know what to say about these undead spirits called the Einherjar. Or rather, he did not know what to say about the Norse gods that created the Einherjar. The undead spirits could be regarded as some kind of wraiths. The making of the Einherjar by the Valkyrie was actually a terrible curse. It cast the soul of the dead into cold and bloodless armor of steel, letting it participate in endless battles. Even though this process was sugarcoated with glory in the name of the divine, it was undoubtedly an exaggeration.

“These Einherjar were volunteers,” Vivian suddenly said.

“Arf?” Lily was stunned.

“The brave warriors, those who had unfulfilled wishes, the killers, and the fanatic believers of the gods; the human society in those days did not lack these people. They knew what it meant to become Einherjar, but they were still willing to do this, especially the ruthless Germanic soldiers whose only wish was to fight to the death and then carry the fight to after-death. So they felt that becoming an armor that could keep on killing was the best thing in life. Every year, thousands of warriors rushed to the battlefield with valkyrie’s talisman. Sometimes, to get the ‘glorious promotion’ as early as possible, the ruthless warriors would even fight with the beast barehanded, using the blood of the enemy and of himself to please Odin. The Valkyries would follow the guidance of the talisman to harvest the souls. Only the most vigorous souls would be used to drive the einherjar armors. So the warriors who had just died on the battlefield was the most suitable. At that time, it was glory for a person to be promoted. The Valkyries would personally show up and fly over the city. If a certain god were in a good mood, he or she would even gift humans something, usually of food and medicine. At that time, the gods would not let people have enough to eat and stay healthy. This was so that they could keep the humans loyal to them and becoming their slaves. If the gods allowed them to have enough to eat, it was considered the mercy of the gods.”

“Glorious and barbaric, fanatical support could not cover oppression and injustice,” Galazur said with a poker face.

“You are right. It was an injustice sugarcoated with a splendid appearance.” Vivian nodded. “It is still the case even looking from today’s perspective. But humans of those days were satisfied with it. The otherworldlings in the Nordic region had been treating their own human slaves quite kindly, that was why einherjar could be created. Those warriors felt that they were favored by God and would stay loyal until the end. When their souls were cast into the armor, their loyalty would last forever.”

Lily looked at the trembled armor pieces, curious. “Do they still have their own minds?”

After listening to the story of the Einherjar, the husky maiden had a strange feeling towards the broken armors on the ground.

“Actually… no more.” Vivian shook her head. “The casting process had erased most of their memory and humanity. The Einherjar are more like a software-driven combat machine. They are still full of anger, but you can’t really call them humans.”

“It seems that after the Twilight of the Gods event, these undead spirits have been lurking around in the Garden of Asgard,” Y’zaks muttered. “Did they still patrol along their designated routes?”

Y’zaks’ words suddenly reminded Vivian. “Patrol? Wait a minute! There is a problem!”

Hao Ren and Lily asked in unison, “What is the problem?”

“If I remember correctly, einherjar would not move without the instructions from the Valhalla Control Center!” Vivian said quickly. “Someone must be controlling them!”

Nangong Sanba chimed in. “But you said Valhalla was destroyed from the inside during the Twilight of the Gods.”

“Compromised, not destroyed. At that time, it was Loki who interfered with the flow of magic energy, but he was unable to destroy the runic columns of Valhalla. So when the system rebooted, einherjar could resume their activities.” Vivian’s eyes brightened up. “Someone restarted Valhalla!”

They looked at each other and said in unison. “Odin!”

The king of the Norse gods who disappeared on the battlefield was still alive and had returned to the Garden of Asgard!

Hao Ren immediately turned to Vivian. “Where is Valhalla?”

“In mythology, Valhalla is the Golden Palace or the Golden Palace is the hall of Valhalla.” Lily chimed in.

“No, Valhalla is actually a palace slightly smaller than the Golden Palace on the mountain to the north of the Golden Palace. Because the light emitted by it at full power would shine through the Golden Palace, so people mistook the Golden Palace as Valhalla, or that the Golden Palace was inside Valhalla,” Vivian retorted.

Nangong Wuyue poked Lily’s arm with her tail. “You should learn from me and keep quiet. Can you really outsmart her? She has been to the Garden of Asgard. Maybe she has even helped build Valhalla.”

“I didn’t. I fell asleep at the time, but I did write something at the entrance of Valhalla,” Vivian said.

Nangong Wuyue and Lily were speechless.

Only slightly less magnificent than the Golden Palace, Valhalla was equally eye-catching in the Garden of Asgard. When they arrived, they already could see the beautiful palace on the hillside. It was a composite structure made up of multiple pillars, well preserved as though the war of the Twilight of the Gods did not affect it. The exterior of the palace was cast in a silver-white alloy, the walls were engraved with strange spear-tip patterns, and the roof was covered in layers of golden round plates, which dazzled under the skylight. Hao Ren could not help but think of the description of Valhalla in Norse mythology.

“…the palace’s walls are lined with silver spears, the roof is covered with gold shields, and the seats in the palace are beautifully decorated with armor. This is a gift from Odin to the warriors…”

Vivian explained, “Valhalla is the control center of the einherjar army. Its entire roof is a powerful brainwave antenna that spreads the will of the Valkyrie to the entire Nine Worlds. The Einherjar have their own autonomous combat logic, but they can only be activated if they receive a unified command from Valhalla. This is set by Odin to prevent these powerful steel regiments from getting out of control. But it had become a stumbling block in the end.”

“Damn, it is essentially a WIFI,” Hao Ren said.

Hao Ren left a few probes in the Garden of Asgard before coming to the main entrance of the Valhalla Palace. They were all cautious, worried that they would bump into other einherjar. But they did not. Probably most of the Einherjar were damaged during the Twilight of the Gods, or they could be loitering somewhere else.

The entrance of Valhalla was magnificent and majestic and sealed with hundreds of bronze columns arranged side by side. Vivian found a huge slate inlaid on the wall next to the entrance. She pointed to the slate and said, “Look!”

Hao Ren looked up; there was a line of ancient symbols: Valhalla, the resting place of the Iron Legion.

“That, my writing. Thor helped me engrave it,” Vivian proudly said. “I know quite several languages.”

Hao Ren was struck dumb.

“Well, we all know that Battie is awesome. She punched Zeus and kicked Odin, and even slapped Caesar into the moat. Now stop delving into the past. We should think about how to open this entrance.” Lily, with one hand on her hip, another pointing at the copper columns densely arranged like a row of monster’s teeth. “If Odin is inside, why not he open the door?”

“I am also curious. Supposedly, Odin could see what happens on the outside through the ‘eyes’ of the Einherjar. If he was the one restarted Valhalla, he must have known we are here.” Vivian’s brows knit together while examining the copper pillars. “It is bizarre. This place is isolated from the outside world for more than two thousand years, it is hard to say what state of mind of those trapped inside. We had better be prepared for the worst. If I remember correctly, touching these columns in a specific order would…”

Before Vivian finished, the copper columns blocking the entrance started to shake and a series of mechanical sound followed. The copper columns began to retreat into the palace wall one by one.

An entrance, dark inside, appeared before them.

Hao Ren had heard a strange cry in the palace when the entrance opened.

“I heard it too.” Lily’s ears flickered. “There is something inside.”

“Something’s not right. It is definitely not Odin,” Hao Ren said, immediately activating his Steel Membrane Shield. “Everyone, keep up with me and be careful. Don’t leave the group.”