All five thousand Orcs lay on the ground. Malkorok could vaguely make out a Troll wearing a tall golden crown, a smug smile spreading across his gloomy face.
The Dark Prophet Zul appeared atop the cauldron, followed by a large horde of Trolls —the five thousand missing Horde who had now become Zul's loyal followers.
"Foolish Orcs, who says you have to eat the food to get poisoned? The aroma of food is also a kind of toxin."
Zul opened his arms wide and proclaimed, "Praise be to the great Emperor Archaeus! The Zandalar Soul's Praise, written by the Loa, has been restored to the light of day! We Trolls will unite once more!"
A boisterous laugh rang out, and Zul turned around in displeasure, only to see a lewd figure. The lizardman Jehan couldn't help but laugh out loud:
"Zul, are you satisfied with the gift King Xien gave you?"
The five thousand loyal Trolls relieved Zul of his isolation, which pleased him greatly. However, he frowned and asked suspiciously, "Thank you for King Xien's generosity, but I see sarcasm in your smile. You must be hiding something from me."
Jiehan winked. In the Mogu'shan Palace, the Saurok held a higher status than the Trolls, and he showed no fear of Zul, speaking neither humbly nor arrogantly:
"Dark Prophet Zul, perhaps the Zandalar Soul's Praise truly exists, but the song I just taught you is definitely not?"
Zul was taken aback and asked, "What else could it be but Soul's Praise, capable of evoking memories of past glories in the souls of Trolls and bringing them together for a common purpose?"
Jiehan explained in a low voice:
"You might consider this a weaker, more subtle whisper of the Old Gods directed at the Trolls. I'm sorry, I misled you. The Mogu have no records of the songs of the Zandalari Empire from ten thousand years ago. Although the Mogu have a more glorious and magnificent history than the Trolls, Mogu never dwell on the past; they only focus on the future."
Zul's wrinkles deepened as he fell into deep thought, his resolve to uphold his ideals wavering once again.
The lizardman Jehan danced with glee, saying, "Five thousand orcs! What perfect test subjects! I'm going to conduct my favorite live experiments!"
There weren't many Saurok in the Mogu'shan Palace, enough to move five thousand Orcs.
Zul commanded his Troll subordinates to help move the unconscious Orcs into a huge room.
The Saurok used a special curse to petrify them, preventing them from gradually losing their life force.
The hundreds of thousands of Pandaren of the Golden Lotus received the same treatment; how to deal with these Pandaren was entirely up to the Mogu.
Ten Orcs were sent to the laboratory as test subjects. Dozens of Saurok leaped around, Proficiency manipulating various knives, cutting off the Orcs' flesh to conduct all sorts of bizarre experiments.
King Xien returned to the Mogu'shan Palace with Lao Xianglong. Jiehan's experiments had yielded initial results, and he came to the throne to report to King Xien.
"There are two pieces of news, one seemingly good and one bad. The good news is that Orcs flesh and blood can stop the Curse of Flesh. The bad news is that it takes the Blood Crystals extracted from ten Orcs to satisfy the needs of one Mogu. If it is a powerful Mogu, even more Orcs will be needed."
King Xien's face darkened. He asked, "So, five thousand Orcs can only heal a maximum of five hundred Mogu? Do you have a way to replicate Orcs Blood Crystals?"
Jiehan shook his head. "Unfortunately, the two mysterious forces within the Orcs's body have achieved a delicate balance, which is quite amazing and cannot be replicated with current technology."
King Xien stood up and looked down at them, saying, "There are over a million slumbering Mogu, which means we need a full ten million Orcs."
Lao Xianglong interjected, "Mogu'shan Palace lost five thousand Orcs in one fell swoop. Garrosh is definitely not stupid; he'll probably be more cautious from now on."
King Xien sat back on his throne, pondered for a long time, and said with dissatisfaction, "Jiehan, order the Soulstealer to conduct espionage. You relay my message; you know I can't be bothered to see them."
After an unknown amount of time, Malkorok gradually regained consciousness and found himself firmly bound to the experimental table. He witnessed the Saurok dissecting the Orcs, leaving not a trace of flesh visible on the clean bones. Malkorok was terrified and hurriedly pleaded:
"I'm willing to surrender. I don't want to die. I know many of Orgrimmar's secrets."
The lizardman, Jehan, sized up the "brave" orc and said with a smile:
"You will not die. You will live well, and outlive all other Orcs. You are the hope of the Mogu."
Footsteps sounded behind me, and a Pandaren strolled over.
Judging from his attire, he was a member of the Golden Lotus Sect, but his gaze was gloomy and imposing, exuding an aura of authority without anger.
"A strong Orcs, who prides himself on being brave, yet is ridiculously cowardly. How can Orcs combine courage and cowardice? I'm very interested in that. Little Saurok, I like this Orcs. Leave him to me; his soul must be delicious."
Jiehan respectfully stepped aside and whispered, "Yes, Lord Shan Jihai."
Upon hearing the name, Zul, who was standing nearby, trembled with fear, recalling an ancient Legendary.
In an attempt to combat the ever-worsening Curse of Flesh, a group of fanatical Mogu devised a cruel plan: to abandon their physical bodies and transform into pure soul beings.
After years of exploration, this group of madmen succeeded.
They are the infamous "Soulclaw Sect" of the Mogu race. The Soulclaw Sect lives by devouring souls, has no fixed body, steals the bodies of other races to survive, and changing bodies is as simple as changing clothes.
The Soulclaw Sect escaped the Curse of Flesh, but at a price: losing their physical bodies and their formidable strength. The Soulclaw Sect is proficient in soul magic, but their own strength is not great.
Shan Jihai is a Soulclaw Sect Soulstealer who possessed the body of a Golden Lotus Sect member and lived in Vale of Eternal Blossoms for many years without anyone noticing.
Malkorok clearly sensed a magical power in the Pandaren's eyes. Despite perceiving extreme danger, he couldn't help but meet its gaze.
Shan Jihai stared into the Orcs's eyes, strange vortexes spun rapidly in his pupils. Malkorok felt himself floating, like a bird flying in the air, gradually losing his weight.
Not long after, Malkorok's eyes dimmed, his soul completely devoured by Shan Jihai. Savoring the delicious soul and perusing his memories, Shan Jihai exclaimed in shock:
"A terrifying discovery! Garrosh, like Thrall, has the backing of a mysterious and powerful being. Jiehan, report this to King Xien immediately. You know I utterly despise him."
Jiehan rushed towards the Ancient Throne Room. Shan Jihai took a deep breath, and the Pandaren's body slumped down, releasing a dark aura that entered Malkorok's body.
"Malkorok" slowly opened his eyes, revealing a cruel and murderous glint in them. He sneered at Zul beside him, "Dark Prophet Zul, I have replaced this Orcs, and obtained his body and memories. The fewer people who know, the better. Do you know why I allowed you to watch from the sidelines?"
Zul, pale-faced, answered hesitantly:
"If you need any help, I'm very willing to cooperate."
"Malkorok" nodded with a smile:
"Orcs are cowardly and timid, yet arrogant and conceited. If they learn that it was a lowly Troll who defeated Orcs, they will be extremely resentful and send even more Orcs to destroy you."