By the time Gale arrived in Highmountain, Cenarius had already swept through almost all the spiders with his army. However, Dark Lord Urginesh was nowhere to be found, and Cenarius, communicating with nature, had not yet located his whereabouts.
Taking a temporary rest, a three-way meeting was held at the Skyreach camp between Cenarius, Gale, and Moraine.
As the host, Moraine said, "Thank you both for your aid. If not for you, the Highmountain Tribe would have faced utter destruction."
Gale replied, "The war has progressed this far mainly due to the Tauren themselves; we only offered a little help."
Cenarius nodded. The Rangers sent by Gale attacked from a distance, and he merely acted as a healer. The ones truly fighting on the battlefield were the Tauren themselves. However, with the aid of both parties, the Tauren had no further worries and could charge into battle with confidence.
Moraine did not think so. He sincerely said, "We will never forget your kindness to the Highmountain Tribe. In the future, whenever you need us, we will certainly come to your aid."
Gale's expression shifted, and he proposed, "Why don't we form a three-way alliance!"
"An alliance?" Cenarius glanced at Gale, wondering what scheme he was brewing now. This fellow never acted without benefit, so an alliance would certainly be advantageous to him.
However, Cenarius also thought that an alliance would be beneficial to him as well.
Demigods often dealt with world-ending crises, and having some helpers would make things much easier. Especially Gale; although he was somewhat cunning, his strength was undeniable. He was also a lord with many capable subordinates.
Moraine subconsciously wanted to agree; an alliance would be too beneficial for the Tauren. If Dark Lord Urginesh was not killed, the Tauren would have to be constantly vigilant against him. With Cenarius and Gale present, he wasn't even afraid of a prolonged war.
Gale said, "I represent Andu Talla and the Morning Light Family. With an alliance, Andu Talla can not only help the Highmountain Tribe fight enemies but also assist Cenarius in spreading the druidic path."
Cenarius's expression stirred. Spreading the druidic path was very important to him. He was still very young and had not yet had offspring, so he urgently needed many helpers. If the druidic path could be spread in Andu Talla, it would be like Gale giving him a group of druids as helpers.
"Understood! I will protect Andu Talla and the Highmountain Tribe from now on."
Moraine was overjoyed and also agreed.
Gale smiled and raised his cup, "Then, may our friendship last forever, and may we always be mutually beneficial."
The three-way alliance plunged the Skyreach camp into an atmosphere of celebration. When the Tauren shaman returned, he was extremely surprised. After learning about the alliance, he was also very pleased.
He met the three leaders with cheerful steps, "Such good news keeps coming! I've found Urginesh's whereabouts, and the three parties have formed an alliance. Today is a good day; I think it should be celebrated as a festival."
"Urginesh has been found?"
The three leaders directly ignored the festival part and all inquired about Urginesh's whereabouts.
The Tauren shaman nodded, "He led his army into the Drogbar's caves, seemingly intending to conquer the Drogbar."
"Drogbar?" Cenarius was a bit puzzled; it was the first time he had heard that name.
Gale also feigned curiosity, but he knew the general origin of the Drogbar. Like the Troggs, they were failed creations of the Titans. Unlike the Troggs, the Drogbar did not revere violence; instead, they were highly intelligent.
They grew mushrooms for food, crafted living tools from stone, and trained underground worms as transport. Perhaps because spiders had an advantage in underground caves, Urginesh chose to attack the Drogbar first.
This decision led to the annihilation of all spider armies on the surface. The only army Urginesh could command was the spiders that had entered the underground caves. In such a situation, by entering the caves, eliminating Urginesh and the army he led, the war could be ended.
Just as everyone thought victory was assured, a Tauren hunter suddenly arrived with news.
"Chief, Thunder Totem is under attack by spiders."
"What?" Moraine was astonished, "Where did the spiders come from?"
"West, they came from the river."
Gale immediately opened his magical map. The river west of Thunder Totem originated from the western mountains, passed through Val'sharah, and flowed into the Suramar region. Between the river and Thunder Totem was the road to Andu Talla. Gale was familiar with the direction of Andu Talla, so he directly investigated north along the river.
Soon, Gale pointed to a cave at the end of the road, "It should be here."
Everyone looked over, and Gale said, "If I'm not mistaken, this cave should be an entrance to the Drogbar caves."
Moraine frowned and said, "The Drogbar's underground caves are vast; we know at least a dozen entrances. If Urginesh knows the location of all the exits, we will be constantly on the run."
Everyone's faces were solemn. A good war had turned into a game of whack-a-mole.
"Regardless, we must first deal with this enemy force," Gale said. "Chief Moraine, send a few hunters who know the Drogbar cave exits to go with my men and investigate. We must control the movements at these exits, or we'll be too passive."
Moraine nodded and selected a few hunters familiar with the terrain. Gale took out an Asunite Eye Stone, handed it to Kana, and had him lead men to set up reconnaissance wards.
Then Gale had Salador lead his army with Moraine to reinforce Thunder Totem. If it was just spiders, Moraine and Salador could handle it. Salador carried a beacon crystal with him; as soon as Urginesh appeared, Gale would open a portal and rush over to reinforce them immediately.
The reason he did not depart with the army was that he feared Urginesh would discover the reinforcements were too strong and turn and flee. If he escaped into the Drogbar's underground caves, it would be too difficult to find him.
Therefore, it would be best to lure him out and eliminate him, once and for all.
Moraine and Salador led their army back to Thunder Totem, where the Tauren were fiercely battling the spiders. Relying on their defensive fortifications, the Tauren managed to block the spiders, who were attacking from three directions simultaneously, on the drawbridges.
"Take the high ground!" Salador quickly ordered. The Rangers rushed into Thunder Totem, used grappling ropes to climb onto the Tauren's houses, and shot arrows down onto the drawbridges from above.
With the support of the Rangers, the defending Tauren could finally catch their breath.
Moraine led his men forward, replacing some of the exhausted Tauren to prevent them from dying of fatigue. The spider's offensive was thwarted, and over a dozen Faceless Ones gathered, intending to break through. But before they could get close to the Tauren, Salador eliminated them.
Seeing no hope of taking Thunder Totem, the spiders could only quickly retreat.
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