Pandaria Continent, Vale of Eternal Blossoms.
A grand celebration was underway in the open plaza directly before Mogu Gate, so vast that it stretched all the way to Gilded Pavilion in the heart of the region.
The war against the Mantid had officially ended. After the Titan blasted the amber tree of Heart of Fear into a massive crater, the Mantid completely lost the will to continue resisting. All surviving Mantid from the Empress's faction gradually surrendered to the Alliance and the Horde—primarily to the Horde's Karakal Council.
The Mantid Imperial Court had fallen, and the war was over, but the power vacuum left behind by the Empress's faction immediately became the spark that set every faction scrambling for territory.
The Horde naturally took the largest share. With the Karakal Council's assistance and support, the entire central region of Terrace of Endless Spring had now fallen under Horde rule. The Alliance and the Lei Shen Dynasty were hastily fighting over the remaining unclaimed lands, hoping to secure greater gains before the Mantid regime recovered.
Of course, like the Horde, the Alliance's main legions had already withdrawn to the Vale of Eternal Blossoms to attend the celebratory feast prepared for them by the Shaohao Dynasty.
Amidst joy and revelry, soldiers of the Alliance and Horde raised their cups in celebration. The Horde warriors had no idea what their beloved Warchief was doing at that very moment.
Halfway through the feast, a violent earthquake accompanied by a thunderous roar interrupted the celebration.
In the central Vale of Eternal Blossoms, near the small lake outside Mogu'shan Palace, a column of black sha energy shot into the sky and lingered there.
Pitch-black sha energy spread in every direction. If left unchecked, more than half of the Vale of Eternal Blossoms would soon become as