Beyond the initial fortress, one could still discern the faint outline of hills, with a tenacious emerald growth stubbornly pushing through the snow. Flying northward, however, revealed only endless white.
It was either snow or thick layers of ice. generally, in such harsh environments, few creatures would survive; it was simply too cold. A breath exhaled would freeze into ice shards and fall.
Yet, along the way, numerous herds of moose were still seen foraging, and on the ice plains, there were mammoth-men comparable in size to elephants.
These primitive creatures had lived in this area for a very long time. Not living here, they naturally wouldn't know that this place still harbored abundant vegetation.
It was just hidden beneath the ice. As it was the depths of winter, a time when all things withered and settled, seeing a verdant grassland would truly be seeing a ghost.
"I once met a very, very powerful opponent. His strength could easily split a world in half."
"What a pity."
Arthas looked at Vashj, who was following closely beside him, surprised that the Proto-dragon's speed was not slow at all.
He had never deliberately farmed for this type of mount; it had simply dropped while he was leveling up and clearing dungeons.
To be fair, it was indeed ugly, but its advantage lay in being cheap and useful, much more cost-effective than a Gryphon bought for a thousand gold.
Recalling the old days, to fly to the Outland, one had to learn Outland Flying, and upon reaching Northrend, one had to spend another thousand gold to learn Cold Weather Flying.
The main theme was torment; the damn gold sink was still chasing him!
"A pity about what?"
Vashj gracefully took over the conversation. Her excellent etiquette and upbringing allowed her to easily navigate any situation, maintaining a noble elegance in all circumstances.
Except for her uninhibited feasting in Feralas, even within the Kaldorei Empire, there were few of her people who could cook such delicious food.
Hmm, there should be none at all, actually.
"It's a pity that fellow couldn't come. He was too powerful, so much so that his true form couldn't descend. Our world couldn't withstand it; it would directly collapse."
"He used an avatar to fight me. His Fel flames could turn the most fertile land into an irrecoverably barren wasteland."
"Powerful individuals seem to have some peculiar habits. Some enjoy seducing creatures of other races everywhere to procreate, while others like to seek out challenges everywhere, becoming frenzied warriors who cut off their opponent's head if they win."
Arthas wasn't naming names, so no need to take it personally.
On a myriad of journeys, one would naturally encounter all sorts of bizarre creatures that couldn't be dealt with using normal thinking.
Vashj listened with a strange expression. The strong wind whistled, but the magical barrier shielded them from the cold. Only her hair tips gently fluttered, brushing against her slender long ears, making her seem like a pure, older sister from next door.
"That sounds very interesting indeed. So, what peculiar habit did the powerful individual you encountered have, my lord?"
Arthas remembered Kil'jaeden. That guy truly lived up to his title as the Deceiver; he just loved cross-dressing.
"He liked to disguise himself as a female, impersonating someone else's wife, and tricking the other party into summoning him to their world for love."
"Then, what he brought was an endless army of demons, leveling all creatures in that world until it was completely destroyed."
"And after doing such things, he would gloat, believing he had brought liberation to the creatures of that world, freeing them from suffering."
Hmm?
Cross-dressing!
Disguising himself as someone else's wife?
The three women all had strange expressions after hearing this. They had never encountered such a creature. Could it be a cunning spirit?
Sinestra, flapping her wings as she flew, asked in a seductive voice,
"Master, when you speak of such a person disguising himself as someone else's wife, would he also procreate with them?"
Elisande, the great fujoshi, also became interested, her jeweled circlet gleaming with an unusual light.
"They probably couldn't procreate. If they were both male, that's highly unlikely. According to structural analysis, procreation might be possible, but then again, procreation is not very likely!"
Hahaha, are you just stating the obvious?
Listening to your words is like listening to words!
"If they could be deceived like that, then it only means the creatures who were tricked were very foolish, perhaps not very good at using their brains. Were they un-civilized beasts?"
Vashj chuckled softly. She hadn't experienced these things, which she considered rather sordid and unpleasant.
But that didn't mean she was ignorant. The nobles of the Kaldorei Empire prided themselves on being high elves, and the games they played were quite elaborate, sometimes even disgusting.
Three women make a play, and although it was a mother dragon and two female night elves, such intimate topics actually piqued their interest, and they chattered incessantly.
Each one was more adept at using suggestive language than the last. Good heavens, the varieties they spoke of left Arthas utterly dumbfounded.
The information explosion of his previous life contained far too many variations, truly depicted in movies.
Now, hearing the variations Elisande and the others spoke of, he felt he had been somewhat narrow-minded.
Well, he always felt that he wasn't perverse enough and thus out of place among the nobles of this world.
Three days later, they had already reached the outskirts of Ulduar.
This area was known as the Storm Peaks. There weren't many lightning strikes, but hail and heavy snow never ceased.
Entry was not easy. The periphery consisted of continuous mountain ranges stretching over a hundred kilometers, with almost no roads leading to the outside world.
To enter, one could only traverse mountains and ridges, or fly over.
The strong cold currents and storms at high altitudes could blow even immature dragons off course; without some skill, it was impossible to get in.
In the distance, one could still see Ice Vrykul and Storm Vrykul clashing on the battlefield. Both worshipped different Titan Guardians. In the past, the Guardians' civil war led to their followers fighting as well.
Seeing the battle, Arthas' first thought wasn't to join in and pick up kills, but rather that he was already certain Ulduar had been corrupted.
At this point in time, Yogg-Saron had already made his move, first corrupting one of the Guardians, then instigating a civil war among them to weaken the defensive forces.
Looking at the Titan temple standing in the distance, a faint pressure emanated from its surroundings, as if a barrier protected the temple.
The outer plaza was entirely made of steel. Amidst the swirling snow, the plaza remained spotless, not a single snowflake falling, seemingly isolated from the outside weather.
He threw down a watchtower and placed several mechanical critters to lurk as anchor points, which could be used for teleportation later if the opportunity arose.
The snow and rocks concealed the watchtower, preventing accidental damage.
Watching Arthas' actions, Vashj's eyes flashed with a glimmer of insight. She didn't understand what he was doing, but she felt he was plotting something.
But with such crude methods, could he really conquer that temple, which even Her Majesty the queen was wary of?
What a joke, that's impossible, absolutely impossible!