Conditions and Suppression

"Oww!"

Neltharion let out a pained roar as his massive body was struck by a beam of Void energy, sending him tumbling backward like a deflated ball. A golden hand formed from divine power then grabbed the dragon, yanking him back and slamming him hard into the ground with a thunderous boom, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The seven or eight Faceless Ones accompanying him immediately surrounded the Black Dragon Aspect, unleashing wave after wave of mental weakening spells. As they assaulted his mental defenses, they also followed the trail of mad whispers within the dragon's mind to trace the source.

The Highborne mages, meanwhile, were ordered to charge into the Black Dragon's lair, looting his treasure hoard and the group of goblin captives. These were all talents in forging—it would be a waste to let them go.

"Damn elves, you'll pay for this! You'll regret everything you've done! You—"

"Shut up, you mad dragon. I only planned to use you to track the energy traces of the Old Gods. If you keep blathering on, I think your corpse would serve the same purpose."

Boss Hu snapped his fingers impatiently, and Neltharion immediately felt his massive jaws sealed tight, unable to utter a single word. Then he was yanked by energy and smashed into the ground again.

Old Gods? What do the Old Gods have to do with me? Are you insane?

Wait...

Gradually calming down, Neltharion began to regain some of the dignity and reason he once held as the Earth-Warder, the Dragon Aspect.

After this strange and overwhelmingly powerful mage appeared, the ceaseless mad whispers in his mind had fallen completely silent!

A dragon's nose... ahem, a dragon's senses were incredibly sharp, and as a Dragon Aspect, his perception was off the charts—like a police dog on steroids.

This strange mage seemed to carry... the aura of a Titan creator?

Neltharion wasn't sure. He rubbed against the ground and shook his enormous dragon head vigorously.

"Heh... Back then, my kin granted you power, elevated you, made you so-called Dragon Aspects. Looking at it now... that wasn't the wisest decision, was it? Look at yourself, slowly corrupted by the Old Gods, sinking into endless madness. How pathetic." Hu Feng sneered, staring straight into Neltharion's massive dragon head.

The latter was dumbfounded for a long moment...

What? A real Titan? Are you kidding? Playing games?

When did the Titans come back?

Just then, a Faceless One moved to Hu Feng's side and relayed the final clues from its investigation to its master.

Three Old Gods had been involved in the corruption. The main corrupter, N'Zoth, was too cunning—he sensed trouble and retreated far too quickly, so they couldn't track his exact location. They only knew he was in a deep-sea trench in the Endless Sea.

The locations of the other two had been found. One was C'Thun, the Millennium Eye Demon, in the southwestern region of the continent at An'qiraj, where the Aqir were sealed and imprisoned.

The other was Yogg-Saron, the Beast of a Thousand Throats, in the northern continent of Northrend, inside Ulduar, the eternal prison the Titans had created for him.

Neither was close, but Hu Feng wasn't in a hurry. After sensing something was wrong, the two Old Gods had gone into hiding and slumber, trying to conceal their existence. Since they couldn't move once rooted and parasitic on a planet, he wasn't worried about them sprouting legs and running off. He'd deal with them when he had time.

But why had the Old Gods corrupted Neltharion?

Strictly speaking, the Old Gods and the Burning Legion were mortal enemies. Their masters, the Void Lords, and the Dark Titan Sargeras were locked in a life-or-death struggle. So what were they doing here, causing trouble and stirring things up? If the demons succeeded in conquering the World of Azeroth, the Old Gods wouldn't gain anything either.

With the information he wanted, Hu Feng set aside his thoughts and turned to look at Neltharion, who was still shaking his head, trying to clear his mind.

"As for you, little dragon, how should I deal with you... If you hadn't run into me today, you'd probably have fallen completely into madness before long. In your current state of mind, I'd say just give up treatment, go home, and wait to die."

Neltharion immediately lifted his head desperately.

"I... the mad whispers of the Old Gods erode my will constantly. I can feel my sanity shattering... I can't bear it much longer... Please help me, supreme creator! We are the Pantheon's first chosen in Azeroth, the executors of your and your great kin's will!"

"Shut up, let me think." Boss Hu frowned and spoke softly. The latter immediately fell silent like an obedient child, waiting for the Titan lord before him to ponder.

"Hmm... the corruption on you is too deep to purify or remove. There's only one way now. I can guide and suppress the Void corruption within you, stabilizing your mind in its current state—at least so you won't easily fall into madness and lose reason. But the existing corruption will still affect your thoughts, so say goodbye to your past rationality. You'll never return to being the rational Earth-Warder you once were."

"Yes, yes! I'm willing! As long as I can break free from the Old Gods' control, do it!" Neltharion immediately nodded his massive dragon head.

"I'm saying I can do it, but who says I have to? Before that, I think we need to discuss terms." Boss Hu wagged his finger, wearing a bargaining expression.

The Black Dragon King was stunned again for a moment.

Was this the supremely orderly and just Titan? He felt more like a thug taking advantage of the situation!

"The price you'll pay... is that when I summon you, you appear before me immediately. Maybe I'll still have use for you, this sometimes-mad, sometimes-sane little dragon... As for other times, do whatever you want. Don't bother me, and don't cause trouble on my territory."

Neltharion fell into brief contemplation after hearing this. He didn't really have any other choice, did he... This Titan had him cornered.

Better to be slowly corrupted by the Old Gods into a mindless madman, or to continue serving the Titan creator, while maintaining a limited degree of autonomy and a limited degree of madness? It couldn't be completely eradicated, but this was the best option.

Just then, a commotion came from behind Hu Feng. He turned to see Rhonin and his two treasure-hunting companions returning, looking frantic.

"Divine Lord... huff... it's... it's bad! The Dragon Soul was snatched midway by Illidan and the Burning Legion demons. Huh? Deathwing, he... uh..."

Hu Feng took in their utterly disheveled appearance and knew they'd barely escaped with their lives.

"Send the order. Immediately spread out and hunt down Illidan and his demon forces... They're clever enough to know you'd run back to me, so they didn't dare chase you... But that's also the problem. They're probably fleeing to Eldorei as fast as they can. Still, search for them, but don't get your hopes up."

With that, Hu Feng frowned.

"But I'm more curious about what you just called him. Deathwing?" He shifted his gaze to Neltharion, still lying on the ground.

Rhonin was also in shock, muttering to himself.

"The restriction is lifted? I couldn't say it before... Deathwing, Neltharion, the Wing! The Wing!"

Hu Feng shook his head, roughly understanding what had happened.

"Alright, I think I've changed another destined existence... Rhonin, same as before, I expect you to keep this secret. After all, you're a witness to this new history... And you, elven Druid Malfurion, Orc warrior Brox, if you can cooperate too, then we'll meet again in the future."

"Uh... okay, no problem... Wait! What about the Dragon Soul?"

"If we can't catch Illidan, then we'll just have to snatch it back during the final battle, won't we?"

Hu Feng shrugged, turned around, and began suppressing the Void corruption on Neltharion, who was still sprawled on the ground.

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