Chapter Summaries

The Scepter of Sargeras unleashed portals and demons inside Jiang Jie, threatening to destroy his body and dantian. Aegwynn, Anveena, Xal'atath, and Fenna helped suppress it, but once the danger passed, they turned on Xal'atath and tried to trap her true body.

• The Scepter of Sargeras opened countless portals, releasing demons and tearing at the space inside Jiang Jie.
• Aegwynn forced Aluneth to lend her power, then joined Anveena and Xal'atath in fighting the Scepter.
• Jiang Jie asked Fenna to pour her demigod-tier Holy Light energy into him, allowing Anveena to help balance the struggle against the Fel.
• The three artifacts and their wielders bound the Scepter of Sargeras, closed its portals, and defeated the remaining demons.
• Anveena thrust the Fist of Tyr into the Holy Light eye of the shadow fish while Aegwynn and Jiang Jie tried to pull Xal'atath's true-body dagger into its Shadow eye.

Jiang Jie, Anveena, and Aegwynn trapped Xal'atath's dagger body in the balanced Three Talents System, preserving the Scepter of Sargeras's suppression. Jiang Jie opened a random portal to the Twisting Nether, and Lord Jaraxxus emerged from it.

• Jiang Jie and his allies pulled Xal'atath's dagger body into the Holy Light fish's eye, where the Three Talents System bound her alongside the Fist of Tyr and the Scepter of Sargeras.
• Jiang Jie maintained balance among the three artifacts, leaving Xal'atath unable to escape unless the system lost its balance or Jiang Jie died.
• Aegwynn urged Jiang Jie to summon a demon through the Gate of the Twisting Nether, and Jiang Jie prepared himself before opening it.
• Jiang Jie saw Argus through the portal and summoned the Legendary Eredar demon Lord Jaraxxus.
• Lord Jaraxxus stepped through and declared that the humans' arrogance would bring their destruction, then froze when he saw Aegwynn.

Lord Jaraxxus was summoned into Jiang Jie's middle dantian and tried to claim the Scepter of Sargeras, but Aegwynn confronted and captured him. After she nearly killed him, an unseen voice ordered her to erase his mind while preserving his memories because it had a use for him.

• Lord Jaraxxus recognized the Scepter of Sargeras and decided it should belong to him.
• Seeing Aegwynn, Lord Jaraxxus tried to flee through the portal, but Jiang Jie closed it and bound him with chains of Holy Light, shadow, and order.
• Lord Jaraxxus unleashed fel attacks, but Aegwynn extinguished and blocked them before preparing her signature purple lightning spell.
• An unseen voice stopped Aegwynn from killing Lord Jaraxxus and told her to erase his mind while preserving his memories.

After breaking Lord Jaraxxus’s mind, Jiang Jie traveled to the Wandering Isle to recover and deepen his understanding of the Three Powers Realm. He reunited with Master Shang Xi, whose bond with the Forest of Staves had made him a powerful Legendary presence on the island.

• Aegwynn shattered Lord Jaraxxus’s memories and mind, leaving his fragmented soul in the condition Jiang Jie needed.
• Jiang Jie told Aegwynn, Anveena, Xal'atath, and Fenna that he would be away in seclusion, then flew off to stabilize his Three Powers Realm and recover his strength.
• Jiang Jie reached Shen-zin Su and asked the turtle to wait longer before he fulfilled his promise; Shen-zin Su agreed.
• Jiang Jie entered the Forest of Staves and greeted Master Shang Xi beneath the tree that had grown from a walking stick.
• Jiang Jie and Master Shang Xi sat as equals to discuss the Dao, while Jiang Jie learned that Shang Xi had reached the Legendary realm and become one with the Forest of Staves.

Jiang Jie used a soul cultivation method to absorb Lord Jaraxxus’s remnant soul and restore him as a subsidiary demon incarnation. After Jaraxxus balanced the Three Powers and suppressed Xal'atath, he departed through the Twisting Nether for a ruined planet.

• After seven days discussing the Dao with Master Shang Xi, Jiang Jie continued cultivating at the Temple of the Five Dawns and condensed a tenth drop of True Essence.
• Jiang Jie chose to control the Fel by devouring Lord Jaraxxus’s remnant soul and used Xiao Feng’s Wondrous Method of Heaven-and-Earth-Spanning Soul Evolution to do so.
• After a month of cultivation, Jiang Jie absorbed Jaraxxus’s Fel knowledge, reassembled his soul, and placed it in Lord Jaraxxus’s body.
• Lord Jaraxxus wielded the Scepter of Sargeras to open and close the Gate of the Twisting Nether at will.
• Jaraxxus wove Fel runes with Aegwynn’s Arcane runes, stabilizing the Three Powers and eliminating Xal'atath’s chance to resist.
• Jiang Jie sent Lord Jaraxxus through the Twisting Nether to a ruined planet, where he could act independently.

Lord Jaraxxus arrived in Outland and manipulated the Burning Legion’s demons into accepting his authority. After killing Socrethar and destroying the Legion’s portals, he prepared to confront Illidan and seize control of the remaining forces.

• Lord Jaraxxus surveyed the fel-ravaged Hellfire Peninsula and learned from a Dread Demon that Illidan had captured Hellfire Citadel and the Black Temple, while Socrethar commanded the Legion’s remaining forces.
• Lord Jaraxxus ordered the demons to gather at the Throne of Kil’jaeden, then flew for two days to Socrethar’s island in Netherstorm.
• Lord Jaraxxus accused Socrethar of betraying the Burning Legion and attacked him, convincing Socrethar’s subordinates not to intervene.
• Lord Jaraxxus killed Socrethar and ordered the demons to assemble at the Throne of Kil’jaeden for campaigns against Illidan.
• Lord Jaraxxus destroyed the Legion’s portals, teleported to the Path of Glory, and looked toward the Black Temple, declaring that the time had come to take control of Outland.

After stabilizing the Three Powers and suppressing Xal'atath, Jiang Jie arranged for Lord Jaraxxus and his allies to strike at the Burning Legion in Outland. He taught Shen-zin Su a soul-cultivation method and returned to Stratholme, wondering whether the war had begun.

• Jiang Jie ordered Anveena to contact Archmage Rommath so Kael'thas and Illidan could coordinate with Lord Jaraxxus against the Burning Legion in Outland.
• Jiang Jie told Pandaren Elder Shaopai he was leaving, then bid Master Shang Xi farewell and promised to return within two or three years.
• Jiang Jie demonstrated that he had stabilized the Three Powers, suppressed Xal'atath, and unified Holy Light, shadow, and fel energy.
• Jiang Jie taught Shen-zin Su the Spirit-Dividing and Essence-Severing Star Art so it could cultivate its soul and eventually divide its spirit and true essence.
• Jiang Jie left Shen-zin Su to practice, then returned with Anveena to Stratholme and wondered whether the war had begun.

Jiang Jie arrived at Grim Batol to cleanse the Old God curse that had driven the Red Dragonflight to guard the city. After learning the curse would erupt when he unraveled it, he ordered everyone to evacuate before he began.

• Tirion Fordring, Falstad, Varian, and Prince Brann led forces onto separate fronts against the Dragonmaw Orcs, Black Dragonflight, and Dark Iron Dwarves.
• Jiang Jie met Highlord Falstad and Valestrasza at Grim Batol, where she explained the Red Dragonflight's duties and its struggle against the Twilight's Hammer.
• Valestrasza told Jiang Jie that Cho'gall and Fandral Staghelm had overwhelmed the defenders and that the dragons guarding the city were suffering from its curse.
• At the source of the curse, Xal'atath revealed that Modgud had used her life and soul to curse Grim Batol and the Wildhammer Dwarves.
• Jiang Jie ordered Valestrasza, Falstad, and all red dragons and Red Dragonspawn to leave the city before he unraveled the curse.

After everyone left the city, Jiang Jie confronted Xal'atath and revealed that he knew she had influenced him to come cleanse Grim Batol. He let her reclaim her power, while Xal'atath reflected on the unpredictable strength of the human heart.

• The red dragons and dragonkin departed, followed by Highlord Falstad, the Wildhammer Gryphon Riders, and the Silver Hand, leaving Jiang Jie alone in the city.
• Jiang Jie sensed the lingering powers of N'Zoth and Xal'atath but resisted their influence.
• Jiang Jie summoned Xal'atath and told her to lift the curse on Grim Batol and reclaim the power she had left there.
• Jiang Jie explained that Xal'atath had strengthened his desire to cleanse the city so she could grow stronger and potentially overpower or control him.
• Xal'atath recalled Natalie, a human priestess she had failed to corrupt, and wondered whether Jiang Jie might possess the same unbreakable quality.

Xal'atath recreated the ancient battle at Grim Batol, then resurrected the Dark Iron Witch Queen by separating her soul from the city's curse. As Xal'atath reclaimed the curse's accumulated power, she prepared to use the Witch Queen against Jiang Jie.

• Xal'atath used the curse to show Jiang Jie the battle in which Modgud and the Dark Iron Dwarves attacked Grim Batol, then abandoned Modgud at a critical moment, allowing Khardros to kill her.
• Xal'atath ended the illusion and revealed that she had separated Modgud's soul from the curse and restored her as a wielder.
• Modgud chose to wield Xal'atath, hoping to return to the Dark Iron Clan and lead it to victory over the other dwarven clans.
• Xal'atath reclaimed the power she had accumulated through deaths caused by the curse in Grim Batol and later conflicts involving the Blackrock Orcs.
• Xal'atath regained power approaching the Demigod level and resolved to exploit Jiang Jie's limited control of the Scepter of Sargeras to kill him.

Jiang Jie used the Three Talents system to defeat Xal'atath after she reclaimed Grim Batol's curses, destroying the Dark Iron Sorcerer-Queen's soul and trapping Xal'atath again. Grim Batol's curses vanished, and Xal'atath realized Jiang Jie's growing strength might eventually let him destroy her.

• Jiang Jie let Xal'atath reclaim the curses while Anveena prayed to Elune and received the Moon Goddess's power.
• Xal'atath empowered the Dark Iron Sorcerer-Queen and expected to defeat Jiang Jie and Anveena, unaware Jiang Jie could complete the Three Talents without the dark dagger.
• Jiang Jie became a demon, took the Scepter of Sargeras, and used chains of Holy Light, shadow, order, and fel to restrain the dark dagger.
• Jiang Jie struck the Dark Iron Sorcerer-Queen with a tricolored punch, annihilating her soul and pulling Xal'atath back into the Taiji Diagram.
• The Taiji Diagram stabilized, the curses on Grim Batol disappeared, and Anveena returned to Jiang Jie's body.
• Xal'atath sulked in Natalie's form and worried that Jiang Jie's growing strength would leave her no chance to escape.

After Jiang Jie cleansed Grim Batol, the Wildhammer Dwarves reclaimed their ancestral city and began rebuilding their kingdom with help from the Red Dragonflight and Lordaeron. The allied forces advanced against Twilight's Hammer and the Black Dragonflight as Wildhammer clans from the Twilight Highlands prepared to return.

• Highlord Falstad thanked Jiang Jie for lifting Grim Batol's curse, and Jiang Jie credited the Red Dragonflight for guarding the city.
• Falstad agreed that the Order of the Silver Hand and the Red Dragonflight would garrison Grim Batol and help use it as a base against Twilight's Hammer.
• Over the next half month, the allied forces pushed east from Grim Batol and captured the Crimson Redoubt and two gorges, driving the Dragonmaw Orcs, Twilight's Hammer, and the Black Dragonflight farther east.
• Wildhammer Dwarves from the Twilight Highlands arrived to discuss returning to Grim Batol, and Falstad agreed while insisting that he retain the final authority there.
• Jiang Jie left the Wildhammer to negotiate their city's future administration and turned to other priorities.

Jiang Jie planned to strengthen his elemental powers to balance Xal'atath and prepare for the coming battle at Blackrock Spire. Meanwhile, a Dragonmaw Clan envoy arrived in Orgrimmar, where Eitrigg challenged the envoy to bring sincerity to negotiations with Thrall.

• Jiang Jie assessed how Xal'atath's increased power had weakened the balance of the Three Powers and considered ways to restore it.
• Jiang Jie decided to develop his earth, fire, water, and wind powers by drawing elemental essences into his body and forming the Four Symbols.
• Jiang Jie told Anveena to bring the four little Elemental Spirits from Teldrassil and said they should go watch the decisive battle near Blackrock Spire.
• An old Orc envoy from the Dragonmaw Clan entered Orgrimmar and was placed under the guards' surveillance.
• Eitrigg introduced himself as Thrall's adviser and told the envoy that Thrall alone was qualified to lead the Orcs.

King Varian and Marshal Reginald held Stormwind Camp beneath Blackrock Mountain while waiting for Grand Duke Nicholas, as the heat threatened their army and Blackrock Spire remained too dangerous to assault. Jaina arrived with the Theramore Mage Corps to cool the camp and urged Varian to wait, promising another powerful ally within a week.

• Varian demanded to attack Blackrock Spire because the deadly heat was weakening Stormwind's troops, but Reginald insisted they wait for Nicholas.
• Reginald told Varian that Nicholas had helped cleanse Grim Batol and was expected to arrive within a day.
• Varian accepted that Stormwind had to wait for Nicholas, who was needed to contend with Nefarian and Blackrock Spire.
• Jaina arrived with more than a hundred Theramore mages and offered to create a frost barrier to cool Stormwind Camp.
• Jaina told Varian that Nicholas had asked her to help and that another powerful ally would arrive within a week at most.

Jiang Jie, Brann, and Old Chen traveled into Blackrock Depths to seek the help of the Dark Iron Dwarves against the Black Dragonflight. Old Chen used his friendship with Coren Direbrew to guide them to the Grim Guzzler, where they arrived by drilling machine.

• Jiang Jie and his companions descended into the entrance hall between Blackrock Spire and Blackrock Depths, avoiding the Blackrock patrols.
• Brann complained about the heat and warned Jiang Jie to be wary of Xal'atath, while Old Chen urged the group to hurry to the Grim Guzzler.
• Jiang Jie explained that Brann could help persuade Princess Moira Thaurissan and that Old Chen knew the route and had connections through Coren Direbrew.
• Old Chen led Jiang Jie and Brann through an abandoned mine, where Dark Iron Dwarves agreed to take them to the Grim Guzzler for gold.
• The Dark Iron drilling machine carried Jiang Jie, Brann, and Old Chen underground, and they reached the Grim Guzzler five minutes later.

Jiang Jie and Old Chen visited Coren Direbrew at the Grim Guzzler and sought his help reaching Emperor Thaurissan and Princess Moira. Coren agreed to take them to the Lyceum disguised as wine-delivery workers, leaving Jiang Jie encouraged that many Dark Iron Dwarves still wanted to resist Ragnaros.

• Old Chen and Coren Direbrew traded insults and fought after drinking together, but their bickering revealed a friendly relationship.
• Coren warned Jiang Jie that fire elementals guarded the Lyceum and that reaching Emperor Thaurissan or Princess Moira would be extremely difficult.
• Jiang Jie urged Coren to help free the Dark Iron Dwarves from Ragnaros, and Coren admitted that most of them wanted their freedom.
• Coren agreed to escort Jiang Jie and his companions to the Lyceum in disguise as wine-delivery workers, in exchange for tax-exempt taverns.
• Jiang Jie watched fire elementals mistreat Dark Iron Dwarves and concluded that Coren and many others would resist if given a chance.

Jiang Jie and his companions infiltrated the Lyceum disguised as Dark Iron dwarves, where Jiang Jie killed Ambassador Flamelash and Anveena concealed the body. They continued toward the Tomb of the Summoner, with Coren warning them that the Lyceum would be dangerous.

• Coren led Jiang Jie, Old Chen, and Brann through Blackrock Depths with a cart of liquor, passing guards and fire elementals on their way to the Hall of Magic.
• Flamelash noticed the disguised intruders lacked Ragnaros's curse and began to expose them, but Jiang Jie killed him with a single strike.
• Coren hid Flamelash's corpse and took his trident, while Anveena burned the body and created an illusion to conceal the killing.
• Anveena gave Flamelash's Heart of Fire to Jiang Jie's fire spirit, Xiaohuo, to strengthen it.
• Coren led the group through the Manufactory to the Tomb of the Summoner and warned them to follow his instructions once they reached the Lyceum.

Jiang Jie defeated the Seven Sages of Dark Iron and earned their blessing to challenge Ragnaros, then broke into the Hall of Instruction and approached Magmus, Emperor Thaurissan’s final line of defense.

• The Seven Sages of Dark Iron emerged from their coffins and demanded that Jiang Jie and his companions prove themselves before they could challenge Ragnaros.
• Coren challenged Anger'rel and was quickly defeated, prompting the Sage to lament how much the Dark Iron Dwarves had declined.
• Jiang Jie fought all seven sages at once and defeated them in under a minute using less than a fifth of his strength.
• Doom'rel accepted Jiang Jie’s right to face Ragnaros and urged him to free the Dark Iron Dwarves by killing the Firelord.
• Jiang Jie forced open the route into the Hall of Instruction, sealed the doors against the Dark Iron guards, and walked toward Magmus.

Jiang Jie and his companions defeated Magmus and entered Emperor Thaurissan’s Imperial Seat, where they found Fandral Staghelm and other Twilight’s Hammer cultists seeking Ragnaros’s power. Thaurissan refused to fight Jiang Jie, and Jiang Jie prepared to face Fandral as their allies blocked Leyara and Astaria.

• Jiang Jie shattered Magmus with a single punch, and Anveena claimed his flame core for Xiaohuo and Xiaotu.
• Jiang Jie opened the Imperial Seat’s gates and found Emperor Thaurissan, the Shadowforge Council, and Twilight’s Hammer cultists, including Fandral Staghelm, Leyara, and Astaria.
• Fandral demanded that Thaurissan order an attack on Jiang Jie, but Thaurissan refused and left the dispute to them.
• Jiang Jie challenged Fandral over their past encounters, and Fandral revealed power approaching the Demigod level.
• Jiang Jie summoned Holy Light, shadow, and Fel to face Fandral, while Old Chen blocked Leyara and Coren Direbrew and Brann confronted Astaria.

Emperor Thaurissan watched the battle with Princess Moira Thaurissan, who urged him to seize the chance to free the Dark Iron Dwarves from Ragnaros. As Coren and Brann fought dark archdruid Astaria to a stalemate, Thaurissan remained fearful of the Firelord’s power.

• Princess Moira Thaurissan stood beside Emperor Thaurissan and reminded him that the Dark Iron Dwarves could resist Ragnaros or leave Blackrock Depths.
• Emperor Thaurissan recalled meeting Moira in Searing Gorge, falling in love with her, and becoming inspired by her belief that dwarves should unite.
• Moira encouraged Thaurissan to trust Jiang Jie and said the grand duke could defeat Ragnaros, while Thaurissan worried that the Firelord was too terrifying to oppose.
• Coren and Brann teamed up against dark archdruid Astaria, with Coren fighting at close range and Brann supporting him with his marksmanship.