Undead creatures formed from corpses are incomplete life forms.
Flesh and blood life requires organs that can work in coordination, needs to exchange substances with the outside world, needs cells to constantly reproduce and die, and needs countless chemical reactions in the body. Living is a very complex thing.
After becoming Undead, they lose flesh and blood, lose all senses, and all signs of life cease, leaving only rotting bones and dead flesh. They can only stand and move by the power of Power of Death, which is magic.
Arthas didn't glean anything from Robbie's explanation, but Kel'Thuzad quickly understood, after all, he was an Archmage: "That's right, the Undead are actually just like those Elemental. Elemental live by Elemental Power, while the Undead rely on the Power of Death. Without the Power of Death, a corpse cannot stand up."
Robbie looked at the two and explained further, "All Elemental possess innate magic; they are skilled mages in themselves. Humans, after becoming Undead, are essentially the same."
Kel'Thuzad was taken aback upon hearing this and immediately fell into deep thought.
Arthas, who didn't have a good understanding of magic, finally understood:
"Robbie, you mean that the Scourge soldiers actually all have the talent to become mages?"
You will definitely reap what you sow.
The Undead lack the sensitivity of flesh and blood creatures, have little experience of life, and are unable to satisfy various desires, but because of the Power of Death within them, they have gained the talent to control the Power of Death.
By mastering the Power of Death, one can comprehend other Elemental Magic simply by learning the corresponding magical knowledge.
Robbie nodded, and said solemnly:
"Believe me, even the weakest Ghoul has magical talent that's no less than that of Archmage in Dalaran. That's the Scourge's greatest potential, and that's probably why Archimonde wants to gain the Power of Death."
Kel'Thuzad's understanding of magic surpassed Arthas's, and he quickly connected it to even more:
"I see. It seems we've been guarding this treasure trove without developing or utilizing it. The Undead lack many human desires, such as the yearning for beauty, food, and Wealth. They can single-mindedly pursue the mysteries of magic, possessing a powerful spiritual strength that humans lack. Their pursuit of magic is more focused. No wonder Meryl Winterstorm turned himself into Undead."
Arthas's worried face finally lit up with joy. "If that's the case, we can turn all the Scourge soldiers into mages. An army full of Archmages might not be invincible against the Burning Legion."
The Scourge numbers over a million, with a million Archmages —how can the Burning Legion possibly withstand them?
Kel'Thuzad then fell into thought again, wondering, "Following this logic, the Undead should have powerful magical talent, but unfortunately, only a minority of Scourge soldiers can understand magic, so the number of Undead Mages has been difficult to increase. Could it be that we haven't made good use of their talent?"
"That's not the case," Robbie said with a smile. "Kel'Thuzad, you've overlooked an important factor. Mages need more than just talent; they also need a certain level of knowledge. At the very least, they need to be literate and able to read spellbooks."
Kel'Thuzad suddenly realized that the Scourge's soldiers were mainly farmers. After all, in Lordaeron, a feudal lord kingdom based on agriculture, farmers made up the vast majority of the population.
Despite Azeroth's mysterious magic, education has always been difficult to popularize. After all, for a backward feudal civilization, education requires a huge social cost, which is unbearable in an era of low productivity.
Most farmers only know a few words, can write their own names, and understand basic arithmetic, which is enough to make a living.
Asking a farmer of this caliber to understand an obscure and profound magic book is tantamount to facing Heavenly Book written in the heavens.
In the Scourge, all the Undead Mage were well-educated in life, or were even mages themselves.
Arthas gasped, a troubled expression on his face.
"To educate all the Scourge soldiers to the point where they can read spellbooks will take a very long time. I was taught by the best Court Mages from a young age, and I started learning to read at the age of three, but I couldn't understand spellbooks until I was over ten."
Kel'Thuzad nodded in agreement:
"The Scourge soldiers are mostly adults, and their learning ability is far inferior to that of children. To get them to the point of understanding spellbooks would require five or six years of hard work, even if they stayed up day and night. The Burning Legion won't give us that much time."
Robbie was already prepared, and calmly looked at the two of them, slowly saying:
"When I cast the Old Gods Transformation, I already came up with a good method. The Scourge soldiers are characterized by absolute obedience. I can use the magic of the Old Gods Transformation to connect the soldiers' consciousnesses, and then forcibly instill knowledge and magic into them. All that's left is for them to understand. I think a month is enough to replace five or six years of hard work."
Actually, Robbie was hiding something; Robbie was drawing inspiration from Titans's way of thinking.
Titans connected millions of consciousnesses, forming an incredibly powerful computing capability.
Why not select tens of thousands of the Legion soldiers, link their consciousness together, and condense them into a powerful force? The absolute obedience of the Undead and the Titans' erasure of self-consciousness have similar effects.
Arthas and Kel'Thuzad considered for a moment and agreed with Robbie's suggestion.
"I have a plan," Robbie stated, revealing his carefully considered proposal:
"My suggestion is to select 50,000 of the most talented Scourge soldiers, who must be human, and then use the magic of the Old Gods Transformation to transfer their magical knowledge to them. These 50,000 Elites must remain behind the scenes; even if faced with the imminent annihilation of the Scourge, they should evacuate Azeroth rather than show themselves."
Arthas looked puzzled and asked, "..."
"Why do this? Wouldn't it be better to let these 50,000 elite soldiers directly confront the Burning Legion?"
The Burning Legion launched a massive invasion of Azeroth, and Legion soldiers entered the world of Dalaran every day.
However, the total number did not exceed 100,000.
With 50,000 Scourge Archmages joining the battle, plus countless Scourge soldiers, the Burning Legion is doomed to defeat.
"Prince Highness," Kel'Thuzad explained from the side, "the Burning Legion invaded Azeroth because they covet our Power of the Dead. We cannot display too much strength, otherwise even if we defeat the Scourge, it will attract other ambitious individuals, and Azeroth will never have peace."
Arthas scratched his head, looking embarrassed, and said, "It seems to be my oversight."
Kel'Thuzad closed his eyes, pondered for a long time, and finally made up his mind:
"I will not participate in the plan involving 50,000 Elite soldiers."
Arthas didn't understand. "Why, Kel'Thuzad, you're the Scourge's most powerful mage?"
"That's precisely why I cannot participate." Despite his immense yearning for magic, Kel'Thuzad chose to refuse the temptation for the sake of the Scourge's future and to defeat the Burning Legion.
"My reputation is a burden. Countless eyes in Azeroth are watching me. If my strength suddenly increases, even if I want to hide it, I will inevitably reveal my weakness, and they will understand something."
Robbie had to admit that Kel'Thuzad had considered things very thoroughly.
"Now there's only one problem left," Robbie said, voicing his biggest concern. "Building 50,000 Undead Archmages will take at least a month, and the Scourge could attack at any moment. We must buy time."