Sen'jin was eager to eliminate Zalazane's forces, but by the time he realized what was happening, Plague had already spread, infecting approximately 20,000 Trolls.
This Plague is different from the one in Lordaeron. The Darkspear Tribe's Witch Doctors speculate that the Burning Legion's engineers have improved the Plague, making it spread faster. Those afflicted by the Plague will not become Undead, but will instead fall into a weakened state.
Sen'jin deeply resented Zalazane, and if it weren't for his need to consolidate his power, he would have been able to detect the Plague earlier.
At the same time, he also missed Zalazane terribly. Zalazane Mastery dark magic and had in-depth knowledge of Plagues. If he were here, he would definitely have a way to solve the problem, and might even have been able to detect the Plague at its very beginning.
Given Sen'jin's nature, he would have executed all 20,000+ Trolls infected with the Plague without hesitation.
The reminder from the Soul God changed Sen'jin's mind. He hesitated for a moment. While executing everyone could prevent the spread of the Plague, it would cause unrest among the people. Therefore, he adopted the measure of isolation.
With the situation temporarily stabilized, Thrall was at a loss when faced with the Darkspear Royal Palace's formidable defenses. He could only send a messenger to propose cooperation with the Darkspear Tribe, promising to wipe the slate clean of past grievances.
"Great Chieftain Sen'jin, the 100,000 Dragonblood Orcs were wiped out by the Darkspear Tribe. Our actions in Tidal Bay were merely an expression of our discontent. As the saying goes, hatred is a perpetual cycle, never ceasing. Let us put aside our grudges, unite, and conquer the Kalimdor together."
Having learned his lesson from the previous defeat, Sen'jin listened to Thrall's lies. This time, he followed the Priest's advice and remained inactive, waiting for the Burning Legion's furnace to extinguish. The souls of only 50,000 Darkspear Tribe could not sustain the army for long.
When the time comes, the Legion will surely withdraw from Azeroth.
Sen'jin adopted the safest delaying tactic, with over 100,000 Darkspear Tribe firmly guarding all parts of the Royal Palace. Several attacks by the orcs were easily repelled, and the Orcs suffered considerable losses instead.
As the days went by, the situation became increasingly unfavorable for the Orcs.
Desperate, Thrall even resorted to using a honey trap, deliberately presenting a beautiful Orcs woman to Sen'jin. Unfortunately for him, King Llane Sen'jin not interested in female Orcs; he simply boiled and ate the Orcs woman, and even sent Thrall a large bowl of soup.
Inside the Orcs camp, Thrall angrily cursed Sen'jin for his shamelessness and the Darkspear Tribe for their brutality.
He bit down hard on the Tauren was serving as his dinner, as if he were biting into Sen'jin's flesh, venting his anger. He then turned to Eitrigg beside him and asked, "Gul'dan successfully assassinated King Llane and destroyed Kingdom of Stormwind using Garona. Why didn't my plan work? Am I really inferior to Gul'dan?"
Eitrigg, of course, wouldn't dare say Thrall was inferior to Gul'dan, and subtly stated, "King Llane accepted Garona entirely because of Medivh; I suspect he might not actually like female orcs."
Thrall nodded, finally finding some comfort, but frowned and said, "Send Vol'jin and Rokhan to see me. To gain something, you must give something in return."
Sen'jin unexpectedly survived and returned safely to the Troll Royal Palace. Vol'jin and Rokhan had not anticipated this, and when Thrall summoned them, both of them were filled with terror.
Inside Thrall's tent, Thrall personally severed the Tauren's right arm, cutting it in two and placing the two pieces before Vol'jin and Rokhan, coldly asking, "Do you know the origins of this Tauren?"
Vol'jin, filled with trepidation, exclaimed in praise, "It must have been the Evil Tauren of Highmountain! Great Savior, you vanquished these the Destroyers to save Azeroth! I have the utmost respect for you!"
"Fool, look at the shape of his horns! He's Tauren from Mulgore, supposedly the Bastard Son of Warchief Cairne!" Thrall, in a fit of temper, shouted, pointing at the map on the wall.
"Kalimdor teeming with countless strong Tauren and Centaurs, plump quilboars, and foolish Night Elf Quilboar, waiting for us to conquer them, turn them into rations, slaves, or livestock, while I am trapped on the Echo Isles, just like you who, unable to think of a way, will serve as tomorrow's lunch. We Orcs do not raise useless people."
Rokhan, pale-faced, could only look helplessly at Vol'jin. He had successfully completed the mission of spreading the Plague, but the Plague had already been used in Lordaeron, and the Darkspear Tribe had a way to deal with it, so it was not very effective.
Faced with this blatant threat, Vol'jin gritted his teeth and whispered:
"The Kukan Family of the Darkspear Tribe has secretly sworn allegiance to me, and Sen'jin has not noticed, continuing to give them important positions. I have heard that the Kukan Family is responsible for guarding the west gate of the Royal Palace. If the Kukan Family secretly lets brave Orcs in, and they work together from the inside, the Royal Palace will surely be thrown into chaos."
Thrall's eyes lit up. "Excellent idea, let's go with it."
"But," Vol'jin said with difficulty, "After the incident with the Murloc Feralas, I lost contact with the Kukan Family. The only way is to go to the Royal Palace in person."
Upon hearing this, Thrall grabbed Vol'jin by the collar, stared directly into his eyes, and demanded fiercely, "Little Troll, are you trying to escape?"
Vol'jin was so frightened that he fell to his knees with a thud, kowtowing and begging for mercy. "Great Savior, I dare not! I sincerely serve the Orcs and fight for Azeroth!"
Thrall fell into thought. He realized that Vol'jin was his only hope, but he was also worried that Vol'jin would escape. He was caught in a dilemma. Just then, Varimathras, who had transformed into Heijin form, walked in from outside the tent and looked at Thrall with a smile.
Facing a Dreadlord, an important member of the Burning Legion, Thrall dared not be negligent and quickly invited him to take a seat. Vol'jin Rokhan looked on in surprise, not understanding why Sen'jin, an ordinary Bastard Son, was so revered.
Varimathras, seated in the main seat, patted Thrall on the shoulder and said, "My Lord Savior, let me and Vol'jin infiltrate the Royal Palace together. Don't worry, with me here, he won't escape."
Thrall readily agreed, then turned to Vol'jin and said, "If this succeeds, you will be the Warchief of the Darkspear Tribe. We Orcs always value honor, and we never go back on our word."
Vol'jin ignored Thrall's words, but having no other choice, he could only nod in agreement.
Varimathras meticulously disguised Vol'jin, and the two pretended to be Troll fishermen who had come seeking refuge after their homeland was slaughtered by the Orcs. With the war raging and manpower in short supply, the two successfully infiltrated the Troll Royal Palace.
Inside the Troll Royal Palace's military camp, Varimathras whispered to Vol'jin, "The situation has changed; it's different now. The Kukan Family might not trust you. We have no choice but to take a risky approach."
Previously, Vol'jin impersonated the Zandalar God-King's illegitimate Bastard Son and successfully gained the allegiance of the Kukan Family.
With the Orcs threat looming, Thrall devised a treacherous plan to slaughter 50,000 Darkspear Tribe in Tidal Bay. The Darkspear Tribe, united in their hatred of the enemy, including the Kukan Family, found it hard to believe Vol'jin's lies.
"What should we do?" Vol'jin knew perfectly well that the chances of persuading the Kukan Family were slim.
He originally intended to escape, but Thrall's respect for this "Heijin" made Vol'jin lose hope.
"Heh heh!" Varimathras chuckled sinisterly, "The only way is to use Sen'jin. I know his character; he'll stop at nothing for power, which is perfect for us."