Chapter 32 Ice and Fire

The warship sailed down the Rhoyne River, traveling a thousand miles a day, from the town of Seheru to the city of Volantis, in an instant, setting out at dusk and arriving the next morning.

The morning breeze washed away the dark clouds, the pure river water flowed on the horizon, and the outline of the nearby scenery gradually became clear under the dawn.

The screams and commotions of the sailors startled the red-robed monk Maqiro, and looking down the water, he saw a huge horned turtle.

That was the "Old Man of the River", the son of the mother river Rhoyne, the god of the Rhoyna people, who defeated the "King of Crabs" to gain the power to rule the underwater residents.

It is said that during the long night, darkness swept across the Rhoyne River, causing the river to shrink and even disappear.

It was not until a hero persuaded the many children of the mother river Rhoyne - the "King of Crabs", the "Old Man of the River" and other gods to put aside their past grudges and sing a mysterious song together that the long night gradually dissipated and the sun reappeared.

Before the commotion caused by the giant turtle subsided, a two-hundred-foot-high black wall appeared in the distance.

It was a witness to history, the Black Wall of Volantis, which originated from the ancient bloodline of the Valyrian Empire.

The Black Wall was a wall built by the Valyrian Empire using black stone when Volantis was still a military outpost on the imperial frontier. This is a building material of unknown origin.

It was once believed that the Valyrians used dragon flames to build it, but in every corner of the known world, wherever there are ancient wonders, this kind of black stone building mysteriously appears.

The towering tower standing in the Old Town of Westeros is also a square maze fortress made of melted black stone, and there is no archaeological evidence that the Valyrians have ever been active in such a distant place as the Old Town.

And unlike the dryness of Valyrian lava, black stone is oily and greasy.

The black wall is unusually wide and thick. If each carriage is harnessed to four horses, then six carriages can race side by side on the wall.

To celebrate the founding day of Volantis, the Volantis would hold such a horse racing ceremony on the city wall.

The many oarsmen on the upper and lower decks of the warships shouted loudly, striving to give the ships extremely high maneuverability, allowing them to sail freely and flexibly in the slightly crowded river.

The closer they got to the Volantis Long Bridge, the more slave soldiers filled the two sides of the river corridor.

The long bridge had a very long span, supported by huge piers, and was as flat as a road, enough to support the weight of a thousand elephants, and the bridge deck was large enough for two four-wheeled carriages to pass side by side.

The entrances at both ends were arches built of black boulders, on which were carved the Valyrians' guardian beasts, sphinxes, dragons, and other monsters.

The ship slowly passed through the arched bridge hole, and Maqiro shook his head helplessly.

He could clearly see that the black boulder arch was closed, and the crowded vendors on the long bridge had disappeared.

Only the spears with the heads of prisoners stuck in them were left for public display. It was obvious that Volantis was also in a state of high-pressure defense.

The long bridge connects the two sides of the Rhoyne River estuary. The black walls on the east bank of the river are crowded with houses, shops and hotels, while the west bank is a city paradise for foreigners, pirates, mercenaries and criminals. There is debauchery, alcoholism and murder everywhere, but you can buy almost anything here.

Volantis was originally built on the east bank of the Rhoyne River. As the city quickly expanded to the west bank, the strong tides and unpredictable currents made it extremely difficult to cross the river. The archons had difficulty sending slave soldiers across the river to maintain order.

The west bank gradually became a lawless world, so the archon "generous" Valholaso ​​ordered the construction of a long bridge across the Rhoyne River.

The width of the river itself, as well as the currents and tides, made the construction of the long bridge an epic task.

Volantis spent more than forty years and millions of dollars, and even Archon Valholaso ​​did not live to see the completion of the bridge.

Finally, a miraculous long bridge was completed on the Rhoyne River, connecting the east and west districts of Volantis. It is the world's longest bridge and one of the nine man-made wonders.

The Archons of Volantis were finally able to successfully send slave soldiers across the river to maintain the superficial order of the west bank district.

The ship carefully crossed the long bridge and slowly docked at the prosperous east bank pier. The captain also kindly called elephant carts for the red-robed monk Machilo and others.

All the Volantis people of status would not walk on foot, as they believed that this was detrimental to their dignity.

Although Volantis still looks prosperous, it has already shown signs of decline.

The statues and flower fountains that could be seen everywhere are now only messy weeds on the roadside, dry and waterless pools, and the statues of the Tiger Party Archons destroyed by the rioting people and the Elephant Party after the war are still scattered on the ground.

Of course, there are also prosperous buildings, that is, the Temple of R'hllor.

Religion is a universal means of spiritual rule that humans have always used, from ancient times to the present, all over the world.

The poverty after losing wealth, the current state of suffering that is difficult to get rid of, and the lower-class people who cannot resist all support the sacred Temple of the King of Light.

The Temple of R'hllor in Volantis is a huge building, about three times the size of the Great Sept of Baelor in King's Landing, the capital of Westeros. After all, before the temple was built, it was originally the Grand Square of Volantis.

The architectural technology used in the temple is extremely exquisite. Its beams, columns, steps, walls, vaults and towers connected by sky corridors fit together perfectly, as if they were carved out of thin air on a huge stone.

Various tones such as red, gold, and orange penetrate each other on the walls of the temple to outline the layers of clouds, forming a beautiful scenery like sunrise and sunset.

The slender spires are like burning flames entwined and swirling up, and the frozen flames on the top of the tower are like mortals touching the realm of God in the sky,

The followers of R'hllor love their flames, and the Lord of Light is their only true God.

They always burn everything to welcome the morning sun, and the followers are all around the red-robed monks who are preaching, crying non-stop.

At this time, Benero, the supreme priest of the temple, was giving a speech. The square was crowded, and everyone, including Machiro, was watching the supreme priest devoutly.

Benero pointed his finger at the red sun in the eastern sky, then shook hands to complete it, and then opened his arms. His high notes were impressive and unforgettable.

When the sound of his prayer reached its highest point, flames suddenly gushed out from behind him, and the crowd was startled.

Then the High Priest shouted in a clear and unforgettable high voice:

"We mortals, living and dying alone, wandering in the valley, are fortunate to have our compatriots, gathering together, and fortunately there is God, who blesses us."

"Compared with the horror, coldness, and darkness that are coming, the so-called war outside the city is just a child's fight. The ancient and strange gods unknown to mortals are gathering strength. The terrible, evil and powerful dark forces are difficult to resist unless the upright people can muster up the courage to uphold the faith of the flaming red heart."

"See the essence of the world, the truth surrounds you, everything is clear at a glance, the night is dark, everywhere is dangerous, the day is bright, thriving, black and white, ice and fire."

Hearing all this, the women cried, and the men waved their clenched fists.