Titan King: Ascension of the Giant Chapter 1469 Hero's Blood

"How do I appear?"

Lumi lifted her eyelids, and Orion stood right in front of her as the initial sight.

His gaze filled with worry and fondness melted her icy core.

"Perfect," she murmured. "I serve as the Warden of Winter now."

She transformed into the deity ruling over the frost.

"This shall be our residence."

Lumi pointed toward the Ice Phoenix Palace located behind her. While forming her Authority, she naturally applied the realm's laws to rebuild it. She created an exact copy of the tundra palace that Orion had presented to her.

"Yes. This is our home."

Orion agreed with a nod, truly pleased that he could offer a haven dedicated entirely to Lumi.

"From this point forward," Lumi declared, experimenting with her fresh ability, "I shall call forth a vast snowfall throughout the Divine Kingdom during the closing three months of each year."

"Once the snow thaws, the frozen ground will loosen. This will boost the development of every form of life and nourish the earth."

This stood as the clearest advantage from Lumi's mastery of the Snow Authority to the Abyssal World.

"Yet," she went on, "the Divine Kingdom's regulations remain incomplete in function. To activate additional laws, you need to keep dividing and distributing Authority."

"For the realm to achieve wholeness, you must broaden its lands and set up governance."

Orion was well aware of these matters. Still, understanding the route differed greatly from traversing it.

To enlarge the Divine Kingdom, his actual form had to labor within the Chaos Void. The mere alternatives involved consuming rival Divine Kingdoms or siphoning power from the Abyssal World. These approaches formed part of his strategy, yet they demanded time for implementation.

"If it succeeded for me... Gustalon ought to earn the Kingdom's recognition too," Lumi proposed gently.

Her mind worked considerately. Owing to their common essence as elemental entities, she promptly recalled the wind elemental.

"I'll discuss it with Gustalon," Orion vowed.

He held intentions for the wind spirit already. With Lumi's rise, Gustalon seemed virtually guaranteed.

"Would you care to stroll with me?" Lumi inquired.

With affairs settled, she reached out her hand. Orion grinned and grasped it.

Lumi pressed close to him, clutching his arm. Resembling a pair wed for many years, they wandered slowly amid the pure white blanket of snow.

Stoneheart City. The Silent Goblet.

A wave of profound pride washed over Redfang the Giant as he climbed the steps to the tavern's upper level.

It represented a mark of prestige.

The balcony area was set aside for the upper class. The fulfillment surging through him upon those wooden planks surpassed even triumphing in Colosseum combat.

"Redfang! Here!"

While Redfang reveled in his significance, a known voice hailed from a side alcove. It came from his companion, Zhenlo.

Redfang approached with purpose, the planks creaking faintly beneath his bulk.

"Got this ready for you. Hero's Blood. Final barrel today."

Zhenlo, the Pandaren, pushed a huge mug over the surface. He understood the Giant thoroughly; this brew was Redfang's favorite.

Redfang eyed the unfamiliar human beside Zhenlo but stayed quiet. He raised the mug and swallowed the blazing brew in one mighty swig.

The drink scorched his gullet like molten rock, searing with the fervor of a fighter's essence.

"Hero's Blood indeed. Packs a punch!"

Redfang exhaled contentedly, his extended tongue flicking to catch the lingering drops on his mouth. Only afterward did he turn to Zhenlo.

"This is Bastien," Zhenlo presented, indicating the human. "A buddy I picked up in Northguard. He reached Alpha rank battling Insectoids. He's one sturdy fellow."

Redfang inclined his head and offered what he considered a warm grin to Bastien.

But could a Giant's grin ever seem welcoming?

Bastien clearly didn't see it that way. He tensed up noticeably.

"He's my Giant pal, Redfang," Zhenlo hurried to explain, tapping Bastien's arm. "Pay no mind to the fangs. That's his smile."

Zhenlo strove to connect them. As fellow warriors who had spilled blood in conflict, they ought to bond.

"Redfang, you wouldn't believe," Zhenlo remarked, shaking his head, his striped fur standing on end in frustration. "Northguard... it's a nightmare."

"Guess what hit me right after teleporting there?"

"Famine."

"A whole city, wasting away from hunger."

"The humans there... nothing but skin and bones. Weak. I thought my little finger could pierce right through them."

To illustrate, the Pandaren stuck out his plump pinky and jabbed at nothing, mimicking bursting a bubble.

"When we showed up, their eyes... they lit up green."

"Friend," Bastien cut in, his tone gravelly. "That was hope. Not the madness of starvation."

"Yeah, yeah. Hope," Zhenlo amended, though doubt lingered on his face.

To Zhenlo, that "green gleam" in human eyes often signaled they had gone wild, set to devour whatever stirred. Yet Bastien claimed it was thankfulness.

Stoneheart's ruler enforced tight discipline in Northguard, averting the horror of people turning on each other, but the anguish was palpable. Upon the Stoneheart Horde's arrival as aid, residents viewed not merely troops, but the assurance of food.

"Alright, hope. Not a hunter's stare," Zhenlo chuckled, revealing his tidy rows of tiny teeth.

"But Fang, hear this. The ordinary people in Northguard? They can't even consume the bugs. Insectoid flesh poisons them. It ends them."

"They finished their stored grain weeks back. They're on their last legs."

As Zhenlo painted the northern terrors, Bastien kept mute, gazing into his vacant glass.

He recognized the Pandaren spoke truth without embellishment.

In the desperate stretch before help came, Northguard lost souls to famine hourly. More fell prey to aerial bugs dragging them from pathways.

"And beyond the barriers?" Zhenlo pressed on, gesturing vividly. "The Insectoids swarm like a curse. Like a torrent."

"I swear, one footfall, and you squash a critter."

"Why huddle within? Why not charge out and clear the area?"

"Fang, trust me, that spot is heaven for folks like us. Prime hunting ground for rewards and honors."

Zhenlo wasn't blind like the Giant. He spotted Bastien's spirits sinking, feeling the man's embarrassment and sense of lesser worth.

Zhenlo extended a thick, fuzzy hand to rest on Bastien's shoulder.

"Hey. Pal. Zhenlo intends no slight. I hold no disdain for your kind."

"I'm recounting a catastrophe. One that calls for our aid."

"See Redfang? He's just the sort of ally I'd take north to sort this chaos."

The Pandaren's straightforward candor and kindness pierced Bastien's walls.

Bastien shook his head and emptied his mug.

"I apologize. My demeanor is spoiling the meetup."

"Hahaha! Buddy, no worries! That crisis is on the verge of fading into the past."

This reassurance sprang not from Zhenlo, but from the Giant, Redfang.

"Friend, Northguard has rejoined the Horde's fold. Henceforth, we're kin."

"No matter the trial, we shoulder it as one."

Redfang pounded his broad chest. At that instant, he exuded pride—unyielding yet reliable, the hallmark of his race.

"Redfang assures you. For a companion's sake, I'll head to Northguard. I'll slay the most pests. I'll deliver hope."

"I know plenty of old battle-mates in Stoneheart. They'll eagerly join the push north to assist."