Temple

Gul'dan leaned out from the bow of the ship, sniffing the sea air. He closed his eyes and used his mental magic to search for that mysterious and powerful aura. He sensed a stimulating scent, like fresh blood, so intense that it felt as if he had been punched, and he even felt pain.

"Stop the boat!" he shouted. The tribesmen behind him lowered their oars, and the boat quickly came to a halt, quietly anchoring on the sea. Gul'dan smiled with satisfaction, "We've finally arrived!"

"But...but there's nothing here!" A member of the Stormreaver Clan looked around; there was nothing but the sea.

"Nothing at all?" he chuckled dismissively. "You dare question me, huh? Well then, how about I throw you into the ocean so you can see for yourself, Drak'Sool?" The Orc Warlock he called Drak'Sool took a few steps back in terror. Gul'dan ignored him; his gaze fell on another ship nearby, where Cho'gall stood.

"Tell the others to get to work immediately," he told his second-in-command. "Start now! Doomhammer may already know we're gone, and he won't let us go. I don't want him bothering me until I find what I'm looking for."

Cho'gall nodded with both heads, then turned to give orders to his men. They then secured a grappling hook to Gul'dan's ship. Soon, Cho'gall and the rest of the Orc Warlock climbed down the rope.

"This is the place we're searching for. Below us lies an ancient temple," Gul'dan explained once all the Warlock had gathered around him.

"We can try to dive into it," Cho'gall said.

Gul'dan shook his head. "I don't know how deep the water is here, and it's dark and cold down there." He rejected Cho'gall's suggestion, then smiled smugly, "But there's a more direct way—we can raise it from the seabed and bring the temple to us."

"Is it really possible?" asked an Ogre Mage had recently undergone the transformation.

"Of course," Gul'dan replied. "Not long ago, in our homeland, I successfully lifted a large piece of land with magic—a volcano in Shadowmoon Valley. At that time, I was commanding the Shadow Council, and now I want you to do the same." He looked at his subordinates, and no one raised any further questions or objections. He nodded; these new subordinates were not only stronger than the previous Shadow Council members, but also much more obedient, two things that pleased him greatly.

"When do we begin?" Cho'gall asked finally.

"Now!" Gul'dan said, "Don't waste any more time." He turned and pointed towards the ship's railing. His assistants began to surround him. He closed his eyes and tried to feel for the unfathomable power. It was incredibly strong and would be easy to find. Then Gul'dan tried to grasp it tightly and pull upwards. His consciousness and magic had extended into this force field. Gul'dan began to exert force. With his movements, the sky began to darken, and the surrounding seawater became turbulent.

"I've got it!" Gul'dan gritted his teeth and said to his assistants with a mixture of effort and excitement, "Come help me! Put all your power into the force field I just created, and lift it up with me! Quickly!"

He immediately sensed Cho'gall and the others receiving his power. They channeled their magical energy into their force fields, and lightning flashed, like an impending storm. The clouds in the sky turned a rare deep red, and giant waves engulfed their ship. Gul'dan felt the heaviness of the traction field gradually lessen, which made him feel much better. Although it wasn't as painful as before, it was still a difficult task. Every second, their magic circle strengthened, and a storm raged around them.

Several hours passed, Gul'dan and his companions continued their struggle, but the surrounding Warrior couldn't withstand the powerful force field. Dazzling lightning accompanied by deafening thunder struck, nearly making them dizzy. Huge waves crashed down on them repeatedly, and the ship swayed wildly like a leaf in a whirlwind, seemingly on the verge of falling apart. Seawater soaked their bodies, and the Warrior clung tightly to the oars to avoid being swept away. Some glanced towards Gul'dan; despite the ship's violent rocking, those men remained standing, motionless.

After a while, the smell of smoke rose from the water in front of their ship. Steam and smoke filled the air, and through the smoke, they saw something emerging from the water. It looked like a rock, but what happened next left everyone speechless. The thing rose rapidly from the turbulent sea, growing enormous in an instant. Lava cascaded down its top. What had just been a rock, a small, undulating hill, gradually widened, eventually forming a large landmass. Similar things began to emerge from the water, and they were connected together. As the sea receded, the Orcs could see entire islands rising from the sea, spewing flames, smoke, and steam. Then, another smaller island rose, and subsequently, more islands hidden in the deep sea were revealed to the light of day.

By then, the sky had returned to normal, and the water was no longer as turbulent as before, with much smaller waves. Gul'dan opened his eyes and staggered towards the ship's railing, while the other Warlock knelt wearily on the ground. He looked over there, where thick smoke and heat were billowing, accompanied by a rumbling roar; the shape of an island had already taken shape, and Gul'dan smiled with satisfaction.

"Soon," Gul'dan said softly, gazing at the island ahead and extending his consciousness to locate the temple. "Soon, I will lead you into the temple we have been searching for, where great power resides."

Not far away

"I see them!" Maim exclaimed. "They're on that little island over there!"

Rend Blackhand looked in the direction he was pointing. Nearby, the waves were surging and rolling. Then he noticed some hazy mist rising from the west side of the island, and some dark figures gathering around it— Orcs and Ogre.

"Very good," he nodded, reaching for his axe handle. "Speed up!" he told the other Orcs. "We must catch them before they hide!" On another ship, Maim was giving the same order to his men.

"Their magic is very powerful," Rend reminded those around him. "Gul'dan can easily kill three or four of us in a few minutes, so when you encounter these Warlock, just avoid them, don't let them get close to you, and then surround them before they can cast their spells." He tapped his axe to emphasize, "Although they have powerful magic, they are Orcs just like us, they bleed and they die." His Warrior nodded, understanding Rend's meaning.

"We're about to dock," the helmsman told them. Rend glanced along the ship's side; the rising archipelago was enormous, and the other end was nowhere in sight. Many small boats launched from Gul'dan's ships were moored along the shore, and he could clearly see many Orcs jumping off and entering the dark, damp land.

Rend gave the order to his troops, "Prepare to land! Once you're up there, kill all the traitors!"

"It's Orgrim's army," Cho'gall said to Gul'dan, pointing in that direction. Their small boat had just come to a stop on the beach, the land beneath their feet still trembling. Although the steam had gradually dissipated, lava was still occasionally spewing out from the island.

Gul'dan looked in the direction he was pointing and saw a convoy of transport ships approaching the other side of the island. Judging from the lead ship's movement, it was propelled entirely by human oars, which usually meant one thing—they were Orcs. It seemed the Doomhammer's men had found him.

"Damn Doomhammer!" Gul'dan cursed. "Prepare for battle. We must stop them here."

Cho'gall grinned from both faces. "Don't worry." This giant two-headed Ogre was just as fanatical as the rest of his Horde; they would gladly fight anyone to bring about the destruction of the world.

"They won't get past us," the Ogre promised, drawing his massive iron hammer from behind his back.

Gul'dan nodded. "Very good." He then turned and walked toward the island, followed by Drak'Sool and some Warlock.

"Attack!" Rend, wielding his battle axe, led his Warrior in Charge. "Kill these traitors!"

"Kill them all!" Maim chimed in beside him.

"Kill these little Orcs!" Cho'gall roared.

On this damp coast, the two teams clashed with thunderous force. Axes, warhammers, swords, and spears clashed amidst a flurry of flashing blades, blood splattering and staining the surrounding air with a red mist. The waves also became darker due to the large amount of blood flowing in.

The only difference between the two sides was the number of troops. Gul'dan only had his Doomhammer Clan. The Stormreaver Clan had all followed Gul'dan into the temple, and since they were originally the smallest clan in the Horde, all their members were Warlock, so now only the Doomhammer Clan remained to resist the Blackhand Brothers' forces. In contrast, Blackfang was one of the largest clans in the Horde. Cho'gall knew he was outnumbered, and as the battle progressed, both sides suffered extremely heavy casualties, and this disadvantage quickly became apparent.

The enemy outnumbered him, Cho'gall was slashed in the body from the front and back by two Black Fang Warrior with battle axes, but he managed to kill one of them before he fell.

The setting sun cast its light on the blood-red beach, accompanied by the roars of Orcs. In the end, only the Blackfang Clan and corpses littered the ground remained.

"Now," Rend wiped his axe on the chest of a corpse at his feet, blood still gushing from the wound, "It's Gul'dan's turn now, and he will pay a greater price."

Gul'dan stood on the foundation of an ancient temple, its entrance barely discernible beneath a centuries-old layer of moss. Gul'dan recognized the architectural style; he'd seen it before—very similar to Quel'Thalas, solemn and elegant, once beautiful and magnificent, now dilapidated. But appearances were irrelevant to Gul'dan; he could feel the intense energy emanating from it, drawing him in like an electric current.

"Go in quickly!" he shouted to the other Warlock, then strode into the dark temple first. Gul'dan created a green orb of light to see their surroundings. The hall and antechamber were unrecognizable, the floor covered with a thick layer of Shali and seaweed, and the walls overgrown with shells and marine plants of various sizes.

"Hurry up! You fools!" he ordered his people impatiently. "Scatter! Find the main entrance! We must find the eye chamber before the tomb guards awaken!"