With the four Guardians gathered together, Thorim was aggressive and domineering.
Loken simply smiled easily, seemingly unconcerned, and slowly said:
"I've been wondering what it would be like to fight the four Guardians alone, and I never expected my wish to come true so soon. It's truly unfortunate."
Boom.
Loken made the first move, his body blurring as he transformed into four figures, simultaneously lunging at the four Guardians.
Rhonin stared in astonishment at the battle unfolding in the sky. Loken was using the Arcane Magic of Mirror Image—could it be that even the Titan Keepers relied on mortal magic to fight?
Freya screamed in fright. Among the four Guardians, she was responsible for healing and was not very strong herself. She usually relied on the three elders to fight.
Seeing this, Hodir unleashed endless Frost power from his body, his towering figure swaying as he stood in front of Freya, single-handedly holding off the two avatars.
Thorim's body was surrounded by Lightning, transforming into a ball of lightning, and he engaged in combat with one of Loken's avatars.
Mimiron summoned mechanical constructs that entangled the last avatar.
As fellow Titan Keepers, Loken was very familiar with the coordinated combat strategies of his four companions.
Of the four guardians of Ulduar, Hodir, who possesses the power of Frost, serves as the tank and should be the last to attack.
Freya, who acts as the healer, is the key character; she must be defeated first, otherwise victory will be difficult.
However, Loken did not do that. In order to test his own strength, he chose to fight fair and square, diverting most of his forces to attack Hodir and ignoring Freya.
With a wave of his hand, Loken unleashed a torrent of Arcane energy from his four bodies.
Normally, Loken uses Lightning as his primary weapon, but few people know that he is actually an Arcane master.
"Heh, God of Wisdom Loken, even you make such a mistake?"
Out of pride, Loken refused to attack Freya.
Hodir felt relieved and roared loudly. Layer upon layer of Frost covered his body as he withstood Loken's magical attacks, like a majestic and unmoving snow mountain.
Occasionally, Loken's magic would break through Hodir's defenses and cause him some damage, but he would quickly be healed by Freya.
Loken's four clones, like four Elemental Lords, continuously unleashed various spells, as if thousands of Archmages were casting spells simultaneously.
Rhonin looked surprised, recognizing that many of the spells belonged to Dalaran, as well as many long-lost spells, with only fragmentary records remaining.
However, Loken's spellcasting was far more skillful, his understanding of magic far surpassed that of ordinary people, and his ordinary spells were extremely powerful, almost all of them were instantaneous.
Rhonin was stunned for a moment, and unknowingly benefited greatly from the experience.
Loken could hear the voices of all things, and he even secretly learned the magic of High Elves and humans, and improved upon it with his own wisdom.
Unfortunately, Loken couldn't hold out for long in this battle. Before long, Thorim, like a mysterious assassin, successfully shattered one of Loken's avatars.
Loken narrowed his eyes slightly, and the remaining three avatars exploded, temporarily scattering the four Guardians. Both sides temporarily ceased fighting and retreated to their original positions.
Loken tilted his head, thinking carefully:
"Insufficient soul strength makes controlling four avatars too difficult; it's an unavoidable weakness of the Titans Guardians."
Thorim sneered, "Loken, is this how you became stronger? Mere mortal Arcane Magic?"
Loken said seriously, "Don't underestimate the wisdom of mortals. What I learned was invaluable magical knowledge, while what you learned was hypocrisy and cunning."
Hodir laughed heartily, the cold wind swirling around him:
"Loken, you are indeed strong. In a one-on-one fight, none of us would be your match. Unfortunately, you are facing four of us. Loken the Destroyer, your death is imminent."
Loken, unperturbed, replied:
"You wanted to use my life to gain the favor of Elune? Luckily, I was prepared."
Loken slowly opened his right hand, revealing the mysterious black mist.
As the four Guardians of Ulduar, they were intimately familiar with this black mist, for it was the very aura of Yogg-Saron, which they feared most, and which remained sealed away.
Thorim cried out in surprise, "Loken, you're using Yogg-Saron's power!"
Over tens of thousands of years, the four Guardians of Ulduar have been corrupted to varying degrees by the power of Yogg-Saron. The power of the Old Gods has planted dark seeds within them, which will be detonated once they are invaded by the power of the Old Gods.
Therefore, they fear Yogg-Saron's power even more than mortal beings.
Loken glanced at Sif's soul with heartache and said solemnly:
"Sif is, after all, our comrade. To save her, I have no choice but to cooperate with Yogg-Saron. One of Yogg-Saron's tentacles is sealed here. Perhaps you are truly willing to become Yogg-Saron's Servants for the sake of Savior, Thrall savior, even though your sacrifice is meaningless."
The four Guardians were terrified and considered retreating; Yogg-Saron's power filled them with dread.
Loken then looked at Rhonin: "Leader of Dalaran, are you willing to sacrifice the entire Dalaran in a futile struggle?"
Rhonin stared in disbelief, unsure how to respond, his mind racing with thoughts.
At this crucial moment, something unexpected happened.
The black mist in Loken's hand emitted an eerie sound, echoing in the ears of Loken and the four Guardians:
"No, no, Loken, you who are called the god of wisdom, this is far too boring for you. One of my tentacles is not a simple threat; it can serve a much greater purpose. There is nothing more interesting than regretting one's actions in the darkest of times."
The black mist leaped from Loken's hand, and a long Old Gods tentacle appeared above Dalaran, tightly binding the four Guardians of Ulduar. The other end pierced through Dalaran's layers of Magic Shields and landed in front of Thrall.
"Thrall, what's your decision?"
"Yogg-Saron asked."
At the same time, Sif's Soul Orb in Thrall's hand flew into Loken's palm.
Loken paused for a moment, then understood Yogg-Saron's wicked sense of humor:
"Interesting. An interesting game. Your Destiny are all in Thrall's hands. Let's see if the great Savior Thrall is as merciful and kind as you claim. There's nothing more despairing than this."
Loken carefully cradled Sif's soul, first helping her escape the burning black flames, then flying towards the Storm Peaks.
Dalaran, Rhonin breathed a sigh of relief.
Thrall looked at the eyes on the Old Gods's tentacles and understood Yogg-Saron's intention.
The lives of the four Guardians rested entirely in Thrall's hands.
Freya was terrified and pleaded desperately, "Great Savior Thrall, please spare my life!"
Thorim, pale-faced, forced a smile, "Great Savior Thrall, aren't we good friends? I just saved Dalaran."
Faced with a life-or-death decision, Hodir knelt down on the ground:
"Great Savior Thrall, I am willing to become your loyal Servant."
Mimiron let out a piercing scream, "Thorim, you've killed me! Someone save me!"
Thrall revealed a cruel smile, his expression twisted in a grimace, and said, "So these are the four guardians of Ulduar? What a bunch of Imp! Vol'jin, what do you think I should choose?"