The lich, Ras Frostwhisper, was nearing 'Ghost' status.
What is 'Ghost'?
If you asked Aiden, he would tell you it's dying eight times.
And clearly, his next death would complete that goal.
It should be soon, as the Alliance army had already pushed to the doorstep of his master, Kel'Thuzad.
He had nowhere left to retreat.
Since becoming a lich, it was the first time he felt that a lich's life could be so miserable.
Sometimes, being undead was more painful than simply dying completely, because each death meant experiencing his soul being scorched by holy fire until almost nothing remained.
That kind of pain far exceeded any physical harm.
The agony of a death row inmate being subjected to slow slicing felt like nothing compared to such torment.
After resurrecting once more, he gathered with Gandling, who always managed to teleport away in danger, and all the remaining forces of the Cult of the Damned.
At first glance, there were two to three hundred people, but the Alliance army outnumbered them several times over.
There was no chance of fighting head-on; they would only be crushed, just like he was when facing that detestable angel.
Each resurrection weakened his soul slightly.
Although he still possessed the power bestowed by the Lich King, his soul was now incredibly fragile.
Perhaps the next death would be a permanent farewell.
Now, he was faintly looking forward to that moment—could it be that his will had been twisted by the continuous torment of death?
"That lich is really tough," Aiden muttered in the crowd.
"I think he's gotten used to dying."
Rhonin deeply agreed.
He didn't know why, but he actually felt some sympathy for this lich who had once brought him immense life-threatening danger.
How arrogant he had been when he first appeared, but after dying twice in a row, he would resurrect and cast a Frost Nova, only to be killed again by the angel.
Then, he would bring the Scourge minions to their doorstep again, cast an almost useless spell, and repeat his death process.
It was truly tragic.
Antonidas pushed through the crowd and stepped forward, shouting to Kel'Thuzad in the crowd: "Kel'Thuzad, why did you devote yourself to such dark and evil deeds?
We warned you about the consequences of researching such spells back then.
Now, you will face true retribution!"
"Do you think you have victory within your grasp, Archmage?" Kel'Thuzad sneered.
"How could you ignorant people possibly comprehend the greatness of my master?
He has foreseen your pathetic fate long ago, and I am merely following the tide of history."
Uther shouted: "Unfortunately, he cannot help you resolve your current predicament, Kel'Thuzad.
We will not allow his schemes to succeed!"
He raised his warhammer and exclaimed: "By the Holy Light, the judgment of justice has arrived.
Attack, warriors!"
The Lightbringer was the first to charge forward, followed immediately by the other paladins.
The sounds of shouting and killing echoed throughout the Undercity.
Under the absolute disadvantage in numbers, the Scourge minions fell like straw.
Even the agile gargoyles were helpless against the powerful firepower of the mages, let alone the acolytes, warlocks, and necromancers.
Kayle's Sword of Conviction ignited all nearby enemies with holy fire with every swing.
One couldn't help but suspect that, given enough time, she alone could clear out all the enemies in Scholomance.
Kel'Thuzad remained under heavy protection, with several abominations blocking all incoming spells for him.
He hid behind a safe barrier, chanting incantations, seemingly unconcerned about the crisis of his loyal followers falling in droves.
For some reason, seeing him so calm, Aiden had a bad feeling.
Could this villain still have the ability to turn the tables?
But how was that possible?
Although he was unleashing his divine power and throwing spells wildly, he could only cause a little trouble and could not defeat the Alliance army.
His end would come when his protection disappeared, unless the confinement array failed, giving him a chance to escape.
But would the confinement array fail?
The answer is: Yes!
To prevent the array from being destroyed, Archmage Antonidas had set up three confinement arrays around Darrowmere Lake.
Any one of them functioning normally could prevent the use of long-distance teleportation within the Undercity.
Furthermore, in addition to the array where Jaina was stationed, which was out in the open, the other two were set up very secretly and did not communicate with each other to prevent anyone from exposing their positions.
Only Antonidas and Jaina knew the exact locations.
Even Rhonin did not know the locations of the other two secret camps.
Outsiders were not even aware of the existence of these two camps.
Such strict secrecy was the result of Archmage Antonidas's caution.
With the heavily guarded mage camp out in the open, the other two secret camps would be very safe.
However, the strongest fortress is often breached from within.
The current Lord of Hearthglen, Paladin Barthilas, was leading a team of knights on a secret mission: a group of evil mages, disguised as Dalaran mages, were secretly hiding near the lake shore, attempting to create an interference array to disable the confinement array of the mage camp, in order to allow their evil master, Kel'Thuzad, to escape.
Fortunately, His Highness the Prince had keen insight and had seen through everything long ago.
They were about to carry out this glorious mission: raid the camp and kill all the disguised Scourge mages!
With the mages completely unprepared, it became a massacre.
Another secret camp was also raided, and the order was carried out by Prince Arthas's most loyal captain of the guard, Falric, and Marwyn.
And Prince Arthas personally took action against the heavily guarded camp out in the open.
Several mages from Dalaran were diligently casting spells to maintain the confinement array.
In the center of the array, a violet crystal floated, emitting a strange power under the infusion of magic.
A mysterious wave spread around with the flashing runes in the air, firmly restricting the spatial energy nodes nearby, preventing anyone from using long-distance teleportation in the vicinity.
The mages saw Prince Arthas walking over.
He was handsome and tall, with dazzling blond hair, and carried on his back the warhammer he had been granted when he joined the Knights of the Silver Hand.
Because they could not be distracted from maintaining the array, the mages nodded to His Highness the Prince, who gave them a strange smile.
Then, before everyone's eyes, His Highness the Prince took off the warhammer and threw it violently at the floating crystal in the center of the array.
The great force shattered the crystal, and the array immediately dimmed.
Then, in everyone's horrified gaze, His Highness the Prince suddenly transformed into a huge monster with a pair of bat-like wings growing from his back: it was over eight feet tall (approximately 2.4 meters), with a pair of demonic horns on its head, sharp claws for hands, and a pair of hooves with sparks on its reverse-jointed legs like cattle and sheep.
Then, it reached out its sharp claws and tore the unsuspecting mages to pieces.
"I can feel your fear, it's so sweet! Hahaha..." Before the guards could rush up, the demon flapped its wings and flew into the sky, quickly disappearing without a trace, leaving only the broken array and blood-soaked corpses.
At the same time, within Scholomance, the Cult of the Damned had been almost completely wiped out.
Only his student Gandling remained in front of Kel'Thuzad, and less than half of the remaining forces.
Their defenses were being repeatedly pierced by the Judgment Angel, and then scattered by the paladins, clearly reaching a dead end.
On the surface, he still calmly released spells, causing great trouble to the Alliance forces, but in reality, no one could know the anxiety and torment in his heart—if he died here, the Lich King's great cause would suffer a great setback.
Although Ner'zhul had previously told him a way to escape, until now, he was on the verge of death, and the surrounding space was still confined, making it impossible for him to escape like a closed prison.
"The firepower is really fierce," Aiden complained in his heart, and cast Haste on himself.
Kel'Thuzad's attacks were extraordinary, with various area-of-effect spells such as Cone of Cold, Frost Nova, and Death and Decay, all being wide-ranging damage skills.
Even with full defense, many warriors were still injured.
He seemed to have endless mana, causing more casualties to the Alliance soldiers than all the previous losses combined.
And Aiden's ominous premonition appeared again.
He didn't know why, but he just had a feeling that something bad was going to happen.
Then, Gandling suddenly shouted: "Master, the space has been restored!"
Kel'Thuzad's spirits lifted, and he shouted: "Buy me time!" Then the array behind him lit up.
Archmage Antonidas's expression changed drastically: "Not good, the confinement array has failed!
Stop him quickly!"
Everyone was well aware that if Kel'Thuzad escaped, their operation would be almost equivalent to a complete failure.
So everyone rushed forward desperately.
Uther bypassed the abomination that was entangled with him and sped away, ignoring the attack from behind.
Fordring made the same choice.
The fastest was Kayle, because she had posed the greatest threat to the Cult of the Damned before, so most of Kel'Thuzad's spells in this battle were aimed at her, preventing her from moving as freely as before.
After all, she had not yet recovered her strength and could not withstand the attack of a powerful archmage enhanced by the Lich King.
However, Kel'Thuzad was now busy teleporting and could no longer target her.
She flapped her wings and forced her way out of the encirclement of a group of gargoyles, her sword pointing directly at the leader of the evil cult.
"Face me!" A figure stood in front of Kel'Thuzad, it was his prized student, Gandling.
He slammed his staff heavily on the ground, summoning a large group of bony skeletons to block in front of him.
This action bought his teacher time for one sword strike, and he blocked another sword strike with his body.
He had completed his mission, Kel'Thuzad's figure gradually faded and disappeared.
Gandling's body burned in holy fire, he wailed and laughed: "You... have failed..."