Under Nordrassil, beside Archimonde's corpse, Archdruid Malfurion's eyes revealed sadness and helplessness.
Although he had long prepared for Nordrassil to be severely damaged or even die directly, watching the ancient tree that had sheltered the Night Elves for ten thousand years become like this still pained Malfurion immensely.
Most importantly, the blessing bestowed upon Nordrassil by the Guardian Dragons had also dissipated in the explosion just now, which meant that the Elves' eternal life and perpetual youth had vanished, and they would no longer be free from illness as before.
Such a blow was undoubtedly very heavy for the entire Night Elves race, and Malfurion had already envisioned that many Elf high-ranking officials would be dissatisfied with this.
There was no other way; this was the second time the Night Elves had experienced something similar. The explosion of the Well of Eternity back then was a last resort; when the Burning Legion's portal collapsed, the Well of Eternity itself was annihilated. But this time, Malfurion made the decision to sacrifice Nordrassil to eliminate the Burning Legion's commander.
As Malfurion was trying to see if he could save Nordrassil, Priestess Tyrande, Warden Maiev, and Malfurion's student Fandral Staghelm gathered under Nordrassil.
"Arch Druid!" Maiev quickly walked up to him. She was originally ordered to track Illidan's whereabouts, but the unusual activity on Mount Hyjal was too obvious. Worried about any unforeseen circumstances, she brought her Warden Force back to Mount Hyjal.
When she saw the devastated Well of Eternity and Nordrassil, her heart sank. Any Night Elf could understand what the scene before them meant.
Tyrande, like Malfurion, looked sad, while Fandral remained silent, seemingly lost in thought.
"Can Nordrassil still be saved?" Maiev looked at the scarred ruins and asked.
"It's difficult, at least it's impossible in the short term. Just calming the magical turmoil of the Well of Eternity will take a long time," Malfurion replied while injecting power into Nordrassil.
As he was healing Nordrassil, many Druids also arrived from all directions in various animal forms. After reaching Nordrassil, they began to heal Nordrassil's wounds alongside Malfurion.
"Then Nordrassil's blessing also...?" Maiev only now realized that the price the Night Elves paid to defeat the Burning Legion was far greater than she had imagined.
Malfurion merely shook his head. He was concentrating on healing Nordrassil's wounds and did not spare much attention to talk with the others.
But that was enough for Maiev to understand Malfurion's meaning. She suddenly felt a little dazed, wondering if the race's sacrifice was worth it.
Fandral, on the other hand, did not offer any opinions. What he said was another matter, "Although the Burning Legion has been defeated, they have caused severe pollution to Mount Hyjal and the surrounding areas. In addition, we need to repair the World Tree's wounds, so it's best for us to find a new habitat."
His words caused Tyrande and Malfurion to ponder. What Fandral said was indeed correct; the natural balance of the World Tree and the entire Mount Hyjal needed to be restored. It would be best to seal off this sacred mountain and let it slowly heal its wounds.
Maiev was a little confused, "Are we just giving up our home where we've lived for nearly ten thousand years? Many areas of Mount Hyjal were not affected."
"The damage to Mount Hyjal is more severe than what we can see, Maiev. If it weren't absolutely necessary, we wouldn't leave here," Tyrande said with a hint of helplessness. Before taking action, Malfurion had already explained the possible situation of Mount Hyjal to her. The World Tree seemed to be only in one area of Mount Hyjal, but in reality, its roots were far more extensive than the parts above ground.
Nordrassil had grown for over ten thousand years, and its roots had long penetrated every corner of Mount Hyjal. Although Nordrassil being severely damaged meant it still had a chance to recover, the energy required for this would almost have to be borne by the entire Mount Hyjal.
Therefore, the Druids' decision to seal off Mount Hyjal was also a last resort. Aside from the guards and priests stationed in the demigod temples on the mountain, it was best for everyone else to find other places to live.
"If the Kaldorei need a new habitat, perhaps I can offer some ideas."
Arthas's voice interjected. The others looked up to see Arthas, riding a griffon, descending from the sky and landing on a clear space nearby.
"Prince Arthas." Tyrande greeted Arthas.
"Good day, Priestess," Arthas took out a scroll map from his spatial backpack and handed it to Tyrande, "These are some places suitable for establishing cities and strongholds that my subordinates marked during their travels around the world. I hope they can provide some help to the Night Elves."
The map in his hand was drawn based on his general ideas and by the Blackwater Trading Company's fleet during their trade and other commercial activities between continents. Because it was a map Arthas needed, they spent a considerable amount of money and effort on it.
This scroll map could be said to be much more accurate than most of the hand-drawn maps of the time. Furthermore, with the strategically important locations and resource distribution marked on it, the value of this map was actually quite expensive.
"Thank you for this gift," Tyrande did not yet know the uniqueness of this map, but she was still very grateful for Arthas's help.
The contributions of the Alliance and the Horde in this battle were visible to everyone. If they hadn't bought time for Malfurion, it would have been an unknown whether the Night Elves alone could have stopped the Burning Legion's advance.
Although the Warsong Clan caused some losses to the Sentinel Force when they were controlled by demons, and the Night Elves could not be completely without resentment, the Horde's sacrifices and contributions in the Battle of Mount Hyjal were still worthy of recognition.
Perhaps the Elves would not have much interaction with the Horde afterward, but at least they would no longer actively seek trouble with the Horde.
The Battle of Mount Hyjal ultimately did not deviate from its intended course, ending with the defeat of the Burning Legion and the demise of Archimonde. However, the Alliance forces did not withdraw from Kalimdor, because although the Burning Legion was defeated, a considerable number of demons still remained on Kalimdor and needed manpower to clear them out.
Due to the heavy losses from multiple battles, the Horde withdrew from this operation, so the final battle was entirely left to the Alliance. However, that was the work of Arthas's teacher, Uther, while he himself, due to his agreement with Kael'thas, was assembling at the Alliance outpost outside Ashenvale.
Previously, Arthas had exchanged some Sunwell water with Kael'thas for one condition: to resurrect the Lich Kel'Thuzad and study the Sunwell's water. Now that the Burning Legion was no longer a threat, they were free to undertake this exploration.
And the target was the ancient Elf city of Eldre'Thalas, hidden by forests and mountains.