The Great Thief

Lu Li’s ring could only be upgraded by exchanging a sacrificial offering into energy, or at least, that is how it was done for the first three levels. Hence, there was a need for an altar that could supply energy to the ring.

In saying this, the Altar of Tides was not the best option out there. Perhaps there were other altars that could provide a better upgrade for the ring.

However, the Altar of Tides was the best altar that Lu Li could get his hands on. It wasn’t just a random altar built on a deserted island – it was one with a long history.

Stranglethorn Vale appeared to be the only peace zone in Azeroth where the war had not yet breached.

Within the Vale resided a great Troll civilization from the ancient past. They had built grand cities that the Trolls and Goblins lived in.

Most of the Trolls still followed the tradition of eating humans and a few of the troll tribes had already been recognized as man eaters. These included the Mossflayers and the Vilebranches.

Besides these tribes, Ice trolls had also been proven to be man-eaters. Desert trolls, Forest trolls and Jungle trolls also occasionally displayed man-eating behavior.

Even the mysterious Dark trolls showed man-eating behaviour, however, there were still some noteworthy exceptions. For example, the Zandalar clan and Raventusk clan would eat any food that looked like a human, but they wouldn’t eat their own kind. The Darkspear clan also kept their man-eating tradition until they joined the tribe, however, they gave up on their cannibalism.

The cooking recipe that Lu Li had looted was evidence that the trolls seemed to enjoy eating barbecued Murlocs.

According to records from the past, Murlocs who were afraid of being eaten called upon the Tidelord to descend upon them.

Neptulon responded to their call and sent a huge wave to sink the grand city. The tides even raged through the entire Stranglethorn Vale.

The city was flattened into ruins and the trolls turned against each other to form a few opposing tribes.

After that, Thrall led the orcs and their allies, the Darkspear clan, to move to this land together. The Deakspear clan were the group of trolls from the Jungle troll tribe who gave up on cannibalism.

The island under Lu Li’s feet was only the tip of the iceberg – underneath it slept an ancient troll city.

The altar that the Murlocs used to call upon the Tidelord stood in front of him.

It should be noted that the words used in the lore were “call upon” and not “summon”.

With their limited abilities, the Murlocs were not strong enough to summon a demigod, such as an elemental lord.

However, this altar was enough for Lu Li.

All he needed now was a caster, as Thieves could not activate altars.

Fortunately, he was prepared.

Lu Li walked towards the altar and placed down the Jade Statue that was in his hands.

The crystal-clear statue radiated a green glow with a ripple-effect that began to spread outwards.

Unfortunately, this was only an average Jade Statue of Neptulon. The altar reacted to the statue because Neptulon had descended here before, but the statue itself was not enough to summon Neptulon.

Lu Li wasn’t planning to summon Neptulon anyway – he still wanted to stay alive.

“Who is summoning the great God of the Tides?” A violet teleportation channel appeared in the inscriptions outside of the altar, followed by a Murloc priest wearing a green robe.

“Luna on high, this night elf from Darnassus greets you,” Lu Li said as he took the Jade Statue and passed it to the priest.

The murloc priest grabbed the statue and exclaimed with excitement, “Oh, what is this I’m seeing?!”

“It’s a gift. I hope you like it.” Lu Li was relieved to see the glow of the Murloc priest change from hostile-red to friendly-green.

Only Murlocs could activate the Altar of Tides, so it would be quite troublesome if the priest hadn’t shown up.

“Young elf, you’re such a well-mannered child. Speak, what is your request of me?” The priest was in a good mood and carefully carried the statue in his arms.

“I am an adventurer who is seeking great power. I wish to obtain the power of the tidelord,” Lu Li replied, cutting straight to the point.

The priest immediately changed his expression.

“What? How dare you set your target on the altar.”

He was only slightly stronger than an elite monster, and there was no guarantee that he could beat this thief who had a Jade Statue, so he remained on his guard.

Night elves were very strong and were even capable of defeating what the Murlocs feared most – Nagas.

Murlocs had always been cowards and were only tough on the outside. They swarmed upon their enemies and ran away when they couldn’t win.

“You’ve misunderstood – I do not plan to use this altar without paying a price. I’ve brought you rewards in exchange.”

Lu Li took out a great amount of rare materials and placed them in front of the altar, one by one.

The priest widened his eyes at the sight, mumbling the name of Neptulon to try and maintain his sanity.

The NPCs in Dawn were also capable of leveling up through two methods. The first method was to defeat strong opponents and grow through battle. This method was ineffective for the Murloc priest, as he had to stay and protect this altar.

The second method was to gain power from an outward source.

The materials that Lu Li had brought were extremely tempting for the priest. Not only could the priest use these materials to absorb energy, he could even use them to absorb purer, divine power from the altar.

“Help me drain the power from the altar and these will all be yours.”

Like the whispers of a devil, Lu Li’s words were filled with temptation.

“No, the altar’s power cannot be used carelessly. Punishment will descend upon us from the great tidelord.” It was easy to tell from old priest’s dry face that he was in a dilemma.

“Don’t be silly – the tidelord won’t descend upon these ruins. Ask yourself, what does this wasteland have that can possibly attract a demigod?” Lu Li interrogated, persecuting the murloc’s soul.

The poor old thing was almost about to cry.

“Murlocs shouldn’t be enslaved. You all need to break away from the grasps of the Nagas. Only then will you guys have the chance to find great power – power great enough to summon your tidelord.” Lu Li decided to tackle this from another angle.

“Yes.”

The old priest’s eyes sparkled as he declared, “We were once rulers of the seas. No one other than the gods can enslave us.”

“As a friendly elf, I must agree with your words,” Lu Li replied, pretending to side with the Murloc priest.

His words were clearly untrue. Elves loved nature and balance, but they were never a friendly race to begin with.

Unfortunately, all that the old priest could think about now was the blueprint that Lu Li had just described to him.

Murlocs shouldn’t be enslaved, they shouldn’t be struggling in these ruins, and they needed a strong leader. The old priest felt as if his youth had returned to his body once again.

Lu Li collected the materials and pushed them towards the priest, saying, “Take them, for the sake of greater power and for the future of the murlocs.”

“I need to check if these materials are really what I need.”

With his bloodshot eyes, the old priest nodded his head heavily.

Of course, these were the materials that he needed. Azure Sea Breeze had already interacted with this old Murloc priest in his previous life and received a long list of materials from him.

“I doubt that anyone else will be able to provide you with better materials than me.” Lu Li was slightly anxious – who knew if this NPC would suddenly change his mind?

Fortunately, these materials were what the Murloc priest wanted.

The pile of materials that Lu Li offered not only contained the rare materials that the priest needed, but it also included the sacrificial offerings required to activate the altar. The priest didn’t need to supply anything at all.

The old priest was surprised, in a good way of course, as he checked every single material and held all of them tightly in his arms.