"My lord, may your radiance forever shine upon the Stoneheart Horde!"
Onyx raised his clenched fist and placed it over his chest in salute to Orion. Orion smiled and waved, then continued discussing city construction plans with Onyx.
They spoke at length until dusk, when Onyx finally took his leave. Sitting alone on his throne, Orion half-closed his eyes. It was unclear whether he was deep in thought or rely dozing.
The mont he entered the Survivor's Platform, Orion was bombarded with ssages from Aerin.
"Hulk, hurry and log in!"
"There's no one in my entire life I've wanted more than you. I need to make a deal!"
"As long as you give
crystal cores, I'll do anything you want. Anything at all. Don't you want to experience pure and beautiful elf sex?"
"Hulk, please, hurry and log in!"
"… … …"
Orion glanced through Aerin's ssages, guessing that in her desperation to strengthen herself, she'd beco sowhat incoherent.
"I'm here," he replied. Within a minute, Aerin sent another ssage.
"Darling, you finally showed up!"
Seeing this response, Orion chuckled.
"Don't call
by such intimate nas. As far as I can tell, we're only casual acquaintances at best," Orion shot back. His words struck ho, and Aerin felt decidedly rebuffed.
"Hulk, where are you?" she typed. "I want to challenge you in bed!"
Orion ignored her slightly deranged suggestion and, at his own pace, sent a reply:
"First, over the next while, you'll provide
with a batch of entry-level Toughness Potions, improved to my specifications.
"Second, tell
what else you can brew. I have first priority to purchase any new items.
"Third…"
Orion laid out nurous conditions. Aerin, delighted, agreed to them all. Pleased by her cooperation, he proposed a trade. After sending so crystal cores her way, Orion also received a rare treasure from Aerin.
Seated on his throne, Orion opened his palm to reveal an egg about the size of a clenched fist. He used a fingernail to make a small cut on his skin, letting a drop of blood fall onto the mysterious elf egg.
Monts later, a bright-blue faerie larva, only about two inches long, broke through its shell and curled up in Orion's palm.
"So this is a faerie insect?" Orion mused. "According to Aerin, if properly raised, it might evolve into a Faerie Dragon. Who knows whether that's true."
After pondering for a bit, he placed the little faerie insect into a wooden box, planning to have Lilith raise it in the rear garden among the magical plants.
The insect could gather magical energy to speed the plants' growth, while the ripened magical plants would in turn hasten the insect's developnt. It was a neat little cycle.
…
Elsewhere, in an unknown realm called the Forest of Nature, Aerin let out a triumphant shout and leaped up from her bed woven of blossoms and vines.
She felt so exhilarated that she even perford a lively elf dance in the middle of the room. When the excitent had finally subsided, she lounged on her bed, opened her palm, and stared in joy at the Alpha-level crystal cores shining there.
Feeling the huge energy pulsing within the cores, Aerin couldn't help but whisper to herself:
"With these, I have the main materials to advance to High Elf. As soon as I gather a few more high-level magical plants, I can petition the council to help
brew a portion of the Water of Eternity. That'll guarantee a one-hundred-percent success rate for my evolution!"
"This is wonderful… I can finally beco a High Elf!"
"Oh, Hulk, you're amazing. If we lived on the sa continent, I'd definitely find you and use my charms to captivate you…"
…
Back in the castle of Stoneheart City, Orion returned his focus to the Survivor's Platform. Not seeing any new ssages from Julius Caesar felt odd.
"Could Caesar have died?" he wondered to himself. Shrugging off the thought, he turned his attention to Arthas instead.
Onyx's reminder of the dark beast tides had tipped Orion off that he should prepare for the void passage.
Traveling to the Valkorath Realm ant informing Arthas as well as requesting a fixed-point teleportation scroll from Deputy Commander Edward.
"Bro, in two months, I'm heading to the Valkorath Realm," Orion said, getting straight to the point.
"Make sure you're well prepared," Arthas replied. "There's a war going on in the Valkorath Realm. I'll send you so information shortly—an overview of the enemies currently invading our realm.
If you need anything, just ask in the Champions Alliance channel. What's a big hassle to you might be an easy fix for us. And don't be afraid to incur favors in the Champions Alliance. The more favors you owe, the faster you'll grow."
Arthas held nothing back from Orion. After all, he knew exactly how many Lord's Stones Orion had consud. Last ti, when Orion sought him out to purify a Lord's Stone so Orion's power could increase, Arthas hadn't hesitated to give Orion so of his own reserve.
That transaction helped Orion grow stronger, and it also gave Arthas a chance to beco a demigod himself. Ever since then, he and Orion had ford a deeper bond.
"I understand. Thanks for the heads-up!" Orion appreciated Arthas's kind advice, but at the mont, as the Lord of the Stoneheart Horde, Orion had no shortage of problems to handle. His territory was huge, and it would take ti to absorb and manage everything properly, from population issues to shaping a unified set of values. Such matters couldn't be solved overnight.
With a sigh, he opened the public channel of the Champions Alliance and saw everyone discussing and complaining about various things:
Leonidas: "Arthas, I need reinforcents over here. Send
a Legendary-level lich. My troops are getting wiped out!"
Arthas: "I've already sent Rumbold your way!"
Arthas: "Alexander, co here. Let's work together to destroy that brood nest in the northern region."
Alexander: "Hang on, I'm in the middle of a fight!"
Edward: "Leonidas, want
to send you support?"
Leonidas: "No need. Arthas's man Rumbold just teleported in!"
Arthas: "Is the battle in the central zone looking rough, Deputy Commander?"
Edward: "Don't worry. The commander's forces are holding the line there. Nothing's going to happen to our base of operations."
Alexander: "Undead guy, get ready. I'll teleport over once I'm done here!"
Arthas: "Got it!"
…
Orion frowned as he read through his allies' conversation. He quickly realized that the situation in the Valkorath Realm wasn't particularly rosy—Leonidas and Arthas seed to be lacking enough troops.
Even so, after reading all their ssages, Orion felt a thrill at the prospect of going there himself.
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