The biting cold wind rustled, sweeping snow and ice against the dead trunks along the roadside.
Louis sat in a rickety carriage, its wheels crunching over the ice-hardened ground with a dull creak.
He looked down at the Northern Territory lord's pioneering license in his hand, stamped with the royal seal, and revealed a bitter smile.
Three months ago, he had been hit directly by a cement truck and transported to another world, where his soul took over the body of Louis Calvin, the son of Duke Calvin.
However, transformed into Celestial Dragon People, he hadn't even enjoyed a single day of good life before being appointed as the Baron of Expansion, needing to head to the Northern Territory to develop his own land.
This was certainly not good news.
The Northern Territory was perpetually frozen, barren, and desolate, with the threat of Glacial Giants to the north, a place unfit for human habitation.
Although the Empire nominally controlled the Northern Territory, many areas were still under the control of the Snow Country remnants.
In fact, two years ago, a massive rebellion almost caused the Northern Territory to completely break away from the Empire, which was suppressed only at a great cost.
As a result, the Empire realized that relying solely on the Northern Lords could not ensure long-term stability.
So, the Emperor ordered the offspring of major nobles to head to the Northern Territory to serve as Pioneer Lords, exchanging lands for their power to solidify the border.
At the same time, it could weaken some of the nobles' influence, a win-win situation.
Of course, the major nobles weren't fools. They could easily see through the Emperor's plot, and most just sent outcast family members to deal with the Emperor.
Louis was one of them.
Being the most unremarkable of Duke Calvin's twelve sons, he naturally became the first choice for this task.
After receiving the pioneering license, his family gave him 800 gold coins, several carts of grain, three Elite Knights, ten Official Knights, and thirty Apprentice Knights, then urged him to set off promptly.
The lineup showed clearly that Duke Calvin had no intention of letting his worthless son establish himself in the Northern Territory.
As long as he didn't die on the way, it would be considered successful even if he perished in the Northern Territory, the main point being participation.
No one believed Louis could survive in the North, not even he had much confidence in himself.
A recent graduate suddenly thrown into this freezing, perilous place, how could he survive?
Louis pulled his cloak tighter but still couldn't fend off the penetrating chill.
He couldn't help but curse softly, "Damn it, isn't it said all transmigrators get a cheat? Why do I have absolutely nothing!"
Just as he finished speaking, a mechanical female voice echoed in his mind.
"Daily Intelligence System loading..."
Louis froze, not having time to react as information about the Intelligence System flooded into his mind.
Daily Intelligence System.
Each day, it would randomly send a few pieces of intelligence relevant to him, covering resource locations, personal secrets, and even future events...
This cheat was the most ideal tool for a Pioneer Lord.
The Northern Territory, full of uncertainties, had various dangers but also many opportunities.
In this environment, the daily system would provide vital intelligence to help avoid dangers and obtain resources.
This undoubtedly paved the way for him to become a powerful lord.
More importantly, even in the worst scenarios, with the daily intelligence's alerts, he could prepare to escape.
Understanding all this, Louis could no longer suppress the joy in his heart and chuckled quietly.
The lord's journey, which was once all darkness, finally saw a glimmer of hope!
"Daily Intelligence System loaded!"
As the prompt sounded, a translucent screen appeared before Louis, with several lines of text rapidly jumping across it.
[Daily intelligence update complete]
[1: The Ironblood Empire's Third Prince was pushed into a dung pit at noon today while inspecting the stables, drowning.]
[2: Duke Calvin's tenth daughter was born with the "Burst" talent in her bloodline.]
[3: A school of Northern Crystal Cod will appear at dawn three kilometers west near the Glacial Rift.]
[4: Knight Roy has mixed frost scorpion venom into your dinner soup.]
...
Brimming with excitement, Louis read them one by one from top to bottom.
The first two pieces of intelligence provided little help to his current situation, at most offering some psychological comfort in his predicament.
Like mocking the Third Prince's misfortune in the palace struggles.
And marveling once more at his father's vigorous energy and astounding fertility.
But when his gaze fell on the third piece of intelligence, his eyes immediately fixed on it.
"A school of Northern Crystal Cod will appear at dawn three kilometers west near the Glacial Rift."
Northern Crystal Cod! These were precious and hard to come by.
Before departing for the Northern Territory, not wanting to sit idle, Louis had crammed quite a bit of knowledge about the North, which happened to mention this fish.
They lived in extremely cold waters, not only having tender and delicious meat,
but importantly, their bones contained a special substance that could purify the impurities in a knight's bloodline, enhancing their strength.
These things were priceless on the market!
This wasn't merely about good taste; it was a chance to earn money, build connections, and even boost combat power!
The system had come just in time, as he was worrying about how to establish himself in the Northern Territory, and now an opportunity had presented itself.
Calming himself down, Louis continued reading, and his smile suddenly froze.
"Knight Roy has mixed frost scorpion venom into your dinner soup."
Louis's Adam's apple moved, his eyes instinctively scanning the busy knights not far away.
They were bustling around the campfire setting up camp, some pitching tents, others unloading the horses' gear.
The knights cooking were handling ingredients, tossing chunks of meat and wild vegetables into a big pot, steam rising slowly in the cold night.
A knight with a simple expression was crouched beside the pot, stirring the soup.
It was Roy.
A chill ran down Louis's spine.
A formal knight assigned by his family was secretly plotting to kill him?!
He had thought that although these Official Knights looked down on him, they would at least follow his orders as Lord, not expecting anyone to try sending him to his death!
Being sent to a godforsaken place was already bad enough, but to have someone sticking the knife in before even arriving was unthinkable.
Damn it, truly hard to guard against.
Thankfully, the Daily Intelligence System was there, or he might have ended up dead.
Outside the carriage, a knight's voice mixed with the howling wind called, "Lord, dinner is ready."
Louis straightened his collar and slowly lifted the curtain, stepping out of the carriage.
The firelight illuminated the encampment, hot soup bubbling in the iron pot.
The rich aroma mingled with the cold wind, making one's mouth water despite themselves.
The knights sat around the campfire, not starting to eat yet.
By convention, he, as lord, had to eat first before anyone else could start.
Louis's gaze swept over the crowd, finally settling back on the iron pot, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.