Light's Dawn of Azeroth

Chapter 428, Section 37. The Mogu: Today, we will challenge the Butcher of the Holy Light with the power of our entire race's ancestral register.
"They hollowed out the entire mountain to create this enormous palace. The Pandaren never truly explored it. When the Mogu dynasty stood, only a few Pandaren were allowed to enter and carve murals and rocks."

Everything we know about this palace today comes from the documents secretly recorded and passed down by our forefathers.

Yu Long's voice echoed in the ears of the warriors who had stormed into the Mogu Mountain palace. The Azure Dragon Celestial Venerable spoke cautiously:

"Legend has it that Thor was the only emperor who could master the secrets of this palace. After him, emperors only dared to stay on the outskirts of the palace. They could not enter the depths of the palace for fear of being killed by the powerful stone figures who were loyal only to Thor."

This place is far more than just a 'holy land' to the Mogu.

Scholars have researched some ancient records, and it is said that the Mogu were originally created from this palace by their 'creator'.

After Thor was resurrected, the palace became a meeting place and truce site for emperors and warlords throughout history.

You should have learned from the traveling scholars that the Mogu are not united. They worship power and absolute rule and need an extremely strong leader to unify them. But unfortunately or fortunately, no emperor has ever truly won the hearts and minds of all the Mogu clans like Thor.

This is also an important reason why the Pandaren have been able to persist for 10,000 years.

The Mogu don't even consider us their main enemy; the powerful Death Clan are much more wary of their 'brothers'.

Of course, they have every right to be arrogant.

"The Pandaren must be maintaining this balance in secret."

The Dark Prophet Zul, leaning on his Azerite staff, guarded by shimmering troll spirits, quipped in pure Pandaria:

"You have terrifying assassins like the Shado-Pan, and it would be a waste not to make good use of that power. Therefore, I guess you have been quietly keeping the Mogu Death Warlords in check, right?"

"Yes, troll."

Xue Nu answered in a resounding voice:

"I am in charge of this matter."

Whenever a powerful Mogu warlord seeks to launch a conquest, we send his weaknesses and intelligence to his mortal enemies. When necessary, the Shado-Pan masters will personally carry out assassinations against those powerful warlords.

Although the dead cannot die again, and the great warlords all have secret techniques to ensure their souls are immortal, being killed will greatly diminish their prestige.

This is the Pandaren's balancing strategy.

Because of the Mantid, we must do our best to maintain the balance of power in Pandaria. At times, either the Mogu or the Mantid can be our allies.

Does this make you feel uncomfortable?

"No, no, no, I am just impressed by your 'art of governance' which has been able to keep such a crisis under control for ten thousand years. The wisdom of the Pandaren is something the Troll Empire should seriously learn from."

The Dark Prophet sighed:
"If the Golden King of ten thousand years ago had your courage and art of governance, the Troll Empire would not have fallen to such a state over time. But thankfully, the World Mother's approval has given us hope for unification."

There are spirits ahead!
A very dangerous dark spirit, which the Mogu sorcerers strengthened using mysterious methods, making a valiant and unparalleled soul the gatekeeper of this palace.

We cannot pass without his permission.

Please proceed!

Zul raised the Azerite staff in his hand and politely addressed his companions:

“I have some experience in suppressing spirits, so I will subdue this ‘watchdog’ for you all. Please consider this as the Zandalari’s expression of goodwill towards Pandaria.”

Diakum nodded, watching the Dark Prophet and his soul guards enter the dark land ahead. Then, the deep roar of "Cursed Seal" echoed through the area, mixed with powerful explosions and the stomp of thunder.

"A demigod earthbound spirit enhanced by the Force of Death."

Saloras whispered:
"The concentration of death energy in this godforsaken place is too high. If the subsequent Mogu Emperors are all of this strength, then this place is undoubtedly the stronghold of the death force. The guy on Icecrown Glacier in Northrend is at most a lackey of the death faction."

But I don’t understand!
Why send the Lich King to Azeroth when the Shadowlands already have powerful Mogu Kings?

Diakum shrugged, leading the rest of the group around the platform where the frenzied battle was taking place. He admired Old Zul's skillful, mysterious, chilling, and deadly divine war dance, and the troll war spirits it commanded. The Watcher explained:

"Power in the realm of death is not centralized. My lieutenants, there is no absolute control over fel energy like Sargeras's. The Death Rift and the Lich King here are servants of death, but they belong to different Eternals."

Clearly, although the dead dogs have a desire for the material world, they are not entirely of one mind.

His actions in Azeroth ten thousand years ago were perhaps more like a solitary journey by some Eternal One.

"When the mists of Pandaria dissipate, the Mogu undead hiding on this continent will definitely become an asset to the Lich King."

Aurecis reminded us:
“They can resist Frostmourne’s manipulation here, but once Thor dies and the Death Node collapses, those undead will definitely submit to the Lich King. The nature of the Death Force is ‘domination,’ and they can only and must make a voice heard.”

Diakum did not comment further on this.

In his view, the Lich King was not a big problem.

At least in the current situation, there are many other stubborn individuals whose importance surpasses that of the Lich King, who acts with extreme cunning.

Gul'dan was well aware of the "essence of survival," and as long as Diakum and the Lightforged were still in Azeroth, he would never show himself unless absolutely necessary.

"Invaders have entered the 'Royal Court'! Quickly, send an alert to the emperors!"

A sharp sound rang out from the eerie passage ahead, followed shortly by the sound of heavy footsteps coming from the depths of the palace. Diakum gripped his weapon tightly.

When the first Mogu Necromancer Guard appeared, he promptly summoned his five hundred best buddies.

Ragnaros, the Lord of Light, appeared amidst the roar of holy flames, raising his Balrog Hand to ignite a blazing light, dispelling the chill of death before transforming into a volley of arrows that roared forward.

It swung its radiant warhammer, each strike reducing the dead to ashes. The twins also entered "turret mode," unleashing a barrage of holy flames and mental storms that swept across the surroundings, leaving the three supreme gods, who were ready to assist in defeating the enemy, staring at each other in disbelief.

Good guy!
With Diakum's firepower, it seems like they don't need these. If the three of them—one man and two women—get serious, they could probably clear this place three or four times over.

The Loa spirits who followed were even more delighted.

Although Rezan's "strategic opportunism" at Mount Hyjal made him the "World Holy Spirit," and he received the seal of the Star Soul Lord, becoming a "True God" and allowed to freely absorb faith from various races, which greatly boosted the morale of the Loas and made a large group of demons and monsters very envious.

But the Loas' weak nature makes them still not very willing to sacrifice themselves for the cause of others.

They were forced to come and join in this grand event by the trolls. Now they can reap the rewards for free without even having to roll up their sleeves and get involved, which makes them very happy.

It gives you a sense of joy, like being carried by a pro to achieve glorious achievements while slacking off.

However, as they ventured deeper into the Mogu'shan Palace, this good fortune quickly vanished with the appearance of one Mogu Emperor after another.

The Force of Death is outrageous!

Every single one of these Mogu Emperors could be considered a demigod lich.

At this moment, three incomparably majestic Mogu leaders sat on their respective chariots, holding different weapons, and were guarded by Mogu warriors dressed in different attire.

The royal beasts buried with them were transformed into legendary death beasts by the infusion of death energy. Not to mention, the imposing army almost completely blocked the path to the deeper parts of the palace. The sinister sorcerers wielded their magical artifacts to create protection for the emperors' army, allowing them to advance under the bombardment of holy flames.

"Emperor Kang, Emperor Tian, ​​Emperor Cao"

The Jade Dragon Celestial Venerable, like the most perfect "guide," sighed and introduced:

"These are three emperors with better reputations in history. Their reigns were more tolerant than those of tyrants, and it was during this time that the Pandaren civilization began to emerge, especially Emperor Cao."

He generously allowed Pandaren and other slaves to learn to read and established schools of all sizes, which greatly alleviated the racial tensions of the time.

The scholars who traveled around were very tolerant of Emperor Cao's evaluation.

In fact, the sages of the Golden Lotus Cult have always believed that if Emperor Cao had not died young and had continued to rule, the Pandaren civilization would probably never have been born.

For the past ten thousand years, these three have been in charge of the overall situation here, and our previous temporary alliances with the Mogu have also been presided over by these three emperors.

You can continue onward.

We have some connections with them, so we'll hold them off here.

Azure Dragon, Vermilion Crane, and White Tiger appeared from the wind. The supreme gods showed no mercy, transforming into their majestic forms. In an instant, thunder roared, flames raged, and purified azure fire descended from the sky, resisting and suppressing the military force of the "Three Sovereigns Alliance" before them.

Upon seeing their "old friend" appear, the three Mogu emperors rose from their chariots and stepped forward to engage in battle, each wielding their divine weapons.

Dick left the Lord of Light here to assist the three gods in clearing out the minions, and then continued deeper into the land with the opportunistic Loas.

They traversed the passageways, defeating death guards and various Mogu colossi along the way. Upon reaching the Royal Library at the deepest part of the palace, Diakum suddenly twitched his ears. He heard a "familiar" voice: "By the gods above, it is the merciless war king, Zion."

"Zhou Zhuo!"

The vigilant shouted:
"Did you accidentally activate the mechanism again?"

"what?!"

Startled, the panda-man scholar peeked out from behind the enormous bookshelves.

He had never seen the Watcher before, and only felt that the blue-skinned giant in front of him was very imposing. However, when Brian Bronzebeard, who was holding a shotgun and looking nervous, saw Diakum, his face relaxed as if he had seen a savior.

The old dwarf sniffed, thinking of the hardships and misery he had endured along the way, and suddenly lunged forward with a cry, seeking some comfort in the reassuring figure of the Watcher. However, Diakum pushed him away with a look of disgust.

Look at you, your beard is covered in tears and snot, how disgusting!

"How did you get in?"

Saloras exclaimed:
"The death fog of Mogu'shan Palace is enough to poison any legendary figure; the strength of the two of you..."

"The Monkey King pointed out a shortcut for us!"

Zhou Zhuo, equally covered in dust but clutching the wooden box tightly in his arms, quickly explained:
"It said that when Shao Hao and Thor fought, the mountainside was accidentally torn apart and a path was created outside the palace. Only it knows how to get there. But we got here and there's no path. Brian said there must be some kind of trap here!"
He said his centuries of archaeological experience confirmed that there must be a huge secret chamber beneath the library, a chamber no smaller than the outer palace.

"Yes, yes, I can confirm that these Mogu palaces outside were all added later! The Mogu built them on a large scale to cover up the true secret of these palaces."

Brian Bronzebeard stomped his foot and shouted:
"As long as we find that secret passage, we can enter the secret chamber. That's what the Monkey King said too; he said, 'The secret is hidden in the books.' That's why Lao Zhou and I were looking through the books here, and then we accidentally..."
"Ahem, thank goodness Ms. Aegwynn appeared suddenly, otherwise we would be dead."

Diakum looked up and saw Aegwynn wielding the noisy Elune's Staff, locked in a fierce battle with four powerful Mogu King spirits on the screen platform at the very front of this colossal library.

These four men were rulers after the Third Mogu Dynasty, a time when the Mogu rule was already crumbling and warlords were severely dividing the country.

They were not qualified to call themselves emperors, and the bestowal of titles of kings was nothing more than empty talk by powerful warlords.

Perhaps that's why these guys are bound here to guard the passageways. Compared to the Mogu Emperors who can move freely in the palace, these guys are just pathetic earthbound spirits.

"Aegwynn! Is Thor down there?"

Diakum called out, and Aegwynn, caught up in the heat of battle, replied:
"exist!

Moreover, there is a real 'Titan creation' legion below. I have been risking my life these past few days to spy and investigate from there using astral projection. Thor and the relics of the Death Force are trapped below.

That was an incredibly exaggerated seal!

I was studying the mysteries of the seal when these two idiots disturbed my body, forcing me to temporarily return here.

My return made quite a commotion; the Titan creations below have probably been alerted.

Call for help!

Diakum, their numbers are staggering.

"Although we certainly can't stop you, we can't waste any more time. Shao Hao's warning was right; that seal is already teetering on the brink of collapse under the impact of the Death Force."

"People? Aren't there plenty here?"

The Watcher pointed his Soul-Binding Staff at the longing Loa spirits beside him and threatened:
“Loar, you don’t want the World Mother to know that you came to help but actually slack off, do you? If word gets out, Rezan will tear you apart without the World Mother even lifting a finger!”

They're currently obsessed with achieving extraordinary status in 'New Azeroth'.

Think about what's sealed beneath Zandalar Island!

"If you're not willing to help now, do you think the Pandaren and the Celestials will genuinely help you when you need it? Most importantly, you're slacking off right under my nose. Aren't you afraid that when facing G'huun, I'll follow your example and just coast along on the battlefield?"

"Ow."

Among the Loa, the most honest and simple-minded Akunda let out a howl and was the first to rush out.

The Thunder Lizard's spirit solidified in mid-air, and after landing, it materialized, shaking its head and crashing into the Ruthless War King Qi Ang, before turning to shoot a blinding bolt of lightning at the Eternal Shadow Witch King.

With Akunda leading the way, the other Loas rushed forward in a chaotic manner.

It was just four earthbound spirits; they could easily defeat them if they were really determined. Aegwynn, who had been replaced on the battlefield, didn't waste any time. He gestured to Diakum and then went forward to find the correct path to the secret chamber.

The Vigilant gathered his strength and punched the wall in front of him, shattering it and blasting open an entrance to the Titan device behind him. The dark hole looked like a giant maw that could devour everything.

The aura of death permeates the area, causing all who set foot there to be assimilated into dead beings.

But Diakum grinned and summoned his Spectral Tiger mount, a psychic warhorse that could travel on paths only the dead could tread.

The magnificent ghost tiger carried the vigilant into the passage, and then purified and dissipated this "path of the dead" in the surging and purifying power of holy light.

Before entering the passage, Aegwynn shouted to the two explorers behind her:

“Take your back paths and bring more people in! There’s no other exit in this area, so hold out until we get out. Below is a Titan energy device connecting to the continental shelf; if we can’t suppress it, all of Pandaria will be doomed.”

Zhou Zhuo! Take your wooden box and come with me.

"Uh, you can take it."

Old Zhou was starting to back down. He handed the wooden box to Aegwynn with both hands and said:
"I feel that I have fulfilled my historical mission as a mortal by escorting Thor's Heart here. The rest is up to heroes like you."

"Stop talking nonsense! Just follow me!"

Aegwynn did not take the wooden box.

She scolded:

“You and Brian Bronzebeard are playing the role of ‘fate’s counterattack hand’ in this matter. I dare not let you two run around recklessly. Who knows what kind of ‘self-destruct device’ your claws will touch this time.”

Brian!
"Get your ass in here right now, or I'll break your legs."

At this moment, the roars of the Mogu could be heard from ahead:

"I am Shanbu, I am the supreme guardian of His Majesty the Thunder God! Do not even think of disturbing His Majesty's 'Ascension'. Emperor's Fist, rise! Sword Dawn, Taixi!"

Wake up!
Drive out the emperor's enemies.

------

"Come on! Everyone, follow me!"

Brian, covered in dust and dirt, ran along the path to the Mogu'shan altar where the fighting was still raging. He waved to Zhu Talan, Old Chen, and the martial monk masters, shouting:
"The vigilantes are entering the heart of death, and we must guard their escape route! Be prepared, for once you step into the palace, you may not return alive."

Old Chen and Zhu Talan exchanged a glance and immediately headed towards Brian's direction, with Marlaad and Iriel following closely behind.

But Leilan shouted:
“We’re all gone, but what about here? The Mogu undead are still surging up! Their numbers are almost endless.”

"Go! All of you go!"

A towering Zandalari troll general slayed the Mogu thug before him, roaring:

"The Firstborn Legion will defend this sacred land for Mother World. We will fight these bastards of death to the last moment! Glory to the Firstborn, may the glory of the Empire endure forever!"

It roared, igniting the trolls' fighting spirit.

How many years has it been since the Troll Empire has fought such a magnificent battle in the world?
Ten thousand years of decline and ruin did not break the trolls' backbone; their empire is rising again, and every victory they achieve enhances their prestige.

Most importantly, Mother World is watching them!

Although the trolls all know that the Supreme Star Soul favors the "youngest" elven race, it doesn't really matter. The eldest son, as the "pillar" of the family, always has to shoulder more responsibilities.

Besides, the Dark Trolls are a branch of the Troll Empire.

If we round it off, Mother World still loves them.

(End of this chapter)