Light's Dawn of Azeroth

Chapter 425, Section 34: The Archaeological Heroes - For the future of Pandaria and the entire world, press that button!
"This button... oh, looks a bit dangerous, Lao Zhou! Step back, don't touch it!"

Brian's voice echoed through the ancient passageway, tinged with a hint of caution, causing the traveling scholar Zhou Zhuo, who was about to approach the Mogu murals for a closer look, to instinctively take a step back.

Over the past few days, he has come to fully appreciate his new friend's talent and experience in archaeology.

Especially after he accidentally touched a few things and almost got his group crushed to death by the Mogu statues, Zhou Zhuo, under Brian Bronzebeard's scolding, once again understood the ancestral admonition about "keeping your claws in check when doing archaeology".

In the dangerous Mogu tombs, you can really get into trouble if you can't control yourself, folks.

"Okay, my professional dwarf friend, whatever you say goes."

The traveling scholar cautiously retreated to a safe area, set up his easel, and prepared to record this ancient and mysterious tomb.

They are currently deep in the mountains of Kun-Lai Summit, in a place called the "Conqueror's Tomb," which is said to be the tomb built for the ancient tyrant Thor by his loyal Mogu generals after he died in "divine retribution."

There are many accounts of these Mogu Emperor tombs in the legends of the Pandaren.

This is also a tradition of the Mogu.

"Because the Mogu are born from rocks, when those noble Mogu emperors or great warlords die, their bodies are buried in carefully selected ley lines, which they consider a return to the purity of the earth."

The Mogu have ruled this land for a long time, so Pandaria is full of Mogu tombs. Because the Mogu sorcerers have a complex set of rules for selecting burial sites, understanding these rules makes finding those tombs easy.

As Zhou Zhuo painted the mural before him, he explained to the dwarf and gnome explorers who were resting beside him:
"There is a huge burial complex of the Mogu Emperor in Jade Forest, but the Golden Lotus forbids us from excavating it at will, saying that it would disturb the spirits of the dead. We Pandaren respect funeral rites, so we will not disturb those who sleep underground unless absolutely necessary."

"Hey, but every race has tomb raiders, not to mention that as far as I know, the Mogu often bury a lot of valuable treasures in their tombs."

Brian sat atop a collapsed, weathered mogu sculpture head, puffing on his old-fashioned, classic-looking pipe, and complained to Zhou Zhuo in broken pandaren:
"So, I guess there are tomb raiders in Pandaria too?"

"Yes, and for a period of time they were very active because of the war."

Old Zhou wanted to cover for his fellow countrymen, so he said very briefly:
"However, after the Jade Lotus Gang, which was involved in black market trade, was dealt a heavy blow by the Shadow Phantoms several times, they stopped doing these things. This was mainly because the Mogu had also noticed the frequent thefts of the tombs, so they used evil methods to awaken the undead."

Now, if tomb raiders are unlucky enough to dig up a tomb, they will be brutally killed by the emperor's guards buried there. Not all Mogu emperors will answer Thor's call to join the war.

Even the courtiers under the most mild-mannered Mogu Emperor 'Cao' would not hesitate to retaliate when they encountered tomb raiders in their own tombs.

In short, tomb raiding in Pandaria is too risky, and nobody does it anymore.

"hey-hey."

Brian let out a strange laugh, indicating that he didn't believe anything Old Zhou said.

Having dealt with many unfortunate thieves on the Eastern Continent, he also knew that there was a "tomb raiding family" in the Stormwind Kingdom called the Bard family. On the surface, they were explorers, but in reality, the old dwarves were too lazy to comment on the mess they made behind the scenes.

As he admired the grand and majestic imperial tomb before him, he asked Zhou Zhuo, the traveling scholar he had "picked up" along the way:
"By the way, why are you so determined to come here to find this conqueror's tomb? I heard you say a few days ago that your application was rejected and that you even got beaten up by the White Tiger monks in the Wine Jar Market."

"Of course it's not out of hobby. Who would want to get beaten up for no reason?"

Zhou Zhuo pursed his lips.

The Pandaren explorer, dressed in the scholar's robes and exuding an air of refined elegance, skillfully sketched with his brush and explained softly:

"Of all the legends about the tombs of the Mogu emperors, the legend of the tomb of Thor is the most numerous. It is said that the loyal Mogu warlords built many fake tombs in Kun-Lai Summit to prevent the emperor's tomb from being destroyed."

It was filled with a dangerous army of stone figures, intended to deal with those audacious tomb raiders.

But I have no interest in the treasures in Thor's Tomb. The reason I came here is because I discovered something very important in my ancestor's notes a few days ago.

That's related to Thor's sudden 'resurrection' after the continent was sealed off by mist ten thousand years ago!

After he finished copying the mural, he carefully dried his notes and placed them in his notebook. Only then did he put away his drawing board and turn to explain to Brian and his explorers:

"My ancestor was one of the historians of Emperor Shaohao. He witnessed that earth-shattering battle and left some records, which were hidden in the library of Huangliang Pavilion. I only found them because my pets accidentally damaged the library when they were fighting."

My ancestor recorded the scene he witnessed when Thor was resurrected.

Most importantly, the ancestor heard Thor's shout when he was resurrected, and he recorded that Thor roared "Give me back my heart!" when he was resurrected!
Even the ancestor himself couldn't be sure if he had misheard, but if it was true, it meant that Thor's resurrection was likely not an evil plan by the Mogu, but rather an accident.

Zhou Zhuo said very seriously to Brian Bronzebeard:
"Although the Mogu also have the evil tradition of capturing souls and making golems, they respect death. The Pandaren's attitude towards death is inherited from the Mogu. A normal Mogu emperor would never use the method of 'embracing death' to achieve 'immortality'."

My idea is that if we can find Thor's ripped heart in his tomb, maybe we can awaken him from the 'immortality' he doesn't actually crave.

"That sounds a bit unbelievable."

Overspark, the dwarf engineer who followed Brian Bronzebeard, shrieked:

“You have no evidence that Thor was forced, and we know from the Pandaren of Tzolkin Village that Thor is now the ‘God of Death.’ Even if you find his heart, he will not listen to you and give up his power.”

"No, he will!"

Zhou Zhuo waved his hand confidently and said:

"My ancestors served as historians for the Mogu Emperor."

"So, just how illustrious were your ancestors, Old Zhou? To be able to continue serving as a historian after living through two dynasties? Impressive!"

Brian exhaled a smoke ring and muttered:
"You pandaren are really outrageous. You actually have paper records of things that happened more than 10,000 years ago. I really admire this attitude towards history. Okay, okay, I won't interrupt you anymore. You can continue."

"Cough cough."

Old Zhou coughed a few times and said:
"In short, according to my ancestor's account, Thor was a tyrannical but also a very decisive king who always regarded ruling the world and establishing order for it as his life goal."

Thor's sorcerers and generals offered him many weapons, but Thor never stooped to using external forces to achieve victory.

This shows that Thor is an extremely self-centered ruler.

A man like him could not possibly willingly become a slave to death. Think about it: if my previous guess was correct, it means that ten thousand years ago, some force used Thor to turn him into a slave to death.

For Thor, this was not a blessing of power at all.

This is humiliating!

The traveling scholar waved his paw and said:
"I even found records of Thor from other wandering scholar families, and those records prove that Thor was a leader and warrior with a sense of honor. In short, I am just a weak scholar with no great abilities, and it is impossible for me to lead heroes to fight against the mantis demons and Mogu like Sect Leader Zhu Talan did."

But I also have my own determination, and I also want to contribute to peace in Pandaria.

Therefore, I must find the Conqueror's Tomb, find the Heart of Thor, and use it to bring peace to that tyrant, thus completely ending the interference and harm that the power of death inflicts on Pandaria.

"Tsk, my friend, you're quite bold for a fat guy who works in literature. You're in luck this time."

Brian Copperbeard cleaned the ash from his pipe, pushed up his miner's hat, and, leaning on his pickaxe, said to Zhou Zhuo:
"Based on my many years of archaeological experience, I can be fairly certain that the mausoleum we are in now is the true tomb of the God of Thunder."

Although I don't know much about the Mogu's funeral rites, if it were a fake tomb used to kill unlucky thieves, there would obviously be no need to make such exquisite murals. Look at the ceiling!

These mogu, in their depravity, used various precious gems to depict the star map of their era on the ceiling.
That's outrageous! This thing is a precious artifact; it should be a prized possession in Ironforge's grand museum. Of course, I know you Pandaren won't allow us to take it away.

Brian patted the shoulder of the dwarf engineer beside him with some regret. Overspark chuckled, picked up the dwarf camera, and started snapping photos. A dwarf mage named Wendell Spark also took out a magic crystal to record these precious artifacts.

Well, the reason why dwarves appeared in Brann Bronzebeard's expedition is complicated.

In short, the engineer Overspark had a "secret mission." He was supposed to disguise himself as an explorer heading to Kalimdor to infiltrate the city of Brambletooth and spy on the goblins' laboratories to obtain some trade secrets.

Wendell Spark was once a junior mage in Dalaran.

After Dalaran was destroyed by demons, he lost his source of income and had a wife and children at home, so he came to Brann Bronzebeard's place temporarily to make a living.

These two guys are among the more "reliable" dwarfs; at least so far, they haven't done anything outrageous.

"Let's keep going, guys."

Upon hearing Brian's assessment, Zhou Zhuo confidently stated:
“Although I’m not exactly a tycoon, I do have some gold and silver in Huangliang Pavilion. If we really succeed in this great undertaking, I’m willing to give you all my wealth.” “Money? Don’t try to humiliate me with your stinking money.”

Brian snorted.

Would a prince of Ironforge care about money?

Just kidding! Although the old dwarf doesn't show off, Brian is indeed one of the richest people in the Eastern Continent. He always pays for his own expeditions, which speaks volumes about his wealth.

He carried the pickaxe forward, his eyes darting around as he said to Old Zhou:
"You said before that your family's library contains manuscripts from your ancestors more than 10,000 years ago, right? Hey, I won't ask for more, just allow us to send people to copy those precious historical records."

These records will undoubtedly become the most valuable research materials for the Explorers' Guild of Ironforge in their study of the changes in Pandaria.

“My friend, you are truly the most outstanding explorer I have ever seen.”

Zhou Zhuo said from the bottom of his heart:

"I must invite you to join the traveling scholar program; you possess all the wonderful qualities required for our profession."

"Brian! There's a door blocking our way."

Just as the two explorers were exchanging pleasantries, Brian's assistant, Hilda Panjiao, called out to him:
“We can’t get into the tomb without opening this door, but the mechanism is stuck. It must be because the commotion when Thor was resurrected was too great and broke the intricate mechanism.”

"what?"

The old dwarf immediately ran over.

A group of people examined it carefully, and finally, mechanical master Overspark regretfully announced:

"It's hopeless. At least a third of the gears inside are broken. This thing is heavy; don't even think about opening it by hand. I say, how about we use explosives? We brought explosives!"

"Uh."

Brian glanced at Zhou Zhuo, who was also hesitant. Using explosives here might alert something dangerous, but this was indeed the path to the main tomb chamber, and they couldn't access Thor's coffin without opening it.

Zhou Zhuo gritted his teeth, took a few steps back, pulled out several scrolls used by itinerant scholars, and said:
"I'll blow it up."

"We don't need you. We dwarves are the experts when it comes to handling explosives."

Brian waved his hand and got to work with his explorers. They quickly drilled the blast hole, and judging from their skill, it must have been their first time doing this.

Zhou Zhu blinked with a strange expression. Is the archaeological style in the outside world all this wild?
Brian was still muttering to himself:
"Although the Mogu have disguised themselves, I can tell at a glance that this is the most classic anti-theft system of Titan creations, which I learned carefully in Uldaman. There can't be too many explosives, so as not to cause a big shock. Once we trigger other traps, we will all die here."

There might be guardian-like constructs in the main burial chamber, so we must prepare in advance.

Wendell, open a portal outside. If we encounter danger, we'll just run.

“The idea is good, Brian, but the fog hasn’t lifted yet.”

The dwarf wizard holding the "lighter" wand sighed and said:
"It's impossible to pinpoint the outside world from here. I can only use a random teleportation scroll to cast a spell, which at most guarantees that everyone will land within the Kun-Lai Summit area, but I can't guarantee exactly where they'll land."

And I must emphasize this!
"I'm just Dalaran's 'lamplighter,' and there's a reason I haven't become an archmage after all these years. So don't count on me if things really get dangerous."

"It's okay, I have a 'courage-boosting robot' here!"

Overspark magically produced several mechanical boxes from his engineer's backpack and scattered them around. He said confidently:
"This is Gnomeregan's most advanced defense technology. Even if there are monsters inside, these robots can buy us time to escape."

After everything was ready, Brian and Zhou Zhuo personally detonated the explosives, and with a violent roar, the door leading to the main burial chamber was blown open.

A stale, musty air rushed out, making Brian's eyes light up.

The old dwarf shouted:

"That's the smell, no doubt about it! This tomb has been sealed for at least ten thousand years! No one has ever been inside. I felt the same air in Uldaman."

Zhou Zhuo also became excited.

Because he saw the "golden coffin" placed at the end of the large tomb chamber. Its size, its specifications, and the jade royal scales standing on both sides of the coffin all indicated that a supremely noble ruler once slept there.

"We've found it! Quick!"

Old Zhou led the others into the fray.

Of course, as outstanding explorers, they carefully checked for traps, dismantling all the spikes, molten fire, and mechanisms that would awaken the giant scale statues before approaching the luxurious golden coffin.

"These Mogu are outrageous."

Hilda, stroking the exquisitely crafted golden coffin adorned with various Mogu mythological symbols, remarked:

"This emperor's coffin alone could buy a noble title in the Eastern Continent. High Elf nobles would be willing to pay a high price just to obtain such a work of art. If I were the unlucky thief, I would be overjoyed right now."

"Stop talking nonsense, come on! What Old Zhou is looking for is in the coffin. Give him a hand and push it open!"

Brian Bronzebeard, however, sensed something was amiss.

The old explorer's instincts warned him of impending danger, so he urged everyone to work together to push Thor's coffin outwards, while Zhou Zhuo lay beside the coffin peering inside.

The next second, blinding lightning erupted from the coffin, engulfing everyone around it.

The dwarves screamed in agony, and the gnomes cried out in pain. Zhou Zhuo collapsed to the ground in a terrible state, his body emitting a burnt smell.

They were like people struck head-on by "ball lightning," and it was only by sheer luck that they survived.

"What the hell is this thing?"

The well-informed Brann Bronzebeard escaped death thanks to the "active petrification" granted by his royal blood. He tremblingly reached out and, as if lifting a thunderbolt, took the enormous heart out of the coffin.

He shouted:

"This is definitely not a heart of flesh and blood! This is a creation of the Titans! Look how intricate it is! I've seen something similar in Uldaman, damn it!"
Thor is a thief!

He stole the power that belonged to the Titans, and death stripped it away when it captured him.

"Put it down, Brian, you'll get blown up."

Overspark screamed:

"I don't even need to measure the energy level of this thing; just looking at it with the naked eye, I can tell it's more than ten times higher than the city core reactor in Gnomeregan! My God, we'll be turned into lepers and dwarfs by the radiation!"

"Tomb raiders!"

A roar erupted from the other side of the main tomb.

Amidst the panicked gazes of the crowd, a colossal jade giant, accompanied by two ferocious royal scale-like creatures, blocked their path.

He wielded a rather peculiar mogu halberd, pointing the three-pointed, double-edged weapon at the figures before him, and roared:

"I am the Jade War God under the command of Thor! You have all sought your own death and will surely perish under divine retribution!"

Brian's eyes widened.

He knew that he was finished.

Unless he could find the last chance to escape, he looked around with Thor's Heart in his arms and finally saw a strange "protrusion" under the golden coffin.

It looks like a button.

Touching such things carelessly in an ancient tomb can lead to terrible consequences.

But it's already like this, so who cares!
So, Brian Bronzebeard broke the rule that explorers should never do and punched the button.
(End of this chapter)