A Terrifying Mission (You guys know...)

Whoosh!

Snapping out of the dizzying weightlessness, Xiao Hen looked around, taking in his surroundings.

This was a forest with fresh air. Sturdy emerald trees towered among the woods, their branches entwined with leafy vines that hung down like drooping willows, swaying gently in the breeze.

Clear birdsong came from near and far. Xiao Hen spotted a palm-sized bird with emerald wings and a tuft of red crown feathers streak across the sky, leaving a trail of green light.

Xiao Hen walked along a wooden path through the forest, keeping a wary eye on his surroundings while checking himself over. Bees and butterflies with strange patterns fluttered past him from time to time.

"Shuttle, what about the main quest?"

Xiao Hen asked.

"Generating main quest... generating side quest..."

"Main quest: Obtain the Dragon Crystal of Crag Canyon. Time limit: one year."

"Side quest: Destroy the Dark Portal. Time limit: one year."

"What?!"

Xiao Hen was stunned. What kind of quests were these?

The Dark Portal—that was the only passage for the Orcs to enter the human world. Gul'dan would surely guard it heavily. How could it be easy to destroy?

And what was this about obtaining the Dragon Crystal of Crag Canyon?

Was there even such a plot in the Warcraft movie?

"Shuttle, get out here!" Xiao Hen trembled with anger. Was it trying to get him killed?

"Explain this to me. What's going on with these quests?" Xiao Hen demanded.

"Host, the Dark Portal is the key to victory in the war between humans and Orcs. Because of your arrival, the storyline has changed. The human Guardian of this world has been completely corrupted by Fel Energy. The outcome of this Warcraft world will no longer be like the movie. Guardian Medivh can no longer close the Dark Portal. So this quest falls to you."

At the Shuttle's explanation, Xiao Hen rubbed his forehead. His arrival had caused this? Was it really that twisted? Or was the Shuttle deliberately pulling this stunt?

"And what about the Dragon Crystal? Was that in the original plot? I don't remember it!" Xiao Hen pressed. A dragon—sure, Western dragons were weaker than Eastern divine dragons, but that depended on who you were talking about. Xiao Hen was strong compared to ordinary people, but could he compare to a dragon?

"Host, the energy needed to repair the Shuttle comes from the elemental forces in this world's air. The Dragon Crystal is a seed that can activate those elemental forces. You must obtain it. Alternatively, you could kill Gul'dan and steal his Fel Energy, or drain the energy pool in Medivh's mage tower. Either would work."

This... Xiao Hen was taken aback. So this was the best option?

"Both of those are too difficult, so I chose the Dragon Crystal of Crag Canyon as the activation seed. Be grateful, Host!" the Shuttle said flatly.

"Grateful?"

Xiao Hen let out a long sigh, then continued, "These quests are extremely hard for me. What's the reward for completing them?"

"The reward is naturally very generous. It's determined entirely by the difficulty of your quests. Rest assured, Host."

"Fine!"

Xiao Hen stepped forward. The trees ahead gradually thinned, and the ground cover began to recede. Soon, he emerged from the dense forest onto a flat hilltop. Climbing to the highest point, he gazed into the distance, but all he could see were trees blocking the view—no sign of human habitation.

"Where the hell am I?" Xiao Hen muttered, picked a direction, and kept walking.

Where to go now? That was the question. Xiao Hen thought it over. Originally, he had planned to head straight for Stormwind City, the heart of the human kingdom. But now he was lost. For now, his plan was to find some sign of people and ask for directions.

"First, find a human settlement, ask about the road, then figure out the rest... The Dark Portal, the Dragon Crystal—what a joke, giving me these two quests!" Xiao Hen shook his head, quickened his pace, and dashed through the forest.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, something burst out from ahead, blocking the forest path.

Xiao Hen stopped, his eyes landing on the road ahead. It was a Silver-Gray Wolf. Wasn't that the mount of the Orc Frostwolf Clan?

His heart jolted, but a closer look showed differences. This wolf was only about a meter tall and two meters long—big by Earth standards, but in this Warcraft world, it was just an ordinary beast, far too weak to be an Orc's mount.

"Why do you have to look so much like one? And why block my path?" Xiao Hen looked at the Silver-Gray Wolf, which was pawing the ground and baring its teeth at him with a snarl. He shook his head, then took out the Star Chasing Bow and back quiver from his Storage Space. He nocked an arrow and drew in one fluid motion.

Swish!

The arrow flew out, incredibly fast. But the Silver-Gray Wolf wasn't a gentle beast like those on Earth. The predators in this world were far more ferocious. It leaped nimbly, dodging Xiao Hen's shot.

"Pretty agile!" Xiao Hen muttered. He pulled out another arrow, nocked it on the Star Chasing Bowstring, and drew it back into a full moon shape. His eyes locked onto the Silver-Gray Wolf. He released his grip, and the arrow shot out.

Thud!

This time, the Silver-Gray Wolf was hit. The arrow struck its belly, the force driving it clean through the wolf's body. The modern craftsmanship of the arrow was excellent.

He walked up to the wolf and checked its back. No signs of it being a mount. So it really wasn't from the Frostwolf Clan.

He moved on. The quiet, secluded forest made Xiao Hen even more alert. In a place like this, a terrifying monster could pop out at any moment.

Swish!

Thud! A dark shadow lunged at him. Xiao Hen's arrow flew out, pinning a three-meter-long Spotted Snake to a tree on the far side. The snake had dropped from a branch, trying to ambush him, but he killed it with one shot. His combat instincts made his reaction speed far greater than an ordinary person's, and dealing with sudden attacks came naturally.

"Huh? Smoke?" Xiao Hen's eyes lit up. He looked up at the sky ahead and saw wisps of smoke rising.

"A human settlement. Good!" Relieved, Xiao Hen hurried forward.

But when he emerged from the forest, what greeted his eyes was a tragic scene.

Human corpses lay scattered in front of broken houses. The ground was littered with severed limbs. Among the dead were even small infants. Xiao Hen could see the innocent, confused expressions on their faces—a hint of bewilderment, as if they didn't understand why they had died.

Flames licked at the ruined buildings, sending thick smoke into the sky. That was the "smoke" Xiao Hen had seen earlier.

New storyline, please recommend tickets!