The Temptation of Freedom

"Actually, I am—" The mysterious man paused, "Although I really want to tell you my true identity, now is probably not the time. Who I am is not important; what is important is who you are."

Medivh sighed inwardly, thinking, "So he still won't say it."

"Who am I? I am Medivh, of course," he said.

The mysterious man shook his head. "No, Medivh is just a name. You can be called Medivh, I can be called Medivh, anyone can be called Medivh, but are they the same person as you? Obviously not. A name is just a label. What I want to ask is, if you remove the name Medivh, then who are you?"

Medivh suddenly smiled. "That's an interesting question, but I'm past the age of discussing philosophy. Just say what you want to say."

The mysterious man, however, was taken aback by Medivh's complete lack of response. He shrugged somewhat awkwardly. "Alright, what I'm saying is, you were once the Guardian of this world, and you were also once controlled by Sargeras, who wanted to destroy it. In the end, you were defeated by two inexplicable guys. After experiencing so much, don't you think your life is incredibly dramatic? Don't you feel like your life is like that of a character in a third-rate novel? Haven't you ever wondered why your fate has been so bumpy, and why your experiences so bizarre?"

Medivh frowned. "You mean, the Will of the Great Universe truly exists? My fate is controlled by the will of the universe?"

"No, there is indeed a force controlling your destiny, but it has nothing to do with the universe. In fact, everyone in this world is controlled by this force. The difference is that the more famous a person is, the more they are controlled. People often see history as the result of countless coincidences: if Arthas hadn't drawn Frostmourne, if Thrall hadn't escaped the Orcs concentration camp, if Grommash Hellscream hadn't drunk Demon Blood, if you hadn't been possessed by Sargeras —but there are no coincidences at all. It's all predetermined. The trajectory of everyone's fate in this world has already been planned, and you can only follow this trajectory—if you don't try to change it."

Medivh asked incredulously, "What you're saying is a bit hard to believe. So who orchestrated all of this?"

"It doesn't matter who orchestrated all this, since you wouldn't know them anyway. What matters is that I can help you break free from this force. You should know I'm not lying. I believe that after everything we've been through, you can distinguish truth from falsehood," the mysterious man said excitedly.

Medivh stared at the mysterious man for a long time. "What you said is indeed true, at least my intuition tells me you are not lying to me. So, are you the GM?"

"No, of course not. On the contrary, the GM is my enemy. They control the laws of this universe and naturally want to maintain its operation. Therefore, they will never break this state and will prevent anyone from breaking these rules. The GM is a beneficiary; how could they possibly overthrow this universe? However, I do know many secrets that you don't know, and these secrets are the source of my confidence in helping you break these rules."

Medivh nodded. "Could you reveal a little bit?"

The mysterious man said, "Of course, that's what I was just about to say."

Did you know that our universe is composed of two parts: the Sky Universe and another universe? These two universes are connected through a very hidden passage.

Those GMs and their masters can only control the laws of this part of the Sky Universe. As for the other universe, they know nothing about it, just like us, and that is precisely what we can take advantage of.

Did you know that the Old Gods were not beings of this world? They came from a far more ancient and mysterious other world. That other world was so mysterious and possessed unprecedented power that even the gods feared it. They sealed the passage between the two worlds, wanting to make that other world forgotten by people.

However, if we can break through this boundary, the two worlds will merge into one. At that time, the original laws of the Sky World will no longer apply, and you, like everyone else, will be freed from the fate that binds you.

Medivh (Astral Traveler): "I must say, this offer is very attractive, but how do I know you're telling the truth?"

"Of course you know what I'm saying is true. You can sense that something is wrong with this world, can't you? Look at everyone else, the people around you, heroes or demons, they're nothing but puppets of fate, thinking they possess great power, yet they are nothing. And you have the opportunity to bring them freedom, all you need to do is complete our plan."

"Freedom? Destiny?" Medivh murmured to himself, then suddenly looked up, his eyes gleaming with an unusual light. "Alright, I'll join you."

"To open the portal to another world, we need the help of the Old Gods. However, the Old Gods themselves fled from another world after their defeat, and they don't want their world to be shared by other beings of their kind. Therefore, we must use some powerful methods."

To understand what kind of beings the Old Gods truly were, we must understand their physiological structure, which means we need the Blood of the Old Gods. So, have you placed people around Azathoth?

Medivh nodded. "Yes, Azathoth has a female mage who is one of my admirers. I only gave her a slight hint, and she agreed to help me collect the Blood of the Old Gods —as long as there is an opportunity."

"That's good. Trust me, she will definitely have a chance. Once we have the Blood of the Old Gods, we can analyze the physiological composition of the Old Gods, and then we can begin the next step of the plan."

Meanwhile—on the other side of the Dark Portal —the world of Draenor—

Standing on the high platform where the Dark Portal stood, gazing at the endless reddish-brown land before him, and breathing in the sulfurous air, Xiao Yu took a deep breath. Throne of the Elements, here I come.

The army had crossed the Dark Portal and formed ranks on the Dark Portal plain outside. It was a wide plain where the Orcs had once encamped before invading the continent of Azeroth, so the open space in front of them could easily accommodate Azathoth's army.

Azathoth summoned his heroes to discuss their next steps.

Azathoth (the Source of Chaos): "Then, Night Elf, since you've been to Draenor before and are familiar with the terrain, tell me how to get to the Throne of the Elements?" He said, glancing at Maiev Shadowsong.

Maiev Shadowsong (Watchers): "Crossing Hellfire Peninsula, over the Nether Mountains, through the Shadowmoon Valley, across Zangarmarsh, then Veilwood, and then Nagrand. The Throne of the Elements lies on a plain in the north of Nagrand."

Azathoth (Source of Chaos): "That sounds like quite a lot of routes. What kind of monsters will we encounter along the way?"

Maiev Shadowsong (Watchers): "Heh, there are many reasons. Hellfire Peninsula is the territory of the Fel Orcs, and their leader is Kargath Bladefist, who is loyal to Illidan. They will attack anyone who dares to invade their territory, not to mention everyone knows about the feud between Illidan and me. Night Elf are absolutely unwelcome here."

"The Nether Mountains are the territory of the Ethereal. It was originally just a barren mountain range, but after a very rare mineral was discovered, the Ethereal took over. They will never be merciful in protecting their possessions. These creatures from the Astral Plane possess powerful magical abilities and are very difficult to deal with—of course, with your strength, it shouldn't be a problem."

"Then there's the Shadowmoon Valley. It used to be a quiet valley, but the Orcs Death Knight Teron Gorefiend conquered it and carried out a massacre. Now it's full of Draenei Undead, and they'll kill anyone who dares to enter the valley."

"Then there's the Zangarmarsh, teeming with ferocious beasts that will attack anything that looks edible. Not to mention, it's now Naga territory. The Naga who followed Illidan on his expedition to Outland have taken over there. I guess you're familiar with the Naga, aren't you?"

"Then there's the Veilwood, the territory of the Arakkoa. These creatures never like dealing with strangers; they prefer to slit a stranger's throat rather than sit down and talk. Only overwhelming power can subdue them, so a war is still unavoidable. Finally, there's the Nagrand. Relatively speaking, it's safer there. Apart from some native Orcs, there aren't any particularly serious threats. Although those Orcs are savage and ignorant, at least you can deal with them—oh, right, I heard there are some Gronn roaming the Nagrand plains. They are descendants of the ogre demigod Gruul, possessing immense strength and enormous size. They don't even put dragons in their eyes; in fact, they enjoy hunting dragons. Considering your group has many Dragon Clan, war is very likely to break out there as well—well, that should be all."

(It really is fraught with danger), Xiao Yu thought to himself, but he liked it. He was only one level away from reaching the maximum level, and his reputation was about to advance. He could grind monsters along the way, gain some experience and reputation, and have a better chance of winning when he reached the Throne of the Elements.

Azathoth (the Source of Chaos): "Sounds good. Then I will personally lead the way. Any enemy who dares to stand in our way will be crushed. March on!"