Frost King Malakk was startled; what seemed like a small request could very well come at a terrible price he could not bear.
Unfortunately, the Zul'Drak Empire had no way out. Frost King Malakk had made up his mind that he would agree to anything as long as it did not threaten his throne.
"The great Savior Thrall devoted himself to the cause of Azeroth, and we should do our best to meet Savior requests," said Frost King Malakk politely.
Vol'jin looked pained and sighed:
"Our Savior Thrall toils daily to save Azeroth, often venturing into dangerous lands, and has been without protection. If the Zul'Drak Empire is willing to offer one of its Loa to Savior as one of the Thrall Loa of Kings, the Zul'Drak Empire will gain the Horde's friendship and become a member of the Horde."
Frost King Malakk tilted his head slightly, looking puzzled. Thrall's need for a Loa was far beyond his expectations.
The Loa are exclusive to the Troll; there is no precedent for any other race to receive the protection of Loa. Frost King Malakk pondered for a moment, "I wonder if the Loa would agree."
Vol'jin said very sincerely:
"Rest assured, the Horde comes here in peace and will never force anyone. If a certain Loa becomes Thrall's Loa, he will gain the faith of the entire Horde. He will be the Loa of Kings of the Orcs, the Loa of Thrall the Savior, the Loa of the Horde."
Frost King Malakk hesitated. Although Marak didn't know as much as the Priest about the mysteries of the Loa, he did have some vague knowledge of them.
For example, the more followers Loa, the faster its power grows; the Loa's open and covert struggles are mostly for the sake of winning followers.
The loss of one Loa in the Zul'Drak Empire is merely the loss of one tribe, a price that is acceptable compared to the peace of the entire Zul'Drak Empire and the protection of the Horde.
Moreover, if those ambitious Loa knew about this, they would probably vie to become the Loa of Kings Thrall's Saviors, and Frost King Malakk wouldn't be able to stop them.
After pondering for a while, Frost King Malakk said, "I will discuss this matter with the Priests."
Vol'jin reiterated:
"Frost King Malakk reiterates that the Horde has absolutely no intention of forcing anyone; everything is based on the principle of voluntariness. Even if this matter does not come to fruition, the Zul'Drak Empire is welcome to join the Horde."
Vol'jin's sincere attitude did not make Frost King Malakk lower his guard, but he couldn't figure out what Vol'jin's intentions were, so he agreed.
Frost King Malakk convened a meeting and conveyed Vol'jin's proposal to the Priests and Loa of the Zul'Drak Empire, instantly causing a great uproar.
All the Loa declared that they would absolutely not offer shelter to the Orcs.
The Priests also stated that the Loa would only protect the Trolls.
Seeing the Loa's resolute attitude, Frost King Malakk felt relieved and even felt apologetic towards Vol'jin, unsure how to explain.
Frost King Malakk could not have foreseen was that such a simple suggestion would create a huge rift between the Loa and the Priests.
The Loa and Priests shared both glory and hardship; the Priests served the Loa, and the Loa helped the Priests obtain a luxurious life.
However, if the Loa sided with the Horde and became Thrall's Loa of Kings, they would inevitably choose Orcs as their Priests, and the abandoned Troll Priests would lose everything.
What the Priests found even more unbearable was that if a tribe lost the protection of the Loa, it would soon be swallowed up by other tribes, becoming slaves or even food.
The meeting had just ended when Vol'jin, inside the inn, received a message from the Loa.
The Wind Serpent god Quetz'lun was the first to contact Vol'jin. A blood-red phantom of Wind Serpent appeared before Vol'jin, looking at him Pride and uttering a clear, crisp sound:
"After the fall of Prophet Saronite, I, Quetz'lun, am the strongest Loa in Zul'Drak. I'm curious to know what kind of treatment Thrall, the Savior, will provide for me."
Vol'jin was smug; his plan was half successful. He blurted out something unfounded:
"Honorable Wind Serpent God Quetz'lun, Savior Thrall promises to build a golden Altar in the heart of Orgrimmar, and to proclaim your name among all Horde members. You may choose any Horde within the Horde to build your lair, the area around which will become a forbidden zone to prevent disturbance to your rest. Offerings will be made every three months, and your food will be the finest Tauren meat and Pandaren meat. Your wishes will be unconditionally fulfilled. You need not fight for the Horde, but simply provide Thrall with protection, shielding him from the harm of treacherous individuals."
"Is this all the treatment you get?" Quetz'lun seemed somewhat dissatisfied.
Vol'jin feigned surprise, knowing full well the answer, and asked, "Your Excellency, the Wind Serpent God Quetz'lun, we will certainly grant your request unconditionally."
Quetz'lun spoke in a sharp voice, "First, I must have the right to choose Priests, and the power of life and death over them."
"Of course," Vol'jin readily agreed.
Quetz'lun cautiously stated, "I will guide the souls of all the fallen members of the Horde into the realm of the dead, where they may find eternal rest."
Vol'jin realized his judgment was correct; the Loa were most concerned with the number of souls, which was the fundamental reason why they could not refuse.
"It's an honor for the Horde," Vol'jin said, pretending not to know anything.
"Very well, Vol'jin, I need to think this over carefully before making a decision. You will get my reply soon." With that, Quetz'lun disappeared.
After this, Rhunok, the god of Juxiong, Mam'toth, the god of mammoths, Snow Leopard God Loa Har'koa, and Akali, the god of rhinoceroses, visited Vol'jin one after another, and most of them expressed their willingness to become Loa of Kings Thrall's kings.
Vol'jin answered all the questions and secretly leaked the information to the Priests of the Loa.
The three Priests of Quetz'lun, God of Wind Serpent, gathered together, warming themselves by the fire and discussing a bleak future.
High Priest Mufunu was crestfallen.
"We're finished. I've received word that Quetz'lun has contacted Vol'jin. She's the strongest Loa in Zul'Drak and the most likely to be chosen by Thrall."
High Priest Tua'tua's face was filled with sorrow:
"What else can we do? We can only pray to Quetz'lun to spare our lives. Power, wealth, and beautiful women will all be taken from us; we will only be left to eke out a living in this world."
High Priest Havni roared from the side:
"What will happen to our people? In the snowy mountains, we lost most of our people. We barely survived the ordeal, are we just going to become food for other tribes?"
High Priest Mufunu said with a somber expression, "How can mortals oppose the Loa? Perhaps this is our Destiny, the Destiny of our race."
A knock came at the door, and the visitor was none other than Warlord Zol'Maz. He immediately went to the brazier, stretched out his limbs to warm himself, and said mysteriously, "The Loa are hypocritical; they've been secretly in contact with Vol'jin. I think you all know that, don't you?"
High Priest Tua'tua snorted coldly:
"Zormaz, have you come to tempt us to convert to an evil god? Hmph, even your evil god cannot break our vows to the Loa."
Zolmaz shook his head, and said meaningfully:
Do you still remember Chief Priest Novos?