Faith Rising and the Wild Demigods

Speaking of the Night Elves, Hu Feng had already exerted his influence and interference upon them at the very dawn of their origins.

This consequently led to the emergence of two opposing religious beliefs within Night Elf society, a fact extensively documented in any library across their cities.

Turning back the clock to the primitive era when the Night Elves had just established villages around the Well of Eternity.

Hu Feng had finally discovered a race that matched his aesthetic sensibilities. After countless years of solitary monologue, he could finally have a proper conversation—that suffocating state of extreme frustration was about to end.

Thus, divine miracles appeared for the first time before these native creatures.

That day, the weather was fair and the breeze gentle. Ripples stirred across the surface of the Well of Eternity as numerous Night Elf mages gathered by its shores as usual, seated in their respective positions, sensing and drawing upon the Well's boundless magical power.

Then, an anomaly struck. The clear sky instantly turned pitch-black, thunder rumbled heavily, thick storm clouds churned violently in the high heavens, and the waters of the Well of Eternity began to surge turbulently.

A golden pillar of energy pierced through the clouds, shooting straight into the Well of Eternity. After a moment, the divine power, having successfully transmitted some subconscious messages, coalesced once more, forming a giant energy eye in the air above the lake. Its sharp gaze swept over the Night Elves by the shore, who were already frozen in stone. These elven mages felt the boundless might within that eye.

The deity issued its first divine decree.

The god told the Night Elves that his name was Sarodar, the Eternal God of Magic, the Supreme Titan of the Pantheon. All Night Elves who drew power from the Well of Eternity must worship him, or divine punishment would descend, and the Well's magic would be sealed off from them.

At the same time, to drive the point home, Hu Feng manipulated his divine power to collectively sever the mental energies of all the elven mages by the lake, while temporarily blocking the magical fluctuations radiating from the Well of Eternity.

This move terrified the Night Elves out of their wits.

They had lived around the Well of Eternity for centuries; the sacred well had become an indispensable part of their society and the very source of their formidable strength.

Now the God of Magic had descended, demanding what was his—this was utterly unacceptable!

Coupled with the elven mages' reverence for supreme power, they immediately knelt en masse, begging the deity to restore their ability to draw upon its might, vowing to serve the God of Magic eternally.

Thus, the first believers were born, and these elven mages became the ancestral origin of the Highborne.

The Eye of Truth—that was what the elven mages called their sect. They embroidered a sharp-eyed golden eye on the surface of their robes, with radiant energy rays emanating from around the eye, symbolizing the omnipresent might of the God of Magic.

All elven mages who wished to reach higher levels had to become believers of the Eye of Truth, thereby gaining the right to draw energy closer to the Well of Eternity.

A small number of Chosen Ones favored by the deity were fortunate enough to communicate directly with the god (always a one-sided contact when Boss Hu was bored and wanted to talk), and were granted a thread of golden divine power. These Chosen Ones, thus empowered, could absorb and accumulate arcane energy more efficiently, and could also use this divine power for defense and attack—a reliable life-saving trump card.

The Highborne craved power and were utterly obsessed with the might of their devoutly worshipped god.

They immensely enjoyed the sensation of wielding that divine power, even if only for a fleeting moment, it brought them extreme satisfaction, followed by even more devout worship, hoping the god would choose them again and bestow new divine power.

Hu Feng successfully monopolized the faith and loyalty of the Highborne, but he also noticed another sect rapidly rising.

The Temple of the Moon, the Priestesses of the Moon.

The Priestesses of the Moon were exclusively female Night Elves. They worshipped and served the moon goddess Elune, drawing their unique power from Azeroth's two moons.

Hu Feng did not interfere or suppress this, for he had discovered a secret within it: this moon goddess Elune was likely Azeroth herself.

Although Azeroth had not awakened a conscious will, she was still a Titan, and since this was her own planetary egg, she possessed an innate instinctive reaction.

In response to the devout prayers of the Priestesses of the Moon, the power Azeroth radiated was projected through the two moons, ultimately bestowed upon the most faithful believers. Thus, the title of Moon Goddess came to be, and Elune was the honorific given by the Priestesses of the Moon.

The Priestesses of the Moon were gentle and immensely kind by nature. Unlike the haughty Highborne, who set themselves apart from the common Night Elves, they established their temples among the people, using the soft moonlight to heal any Night Elf in need.

Moreover, their combat prowess was not to be underestimated. The most devout among the Priestesses of the Moon mastered a fearsome spell called Starfall, using Moonlight Energy to inflict large-scale area damage.

Queen Azshara had repeatedly tried to recruit them into her royal guard, but was always refused. The priestesses preferred to live among the common folk, bringing gentle solace and healing to ordinary people.

"Noble, but foolish."

That was the Highborne's assessment of the Priestesses of the Moon, clearly highlighting the vast difference between the two faith groups.

Oh, Hu Feng also noticed a newly emerging minor sect: the Druids.

The Druidic sect upheld the principles of preserving and nurturing nature—they were essentially a group of environmental conservationists.

Their founding grandmaster was the Forest Demigod Cenarius. This demigod taught his disciples how to borrow the power of the wild.

Oh, the Wild Demigods—their numbers were not many, around a dozen or so. They were the first native beings on Planet Azeroth, Azeroth's favored children.

Each Wild Demigod had their own area of expertise and mastery, blessed by Azeroth to effectively grasp a certain aspect of the planet's primal power.

The Forest Demigod Cenarius was a direct creation coalesced by Azeroth in her unconscious state.

His prototype was another, more ancient demigod: the Moon of White Deer Malorne.

This enormous, elegant white stag ran across Azeroth's lands day after day, his entire body composed of pure moonlight. He too was a direct creation of Azeroth's subconscious, symbolizing a certain beauty of the world and reflecting Azeroth's own nature and preferences.

Cenarius was modeled after the Moon of White Deer. This Forest Demigod had the body of a stag, a humanoid upper torso, and a pair of long, curved antlers growing from his forehead.

He was endowed with the ability to commune with nature, merging with the forest to become the Forest Demigod.

Alongside him were the hot-tempered Boar Demigod Agamaggan and his derivative race, the Worgen.

The Bear Demigod brothers, Ursol and Urson. Ursol was a powerful natural Shaman, while Urson was an immensely strong warrior. These two great bears were hearty by nature and rarely appeared in the mortal world; their derivative race was the Bearman.

The Mother of Flight, Aviana, the Bird Demigod. She lived on the highest peak of Azeroth's tallest mountain, in the branches of the largest tree: the Mother Tree G'hanir. Her nature was benevolent and merciful.

The Wolf God Goldrinn, the Wolf Demigod. This snow-white great wolf loved to roam the wilderness alone, howling at the moon.

The Turtle Demigod Tortolla. This giant turtle lived in the Endless Sea of Azeroth, leading his kind in a life detached from worldly strife.

These demigods were collectively called the Wild Demigods, all favored chosen ones of Azeroth.

Now, the Forest Demigod Cenarius had entered the mortal world, settling in the forest closest to the Night Elf cities, seeking out promising Druid apprentices to teach diligently, preparing them to become guardians of nature.

As for this gentle-hearted sect, Hu Feng did not disturb or interfere with it either. After all, the Druids were much like the Priestesses of the Moon, adhering to harmless and non-extreme doctrines.

And Cenarius soon got his wish, discovering two Night Elves of immense potential—and they were twin brothers.

Malfurion Stormrage and Illidan Stormrage.

The potential of these two young elves was no less than that of the genius priestess apprentice named Tyrande Whisperwind, who had just been recruited by the Temple of the Moon. Word had it the three of them even knew each other, having grown up together.

This was a fine opportunity to open communication with the Temple of the Moon.

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