Had Xavius actually died?
Everyone except Shawn was deeply concerned about this, because they did not know the answer.
Shandris shook her head. "I'm not sure. I once heard Lady Tyrande mention that Xavius was very difficult to kill. Lord Malfurion would often check on him to see whether the oak had completely consumed him and whether he was truly dead. Later, the Well of Eternity exploded, and the entire world changed. That oak sank to the bottom of the sea with Xavius, and its whereabouts became unknown."
Shawn deliberately paused as though thinking, then asked, "As far as I know, Satyrs are very skilled at mental magic. Is it possible that Xavius wasn't killed, but was instead ensnared by the Old Gods? I've heard that the Old Gods are sealed underground, and the depths of the ocean are undoubtedly closer to what lies beneath the earth."
Shandris shook her head. "I don't know about that. Perhaps. It's possible."
Shawn continued to speculate. "Aunt Shandris, you said Lord Malfurion used magic to make an oak grow inside Xavius. As far as I know, all plants have some connection to the Emerald Dream. The stronger a plant's vitality, the stronger that connection becomes. An Elven Great Tree can even open a passage into the Emerald Dream. If that oak could consume Xavius, it must have been very powerful, right? Then could that oak also connect to the Emerald Dream?"
Everyone drew a sharp breath at Shawn's words.
If Xavius really had been corrupted, if the Emerald Nightmare really originated from him, and if that oak really could connect to the Emerald Dream, then everything could be explained.
Xavius had used the oak's power to send the Emerald Nightmare into the Emerald Dream, silently corrupting it. He was the world's first Satyr,