Your war hammer is too fake

"Send the phantom bees to follow," the Overmind said. Although the Hive's superiors, whether they have psychic powers or not, can communicate through the Psychic Network, including Namtaru, they still prefer to speak with their mouths. The Faceless Ones often ridicule this, believing that the Hive's preferred communication method is inefficient, and the superior nodes usually disdain to refute this argument.

The voice of the mind is extremely fast and accurate in conveying information, and can express one's meaning without error. However, it is precisely because the voice of the mind has no error in communication that people like the Nest Clan, who lack the ability to finely control psychic energy, often say things they don't want to say when using the voice of the mind... Over time, the upper nodes will try to speak with their mouths unless they are giving orders in battle or need to communicate over long distances.

"Understood." After receiving the order, a tribe mother thought for a moment and asked again: "Do we need to enter the forest?"

"Unless conditions allow," Namtaru replied, "don't take any risks."

At this moment, the insects that had entered the underground to check the situation came out. Several worker bees worked together to carry a charred corpse out of the cave, and some guard bees with a layer of armor on the outside of their chitinous shells were scattered around to guard.

Namtaru glanced at the body of the tribe mother, and then looked away. The leader of the nest had long lost the ability to reproduce, and the tribe mothers that had been urgently hatched in the past six months were all daughters of Nadel. Namtaru would not doubt the loyalty of this deputy, but she was not so confident in Nadel's daughters. After all, all her own daughters, except Mikne, chose to betray her.

This situation cannot continue forever, so Namtaru needs to rebuild the clan genealogy. This is not difficult for the master, but it takes time, and time is exactly what she lacks the most.

"Repair this stronghold as soon as possible," Namtaru ordered after a brief thought, "build defenses, deploy sentries, and notify me immediately when the Phantom Bee returns."

"Yes!"

……

A team of several hundred people was traveling through the desert area north of the Orion camp.

"…So, the ranger followed the traces left by the Nest Clan all the way to the underground prison," Morgan said to Nayes, who was riding side by side with him, while riding an elven horse. "I originally thought that was the entrance to the tunnel they used to enter and exit the underground world, so I immediately led an army to deal with the matter."

"But when you got there you found out that it was actually a prison?" Naise asked with a smile.

"At least I saved you." Morgan didn't really want to discuss this. She turned her head and looked behind her. The tall Suseb was carrying the human explorer named William Martin and walking in the middle of the team. "After this raid, the Nest Clan will definitely be more vigilant. It will be difficult to find the location of their tunnels."

"Morgan," the spellsinger raised his head slightly, "you have a decent prophet in front of you."

"Do you think I haven't tried to find it with magic?" The Spellweaver Lord couldn't help but roll his eyes at the other party: "Although the Nest Clan doesn't know magic, they have mastered a unique power called 'psychic power'. They have a way to interfere with the prophecy."

"Hmm..." Naisi suddenly remembered the past when she was in Paraon and her prophetic ability was almost completely ineffective. Thinking of this, she immediately remembered why she came to the South.

"Morgan!" The Spellsinger raised his voice. "A lot has happened in Athel Loren recently... The Queen has issued an order. It is said that every kin in every forest must be fully mobilized, and those corrupt cousins ​​will also join us."

"Corrupt cousin?" Morgan tilted his head. "Ulthuan has sent someone again?"

"When I passed through Moon Spring Glade (Note 1), I heard that the Caledor people had assembled an expeditionary force, led by their lord, a prince named Imrik," the spellsinger said of the gossip she had heard. "They will arrive in the middle or late February of next year, and the queen has agreed to let them enter Athel Loren."

"...The Reforged are going to attack Athel Loren?"

"What is the Reforger?" Nayes glanced at her friend in surprise. "It's unusual that the Queen hasn't made public who the enemy is. The forest is full of discussions and rumors about this matter. Some people think that maybe the necromancer has made a comeback (Note 2), and the Caledonians are here to help us defend our homeland. But this doesn't make sense at all in terms of timing."

It would be foolish to attack Athel Loren outside of winter, for the forest is your enemy. The expected arrival of the Caledor is well past winter, and Athel Loren in early spring does not need any help—the enemies of Athel Loren who can break through in spring can be made to do the same with or without the Caledor.

"That means the Queen is ready to take the initiative," Morgan knew that he had let the cat out of the bag and could only abruptly skip the topic of the Reforger. "Who do you think the enemy will be? Morgul? It can't be the greenskins in the Grey Mountains and the Ilanar Mountains."

"We don't know where the dark soul will be resurrected," Nayes shook her head and wisely did not continue to ask about the Recaster. "You know, we can deploy troops through the roots of the Oak of Ages, so... uh, I don't know who the enemy is either."

Morgan thought about it, sorted out the information revealed by Nayes and sent it to the chat group.

[Group leader #An Jiyue: This way the intelligence all matches up. When Dustan went to Ulthuan before, he heard that the Caledonians were gathering their troops, and at that time I was speculating on their intentions.]

The spellsinger hesitated for a moment, then continued, "My prophecy spell didn't produce any feedback, but I just have a bad feeling. Morgan, you are an Asrai anyway, and I don't think you will deny that."

"You want me to go back to Athel Loren?" Morgan looked at the constantly updated messages in the chat group while talking to Nayes at the same time: "Has the queen issued an order to recall me? If not, then what's the difference between me taking the army back and rebelling?"

“I only wish that you and your followers be prepared. As long as your host does not enter Athel Loren, you are not breaking our laws,” Naïs said, “even if they are only one step closer to the forest.”

"Nice political trick, but I'm busy right now," Morgan flatly rejected it. All she could think about was where to get some fries, so she didn't want to look at Ariel's ugly face. "You saw those big bugs too."

The spellsinger fell silent. Morgan was not good at hiding his intentions, and Nayes could clearly sense her friend's resistance to returning to Athel Loren.

"If the Queen issued a recall order," Naïs asked, "will you carry it out?"

Morgan opened her mouth but did not answer immediately. She sent a message in the chat group with her mind and immediately received a reply from An Jiyue.

"Yes," said the Lord of the Zhemu Royal Court after a moment of silence. "I will."

The two fell silent again. Nayes realized that there was something between her and her friend, and she couldn't see what it was. Just as the spellcaster wanted to continue persuading him, a tracker ran up to Morgan and said, "Madam, something is following us, but I can't determine its exact location."

"Unless that thing makes further moves, ignore it," Morgan said. "Speed ​​up our pace. Once we reach the Orion camp, it won't be able to follow us any further."

"Yes."

……

Note 1: Argwylon is the Argwylon in the game.

Note 2: Refers to Heinrich Kemmler. He attacked Athel Loren in the winter of 2495 IC, and the Green Chaos was once in dire straits.

Chapter 238: Tradition of Departure

The team of several hundred people marched in the wilderness for two days and then entered a savanna.

The overall landscape of the South is quite...pure. The northern half is basically desert and Gobi, with occasional oases, while the southern half is basically a high-definition replica of Lustria. Except for a few corners, it is all covered with endless tropical rainforest, with only some narrow plains distributed near the coastline.

The only exception is the Orion Camp. With the help of a large-scale magic barrier based on a network of waystones, the Southern Asrai turned thousands of square kilometers of green hell into a normal (?) forest with flora, fauna, and climate that are no different from those of Athel Loren, and the Southern Asrai have been slowly expanding the area of ​​this forest.

If you look at it from a large-scale world map, the Drifting Dunes are to the north of Orion Camp, but in reality, unless it is the result of human intervention, it is impossible for the desert and the forest to be close to each other. In the real world, the southern edge of the Drifting Dunes is a Gobi desert and wasteland that resembles the badlands. Further south is the hot savannah, and further south you can see the lush temperate forest of Orion Camp.

On the day they entered the savanna, Suseb found Morgan and asked him to send some men to help search for his men: they had been ambushed by the Nest Tribe not long after they entered the savanna, one day away from the forest. Suseb was captured in the battle, and all his men were beaten into a pile of bones and left at the battle scene.

As undead, this does not mean the real end. Whether it is the vampire family or the Tomb Kings, conventional means cannot completely kill them. Not to mention that just the bones are broken, even if they are burned to ashes and poured with holy water, and then find a More priest to help you, the exiled undead can still be awakened again after a period of time.

For the Nehekhara faction, as long as there is a lich priest, they can summon the souls of these tomb warriors from the underworld and rebind them to their bodies in a few minutes. In the war between tomb kings, it is normal for the lowest-level skeleton warriors to die seven or eight times after a large-scale battle. Of course, the resurrection of high-level undead will be more troublesome.

Morgan generously agreed to Susab's request, since it was just a piece of cake. A team of woodland cavalry made a special trip for this purpose. When the group could see the forest, these agile riders returned to the team with the collected skeletons. The team sent by the Zhemu King's court to pick up their boss even prepared the stone coffin that was urgently made.

"When you want to go back, I will send someone to escort you," Morgan said to Suseb, "and your men."

The Tomb Herald touched his chest and saluted the Lord of the Weaver: "I will always remember your kindness."

Morgan helped Suseb not just to build a good relationship with Ka Sabai. After realizing that she was being followed, she wanted to find the follower. However, the follower was very cautious and did not take any action except observing from a distance. Even the Tracker could not catch the follower in this situation.

After posting the matter to the chat group, An Jiyue gave an idea. Specifically, it was to find a way to separate a small number of people to act alone to lure the other party into taking the bait, and at the same time mobilize the falcon cavalry from Tal-Yuer to squat in advance outside the observation range of the other party. As long as the stalker dared to show his head, he would let the other party experience what air supremacy is.

Unfortunately, the stalker didn't take the bait, which made Morgan half annoyed and half regretful.

After entering the forest, the vague feeling of being watched finally disappeared. As the home of the southern Asrai, the entire Orion camp is covered with a magic barrier. In addition to maintaining a climate suitable for the wood elves to live in, its biggest function is defense. This defense is not a hard barrier like a city wall, but it interferes with the senses of outsiders and blocks any space transmission.

——In the Warhammer world, teleportation has never been the exclusive domain of the magic clams. This world not only has teleportation spells, but they are also very common. Almost every shadow mage can teleport, but this teleportation spell usually only works on the caster himself, and its use is extremely limited, so it seems to be relatively useless overall.

Unlike Ulthuan, which is theoretically protected by a powerful spell and can never be reached by anyone without permission, but in reality, even the Yankees can come to the camp whenever they want, let alone Druzy. The magic barrier of the Orion camp is not invincible, but there are only a handful of enemies who can break through this layer of defense. In Morgan Ringo's memory, in the past two hundred years, even the top assassin of the Eshin clan, Black Thirteen, who was employed by the Plague Clan, had a car accident in the Orion camp.

On the first night back at Orion Camp, the group rested in an Asrai village. Compared to the Wood Elves' settlements in Athel Loren, the settlements under the rule of the Crucified Wood Court usually do not emphasize concealment. As a magical forest planted by the Old Saints, Athel Loren, especially Athel Loren at night, is also dangerous to the Wood Elves, but the Crucified Wood Court has absolute control over the thousands of square kilometers of the Orion Camp, and all dangerous factors in the forest are controllable.

"Aren't there greenskins or beastmen in the forest? Or... something even darker." Naise asked Morgan the first time she saw the village.

What appeared before the spellsinger was a forest village that would not look out of place in a Japanese fantasy RPG. The Asrai of the South also lived in tree houses, but their villages were not deliberately disguised, and were just openly placed there. Not only that, but there was also a circle of grace trees surrounding the village, which were basically equivalent to the farmland around human villages, and their arrangement was obviously artificial.

"There were some when we first arrived," Morgan searched his false memory, "but they disappeared soon after."

The villagers, armed with swords and bows, warmly welcomed the visiting Lord of the Zhemu King's Court and her guests. They showed no special attitude towards the humans and undead mixed in the team, and served them sweet spring water, freshly picked fruits, vegetable salads, hot barbecue and freshly baked pancakes.

Of course, the "flour" used in pancakes comes from the fruit of the grace tree.

Compared with their northern relatives, whose diet consists of only grilled meat and fruits, and who rarely eat carbohydrates or vegetables, and who have to hunt for grilled meat themselves, the southern Asrai retain the tradition of hunting for meat and fur, but they grow their own food, vegetables and fruits. Especially for vegetables, the southern Asrai will cultivate small vegetable gardens in various corners of the village without harming trees, and grow vegetables for daily consumption, and even develop some unique pickles.

In addition, Nayes noticed that there were thinly sliced ​​cheeses in the vegetable salad. She picked out a piece and put it in her mouth. It was rich in milk flavor and melted in her mouth.

"You actually raise livestock?" The Spellcaster's expression was a little stiff: "Can you still be considered Asrai?"

"The Arionites of Ulthuan also believe in the God of Hunting," the Lord Weaver said disapprovingly. "Do the Arionites rely solely on hunting and gathering for food?"

The corners of Naisi's mouth twitched: "Don't tell me that these barbecues are also raised by you, not hunted."

"Sometimes it's prey, but most of the time it's cattle, sheep, pigs, deer, chickens and ducks that we raise ourselves. Guess why in just two hundred years, our population is larger than Athel Loren's," Morgan cut a piece of lamb leg with a knife, dipped it in the sauce and put it into his mouth, "It's because we know which traditions should be upheld and which traditions must be abandoned."

“Asuryan! I seem to understand why the Queen did not recall you,” the Spellsinger held his forehead with his hand. “If those old stubborn people come to your territory for a visit, there will definitely be proposals to attack you at the next Forest Council.”

"They can try," Morgan sneered, "don't forget to bring all those dryads and tree people with them."

"Morgan, my friend, I will keep it a secret for you," Nayes said helplessly, "For Aisha's sake, please restrain yourself a little, okay?"

"I'll try my best," Morgan said without any sincerity.

Chapter 239: The Hidden Concerns of the Wood Elves

After walking for another two days, the group finally arrived at Xingshi Lake.

Before the arrival of the Asrai of the South, there was no lake here, but a half-dried swamp. The King's Court of the Crucible used magic to transform the natural environment of the Orion Camp. The change in climate caused several rivers originating from the mountains on the edge of the Southland World to divert and flow into this place, eventually forming the current teardrop-shaped Star Stone Lake.

In Morgan Linge's memory, the Lord Weaver cast a spell to raise an island from the center of the lake, and led his followers to build the current Tarr-Zhuer on this island in the middle of the lake. From the beginning, this city was designed as the last refuge for the Asrai in the south, and entry and exit can only be achieved by flying mounts or taking inland ships.

There is a ferry crossing on each of the north and south banks of Xingshi Lake. The ferry crossing is also an outpost, where troops are stationed all year round. Naturally, the ferry crossing is surrounded by a stone wall, which is patrolled 24 hours a day.

Nayis was numb to it. The spellsinger looked at everything in front of her indifferently. The southern kin were far more rebellious than she had imagined. They didn't just hate wooden men. To be precise, they didn't care about the teachings of Kurnos, the god of hunting, or the many traditions that were regarded as the norm by the residents of Athel Loren. In Nayis's opinion, these kin were more like the Avalonians of Ulthuan than the Asrai. They were still close to nature, but hated the wild lifestyle.

The garrison at the ferry had already learned of the group's arrival. They had arranged in advance for large flat-bottomed boats to transport troops, carrying hundreds of people across the tranquil surface of Star Stone Lake.

"The formal meeting will be held tomorrow morning, and someone will call you then," Morgan said to Suseb, who was looking around curiously, "The doctor I found has arrived, and she will cure Mr. William Martin."

"God, I will be able to return to King Atum soon. I hope that His Majesty will have awakened by then." The Tomb Herald nodded. "Where is the doctor? I will take this barbarian over. He sometimes struggles quite... violently."

"Thank you for your offer, but I think I can handle it," an unfamiliar female voice said, "So, this scruffy thing is the patient?"

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw a stunningly beautiful Asrai girl approaching with her arms folded as she looked at William Martin, who was being carried by Suseb. "An... ahem, Arwen," Morgan, who almost let the cat out of the bag, nodded at her. "Let me introduce you to Arwen Duskstar, a very good doctor."

"You are also a spellcaster... No, you are a spellweaver?" As a spellcaster, Nayes noticed that the wind of magic around him became docile just by standing there. "Are you Morgan's partner (Note 1)?"

"Morgan doesn't need a partner because she has achieved balance herself," said the elf girl called Arwen. She didn't float around like the ordinary Asrai wizards, but came to Nayis with her feet. "I have heard of you, prophetess. You have participated in many major events, including but not limited to saving our queen."

"I just did my duty," Naise looked at Arwen, who was smiling. For some reason, she always felt that this guy was not as friendly as he seemed. "And it was Elder Adanhu who saved the queen."

"Adanhu," Arwen repeated the name, "Fate is not only cruel, but sometimes also vicious. Elder Adanhu sacrificed himself to cleanse the darkness in the queen's soul, but Koledi is still alive and well."

It is said that before Chaos first invaded the mortal world, there were hundreds of ancient tree people living in the forest of Athel Loren, but only three of these ancient creatures survived until the end of the Cataclysm. These three forest elders are Adanhu the Prophet, Durthu the Strong, and Koledi the Cunning. The three ancient tree people have different attitudes towards aliens, and Koledi is the leader of the radical faction.

The Elves' pact with Athel Loren dates back to Aenarion's first wife, the Everqueen Astariel, who made a pact with Durthu when Avelorn was about to fall to the armies of Slaanesh - she begged the Elder of the Wood to save her children Morion and Evelyne from the impending destruction.

In those days, the network of roots of the Oak of Ages was closed to all flesh and blood. Durthu knew that his decision would inevitably cause fierce arguments, but in the end the Elder of the Wood agreed to the Everqueen's request. However, Durthu also warned Asstaril that there would be a price to pay. If he saved the Everqueen's children, then one day in the future, Athel Loren would also claim many of the Elves for himself.

The warnings of the Elders of the Woods troubled the Everqueen, but she had no choice. This was not a matter of favoritism, for if the Everqueen's bloodline died out, the Elves would fall into eternal decay. Eventually, Durthu, carrying the two children who had been put to sleep by magic, returned to Athel Loren through the network of roots, while Asstaril remained to face her final battle.

Not surprisingly, Durthu's actions caused an uproar in Athel Loren. Coredi was furious that Durthu had brought two flesh creatures through the roots, and he insisted that the two outsiders be killed. At first, Adanhu supported Coredi's opinion, but the oldest and wisest of the ancient tree people finally couldn't bear it, and agreed to let the two children stay until the war was over and the elf homeland was safe again.

After paying countless sacrifices, the high elves won the battle of the Isle of the Dead at the cost of almost annihilation. Caledor the Dragon Tamer and his disciples successfully created the Great Whirlpool, and the demons were exiled from this world. Then Durthu fulfilled his promise and returned to Ulthuan with the two elves who had been sleeping. Evelene became the new Everqueen, and Morion became the guardian of his sister, but the siblings did not remember what happened after they left Avalon.

After that, the elves and Athel Loren had a rare period of peace until the outbreak of the War of the Longbeard. This war, which should not have happened, lasted for four hundred years and ended with the dwarves' tragic victory and the elves' complete withdrawal from the Old World.

However, although Ulthuan ordered a general retreat, not all elves accepted the order of the new Phoenix King. Some elves refused to abandon their homes and chose to stay. These people were the ancestors of the later Asrai and Einir (Note 3).

The contract signed long ago finally came to a time when the price had to be paid. After a series of chaos, chaos, and chaos, the elves who remained in the old world became the new residents of the Forest of Athel Loren. Not surprisingly, Koledi was vehemently opposed to accepting the elves. Durthu, who had created this situation, said nothing about it, and the wise Adanhu took great effort to convince Koledi.

This was not the first time Koledi had spoken out against a matter concerning flesh and blood, nor would it be the last. During the Cataclysm, the Forest of Athel Loren had suffered and lost too much, and hatred and anger had twisted Koledi's soul. In the end, a monster shaped by the power of Chaos itself, Morgul, became the last straw that broke the camel's back. This legendary beastman who could be resurrected over and over again had become a lingering nightmare for the Wood Elves since his first appearance in the mortal world. It was defeated and killed again and again, and each time it was reborn to continue leading the Chaos Beasts in endless invasions.

For some reason, the forest spirits found it difficult to resist Morgul's corruption. Coredi was corrupted by the madness spread by this twisted being, and he could no longer tolerate his hatred for flesh and blood creatures. One winter, after Ariel fell into a deep sleep, the mad ancient tree man led a group of forest spirits into the King's Forest and slaughtered every elf he could find, until Ariel, awakened by the killing, appeared on the battlefield and suppressed Coredi with overwhelming magical power.

Since Koledi was still connected to the Web of Life, Ariel could not kill it, so he could only imprison Koledi and its followers in the Wildwood in the southwest corner of Athel Loren, a dark forest where no Wood Elves lived, and constructed a magical barrier with a network of waystones to prevent the mad creatures inside from escaping.

Well, like every similar story, in the original history, Coladi later escaped from prison.

"Being locked up in the wild forest is not considered 'living well'," Nayes, who was also well-versed in history, tasted a subtle meaning from Arwen's words, "It has paid the price for its madness."

"Maybe," Arwen said noncommittally. "I don't know if you have heard of this incident. In the year 425 of the Season of Destruction, seventy years ago, Dacha, the maid of Coredi, attacked the Temple of Tal in Rickwood Forest and stole a holy object called the Fang of Talros. Guess what this thing is used for?"

"..."

"The last relic that Dacha needs is in Paraon," Arwen continued. "With it, Dacha can free its master, allowing madness and betrayal to once again sweep across the forest of Athel Loren, and the Asrai will ..."

"That's enough!" the curse-singer cried, unable to bear it any longer. "I will check your story, doctor. If what you say is true, I will take you to the Queen, and she will make the decision."

"Did you make a mistake, Curse-singer?" Arwen looked at Naise with amusement. "I didn't say I was going to see her. Whether you want to believe it or not is your problem. Anyway, if Coladi escapes, we won't be the first to suffer."

"Alright, alright!" Seeing Arwen glance at him, Morgan, who had discussed the script beforehand, stepped out to smooth things over: "Arwen, take your patient away and cure him. There will be a welcome party tonight, don't forget to attend, that's about it."

After saying that, the Lord of the Weavers put his hands on his hips and glared, "What are you all standing there for? Go where you need to go!"

……

Note 1: Although in the tabletop rules, the Weaver can use the Higher System, Dark System, or any of the eight major systems, in the background setting, the Weaver is either the Higher System or the Dark System, and they always appear in pairs, one Higher System and one Dark System to match each other.

Note 2: Yes, Gao Taizu’s daughter has the same name as the regent princess of 40K next door.

Note 3: These are the people in the Laurentlauren Forest. Although they are classified as wood elves in the game, they are actually not wood elves, but a separate species, Eonir, usually translated as wild elves.

Chapter 240: Doubts Remain

Things in the world are interconnected.

Due to the butterfly effect caused by the time traveler, Karl Franz declined the meeting with Lawn Leocornwall, which indirectly led to the outbreak of the Fifth Paraon War. For the Lords of the Holy Scriptures, this war brought both good and bad results. The good thing was that Egwene secretly controlled the Principality of Paraon and successfully planted an important hidden chess piece in the Knight Kingdom, shaking Li Biao's control over Bretonnia; as for the bad things...