The Orcs' Visit

It was already three or four in the morning when they left the treasure vault. The Ancient Gold Dragon and the Dwarf king returned to the palace together. They chatted casually along the way, and in a tacit understanding, neither of them mentioned the crucial agreement.

Inside the palace, the young Golden Dragon Aurora had been waiting for a long time. The Dwarf had a high tolerance for alcohol, also got up from the ground in twos and threes, but their minds were still a little dazed.

Then, amidst the Dwarf' reluctant farewell, their rough songs, and their enthusiastic cheers, the two Golden Dragon suddenly flapped their wings, soared into the sky, and flew towards the heavens.

On the spacious terrace atop the palace, the Dwarf king raised his head and gazed for a long time at the golden figure in the distance, his expression gradually becoming solemn.

As dawn Dawn, the first light of day outlined the golden edges of Blackstone Mountain and shrouded the Golden Dragon's body in a hazy glow, as if it had merged into the sky.

Upon witnessing this scene, the Dwarf who came to see them off became even more excited and overjoyed, shouting enthusiastically, "Dawn Wing!" and "Dawn Dragon!" one after another, for a long time.

"Your Majesty, what are you worried about?" A familiar voice came as the Dwarf minister Bjorn, leaning on his cane, walked unsteadily onto the terrace and stood behind Ed.

After the Blackstone Mountain Battle, the Dwarf, who was over three hundred years old, seemed to have aged considerably. His face was covered with wrinkles, his body became increasingly hunched, and he could no longer walk properly.

Ed could see that this old minister also didn't have much time left; the Furnace Fire within him, like his own, had reached its limit.

Gazing at the sky where the Golden Dragon had vanished, the Dwarf king sighed softly, "Can we really trust an ally we've only known for a few months? Even if he is a righteous and benevolent Golden Dragon."

"Your Majesty, this is a last resort. We have no other choice. After careful consideration, Lord Titus."

Bjorn responded in a low, hoarse voice, and as he spoke, the wrinkles on his face deepened, resembling the cracked rocks of Blackstone Mountain.

Ed unfastened the warhammer from his waist, gripped it tightly in his hand, stared at the Dwarf script carved on it, then shook his head and smiled bitterly, "Bjorn, I don't know if this decision was right."

But it felt terrible to entrust the future of the Shield Dwarves to someone else.

Bjorn struggled to lift his head and said reassuringly, "Your Majesty, we have achieved our goal. With such a renowned Ancient Gold Dragon protecting us, those children will not have a bad life."

Although it sounds frustrating, doing this gives the Shield Dwarves at least hope for the future, especially since our days are numbered."

Hearing Bjorn's words, Ed chuckled self-deprecatingly, gripping the hammer handle in his hand even tighter, as if trying to embed it into his flesh. "You're right, we're all about to die, why think so much? As for the future of our Shield Dwarves, let's leave it to those children who will grow up under the protection of the Golden Dragon Wings."

By now, the sun had fully risen, and its rays shone on the terrace of the Avendell Dan Palace, and also on the rugged faces of the two Dwarf.

In the central part of the North Aisel Plains, in a spacious cave—the temporary palace of the Embers of the Burned Emperor — the Red Dragon lay lazily on the ground, greedily absorbing the Sun God Power within its body, exhaling a puff of scorching white smoke with Mars.

Just then, he slowly got up from the ground, poked his huge head out of the cave, and looked west with a sense of unease—the direction of the High Mountain Kingdom.

"Eye of Gruumsh"

Keosius grinned, revealing a ferocious smile, with wisps of smoke billowing from between his teeth.

Participating in the Blackstone Mountain Battle was merely a side hustle for him; he wanted to use it to increase the visibility of the "Titus" persona and secure a place for himself in the camp of goodness and justice.

But this time, he discovered something extraordinary— the Eye of Gruumsh, a surprise even Keosius himself hadn't anticipated.

You must know that it was part of the body of a Greater God!

Even though the orc race is currently in decline and Gruumsh is about to fall to the level of a mid-level god, the value of this artifact is still immeasurable. The complete "Eye of Gruumsh" is even more valuable than the "Heart of Kareks" in Keosius's possession.

Moreover, as one of the symbols of "One-Eyed God" Gruumsh's, the fallen eye may have already condensed and generated divinity in the fields of chaos, evil, power, and war, which is also compatible with him. If he were to devour all of these, the Red Dragon might leap to become a true demigod. However, the will remaining in Eye of Gruumsh might cause him some trouble.

"Divinity."

Thinking of this, Keosius's pale golden vertical pupils were filled with greed, flashing with a faint fire, and hot, magma-like saliva was about to flow from the corner of his mouth.

Suddenly, the communicator in the cave rang. After Keosius agreed, a Magic Image appeared in front of him—an ugly face, exposed fangs, and cheeks covered in scales. It was none other than the Dragon Vein Ogre, Lang Pu.

As the richest plain in Northern Thrace, the North Aisel region covers an area of 700,000 square kilometers, which is equivalent to one-fifth of the area of the Embers of the Burned Empire.

Consolidating such a large conquered territory is a rather troublesome task, even for the Embers of the Burned Empire at its current state.

The resistance in North Aisel is far more stubborn than in the the North, and the resistance fighters are also much stronger, including many extraordinary beings.

The customs, lifestyles, and social culture of the Aisel people are vastly different from those of the Anzeta people, who live in a remote corner of the world, making friction and conflict almost inevitable.

Therefore, as the Prime Minister of the Embers of the Burned Empire, Lang Pu has been extremely busy lately, having already assigned a total of six simulacra to handle affairs, more threads than his master.

Moreover, unlike Embers of the Burned Emperor Keosius, who spent his days sleeping in his cave, eating and drinking and being a hands-off manager, Lang Pu diligently fulfilled his duties as Imperial Prime Minister, working day and night without ever closing his eyes, fully embodying the special work system of the Empire's "007".

If you get sleepy, drink a bottle of high-grade energy potion to fully recover. If you get hungry, eat a bucket of tasteless instant organic sauce to satisfy your needs for the next few days.

As a mage with extraordinary intelligence, this Ogre has changed its gluttonous nature and become a complete workaholic.

"Good day, my esteemed master." In the Magic Image, Lang Pu first bowed and then began to report immediately, not wasting even a second.

"A caravan of orcs has arrived from Dragon Head City. They claim to be envoys from the Red Blood Tribe, from the Ugo Great Prairie in the northeast, and wish to pay homage to you."

"Oh?"

Keosius immediately showed an interested expression, shook his head, and exclaimed, "Tsk tsk, it really is true that you can summon a demon and it appears. I didn't expect the orcs to come too."

The Red Dragon looked at the Ogre and casually asked, "Lang Pu, what do you think?"

Lang Pu quickly bowed his head and replied, "Master, according to our intelligence, the Red Blood Tribe gathered nearly 200,000 troops several months ago and launched an invasion against the High Mountain Dwarf Kingdom. The forces of the Golden Dragon and the Elf are also involved."

The Red Blood Tribe suffered heavy losses and fled north in panic. Their chieftain, who was said to be favored by the Orc God, also died in that battle. Their visit to the Embers of the Burned Empire is clearly intended to form an alliance with us and seek revenge against the High Mountain Dwarf Kingdom. Blackstone Mountain is rich in resources and has numerous mineral veins. It is a gathering place for Dwarf artisans and is indeed the Empire's next target for conquest.

However, the Empire now possesses sufficient strength to conquer the High Mountain Kingdom on its own, and those defeated Greenskins are simply not qualified to ally with us. Furthermore, allying with a force like the Red Blood Tribe, which leans towards the Chaotic Evil alignment, would violate the Empire's principles.

Lang Pu made no attempt to hide his contempt and disdain for the Red Blood Tribe. He had clearly prepared his remarks in advance, and once he started speaking, he went on and on.

The Red Dragon nodded slightly, seemingly quite satisfied with the answer.

Keosius's idea was similar to Lang Pu's: the Embers of the Burned Empire was fully capable of conquering the High Mountain Kingdom and monopolizing Blackstone Mountain on its own, and there was no need to let the Red Blood Tribe get involved.

Like their Father God, those Green-skinned Orcs were a bunch of bloodthirsty madmen.

Keosius didn't want a Greater God deity to enter his territory—what if the deity discovered he had stolen His eyes? Besides, the Embers of the Burned Empire had the ancient dragon Titus, a "loyal ally" of the Dwarf, as an inside agent who knew everything about the High Mountain Kingdom, so there was no need to worry about being thwarted.

Observing the situation, Lang Pu said based on Keosius's reaction, "Master, in that case, should we drive those orcs out of North Aisel —or should we wipe them all out?"

Keosius shook his head and smiled again, "No need. While I'm not interested in cooperating with orcs, I am somewhat interested in them as individuals."

"Yes, Master, I will immediately send someone to bring them to you."

Lang Pu remained calm and did not ask why; he simply carried out the order without hesitation. After all, he himself was a ruthless person who would experiment on Vampire and human mages at will.

In North Aisel, within Dragon Head City, a group of orcs clad in Worg pelts sat in chairs, nervously watching the Yuan-ti woman communicating. They seemed completely out of place with their surroundings.

Upon seeing the Yuan-ti turn around, the leading orc jumped up from his chair and asked eagerly, "Has His Majesty granted us an audience?"

"Yes, please follow me," the Yuan-ti replied expressionlessly.

"Great! Great! We can finally avenge Lord Batu!" The orc's rugged face was filled with excitement, and his tall, strong body was trembling.

His name was Nur Redmane, named after the giant beast with a red mane that he hunted. Nur was a famous warrior in the Red Blood Tribe and a confidant of the deceased chieftain Batu.

This time, Nur, under the orders of the interim chieftain Soro, led the tribe's most valiant warriors to North Aisel in order to form an alliance with the rising Embers of the Burned Empire and take revenge on the High Mountain Dwarf Kingdom.

Whenever Nur recalls that day, and the shameless Dwarf, Elf, and Golden Dragon who besieged the chieftain, an uncontrollable rage and murderous intent rise in his heart.

Those shameless scoundrels who call themselves righteous dare to attack a great warrior like this!

From that day on, Nur made up his mind that one day he would avenge Lord Batu. He would massacre Avendell Dan and personally cut off the head of the Dwarf king.

But reality is always different from imagination. After the Blackstone Mountain Battle, the Dwarf ram riders, the Elf unicorn riders, and that wretched Golden Dragon carried out a brutal sweep of the orcs.

Countless orcs died on the fertile plains north of Blackstone Mountain. Orc tribes scattered and fled, and the Red Blood Tribe, which Batu had spent his life building, also fell apart, leaving only a few major tribes.

Until a few days ago, Chief Soro claimed that he had also received the favor of Gruumsh and gained great power, which allowed him to barely integrate the remaining tribes. Although they were far from what they used to be, they were still a force to be reckoned with.

Then, the orcs received news of the Embers of the Burned Empire's blitzkrieg against North Aisel, and were shocked by it. Forming an alliance with the Embers of the Burned Empire became a common desire among the orcs.

Thinking of this, Nur clenched his fists, his expression filled with excitement. "I will succeed, for Lord Batu, and for the brothers and sisters who bravely died in battle."

The Embers of the Burned Empire was busy maintaining social stability and had not yet established a complete and extensive railway system in North Aisel. The person in charge of welcoming the orcs was an imperial mage who was proficient in teleportation magic.

"When paying homage to His Majesty the Emperor, one must observe proper etiquette; kneeling is the most basic requirement."

"Hehe, of course, no one would dare to disrespect His Majesty. What you should be more careful about is not being frightened unconscious by His Majesty's imposing presence."

As the mage gave instructions, he waved his staff, constructing a magical model of the teleportation portal.

Nur pondered to himself, feeling quite puzzled and even a bit humiliated.

Although he couldn't compare to a hero like Batu, he was still a renowned warrior in the tribe, having even faced the ancient Ancient Gold Dragon and shot two arrows into its wings.

Was that emperor really that powerful? To the point that even he would tremble in fear and faint?

The orcs did not receive any footage of the Red Dragon Emperor's battle; they only received news that North Aisel had been occupied by the Embers of the Burned Empire —they did not know what the name "Keosius" meant.

"Whoosh—"

Space distorted, and a rather narrow portal opened in front of them. The mage said somewhat impatiently, "Alright, hurry up and go in."

"Good."

The moment Nur stepped into the portal, his hair stood on end and he trembled all over.

"This, this is..."

The orc felt an incredibly terrifying pressure descend upon him, like a mountain pressing down on his back, making it hard for him to breathe.

The surrounding air was so hot, like a purgatory, that the sweat on his forehead evaporated instantly, turning into wisps of water vapor.

His heart pounded violently in his chest as the orc struggled to lift his head and gaze at the enormous cave in the distance.

"By the Father God Gruumsh"

At this moment, Nur finally understood the mage's words and realized that the other party was absolutely not exaggerating in the slightest.