Chapter 525: Discussing Ironhide Again

"Red Eye Mountain has been reclaimed, and the connection between Desolate Keep, Qianzhushiting, and the Old World will no longer be disrupted. Expanding our sphere of influence so much all at once requires time to consolidate; it seems Zhaoming will have to wait a bit longer regarding the Changya Zhilu!"

Spreading out the map eagerly, Sinuoli commented while circling areas. The Slayer King's triumphant song gave him the feeling of "suddenly hearing of the recovery of the northern territory beyond the sword"; having such an active Demigod felt as if the path of revival had gained an engine.

"Watering horses in the Bingfeng Hai and connecting to the Giant Country Mountains—as long as the Kislevites don't mess around, the board in the Northern Border can finally be considered alive!"

North of Red Eye Mountain are two small outpost-level strongholds, controlling the northernmost mountain pass of the World's Edge Mountains. This connects the northern continent of Kislev and the so-called Eastward Path, but it has been too severely plagued by Chaos to be utilized effectively.

"Whether it's Slayer Keep or Kislev, both lack manpower. Looking at it now, we either have to pull some from Norsca or rely on the Ogres."

Sinuoli stroked his beard; it takes time for increased birth rates to translate into population. Filling the Southlands and then bringing a comparable population to Eight Peaks had already pushed the Old World to its limit.

"Perhaps I must head north. Suojiade cannot make the call on such a big matter; I must talk to his old man directly. Hmm, I suggest Agelimu go himself; possessing extraordinary power, his prestige in the north is no lower than mine."

With his pen moving like a dragon or snake, Sinuoli drafted his reply; Demigods need mutual respect. Since returning from Itza, he and Agelimu had expressed that they would not interfere too much in the affairs of the North World Edge Mountains.

"There are few peaceful days; one must enjoy them well."

The Badlands, the Dark Lands, the Tomb King—all are immediate threats. But compared to actively detonating them, Sinuoli preferred to accumulate strength and counter-react passively—as long as his strength grew faster than the enemy's.

"Boom!"

"What kind of rank are you to dare fight me! Little ones, tell me, who is the biggest, who is the strongest?"

"Boss Tiepi!"

"Grimgor Ironhide!"

"WAAAAGH!"

In the Nan E Di, the Warlord of the Topknot tribe was trampled under the feet of the Black Orcs, unconscious. It held its Battle Axe high and roared at the sky; conquering these "inferior" kin who went shirtless and wielded stone weapons couldn't stir up its passion for battle at all.

If not for their specialty in raising war beasts, their stinky, messy heads—adorned with Ransequikui—would have been chopped off to be used as footballs long ago—colliding with the Hardboyz was much more interesting!

"Little ones! Spread my orders throughout this forest! Three days, within three days, all the leaders must roll before me! If you're late, you die!"

Returning to its shack, what awaited it was a map made of wild beast skin. The giant axe, forged in the Demon Smith's furnace of Zharr-Naggrund, lightly checked off a green Orc head mark in the bottom left corner.

"Da Orks, it's time to find some guys who are waagh enough."

Most of the scattered green marks had been checked, while a few rat-head and skull-club marks had been crossed out. The scarlet gaze extended from the boss's single eye beyond the map; as an outsider, Tiepi knew how vast this world was.

"Scatter all the Wolf Riders for me! I want to know about the stunties. Sinuoli's in the south, the ones who drove away the Evil Moon, and, and those in the Dark Lands!"

No one would question Tiepi's loud voice, which could traverse the entire battlefield. The Greenskins knew that shiny choppas and sturdy armor could make them more waaagh, and the Dwarfs in the mountains happened to have such specialties. A set might be a bit tight, but wouldn't it be just right to piece two sets together and make simple modifications?

"Discovered a large group of Wolf Rider scouts infiltrating the World's Edge Mountains? Tiepi has nearly unified the Badlands and is preparing to waagh the world upside down?"

Having rested for less than half a year, Sinuoli once again issued a mobilization order to his subordinates. He learned that Tiepi had arrived in the Badlands before the resurrection ritual of Lord Kroak was planned; counting to now, it had been more than three years—with the help of the Green Prophet, it was truly enough.

"I am thinking about a question: how did Wuerzhage-LvXianzhi get to the Dark Lands? Do you have any information on this? That Savage Orc Shaman who wears a mask and rides a war boar."

"I know it. Under the Tower of Zharr, it fought against Ironhand, and the Big Foot and Old Fist it conjured gave that old bone a hard time! As for how it got there, I think my slave master will have the answer."

Drazhoath had completely discarded the Demon Smith's attire; he was now wearing priest robes designed under the personal guidance of the Mother Goddess. After a probing attack was thwarted, Gortz decided to concentrate his forces to continue fighting Ironhand.

"Good afternoon, Your Majesty, Excellency. That Orc Shaman first appeared at the Emozhuang in the Wolf Lands. It brought the will of the Savage Gods to help the defeated Tiepi reorganize."

"Very well, then why did they take such a big detour from the north, enter the Old World through Peak Pass, and then run all the way back to the Southlands?"

"Driving the Greenskins north was a resolution of the Secret Society, and I was the one who strongly advocated for it; who told the Black Fortress to be in the south?"

Drazhoath's scarlet eyes darted around; he was struggling to keep up with Sinuoli's rhythm. As the map unfolded, the Demigod pointed his finger at the Death Pass at the northern foot of Eight Peaks.

"I'm only stating my guess: taking the long way around was due to your pressure, and Gortz might have wanted it to keep fighting the northward-fleeing Astrogoth. But it is more likely that they couldn't pass through Death Pass at that time."

"Luen, what about that box of markers swept into the dust? Help me bring it over."

Inserting the cackling yellow crescent and the blue face with an "underbite" from red fangs back into Eight Peaks and Black Crag, the distribution of power at that time was restored.

Whether the Green Prophet led a small group of elites to sneak through or used its reputation to borrow the path, it could have passed through Death Pass. But with Tiepi and a whole warband of fierce Black Orcs, unless Gork himself stepped out, who would let them into the Badlands to stir up trouble?

"Do you mean to let King Belegar open the gate and let them through so they can strike directly into the Wolf Lands and fight Gortz again?"

"That's right. It sounds simple, but there will be many challenges in terms of specific operations. But it's worth a try; if even a part of it succeeds, it can simultaneously reduce the pressure on both of your sides."

Looking at the winding mountain roads on the map, the conference room fell into deep thought. Drazhoath could not possibly know that in the original timeline, he would ally with Tamuerkehan and lead a massive army through her to raid the Old World.

"Gortz won't provoke those two scourges on his own, but provided King Belegar facilitates it, I can persuade the allies of the Tower of Beast-Runners to take the initiative. If that doesn't work, let my people go; I bet they won't be able to tell the difference!"

"If, and I mean if, you still have trustworthy Greenskin slaves, you can try to let them spread some rumors. Theoretically, they would be relatively easy to incite."