"The space here is a bit too cramped," Anub'rekhan said, carefully controlling his body to avoid damaging the surrounding objects.
His body was about the same size as Anub'arak's, and after a recent undead enhancement, it had grown a little larger, making the catacombs, which were spacious for humans, feel restrictive for this Crypt Lord.
Gandling replied somewhat awkwardly, "My apologies, I didn't know that we would have a Crypt Lord like you coming to assist us."
"The summoning ritual is complete. You can enter the ground directly from here, and we will take care of the aftermath."
Anub'rekhan shook his claws and head, emitting a buzzing sound. "Very well, I'll take my leave then."
Accompanied by rolling dirt and bricks, the Crypt Lord's massive body completely vanished from the summoning chamber within a few breaths, leaving behind only a pitch-black, bottomless hole.
The Dark Dean summoned a pile of skeleton laborers to begin filling the large hole and efficiently re-laying the floor tiles.
"No matter where, these skeletons are always quite useful laborers," Gandling said with a smile.
Ogrim ignored the Dark Dean and walked out of the room on his own, leaving Lothar to converse with Gandling.
"Please don't mind him; he's just like that," Lothar explained to Gandling with a standard smile.
"Not at all, Highlord Lothar. I am honored to fight alongside such, uh, great Death Knights as yourselves." Gandling, having been around for so many years, naturally had his own way of speaking. "However, it's best to be fully prepared to deal with a Black Dragon. I suspect Onyxia might have hidden Dragonkin guards by her side."
"We are, of course, well-prepared—the Lich King himself will also provide us with assistance if necessary."
Gandling was overjoyed. "Really? If that's the case, our victory is already a foregone conclusion."
Gandling did not underestimate the Lich King's power in the slightest, for he was a monarch who controlled a Legion capable of sweeping across the entire continent; he was the common master of all undead in the material world.
With the Lich King's intervention, dealing with a Black Dragon was not a particularly difficult task. The only thing they needed to guard against now was Onyxia's identity as the Black Dragon Princess.
Although Lordaeron was very far from the Burning Steppes where Black Dragons were stationed, they could not rule out the possibility of the Black Dragonflight having some forced teleportation or arrival magic in an emergency.
Arthas would not underestimate the Dragon Legion, which had been passed down for tens of thousands of years; they were one of the most formidable forces in the material world, and their heritage and energy were far beyond what humans, whose civilization had only developed for a few millennia, could compare to.
"We need to make some preparations to prevent the Black Dragon Princess from escaping or calling for help. Thassarian and I will handle this."
Lothar requested some materials from Gandling and, taking a few Necromancer apprentices, prepared to set up an anti-magic field on Caer Darrow Island. While it couldn't guarantee to completely neutralize a Black Dragon's magic, it could at least hinder or weaken her.
Anub'rekhan would remain hidden underground and would not act until a critical moment. He had runic chains forged from saronite, and once entangled by these chains, even a Dragon would find it difficult to escape easily.
The battle on the surface would be left to Lothar, Gandling, Thassarian, and Ogrim. They needed to deplete Onyxia's stamina, clear out her Dragonkin guards, and create the conditions for hunting or capturing Onyxia alive.
For this purpose, the runic armor of the three Death Knights was meticulously crafted by undead master blacksmiths and enchanted by the souls of ancient elven mages with spells that could temporarily block scorching Dragon breath.
As for Onyxia's Dragon prestige, it was not a problem for the undead, not to mention that these high-ranking generals of the Scourge generally had a direct soul connection with Arthas, who could share the entire Scourge's soul power with them.
The Dragon prestige that could break the will of ordinary soldiers had no effect on Lothar and his companions. Almost all of Onyxia's possible tactics had been considered by them, ensuring that this Dragon would not escape Caer Darrow.
Otherwise, if Onyxia escaped, while the Scourge might not suffer significantly, Lordaeron would certainly bear the wrath of the Black Dragons, and Arthas did not wish to contend with Black Dragons on Lordaeron's territory.
Dealing with the Black Dragonflight was also a necessary measure—Arthas couldn't openly mine Dragon skeletons in Dragonblight to revive them as bone Dragons; he had to find suitable alternatives.
The skeletal remains of creatures on Azeroth that could directly serve as strategic-level weapons were either Dragons or the remains of Wild Gods.
However, the souls of Wild Gods are connected to the Emerald Dream, which represents the illusory side of Azeroth, so Arthas could not directly seize their souls from there, nor did he dare to do so, as this would weaken the Emerald Dream's power.
And the Emerald Dream itself was facing the threat of the Old Gods; if he were to plunder the Wild Gods, it would not only provoke the wrath of the demigods themselves but also incur the displeasure of the Night Elves and the Green Dragonflight who were allied with them.
Therefore, Arthas could only focus on the rebellious Black Dragonflight. Since these creatures had already been corrupted by the influence of the Old Gods, killing them and reviving them as bone Dragons to fight for the Scourge was a very reasonable approach.
Of course, besides Dragons and Wild Gods, the more unique loa could also serve this purpose, but Arthas currently didn't have the time or energy to investigate the whereabouts of the trolls' loa.
After all, with the destruction of the ancient troll empires, many loa had fallen into a state of dormancy. In such cases, merely finding their corpses without capturing their souls would at best result in the revival of a slightly stronger skeletal construct.
In that case, it would be meaningless. Arthas might as well have his Necromancer subordinates forge war golems; why bother spending time and effort searching for the corpses of deities?
Therefore, from every perspective, the operation against the Black Dragonflight was extremely crucial and important. Firstly, it could weaken hostile forces on the Eastern Kingdoms continent, and secondly, it could strengthen his own power.
However, Arthas did hope that Black Dragon Prince Nefarian and Ragnaros the Firelord would engage in a battle, allowing him to reap the benefits.
But neither of them was foolish; it was precisely because they understood that a fight to the death would yield no benefits that they maintained a fragile truce, coexisting within Blackrock Mountain.
With the treaty signed by Nefarian in Deathwing's name, although conflicts would still arise between the two sides, they were only minor skirmishes, never escalating into large-scale battles.
Unfortunately, the attack on Onyxia could not be pinned on Ragnaros the Firelord; otherwise, it might have become the final weight that tipped the scales between the two sides.
Arthas and Mograine concluded their brief investigation. They had to return to Andorhal to re-gather evidence before Dalaran would allow them to continue their search of the city.
However, due to Arthas's identity and his arguments, Antonidas reluctantly agreed to allow the Silver Hand to dispatch Paladins and guards to be stationed in Dalaran as an emergency contingency plan for unforeseen circumstances.
"Mograine, take this and go to Ironforge to find King Magni Bronzebeard; he will understand." Arthas handed Mograine a badge engraved with the Bronzebeard family crest.
"Thank you very much. I will depart from Dalaran immediately for Ironforge." Mograine was deeply moved; he had waited for who knew how long and finally saw an opportunity for that crystal to be properly utilized.
"Just make sure you return with a world-renowned artifact." Arthas bid farewell to the Highlord; he had to return to Caer Darrow to personally oversee the situation there.
After all, Queen Tiffin and Anduin were still vacationing there, unaware that Caer Darrow was already rife with undercurrents, with various factions secretly vying for power, centered around the estate where the mother and son resided.
Among them were Stormwind's SI:7, Lordaeron's Secret Intelligence Agency, as well as the Scourge and Onyxia's servants.
By the time Arthas confirmed with Lothar that they were ready, he was already on his way to Caer Darrow.
Countess Katrana, also known as Onyxia, was staying in her temporary residence when she suddenly felt an inexplicable sense of vexation and unease. The Countess took a few deep breaths to calm herself down.
'What's wrong with me?' The last time Onyxia had felt this way was when her father, who had been ambushed by the other four Dragon Kings, was severely wounded but whose aura grew increasingly ferocious, came calling.
At that time, Deathwing was injured by the power of the other Dragon Kings, and the alloy armor plates originally used to hold his body together had almost completely fractured. The surging power of his authority within him nearly cost Deathwing his life.
Because he was driven mad and ultimately corrupted by the whispers of the Old Gods, the Earth Guardian's authority was also tainted.
When the Black Dragon King completely betrayed the other Dragon Legions, his blood turned into magma representing the furious rage of the earth, breaking through his rock-hard skin and scales.
The surging power nearly cost Deathwing his life. The constantly erupting molten blood, while causing Deathwing immense pain and torment, also made his power erupt like a volcano.
The original Earth Guardian, Neltharion, was the embodiment of stability, wisdom, and steadfastness, much like the unchanging mountains and earth of eons past.
But Deathwing, after going mad, had completely transformed into a red and black grim reaper symbolizing the authority of disaster; in the shadows beneath his wings, all things turned to ash.
When Onyxia faced her father, she almost lost all ability to think; she could only feel fear and panic, which was the instinct of a weaker creature facing a stronger one.
Such a raging Deathwing left a deep impression on Onyxia's heart; Deathwing's every move caused harm to Onyxia, who was so close.
After listening to her father's commands and wrath, Onyxia was also left scarred, and even with a Dragon's vitality, it took a considerable amount of time for her to heal.
And today, Onyxia actually had a similar feeling? A Dragon's intuition was far stronger than any beast's, which immediately made Onyxia focus on her perceptive abilities.
After confirming that her father had not come looking for her, the Black Dragon Princess finally breathed a sigh of relief. She collapsed onto the soft bed and, after recovering from her past trauma, began to ponder what could have caused her alarm.
Could it be that tonight's plan targeting Queen Tiffin and Prince Anduin was in danger of failing?
But even if the plan failed, Onyxia was confident that the matter would not be traced back to her, because her arrival in Lordaeron this time was a secret operation, and even Bolvar thought she had only gone to the outskirts of Stormwind for leisure.
And a small Caer Darrow would naturally not be as fraught with danger as the capital of Lordaeron and Dalaran. Logically, there shouldn't be anything here that could threaten her existence.
A common noble's territory, with no mage tower, no Holy Light Church, not even a decent military camp—how could such a place harbor anything that could threaten a Black Dragon?
Moreover, all the servants she brought were actually Dragonkin guards under shapeshifting magic. Onyxia felt that even if she didn't act herself, with a dozen or so Dragonkin guards, they could cleanse everyone on the island.
However, Onyxia's caution prevented her from completely disregarding the threat her intuition sensed. She put on a pendant, a special orb condensed from Dragon blood, which would immediately transmit a signal through bloodline power to the nearest Black Dragon if she were attacked.
After making full preparations, Onyxia stayed in her room, while her subordinates advanced towards the estate where Queen Tiffin was located.
Onyxia's elite Dragonkin guards easily bypassed the outermost common guards and lay in ambush in the bushes beside the manor villa.
In the darkness, the pupils of several servants transformed from normal human eyes into vertical slits like those of a serpent-lizard. Their bodies, wrapped in black cloaks, began to gradually swell and bulge.
However, just as they dispelled their shapeshifting magic and prepared to launch a surprise attack, a faint whizzing sound reached them. Several Dragonkin guards realized something was wrong and immediately swung their blades to block arrows that came from an unknown direction.
However, most of the Dragonkin failed to dodge this sudden attack. They had intended to endure these arrows with their tough scales and skin, but things went completely beyond their expectations.
These arrows were not ordinary; they were expensive armor-piercing, magic-breaking arrows, even specifically engraved with strengthening runes on their shafts and arrowheads.
On average, each Dragonkin guard was impaled by at least ten arrows. Their movements instantly became sluggish, and their consciousness began to blur—all the arrows were coated with a deadly poison. Even Dragonkin with terrifying physical prowess would instantly lose their ability to resist under such an overwhelming dose of poison.
The few Dragonkin who luckily weren't hit hadn't even had time to retaliate when the second wave of attacks followed. Daggers and short swords, specially treated to reflect no light, stabbed out from the shadows.
The scales and skin that the Dragonkin prided themselves on offered no protection. Especially the already poisoned Dragonkin, in the blink of an eye, had their throats slit or a short blade driven through their eye sockets directly into their brains.
In an instant, only a handful of Dragonkin remained standing, and the attackers, from beginning to end, had not revealed their forms.
Yet, the piercing, bone-chilling killing intent still surrounded the remaining Dragonkin. They knew that the assassins hidden in the darkness had not yet retreated.