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The Scourge of the Dead.

This undead legion made the legendary admiral Daelin feel powerless for the first time. Despite the bravery of his fleet, the fact that his warships were blessed by the tides and were not afraid of the storms, and the fact that the cannons on his ships could blast through the strongest city walls, his troops could only watch helplessly as these monsters, who had no concept of death, ravaged the land of Lordaeron, unable to even land and occupy a port.

Now, witnessing the mechanical legion summoned by Tannis, he felt as if he were seeing another form of the Scourge—lifeless, tireless, fearless, and obedient.

"These robots are the main force of your Ratchet City now?"

Daelin, who was arranging for his fleet to regroup, frowned slightly as he watched a Naga thug, which he himself had to exert some effort to overcome, have its head blown off by a drone that swooped down at extremely high speed just as it surfaced.

"Huh? You mean these robots? If we're going to categorize them using conventional military units, they'd be reconnaissance units... anyway, they're all disposable..."

As Tanis spoke, she calmly used a handheld cannon that she had somehow pulled out to blast a ball of pale blue flame, burning a Naga thug that had finally managed to get close to the ship's side to ashes.

"...These can only be considered scouts?"

"By the way, Admiral Dalyn, could you estimate whether the shockwave from my robot exploding at a distance of about ten meters would pose a threat to your ship?"

"If you think you can defeat the Kul Tiras fleet with these pieces of junk, I advise you to give up. The reason these Naga chose to board our ships is because they found they couldn't destroy them at sea."

"So there's no threat? Then..."

Tannis gently flicked her right hand next to her glasses, and dozens of metal barrel-shaped robots floating on the water's surface flashed red and disappeared into the sea.

Seeing the wicked smile on Tannis's lips, Daelin shivered inexplicably. After thinking for a moment, he pulled his chief mage aside, whispered in his ear, and ordered him to arrange for all the main ships to activate the hull reinforcement magic, which would take three days to charge.

Although Shal the Lightbringer was puzzled as to why his commander would make such a decision when it was certain that the Naga could not possibly breach the Kul Tiran ships from below, an order is an order. So, he quickly gave the order, and in less than ten seconds, in the water invisible to ordinary people, the bottoms of all the large ships of the Kul Tiran fleet were enveloped in a layer of blue light.

Ten seconds passed.

Twenty seconds passed.

Thirty seconds passed...

Just as Dailin began to doubt that he was overthinking things, a powerful force suddenly surged upwards and impacted his flagship, almost giving Dailin the illusion that his flagship had 'jumped'.

"What weapon did you use?"

Completely unaffected by the jump, Daelin walked to the ship's side and looked out at the sea. As far as he could see, hundreds of Naga thugs' corpses, along with dragon turtles, murlocs, and some sea fish, floated belly up on the surface of the water, rising and falling with the waves. Further away, even a sea giant had lost its breath.

"Depth-sea bombs are very effective against marine life. This is the guided version, which is exclusively for the Ratchet forces. However, we also have export versions that can be operated by ordinary people. Buy five, get one free. Do you want to buy them? They come in different explosive charges to deal with various situations, and can even be used as torpedoes to damage ships!"

Tanis smiled and handed Dalin a product brochure, enthusiastically promoting it, completely ignoring the Naga siren Silasir who was practically exploding with rage in the distance.

——————————————Strange dividing line——————————————————

Ms. Silasir was furious, extremely furious.

As one of the oldest Highborne elves, transformed into Naga ten thousand years ago, Lady Silasir considered all beings on land to be only slightly better than maggots. Therefore, when she encountered Daelin's fleet on her way to the Old Lands to support the legendary Queen Illidan, following Vashj's orders, she naturally prepared to sink these 'ignorant' creatures into the sea as sacrifices to the Queen.

As it turned out, things didn't go as she had imagined.

First, Dalyn's fleet of ships was far more sturdy than those of the past, which could be easily punctured in the bottom. This forced her to send her guards to fight the humans in boarding battles. Then, the resistance of these ants was more intense than she had imagined, and even her pet changed from an octopus to an octopus head.

In her quest for a swift victory, she didn't hesitate to request the cooperation of the sea giants, with whom she had a largely mutually beneficial relationship, hoping to quickly sink all the ships to the bottom of the sea. After the sea giants joined the battle, she discovered that some members of the fleet were connected to the despicable water lord…

Left with no other choice, Lady Silasir had to personally sever the connection between Neptulon's servant and Neptulon. Having confirmed that the enemy lacked any area-of-effect attacks, she was prepared to sacrifice Daelin to Queen Azshara. But... who could tell her why that inexplicably appearing, seemingly young and without a trace of arcane magic, was so incredibly powerful? Her arcane magic was ineffective against her, her defensive spells couldn't completely withstand her attacks—and worst of all, her weapon seemed perfectly capable of harming the Naga in the water?

"I... I won't let you get away with this!!"

Realizing instantly that continuing the fight would only lead to the destruction of herself and her tribe, Lady Silasir made a harsh statement and prepared to flee—there would be plenty of time in the future, and she was confident that she could find these damned maggots and drown them all in the deep sea.

"My gold coins! Don't run away!!!"

Watching Ms. Silasir leap into the ocean from behind a whale that was taking in more air than it was exhaling, Tennys, who was trying her best to sell her goods, was shocked and quickly turned a knob on her engineering glasses to adjust her perspective.

"Thank goodness...this guy isn't fast...takes this!!"

Having locked onto Ms. Silasir's escape route using underwater robots, Tannis clenched her right hand tightly, and several drones flashing with arcane light swooped into the ocean. After a series of splashes, the battered and bruised Ms. Silasir surfaced.

"It's done."

Seeing that Ms. Silashill had been blasted out of the water, Tannis breathed a sigh of relief and excitedly turned to Daelin, extending her hand.

"Give me the money!!"

20. Theramore Talks

Dustwallow Marsh, Theramore Island.

On the docks of this nascent human settlement, Jaina Predmor, the uncrowned queen of Theramore, princess of Kul Tiras, and beloved disciple of the Council of Six of Dalaran, leaned on her staff, gazing into the distance as if waiting for something.

Finally, as the morning mist gradually dissipated, a mast that Jaina knew all too well rose above the horizon. Then, more masts emerged one by one from below the horizon, and the huge fleet cut through the waves, heading towards the small dock of Theramore Isle. On the flagship, a middle-aged man wearing the robes of an Alliance admiral, a captain's hat, and holding a sword waved to her.

Upon seeing Daelin, Jaina almost jumped for joy.

"Father!!!"

——————————————Half an hour later————————————————

“The city location was well chosen, my daughter.”

After disembarking, Daelin gave Jaina a big hug and then began inspecting the port of Theramore. He was very satisfied with the result; even by his demanding standards, Theramore's port was a good port suitable for military use.

"These are all things you taught me, Father. You taught me so much about the territory."

Jaina smiled as she accompanied her father on his inspection tour, answering his questions.

"Yes, but since your brother Drake was the first in line to the throne of Kul Tiras at the time, there were many things I hadn't been able to teach you. After your brother fought those damned monsters and fell to the bottom of the sea, I hoped that your younger brother Tanreid would inherit my throne, but he too perished in the raging waves of the ocean..."

When talking about his two children who died young, even a tough man like Dai Lin's voice trembled slightly.

"Father....."

Jaina sensed the pain in her father's heart, and she had no idea how to comfort him.

"So!!! My daughter!!! You actually thought those monsters could communicate amicably? How do you know they won't wipe you and your people out after they've recovered? Have you forgotten the disaster in Stormwind, forgotten the blood and tears on Arathi Highlands, forgotten the blood on Hillsbrad Foothills?! I don't want you to kneel before the ruins of the city one day, filled with regret!!"

“Father, Thrall’s Horde is different from those old Hordes! They are not bloodthirsty beasts! They are civilized people who can communicate!! If it weren’t for the sacrifice of the orcs! In the Battle of Mount Hyjal, the Burning Legion would have already shattered this continent, and we would all be dead!”

Gianna, angered by her father's rebuke, retorted loudly.

"Will fighting side-by-side once reveal their true nature to you, Jaina? Do you know why I'm hesitant to make you the successor to Kul Tiras? Because you're often too naive and presumptuous! You always think of things in a positive, optimistic way, without considering the consequences if things don't go that way! As leaders, our decisions aren't just for ourselves, but also for our people!"

Dai Lin's hair and beard stood on end, making him look like he was about to devour someone.

"Cough cough......"

Before Jaina could speak, she was interrupted by two coughs from Tennys, who had been following behind her like an airborne bird.

"Admiral Daelin, Archmage Jaina, arguing on the docks is bad for your image. The Horde's envoy, the Night Elf representative, and the Tauren spokesperson have all arrived at Theramore. How about we discuss this matter in a meeting?"

"I have nothing to negotiate with those beasts."

Dai Lin spoke in a cold voice.

"However, Ratchet, the Night Elves, your daughter, the Tauren, and the Horde all hope to resolve this issue through negotiation. Therefore, the current vote is five to one. If Admiral Daelin does not join, then the five parties will have to sign the contract according to our rules—don't look at me like that, this is not a threat, but advice. Admiral Daelin, if you really want your daughter to settle safely in Kalimdor in the future, why not try to accept her ideas first?"

"Three local bullies, two vagrants, and one outsider..."

Dailin gripped the hilt of his sword tightly and loosened his grip several times. Finally, he nodded slightly.

"I agree, but don't expect me to say anything nice."

————————————————Meeting Room——————————————————————

In the large conference room, Thrall sat solemnly in his chair, his face tense, while Rexxar stood behind him, watching the entrance warily.

“Sarl, you don’t need to be so nervous. This is just a negotiation.”

The Tauren chieftain Cairne Bloodhoof spoke softly.

“I’m worried that Daelin will attack us directly, which would put Jaina and me in a difficult position.”

As he said this, Thrall subconsciously touched the Doomhammer that was placed at his feet.

“If he makes a pointless attack, I will stop him.”

Naralex spoke casually.

"Thank you. To be honest, I really hope to resolve this peacefully, after all..."

"After all, you green-skinned beasts need to rest and recuperate, don't you?"

Accompanied by Daelin's hostile voice, the conference room door swung open, and Daelin strode into the room, unceremoniously sitting in the head seat. He scrutinized Thrall from head to toe with his piercing gaze, as if he wanted to slice off the orc's hands piece by piece with his eyes.

"We do need to rest and recuperate. We lost a lot of soldiers in the Battle of Mount Hyjal."

Although he was very annoyed by Daelin's way of addressing him, Thrall thought it was a miracle that Daelin was willing to sit at the table and talk to him, considering Daelin's past experiences—even though Daelin still spoke in a tone that suggested he wanted to exterminate the orcs.

"What do your losses have to do with us? Letting you recuperate is cruel to the alliance. I haven't forgotten the blood on your hands."

"General Predmor, I don't know how bloody your war with the orcs was before, but in the Battle of Hyjal, without the sacrifices of the orcs, the Burning Legion would very likely have truly entered our world. At that time, how long the Alliance you mentioned could hold out would really be a question mark."

Naralex spoke slowly and deliberately, interrupting Daelin's questioning.

"The Alliance fears no challenge, Night Elves."

"Really? But I heard that your largest kingdoms have been decimated by the Scourge. By the way, it seems you don't know that the Scourge is just cannon fodder in the hands of the Burning Legion."

"!!!"

Daelin's gaze froze. As a general who had fought against the Scourge, he knew how troublesome the Scourge was. But how could such a legion be... cannon fodder in the hands of the Burning Legion, as described by the Night Elves?

“That’s right, Father. Dalaran… was wiped out by Archimonde, the strongest member of the Burning Legion this time… As far as I know, Dalaran didn’t even put up any decent resistance.”

Knowing exactly what her father was thinking, Jaina quickly picked up where Naralex left off.

"Is that so? It seems you beasts do have some merit in certain aspects... But!!!"

The general slammed his sword on the table, exuding an overwhelming aura.

"Even if you suffer heavy losses, even if some of you become heroes sung in epic tales, even if you truly save the world, I still have the same question—I, the Admiral of Kul Tiras, why should I believe that you will not once again pick up your swords and wield them against our people?"

"You certainly have no reason to trust us, Admiral Daelin. I know that history... Therefore, I know you have reasons to hate us. But why must the hatred of the previous generation continue into this one? Must one of the Alliance or the Horde be completely eliminated before the wheel of hatred can stop?"

In the tense atmosphere, Sal spoke in a deep voice.

"...You are indeed different from the other green-skinned beasts I have ever seen. If it were them, they would have come up to me with weapons and 'have a friendly talk' long ago. No wonder my daughter thinks you can be saved."

At this point, Daelin turned to look at Jaina.

"Have you had any in-depth dealings with other orcs, my daughter?"

"I didn't, but..."