When Antonidas led Rhonin and Jaina into the conference room, he found that everyone else had already arrived. He smiled and said, "It seems Dalaran is late."
"No, it only starts when Dalaran arrives." Aiden saw Rhonin, the red-bearded mage still looking travel-worn. "Rhonin, you just got back, right?"
"Actually, I only returned to Dalaran a few minutes ago and came here without stopping." Rhonin made a helpless expression. "But this city is truly a city of miracles. I heard that just over a month ago, this place was completely in ruins."
"I can attest to that," Mograine said.
"Unbelievable."
"Then let's get back to the main topic. Ms. Vayne and Ms. Quinn have discovered traces of Kel'Thuzad's minions. It's certain that the lich is hiding there as well." Aiden pointed to the area near the Broken Ridge in Alterac Valley on the map. "There are some caves here, and those undead are hiding inside. It can be inferred that Kel'Thuzad should also be in these caves, concocting plague venom, preparing to spread the Scourge."
"He won't escape this time," the Archmage said in a deep voice. The shame of Scholomance last time will absolutely not happen again. He was confident that the mages of Dalaran would be more vigilant this time, leaving no opportunity for the dreadlord to take advantage of.
Aiden said, "According to current intelligence, the number of undead soldiers under Kel'Thuzad is currently over two thousand. This number is basically within the range that the forces that can be mobilized in the Hillsbrad region can handle. However, we have discovered that he is using ogres to create undead soldiers. Everyone knows the strength of ogres. If these huge and incredibly strong creatures lose their fear, how terrifying would they become? Moreover, the target area is Alterac Valley, which requires entering the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Lordaeron. Therefore, before the operation, Lord Commander Fordring, you need to contact Lordaeron to discuss this matter to avoid misunderstandings."
"Yes, General!" Fordring replied loudly.
Aiden nodded. That "General" really made him feel a sense of accomplishment.
"Dalaran will still send mages to cast imprisonment spells to prevent Kel'Thuzad from escaping by teleportation. No problem, right?"
"Rest assured." Antonidas nodded. This time, he would not only create imprisonment arrays but also send out elite mage units to completely eliminate this traitor, Kel'Thuzad.
Aiden looked at the future Ashbringer: "Lord Commander Mograine, your army will act together with the Valoran Legion. I am not good at commanding, so the troops under my command will listen to the arrangements of the highest-ranking commander on the battlefield. In Hillsbrad Foothills, that will be you, sir."
Mograine's spirit lifted: "Yes, General!"
Aiden instructed, "Maintain strict secrecy before starting the operation. Remember this. Does anyone have anything to add?"
Everyone shook their heads.
"Then let's all act accordingly!"
Fordring left first to report to King Terenas. Antonidas had other matters to discuss with Aiden, so he stayed behind. Mograine and his two deputies were about to leave when Aiden stopped him:
"Please wait, Lord Commander Mograine."
Mograine stayed and asked, "Do you have any other instructions, General?"
"A reminder." What Aiden was thinking about was the artifact against the Scourge, "Ashbringer." He looked at Archmage Antonidas, "It's good that the Archmage is here, so I can verify something."
"What?" Antonidas asked.
Aiden said, "May I ask, in this world, is it true that when forging some artifacts, some strong wills will give the artifact some special attributes?"
Antonidas was a little puzzled: "You mean?"
Aiden looked at Mograine: "I know that Lord Commander Mograine has a collection that will be an artifact against the Scourge in the future."
"Oh?" These words made everyone turn their attention to the protagonist of the topic.
Mograine felt a pang in his heart when he saw everyone pointing at him: "Are you saying—"
"That's it." Aiden nodded in acknowledgment.
"What exactly is it?" Rhonin couldn't help but ask when he saw the two speaking in riddles.
Mograine silently took off the gauntlet on his left hand, showing his left hand to everyone—it was a nearly withered and twisted claw. The grey-black skin was tightly attached to the finger bones, making people involuntarily think of necromancers.
"This!"
All those who were unaware stared in horror at that hand.
Mograine said in a deep voice, "During the last battle at Blackrock Spire, I killed an orc warlock and then obtained a trophy from him. It was a black crystal. When my left hand picked it up, it became like this." He smiled self-deprecatingly: "This is a scar that even the Holy Light cannot heal."
Eadric the Pure exclaimed: "This must be an evil relic; we should destroy it immediately!"
Antonidas looked at Aiden: "The artifact you mentioned to deal with the Scourge is made from that black crystal?"
"Yes," Aiden nodded.
"Evil items can only forge evil artifacts! We cannot allow ourselves to fall just to deal with the evil undead. I suggest destroying it immediately!" General Eadric the Pure stared at Aiden as he made his suggestion, but it didn't sound like a "suggestion" at all.
Seeing everyone looking at him, Aiden explained, "Then let me quote the future Highlord Mograine's theory. Before using it to forge a divine weapon, Mograine proposed the theory that 'without evil, justice cannot exist alone; the other side of the Holy Light is the Shadow.' The Shadow Crystal he collected, after absorbing a large amount of Holy Light power, sublimated into a 'Source of Divinity'! It not only healed Mograine's left hand, but the divine weapon forged from it is also a divine weapon that completely counters the Scourge; no divine weapon can restrain the Scourge more than it."
"Without evil, justice cannot exist alone?"
"The other side of the Holy Light is the Shadow?"
The paladins present fell into deep thought. Mograine's eyes revealed complete agreement.
Aiden always felt that Mograine might not be the most powerful paladin, but he must be the paladin who had the deepest understanding of the essence of the Holy Light!
Uther the Lightbringer, the most powerful paladin of the Alliance, piously believed in the Holy Light throughout his life and selflessly dedicated himself, but he didn't even know that the power of the Holy Light came from a pure Holy Light being called 'Naaru.' This pure being of light would respond to the prayers of believers. Therefore, those who were not pious enough or had doubts in their hearts could not receive the Holy Light's response. And as a cosmic being, the Naaru's favor was not limited to humans.
In the original history, Uther clearly deprived Tirion Fordring of the right to use the Holy Light. However, when he desperately called upon the Holy Light to save the dying Eitrigg, the Holy Light responded to his call. Or rather, the Naaru responded to his call.
The lifespan of these Holy Light beings, the Naaru, is limited, although very long. When they die, they collapse into pure dark creatures—Void Gods!
Therefore, Mograine's statement that 'the other side of the Holy Light is the Shadow' revealed the essence of the Holy Light.
The purest Shadow Crystal, after you infuse it with a large amount of Holy Light power, will be reborn as the Source of Divinity.
The purest Holy Light Naaru, after exhausting its power and dying, will turn into a dark and twisted Naaru.
This all illustrates a universal truth—extremes meet!
However, the two devout and somewhat fanatical servants of the Holy Light completely rejected this concept.
Isilien shouted, "Heretical nonsense!"
Abbendis stared at Aiden, clenching his fists tightly, "Please take back such words!"
The words of the two were filled with a strong smell of gunpowder.
At this time, Kayle stepped forward, her Holy Fire ignited the Judgment Sword in her hand, and the terrifying temperature still scorched the two fanatical believers through the air.
The Judicator coldly stared at them, "You are crossing the line of politeness and respect, mortals!"
This was the first time she spoke to people as a "god." Kayle's posture completely shocked the two disrespectful fanatics, and they took a few steps back in horror before feeling a little better.
"Kayle," Aiden called out to her, signaling her not to be like this.
Kayle stared at the three clerics present and said, "The Holy Light you devoutly believe in has been ruled by our Eternal race for countless years. The Holy Light helps us kill enemies and heal our wounds. I am confident that I understand its essence better than any of you." A gentle light appeared in her left hand, which was not holding the sword, "Although our civilization and worldview are not on the same standard, I still want to tell you a truth—"
The light in her palm became brighter and brighter, and everyone could feel the pure Holy Light power within. Although it was only a single light source, it completely illuminated the entire conference room, and nothing could cast a shadow. When it was pure to the extreme, darkness suddenly descended, and the Holy Light in Kayle's hand transformed into a mass of dark energy that was constantly wriggling and devouring external light!
"The extreme of light is darkness. This is the essence of the Holy Light!"
After the black energy disappeared, everyone tried to adapt to the natural light coming in from the doors and windows. However, Kayle's demonstration was too shocking. Isilien and Abbendis were completely in a state of sluggishness and faith collapse. Mograine felt as if the clouds in front of him had been cleared away, and he felt a burst of ecstasy. The others fell into deep thought.
Extremes meet, not only illuminating light and darkness, but it is also effective for other things and laws. The wise archmages felt that they had seen a new world—that was the world outside the bottleneck of strength that had troubled him for a long time and almost gave up hope!
Aiden saw Jaina fall into confusion. She seemed to want to grasp something, but she couldn't find the key point.
"Extremes meet," Aiden whispered a reminder.
"Extremes meet?" The confusion in Jaina's eyes gradually disappeared, and a bright yellow flame jumped out of her palm, constantly beating. Then, an ice with the opposite properties was produced on the other hand.
"I understand." The aura on her body completely changed, and her clear eyes revealed a confident light.
Jaina finally broke through that layer of film and successfully entered the realm of a hero!