Ch. 123 The Frozen Symbiote Dragon

Since activating the "Venom Symbiote" reward by kidnapping Eddie Brock and spending 24 hours alone with him, Russell hasn't forgotten about Eddie.

Although he didn't hire a private detective to tail Eddie for 24 hours, he would occasionally check on Eddie's progress.

He couldn't afford not to pay attention. Who knows when Eddie might get fired from the Daily Bugle, then go to San Francisco, and finally be possessed by the Venom brought back from outer space by the Life Foundation.

Currently, Russell cannot determine whether this world's Eddie will be possessed by Venom like in the movies or like in the comics.

But judging from the fact that Peter hasn't been bitten by a spider yet, there's a high likelihood that Eddie will be possessed by Venom like in the movies, if the Life Foundation indeed brings Venom back from outer space.

However, this isn't certain either.

Perhaps the Eddie of this world will never encounter Venom in his lifetime, and the chance of being possessed by Venom won't exist at all.

No. 3 promptly retrieved Eddie's recent information.

The current Eddie isn't any different from before; he's still a reporter for the Daily Bugle.

From the information, it seems he's doing well, having published several highly popular articles.

Since these articles have nothing to do with Eddie, it indicates that what Bakshi mentioned earlier about symbiotes is probably not referring to Venom.

Bakshi on the other end of the phone didn't perceive anything amiss and provided a brief explanation.

"Symbiotes are extraterrestrial organisms with the ability to bond with and coexist in Earth creatures, which is why S.H.I.E.L.D. refers to them as symbiotes."

"We're not sure which planet the symbiotes originate from or how they arrived on Earth."

"A week ago, S.H.I.E.L.D. discovered a frozen symbiote dragon on the Scandinavian Peninsula and is currently conducting intensive research."

"The organization is very interested in the symbiote dragon found by S.H.I.E.L.D. and has formed a team to capture it."

"Considering the difficulty of the task, we hope you can join!"

After hearing Bakshi's account, Russell's brow furrowed slightly.

That there would be a frozen symbiote dragon on the Scandinavian Peninsula didn't surprise him.

From a certain perspective, he might even understand this better than S.H.I.E.L.D. or Hydra.

The symbiote dragon isn't just any symbiote; it's a member of the first-generation symbiote army created by the Symbiote God, Knull.

More importantly, the soul of the Symbiote God, Knull, resides within this symbiote dragon.

Speaking of which, it's necessary to mention Knull's glorious deeds from the distant past.

Long, long ago, the sleeping god of darkness, Knull, was awakened by the Celestials shaping the universe.

Knull, full of annoyance from waking up on the wrong side of the bed, conjured a black sword from the shadows to prevent light from usurping his world. With that sword, he slew a member of the Celestials.

If Russell isn't mistaken, the member of the Celestials killed by Knull's sword was Eson, the Searcher.

Of course, it could've been someone else.

But judging by the appearance, it was likely Eson.

After Knull took down one of his companions with a sword, the other members of Celestials collectively banished Knull, the god of darkness, into the endless void.

However, these members of Celestials didn't anticipate that Knull, banished into the endless void by their combined effort, not only survived but also crafted a living blade.

That blade is the ancestor of all symbiotes, the "All-Black Necrosword."

The symbiotes' vulnerability to fire and sonic attacks comes from the blazing flames and the clanging sounds when Knull forged the All-Black Necrosword.

Knull, who was invincible with his creation All-Black Necrosword, mercilessly slaughtered the members of the Celestials, attempting to drag the entire universe back into chaos and darkness, just as he did when he first created the sword.

However, unfortunately, Knull eventually found himself outnumbered. He lost to the Celestials and perished alongside one of their members. Moreover, he lost the All-Black Necrosword.

The living blade, the "All-Black Necrosword," that Knull had meticulously crafted, was later taken by the Slayer, Gorr.

But that's another story.

After being dead for over a hundred years, Knull was resurrected.

Although he lost the All-Black Necrosword, Knull wasn't too bothered and created a new "weapon" for himself.

The first generation of symbiote army!

By releasing the abyss within him, Knull established his earliest symbiote army on a barren planet.

As the creator, Knull could control and command each symbiote with his psychic power, even across a galaxy.

With the symbiote army in hand, Knull embarked on a new campaign.

Initially, Knull's campaign was smooth. Wherever the symbiote army went, bodies piled up, and lives were ruined.

Just like when he created the All-Black Necrosword.

Since the development was similar, there might likely be a similar outcome.

This time, it wasn't the Celestials that stopped Knull, but a Norse deity.

Thor, the God of Thunder!

When invading Earth, Knull possessed the symbiote dragon and fought Thor.

Knull, who could once arm-wrestle the Celestials face-to-face, lost to Thor, whether due to weakened power or some other reason.

He lost, so be it!

After all, it wasn't Knull's first time losing.

However, just like when he lost and lost the All-Black, Knull paid a painful price this time too.

First, he lost the spiritual connection with other symbiotes.

Then, his soul got trapped inside the symbiote dragon.

Finally, his body was besieged by the symbiotes who were once his underlings. A "patricide" played out, and his body was confined to a planet named Klyntar, which later became the symbiotes' homeworld.

This planet, Klyntar, would eventually become the symbiotes' mother star.

Russell seriously suspected that the "patricide" theme of the symbiotes began around this time.

Knull's glorious deeds ended temporarily at this point.

As for whether Knull would escape again in the future, or create a third handy weapon after the "All-Black" and the "First Generation of Symbiote Army," that's something only the future holds.

The frozen symbiote dragon discovered by S.H.I.E.L.D. on the Scandinavian Peninsula is the same one that Knull possessed to battle Thor.

However, according to Russell's memory, S.H.I.E.L.D. found the symbiote dragon not after World War II but during the Vietnam War.

Furthermore, Nick Fury, the darned superhero, extracted a small portion of the symbiote from the dragon and created a symbiote squad. He sent the squad to the Vietnam War for some secret missions.

However, Nick Fury didn't anticipate that the American soldiers possessed by symbiotes would go berserk. Eventually, with the help of the mutant Wolverine, S.H.I.E.L.D. retrieved all the symbiotes and sealed them back into the symbiote dragon.

This was how Russell remembered it.

However, from the current situation, it's evident that this world can't continue to develop along the same trajectory.