Azeroth: Starting with Eagle Eye in the Necropolis

Page 127

His power was draining away, like a ruptured water sac. The Lich King's severe injuries were reflected back to him through the mental link, making each swing of Frostmourne feel heavier than ever before.

He once held these low-level demons in utter contempt, let alone the low-level undead creatures controlled by the Dreadlords. (It should be noted that the Dreadlords also possess the ability to control undead creatures. After all, the Burning Legion's undead technology originated from the Shadowlands and was brought by the Dreadlords.)

The three dreadlords of the Burning Legion—Balnazzar, Detherlock, and Varimathras—were like persistent shadows, commanding an endless army of demons and traitorous undead to relentlessly pursue and intercept him.

Having lost the Lich King's power, Arthas's combat strength plummeted. Let alone facing a dreadlord, he would die even if a group of undead came.

"Arthas! You, like your frail master, will be crushed by the Legion's wrath!" Balnazzar's shriek echoed through the air as a Hellfire Meteor crashed down, forcing Arthas to dodge in a sorry state.

As his power waned, Arthas even lost control of some of his undead armies, which in turn fell under the control of the dreadlords' shadow death magic.

The Lich King's weak voice kept echoing in Arthas's mind: "Return to Northrend immediately! Come back quickly!"

If Arthas cannot return to Northrend soon, he will lose everything.

"Haha, Arthas, it seems your reign was incredibly short-lived. You shouldn't have betrayed the Legion, and you certainly shouldn't have dared to return after betraying us. Your rule, like your power, was a sham, a fleeting moment," Varimathras sneered.

Under Lord Kil'jaeden's orders, the demon Illidan, who had defected from the night elves, attacked the Frozen Throne, causing Arthas to lose power.

Now, if they can get rid of this Death Knight, the Lich King will become a toothless tiger, or even less than a toothless tiger.

A puppet, a dog-like thing, dares to betray the great Burning Legion and hinder their master's plans.

"For the Lich King!" Arthas roared, Frostmourne flashing with a cold light, freezing and tearing apart several hellhounds that pounced on him, but his movements were noticeably slower, and several new wounds had appeared on his armor.

Arthas remained incredibly brave, while the Dreadlord was extremely cunning and did not directly confront Arthas in battle.

Unless it is confirmed that the Death Knight is completely defenseless, the Dreadlords will never show themselves; they are assassin mages hiding in the shadows.

Direct combat was not their forte, and Arthas found himself in an unprecedented crisis.

His undead guards dwindled, and his loyal ghouls and crypt demons fell one after another as they were attacked from both sides by demons, traitorous undead, and the demon army.

He had to break out of the royal city! The Lich King was calling him; Northrend needed him! He couldn't die here.

But the dreadlords clearly had no intention of giving him that chance. The encirclement was constantly shrinking, and Arthas was filled with despair, even beginning to doubt whether he was going to die there.

Damn it, he hasn't cut off Rhodes' head yet, he hasn't turned Jaina into his Frost Witch, and he hasn't turned the whole of Lordaeron into an eternal kingdom!

As Arthas was about to break out of Lordaeron, his central undead force was completely wiped out, leaving him truly alone.

At this moment, a large number of Fear Guardians and several hideous Abominations had surrounded Arthas, and the Lich King's first warrior, Arthas, was trembling uncontrollably.

Even his tiger's mouth was trembling slightly; he was now in dire straits.

Just as Arthas was almost exhausted and preparing to fight to the death, a shrill and familiar scream came from the flank.

Several translucent banshee shadows shot into the demon formation like arrows, their wails causing the demons to freeze in their tracks and suffer a severe mental shock.

“Your Majesty King Arthas! This way!” An anxious banshee appeared, her form more solid than the others, pointing to a relatively secluded alley. “Lady Sylvanas has sent us to meet you! Come with us quickly!”

A hint of surprise flashed in Arthas's crimson eyes. Truly, there's always a way out!

Sylvanas, the Windrunner Ranger General whom he personally transformed into a banshee, is now the Banshee Queen and a loyal servant of the Lich King.

"Ladies, come and help me break out of the city immediately! I need to get out of the city quickly and take me to your mistress." Arthas brandished Frostmourne and spurred his horse to catch up with the Banshee army.

"Please come with us to King Arthas, we will take you to see the mistress."

Guided by the banshees, Arthas meandered along the intricate paths and underground passages, and surprisingly managed to temporarily shake off the area where his pursuers were most concentrated.

The banshees used their power to kill many demons who came to besiege Arthas, and even used special means to control some of the undead troops. Once again, the undead army around Arthas was replenished.

With the help of the banshee, Arthas continued on his journey, and finally, they broke through the high walls of Lordaeron's capital city through an abandoned sewer outlet and arrived in the relatively open countryside.

The cold air rushed into his lungs (although he no longer needed to breathe), but Arthas was not at ease; the pursuit of the Dreadlord was not over yet!

"Lady Sylvanas is gathering troops in the canyon near Deathstroke. She has learned of the dreadlord's betrayal and has specially assembled a group of warriors who are still loyal to His Majesty the Lich King and you."

"She instructed us to escort you to the rendezvous point, where it is relatively safe, and we can plan our retreat back to Northrend together." A dark ranger appeared before Arthas at some point and said.

“Very well, lead the way quickly, ladies. We must hurry to Northrend. You will all come with me to meet the Lich King.” Arthas nodded without suspicion.

The Lich King said that a brutal battle is likely to take place in Northrend, and he needs to gather all available forces.

The Banshee once again led the way, with Arthas close behind. The invincible hooves pounded the withered grass as Arthas galloped toward the shadowy land known as the Valley of Deathstroke.

But Arthas didn't know that the death knell wasn't tolling for the Dreadlord, but for him—the fallen prince of Lordaeron!

Meanwhile, at the other end of the canyon, Death Knight Sciark, leading his fifty newly upgraded Blood Terror Death Knights, stood like a black wall guarding the exit.

He stroked the cold skeleton of his skeletal dragon mount, his gaze fixed on the entrance to the canyon, a ferocious grin spreading across his face, brimming with fighting spirit.

Beside him, Sylvanas led a large army of banshees, along with her own dark rangers, all of whom were transformed from wraiths.

Rhodes also took a look at the special banshee units that Sylvanas had transformed into.

After the transformation, these units became known as Banshees, their health increased to 25, their speed remained at 7, their damage increased to 6-8, their attack power increased to 9, and their defense increased to 9.

However, it gains a new Banshee Howl skill, which can damage nearby living units and create a silencing effect, along with a curse effect.

Additionally, if there are undead troops nearby, it will also provide healing. While absorbing magical power, it can also drain the enemy's life force, although the process is very slow. This move is somewhat similar to the warlock's life drain.

Unfortunately, the conversion time was relatively short, and they didn't learn the other control-type skills of the Banshee, but it's enough for now.

Once the number of any type of soldier increases, it will result in a quantitative change.

Further away, in the shadow of a small hill, Rhodes, disguised as an ordinary zombie, leaned leisurely against a rock, observing the situation through a magical water mirror, as if waiting for a good show to begin.

"The stage is set, and the actors are in position... Arthas, enjoy this 'welcome ceremony' prepared for you!" Rhodes was really looking forward to Arthas's performance.

Chapter 205 Sciark: Arthas, come and fight me one-on-one!

Arthas, "escorted" by the Banshee and the Dark Ranger, rode into a large canyon.

"Where is Sylvanas? Where are her troops?" Arthas asked, pulling on the reins and gripping Frostmourne tightly.

The dark ranger leading the way stopped, turned around, and the feigned respect on his face vanished instantly, replaced by a cold, vengeful mockery.

“An army? Of course, Your Majesty King Arthas.” She slowly drew back her longbow, the arrows wreathed in dark energy. “We are the army that has come to ‘see you off’.”

Before the words were finished, countless figures suddenly appeared on the rock walls on both sides—more dark rangers drew their bows and nocked arrows, and the banshees let out shrill laughs, their eyes burning with the same flames of hatred.

This is a trap! Arthas understood instantly.

"You've been tricked, you fool! Come here right now and figure out how to get away." In Arthas's mind, the Lich King continued his conversation with his death knight through Frostmourne.

A surge of anger at betrayal and the chilling feeling of being trapped in despair welled up in his heart. He had actually believed in the loyalty of an elf whom he had personally destroyed and turned into a servant!

"Sylvanas! Get out here!" Arthas roared, and Frostmourne burst forth with a chilling light.

Arthas, how have you been?

A cold, mocking voice came from above as Sylvanas Windrunner appeared on a protruding rock, looking down at the death knight trapped like a beast in the valley.

A smile played on her lips, her heart filled with the thrill of revenge; today was Arthas's day of death.

“Here, your master, the Lich King, cannot save you, just as I could not save the people of Mooncity, nor Quel'Thalas, nor…myself.”

"Traitor! The Lich King will punish you!" Arthas roared.

"Punishment? Hahahaha!" Sylvanas seemed to have heard the most ridiculous joke.

"That poor wretch who can't even save himself? Today the tables have turned, and he can't even save himself."

As for you… Arthas, today you will pay the price for everything you have done to me, to my homeland, and to my people!

She suddenly waved her hand: "Kill him!"

In an instant, a dense barrage of shadow arrows rained down from both sides of the rock wall, and the banshees' wails assaulted Arthas's soul like tangible sound waves.

Arthas swung Frostmourne to parry, the blade deflecting icy attacks that froze and shattered some of the arrows, but most of the attacks landed on him and Invincible.

Invincible let out a painful howl as his undead body was corroded by shadow energy. Arthas himself was also struck by arrows one after another. Although the Death Knight's body was dulled by pain, the loss of power was real.

He tried to charge, to fight his way out, but the Dark Rangers nimbly retreated, keeping their distance from him and wearing him down with a hail of arrows.

"Is that all you've got, Arthas?" Sylvanas sneered, drawing her bow herself. An arrow imbued with powerful dark energy whistled towards Arthas's head.

"Without the Lich King's power, you are nothing!"

Arthas barely managed to dodge a fatal blow, the arrow whizzing past his shoulder armor, the chilling aura of death brushing past him. He felt weaker and more wretched than ever before, a sense of powerlessness driving him mad.

Just as Arthas was struggling to cope with Sylvanas and her elite troops, and was almost overwhelmed by endless ranged attacks, heavy, rhythmic, and heart-pounding hoofbeats came from the other side of the canyon.

Boom!Boom!Boom!

Like the drums of war from hell, every step struck the heart, even halting the attack of Sylvanas's forces.

Arthas and Sylvanas both looked toward the source of the sound.

At the exit of the canyon, a silent team of black-armored knights advanced slowly like an iron wall.

They were clad in heavy, blood-red Saronite armor, their undead warhorses breathing out icy breaths. The lead knight was particularly burly, carrying a runic greatsword, his eyes beneath his helmet like two burning ghostly flames.

It was Death Knight Sciark, and the fifty Blood Terror Death Knights under his command who had just completed their transformation!

Their arrival brought both sides on the battlefield to a standstill.

Arthas was taken aback at first, then a ridiculous hope arose in his heart—could it be another reinforcement sent by the Lich King? Or was it arranged by Kel'Thuzad?

But he didn't notice that the Banshee Queen was looking at him with a mocking gaze, and Stanker's next words shattered his illusions completely.

“Arthas!” Scythe’s voice boomed and mocked. “The first warrior under the Lich King? Look at yourself now, like a stray dog ​​abandoned by its master and chased by wild dogs!”

"The Banshee Queen is right. Without Frostmourne, you are indeed a piece of trash. You can't even handle a group of women and ghosts. You have truly disgraced the Death Knights!"

"I told you long ago, you should hand over the position of First Death Knight to me. You only have that sword; you're more like Frostmourne's mount than a true wielder of Frostmourne."

Arthas's face instantly turned incredibly ugly: "Sch'k! Are you going to betray me too? Betray the great Lich King!"

He thought it was reinforcements, but it turned out to be the enemy. Damn it, could it be that all the undead have betrayed the Lich King?

He was well aware of Stanker's strength. If he were still in his prime and if Frostmourne could still unleash its full power, he would naturally not be afraid of his opponent and could easily defeat him.

But in his current state, Arthas let out a bitter laugh. He couldn't even handle Sylvanas now, let alone Scythe.

“Betrayal?” Stank grinned as he raised his blood-red greatsword and pointed it at Arthas.

“I have never been loyal to you, Arthas, nor have I ever been loyal to the Lich King,” Scythe said, swinging his sword sharply.

I pledge allegiance to a far more powerful being, my great master Lord Rhodes. Who do you and the Lich King think you are?

"But don't worry, everyone here is just a spectator. This time I want to fight you one-on-one. If you can defeat me, I'll let you leave. I mean what I say." Stank's face showed an extremely arrogant expression.

Sylvanas, being quite tactful, led her banshees and the Dark Rangers to the side, then gestured for Scythe to proceed.