Chapter 287

Kel'Thuzad, in World of Warcraft, is the Lich King's most steadfast supporter, and Arthas's top lackey.

Kel'Thuzad was once a member of the Kirin Tor Council of Six, and his status in Dalaran was unmatched, second only to Antonidas.

After the Second War ended, Kel'Thuzad wanted to study the first-generation death knights created by orc warlocks, as well as that mysterious necromancy.

However, the Kirin Tor Council and Dalaran only provided some lab mice and animals as test subjects, which caused Kel'Thuzad's dissatisfaction, leading him to hear the Lich King's call from Northrend and travel to the Northrend continent.

Around eighteen years after the Dark Portal, Kel'Thuzad finally made contact with the Lich King, then returned to the Eastern Kingdoms to begin establishing the Cult of the Damned.

Establishing the Cult of the Damned made its followers worship the Lich King, believing they could achieve eternal life through the undead's ecology, but in the end it was merely a scam—all undead were controlled by the Helm of Domination's power, essentially just mindless corpses and puppets.

Even the Burning Legion's second invasion of Azeroth—without Kel'Thuzad meddling in it, whether it could successfully descend would be the same.

This old man is indeed talented. However, in World of Warcraft, he was killed outright by the plot in the 60s, resurrected again in the early 80s, then served as a raid boss, dropping gear for the vast Jiaonan players.

"Great Demigod! Do you know my aspiration? My lifelong pursuit is immortality, so I can study all kinds of magic and seek the pinnacle of knowledge. Look at me now—what monstrous form have I become? That idiot Arthas, his Scourge plan is downright foolish. Yet, because of the Helm of Domination's power, I am forced to serve him and devise plans for him."

"You probably wouldn't believe the Great Demigod, but I once plotted to have the Alliance and Horde armies march straight to my door to die, thereby escaping the Lich King's control." Kel'Thuzad said.

"I actually believe you on that."

"How could I not believe you? Back when we played in the 80s, according to the story, Kel'Thuzad directly piloted Naxxramas to hover over the Alliance and Horde bases to provoke them."

"Then he got killed—Ni Ma, that's just brainless to the extreme; what else is that if not a suicide move? Players originally expected something impressive from Kel'Thuzad in the Lich King version, but he just gave away a head right at the start."

"After all this, this brother had long held a death wish; his lifelong goal was to research new necromancy and gain the power of immortality. Yet after all that effort, he ended up as someone's lackey, used in all sorts of ways."

"Hearing Luode believe his words, Kel'Thuzad's eyes lit up; back in Dalaran, he had once tossed a coin into the wishing well."

"On it was written a sentence: he merely craved a hug, he merely craved others' acknowledgment."

"He merely longed for others' understanding and belief! Has he truly lost all his humanity?"

"If that's the case, how could he have kept his beloved cat Mr. Barghes in Naxxramas?"

"Then it was killed by some clueless fool from the Alliance or Horde; when Mr. Barghes died, Kel'Thuzad was utterly heartbroken."

"However, this might be the best fate for Mr. Barghes, since how could a cat survive in an environment full of undead? Moreover, when it embraced him in the form of a skeletal lich, it could easily harm that little cat."

"Great Demigod! I've heard of your deeds, and I have witnessed your new necromantic resurrection technique."

"I realized that is exactly my lifelong pursuit, the ultimate perfect form—immortal power, an immensely strong undead body, and inexhaustible stamina." Kel'Thuzad began to lavish praise upon Luode.

"I know what you're thinking—you want to break free from the Lich King's control and join my ranks as my subordinate, right?" Luode asked with a smile.

"That's right, Great Wild Demigod! Please allow me to pledge my loyalty; I only wish to conduct some magical research, to study the supreme power."

"I don't want to be a witchdoctor's puppet, taking orders from that fool." Kel'Thuzad said.

"Hmm! You want this undead body, but such an undead body also has a major drawback."

"That is, you can no longer increase your strength; you can only hone your skills, study and learn new spells, but your overall power cannot be raised." Luode said.

"The body of Impure World Reincarnation is indeed formidable; with this body you can learn the spells you could learn— for example, spells you could have learned in life but didn't, you can learn them after death and then employ them."

"For higher-level spells that require greater energy or other driving forces, you would be unable to learn them."

"That is indeed a shortcoming, but it is far better than my current undead form." Kel'Thuzad said.

"My current self is a thorough monster; standing before ordinary people, I am even more terrifying than those dreadful green-skinned orcs."

"This is his true form; there's no need to belittle himself, nor to gild his own face."

"Hmm! I can grant you that undead body, you can continue researching the magic you like, so what can you offer me in return?"

"This brat, in version 9.0, even defected to the Warden, becoming the final boss of the Sanctum of Domination—Arthas got tossed into the Maw, yet you weren't thrown in; just how many backdoors did the Warden give you?! However, there's one thing Luode can confirm: as long as your strength is sufficient, Kel'Thuzad will undoubtedly be loyal to you."

"Great Demigod, I can help you destroy the Scourge army, and I can tell you a secret."

"The Helm of Domination actually does not come from the Burning Legion; behind Arthas there is a tremendously powerful and mysterious entity." Kel'Thuzad said.

"This is his trump card; he believes using this secret can earn the trust of this Great Demigod."

"Those two floating cities are nothing to the Great Demigod, since Luode the demigod himself can build floating cities."

"As for these death knights and the undead creatures within Naxxramas, that's even more laughable! If they could regain free will, it would merely increase the number of new beings."

"Hmm! You mean the Lich King wasn't made by the Burning Legion? He has a behind-the-scenes mastermind, and you know this entity?"

"He knows this, after all he himself is the third commander of the Burning Legion."

"The Lich King's Frostmourne and the Crown of Domination were both crafted by the Dreadlords."

"And their maker is actually the Primus, one of the Six Eternal Ones of the Shadowlands; at this point, the Primus has been controlled by the Warden Zovaal."

"To carry out his grand plan! I never expected that at this point Kel'Thuzad would already know of the Warden's existence, but just how much does he know?"

"Taking in this great lich will still bring plenty of benefits in the future."

"After all, as a demigod, there are some dirty and tiring jobs that need to be left to special subordinates, while I must maintain the image of a towering demigod. 'Well then, go ahead and tell me the secret you know.' Luode said."

"Of course no problem, but Great Demigod, how should we deal with these fellows? Are you certain this secret should be let them hear?" Kel'Thuzad said.

"Some death knights already free of control immediately furrowed their brows, gathering collectively beside Darion Mograine, eyeing the two with vigilance."

"Darion Mograine, and at the time of their deaths, Luode had not yet become famous."

"Thus these people don't know that, within just over a year after their deaths, a Great Demigod was born."

"However, through the two's conversation, these death knights still know they must contend with the Lich King or his behind-the-scenes entity, and that is enough."

"Wild Demigod! If you wish to contend with the Lich King or his behind-the-scenes entity, we will become your reliable allies." Darion Mograine raised the Fallen Ashbringer he held and spoke.

"Luode smiled, merely waving his hand lightly; these death knights instantly rolled their eyes and fainted—the Conqueror's Haki combined with the Soul-Soul Fruit's pressure can inflict massive damage on spiritual bodies."

And these undead, Luode is their natural nemesis, exerting a natural counter effect on them; as for these death knights, Luode has other plans.

「Truly a powerful soul pressure, Demigod Lord, you are far more formidable than that foolish Arthas」

「Well then, come on, tell me everything you know!! I will judge your worth based on this information. 」 Luode said

「Great demigod, you know of the existence of the Shadow Realm of the other world, right? That is the true world of the dead.

All life on Azeroth, upon death, will be sent there.

That is where all the dead find their rest, and the Crown of Dominion, as well as the Lich King's Frostmourne, are the creations of an immensely powerful being in the Shadow Realm.

That immensely powerful being seems to be plotting something, but I don't know the specifics.

But I understand, the Crown of Domination can connect to that mysterious existence, and the Lich King was created by him.

He hopes the Lich King will do something for him, and the Crown of Domination possesses unimaginable function and value." Kel'Thuzad said.

As the foremost person under the Lich King, he only vaguely felt the existence of that world, and had heard the first-generation Lich King Ner'zhul mention that great one.

However, Arthas scoffed at the existence of that great one, and even outright refused to obey his commands.

This made that powerful existence from another world extremely angry, so Kel'Thuzad thus thought Arthas was an idiot.

For an existence that is countless times stronger than you, what you should think about is gaining benefits from its hands, rather than constantly opposing it.

Because they can wipe you out with ease, and you yourself are a puppet they created.

Kel'Thuzad had long since determined that Arthas would ultimately fail, so he has always been seeking a retreat.

He even planned to die directly at the hands of the Horde and Alliance, then go to the World of the Dead to meet that great existence.

However, now that this demigod has appeared, Kel'Thuzad has decided to come and try his luck.

I know who you're talking about? One of the six Eternals of the Shadow Realm, the Jailer Zovaal.

Don't ask how I know; it's just a Blizzard spoiler.

However, Luode still nodded, indicating for Kel'Thuzad to continue.

"That great existence calls himself the Jailer Zovaal; he has been plotting this matter, and his strength is comparable to that of a true god." Kel'Thuzad said.

Although Arthas wanted to resist him, he was still influenced by him to a certain extent.

"The Icecrown Citadel he is constructing, besides serving as the Lich King's fortress, also has other special uses." Kel'Thuzad said.

"You mean, although Arthas is unwilling to accept the Jailer Zovaal's orders, he still subconsciously does things for him, right?"

"No way! According to the plot, the Crown of Domination can indeed converse with Zovaal, but the Jailer Zovaal cannot, via the Crown of Domination, control strong-willed people."

The third-generation Lich Kings Ner'zhul, Arthas, and Bolvar can all refuse to obey his commands.

"So you can refuse his commands, but still be subconsciously affected? Originally Luode planned to seize the Crown of Domination and then study necromantic power! If it would be subconsciously influenced by the Jailer, that would be a loss! It seems this matter needs careful planning."

"I can't be sure about that; Arthas often curses that immensely powerful existence, yet he ordered the construction of Icecrown Citadel, with countless Scourge undead mining Saronite to build this immensely powerful fortress."

"Hmm! I understand, Kel'Thuzad, the information you brought is very useful to me."

"From now on, you are my subordinate, and I will give you an unexpected surprise." Luode nodded and took out a sealed White Zetsu corpse from his personal space.

For the sake of convenience in resurrection, Luode stored thousands of White Zetsu corpses in his personal space.

The body of a White Zetsu is the best resurrection material; for some immensely powerful beings, if the resurrection offering is not good enough, they cannot unleash their former strength.

The most obvious examples are the First Hokage, the Second Hokage, and Uchiha Ban.

These individuals may appear overwhelmingly strong on the battlefield, but in fact they did not unleash their former strength.

Ordinary people don't matter, but some powerful mages must use a White Zetsu corpse to be able to unleash their full power.

Moreover, using the Reincarnation Technique is also more convenient; this time Luode intends to fully resurrect Kel'Thuzad. (End of chapter)