163 Chapter 163: A Fierce Battle with the Three Heroes (Part 2)

Daniel, standing behind Duke, was completely dumbfounded. Every spell that Duke cast required the full power of a top-tier Sky Mage, yet Duke managed to cast three simultaneously, all with instant castings that ignored the usual casting time!

And the identities of the two orcs seemed to be of high standing.

"Boss, who are they?" In private, Duke insisted that Daniel and Itana call him Boss.

"Oh, a chieftain from a top-tier clan and the next chieftain of the tribe," Duke casually replied.

Daniel's face turned pale instantly.

Thanks to Garona's efforts in educating the higher-ups of the Stormwind Kingdom about the Horde, most high-ranking officers, or mages like Daniel from the royal mage corps, had a general idea of the enemies' capabilities.

The widely accepted view was that a human commander couldn't defeat a top-tier clan chieftain but could fight to a standstill with a second-tier chieftain.

This was based on multiple cases of human forces being disbanded.

Simply put, they were defeated and demoralized.

During the large-scale battles between the Stormwind Kingdom and the Horde, there were numerous instances of commanders being killed instantly and banners being seized. Only the Kingdom's revered warrior Lothar had managed to kill a second-tier chieftain and regain some honor.

Still, this didn't prevent King Llane from ordering a retreat.

A banner taken by the enemy was a disgrace, and a disgraced banner couldn't lead soldiers to victory. This was an iron rule handed down since the time of Emperor Thoradin.

So, when Daniel saw Duke single-handedly suppressing the two famous heroes of the Horde, his gaping mouth could have easily fit a large egg.

However, the good times didn't last long as Duke suddenly exclaimed:

"Oh snap!"

Daniel didn't know what that meant, but he knew it couldn't be good.

Duke indeed almost had an accident if it hadn't been for the system fairy constantly scanning the surrounding environment.

Why did mages need a large number of followers?

The contrast between a mage's powerful firepower and fragile vitality was striking.

Without mana shields and ice barriers, even the weakest militia could take down a mage with a single jab.

This forced mages to maintain their distance when battling warriors.

Fighting two chieftain-level heroes was already extremely difficult for Duke. Those two superhuman fellows were simply unreasonable.

But an even more unreasonable fellow was lurking behind them.

The system fairy issued the highest level of warning! A huge red exclamation mark appeared on Duke's retina, pointing to the edge of the mountain on the left side of his vision.

A series of footprints from far, far away.

If it weren't for the system fairy's special marking, Duke wouldn't have realized that these were a series of footprints made by a single person, as each footprint was at least ten meters apart.

There was no one in sight, but the system fairy outlined a burly figure in red that was rapidly approaching Duke.

"Take this!" Duke roared as he extended his left hand, and a frost-filled ice tornado swept toward the seemingly empty area.

A burly figure was forced to reveal itself in mid-air.

An orc blademaster!

Duke instantly recognized this orc with a red flag on his back, a string of large brown-black beads around his neck, a white beard fluttering in the wind, and a long single-edged sword in hand.

Saurfang!

He was an orc of the legendary Blademaster clan, the Burning Blade. Historically, he had participated in both the First and Second Dark Portal Wars. Saurfang was a master of stealth, his skills reaching their peak during the recent Elwynn Forest campaign. Thirty-four Stormwind commanders, including two marshals and one vice commander, had fallen to his blade.

The Burning Blade clan was renowned among orcs for producing countless Blademasters. Their unparalleled combat prowess, agility, and destructive power were unmatched by ordinary warriors. Almost all orc warriors held a deep admiration for Blademasters.

The moment Saurfang appeared, the still unyielding orcs attempting to approach Duke erupted into a thunderous cheer.

Kilrogg Deadeye could no longer contain his anger. With a fierce roar, his body grew by a full foot. If Orgrim Doomhammer was the embodiment of a berserker, then Kilrogg epitomized speed and magical resistance.

The chilling effect of the blizzard was suddenly reduced by 70%.

Saurfang vanished once more into the air. Without question, he had activated his Wind Walk ability, which granted him invisibility, and charged toward Duke.

In an instant, three famous Horde heroes converged upon their foe.

"Boss?" Daniel called out with an inquisitive tone.

According to the original plan, Duke would unleash his magic and then flee. However, when to flee was ultimately up to Duke.

Duke knew all too well that in a one-on-one situation against any one of these three Horde heroes, he would be at a severe disadvantage.

The ability of orc heroes to enhance their magical resistance was something Duke could not comprehend. Was this an anomaly in the world's 20 variations, or was it the result of the level suppression imposed by the orc heroes?

This was a serious issue, one that would determine whether Duke would avoid Horde heroes in the future or find a way to kill them directly.

Heroes were irreplaceable!

Leadership-capable heroes were even more so. Up against the formidable Horde, humans had only Anduin Lothar to rely on before the emergence of the first generation of Paladins.

In fact, before Bolvar Fordragon became a Paladin, his strength was merely second-rate.

If possible, Duke wanted to see if he could kill one or two Horde heroes, or at least probe the differences between their abilities and his impressions.

Duke stretched out his hands as if pushing open an incredibly heavy door. When his arms were fully extended, forming a T shape with his body, a massive dome with swirling snowstorms inside appeared on the mountaintop.

What would happen when a mage's Frost Armor was expanded a hundredfold under the support of unimaginable magical power?

The answer was the Wide-Area Frost Barrier before them!

Any enemy entering the barrier would be slowed and had a chance of being frozen into an ice block. It was an enormous defensive and controlling spell! To be continued...