"Ah!" Hailey screamed, pulling out a cloak made of shells and seaweed to cover her naked body, her tone filled with surprise and fear, "What have you done to me!"
"Submit to me, and you will no longer have to revert to the ugly Naga form. The Holy Light is calling for you!" Arthas even used the Holy Light to heal her; this healing was gentle and caused no harm. It really looked like he was using the Holy Light to treat her, to obscure the truth.
"No!" Hailey struggled a bit; she was not interested in becoming a high elf at all. She was born as a Naga and accustomed to being a Naga and not an elf.
"What!" Vashj was also feeling a bit nauseous from the backlash effect, and she was shocked when she saw this scene! Could he actually change a Naga back into a high elf? If she said she didn't long to return to her previous form, it would be a lie.
She and Queen Azshara dreamed of becoming high elves again, not this ugly Naga form! Report to the queen! Must report to the queen!
Vashj began recording with a spell; this precious footage had to be shown to the queen. She was feeling a bit flustered; no one could understand how shocking this was for her. It was like a person turning into a dog and living as a dog, yet mentally still human, with human aesthetics. This kind of humiliation was hard to express; if possible, no one would refuse to revert back to their human identity.
This was the shock in Vashj's heart, and this shock made her forget her mission.
Bang! Arthas passed by the high elf before him, knowing this was just a temporary expulsion curse. Once the time was up, she would turn back into a snake-haired Naga. A sword shattered the rune stone, and the pleasant system notification chimed again.
"Ding, the threat of Naga has been eliminated. Reward: Level up, currently at level thirty-six."
"Ding, a follow-up task has been activated. Task sequence is disordered, contacting real-time situation for revisions."
"Revision completed, the threat of Naga (2),"
"Your expulsion of N'Zoth's curse has caught Vashj's attention. Attempt to communicate with her. Content: Achieve cooperation with Vashj."
"Reward: Reputation with Naga and loyalty from the Grayscale Clan."
Upon seeing this, Arthas was a bit dumbfounded, and said to the captain of the guards,
"Form a defensive shield, remain vigilant." He then shouted to Vashj in the distance.
"Vashj, right? Can we talk?" Still in shock, Vashj reacted, her narrow eyes fixed on Arthas, her snake hair dancing wildly, mouth opening in a fierce hiss, clearly feeling unsettled inside.
Taking a deep breath, she had forgotten how many years had passed since she had last felt this kind of shock. The last time she felt this way seemed to have been ages ago. Hmm, why does that sound a bit strange?
"Human Prince, what do you wish to say?"
"Let's cease hostilities first; we have a foundation for cooperation." Arthas blocked the incoming ice arrow, the rebound force caused the distant Naga priestess to spit blood. Vashj closed her eyes, her small mouth slightly open, and an invisible sound wave spread out. All the mermen, Nagas, and sea giants stopped, and both sides widened their lines, facing each other from afar. Even the team attacking Brigitte retreated.
Brigitte brought a small team over; Arthas instructed her to form a defensive line in place while he moved to the side, making an inviting gesture.
Vashj was silent for a moment, twisting her waist, her snake tail coiling on the beach, unexpectedly moving with an elegant rhythm. Even after transforming into a Naga, her movements did not become crude. Up close, one could see her skin was deep blue, identical to the colors of the sea.
Her beautiful long hair had transformed into dancing snake hair, and her six slender arms did not appear out of place. It was still evident she had a delicate beauty,
"What do you want to say?"
"We can cooperate, we can each get what we need." Arthas said straightforwardly, no need for any roundabout discussions.
"But why should I?" Vashj maintained her proud demeanor; thousands of years had not diminished their pride. Arthas paused for a moment, extended his hand to point at Vashj, and a surge of power spread toward her.
Vashj's dancing snake hair began to twist, eventually turning into snow-white silver strands. This change surprised Vashj herself, "How is this possible?"
"Nothing is impossible; I have what you want, and you have what I want. That's a sign we can cooperate." Arthas held his head high; facing Vashj, the height difference made him feel a bit overwhelmed.
Why did women have to be so tall! Really irritating! Vashj stroked her snow-white hair, her amber eyes slightly squinting as a hint of dangerous aura flashed, "You are too weak, human!"
"Haha, you don't think I only have this little power, do you? Enough of this, do you want to cooperate or not? You can think about it." Arthas was not worried that she would back out, smiling slyly, "You still have a chance to cooperate with me now; once the relationship breaks down, you will lose this final opportunity and be forever stuck in the ugly Naga form!"
This statement shattered Vashj's plan to abduct Arthas because she saw four giant dragons watching from a distance. Although one of them was not very powerful, there was still one massive threat—Chromie!
"What kind of cooperation do you want?"
"I want your entire clan; in the future, Naga cannot attack my ships at sea. You can create tokens with your essence for me; as long as a ship carries your token, it cannot be attacked. Moreover, when crossing the sea, you must send soldiers to escort. As for exchanges, heh, the things you want are very precious. I'm only talking about daily maintenance and many rare materials for expelling curses, and you need to provide all of these." Arthas started making outrageous demands, but they were not beyond the realm of acceptability.
Vashj knew he was indeed demanding a lot, but she did not negotiate, "I need time to consider."
"I give you three days; I will be here for three days. Just send someone to the farm with a message when you have decided." Arthas sounded very confident, proving indeed that the old god's power was quite formidable, but with the system's help, he didn't fear their power.