Dinen had always wondered why his strength had declined.

He is not a shaman or a priest and is incapacitated when the person of prayer stops responding; He is also not a mage or a warlock, and the spells he casts may be restrained, or even turned against themselves. The strength of a warrior comes from the fragile and tenacious flesh and blood of mortals, from will and experience, and has been forged into steel by thousands of exercises, injuries and actual combat. This power is as sharp and brittle as a blade sharpened by crystal, unable to resist disability or time, but still reliable enough to never abandon its owner for no reason.

Today, he is able-bodied and clear-headed, and his life span has not yet reached a third of the racial limit. Why, then, is his power declining?

Is it a hidden curse? But he'd met so many healers that no one noticed anything unusual. Is it a side effect of time rewinding? But when Chromie took him out of time, things still didn't get better. Dineen chewed through his experience, and his intuition eventually led to a hazy conjecture.

And now, it's been verified.

As his fingers gripped the hilt of Sdomka's sword, the world's rotation slowed and nearly stopped. He could feel himself still pulling his sword outward, but it was only a remnant of inertia, the last thing his frozen body could do. Little by little, the blade withdrew from the flesh, a viscous purple liquid dripping from the edges, and the carapace began to shake—all slowly. He couldn't feel the touch of the hilt, the only thing he could feel was the feeling of blood gushing out of his body and infusing the weapon in his hand.

That's certainly not blood, but something else.

The Valagar Swords are powerful, but Dinen has put a lot of effort into strengthening them. He sought out items of power, extracted them, and infused them into his weapons. The material is destined to allow this pair of swords to absorb more energy than ordinary iron can achieve. In the final battle, they were shattered at his will, but if that energy was released, it could cause an earth-shattering explosion. Perhaps it was Valagar so as not to hurt his master, or perhaps for some other reason that it was impossible to know, it was returned to Dinen and stored in his body.

Flesh and Blood were unable to use such energy, and it even became an obstacle for Dinein, making him too weak to escape from the dungeon. He grasped the Stumka, the sword forged by the Viku and fused with the relics of many of their human tribes, infused with elven magic, and it gladly absorbed the energy to strengthen itself and free Dinen from this unexpected bondage.

Despite previous speculations, it wasn't until the moment it fell off that Dineen was so clearly aware of the existence of the invisible shackles. He could almost hear the clasp thumping as it slid down his shoulders, loosening his neck and spine, pulling away from his veins and muscles and flowing towards Sdomka. At this moment, he couldn't move, but he felt unprecedented freedom and lightness, as if he had finally surfaced and breathed again after a long period of breathing.

But he's not alone.

He saw the whole thing clearly—muscles contracting, tentacles twitching, claws opening, and fluid bursting out of the wound rapidly decreasing. The moment the blade left his flesh, a sudden burst of ominous purple light pushed him away. Dinen regained her balance in the air, her feet on the ground, barely hurt, her eyes locked on the foe who had finally woken up from her involuntary slumber.

It stood up, more precisely pulled from the ground by those purple beams of light, and stretched its limbs and the ostentatious carapace appendages on its back. When it stands upright, it can finally be seen in full view. In some places resembles the Facelings of the same species, but is much larger than them, as tall as a siege tower, barely reaching the rock wall above. The ground shattered under the giant claws, and even turned into powder in the vicinity. He had encountered similar creatures in the deserts of Silisus and the beneath the Dragonbone Wilderness, and each time he needed an army to solve the problem.

But Dinen saw more things he hadn't seen a moment earlier. Its steps were unsteady and sluggish, its head turning awkwardly as if it were confused, and its carapace was strewn with mottled wounds, dents, and fissures that had left the mark of Tyr and Soladin. They've already wreaked havoc on the monster twice.

Dinen straightened up and pulled his arms back to his chest, Sdomka in his hands. He looked at it out of the corner of his eye, the two-handed sword was longer and wider than the weapons he had used, but it was just the right amount of weight, not too heavy or so light that it couldn't reach its center of gravity. Its blade is roughly square, with protruding sharp edges, like a small scythe, which can be stabbed or cut, and near the hilt is inlaid with a gemstone, which is connected by a serene blue light.

His heart was filled with joy and pride, as well as a strong sense of self-confidence, stemming from the strength that he had finally been able to return. The world became clear, slow, and organized, and the armor on his body became lighter, almost like a second skin. He felt the vitality he had not seen for a long time, his energy was refreshed, and the fatigue he had had lost before. An impulse urged him to move and plunge into the exhilarating battle. It was so urgent that he couldn't help but smile and look at his prey without fear.

He will bleed, he will be wounded, but he will win.

"Come here, scum!" He roared as he strode forward, sword raised in his hand, "Face your end!" ”

***

"I've never seen anything so crazy." As Dineen stepped forward alone, a dwarf muttered.

No one responded to him. Everyone was staring nervously ahead, nervous, and uneasy atmosphere spread through the ranks again, as if the calmness and bravery in their hearts had also left with Dineh, and even the light of the torches seemed to have dimmed a little. The chill in the air grew heavier and heavier with each breath.

Arthas couldn't help but hold his breath as Dinen approached the sleeping beast and reached out his hand, as if to touch the carapace directly. He heard his heart pounding, like it was in his ears, not in his chest.

"—wait," Gianna said suddenly, startling everyone, albeit softly. The light of the torches shook violently, and others jerked in the direction they thought was threatening, "What's that sound?" ”

The sound of rustling came from all directions, at first it looked like a spider, but when you listened closely, there was the sound of clattering water. Arthas scanned his surroundings, and the shadows that could not be fully illuminated by the firelight suddenly vanished, replaced by an unnaturally thick darkness, as if the light cast on the past had been completely absorbed.

Others have found this as well. Farrick raised the shield in his hand vigilantly: "Watch out for those shadows! They-"

A loud bang interrupted him. As if at the sound of a command, the darkness immediately came to life, splitting into countless pieces, writhing and pounced on them. At a hurried glance, these eerie enemies resemble small octopuses, crawling with multiple tentacles, but with smooth surfaces and surrounded by purple light.

Before he could see what was going on over there, Arthas swung his hammer and struck one of them. The feedback felt like hitting a ball of gelatin, which couldn't help but remind him of the ooze monster. The light of the hammer burned it violently, as if a flame met a firewood poured with oil, and in an instant it evaporated the creature to a small remainder. But two more took the place of the gap, and there were more after them, covering every inch of the ground as far as the eye could see.

Others also attacked, no longer thinking about keeping quiet. Swords and shields clanged, muskets roared, and the dwarves cursed and hammered the enemies in front of them one by one, even suppressing the sound of Farik's orders. The chief guard had to raise his throat as well, so that everyone formed a circle that turned outwards in unison.

Despite their small size, these creatures are not easy to deal with. Their tentacles can stagger, then stretch their necks and bite them with their sharp teeth. Arthas saw that one of the soldiers beside him had been bitten by the sword, and he immediately took a step sideways and swung a blow to relieve the other party. By the time the soldier drew his sword back, it had already left a row of deep tooth marks that almost pierced through the steel.

There was another thud, and the rubble on the rock wall fell with a bang. Arthas slammed his hammer to the ground, emptying the enemy a few steps in front of him, and he seized the precious few seconds to venture out into the front of the cavern.

The monster was pulling its giant pincers out of a broken pillar, and there was no doubt that it was the blow that caused the loud bang. Then he saw Dinein, like an ant in comparison, taking the opportunity to approach his opponent from behind. The speed of the warrior became faster than ever, and Arthas didn't even get to see the attack, and Dinen jumped to the side, moving briskly and vigorously. But he saw the result, a large piece of carapace in his leg was torn off, and the tough muscles underneath spurted purple blood like a fountain.

The monster turned and pursued Dinein. Arthas was about to continue looking, when a flickering shield suddenly unfolded in front of him, blocking the onslaught of a tentacle. The arcane missile grazed his shoulder, shattering the creature into a puddle of pieces. Gianna warned, "Be careful! ”

Arthas shook his head and returned to his own battle. The Light could easily do damage to these octopus-like creatures, and he had the leisure to observe the battle of Dinen. But many of them had already dropped their torches and fought with all their might, and the surrounding light became dim as a result, adding another disadvantage to them. Since Dineen seemed to be able to deal with the monster on his own, the paladin turned his energy to this side of the battlefield, drawing most of the enemies to his side to lighten the burden on the others.

However, no matter how many were killed, these creatures continued to emerge from the darkness. At the same time, loud noises shook the ground beneath their feet, and now and then a foul wind swept through the stone dust, and the rubble slid down the rock walls like rain, and even some stalactites fell from the sky, but fortunately none of them fell on their heads, but hit their enemies. Even though he had confirmed with his eyes, Arthas couldn't help but suspect that it was two evenly matched behemoths fighting over there. He couldn't imagine what Dinen had done to cause such damage.

Another stalactite fell, nailed into the ground a few inches away from the soldier's feet. He shrank back, stared at the sharp stalagmite, and shouted in horror, "This damn place is going to collapse!" ”

"Shut up!" Farrick immediately yelled back, "Concentrate on the fight, or you'll die faster!" ”

The young soldier shrunk his neck and stopped talking.

"Don't worry!" Gianna also shouted loudly, it was impossible to hear the normal volume in this increasingly harsh environment, "I have prepared a teleportation spell!" ”

This is not the first time, and it will never be the last, that Alsace will be glad that she is here. He allowed himself to smile a little, and soon became serious again. They can't leave right now, he won't leave Dinen here, and he has to fulfill his promise to Soladin.

Arthas looked at the battlefield again, and the first thing he saw was the monster. It was half-kneeling, having lost a claw and most of its carapace, and its wounds, large and small, were gushing blood, and even then they were still massive, hideous, and terrifying. In the rubble everywhere, he couldn't find Dineh's figure right away, his heart suddenly lifted, and he subconsciously took a few steps forward, trying to see more clearly.

The monster struggled to its feet, and a thick purple mist spread out of nowhere, swirling and converging around it. The world then distorted, as if ripples spread layer by layer on the surface of the water, distorting the reflection in the water. Arthas felt a feeling of lightheadedness and nausea. The instinctive scream of impending danger was so strong that he wanted to both rush to stop it and long to run away without looking back. Dragged by two contradictory ideas of fighting each other, he froze in place, unable to move.

At that moment, the monster suddenly raised its head and screamed, its voice painful, loud, old and ancient, overshadowing everything else, almost becoming a part of the world, and would exist forever. The purple mist flew out violently, forward and upward, towards the dome above. After a moment, the tip of the stalactite, which was originally faintly visible, disappeared out of thin air, as if it had been directly erased. Immediately after, a terrifying cracking sound rang out above their heads.

"Disperse!" Someone screamed.

Arthas stumbled forward at the sound of the warning, and was knocked and rolled by the force of a boulder as it landed. The warhammer flew out of its hands, disappearing into the darkness with a series of metal crashes.

He recovered from the shock of the fall, and when he opened his eyes, he found himself confronted by one of those octopus-like creatures. They looked at each other, and Arthas immediately reached out and fumbled with his weapon. His fingers felt a stick in the rubble, grabbed it and swung it forward. But the blow slashed in front of the enemy and swung into the air. He immediately realized that something was wrong - too short, too light, it wasn't his hammer.

But he had no time to look for it anymore. The creature was about to pounce on Arthas. In the blink of an eye, it was pinned to the ground with ferocity. Looking up the broad blade, he saw Dinein's face.

Dinen was looking down at him, his face showing unfinished madness and unleashed brutality, his eyes flashing with ferocity, his teeth chattering, as if he was still eager to turn around and pounce on his prey in such a dangerous situation, and finish the killing at any cost. After a heartbeat pause, he pulled Arthas up from the ground with incredible force, and before he could regain his balance, he dragged the paladin forward. They staggered around the boulder and joined up with the others who had risen from the ground.

"Mage!" As soon as he saw Gianna, Dineen roared, "Get us out of here!" ”

Gianna raised her hands in the air, and the teleportation circle appeared at everyone's feet. The next moment, everything around them—the damp rock walls, the falling boulders, the pouring water, the stacks of enemy corpses, and the wounded monster—quickly faded away, faded away, and finally disappeared into the blue light.