After the signal was sent, Galen and the others didn't wait in place, but slowly retreated back to the cave where the ogre had killed the orc. Galen still felt it wasn't safe enough, so he went directly back to the fork in the tunnel.
It was easier to retreat here, instead of having only one path.
About an hour later, ten teams had assembled in the outer cave, but not all of them entered. Only the ten leaders came in.
Galen signaled Hogg to go ahead and scout, to prevent the ogres from coming out to patrol.
"Galen, what's the situation? The soldiers said you needed us to gather here because of something?" Danath asked first.
"About a kilometer ahead in the cave, there are a hundred ogres. They've blocked the entrance, and according to the information I overheard, they injured Lord Lothar!" Galen told them what he knew.
"Ogres? What are those?" the curious Turalyon asked.
Oh right, ogres came from Draenor. The people of Azeroth hadn't seen this kind of creature before.
"They are a type of humanoid creature over three meters tall, with a huge build, skilled at using heavy weapons, and some high-leveling ones are spellcasters!" Galen gave a simple introduction to the characteristics of ogres.
"Because they are omnivores and eat everything, including humanoids, they are called ogres."
Eating people or not didn't scare everyone, it wasn't like they hadn't seen it before. After all, Azeroth had troll tribes that ate people.
"My plan is that we few will lead the charge in a moment, and then the knights will follow, to raid the ogres' cave and subdue them all."
"Among the ogres, there are three experts. Judging by their strength, there are two at the eighth level and one at the ninth level, but he's seriously injured. We'll send three people to hold them back, and the remaining seven will block the other entrance to the cave. Then the knights will swarm in and defeat them with numerical superiority. I want them alive!"
Given the ogre race's habits, this was clearly a medium-sized ogre group. With his elite swordsman team composed of four hundred high-level knights and fifty-eight paladins, could he not capture these hundred ogres with a five-on-one advantage?
These were excellent laborers, and as long as they were fed, they wouldn't riot or anything. He had no shortage of food, absolutely guaranteed to be full.
Four hundred high-level knights, fifty-eight paladins, mounted, they could charge; dismounted, they could also charge. Add to that ten leaders as spearheads, priests casting Divine Spirit, and mages providing ranged control. This force could wipe out several Kael'Thas's.
Divine Spirit: Increases friendly units' attack power by 10% and armor by 5.
Divine Spirit was a very powerful spell, especially when cast on knights, directly increasing their armor by a third. If there was also the amplification of Devotion Aura, then they were practically heavy tanks.
At this time, unless the ogres had a large number of mages dealing tons of damage, how could he possibly lose?
The priests were casting Divine Spirit on everyone, while the wizards were casting Invisibility, concealing the entire unit.
When the preparations were complete, everyone quietly entered the village under Galen's lead, with no shooting.
The knights were all units of the Origin Heart, able to sense each other's presence. This was also the main reason Galen chose the invisibility tactic.
Under Galen's precise control, the team stealthily advanced without making a single sound. Before long, they reached the cave where the ogres were.
According to the original plan, Galen would hold back the ogre leader, Uther would block Rak'Zor, and the high-leveling orc suspected to be Blackhand's daughter would be intercepted by Dathrohan.
Finally, Turalyon and Tirion would lead two squads to block the other entrance to the cave, while Varrokal and Omar would command the knights to besiege the ogre grunts.
Just as Galen and the others were in position, and Tirion and Turalyon had just arrived, the ogre leader Turok suddenly opened his eyes. The alertness of a high-level expert allowed him to sense the danger: "There are intruders!"
The leader dragged his seriously injured body and forced himself to stand up. It turned out he was injured in the waist and abdomen. The moment he got up, it seemed like the wound burst open, and blood seeped out from the bandaged area.
But his warning worked. The ogres around him immediately became alert. In order to buy time, Galen had no choice but to attack.
Boom!
Stepping on the ground, the power of the Holy Light was poured into the earth, Consecration! The entire cave lit up, attracting the attention of most of the ogres. Then Uther and Dathrohan also each launched a Holy Light-condensed warhammer, smashing towards Rak'Zor and the Blackhand orc.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Turalyon and Tirion stealthily entered the other end of the cave, to snipe any enemy reinforcements that might come.
At the cave entrance, under Omar's command, the knights charged into the cave in squads, alternating left and right along the cave to find their opponents.
Deep in the cave, Galen and the other two were already fighting the three high-level ogres. The other ogres originally wanted to come and besiege Galen and the others, but were stopped by the ogre leader Turok: "Idiots, block the entrance, and then go notify the clansmen behind to come and support!"
In an instant, the scene became somewhat chaotic. Ordinary ogres generally weren't very intelligent. They were uniformly called ogre brutes. Only those with high intelligence could learn to use energy and become high-level combatants, such as that Rak'Zor, who was a high-level ogre warrior and later became a small boss in the Deadmines.
Galen unleashed a Crusader Strike, the power of the Holy Light filling his entire body, and his Trol'kalar became golden.
Crusader Strike is a skill that infuses Holy Light into the weapon, increasing the damage the weapon deals.
This was a skill that Galen had specially developed. He vaguely remembered that when the paladin class first came out, there was no Crusader Strike. There were all kinds of seals, and Retribution paladins once became marginal DPS.
Based on the Crusader Strike skill, it was said that there was a Retribution paladin with a strange mind circuit who wore a full set of cloth armor and used Crusader Strike to deal tons of damage, and was simply a god-slayer and Buddha-slayer in the arena.
Turok held a large iron rod to block Galen's attack, and then a Stone Cone formed in front of him and launched towards Galen.
What the heck, a single-headed ogre mage?
You're a gifted prodigy, aren't only two-headed ogres supposed to have the talent to become mages?
Galen quickly dodged the Stone Cone, and in the spare time, he threw out a Judgment, hitting Turok's chest. Watching Turok's wound tear open again because of the Holy Light Judgment, Galen decided to take his life while he was sick.
The situation on the field was already proceeding according to Galen's script under Omar's command and dispatch. A large number of knights poured into the cave, and all the ogre brutes were besieged.
Galen decided to capture the leader first!
Facts proved that Galen's strategy was correct. Ogres and barbarians really did rush out of the cave where Turalyon and Tirion were ambushing. This should have been arranged by the ogre leader deeper in the mine to block Lord Lothar.
Turalyon and Tirion cooperated with several knights to block the cave, preventing new ogres from entering.
The ogre barbarians gradually couldn't hold on any longer. Their weapons were all wooden sticks, or iron nails or iron rings were added in the middle of the wooden sticks to increase damage. How could such crude weapons fight against the thrice-upgraded knight's greatsword?
The ogre barbarians' bodies began to be covered with tiny wounds. If Galen hadn't said to take prisoners before, they would have already been besieged to death.
Let's end it sooner rather than later, otherwise these barbarians will probably bleed to death if it drags on any longer, and I'll have to heal them, although our side doesn't lack priests.
Galen held Trol'kalar and waved it upwards. He was golden all over, and then a pair of small wings made of holy light appeared on his back. Out of respect for the leader, Galen activated the Paladin's ultimate move!
This holy light spell can increase Galen's damage by 30%, which is definitely a burst-type divine skill.
The appearance of the small wings attracted the attention of the paladins present. They turned some of their attention to Galen, their eyes filled with 'Damn, that's so cool, I want to learn it'.
Then Judgment, Crusader Strike, Blade of Justice, and finally a Templar Knight's Verdict. The ogre leader was beaten back by Galen's combo, spitting blood.
His right-hand men, Lakzoth and the female Blackhand orc, tried to help Turok, but were held back by Uther and Dathrohan. There was no way around it, the sooner they ended it, the sooner they would find a chance to ask Galen for advice on those moves just now.
The twenty seconds of Vengeance's Wrath was enough for Galen to cycle through his output four or five times. Turok was knocked to the ground by Galen, with Trol'kalar pointing at him.
The picture froze, with the winged golden holy light man pointing his sword at the ugly ogre. Nothing could be more captivating to believers than this scene.
"Surrender, and I will spare your lives and help you get rid of the Blackrock clan's pursuit!" Galen activated Arcane Intellect and used magic to transmit his consciousness to the ogre leader.
As one of the small leaders of the ogre tribe that invaded Azeroth, he knew that these little guys in front of him were the main enemies of the orcs' invasion this time. They were indeed not from the Blackrock clan, and they also had the ability to help his couple and their tribe get rid of the orcs' pursuit.
Most importantly, with the long sword pointing at his nose, if he dared to say no, it was uncertain whether the owner of the sword would cut off his big head in the next moment.
"I surrender, Vorgul ogres, stop attacking, put down your weapons, we surrender!" Turok struggled to sit up halfway, shouting with all his strength.
Lakzoth took the lead in throwing away his giant hammer, and then pushed it to the leader's side. The Blackhand female orc also threw down her dagger and quickly ran to Turok to check his injuries.
The ogres who were still resisting also put down their weapons one after another, and then sat down with a thud. Some ogres began to try to block their wounds to prevent the blood from continuing to flow.
"Priests come in and heal the wounded!"
Galen shouted loudly towards the outside of the cave. Priests and wizards entered the cave in turn. The priests also released healing spells to help heal the injured knights and ogres.
Galen cast several holy light spells on Turok in a row. Before long, he felt that his own mana was exhausted. It was a bit difficult for a retribution paladin to heal.
However, judging from Turok's expression, his healing was effective. The painful expression on the ogre's face relaxed.
"Some time ago, did you have a conflict with a group of humans inside the mine?"
He didn't directly heal the ogre. Galen also secretly ordered the barbarians over there to only heal the superficial bleeding wounds. Heal them as soon as they surrender? Wait for them to rebel again?
"Four months ago, Griselda and I led my tribe to escape here. We thought that the inside of this mine was so complicated that no one would be able to find us. Later, we discovered that humans and orcs were fighting in the deepest part. The humans won, so I ordered my tribe to block the cave to prevent the humans from coming out."
Turok said a lot in one breath, gibbering, and then gasped for breath. If it weren't for Arcane Intellect, Galen wouldn't have been able to understand it.
"What's the matter with the wounds on your body?" Galen continued to ask, wanting to get useful information from the ogre.
"That group of humans is terrifyingly strong. They have been trying to break through. Half a month ago, we had another fight. The bald man who led them gave me a sword, and I also returned him a lava fireball at close range! After he flew out, he was taken away by others. There has been no trace for half a month, and I don't know if he is dead or not. Hehehehe, cough cough cough!"
Turok looked excited when he talked about the successful sneak attack, and his face looked a little ferocious with the blood on the corner of his mouth. He laughed like this after suffering a loss for both sides. It was estimated that he felt that his physique and recovery ability could withstand it, and the human who was hit by his magic had already died.
If Lothar were to die so easily in the Deadmines, it would be difficult to say whether the Alliance could be formed later. The bronze dragon should be looking for you Turok instead of me Galen.
Chromie, who had just flown over Baradin Bay, suddenly sneezed, shook her dragon head, and thought to herself, could it be that the climate in Dun Morogh is too cold and I caught a cold?
There were a total of 131 ogres in the cave. In addition to the original 100 in the cave, there were also 31 arranged in the depths of the mine to block Lothar's team.
Most of the ogres had lost too much blood and looked listless. Galen asked Omar and the others to lead the team to guard the prisoners, and he led the first-generation paladins to continue to go deeper into the mine to find Lord Lothar.
The group of six continued to walk in the mine. This time, they were no longer cautious, but stimulated the holy light, becoming six shining golden men, and the soft light radiated in all directions, illuminating the entire tunnel.
I don't know how long they walked, but at the end of the tunnel, a huge cave appeared in front of them.
The end of the mine was a naturally formed cave. Looking at the bottom, there was still the sound of water flowing. It was estimated that it was still connected to the sea. Galen guessed that this should be Van Cleef's base camp in later generations, the place where warships were built.
However, at that time, the cave should have been transformed by the Fiddia Brotherhood. Now the depth of the accumulated water here is not enough for ships to dock.
Galen took the lead to walk out of the cave, preparing to go to the inside of the cave to investigate. Just as he stepped out, he found that on his side, there was a dark shadow pouncing towards him from the upper diagonal of the cave entrance.
Galen reflexively drew out his long sword and flicked it backhand. When the dark shadow approached, Galen recognized that it was a human. It was too late to take back the move, so he quickly twisted the blade.
Originally a fatal strike, Galen changed it into a slap, altering the angle and retracting some force.
Trol'karal's blade struck the ambusher's shoulder armor, slamming him against the cave wall.
This strike embodied Galen's decade of training.
After previously summoning Thoras's legendary-tier power, although the legendary-tier power dissipated, remnants of combat awareness remained.
Through half a year of integration, Galen had stabilized the strength that had surged due to the King's Power amplification.
No longer merely possessing ninth-tier strength without the corresponding combat awareness, he was now a true ninth-tier powerhouse.
Danath and the others behind him didn't see what happened, only hearing a loud crash, and quickly drew their weapons in preparation.
At this moment, the ambusher had slid down from the wall.
Galen quickly stepped forward to check his injuries, while further intensifying the brightness of the Holy Light to make it clear to the ambusher that he was human.
"Don't move, we're on the same side, you have a fractured shoulder!"
Galen held down the human who was trying to struggle to his feet.
He was wearing blue-trimmed armor, which was clearly standard-issue Stormwind equipment, something Galen was very familiar with.
Hearing the long-unheard human common tongue, this Stormwind soldier stopped struggling.
Although it was a northern accent, he was moved to tears, reinforcements had arrived.
The Holy Light flashed three times, and the Stormwind soldier's face was less pained.
He sat up, supported by Tirion and Turalyon.
"We were sent by Archbishop Alonsus, are you a Stormwind soldier? Where is Lord Lothar?"
Galen asked the young soldier, the Archbishop's mission was about to be completed, and he would be able to free up time to meet the Orcs.
"The Archbishop? Archbishop Faol?"
The soldier was stunned for a moment, obviously not understanding why the Archbishop, far away in Lordaeron, would send people to rescue them.
Wasn't that taking a roundabout route?
Seeming to see his confusion, Galen explained: "The Archbishop learned of Lord Lothar's plight through the Holy Light's guidance, so he sent us to rescue him."
"My name is Gavinrad, I am Lord Lothar's guard.
The Lord sustained some injuries, and we lack healing methods.
There are some monsters in the mine that are preventing us from leaving.
We have tried to break through several times but failed, and are currently resting in the depths of the cavern!"
Unexpectedly, Galen became interested after learning his name, with a wolf-in-sheep's-clothing smile, he said to him: "Uh, Gavin, have you heard of Amway, no, do you want to play basketball, no, never mind.
Where is Lord Lothar, take us there quickly, we are all priests!"
After hearing Galen's words, Gavinrad had an expression that said, 'Are you kidding me?'
Your priests are this strong?
One sword strike sent me into the wall, and I am an eighth-tier warrior!
Very good, Galen looked at his expression and felt that the probability of tricking him into becoming a paladin was even higher.
As long as you swing the hoe well, there is no corner you can't dig up.
Gavinrad's young face was full of hesitation.
The light emanating from these people was indeed Holy Light.
Having followed Lothar for so many years since joining the Brotherhood of the Horse, he could be considered knowledgeable, and he certainly recognized the Holy Light.
This was also the reason why he was willing to take them to find Lothar, otherwise, even if he died in battle, he would not betray his commander.
After winding around seven or eight times, when they jumped to the fourth platform, a shout came: "Who is it?"
"It's me, Gavin!"
After Gavinrad responded, a figure emerged from behind a boulder, a guard on watch at the camp.
"Reggie, these are reinforcements sent by Archbishop Faol, I'm taking them to see Lord Lothar!"
After speaking, Gavinrad led Galen and the others forward.
In a corner of the cavern, dozens of Stormwind soldiers were resting.
Gavinrad greeted them familiarly and continued to walk deeper.
Galen saw the future Supreme Commander of the Alliance, Anduin Lothar.
This was a strong man, over two meters tall, with handsome features, although somewhat pale due to his injuries, and a face full of dark stubble.
At this time, Lothar was only in his forties, in his prime.
Even though he was seriously injured, he did not choose to lie down and recuperate, but leaned against the rock wall, closing his eyes to rest.
At this moment, he heard the messy footsteps of many people entering, and opened his eyes, several unfamiliar faces came into his view.
"Arathi Highlands, Trollbane family, Galen greets Lord Lothar!"
"Arathi Highlands, Trollbane family, Danath, greets Lord Lothar!"
Galen and Danath drew their swords and stuck them into the ground, giving Anduin Lothar a solemn, one-knee-down knight's salute.
There was a historical reason for this.
Anduin Lothar was the last descendant of the Arathi imperial bloodline, and the Trollbane family was one of Emperor Thoradin's most trusted generals.
Afterwards, each generation of the Trollbane family served as the Royal Guard Commander of Stromgarde, loyal to the descendants of Emperor Thoradin.
The Trollbane family controlled most of the Arathi Highlands, the original land of the Arathor Empire.
Although they established the Kingdom of Stromgarde and became kings themselves, it was after the imperial descendants helped the Wrynn family ascend the throne.
Respect for the bloodline of the Arathi Emperor was a must.
Anduin Lothar stared at the two young faces, then looked at the swords stuck in the ground, and slowly said: "Trol'karal, Trollbane, it seems the Trollbane family has worthy successors!"
At this time, Uther and the others also stepped forward to greet him.
They were Lordaeron people, but after all, they were not royalty, and their feelings towards the imperial descendants were not as complicated as those of Galen and the other royal members.
"The Archbishop received a revelation from the Holy Light, sensing that you were trapped here, so he sent us to help you!"
Galen and Danath stood up, retracted their weapons, and then continued: "At the same time, we learned that a group of otherworldly creatures wants to invade the human world in the south.
The Archbishop wants us to follow you for a period of time after we find you."
The latter part was added by Galen himself.
The Archbishop asked him to rescue Lothar and retrieve the Book of Divinity.
Currently, news of Stormwind's state of war had not yet reached the north, and only Galen had foreseen the Orcish base camp and informed his father.
Moreover, the Archbishop's original intention was to have Galen and the others bring fifty-eight paladins over, but Galen tampered with the Archbishop's words and brought four hundred more high-leveling knights.
Just kidding, there are tens of thousands of Orcs squatting in the Blasted Lands, I can't just bring less than a hundred people, that's just pigs to the slaughter!
"Thank you for the Archbishop's assistance.
I don't know if you have cleared out the monsters in the mine?
Be careful of them, they are not weak, and I was also ambushed by their leader, and I am still injured!"
After Lothar said so much, it seemed to aggravate his injuries, and sweat began to appear on his forehead!
"Lord Lothar, we are all priests, let us help you heal!"
"You?"
"Are you priests?"