What people called Berserker power was a force that came from the body, corresponding to the magic of the void spirit. It came from extreme emotions. Bloodlust, irritability, anger, excitement—these could all trigger a heightened physical state, which humans and High Elves called rage.
Tian Sang had made little progress studying magic, so he began researching Berserker power instead. He had taken some Berserker potions, but the doses hadn't been enough to turn him into a Berserker Hunter.
Trolls who became Berserker Hunters were all seasoned, strong hunters. They had enough reason and physical strength to ensure that they could control their Berserker power when the ritual potion took effect.
After the ritual, the Berserker Headhunters would also experience aches throughout their bodies, then fall into a deep sleep. When they woke, they would feel full of energy. Only these symptoms meant they had passed the ritual. Dizziness, nausea, or even vomiting meant they hadn't mastered Berserker power.
Tian Sang carefully studied the series of enhancements the Berserker Headhunters underwent. Combining this with his own experience of Berserker potions, he realized that Berserker power was probably a way to use hormones to transform the body and bring out its potential.
The human body had countless glands, which produced fluids that entered the body. Fluids that flowed out through ducts were called exocrine secretions, including those from the gastric and salivary glands. Unlike these secretions, which could leave the body, endocrine secretions flowed directly into the blood. These included those from the adrenal and thyroid glands.
The secretions from glands inside and outside the body regulated its different parts, affecting a person's physiology and psychology, and even influencing their genes to some extent. People born with dwarfism or gigantism had problems with their endocrine systems.
To possess Berserker power meant controlling the body's endocrine system. Take adrenaline, for example: this hormone supplied the body with the energy it needed to act, speeding up breathing, the heartbeat, and blood flow, and bringing out the body's potential.
Put simply, Berserker potions were stimulants. They caused a surge in adrenaline, and then, through a shamanic ritual, the Troll hunters learned to remember the sensation of that surge. They could then trigger their potential at will and become Berserker Headhunters.
When Troll hunters first took an excessive dose of adrenaline, their bodies ached and they fell into a deep sleep. If they woke feeling full of energy, it meant their bodies had accepted and adapted to the excessive adrenaline. Dizziness, nausea, or even vomiting meant their bodies hadn't adapted to the drug and were suffering an adverse reaction.
Drawing on his half-baked knowledge of biology, Tian Sang had analyzed the Berserker ritual. He didn't know if his theory was right, but there was only one way to find out.
Having already taken Berserker potions before, Tian Sang cautiously increased his dose in small increments, leaving five days between each one.
His theory was soon confirmed. The gradually increasing doses of Berserker potion strengthened his body, but only up to a certain point. After that, he felt a surge of power that filled his mind.
After taking the potion three times, the feeling of power inside Tian Sang grew stronger and stronger. He felt an urge to increase the dose and take it more often, hoping to gain boundless strength.
Tian Sang had two very different lives to compare, which helped him stay clearheaded. The moment he caught himself giving in to the urge, he guessed he was probably high. So he stopped taking the potions and destroyed the remaining doses and ingredients to keep himself from losing control.
Power was limitless, but Tian Sang didn't think he could level up just by getting high. If that were possible, would Grommash Hellscream still have died? He could have simply chopped Mannoroth to pieces, drunk his blood, eaten his flesh, and slaughtered his way straight to Sargeras.
After destroying the potions, Tian Sang felt waves of excitement coursing through him. He wanted to research even stronger potions, but when he was faced with all those ingredients, he couldn't think of anything. His mind was simply crowded with stray thoughts.
After ruining three batches of potions, Tian Sang forced himself to turn his attention away from them and focus on physical training instead. He ran, lifted weights, swam, learned to use the bow, javelin, axe, and dagger, and went deep into the mountains to hunt with the hunters.
In the wild, Tian Sang raced through the forest after birds and beasts, learning all kinds of survival skills from the hunters. He watched for the tiniest signs in the forest and learned to track prey. His mind began to focus naturally, and the excitement finally started to fade, replaced by a sense of open, boundless calm.
At night, beneath the bright starry sky, Tian Sang left his Troll companions at the camp beneath the trees. In a clear state of mind, he felt the strong beat of his heart and thought about the next step in his training. He had gained strength and adapted to it. Now he needed to learn to control it.
Looking at the bright white moon among the stars, Tian Sang let his imagination run wild. The excitement in his head had faded, but the brute strength in his body remained. He needed to control and use it more effectively—to lift heavy objects with ease, or send someone flying ten meters with a casual punch. Yes, Dark Force. But how was he supposed to train it?
Should he practice the Santi stance, or learn to deliver a punch with short power? Those were the two methods most often seen in novels, and probably the easiest to understand. But understanding was one thing. What did it mean to gather one's vital energy inward? What did it mean to generate power from the tips of one's bones? What did any of that actually feel like?
His mind was a mess. Tian Sang closed his eyes halfway and tried to empty his head before thinking it through carefully. But when he opened his eyes, he no longer felt like thinking about it. His gaze had been drawn to the towering red glow beyond the hill in the distance.
"Barhan." Looking at the towering red glow beyond the hill, Tian Sang called out. Barhan was an old Troll Headhunter. He was aged, but his rich hunting experience had made him the head of their hunting party.
"What do you think that is?" Tian Sang pointed toward the towering red glow beyond the hill as the old Troll came over beneath the tree. Barhan was lean, with white hair and a white beard. At Tian Sang's gesture, he quickly climbed higher into the tree and narrowed his eyes at the distant light. At first he looked surprised, then his expression changed drastically.
"The glow of fire. It's coming from the forest."
"The forest is on fire!" Tian Sang stared at the towering red glow in the distance, blinking. Then a sudden thought flashed through his mind.
"That's Eversong Woods—the forest the Quel'dorei took?" Tian Sang stared wide-eyed at Barhan. That was the light of the Orcs setting fire to Eversong Woods. Damn, how many years in prison did those Orcs think they'd get?
"The Pale Ones took that forest. Could the Horde have won?" Standing on a tree branch, Barhan stared at the distant fire. He lowered his eyes and thought for a moment, then spoke uncertainly. The Trolls and Orcs had joined forces with the goal of driving out the Pale Ones and taking back the forest. The Orcs had set it on fire to achieve that goal, but why hadn't Zul'jin and Kal'ma stopped them? If they burned the forest down, what would be the point of taking it back?
"I haven't received any message from my teacher." Tian Sang shook his head. If Eversong Woods really had been set on fire, then the Horde's defeat couldn't be far off.
"We have to return to Zul'Aman at daybreak." Barhan looked at Tian Sang as he shook his head, then gazed toward the towering red glow in the distance and made his decision. Night was when animals were active and hunting. Even the strongest hunter wouldn't want to travel through a forest filled with killing.
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