After listening to Arthas's description, the issues concerning faith and how to handle them seemed particularly confusing.
Azshara pondered for a moment, uncharacteristically devoid of mockery, instead contemplating with a calm expression. When she needed to get things done, she was incredibly reliable; otherwise, she couldn't have become Queen just by relying on her looks. Even the most beautiful face, without the corresponding strength to protect itself, would only become a plaything kept in confinement.
During the Ancient Era, she had encountered many Wild Gods. Some resided on Mount Hyjal and had excellent relations with the Night Elves who believed in Elune and the Way of Nature. The others were the loa spirits worshiped by the Trolls; these spirits were also demigods, usually the embodiment of a certain animal.
These animals were varied: dinosaurs, spiders, sharks, flying snakes, and so on, encompassing everything. The powerful could be extremely strong, and the weak very weak. Being a demigod was merely a realm and did not directly correlate with strength.
Unlike the Wild Gods, the loa worshiped by the Trolls relied heavily on the number and piety of their followers. They also needed to respond to their followers' calls. When followers prayed and called out, the loa could sense it, and that's when they needed to weigh the pros and cons.
The Power of Faith given by a follower every day is 1 point, but this response requires 100 points. Responding might make the follower more devout, allowing them to provide more Power of Faith, or their faith might remain unchanged.
This means that if the follower's faith remains unchanged, it would take three months and ten days to break even. And during this period, it's hard to say whether they will have other prayer requests. If their desires aren't satisfied, their devout faith will decrease, extending the break-even time, or even stopping the return altogether.
Achieving devout faith is difficult. In isolated cases, it's easy to break through to become a Fanatic. But this doesn't apply in most situations; one cannot use Whitemane and her peers as examples.
After pondering for a long time, she finally turned her head to look, her expression somewhat strange.
"Perhaps you could try setting up Divine Envoys, messengers representing the will of the gods, to respond to calls on your behalf, and set limits on the scope of requests, as well as the frequency. Since you mentioned that nothing can be accomplished without norms or standards, then implement the rules properly, establish all the boundaries, and set a standard. This will also make those followers understand what insatiable greed means."
"It would also be best to categorize the followers' ranks based on their piety, and categorize the Power of Faith they can contribute to you. The higher the rank, the more benefits they can enjoy. You need to create differentiation, rather than being as vague as it is now."
"Without any differentiation, how can you display superiority and thus inspire inner competition to reach a more devout level? Heh heh, profit is the foundation. You don't think Elune truly gives freely, do you? She also needs to listen to the voices of her followers and provide Divine Grace feedback in a timely manner to stabilize their faith."
Azshara's words were enlightening. He had never researched the Sisterhood of Elune, nor had he heard of any strict hierarchy. Internally, all Night Elves were equal; they only differed in duties and division of labor, seeing each other as siblings and compatriots, without distinction.
This was also the strength and foundation of the Kaldorei, contrasting with the Highborne's self-proclaimed aristocratic sense of superiority. Fanaticism is inherently more intense, which has both good and bad aspects.
He would rather have a group of elite Fanatics than a batch of ordinary followers who could abandon their faith at any time. Fanatics are worth investing in, while ordinary followers are like looking for a needle in a haystack—if you find a good one, you profit, but if you don't, it doesn't matter, as you already have a guaranteed baseline.
One is taking the mass line, and the other is taking the elite line. It just depends on the choice.
Building on this, Azshara's words also opened up a new line of thinking for him: Divine Envoy!
A messenger of the gods, fulfilling the duties of a divine incarnation, spreading Divine Radiance, existing as the god's representative. In a sense, only the most trusted individuals can take on this role.
Otherwise, once betrayed, the losses would be incalculable. Faith is also a crucial factor in whether one can ascend to become a True God. This circuitous path led back to the starting point.
"That makes sense. Truly worthy of the Kaldorei Queen. Talking with you has indeed benefited me greatly. I know what I need to do now, though it requires a little more thought."
Arthas opened up a completely new line of thought: if robots could help take over the task, that would naturally be the best solution. He thought of the Arbiter in the Shadowlands—a cold machine, yet a unique soul.
He could completely subdivide his authority and then develop a machine to summarize it. Development would take a very long time, involving specialized knowledge related to Engineering, Arcane, Mysticism, Alchemy, and so on. This was just an idea, which could be gradually realized in the future.
The immediate priority is still to research how to confirm the existence of Divine Envoys, how to empower them, and how they can perceive the prayers of followers. This is another process that requires study, and it is even more complex and variable.
Before the age of machines arrives, a manual transition is necessary. If it works well, retaining it wouldn't be impossible. If it doesn't work well, then he can consider making changes.
Just as he was about to get up and head to the Grand Cathedral for research, Azshara stopped him, pushing him onto the sofa.
"Don't rush. Your matter is concluded, but mine hasn't been resolved yet. You yourself said that friendship is built on give and take, didn't you?"
"Uh, we're husband and wife."
"That's a special kind of friendship. Shut up and do as I say. Listen to the Queen, and you will receive a reward!"
Outside, Lunara, who was researching how to rapidly cleanse the area, was working on a topic with Ilucia Barov, the King's Magical Advisor. Suddenly, a clap of thunder and a storm erupted outside. The calm sea instantly became turbulent, the wind howled, and an extremely powerful Arcane aura descended, shattering the poorly constructed wooden boats inch by inch.
A trace of surprise flashed across Lunara's face, her eyes filled with disbelief. She blinked and looked towards Lordaeron's Magical Advisor.
"It seems something good is happening to your master. Only when a demigod and a demigod produce offspring will such a natural phenomenon occur. I wonder who is so lucky—is it Azshara, or Lady Tyrande?"
This one sentence revealed the degree of her closeness and respect. She addressed Azshara by name, showing little deference. But when speaking of Tyrande, she used the honorific "Lady," which in itself explained the situation.
Ilucia was also curious, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear—a gesture that revealed youth and allure, one that many men couldn't resist, giving them the illusion of a racing heart.
"Oh? Why do you say that? Does a demigod giving birth to an heir always cause such a reaction? Wouldn't Mount Hyjal be thundering every day then?"
Her words were teasing, referring to Cenarius's situation. That's why he was called the Natural Demigod—he only sought out animals, highlighting the fact that he didn't trouble the elves.
Lunara blinked, taking a moment to realize what she meant, then immediately rolled her eyes and reached out to tickle her.
"Don't talk nonsense. Mount Hyjal rarely thunders. Only when the offspring is sufficiently outstanding will the demigod, who symbolizes nature, cause a natural resonance, creating a Celestial Phenomenon to celebrate the birth of new bloodline. If you bear a child for your master in the future, such a phenomenon will also occur."
"The mother must be powerful enough for a Celestial Phenomenon to happen. If the innate talent is insufficient, it won't happen at all—they might not even cause a single splash!"
After speaking, she patted Ilucia's shoulder, acting like an elder teaching a junior.
"Keep it up. I have high hopes for you. You are qualified to bear children and pass on the lineage for your master. The more offspring you have, the less pressure you'll face, and the more things they can help you manage. If you don't know how to proceed, I can help you. Trust me, how about I assist you?"
These words were spoken sincerely, yet Ilucia couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss.
Thinking this, Ilucia couldn't help but look suspiciously at Lunara. This Dryad truly seemed kind-hearted, but what exactly was she plotting behind the scenes?
"I feel like your abacus beads are bouncing right off my face!"
"Ahaha, did they? No way, how could that be?"
Lunara felt a little guilty. Was it that obvious? It shouldn't have been so transparent! Seriously, she should be forming an Alliance with her right now.
Meanwhile, in an Inn full of Oriental Style—a restaurant managed by a Pandaren chef. With the immigration policy initiated, Hope City welcomed all friendly races and opened up a massive Trade Zone specifically for foreign races to reside in.
Shandris was tasting a dish called "Buddha Jumps Over the Wall." It was a soup, but drinking the ingredients mixed with the broth was an absolutely perfect taste experience!
The dish was perfectly replicated, and even without using meat ingredients, the "Buddha Jumps Over the Wall" was first-rate delicious. According to the anecdote told by the chef here, Old Chen—full name Chen Stormstout—Monks are similar to Priests, forbidden from drinking alcohol or eating meat, and must strictly abide by the Monastic Rules to achieve the goal of Asceticism.
This delicacy could make even the most resolute Monks, upon smelling its aroma, unable to resist climbing over the Temple wall to eat a meal of it, forgetting all their so-called Monastic Rules completely.
Precisely because of this anecdote, the business at Storm Inn has always been the best. Customers ordering "Buddha Jumps Over the Wall" have to line up and count back; it's not being fussy, but the ingredients require preparation, the process is troublesome, and the cooking takes a long time. Only then can the ingredients absorb the flavor and the broth combine the freshness of the ingredients.
However, Shandris, as the Princess of Lordaeron, was not subject to this restriction. She could eat whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted.
Wait in line?
How dare you! To make Her Royal Highness the Princess of Lordaeron wait in line—do you want to experience being framed or suppressed?
Calia smiled as she watched her niece, carefully wiping the corners of her mouth. Although she was also the Eldest Princess, she didn't care about royal power or doing anything important; she only wanted to look after her younger brother Arthas's children. Only family companionship was real; everything else was illusory.
If Jaina has children in the future, it's already agreed that they will be handed over to her to raise. It's perfectly reasonable for an older sister to look after her younger brother's children!
Hearing the thunder outside, Calia jumped in surprise.
Only Shandris had a strange expression. She could feel the closeness of their bloodline connection. Perhaps in a little while, she might have a younger brother or sister?
"Don't worry, Aunt, this is a normal phenomenon. Why aren't you eating? Eat more. We still need to make a trip to the Eastweald region later to check on the situation there, and the Forest Trolls. Some old stubborn people don't want the Forest Trolls to defect to Lordaeron, so they are isolating them and trying to exterminate them. That's not good news; we need to go and see."
She was quite attentive to the matters in Lordaeron, mainly because she found it entertaining. As for Darkshore, it was quite boring. Moreover, Archdruid Fandral was responsible for the materials and rituals needed to resurrect the demigods, and the Mantid that had migrated south were handling the Insectoid People. She genuinely felt bored and was looking for things to do.
First, it had to be fun; second, she had to be interested; and finally, it depended on her mood. Otherwise, she wouldn't foolishly do it—working for free is no fun.
Furthermore, she had to consider the feelings of her Stepmothers, lest they think she was trying to seize power. Who could clearly explain such matters?
"Ah, no rush. You finish eating first. Once we get there, we'll communicate with the Scarlet Crusade. We still need to rely on them for the fight against the Trolls."
Calia was not enthusiastic about battlefields, even finding them repulsive. But Shandris was simply too cute, and her younger brother had personally asked her to help look after her niece, a request she couldn't refuse.
If unreasonable requests must be accepted, how could a reasonable one be refused?
Town Hall.
Jaina looked at the Envoy before her with a headache. This was an Envoy sent by her mother, the Lady of the Ashvane Family, one of the Four Great Families of Kul Tiras.
Like Daelin, Lady Priscilla Ashvane's husband also tragically died when Archimonde destroyed the city of Lordaeron using Mysterious Magic. She has always deeply hated demons.
In the timeline that wasn't changed, her husband would have died alongside Admiral Daelin in Theramore, all because of Jaina's betrayal, which also caused her to hate Jaina.
Now that the timeline has been altered, none of that happened. If there is hatred, it wouldn't be directed at Jaina, nor would Arthas be blamed.
"Your Majesty the Queen, I have come on behalf of Admiral Katherine Proudmoore, requesting assistance in the name of the Alliance members."
"Very well, Lady. Please take a seat. Someone, pour a Strong Drink and bring two bottles of Stormstout. Also, please ask His Majesty the King if he is available, and invite him over, along with Queen Sylvanas and Queen Onyxia."
Jaina had initially wanted to have tea served, but considering the Kul Tiran characteristic of preferring alcohol to ward off the cold, she changed the order from brewing tea to pouring liquor.
The Maid quickly went off to busy herself—pouring wine, calling people, relaying messages, and so on.
Lady Ashvane looked around the magnificent office, which was engraved everywhere with Magical Runes, with some emotion. Even someone who wasn't a Mage could feel the continuous and abundant flow of Magical Power within. If a Mage were to practice here, their speed would be phenomenal.
Lordaeron was still very prosperous. After the Undead Scourge swept through and caused massive losses, it seemed to have inadvertently helped eliminate many constraints, allowing the royal authority to be centralized, abandoning decentralized power, which was more conducive to governance.