Chapter 317: Whose Victory?

"I'm sorry, kid. This is a small warning for you. Also, a piece of advice: the women of the Windrunner family are not to be trifled with. If you want to win over my elder sister... you should first become a hero in the hearts of the high elves." By the time Sylvanas finished her sentence, she was already hundreds of meters away, her warning carried to Duke's ears by the wind.

Duke gave a wry smile, not because of Sylvanas' seemingly capricious behavior or her teasing. Rather, it seemed that winning over Alleria was going to be quite challenging!

Fortunately, it wasn't entirely impossible...

However, the women of the Windrunner family were either thorny roses or stubborn individuals who wouldn't budge an inch!

Having repelled the aggressive Red Dragonflight and successfully defended the Thandol Span, what was originally a natural chokepoint that could be held by a thousand men was now being guarded by nearly ten thousand, making it virtually risk-free.

Duke wasn't worried about the Horde sending a strong force to break through, because among the forces in Stromgarde, there was another individual with the surname Trollbane. This guy wasn't well-known now, but in the original history, his statue stood alongside Alleria's in the Valley of Heroes in Stormwind, worshipped by the masses. He was one of the five heroes of the Dark Portal.

Duke rubbed his head, realizing he had nothing to do for the moment.

Unbeknownst to him, at this very moment, a pair of eyes were watching him intently. The owner of these eyes was Miss Jandice Barov.

As Duke's deputy in the field of magic, Miss Barov had been quietly fulfilling her duties, leading the mage group for Duke. Her humble demeanor made her inconspicuous in Duke's camp.

At this moment, Jandice let out a soft sigh.

"People who can control their own fate... are truly enviable."

Everyone could see the hint of affection between Duke and Alleria. Jandice wasn't envious or jealous of Alleria. What moved her was the brilliance of Duke when he was changing his fate.

Without the shackles of a family, born a commoner, he had risen to a high position in the midst of the world's great changes, taking control of his own destiny.

For some reason, Jandice felt a longing for Duke. She knew she shouldn't think about it, but she couldn't suppress her thoughts: If it were Duke, perhaps he could free me from the shackles of my family and give me true freedom...

At this moment, finally sensing Jandice's gaze, Duke turned his head: "Miss Barov, is there something you need?"

"No, it's just... it seems that quite a few Horde transport ships have broken through the strait. Shouldn't we pursue them?"

Duke gave a mischievous smile: "Knowing that the Horde might attack the northern continent through here, as the deputy commander, would I not block this possibility?"

Duke was right.

He didn't leave any chance for the Horde.

Just as the Horde's transport fleet desperately rushed under the Thandol Span, thinking they had escaped the Alliance's ambush, the orc laborers rowing the boats despaired to find that the strait, which had been reported as clear just two days ago, was blocked.

Tens of thousands of tons of huge falling rocks blocked the northern sea route, while the southern route was blocked by a dozen large and small merchant ships filled with rocks that had been scuttled there, effectively blocking the entire sea route.

"When did this happen..." The orcish transport fleet fell into complete despair and fear.

Soon, they didn't need to fear anymore, because the human ballistae that appeared on the cliffs easily sent them all to feed the fish at the bottom of the sea.

An hour later, at Grim Batol Fortress in the Wetlands of the southern continent.

Zuluhed the Whacked, chieftain of the Dragonmaw clan, angrily smashed and destroyed everything he saw on his way. He rushed to the most mysterious room, and in front of that steel gate, he saw an old orc with a limp.

"Nekros, where is she!?"

"She's inside, but something's not right."

Nekros was a half-baked warlock, an immature shaman, but as Zuluhed's confidant, he had a special ability. He could better control something called the Demon Soul, which happened to be the key to controlling the red dragon.

With the Guardian's consent, Zuluhed finally stormed in angrily, grabbing the woman in red attire.

"Hey! Call back your descendants who fled. The Horde needs their service. Alexstrasza!"

"Bastard! Who do you think I am!?" The red-haired woman roared in anger, an invisible aura sweeping across the entire space. Anyone faint-hearted would surely be terrified.

Unfortunately, it didn't work on Zuluhed.

As she charged at Zuluhed, the Guardian of the Demon Soul appeared. Its fiery claws grabbed the woman's curved horns, slamming her dignified face hard onto the rough stone floor.

Blood seeped from the corner of the woman's mouth.

"Yes, Alexstrasza, the most powerful and greatest dragon queen, but so what? Now you are just a slave to our Horde. Hahaha!" Zuluhed laughed wildly, watching as the Guardian of the Demon Soul rubbed the beautiful face of the red dragon queen, now in human form, against the cold, rough stone floor.

The sharp and uneven ground left several shallow cuts on Alexstrasza's wheat-colored face.

"Lowly orc!" The red dragon queen roared in anger, struggling fiercely. The continuous humiliation almost drove her mad, but it was to no avail. Not far away, the object in the hands of the lame orc Nekros greatly weakened her power.

Ten thousand years ago, at the request of Neltharion the black dragon, the five dragonflights gathered at the Wyrmrest Temple to create the Dragon Soul, a powerful artifact that combined the power of all dragonflights to fight against the invading demons of the Burning Legion. The dragons all joined the war against the demons, and Neltharion used the power of the Dragon Soul to annihilate all the demons on the battlefield, but then betrayed the dragonflights and the resistance. Malygos the blue dragon tried to stop him but it led to a heavy blow to the blue dragonflight, almost wiping them out. Sindragosa, the future blue dragon queen, also died in this tragedy, and Malygos fell into madness. Neltharion himself became a monster with a body flowing with lava, henceforth known as Deathwing.

Later, the Dragon Soul passed through the hands of many owners, and eventually, under the corruption of demonic power, it became the Demon Soul. Under the secret guidance of the schemer Gul'dan, Zuluhed sensed the existence of the Demon Soul and found it.

Ten thousand years have passed, and the effect of this artifact has changed somewhat, but the power of the dragons contained within it has remained the same.