Chapter Summaries

Ye Ting decided to build a balanced source of Holy Light and shadow by assembling a Naaru from the remains of D'ore or K'ure and a living core. He concluded that K'ara's soul might survive in the Re'zul Crystal and set out to find it.

• Ye Ting determined that a stable source of Holy Light and shadow required a living being with a soul, which he could not create from nothing.
• Ye Ting considered using the empty bodies of D'ore or K'ure as the body of an assembled Naaru.
• Ye Ting recalled that K'ara had become the corrupted Dark Star and suspected its core was the Re'zul Crystal, the source of Ashbringer's power.
• Ye Ting realized that his future self had likely taken the Re'zul Crystal from Draenor, explaining why he could not find it during the Orc War.
• Ye Ting became determined to search for the Re'zul Crystal.

Ye Ting used Ultimate Shapeshifting to become a Kaliri and flew toward the Black Temple, where the Zereb Crystal was likely being kept. On the way, he found Orc prisoners being transported there for Gul'dan's experiments and secretly marked them to help him locate the crystal.

• Ye Ting's tracking spell indicated that the Zereb Crystal was back at the Black Temple, rather than with Gul'dan's forces at the front.
• Ye Ting transformed into a small purple Kaliri using draconic magic and flew toward the Black Temple.
• Ye Ting spotted a convoy carrying brown-skinned Orc prisoners, while the escorts were green-skinned Orcs.
• Ye Ting overheard that the prisoners had refused to drink Corrupted Blood and were being taken to Gul'dan for experiments.
• Ye Ting marked every prisoner with invisible magic, hoping to use their connection to the Shadow Council to find the Zereb Crystal.

Ye Ting persuaded the amnesiac K'ara to form a master-servant contract and used Heroic Spirit Creation to restore her power in an unexpected form. The spell turned her into an arcane being, and Ye Ting discovered that her materialized form still held seeds of Light and Shadow.

• Ye Ting told K'ara a selectively true account of her past and convinced her that she was a friend of the Draenei who had fought the Burning Legion.
• K'ara apologized for being powerless, then eagerly accepted Ye Ting's offer to form a contract and regain her strength.
• Ye Ting formed a master-servant contract with K'ara and cast Third Magic · Soul Materialization · Heroic Spirit Creation on her.
• The spell made K'ara's soul tangible and gave her a powerful body that generated mana, transforming her into an arcane creature.
• Ye Ting judged that K'ara remained weaker than K'ure or D'ore, but discovered seeds of Light and Shadow within her materialized form.

Ye Ting taught K'ara the Path of Balance, helping her combine Holy Light and shadow and rapidly increase her power. He then began engraving Naaru crystal fragments with tiny magical patterns to enhance her further, while those around him awaited the results.

• Ye Ting examined K'ara's Heroic Spirit abilities and found that [Heroic Spirit Creation] had granted her Light-Dark Conversion but not overwhelming power.
• Ye Ting and Yrel taught K'ara the Path of Balance, and she formed a working cycle of light and darkness in less than a day.
• K'ara's balanced Holy Light and shadow power grew rapidly, with Ye Ting predicting she would reach the legendary tier within half a month and recover her former strength within a month.
• Ye Ting began modifying the other Naaru's crystal fragments, engraving them with densely packed magical patterns while working alone.
• Yrel, Osaal, and the technicians witnessed Ye Ting's precision and looked forward to K'ara's rebirth.

After a week of enchanting K'ara’s external crystals, Ye Ting emerged with her transformed into a powerful being who could communicate telepathically with thousands at once. Her return drew a vast crowd of Draenei, leaving Yrel to arrive at a bewildering scene of silent, emotionally animated onlookers.

• Ye Ting spent a week enhancing K'ara’s external crystals, inspiring Yrel and the Draenei technicians to work harder for their people’s future.
• Ye Ting emerged from his laboratory with K'ara, whose golden and black energies made the Draenei recognize her as a Naaru.
• K'ara introduced herself and promised to resist the Burning Legion alongside the Draenei, then answered their excited thoughts through telepathy.
• Draenei crowded around K'ara and blocked the road as more people arrived to speak with her telepathically.
• Yrel reached the laboratory and found more than ten thousand silent Draenei displaying a jumble of emotions as they chatted with K'ara in their minds.

Ye Ting turned K'ara into a powerful telepathic command center and spiritual repository for the Draenei by enchanting her with a growing Moon Spirit Crystal. The Draenei connected to her through signal concentrators, while the chapter also noted that Protoss used neural bundles for the same purpose.

• Ye Ting's enchantments let K'ara establish mental links with as many as one hundred thousand Draenei and coordinate the entire race.
• Ye Ting designed K'ara's Moon Spirit Crystal to grow by absorbing information and mental power, while gathering the memories and souls of Draenei who died after maintaining long-term links with her.
• Ye Ting created signal concentrators from Moon Spirit Crystal fragments to stabilize connections for Draenei too far from K'ara.
• Yrel suggested placing the concentrators on Draenei tails, which could connect them to the spinal cord and serve as unobstructed antennas.
• The Draenei, moved by guilt and reverence for K'ara, trusted her and installed signal concentrators on their tails to connect with her.
• Protoss used their neural bundles, rather than tails, to connect to K'ara.

Kil'jaeden disabled Shattrath's barrier and ordered Gul'dan to destroy its generator, allowing the Orcs to breach the city and advance into its streets. As the Draenei struggled to defend civilians, mysterious golden-armored Draenei appeared to block the Orcs' attacks.

• Kil'jaeden collapsed Shattrath's protective barrier and ordered Gul'dan to destroy the barrier generator before the Draenei could repair it.
• Gul'dan sent warlocks and an elite force through a portal into Shattrath, and the warlocks destroyed the generator despite the infiltrators being wiped out and Grand Archbishop Hataaru being severely wounded.
• The Orcs bombarded Shattrath's walls with Fel Flame and Infernals until a section collapsed, then fought their way through the breach and into the city.
• The Draenei's first line of defense fell, and Orcs reached nearby neighborhoods and began slaughtering civilians before the defenders could regroup.
• Several Draenei in unfamiliar golden armor charged out from behind the barricades and shielded civilians from the Orcs.

Velen, Kalmar, and Neri watched advanced Draenei super soldiers from Auchindoun battle the Orcs and learned that they were likely Yrel’s forces. After the soldiers’ impressive abilities drew the Orcs’ attention, Ogres, Warlocks, and waves of Orcs surrounded them.

• The super soldiers used blue energy barriers to survive attacks and struck back with enhanced strength, speed, and true invisibility.
• Kalmar and Neri denied commanding the warriors, while Velen concluded that they had come from Auchindoun under Yrel.
• Velen praised Yrel as K’ure’s chosen one and began explaining that a great mage from another world stood behind her.
• The Orcs sent Ogres and Warlocks against the super soldiers, trapping them in an encirclement as their advance faltered.

The Horde’s Orcs, Ogres, and warlocks pushed the Draenei super soldiers into a desperate fight below the city wall. The Draenei revealed their coordinated tactics, turned the battle around, and killed the warlocks before they could report what they had learned.

• Orcs overwhelmed the Draenei warriors and casters with relentless attacks, while Ogres threatened to break their formation.
• Horde warlocks used the Ogres as bait and cast Fear on Draenei trackers preparing to attack them.
• A Draenei priest dispelled the Fear, an astrologer blasted away nearby attackers, and a soul priest used Mind Control to turn the Ogres against one another.
• The Draenei vindicators coordinated their attacks and cleared the Orcs around them.
• Draenei trackers ambushed the hidden warlocks, who realized the Draenei had lured them in before dying.

The Draenei super soldiers used extraordinary coordination to hold off the Horde, but dwindling energy and mounting injuries left them close to defeat. Probe A0152 arrived and began opening a transport matrix, leaving the exhausted squad to defend it from the Orcs.

• Velen and the other Draenei realized the super soldiers' coordination was astonishing, while K'ara's connection was secretly enabling their seamless teamwork.
• The super soldiers gradually retreated as their armor energy ran low, and several were badly wounded and forced out of the fight.
• Probe A0152 appeared, explained that it had arrived on schedule, and began establishing a building transport matrix as the squad promised to protect it.
• Probe A0152 opened a black hole-like portal, prompting the Orcs to attack it and the Draenei squad to fight even harder to defend it.

A lone Draenei Vindicator defended the teleportation matrix until the Crystal Tower appeared and deployed a vast army from Auchindoun. The Draenei overwhelmed the Orcs and began reclaiming Shattrath.

• A gravely wounded Draenei Vindicator stood alone before the teleportation matrix as the Orcs surged toward him.
• The matrix transformed into Ye Ting's Crystal Tower, restoring the warrior's armor and enabling large-scale teleportation.
• Yrel and Ye Ting's forces deployed hundreds of Draenei warriors and Immortals to the battlefield.
• Soul Priests struck the Orcs and Ogres with shadow spells before Draenei warriors and Immortals launched their assault.
• The Auchindoun Draenei fought alongside the surviving vanguard and drove the Orcs back, threatening to retake the breaches in Shattrath's walls.

The Draenei army from Auchindoun routed the Horde at Shattrath, giving the Draenei their first major victory in the war. Kil'jaeden learned that his ambush and attack on Auchindoun had both failed, leaving him furious and humiliated.

• The Draenei's artillery, armor, and energy shields overwhelmed the Horde, whose army broke and fled from Shattrath.
• Auchindoun's army pursued the retreating Orcs for several miles, then returned to Shattrath as the city's people celebrated their victory.
• Kil'jaeden angrily questioned Gul'dan about how the Draenei had discovered the ambush, and Gul'dan could not explain.
• Kil'jaeden realized the reinforcements had come from Auchindoun and had seen through his plan to lure the Draenei into an ambush.
• A demon reported that an attack on Auchindoun had failed against its powerful defenses, and Kil'jaeden ordered him to leave.

After the Draenei drove the Horde back from Shattrath, Velen recognized Yrel’s achievements and learned that Ye Ting had resurrected K'ara and transformed Auchindoun. Velen left to visit Auchindoun, entrusting Yrel with restoring and defending Shattrath.

• Yrel ended the Draenei’s pursuit of the Horde to conserve energy beyond the Crystal Tower’s range, unknowingly avoiding Kil'jaeden’s ambush.
• Velen greeted Yrel with deference, and the bishops followed his lead in recognizing her authority.
• Yrel told Velen that Ye Ting had reclaimed K'ara’s core and resurrected her, prompting Velen to thank Ye Ting.
• Yrel explained the Path of Balance and Ye Ting’s overhaul of Draenei technology, leaving Velen and most of the bishops stunned while Hataaru questioned Ye Ting eagerly.
• Velen entrusted Shattrath’s restoration and defenses to Yrel, then departed with the bishops to visit Auchindoun and K'ara.
• Yrel stood bewildered by her new responsibility as Ishana, Dakan, Borus, and the others prepared to begin the work.

Velen and the exarchs arrived in Auchindoun by crystal translocation, where Hataaru learned how the technology worked and they met High Exarch Maladaar. Maladaar revealed that Lady K'ara had foretold their arrival.

• Velen, Neri, Akama, and Hataaru arrived beneath Auchindoun's Crystal Tower through translocation.
• Wolian introduced himself to Velen, and Hataaru asked him how the Crystal Towers transported people.
• Wolian explained that translocation scanned and reconstructed travelers, using far less energy than ordinary spatial magic but carrying serious risks if it failed.
• Maladaar arrived to greet Velen and the exarchs, despite no messenger having informed him of their arrival.
• Maladaar said Lady K'ara had revealed that they were coming.

Velen, Akama, and Neri toured Auchindoun after Maladaar claimed Lady K'ara had given an oracle, and Velen saw how dramatically the city had changed under Yrel. The group continued deeper into Auchindoun, where they were to see K'ara.

• Maladaar told Velen and the others that Lady K'ara had given an oracle because she connected their wills, but he refused to explain further.
• Akama led the group deeper into Auchindoun, and Velen saw that its residents were lively and confident rather than gloomy or fearful.
• Velen noticed that Auchindoun had openly embraced shadow faith alongside the Holy Light, troubling Akama.
• Neri saw machinery, automated factories, golems, and teleportation matrices throughout Auchindoun, and she silently disapproved of the city's industrial expansion.
• Velen asked Maladaar whether Yrel had inspired the city's vitality through the Path of Balance, but Maladaar kept the truth about K'ara to himself.

Velen and his companions toured Auchindoun’s underground industrial park and were stunned by its automated factories and mass production. Hataaru celebrated the technology as proof of his views, but Neri reminded him that the factories were the work of Ye Ting and Auchindoun’s technicians, leaving him struggling to defend his inventions.

• Maladaar led Velen, Hataaru, Neri, and Akama through Auchindoun’s lower levels toward K'ara.
• Velen saw an automated factory producing warrior helmets and marveled at how quickly it could equip Auchindoun’s vindicators.
• The group toured an industrial park filled with factories, workshops, and magical cargo vehicles, leaving Neri and Akama stunned.
• Hataaru boasted to Neri that the factories proved technology could save the Draenei.
• Neri said the factories were the achievements of Ye Ting and Auchindoun’s technicians, then mocked Hataaru’s inventions.
• Hataaru tried to defend his Crystal Focusing Cannon, but Neri pointed out that the weapons used by the Immortals were improved versions.

Velen and the three High Bishops met K'ara in Auchindoun and learned that she had become a being of both Light and Shadow after losing most of her memories. After hearing about Auchindoun and K'ara's abilities, Velen gave her his treasured Ata'mal Crystal, Soul Song.

• Velen and the three High Bishops entered Light-and-Shadow Karabor and saw K'ara, now half Naaru of the Holy Light and half Shadow.
• K'ara welcomed them, but told Velen that corruption had erased most of her memories, including her memories of him.
• Velen accepted that K'ara was his old friend despite her changed form and asked about her condition.
• K'ara explained how she had become compatible with Light and Shadow and how she connected the consciousnesses of Auchindoun's warriors.
• After learning about Auchindoun, Velen gave K'ara his treasured crystal, Soul Song.

Velen gave K'ara the Ata'mal Crystal and nominated Yrel to lead the Draenei, while retaining his role as Prophet. At a ceremony in Karabor Temple of Light and Shadow, Yrel became the first High Exarch and won the Shattrath Draenei’s public acceptance of her leadership and the Path of Balance.

• Velen returned the Ata'mal Crystal to K'ara, explaining that its power could amplify Soul Song and K'ara's psychic abilities.
• Velen told the bishops he had decided Yrel should lead the Draenei, though he would remain Prophet and advise her.
• K'ara presided over Yrel's inauguration ceremony the next day, where Draenei from Auchindoun and Shattrath gathered.
• Yrel became the High Exarch, with Velen serving as her adviser and relinquishing governing authority.
• Yrel and K'ara delivered speeches promoting the Path of Balance, and the Shattrath Draenei accepted Yrel's leadership on the surface.

After repeated defeats against the Draenei, the Horde sought weaker peoples to conquer and rebuild its prestige. The chapter surveyed Draenor’s ancient civilizations and the diminished races still living there, leaving the Horde poised to target them.

• Yrel received reports that the Horde was in disarray after its losses at Shattrath, while Blackhand and Gul'dan needed victories to maintain their power.
• The chapter described how the Orcs had overthrown the Ogres, whose empire had relied on arcane knowledge stored in Apexis Crystals.
• The chapter recounted the rise and destruction of the Apexis Arakkoa civilization, including the detonation of Rukhmar's Breath during a civil war.
• The chapter traced Draenor's ancient struggle between the Primals and the descendants of Grond, whose degeneration eventually produced Ogres and Orcs.
• The chapter noted that Primals, Ogres, Ogron, Gronn, Saberon, and lizardmen still survived across Draenor despite their decline.
• The Horde turned its attention toward these weaker races to restore its prestige and strength.

After learning that the Horde was not advancing toward them, Ye Ting and Yrel focused on integrating Shattrath into the Draenei society and strengthening its forces against the distant threat of the Burning Legion. The Draenei expanded production and retrained their armies in new equipment and tactics, preparing to face the Horde’s eventual return.

• Ye Ting and Yrel learned from the rangers and trackers that the Horde was heading elsewhere, and they avoided seeking a fight while the Burning Legion remained a greater threat.
• The Draenei moved Shattrath’s people into their new society, used crystal warp technology to connect Shattrath and Auchindoun, and put Auchindoun’s factories to work producing military supplies.
• The Auchindoun army took over Shattrath’s defenses as Shattrath’s forces rested and retrained in the Path of Balance, new powers, and modern equipment.
• K'ara helped the spirits of fallen Draenei return to Auchindoun, where they supported the army through Immortals and probes.
• The Draenei added warp training and infantry coordination with artillery and Immortals to their programs, while the veteran Auchindoun forces rotated through training to correct mistakes from the battle of Shattrath.
• The Horde prepared to avenge its defeat, and the Draenei prepared to meet its return with more effective modern warfare.