Days later, in the outskirts of Ital'ruk.
It was the height of summer in Northrend, and the sun, piercing through the clouds, bathed the land in light.
A slightly damp cold wind swept through the ranks of the neatly arrayed, silent Ice Troll warriors, but it could not cool the burning battle intent in their chests.
Unlike the ragtag army of about a year ago, which could only be considered a collection of stragglers, the Ital'ruk army was now completely transformed—well-equipped, well-trained, and disciplined, truly a legion in every sense of the word.
Among the military formation, the most conspicuous were the tall and robust Troll Barbarians.
Dressed in specially made protective gear, they carried massive axes and hammers on their shoulders, each step causing the ground to tremble slightly.
Each small squad also included shamans or Witchcraft Apprentices adorned with bone decorations.
Of course, one key difference between them and ordinary Troll armies was the mixed presence of Dragon God priests and Paladins within their ranks.
These clerics were personally selected and trained by the church, chosen for their fields and vows best suited for the battlefield.
Furthermore, the warriors no longer relied on crude leather armor and inferior bone or stone weapons.
Instead, they wore enchanted iron armor and weapons, replicated from the spoils of the "Gray Tooth Valley Battle."
These armaments were meticulously crafted by Ital'ruk artisans and inscribed with divine emblems, symbolizing the protection of the gods.
At the forefront of the formation, two Obsidian totem poles stood majestically amidst the wind and snow, with golden-red holy flames burning at their tops.
And between the two poles, a high platform, constructed from permafrost, stood prominently.
Skala, the leader of Ital'ruk, stood proudly atop the platform, clad in richly decorated heavy leather armor and wielding a single-handed axe.
In his other hand, he tightly clutched a parchment scroll—a divine oracle descended by the Dragon of Radiance, personally transcribed by Siye.
Obsidian had called it an "Edict of Condemnation" and strictly ordered Skala to read it aloud to all warriors before their departure.
According to Obsidian, this was to "uphold justice, practice the Way of War, and declare the righteousness of this battle."
The Drakkari Ice Trolls did not have such a tradition—but with a divine oracle personally bestowed by a god, they could only grit their teeth and proceed.
At this moment, Skala felt the scroll in his hand was as heavy as a thousand pounds, heavier than any weapon he had ever wielded.
Making him face thousands of newly enlightened Ice Troll warriors and recite such a formal document was harder than making him challenge an Ice Worm alone.
But he had to obey the divine oracle.
He took a deep breath, suppressed the grumbling in his heart, tried to straighten his back, raised the scroll to his face, and began to read in the loudest, most solemn voice he could muster:
"By the name of the Emberglow Dragon, Flame Keeper Obsidian, I declare!"
Skala's voice echoed, quickly spreading all around, and the slightly restless ranks instantly fell silent.
"Moragon, chieftain of the Frostmane Clan, and his ally, the evil wind serpent Quetz'lun—"
After each section, Skala secretly glanced up at the warriors below the platform.
Sure enough, he only saw a sea of bewildered dark faces.
He had to stop and explain in simple, easy-to-understand language to barely rouse the warriors' emotions.
"...They ambushed three of our Loa in ZulDrak: Akali the rhino god, Shirvallah the tiger god, and Rhunok the white bear god!"
"They, like the lowest thieves, stole the power of the gods! And tried to kill them! This is to uproot the very foundation of our ZulDrak!"
"Tell me, should they be killed?!"
"Kill them!" This time, their response was thunderous and inspiring.
They might not have fully understood Skala's words, but "Kill them!" was an easy consensus to reach.
Skala breathed a sigh of relief, wiped sweat from his brow, and felt a little better.
He raised the scroll again: "Stealing divine power, with ill intent! Not for protection—"
After reading, he immediately explained seamlessly: "Simply put! They stole the power of the gods, not to protect anyone!"
"It's for their own ambition, to use the stolen power to oppose the great Dragon of Radiance!"
"To oppose Ital'ruk! To oppose all of us!"
"They want to ruin the good life we've worked so hard to achieve!"
"They want to drag us back to those hellish days of cold, hunger, and constant fighting for food! Do you agree to that?!"
"No! Kill them all!" This time, the roar was like an avalanche, shaking the holy flames on the totem poles.
When it came to their own survival and the hard-won "good life," the warriors' emotions instantly exploded.
Skala struck while the iron was hot, reading the final and most crucial passage:
"Their perverse actions have caused ZulDrak to suffer, and order to collapse! Frost Howl—"
"Listen!" Skala's voice was a little hoarse but full of power, "Look at the mess Frost Howl is in right now!"
"Loa fighting among themselves, mortals in fear and unrest, all because of Moragon and that venomous snake!"
"If we let them continue like this, this evil wind will sooner or later blow to our Ital'ruk!"
"Blow into our homes! Steal our food, scare our children!"
"So this expedition is a righteous war guided by the Dragon God! It's a life-and-death struggle to protect our homeland!"
"We are not going to seize their territory; we are going to deal with those two scourges!"
"Take back what they stole! Restore peace to ZulDrak!"
"Roar!!!" The mountain-shaking, sea-howling roar completely drowned out all other sounds!
Perhaps, possibly, all the Ice Troll warriors understood, but in any case, they were completely ignited.
"For the Emberglow Dragon! For Ital'ruk! For ZulDrak!" Skala raised his battle-axe and let out a final roar!
"For the Emberglow Dragon! For Ital'ruk! For ZulDrak!!!" Thousands of weapons pointed skyward, battle intent soaring!
Skala looked at the furious warriors, quietly sighed in relief, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and carefully tucked the "Edict of Condemnation" scroll into the innermost part of his Pregnant.
Although the process was difficult, the task entrusted by the Dragon God was, at last,—fudged through.
He raised his battle-axe, pointing north: "Depart! Objective—Gundrak! Crush them!"
Subsequently, this army set out in a mighty procession.
---Divider---In the divine realm of Serakhen, the "Light" layer of the divine palace.
Golden radiance slowly flowed through the magnificent hall.
Obsidian's light avatar sat upon this sea of light, his vertical pupils open, his gaze directed towards the outskirts of Ital'ruk.
Beneath the shadow of the snow-capped mountains, amidst the swirling wind and snow, Rhunok, the King of White Mountain, stood silently.
He was watching the torrent of Ice Trolls marching northward.
"Rhunok." Obsidian's will directly resonated in the King of White Mountain's divine soul.
The great bear's body trembled slightly, and he respectfully lowered his head, his consciousness responding: "My Lord."
"Your essence and divinity are stable, but your divine office is not yet clear." The Dragon God's voice was majestic and calm:
"The army of Ital'ruk will execute the plan to unify ZulDrak, and you—"
"No, I mean you need not intervene in mortal wars."
"Your mission is to watch from the shadows. Only when they encounter Loa or other situations they cannot handle will you intervene."
The flames in Rhunok's eyes immediately flared, and his bear claws dug deep into the frozen earth: "As you command, My Lord! Any existence that desecrates order and harms your people will be crushed by me."
Obsidian silently observed this new subordinate god:
[Divinity Panel - Subordinate God Rhunok]
Name: Rhunok
Title: King of White Mountain
Divinity Level: 0 (Demigod)
Main God: Emberglow Dragon · Obsidian
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Domains: Protection, Nature
Divine Emblem: None (Temporary)
Symbol: A white bear standing atop a snowy mountain peak
Followers: Approximately 2000
Obsidian looked at the "Nature" and "Protection" domains that Rhunok inherently possessed.
Generally, "domains" represent the powers a god excels in, while "divine offices" represent the chosen path.
So, a demigod's divine office is usually sought within their "domains."
But Rhunok's situation was very special.
The "Protection" divine office was Obsidian's own divine office and could not be shared with others.
The "Nature" divine office was too vast; Rhunok would need to grow to at least an intermediate divine power level to be able to bear it.
His situation could not be compared to Obsidian, who had cheats; he had to follow these basic laws.
So, what divine office should be planned for him?
The first thought was the regional divine office of "ZulDrak," but Obsidian immediately ruled it out.
Regional divine offices were too restrictive; he couldn't trap his first subordinate god.
Then there were divine offices like "Bear" or "Mountain."
"Bear" was a good divine office, but it would involve competing with the brothers Ursol and Ursoc.
However, they seemed to still be running corpses in Ardenweald right now—
"Mountain" was more special because it seemed no particularly famous god had ever held this divine office.
"These two divine offices are quite suitable for Rhunok; when he ignites his divine spark, I will arrange them for him."
With the plan set, his will slowly withdrew.
The King of White Mountain slowly raised his head, watching his main god's will gradually depart.
Then he turned to the Ital'ruk army led by Skala, his golden-red eyes burning fiercely in the wind and snow.
---Divider---In the divine realm of Serakhen, the "War" layer.
In the shattered domain of war, Ekseltus was sealing and preserving the last batch of Dragonkin eggs.
Similar to Nefarian's conjecture, his planned Dragonkin should possess different attributes, much like the Five-colored Dragon.
But it didn't necessarily have to be the same types used by the Five-colored Dragon.
For example, the Storm Eater Dragon, which had been re-sealed, was an excellent source of wind elemental energy.
Not only could it be used to cultivate Dragonkin, but even the floating city under construction would benefit from her presence.
Since he had mastered wind elements, it was only natural to turn his attention to the other three major elements.
Water and fire elements did not require his personal involvement, but he decided to personally handle the earth element.
This was not because he harbored any improper thoughts about the Earthmother, but because he had once promised Nefarian to rescue Onyxia.
So, he might as well go himself.
He gently held a specially designed container for a Dragonkin egg, which had already been packaged, with one claw, while with the other, he tore through the void, instantly opening a teleportation channel.
Ekseltus stepped through, instantly arriving at the Maelstrom!
This was the center of all Azeroth, and also her wound.
It was a massive scar left by the Great Sundering of the Well of Eternity, frantically devouring the waters of the Endless Sea, forming a bottomless abyss of energy!
Arcane energy and elemental power endlessly rotated, collided, and annihilated here!
It was one of the most unstable, yet also most direct, passages to the elemental planes.
Ekseltus did not hesitate for a moment.
He let out a roar, his wings unleashing astonishing power, transforming into a meteor, and resolutely plunged into the turbulent spatial rift, directly diving into the center of the Maelstrom!
Passing through the very center of the Maelstrom, he plummeted into Deepholm, the elemental plane located beneath the world's foundation.
Ekseltus spread his wings, gracefully choosing a spot to land steadily.
His vertical pupils scanned his surroundings.
The air was filled with an intensely suffocating scent of metallic rust, sulfur, and hot rocks; inhaling it was like swallowing sand.
There was no sky here, only a dome of dull rock strata above.
Underfoot was a land composed of extremely dense, dark rock, with the dark red glow of lava and scorching heat waves emanating from the cracks.
In the distance, twisted, bizarre, colossal rock spires, like the fangs of a giant beast, rose from the flat surface.
In some areas, the ground was covered with slowly wriggling, living rock layers, emitting an unsettling faint purple glow.
The entire plane was filled with a heavy sense of oppression; the main light sources came from lava or certain luminous minerals.
Silence was the dominant theme here.
Occasionally, a low rumble from deep within the core, or the faint "crack" of rock slowly fracturing under immense pressure, would break the suffocating stillness.
"If not for the fact that earth elementals are all emotionally deficient, they would have been driven mad by this environment long ago, wouldn't they?"
Ekseltus made a conclusion in his mind.
"So Deathwing, after nearly ten thousand years here, went so utterly insane?"
He had no interest in dealing with the Earthmother, so he flapped his wings and flew in a direction away from the Temple of Earth.
He needed to find a place where elemental energy was relatively active and abundant, yet sufficiently concealed and not easily discovered by others in this place.
After flying for about fifteen minutes, Ekseltus stopped at the edge of a basin surrounded by metal veins.
Geothermal activity here was exceptionally active, with extremely hot lava spewing from the fissures, forming a small lava pool.
More crucially, several small elemental energy currents converged here.
"This is it." Ekseltus made his judgment.
He landed on a relatively flat black giant rock at the edge of the basin, and his dragon claws fiercely plunged into the rock layer beneath his feet!
Crack! Boom!
The rock shattered like rotten wood under his terrifying brute force!
A vertical shaft, dozens of meters deep, instantly formed, its bottom close to the lava layer, with hot air rolling upwards.
Ekseltus carefully placed the specially made metal container at the deepest part of the shaft, ensuring it was half-surrounded by the scorching rock.
He retracted his dragon claws, heated the excavated rocks until they melted, and then poured them back into the deep shaft.
Moments later, the black giant rock was restored to its original state, with no visible trace of damage.
But his caution was far from over.
He began to rapidly engrave on the giant rock.
The first layer was a spatial disruption rune, interfering with any spatial detection spells;
The second layer was an elemental energy concealment rune, disguising the faint fluctuations emitted by the container as the natural elemental noise of the area;
The third layer was a triggered alert and defense rune, which would deploy a protective shield and trigger an alarm if any entity attempted to forcibly break in.
Once engraved, he waved a claw, and the burial spot perfectly blended into the environment, showing no further artificial traces.
After doing all this, Ekseltus checked several times, confirming that no traceable elemental residue had been left behind.
"That's all for the Dragonkin." He made his judgment, "Now—it's time to visit that dragon hiding in the gutter."
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