Black Dragon Prince Gravely Wounded

"Damn traitor!" Nefarian instantly shifted into his black dragon form, but Rend's blade was already buried in his hide. Seeing things turn bad, Rend abandoned his beloved weapon and hurried out of the black dragon prince's attack range.

"Hahaha, Nefarian, the time for my revenge has finally come!" His transformation spell had been interrupted, freeing the young red dragon Vaelastrasz from Nefarian's control. After being suppressed by Nefarian for so long, Vaelastrasz would not miss this chance to settle the score. Nefarian was badly wounded; the young red dragon might even have a chance to kill this great enemy.

Enduring his severe wounds, Nefarian unleashed a full-force strike that drove back the young red dragon. Just as Rend thought Nefarian might still be able to kill him despite his injuries, the mighty black dragon immediately took flight. "Just you wait!"

Rend clearly saw the expression on the young red dragon's face. Like a dog chasing after a Frisbee, he crazily flew after Nefarian to beat the dog while it was down. But really, who was the dog here?

Watching the two dragons chase each other through the sky, Rend patted his chest. The plan had been risky, but it had succeeded without disaster. This was a plan that had put his life on the line—was it easy for him? He had wagered his life from the very beginning. But it was all worth it. If he did not fight, he would only end up dying miserably at the hands of adventurers someday.

Rend then led the remaining black dragons and elite dragonkin away one by one, telling them that Nefarian had been ambushed and badly wounded and was being hunted by the young red dragon. The fiercely loyal black dragons immediately took flight to help their master, leaving the upper levels of Blackrock Spire completely empty.

Rend happily led his men to plunder Nefarian's treasury, while sending another group to steal dragon eggs.

Meanwhile, in the lower levels of Blackrock Spire, General Drakkisath was leading the elite black dragon legion in a slaughter. With the orcs and others merely going through the motions, ten thousand black dragon troops were crushing fifty thousand Dark Iron dwarves. They did not even need support; these ten thousand men alone could resolve this invasion.

"Not good. Something has happened to the young master. Vaur, Omokk, hold these dwarves back first. If necessary, abandon the lower levels of Blackrock Spire. I'm going to rescue the young master." As one of Deathwing's great generals, Drakkisath had naturally been sent to protect Nefarian and possessed his own means of sensing him. To him, the young master's safety outweighed everything. Even abandoning all of Blackrock Spire would be less important than Nefarian's well-being.

Vaur knew Rend's plan had succeeded, so he informed King Omokk and prepared to stage another ambush.

"Damn dragonkin, you die too! King Omokk is the strongest!" Omokk tried to use the same trick to ambush General Drakkisath.

However, he had underestimated General Drakkisath's strength. After fighting alongside Nefarian for tens of thousands of years, his combat experience and reflexes were even stronger than Nefarian's. He blocked Omokk's massive hammer with his dragonkin shield, then severed King Omokk's head with a single stroke.

The ambush had failed. General Drakkisath was too strong; neither his skill nor his strength was something they could match. Seeing that things were going badly, Vaur fled into the armies locked in chaotic battle, hiding from General Drakkisath's pursuit.

When the ogres saw their king killed by General Drakkisath, coupled with the resentment caused by their food being withheld, they immediately turned around and attacked the black dragon legion. Faced with the ogres' sudden assault, even the dragonkin of the black dragon legion, despite their dragon blood, suffered heavy casualties beneath the fat brutes' immense strength. The black dragon legion, which had held the advantage, was suddenly attacked from within. Seizing this chance to turn defeat into victory, the Dark Iron dwarves began their counterattack under the leadership of their king, Dagran Thaurissan.

"Damn traitors! Black dragon legion, kill everyone here!" General Drakkisath was furious. The young master was in danger, yet he himself was being held back and could not provide support. He vented his rage on these dwarves and rebellious ogres, charging into the chaotic battlefield.

Seeing that General Drakkisath was no longer paying attention to him, Vaur decisively ordered the forest trolls and Blackrock orcs to withdraw, leaving the fighting to the dwarves, dragonkin, and ogres, who were killing one another in a tangled melee.

Inside Nefarian's treasury, formerly the royal treasury of the Dark Iron dwarves, Rend was stunned by the sight before him. The treasury, spanning several football fields, was piled high with treasures. Gold and jewels glittered everywhere. Scenes he had once seen only on television and in cartoons now stood before him, leaving him dumbfounded by such wealth. After all, the combined treasure of the black dragon prince and the Dark Iron dwarves was enough to make anyone the richest person in the world.

"Don't just stand there, move it! Take everything we can carry. Prioritize the valuables. A few of you, come with me to inspect Nefarian's armory." Rend was the first to recover. He suppressed the urge to claim all this treasure for himself. The fear of danger still hanging over them told him that Nefarian and his black dragons could return at any time. No treasure was more important than his life.

Suppressing his desire, he entered Nefarian's armory. It was filled with weapons collected by Nefarian and his black dragon legion.

"What's that?" Rend's gaze was drawn to a two-handed sword displayed prominently in the very center. His desire for it even surpassed his greed for the treasure.

A voice in his heart kept urging him: It belongs to you. Take it. He has been given the sword stuck in Nefarian's back, so we should take one from him in return. With the pained mindset of trading one sword for another, Rend walked up to the greatsword and gently stroked it, feeling its sharpness. This was an epic two-handed sword. Both its material and the keen edge it radiated spoke of its power.

As Rend lifted the two-handed sword, he saw the restrained capital letters A.L. on its hilt. This was Ashkandi, Greatsword of the Brotherhood—the sword said to leave no brothers once drawn.

"Congratulations, Chief Rend, on obtaining a divine sword." Malkorok was the first to notice Rend gripping Ashkandi tightly. As a warrior, he too desired that greatsword, but his loyalty to Rend was stronger. Only their chief was worthy of such a weapon.

No dispute broke out among the Blackrock orcs over the Greatsword of the Brotherhood, because loyalty to their chief was what mattered most in their hearts. Even if someone else had found Ashkandi first, they would have given it to Rend.

"Hahaha, brothers, take all the weapons treasured by the black dragon prince! He has no use for them, so they might as well go to our mighty Blackrock warriors." Having obtained Ashkandi, Rend was overjoyed. He immediately had his personal guard equip the precious weapons collected by the black dragon prince. Without question, this batch of weapons rivaled the equipment of the most elite forces and could greatly improve his guards' combat strength and survivability.

It had to be said that the black dragon legion and the Dark Iron dwarves had stored away far too many things. What had originally been a simple smash-and-grab operation ended with the Blackrock Clan lingering for three full days before reluctantly hauling away their enormous supplies and leaving Blackrock Spire as an entire clan.

General Drakkisath proved worthy of his strength. Leading ten thousand black dragon troops, he suffered three thousand casualties but left behind more than ten thousand Dark Iron dwarf soldiers and wiped out the rebelling ogres. Afterward, he led the dragonkin legion away from Blackrock Spire to catch up with his master, Nefarian. The severely battered Dark Iron dwarves did not take the opportunity to cause trouble either, especially since their king, Dagran Thaurissan, had been injured by the enraged General Drakkisath.