Let's Fight First

Over the past week, the Quillboar launched multiple offensives against the Centaur of Maraudon. Regrettably, they achieved no substantial results, though good news arrived from the southwest. With the help of the elves, the Quillboar's blocking force achieved a massive victory, annihilating the Centaur reinforcements and cleverly releasing a few scattered survivors to spread the word. Their triumph created favorable conditions for today's decisive battle, meaning there was no need to worry about being attacked from both front and rear. Today was the day set for the general offensive; regardless of victory or defeat, Azar would lead his troops south into Feralas, leaving the mess in Desolace to the Quillboar and Centaur. The Centaur remained a hidden danger. Although they did not appear strong now, after the War of the Ancients, Zaetar and his wife Theradras would breed like mad, and their descendants would do the same. It felt as if, aside from pillaging, procreation was their only activity; even the Tauren, the strongest warriors on land, were forced into a great migration by their human-wave tactics. The Quillboar were more settled. After the death of Agamaggan, they gained the easily defended fortress of Razorfen Downs, hiding inside to develop in peace, rarely wandering, and content with their own internal squabbles. To Azar, a place like Desolace was nothing but a chicken rib—useless aside from its strategic location. However, Azar had a habit: he was a glutton for land. Operating on the principle that it was better to give to himself than to others, he desperately tried to secure more territory for the elves, hoping for a surprise later on. As it turned out, the lad was lucky, and his intuition was spot on; Desolace would eventually provide him with endless treasures.

Let us return our gaze to the battlefield. Both armies had finished forming their ranks, and an aura of slaughter permeated the formation. A gust of wind blew, kicking up a layer of yellow sand, causing even the smallest grains to crawl across the ground. On one side, the Quillboar beat their war drums—thump! thump! thump!—as if the earth might split at any moment. On the other, the Centaur sounded their horns—woo! woo! woo!—reminding Azar of the Mongol armies that swept across Eurasia. Is it starting? Then let it begin! Azar opened his eyes, walked slowly forward along the line, and stopped Daphne, who wanted to follow him.

"Watch closely how I fight." Azar held his head high and strode forward, embodying the self-awareness of the strong! This was the courage to stand alone against a thousand armies! Standing before the enemy lines, he roared, "Bring out Khan Zaetar to answer me!" Behind him, nearly ten thousand soldiers shouted in unison, "Bring out Khan Zaetar to answer!!!" Yes, that was it; one must suppress the opponent with sheer presence for the Goddess of Victory to favor you. Perhaps intimidated by the Quillboar's momentum, a stir rippled through the Centaur ranks before quickly quieting down. Zaetar emerged! A creature with the upper body of a man and the lower body of a stag walked up to Azar.

"I am Zaetar. Who are you?"

"Night Elf, Azar Tikar."

"Why join forces with the Quillboar to attack us!"

"Enough, you piece of trash. Don't play dumb. When you and the Quillboar and the Troll ambushed us, did you ever think this day would come?"

When the moment arrives, one must be bold! Azar didn't care if the one opposite him was the son of a demigod; he cursed right back. Besides, Azar knew the sordid details of the father and son: Zaetar's marriage had been strongly opposed by his father. How could the Essence of Life have any affection for an elemental creature? Though they had a mountain of descendants, as long as he didn't die, his father Cenarius wouldn't come looking for trouble with Azar. In the future, the old man would treat the Night Elves even better than his own kin.

"But you have killed many of my people now. Doesn't that make us even?"

When Azar heard this, he realized the guy was trying to back down.

"Don't think I don't know what you're playing at. You killed my men, so don't think this will be settled so easily. How many have I killed? For every one of mine you killed, I'll kill a hundred of yours!" Azar had his own calculations. Whether they fought a full war didn't matter, but he had to duel Zaetar to gauge his current combat strength. Although Zaetar was far inferior to his father, he was still a benchmark of sorts. Besides, if he beat the husband, it would be even better if the wife came out—she was stronger than him, after all.

"So there is no room for negotiation?" Zaetar tried one last time.

"Well, we can talk. You duel me. If you win, we do whatever you want. If I win, the Centaur are never allowed to leave Desolace!"

"Fine! It's a deal!"

On one side, my cheering squad beat their drums until the heavens shook; on the other, his cheerleaders blew their horns with vigor. The first round was a draw. Both combatants entered their battle states. For Zaetar, this battle concerned the survival of his race; for Azar, it concerned his own future. Neither side dared to be careless.

Bear Form—Charge! I guessed it. Cenarius's son, and the one most like him—he was likely a Druid!

Strong Shadow! The opponent lost his target and stopped mid-charge. Shadowstep! Azar circled him, searching for an opening. Tree of Life Form—Empowered Vines! Thick, arm-sized vines spread out from Zaetar as the center. Azar knew that if the vines touched him, he would be revealed. How to break it? He couldn't just hack at the vines; they were endless. He had to capture the leader to break the group! He revealed himself! His left hand swung the Quel'Serrar violently! A fire attack—it worked! The vines feared fire; they stopped growing and slowly retracted. Immediately after, his right hand thrust the Quel'Serrar forward, forming a path of ice that shot straight at Zaetar! The distance was still a bit far, but no matter—Sprint—Charge! He hit him! Zaetar likely hadn't expected Azar to open with such a storm of attacks, a completely desperate, all-out style. One move after another, and because he was just a split second slow, he took the hit. Strike while the iron is hot! Sunder Armor—Eviscerate—(waking him up)—Kidney Shot (stunned again). His left hand didn't stop; he quickly rotated the blade and struck downward with force—Gouge! It landed! Was it over? Not yet! With a bang, Bear Form—Claw! The counterattack from the pain was powerful; if he had been careless, Azar would have suffered. He crossed his dual blades to block! Damn, Azar wasn't as strong as him and was actually sent flying. This was the first time he'd encountered such a situation. The real world was indeed different; raw power truly overcomes technique. No wonder the elves were suppressed in the early stages of the future War of the Ancients. A three-meter-tall Felguard versus a two-meter-tall elf—the difference in strength was massive. No wonder Elven warriors used so many deflection techniques and practiced dodging until it was second nature; the root of it was here. Flying through the air, one had to be ready to defend against the enemy's follow-up. Azar exerted force at his waist, performed a swallow-turn to accelerate his landing, and entered Stealth!

"Ahhh! I will kill you! You actually made me bleed!" On the other side, Zaetar roared while casting Rejuvenation on himself with his left hand! Damn, how do you play against this? He can heal himself! This was troublesome. He had hoped to wear him down and bleed him out, but that hope was gone. He had to go hard! He used Shadowstep to approach slowly. Closer, closer, now! Charge! Didn't hit? No matter, he had a backup—Sweeping Strikes! Bang! Blade and claw collided. Having suffered earlier, Azar was prepared. The moment he was blocked, he deflected, used the momentum to twist his waist, and swung his main hand downward with force—Cleave! He had improvised this based on the techniques of the Mo-Dao soldiers from his past life, allowing him to use his entire body's strength. Bang! Another muffled sound! A standing giant bear blocked the strike with its two front paws. Hmph! Think again! White light flashed, and the two bear paws slowly froze. His main hand, Quel'Delar, carried a frost effect. You're catching it with your bare hands? Plus the Power of Order Azar infused—how does that taste, Zaetar? Seeing his hands stuck, Azar didn't hold back: Sunder Armor—Sunder Armor—Sunder Armor (can't help it, bear hide is notoriously thick; I wouldn't dare attack without three stacks)—Gouge—Blade Dance—Eviscerate—Hamstring. I don't care if you have Rejuvenation; the pain of being gutted and hamstrung should be enough for you to handle. Cat Form! Want to run? No way! He raised his left hand high and stomped his right foot on the ground—Consecration! (Order energy modified version). Can't hide now, can't run now, right? Azar quickly pursued, thrusting the tip of his blade forward, and asked imperiously: "Still fighting?"

Zaetar was a tough nut, or he wouldn't have dared to turn against his own father for love. He stiffened his neck and roared: "If you have the guts, kill me!"

"You're tough. I don't dare, happy now?" Azar felt depressed inside.

"Killing you has no benefits, only a mountain of trouble. The fight is over, I'm leaving. Remember, from now on, you are not allowed to leave Desolace! One comes out, I kill one; two come out, I kill a pair." After saying this, Azar turned and walked away, his demeanor indescribably cool.

They were done fighting, but the soldiers hadn't even started. Seeing Azar's series of flashy moves directly take down the Centaur Khan, the Quillboar cheered wildly. Before he even returned to his main formation, the advance drums sounded, and all the Quillboar charged forward excitedly. It seemed they wanted to wipe out the Centaur in one go.

"My Lord, should we charge too?" Muru asked me excitedly. Seeing the Centaur formation scattered by the Quillboar's charge, he wanted to go up and hack a few horses himself.

"Don't charge. The Centaur still have a trump card," Azar said sternly.

Sure enough, just as the Centaur felt the situation was lost and the Quillboar felt victory was in sight, the chaotic army suddenly felt their footing give way. What happened? Hmph, looks like you couldn't sit still after all. On a nearby hill stood an incredibly ugly woman. She had four arms, skin like stone, a pair of massive breasts on her chest, and a pair of short, thick legs that were almost as wide as my waist—and she was wearing a bikini. The sight was so disgusting it almost made Azar vomit his dinner from the night before. He hadn't felt this way when he wiped her out in the game, but seeing her in the flesh, Azar truly couldn't describe his disgust. Daphne, also a woman, looked repulsed and muttered, "Is that even a woman? She's so ugly. Who is she?"

"She is Zaetar's wife! Daughter of the Earth Mother, I think her name is Theradras."