Leticia, who had ample time to aim, had already calculated Sabellian's movement trajectory. The Moon-Collapsing Glaive, shrouded in black light, struck the Black Dragon squarely in his unarmored underbelly just as he rolled back over.
A sky-shattering scream erupted from Sabellian's maw. The Black Dragon's abdomen was completely ripped open from bottom to top by the black moon-glaive, and the spraying blood rained down upon the Icebite Trolls below, who were unable to dodge the crimson downpour.
Sabellian never imagined that this simple mission would turn into a life-threatening crisis. In his desperation, he endured the excruciating pain and forcibly constricted his abdominal muscles, temporarily stemming the irreversible and severe injury.
Terrified, Sabellian dared not linger any longer. He flew toward the high heavens in a wobbly, zig-zagging path, howling in pain all the way, while dragon blood continued to spray from the wound he couldn't fully close.
"Ony!"
Hearing Andreas's call, Onyxia, who had been hiding to the side, hesitated for a long while. Ultimately, she let out a sigh and did not revert to her original form to strike the "drowning dog."
Celeste asked in confusion, "Are we not going to chase him down and kill him? We've deeply offended him this time. If this Black Dragon survives, he will certainly look for a chance to retaliate."
Onyxia shook her head. "Forget it. Let's spare his life this time. After all, he took care of Nefarian and me when we were small."
...
Although Andreas was somewhat annoyed by Onyxia's failure to follow the plan, after hearing her reasoning, he grudgingly accepted her choice.
"Fine, but let this be the last time."
Andreas warned her sternly, "I know you have many acquaintances within the Black Dragonflight, but since you and Sintharia have chosen a side, you must walk this path firmly from now on."
"Remember one phrase: Hesitation leads to defeat."
Since she was in the wrong, Onyxia did not talk back this time. She submissively accepted Andreas's reprimand and reminder.
The heavily injured Icebite Trolls were still somewhat confused about the situation. Led by their witch doctors, they were kneeling on the ground in prayer.
The dragon blood splattered on their bodies seemed to be treated as some kind of holy relic; the witch doctors were busy scraping the blood off each individual Troll.
Andreas couldn't be bothered to deal with these half-crippled Trolls. After clearing the threat of Sabellian, they bypassed the Trolls' sight and resumed their journey northward.
Leaving the Alterac Mountains and crossing Lake Lordamere, Andreas and his companions entered the Tirisfal region within a few days.
Tirisfal Glades in this era was free from any pollution. The lush, verdant forests gave Andreas a sense of déjà vu, as if he had returned to Ashenvale.
Although he wasn't sure exactly where the Highborne had landed, judging by the direction the fleet had departed, the best landing spot was undoubtedly near the western coastline of Tirisfal.
During their flight, Andreas and the others finally discovered another intelligent species in the Eastern Kingdoms besides Trolls—Humans.
The Humans of this era still lived a very primitive tribal life. Most wore furs stripped from wild beasts to keep out the cold, and their weapons were primitive iron tools passed down from the Vrykul era.
Onyxia, who had lived in the Eastern Kingdoms for hundreds of years before, had never seen these "pink-skinned" creatures. She asked Andreas curiously, "What are these short creatures? They don't look like a mutation of Trolls."
"A brand-new race of intelligent beings. Let's call them Humans for now."
Even though he knew that the Humans of Azeroth were completely different from those in his previous life, Andreas still felt a bit nostalgic looking at these primitive humans.
Compared to the tall, strong, and physically beautiful Night Elves, the bodies of Humans appeared very frail, and the lower limit of their physical appearance was significantly lower than that of Night Elves.
At this time, no one would believe that these fragile creatures would eventually defeat the Trolls and become the new overlords of the Eastern Kingdoms.
In the Tirisfal Glades of this era, Humans and Trolls had already begun clashing over survival resources.
Facing Trolls who stood over 2.5 meters tall, Humans held no advantage in direct combat. Their living space was compressed by the Forest Trolls, with most gathering in the western part of Tirisfal Glades.
Fortunately, Tirisfal—being far from Zul'Aman—was not a key development area for the Trolls, and the Trolls living here were not a strictly trained regular army. This allowed the fledgling Humans to gain some breathing room.
Flying along the western forest, Andreas unexpectedly found that this long coastline lacked suitable beaches for landing.
Following the coastline to the northwest of the glades, Andreas finally found the possible landing site of the Highborne near a shore filled with many reefs.
With a clue in hand, following the trail became much easier.
When intelligent beings establish a settlement, fresh water resources are the primary consideration.
Heading south along the coast, Andreas and the others soon discovered a small lake and found traces of human habitation near its shores.
Onyxia's drake form caused the nearby humans to flee in panic as she landed. They had never seen such a flying creature. With a mixture of curiosity and fear, the leader of this human tribe tremblingly stepped forward to speak.
After a session of communication involving both speech and gestures, Andreas learned the whereabouts of the Highborne from this human chieftain.
When such a large group of long-eared creatures with similar physical characteristics to himself entered the Tirisfal region, even without direct contact with Dath'Remar and the others, relevant rumors would naturally spread to all human clans.
Coincidentally, this group of humans were the very ones who had direct contact with the Highborne initially, further confirming the landing site Andreas had previously speculated.
Andreas was currently in the area near what would later be known as the Calston Estate. From the humans settled there, Andreas learned that Dath'Remar led the Highborne away from human territory, heading deep into the western mountains to find a settlement.
"The west...?"
Andreas had a bad premonition. Dath'Remar wouldn't have led the Highborne to the vicinity of the Tomb of Tyr, would he?
The Tomb of Tyr was not a good place to be. Zakajz, who was killed by Tyr's self-destruction, was also buried within his tomb.
Entities of the Old God system shared a common trait: extraordinary regenerative abilities. Even if their physical bodies died, as long as their souls remained, they could gradually recover over a long period until they were capable of resurrection.
Zakajz was one of the C'Thraxxi generals under Yogg-Saron. If Andreas's memory was correct, this fellow had nearly resurrected twice during the long years to come.
The first time was due to King Thoradin's "death-seeking" curiosity, though he eventually made up for his mistake with his life, plunging the sword Strom'kar into Zakajz's head, which strengthened the seal and further weakened the general.
The second time... was when the "Greater Lord" adventurers controlled by players sought their Artifact weapons.
The ominous premonition was confirmed. Andreas and the others found traces of the Highborne near the large lake close to the Tomb of Tyr. A giant Silver Hand stood in the center of the lake.
Andreas's sudden descent from the sky with the Black Dragons nearly caused the jittery Highborne to launch an attack. Fortunately, Dath'Remar shouted for them to stop at the critical moment.
Reverting to human form upon landing, Andreas looked at the haggard Dath'Remar and let out a long sigh.
"Dath'Remar, was it worth it?"
"Of course it was worth it."
Releasing his daughter Celeste, who had lunged into his arms with excitement at their reunion, Dath'Remar smiled and gave Andreas a hug. "We saw no future in Astranaar. It was better to risk a gamble and leave. As it turns out, we succeeded."
Andreas shook his head. "To be precise, you have only succeeded halfway."