Search for Prey

Aman'Thul, the King of Gods of the Pantheon, had rarely displayed his abilities over the long years. Even in battles against demons, he had remained in the rear, serving as commander and staff officer. No one knew the true extent of the Pantheon's leader's strength, but today, on Azeroth, his first move revealed just how extraordinary he was.

Old Gods, servants of the Void Lords. Though they appeared to be low-ranking servants, they were actually an extremely troublesome breed. Their vitality was immense, they excelled at spreading corruption, and the Void energy they possessed was itself a formidable weapon.

As the strongest Old God currently on Azeroth, Y'Shaarj possessed every trait an Old God should have to perfection. Yet this supposed strongest of the Old Gods was seized by Aman'Thul after a single exchange and crushed in one hand. Terrifying. Truly terrifying!

Though Aman'Thul's solo kill had been exceedingly brutal, what he had not expected was that while Y'Shaarj died, the tentacles extended by these Old Gods had already sunk deep beneath Azeroth's surface. When Aman'Thul pulled Y'Shaarj from the ground and crushed him one-handed, the tendrils gripping the earth tightly were dragged out as well—and with them came Azeroth's land.

The price of this strongest Old God's death was a scar left upon Azeroth's surface. Unstable Arcane energy—Arcane was the source of the Titans' power, and the Arcane energy continuously surging forth now undoubtedly meant that this newborn Titan's life essence was erupting through this wound and flowing endlessly across the world.

"Oh no, Aman'Thul's attack was far too rash. He destroyed the Old God, but we never anticipated such a price. The damage he inflicted upon this newborn world was far too severe!" The many Titans in the Astral Realm observed everything through Vanidak's spatial projection. Life-Binder grieved deeply over the horrifying scar.

"Do not blame Aman'Thul, Eonar." Norgannon was clearly calmer. "Indeed, we underestimated the extent of the Old Gods' corruption in this world. This attack harmed Azeroth, but we must look at it from another perspective. Now our method for dealing with the Old Gods is clear: imprison them, prevent them from affecting Azeroth, and wait until our strongest brother awakens!"

"I agree with Norgannon." The King of Gods, who had slain Y'Shaarj, had returned by then. Hearing Norgannon's words, he voiced his own opinion.

"This attack was made without sufficient consideration. The failure of the Titan-Forged made me too eager to resolve this problem, ultimately causing irreparable damage. But with the remaining Old Gods, we can make the right choice."

"Yes, King of Gods." Aggramar, who had first discovered Azeroth, said, "This newborn Titan's strength is still too weak. She cannot withstand repeated injuries like this. Imprisoning those Old Gods is a reasonable and correct method! But now the question is, how do we find the other Old Gods? After your attack, they have all hidden themselves!"

"Do we not still have Vanidak's spatial projection? It can help us quickly locate those Old Gods, then send the Keepers to defeat them. After their previous failure, I believe they will have more experience dealing with the Old Gods." Khaz'goroth proposed a feasible solution.

The Thunderer Golganneth nodded in agreement. "That is indeed a good idea, but has anyone seen Vanidak? I have not seen him here since earlier. Vanidak! Vanidak! Where the hell did you go?"

"I'm here, I'm here! Why are you yelling? Golganneth, why are you shouting so damn loudly!" Vanidak's voice came from not far away. As he hurried over, he stuffed a mass emitting a black shadow into his belt.

"Where did you go, Vanidak? You were absent when we were assisting the King of Gods in stabilizing Azeroth." Eonar eyed her mysterious brother suspiciously, her gaze lingering on the black orb protruding from his belt. She seemed to hear something screaming.

Perhaps sensing Eonar's suspicious gaze, Vanidak reached into his belt and shoved something farther down his pants. Then, without looking at the other Titans, he said with a disdainful expression and an utterly frank tone, "I found a Void lackey nearby and went to deal with it. That is why I returned late. Yes, that is exactly what happened!"

The King of Gods Aman'Thul knew his brother's nature well. He waved a hand, signaling that they should not pursue this oddball any further. He had no desire to hear an answer that would make him uncomfortable.

Having indicated that they should turn the page on that matter, Aman'Thul said to Vanidak, "My brother, we now need you to locate the other Old Gods on Azeroth. This attack caused immense harm to Azeroth. We can no longer eliminate those Old Gods in this manner."

"Easy, easy. I thought it was something serious. Give me some time, and I will mark the places where Void power is most concentrated. Even if they are hiding underground, I can find them, because I can smell their stench!"

"You can smell them across the Astral Realm?" Norgannon suddenly interjected.

"..."

"Norgannon, if you can talk, then talk some more!" Seemingly irritated, Vanidak angrily cast a spell at the spatial projection. The image shifted rapidly, jumping constantly across Azeroth, while Vanidak stared fixedly at the screen and occasionally marked a point on the star map beside him.

In the end, the star map was densely covered with Vanidak's markers. Norgannon could no longer sit still. He stepped forward and asked, "Vanidak, are these... all Old Gods? How is that possible? Are there really so many Old Gods on Azeroth?"

At that moment, Vanidak looked as though he had heard the most wonderful sound in the world. He puffed out his chest, planted his hands on his hips, and proudly said to the anxiously questioning Norgannon, "Hahahahaha! Norgannon, I never thought someone renowned for wisdom like you would ask such a basic question. Did you not see that even Aggramar did not assume that?"

Aggramar: ???

"All these markers are Old Gods? Then Sargeras might as well cut down this brother of ours in one stroke. If that were really the case, he would be beyond saving."

Ignoring the dark expressions on Norgannon's and Aggramar's faces, Vanidak pointed at the star map and continued, "The places without my markers are where the bodies of those Old Gods are located. Such a simple and obvious matter, yet you actually... Ow!"

Eonar, who had decisively dealt out punishment from the side, was equally annoyed. "Why not just mark the locations of the Old Gods directly? Why make it so troublesome!"

"Tch, violent woman..." Vanidak muttered quietly as he lay on the ground, clutching his head.

"Ignore him, Eonar," Aman'Thul said. "We have no time to play with him. Prepare to notify our Titan-Forged and tell them the locations of those Old God bodies. Norgannon, you will be responsible for informing them."

"Your will."

"Khaz'goroth, our Keepers will have to face those Old Gods directly. We cannot allow them to be casually beguiled by the Old Gods as they were last time. Help them devise something that can weaken the Old Gods."

"With pleasure, King of Gods."

"Good. For now, the task will be entrusted to Norgannon and Khaz'goroth. The rest of us will monitor Azeroth and prevent any further unforeseen developments."

"Yes, King of Gods."

After leaving the council hall, Vanidak rubbed his head and muttered under his breath. Once he reached a place with no other Titans around, he furtively looked around before pulling a black sphere from his crotch. It was still trembling and making noises.

Staring at the black sphere, Vanidak spoke to it with a strange expression. "Who would have thought? Other than me, someone else knows the trick of waiting to reap the rewards. But you did not expect this, did you? I am the one reaping the rewards. Hehehe."

Perhaps hearing Vanidak's mockery, the black sphere trembled even more violently. Vanidak curled his lip and continued, "Such a foul mouth? I do not know where you got the confidence to curse me like that. Never mind why you approached Y'Shaarj's corpse. From my many years of experience..."

"You are the soul of an Old God, aren't you? Hmm?"

The black sphere, which had been trembling moments earlier, suddenly went still. Then a wave of fear emanated from it. Sensing all this, Vanidak continued disdainfully, "Enough with the act. You are still far from convincing. I could tell at a glance that you were faking it. I will ask you a few questions. Answer honestly."

Feeling the information transmitted by the black sphere, Vanidak pondered briefly before asking, "First, what exactly are you? An Old God? That cannot be right. What Old God looks like you?"

At this question, the black sphere suddenly grew agitated. A torrent of intense emotional fluctuations burst forth, constantly conveying something to Vanidak.

After silently listening to its story, Vanidak raised his brows and said, "So you are a victim too? Pah, I think you had it coming. All right, next, tell me your true name. Do not try any tricks."

Buzzing, intermittent fluctuations came through. Vanidak seemed to be making them out as he muttered along, "Sa... la... what? Oh, I heard it clearly. So that is your name. What a strange name."

After finishing his questioning, Vanidak fell silent before the black sphere for a moment. Seemingly having made up his mind, he whispered solemnly, "All right, you unlucky Old God, I did not rescue your soul just to ask you a few questions... What? You say this does not count as rescuing you?"

Swoosh! A black blade sprang from one of his hands. Staring at the black sphere, Vanidak said viciously, "Think carefully before you speak, youngster!"

Sensing the emotions from the black sphere, Vanidak satisfactorily withdrew his weapon and continued, "That is more like it. I did not save you for nothing. You need to do some work for me."

"Some... very small... work!"