After coming out of the Trolls' cave, Luke used the Palantír again to search for other Trolls' caves.
However, the nearby Trolls' caves had already been cleared by him and Gandalf, and the remaining ones were very far away, with no more living people found captured by Trolls.
After some discussion, the two of them did not continue to track the Trolls.
Instead, they decided to go to Rivendell.
As the rescuers this time, with the joint agreement of Gandalf and Luke, Thorin, even if unwilling, no longer stubbornly objected.
It was just that after the difficulty with the Trolls, he was even more eager to reach the Lonely Mountain, enter it to obtain the arkenstone, and thereby rally the Dwarves.
Thus, there was no more objection to the journey to Rivendell.
Everyone packed their belongings and left the Troll Forest, continuing eastward directly to Rivendell.
Not long after, news of the Trolls' successive tragic deaths spread among the Trolls, who said that a monster specializing in hunting Trolls had appeared in the forest; he would eat the Trolls' hearts, and could unleash flames, and any Troll who encountered him would die.
As the rumors became more terrifying, many frightened Trolls fled into deep mountain caves, not daring to descend the mountain, fearing they would encounter the terrifying monster and lose their lives.
Consequently, the probability of attacks near the Troll Forest sharply decreased, and passing travelers and merchants became somewhat safer.
At the same time, some of the villagers rescued by Luke and Gandalf from the Trolls chose to take a boat from the Last Great Bridge and sail downstream to the human settlements and kingdoms in the south.
Another portion chose to cross the Last Great Bridge, traverse the wilderness, and travel west along the East-West Road.
The deeds of Luke and Gandalf killing Trolls and saving villagers also spread throughout various places with the villagers.
The reputations of the Grey Wizard and the Black Wizard once again spread in the Eriador region, and the title of "Troll Slayer" became widely known.
Not long after everyone left the Troll Forest, a commotion came from a distance.
Instantly, everyone became alert and wary.
However, they soon realized it was a false alarm.
It turned out to be Radagast, the Brown Wizard, driving a wooden sledge pulled by rabbits, moving as if on flat ground through the mountains and forests, quickly arriving before everyone.
Seeing his old friend appear, Gandalf was a little surprised.
"Radagast, what are you doing here?"
Radagast was as tall as Gandalf, wearing a wide-brimmed brown hat covered in bird droppings, and a dirt-brown robe covered in mud, grass, and twig fragments, looking very disheveled and strange.
"I was looking for you, Gandalf."
"Something is wrong, very wrong!"
Radagast seemed a bit deranged.
"What's wrong?" Gandalf, accustomed to his behavior, asked in confusion.
"The Great Greenwood is sick, shrouded in some darkness; trees are withering, the air is foul, and the river water is poisonous. And many giant spiders have appeared there; they must be the offspring of Ungoliant."
Ungoliant is an evil deity nurtured in the outer void darkness of the world of Arda, a very large spider who once allied with Sauron's master, the Dark Lord Morgoth, to destroy the Two Trees, symbols of light, causing the world to fall into darkness for a time.
Ungoliant's offspring, Shelob, was so formidable that even the Dark Lord Sauron dared not easily antagonize her, even regularly sending Orcs as her food, which shows how terrifying her power was.
"I followed the tracks of the giant spiders all the way to Dol Guldur," Radagast continued, "and there I found traces of the Necromancer, and discovered this thing…" Saying this, he pulled out a leather-wrapped object from his bosom.
"The Necromancer…" Gandalf's expression became serious and solemn; he took the object and uncovered the leather.
Wrapped in cloth was a jet-black ancient sword, emitting a chilling, dark, and ominous aura that made one's heart palpitate.
"Morgul-blade, this is the Witch-king of Angmar's sword."
Gandalf frowned deeply, raised his eyes, and exchanged a glance with Luke.
Ever since encountering the Barrow-wights in the Barrow-downs, Gandalf already knew that the Witch-king of Angmar still existed. Now, seeing the Witch-king of Angmar's sword again, he instantly realized the seriousness of the matter.
It is well known that the Witch-king of Angmar is a minion of the Dark Lord Sauron. Now that the Witch-king of Angmar has appeared in Dol Guldur, and there are rumors of a Necromancer in the vicinity.
The identity of this Necromancer is already evident, only awaiting final confirmation.
However, before Gandalf could delve deeper, a wolf howl in the distance interrupted his thoughts.
"Is that a wolf howling? Are there wolves in this area?" Bilbo asked in confusion.
But the Dwarves immediately tensed up, "Wolves? That's not an ordinary wolf howl, it's a Warg!"
The next second, a giant wolf sprang out from the forest, leaped high, and opened its fangs to bite at everyone.
However, before the giant wolf could land, it was struck by Luke with a spell, instantly petrifying and falling to the ground, then was pierced through and killed by the Flame Sword.
Another Warg that charged out was also killed instantly by Gandalf with his newly acquired Foe-hammer sword.
"Hurry, these are Warg scouts; a large group of Orcs must be following them!" Gandalf warned seriously.
"We can't leave; the horses have all been startled away!" Dori, the dwarf responsible for logistics, gave everyone bad news.
However, Luke's pony, Little Dull, reacted as dully as its name, and since it was pulling a cart, it didn't run away like the other horses.
But such a single cart could not possibly accommodate so many people to escape together.
Seeing this, Radagast, the Brown Wizard, suggested, "I'll distract them; you take the chance to escape."
"But those are Gundabad Wargs! Are you sure, Radagast?" Gandalf asked, concerned.
"I have the Rosgobel rabbits; I'd like them to try and see if they can catch up to me?" Radagast said with great confidence.
"Then I'll also take responsibility for attracting a group of Orcs and Wargs," Luke stepped forward and said, "I'll drive the cart alone; this way, it can divide the target more and be safer."
"Who is this?" Radagast looked at Luke curiously.
"This is Luke, the Black Wizard," Gandalf introduced, then frowned and looked at Luke worriedly, "Luke, are you really sure you want to do this? Those are Wargs and an Orc army; they are definitely not comparable to those ragtag Orcs we encountered in the wilderness before!"
Luke smiled very confidently: "Gandalf, don't worry, I am confident in my ability to protect myself. Once we distract the Orcs, you all should quickly run towards Rivendell; as long as you cross the Bruinen Ford and enter the elves' territory, you will be safe."