There was a reason Nefarian kept his Black Dragonflight hidden in Blackrock Mountain, far from the Dragon Army's influence.
Deathwing was ambushed by the other Guardian Dragons in Grim Batol, suffered severe injuries, and vanished, yet this did not entirely extinguish the Guardian Dragons' wrath.
The Black Dragonflight remained a thorn in their side, and to avoid being purged, Nefarian and Onyxia chose to hide among mortals, using mortal identities to conceal their true intentions.
The mortal world was simply too complex and vast for even the Guardian Dragons to investigate thoroughly, so Nefarian enslaved the Blackrock Orcs under the alias Victor Nefarius.
Deep within the Burning Steppes, occupied by multiple evil forces, and rarely appearing in the mortal world himself, the true identity of Blackrock Spire's master remained unknown.
Perhaps the Blackrock Orcs' sworn enemies, the Dark Iron Dwarves, with the help of the Fire Element, might have sensed something, but they couldn't confirm their suspicions.
And others who had the ability to know of Victor Nefarius's existence would only perceive him as a powerful being, never associating him with dragons.
Nefarian cleverly chose the top of Blackrock Spire as his fortress and lair, where his experiments were almost undisturbed; furthermore, he used magic to conceal Blackwing Lair, so to truly discover this lair, one would first have to overcome the Blackrock Orcs.
The Dark Iron Dwarves, however, occupied the area beneath Blackrock Mountain; Nefarian used them as free guards; although the Dark Iron Dwarves were at odds with the Blackrock Orcs, under Ragnaros's brutal rule, they harbored no goodwill towards any other life.
The brutality and rage represented by Ragnaros had, through a pact, completely permeated the Dark Iron Dwarves' bloodline; most Dark Iron Dwarves could not escape this curse, with only a very small fraction able to find freedom from it.
Blackrock Mountain's unique geographical location ensured Nefarian's previous operations went smoothly; his sister, Onyxia, also achieved considerable success in Stormwind.
Nefarian himself was researching some things he had obtained from his mother, but his chosen method was entirely different from hers.
Sinestra, Deathwing's original consort and the mother of Nefarian and Onyxia, had, before her death, successfully fused a highly unstable new type of dragon—the Twilight Dragon.
She used ancient draconic artifacts and the power of Netherwing Dragons to create this new draconic branch, which absorbed all magical energy like vampires, hoping that this terrifying Dragon Legion would accelerate the destruction of the world.
However, Sinestra ultimately died at the hands of her own creation; Nefarian took over his mother's remaining data and began further research and experimentation.
During his experiments, Nefarian meticulously categorized the strengths and weaknesses of these "Twilight Dragon" creatures, but he ultimately had to stop further research into them.
Because the biggest problem with these Twilight Dragons was their extreme instability; most Twilight Dragons would die prematurely for various reasons after hatching from their eggs.
Even the first Twilight Dragon created by Sinestra, the seemingly perfect Twilight Dragon, was impossible to replicate.
The appearance of stable Twilight Dragons was too coincidental, and to establish a Dragon Legion, one certainly couldn't rely on these Twilight Dragons whose lives and deaths were like rolling dice.
Nefarian then used the data left by Sinestra, combined with his own ideas, to embark on another, even more sinister and terrifying experiment.
Twilight Dragons were creations produced by the combined action of Netherwing Dragons and ancient draconic artifacts; so, if one used Azeroth's native dragons, could new dragon species be created?
With such a mad idea, Nefarian tried every means to trap and hunt the other five-colored dragons; he always targeted those reclusive dragons who rarely communicated with the Dragon Army.
Hatchlings were not valuable to dragons, as not every hatchling had the potential to become a true dragon, so Nefarian did not expend much effort to obtain a batch of dragon eggs.
Coupled with the Red Dragon eggs obtained from the Dragonmaw Clan during the Orcish Wars, Nefarian's "experimental materials" were finally collected.
The experiment was simple: mix the life essences of different dragon species to see what kind of creature would be produced.
Nefarian's cruel experiments claimed the lives of countless draconic kin, and they all suffered various horrific tortures before their deaths, but Nefarian still reveled in it.
The experimental process went more smoothly than Nefarian anticipated, and soon, the first batch of new creatures was born from the experiments, but the results infuriated Nefarian.
Fate seemed to play a joke on him; the experimental process was incredibly smooth, but the result was that most of the dragon eggs either died or hatched into a batch of deformed monsters.
They possessed characteristics of various dragon species, but the life essence, forcibly twisted together by chaotic dark magic, caused irreversible deformities in the hatchlings.
Nefarian patiently ordered his subordinates to raise some of the relatively "complete" hatchlings, but then he discovered something even worse.
These deformed dragons seemed to be incapable of reproduction; almost without exception, the eggs they laid were dead, completely unable to hatch the next generation.
The first experiment was undoubtedly an absolute failure; how could a species that couldn't reproduce become a Dragon Legion that swept the world? It should be noted that Twilight Dragons were abandoned by Nefarian precisely because their reproduction was uncontrollable; did his newly created Chromatic Dragons all turn out to be infertile or deformed monsters?
This was something Nefarian could not accept, so he began even more insane and perverse experiments, but the results remained unsightly.
When the dragon corpses in Blackwing Lair were almost piled up like mountains, Nefarian temporarily lost the desire to research new dragon species; he tried to do something else to escape this boring situation.
The dragon corpses, which should have been disposed of as trash, attracted his attention; Nefarian selected two relatively intact adult dragon corpses from them and, using them as a base, began new experiments.
Gradually, a two-headed monster pieced together from the body parts of five-colored dragons and Chromatic Dragon corpses appeared in Blackwing Lair, and evil magic and alchemy gave this monster life.
This monster displayed a terrifying voracity and uncontrollability from birth; as soon as it gained self-awareness, it devoured several Dragonkin and Dragonspawn; if Nefarian hadn't personally suppressed it, it would probably have turned Blackwing Lair upside down.
The Black Dragonflight's troublesome performance when facing it greatly satisfied Nefarian; such a terrifying bio-engineered beast had strangely inherited the powers from those dragon corpses, capable of using the abilities of the five-colored dragons.
However, its inherent brutality and uncontrollability were a major problem, so Nefarian had no choice but to keep it in a cage to prevent it from destroying his laboratory.
Nefarian named him Chromaggus, one of his most satisfying creations.
Chromaggus's birth gave Nefarian much inspiration; he suddenly understood the previous problem and, after starting a new round of experiments, Nefarian finally created a batch of slightly more stable Chromatic Dragons.
He distributed these experimental subjects to the Blackrock Orcs, preparing to let them test the power of the Chromatic Dragons in war and identify their flaws, so that the alchemists in Blackwing Lair could improve them.
Therefore, Nefarian's experiment was at a critical juncture, and he had no intention of seeking Onyxia; given his identity, walking in the mortal world was now somewhat too dangerous.
The Black Dragonflight was already a target, and Nefarian was one of the dragons most hated by others, consistently at the top of their enmity list; once he appeared in the mortal world, dragons would likely immediately come looking for trouble.
Although the Dragon Legion seemed to have some internal issues and was not very harmonious, that was predicated on Nefarian remaining quietly in Blackrock Mountain without causing any obvious commotion.
Onyxia's disappearance made Nefarian suspicious, but he still intended to complete his experiment first; once the experiment succeeded, Onyxia would no longer be important.
The Chromatic Dragons could help him destroy those foolish dragons; with more experimental materials then, Nefarian could consider restarting the previously abandoned "Twilight Dragon" experimental plan.
And now, what Nefarian was preparing to do was first test whether the Chromatic Dragons could perform excellently in war.
He set his sights on Stormwind, a Human Kingdom with some strength but not particularly powerful, and Stormwind was far from the northern human civilization centers, unable to receive rapid support.
Onyxia's infiltration of Stormwind over the years could not possibly recover in such a short time after her disappearance; the Stormwind Kingdom could be said to be the easiest "soft persimmon" to squeeze.
Another important reason was that after the Guardian Medivh's death, Stormwind no longer had strong Guardians that Nefarian feared; such a kingdom, for the Black Dragonflight, could be easily annihilated.
The Blackrock Orcs were already restless; as soon as Nefarian gave the order, they would pour out of their fortress beneath Blackrock Mountain to spread destruction in the Human Kingdom.
Originally, this grand gift was intended for Ragnaros, that arrogant Elemental Lord, but he seemed to have recently fallen into a slumber and was not concerned with current affairs; Nefarian realized this was a good opportunity.
But before that, Nefarian summoned Red Blackhand, the Warchief of the Blackrock Clan, and ordered him to find a way to deal with a human currently imprisoned in the Dark Iron Dwarves' prison.
Reginald Windsor!
…
Soon after returning to Lordaeron, and before he could rest, Arthas received a message from Onyxia.
This Black Dragon, hidden behind the scenes in Stormwind and no longer manipulating noble factions, conveyed some bad news to Arthas.
"You mean Nefarian is preparing to attack the Stormwind Kingdom?" Arthas's first reaction upon hearing this news was confusion.
How dare Nefarian attack an entire Human Kingdom? Was he worried that the Guardian Dragons and their Dragon Legion couldn't find him?
"No, not Nefarian himself, but his Blackrock Orcs—my brother seems to have completed his mad experiment and is preparing to find a sacrifice to test his 'new weapon'."
Onyxia sighed; her feelings for those Chromatic Dragons were actually quite complex; she had no sympathy for other dragons, but among the raw materials used to make the Chromatic Dragons were Onyxia's own offspring.
After being influenced by Neltharion's madness, the Black Dragonflight did not value their kin as much as other dragons, but Onyxia still felt some resistance to personally handing over her own dragon eggs to Nefarian, a complete lunatic, for experiments.
Unfortunately, the arm could not twist the thigh; Nefarian's power was greater than Onyxia's, and he was also more favored by Deathwing, perhaps because they were both equally mad.
Onyxia felt completely justified in betraying Nefarian. "Nefarian used the five-colored dragons to create a new dragon species; he named them Chromatic Dragons. Although these deformed monsters have various drawbacks, it cannot be denied that they are more dangerous than any other dragon."
In Onyxia's view, with Stormwind's current strength, if the Blackrock Orcs truly attacked with the Chromatic Dragons, a second great exodus might well occur.
Stormwind, having just gone through the war with the Burning Legion, was also recuperating; although Arthas's pre-war deployment prevented Stormwind from suffering particularly severe losses, they themselves could not be compared to Lordaeron.
Varian was a competent king and a powerful warrior, but Onyxia did not think he could contend with dragons, let alone an entire Dragon Legion.
Hearing Onyxia's words, Arthas not only did not worry about Stormwind's situation but instead asked, "Do you think Nefarian's true purpose is to destroy Stormwind?"
Onyxia was slightly stunned by the question; she put herself in Nefarian's usual character and thoughts, finally coming to a conclusion: "If this operation doesn't satisfy him, or if the resistance is too great, he should withdraw his forces."
Nefarian was a, no, a cautious dragon; he liked to toy with his opponents under well-thought-out plans, rather than acting blindly and rashly.
Red Blackhand was brainless and easy to control, which is why Nefarian let him be his pawn, doing things for him that were inconvenient to do himself.
Like attacking the Stormwind Kingdom.
If the Black Dragonflight appeared within the Human Kingdom's borders, the Guardian Dragons certainly wouldn't stand idly by, especially since there were people within the Alliance who had connections with the Guardian Dragons.
But if it was just orcs and a group of unknown monsters attacking humans, the Guardian Dragons wouldn't meddle; most of them were still hiding in seclusion, licking their wounds, and guarding against Deathwing's return.
Arthas poured himself a glass of water and said unhurriedly, "It's understandable that Nefarian has designs on Stormwind, after all, his reach is only so long right now, but his timing indicates something."
"The pressure from the forces beneath Blackrock Mountain has lessened for him?" Onyxia was intelligent; she naturally thought of the Fire Lord, who was at odds with Nefarian.
The Fire Lord had not completely escaped the prison that held him, but this avatar, which appeared in the real plane due to a spell, was not to be underestimated; the power of an Elemental Lord was not something Nefarian could contend with, at least not without a Guardian Dragons.
However, Ragnaros's Elemental Creatures and Dark Iron Dwarves were weaker than the Black Dragonflight and Blackrock Orcs, because black dragons have terrifyingly high resistance to fire magic.
They themselves liked to build their nests in places filled with lava, and as descendants who inherited the Earth Guardian's power and responsibility, the abundant energy in the earth's veins was also something black dragons favored.
There were very few Fire Element that could threaten black dragons; not every element was an existence on Ragnaros's level, and without the Fire Element's restraint, the Dark Iron Dwarves were truly powerless against the Black Dragonflight.
Therefore, although the Dark Iron Dwarves and Blackrock Orcs often had friction, they rarely actively attacked black dragons, because the Dark Iron Dwarves lacked the means to counter black dragons and could only rely on the power of the elements.
It just so happened that the threat of Fire Element to black dragons was too low.
Although Nefarian was insidious and ruthless, he still had the arrogance ingrained in the dragon race, an arrogance towards all mortal races; among dragons, patience and trust towards mortals were extremely rare and scarce qualities.
But he could look down on the Dark Iron Dwarves, believing they couldn't threaten him, yet he couldn't ignore Ragnaros and his elemental army, otherwise, even if the Black Dragonflight had a natural advantage, if Ragnaros's minions rushed into Blackwing Lair all at once, the sheer numerical advantage alone could overwhelm the Black Dragonflight.
In fact, the Black Dragonflight itself was not much to Nefarian, but the experimental data and results in Blackwing Lair could not withstand the wanton destruction of the Fire Element; if the elements in Molten Core rioted, it would be enough to give Nefarian a serious headache.
So at this time, Nefarian daring to plot against Stormwind and exert pressure on the mortal world must be based on the premise that Ragnaros would not hinder him.
This indicates that Ragnaros is likely in a deep slumber, the kind he won't wake up from for a while.
"That should be it, otherwise Nefarian wouldn't interfere with the mortal world's operations like this; even if he attacked Stormwind with the Blackrock Orcs, it would still attract the attention of some dragons," Arthas replied to Onyxia, "And his goal should be to find your whereabouts in Stormwind."
"My whereabouts... Heh heh, that doesn't sound like something my brother would do." Onyxia had no good feelings for Nefarian; she had long since had enough of her cold-blooded relatives. "He probably thinks I might be hiding and wants to drag me out."
Arthas was also a little surprised by Onyxia's answer; although he knew Nefarian was probably one of the black dragons most deeply steeped in madness, he didn't expect his actions to have already annoyed his own sister.
Although black dragons couldn't value blood ties like mortals, he didn't expect the internal disputes and rigidity within the black dragons to reach such a degree... It seemed that not all black dragons followed Deathwing's madness.
But it must be said that as one of the few black dragons closest to Deathwing, Onyxia was also the most severely corrupted, but he didn't know what method she used to retain her humanity amidst the madness, so she seemed less evil than her brother and parents.
Arthas currently had no good way to clear the corruption on Onyxia, unless Onyxia was willing to give up her current Black Dragon identity and become some other dragon, otherwise the Old Gods' madness was not so easy to remove.
However, Arthas also didn't plan to turn Onyxia into another creature; after all, he still hoped Onyxia's identity could help him recruit some black dragons willing to escape the Old Gods' clutches.
Onyxia continued to ask, "Master, what should I do now? Although I have deliberately downplayed my presence in the mortal world, there are still many businesses related to me in Stormwind. If Nefarian truly succeeds, I'm afraid your existence will also be exposed."
"Conquer Stormwind? That's impossible. Nefarian's Blackrock Orcs can't even get out of Redridge Mountains, do you believe me?" Arthas seemed not at all worried about the crisis facing Stormwind.
Onyxia tried to dissuade Arthas from this idea; in her opinion, her brother Nefarian was a very formidable threat, and if Arthas viewed him with such an attitude, he might suffer losses.
"But, Master, those are, after all, the Blackrock Orcs who once captured Stormwind, and with the help of the Chromatic Dragons and the Black Dragonflight as the mastermind, can Stormwind truly resist them?"
"Even if Stormwind can't, the Alliance won't let Nefarian's scheme succeed—do you remember the intelligence and information I sent you to collect and organize?"
Onyxia recalled some of the intelligence she had gathered for Arthas regarding Blackwing Lair and the Burning Steppes area, but she was not the black dragon in charge of that specific region, and she dared not expose her location prematurely, so she only submitted some rather sparse intelligence.
But Arthas had other sources of intelligence; his subordinates were comparing these two sets of intelligence, filtering out the discrepancies, or suspicious points, to avoid the traps in the Burning Steppes.
This was not just an action targeting Nefarian, but a large-scale military operation targeting the entire Burning Steppes and Searing Gorge regions. Arthas wanted to completely break through the physical barriers between the Alliance members and make this area a key development location for the future.
"You no longer need to stay in Stormwind. The upcoming actions will become quite dangerous. Come back to my side, and I will give you a new identity."
"But, Master, are all those businesses left in Stormwind to be abandoned completely? Or should they be directly transferred to the Stormwind Kingdom?" Onyxia felt a pang of heartache for her hard work, but she dared not disobey Arthas's command, only offering a gentle reminder.
"Don't worry, someone will take over. Since you want to preserve your businesses so much, I won't force you to hand them over to the Stormwind Kingdom for nothing. Consider it me temporarily safekeeping them for you."
Well, although Arthas's words still didn't sound entirely reassuring to a dragon, at least it was better than losing her property completely.
Onyxia could only sigh. Circumstances were stronger than individuals. Since she had already been forced onto this path, she could only go all the way. If Arthas lost in the struggle against the Black Dragonflight, she would find a way to die quickly to avoid torture.
Anyway, she had already accepted her role as a pawn, and perhaps Arthas would discard her as a sacrifice at any time—it seemed her tragic fate couldn't be changed no matter which side she was on.
Cutting off the call with Onyxia, and giving her enough time to deal with the remaining matters in Stormwind, Arthas looked at the water in his cup and fell into thought.
The Eastern Kingdoms now were like this cup, but the middle of the cup had several holes poked in it, preventing the water from filling up and causing it to leak out halfway.
What Arthas had to do next was to plug these holes, and plug them tightly, so that the power of the Eastern Kingdoms could be fully accumulated.
The Night Elves and Tauren of Kalimdor had already begun to recuperate, and the orcs and Trolls had settled in Durotar. With the alliance forged during the war against the Burning Legion, the Horde would at least not conflict with the Alliance during this period.
Or rather, they dared not conflict with the Alliance; the Horde's power was simply too weak now. They were like children squeezed between two giants, the Night Elves and the Alliance, and the most crucial thing was that these two giants had reached an agreement.
The Alliance had almost connected all the important forces on the two continents. This was the first step Arthas took: first establish the ties, then make them stronger and more reliable.
The Tauren were not a concern; as a peaceful species that followed the way of nature, and even learned Druidism from the Night Elves, they would always be allies of the Alliance as long as the Alliance did not betray them.
Their connection with the earth mother further solidified their united front with the Alliance in guarding Azeroth.
The Night Elves, however, were allies that required more attention. Their rich heritage and accumulation had made their previous outlook too narrow; if not for the loss of the World Tree, the Night Elves might not have forged a true alliance with the Alliance at all.
But now, at least a preliminary alliance had been reached, and Arthas was confident that there was one person who could help him make this bond even stronger.
Counting the time, Illidan should have already contacted the Naga and traveled across the Endless Sea to the Eastern Kingdoms, right? Given his personality, the first thing he'd likely do upon reaching Kalimdor would be to "catch up" with old acquaintances.
What's more, Quel'Thalas was conveniently on the sea route across the Endless Sea to the Eastern Kingdoms. If nothing unexpected happened, if Illidan really went to Quel'Thalas, he would probably have already made contact with the High Elf.
Arthas guessed that Kael'thas's urgent return was related to this matter.
He did not intend to interfere in this matter—provided that the High Elf did not ask him for help. If the High Elf asked the Alliance for help because of Illidan, then Arthas would definitely lend a hand.
The council members of Silvermoon City did not like human assistance, but Arthas would not stand by and watch his friends fall into a difficult situation.
At worst, he would re-enact a script, telling those overly corrupt and stubborn old elves what true power was.
Zakas had fallen, Tirisfal had no other threats, Gnomeregan had been recaptured, and the Alliance members north of the Burning Steppes were all free, with time and opportunity to accumulate strength and recover from the wounds of these recent battles.
As for Stormwind, according to the plan agreed upon by Arthas and Varian, Stormwind's main task was to tie down the Blackrock Orcs and Nefarian's attention. The Alliance's true army would launch a surprise attack on Searing Gorge from Loch Modan, directly seizing control of Searing Gorge from the Dark Iron Dwarves.
However, the terrain limitations of Searing Gorge made it unsuitable for large troop movements, so to quickly break through the Dark Iron Dwarves' defenses, it was necessary to rely on elite units.
If it was about the total number of troops, the Alliance might have difficulty gathering them, but when it came to finding elites, the Alliance, which had endured multiple wars and still stood strong, had plenty to spare.
Reducing personnel with weaker combat effectiveness not only eased logistical pressure but also enhanced the ability for precise strikes. The dispersed strongholds and outposts of the Dark Iron Dwarves in Searing Gorge simply could not withstand such an offensive.
They relied on the Blackrock Mountain fortress for its terrain, but as long as the Alliance occupied Searing Gorge, the mines and metal reserves there meant there would be no need to worry about weapon supply.
Grain and fodder could also be quickly transported by sea to Minas Hill, entering Loch Modan from the Wetlands, and then directly reaching Searing Gorge. Not to mention, during the previous operation to rescue Gnomeregan, Arthas deliberately sent an excess of resources to Ironforge, specifically preparing for the Burning Steppes.
The fortress of Blackrock Mountain was indeed easy to defend and difficult to attack, with extremely complex terrain, but the problem was that once attacked, even the Dark Iron Dwarves themselves would find it difficult to break through those complete defensive works.
Otherwise, the Dark Iron Dwarves would not have failed to recapture Hordemar City for so long after it was taken by the Blackrock Orcs.
The strength of the Dark Iron Dwarves and Ragnaros's minions should not be underestimated; as the main forces occupying the lower levels of Blackrock Mountain and Searing Gorge, once they reacted, they could quickly launch a powerful counterattack.
At that time, the price paid by the Alliance might be several times higher. However, the true master of the Fire Element and Dark Iron Dwarves, Ragnaros, happened to fall into a slumber at this very moment.
Nefarian could use this time to expand his influence and power, and the Alliance could also use this time to quickly break through the Dark Iron Dwarves' as-yet unformed defenses.
Without Ragnaros's guidance, the actions of the Fire Element and Dark Iron Dwarves would not only be three points slower, but also experience problems such as uncoordinated steps and disagreements. Thaurissan, the Black Iron Emperor, was not completely subservient to all Elemental Creatures; he also had his dignity as an emperor.
This was precisely a very good opportunity. Let Stormwind, which was well-prepared, and Nefarian take their time playing, dragging a portion of his army into Redridge Mountains, thereby weakening the defensive forces of Blackwing Lair and Hordemar City.
But no one stipulated that Molten Core had to be conquered first before Blackwing Lair could be attacked. Since Ragnaros liked to accumulate power through slumber so much, then let him sleep for now. Once Arthas dealt with Nefarian, he would come back to drive him back to his prison in the Firelands!