Amidst the furious interplay of blue lightning and red flames, Galen activated a hidden mechanism. A long, strip-shaped object, composed entirely of molten lava, appeared out of thin air, rapidly solidifying and cooling. This was the Sulfuron Bridge, a direct conduit connecting the Court of the Doomed, where Galen now stood, to the very core of the Firelands: Sulfuron Keep itself!
Ignoring the ongoing, brutal battle between Ursoc and Baleroc, Galen strode directly onto the newly formed bridge of cooled lava. As he reached the head of the bridge, he paused, his gaze sweeping the ground. Something glittering caught his eye. He walked over, bent down, and from the smoking, still-hot lava, picked up a few seed-like objects.
"Fandral, this is all I can do for you," Galen murmured to himself, tucking the seeds into his bag as he continued his walk towards Sulfuron Keep. "Whether or not you can create another branch of the druid's shapeshifting arts depends entirely on your talent."
According to the ancient traditions of the Firelands, Sulfuron Keep should have been guarded by the chief administrator appointed by Ragnaros. Just as Skywall had its Wind Council, Ragnaros did not personally oversee the Firelands. Instead, he delegated the management of the entire Fire Elemental Plane to his most trusted subordinate. The previous administrator, Firelord Exorus, had performed so poorly in the Molten Core that he was casually incinerated by Ragnaros's own avatar. In the original timeline, Exorus's successor would have been Fandral Staghelm, Galen Hellscream's devoted disciple. But Galen had reshaped Fandral's destiny. Now, Fandral had both children and grandchildren, and served as the marshal of the Night Elf Allied Forces, living a comfortable and fulfilling life. Given the night elf race's deep-seated aversion to arcane energy and elemental spells, Fandral would likely never practice flame druidism in this new reality. The terrifying flame panther and poison scorpion forms would forever remain unseen on Azeroth.
From a distance, Sulfuron Keep appeared a formidable, gray-black fortress. Its walls were adorned with vibrant red flame patterns and inlaid with intricate gold runes, a stark contrast to the desolate landscape. In truth, this magnificent palace was not Ragnaros's own creation. The Firelord was a brute among the four elemental lords, his temper as volatile as his power. Even his servants, the Firekin, were crude plagiarisms of the naga, utterly incapable of designing such a Titan-style palace. In fact, this imposing structure was originally a prison, built by the Titans themselves to contain him. Ragnaros had later broken free from its shackles but, being too lazy to relocate, had simply repurposed his prison into his personal lair.
At this moment, the castle courtyard lay eerily empty, a consequence of the lack of an administrator and Ragnaros's general disdain for being disturbed.
Bang! Bang!
Galen casually unleashed two skills, turning the two fire elementals guarding the castle gate into spectacular fireworks. With a leisurely stride, he entered the towering palace.
Ragnaros himself was currently preoccupied, his entire focus consumed by Azeroth beyond the Firelands. More than 25,000 years ago, the Titans' imprisonment had stripped him of control over all fire elements in the physical plane. He had briefly regained a portion of Azeroth's fire laws through the medium of the Molten Core, only to lose them again with the Core's fall. Now, desperate to impress his Old God masters, he was projecting his divine thoughts across the entirety of Azeroth, striving to tame the world's fire elements. When the magma of the planet's core erupted as a whole, Azeroth would be transformed into a sea of fire.
Therefore, Galen's invasion of the Firelands went entirely unnoticed by Ragnaros at first. Coupled with the absence of his administrator, the Firelord remained blissfully unaware that a visitor had arrived at his very castle.
"Hello?"
"Is anyone home?"
"If not, I'm coming in!"
Galen's seemingly amiable, yet undeniably jesting and malicious voice, echoed from the castle gate, traveling through the long, winding staircase passage to the underground core of Sulfuron Keep.
Ragnaros, who had been standing in silent contemplation at the center of the churning lava, was abruptly jolted. His massive body stirred, his tightly closed eyes snapped open, and twin jets of flame, three zhang long, shot forth. His fiery claws slammed heavily onto the platform before him, shaking the very foundations of his lair.
"Who is it!" he roared, his voice a volcanic eruption. "Who dares to break into my castle! The flames of Sulfuron will turn you to ashes!"
Ragnaros lifted his colossal form from the molten lava, revealing his molten legs encased in ancient, obsidian armor. He raised his head, his gaze piercing through the long passage above, meeting Galen's eyes as the night elf pushed open the castle gate. The gazes of man and demon collided in mid-air, almost sparking with tangible energy.
This main body of Ragnaros was vastly different from the avatar Galen had encountered in the Molten Core. Firstly, the flames that wreathed his form were distinct. The avatar's flames had been orange-red, while the main body's blazed with a golden-red hue, a clear manifestation of its superior temperature and immense power. Furthermore, the avatar's lower body, which had been a swirling whirlwind of fire, had been replaced by solid, armored legs forged of molten lava and pure flame. Coupled with his complete set of Sulfuron iron armor, he appeared far more majestic and undeniably more durable.
"Mortal?" When Ragnaros clearly discerned Galen's figure, his eyes, burning with elemental fire, filled with profound doubt. Though he hadn't appointed a new manager in millennia, several of his powerful subordinates still guarded the periphery of Sulfuron Keep on the Lava Plains. Even the weakest of them were low-tier demigods, and with the formidable Baleroc overseeing the mechanisms of the Sulfuron Bridge, how could a mere mortal have possibly sneaked into his inner sanctum?
"What a bunch of trash!" The Fire Lord let out an angry roar, a bellow of profound disappointment directed at his subordinates. Then, he raised the legendary Sulfuras hammer in his hand, its sharp, jagged hammerhead pointing directly at Galen at the castle gate. "Night Elf, come and meet your death! Sulfuras will be your doom!"
Ragnaros's incandescent rage caused all the lava within the fortress to react, surging and churning. Lava worms, lurking in the fiery passages, poked their heads out one after another, roaring their defiance at Galen. The Firelord's divine might was like a prison, especially for Ragnaros, a top-tier figure among demigods!
But the person facing him was Galen. The number of demigods under his command could easily form a half-football team. In Galen's estimation, the Fire Lord's pressure was not nearly as intense as the fierce, soul-crushing winds of Uldum.
"Defeated foe, since you are eager to die, then I will grant your wish!"
In the very center of this infernal Firelands, Galen simply stopped pretending to be a druid. With a powerful surge of energy, he directly unfurled the three pairs of Holy Light wings on his back, their golden radiance illuminating the cavernous space. With the appearance of the six-winged angel, hundreds of brilliant halos materialized in the air beneath the fortress ceiling! The light of these halos, initially faint and almost invisible, swelled in a mere second, emitting a dazzling, blinding brilliance. These halos, like celestial laser cannons, poured down torrents of holy beams of light!
"Holy Light Illumination!"
"Ah! It's actually you!" Ragnaros roared, a flicker of recognition, and perhaps even a hint of fear, in his fiery eyes.
"Holy Light, descend!"
The pillar of light summoned by Galen blanketed the cavernous space, instantly extinguishing most of the writhing magma worms. The sheer power and divine attribute of the attack also confirmed Galen's identity to the Fire Lord.
"Ah! It's actually you!" Ragnaros bellowed, a primal recognition in his fiery gaze. Although Galen still retained his night elf appearance in his six-winged state, at Ragnaros's level, he sensed not the physical form, but the distinct attribute and powerful fluctuation of Holy Light. If Galen had employed Druidic nature magic or borrowed the abilities of others, Ragnaros might not have recognized him. But the power of the Holy Light was etched deep into Ragnaros's very essence, a painful memory. Had Galen not destroyed his Molten Core all those years ago, perhaps Ragnaros would not have had to exert such immense effort to breach the barrier between the Firelands and Azeroth!
"Damn human, I will grind your bones to ashes and let the flames purify everything about you!" The Fire Lord, consumed by incandescent fury, climbed out of the lava pool. With the blessing of his divine power, surging lava soared into the sky, erupting towards Galen. The first to suffer were the magma worms that had miraculously survived the Holy Light's descent. Though they lived in lava, they were no match for Ragnaros's pure Sulfuron Flames, and all perished in Azeroth's strongest inferno!
"Well done!" As Ragnaros unleashed his full fire domain, Galen dared not confront it head-on. Instead, he raised his right hand, and a shimmering shield of light materialized before him, completely blocking the erupting flames! However, when the flames dissipated, the palm of his hand was scorched black, a testament to the Fire Lord's raw power. Worthy of being the Fire Lord, especially in the Firelands, where his strength was further amplified.
In fact, Galen and his companions entering the Firelands was a strategically disadvantageous move. This was particularly true for the Wild Gods, whose strength was inherently limited in this demiplane composed solely of fire elements. Had they not been powerful demigods themselves, they might not have been able to defeat even the lesser demigods of the Firelands. Moreover, in his home turf, Ragnaros could draw endlessly upon the fire elements of the Firelands to replenish his energy. Theoretically, his power was inexhaustible.
A quick battle was imperative!
Galen stomped the ground fiercely, his entire body catapulting towards the passage below! The Kings' Guardians formed behind him, embracing Galen in mid-air, their forms merging with his. Then, his figure suddenly increased dramatically, transforming from a night elf of just over two meters into a colossal giant of light, nearly ten meters tall!
Finally!
Galen had once again invoked his imitation of the Azerothian version of the Law of Heaven and Earth, a spell he had crafted based on memories from his previous life. This was a spell he had created to cope with the ultimate crises that might appear in the future. From dealing with the Black Dragon Mother to facing Ragnaros today, this spell had been perfected through multiple encounters with formidable enemies!
Boom!
The colossal figures of the Light Giant and the Fire Lord intertwined. A golden light sword, blazing with divine energy, pierced out from Galen's palm, colliding fiercely with Ragnaros's mighty Sulfuron Hammer! Sulfuras, Hand of Ragnaros, was a divine artifact of immense power. Yet, the core of Galen's Light Sword was Ashbringer, and at Ashbringer's heart lay the remnant of a powerful Naaru, a force equally not to be underestimated. The collision of the two legendary weapons generated intense air pressure, driving the surrounding flames to form furious whirlwinds throughout the vast underground hall.
Hiss! The Fire Lord felt the jarring sensation transmitted through the Sulfuron Hammer in his hand, and was utterly amazed by the terrifying speed of this human's strength advancement! In a mix of shock and incandescent rage, Ragnaros knew that this day would end with either his triumph or his utter annihilation. He swung his hammer again, continuing the relentless assault!
Golden flames danced in the air, intermingling with blackish-gray rock dust. Perhaps flames could suppress other demigods, but Galen was wreathed in pure holy light. Coupled with the special conduit of the Heart of Origin to replenish and borrow holy energy, he remained utterly unsuppressed by the fire element.
"Hahaha! Come on, Ragnaros! I've wanted to hammer you into dust for a long time!" The Light Giant, Galen, wielded the Light Sword in his hand, clashing relentlessly with Ragnaros.
How strong was Ragnaros? He was the most violent and combative of the four elemental lords. Judging from the sheer power transmitted through the Light Sword, he was undoubtedly stronger than most wilderness demigods, though likely still weaker than the White Stag God. As long as he hadn't reached the cataclysmic level of Archimonde, Galen harbored the absolute confidence to kill him! Compared to the Molten Core over a decade ago, where he had been forced to rely on the strength of other demigods to combat Ragnaros's clone due to his own insufficient power, this feeling of being evenly matched, of "don't bully the young for being poor," filled Galen's heart with an almost infinite sense of satisfaction.
Bang! Bang! Clang!
After a furious series of collisions between the Light Sword and the warhammer, Galen ultimately proved the more skilled, piercing the Fire Lord's chest with a decisive thrust of his blade!
"Damn it!" Severely wounded, Ragnaros dropped the warhammer from his hand onto the platform. After a guttural curse, he immediately broke free from Galen's Light Sword and leaped with astonishing speed off the platform, plunging into the churning lava below!
"Children of the Land of Flames, come and protect your king!" With the Fire Lord's thunderous shout, the entire lava pool began to boil violently, a multitude of bubbles emerging. As they burst, molten lava splashed in all directions. These incandescent splashes eventually landed on the ground around the platform, swiftly condensing into a multitude of small fire elementals. The moment they took shape, they immediately rushed towards the location of the Fire Lord's dropped hammer!
"Huh?" Galen uttered a sound of doubt, then long-forgotten memories suddenly resurfaced in his mind: "Don't let these Sons of Flame touch the Sulfuras Hammer!"
However, it was too late!
MMP!
Holy Light Radiance! Galen, with his overflowing reserves of holy energy, didn't even consider other skills. He immediately unleashed his ultimate move! Pillars of light poured down from the sky, and in less than half a second, all the Sons of Flame on the right side of the platform were utterly obliterated.
"Demigod of the Holy Light, you have angered me!" Seeing Galen effortlessly eliminate the Sons of Flame, shattering one of the Fire Lord's crucial trump cards, Ragnaros immediately slapped the surface of the lava lake. Dozens of scorching lava arrows formed between the splashing molten rock, flying towards Galen with deadly precision! Seizing this momentary diversion, Ragnaros once again completely submerged his colossal body in the lava lake, fully absorbing the raw fire element within, relying on this immense energy to rapidly repair the grievous damage inflicted by Galen!
Galen watched the huge lava arrows approach and, with a wave of his hand, condensed a Holy Shield around himself for protection!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Lava splashed, but Galen remained unscathed.
"Come out! Ragnaros!" Galen poured holy light directly into the lava lake!
Bang, bang, bang!
The holy light bombarded the surface of the lava, making explosive sounds like a relentless knocking on a door. "I know you're inside, come out and die!"
After shouting and cursing for an unknown duration, the Light Giant Galen's form began to dim! He felt his own holy energy nearing exhaustion, making it increasingly difficult to maintain his colossal form!
"Ha!" The Fire Lord, keenly aware of Galen's weakening state, immediately seized the opportunity. He burst forth from the lava pool, an overwhelming torrent of scalding lava directly engulfing the Light Giant's body.
"Let's fight to the death, human god!"
"The moment of the Fire Lord has arrived! No one can stop the Fire Lord! Let the flames purify everything!"
Ragnaros urged the magma, the golden, molten tide rising hundreds of meters high. Accompanied by the Fire Lord's thunderous roar, it surged forward, engulfing the Giant of Light with the terrifying posture of melting everything in the world!
It was a pity. After the incandescent magma dissipated, the Giant of Light still stood upon the platform, utterly unharmed, as if nothing had happened!
"You think I'm one of those warriors from the M78 Nebula?" Galen quipped, a hint of disdain in his voice. "You think I'm one of those Ultramans whose chests beep when they're dying?"
Along with Galen's complaints, the Giant of Light, constructed entirely of Holy Light, became even more dazzling! In that crucial moment, the holy energy of the three demigods of the Golden Holy Dragonflight, plus the two Naaru, was injected into Galen through a special, powerful connection!
"Ragnaros, I'm telling you, I'm actually your daddy!"
The Fire Lord's eyes, composed of raw fire elements, widened in disbelief. He quickly lumbered towards his warhammer. Just as his fiery claw was about to grasp the Sulfuras Hammer, Galen's lightsaber swung out, and Ragnaros's outstretched right arm was cleanly severed!
But Ragnaros was not one to be trifled with. A burst of furious flames roared from his shoulder, reforming into a new arm, which immediately snatched the Sulfuras Hammer! Ragnaros had regained control of his weapon, but his heart was shrouded in gloom. He had been forced to draw upon the power of his very origin to forcibly repair his body. Even if he repelled this human Holy Light demigod, his strength would undoubtedly decline!
Filled with incandescent rage, the Fire Lord once again engaged in close combat with Galen. For a time, sparks flew throughout the entire underground space of the castle, and molten magma sprayed everywhere during their brutal, earth-shaking battle. While Galen defended against the splashing magma with his Holy Shield, he relentlessly swung his lightsaber, clashing with Ragnaros's massive warhammer.
At this point, Galen's martial skills, honed step by painstaking step, truly shone. The initial strength of humans was low, forcing them to cultivate not only physical prowess and energies like anger, holy light, or shadow, but also exquisite, refined combat techniques. Therefore, in close combat, Galen, who was a master of swordsmanship, held a distinct advantage over Ragnaros, who had been a demigod from birth, relying more on brute elemental power.
After the sixth time Galen had chopped off the Fire Lord's arm, this fire demigod had visibly begun to decline. Losing an arm was not a critical problem for an elemental lord; even if he lost most of his body, given enough time, he could absorb the fire elements from the underground magma to restore himself. But Galen gave him no such luxury. Repeatedly drawing upon his origin to regenerate limbs had already caused Ragnaros's colossal body to visibly shrink.
As he fought, his opponent's power seemed to grow, while his own diminished. Who could endure such a frustrating predicament?
"I actually made a mistake. Mortal, I admit you are very strong, but in my domain, I am invincible. You will be crushed!"
"Die! Your judgment has arrived! Sulfuras will be your end! When I have solved you, your world will be burned by my flames of vengeance!" The Fire Lord's roar echoed throughout the fortress, causing Galen to immediately adopt a defensive posture, anticipating a devastating ultimate move!
As a result, in the very next moment, the Fire Lord hurled his warhammer directly at Galen, then quickly turned and leaped off the platform!
"Crap!"
He's running away!
The personalities of the four elemental lords were intrinsically linked to their elemental attributes. Galen had not anticipated that Ragnaros, despite the explosive nature of fire, would retain enough rationality to sense the unfavorable turn of the battle and decisively choose to flee!
The Fire Elemental Kingdom was, in truth, incredibly vast, its area no smaller than any continent on Azeroth. The immediate vicinity of Sulfuron Keep was, at most, a mere ten-millionth of the entire Firelands. Though considered the capital of Ragnaros's Fire Elemental Kingdom, and the place where the essence of fire elementals was most concentrated, the Firelord was acutely aware that when it was time to retreat, he must do so without hesitation. As long as he escaped, he could draw energy from the boundless fire elemental territories outside and regain the power to make a triumphant comeback!
"Holy Light Grip!"
Golden light suddenly erupted from the hands of Galen's Light Construct, followed by a golden, chain-like ray that shot forth. As it rapidly approached Ragnaros, the tip of the chain split, forming a grappling hook!
"Come back here!"
At that moment, most of the Firelord's colossal body had already merged into the churning lava, leaving only the portion above his chest exposed. Just then, the hook, accompanied by Galen's booming voice, clamped firmly onto the back of the Firelord's neck!
Ragnaros felt a searing, sharp pain in his neck, followed by a disorienting dizziness. His entire body was ripped from the lava once more, flying backward towards the towering Light Construct!
"Drink!" The Firelord roared, struggling with all his might, but the more he struggled, the more terrified he became. Being pulled back to the Light Construct now meant certain death!
However, the course of events would not be altered by the Firelord's desperate refusal. As Ragnaros was dragged back towards him, Galen fully unleashed the Holy Light power transmitted from the Naaru and the Golden Holy Dragons!
"Judgment Declared!"
A colossal Holy Light sword formed directly above Ragnaros's head. As he was hooked back into position before Galen, the mighty blade fell with devastating force!
"Bang!"
Amidst a deafening explosion, the Holy Light sword struck the top of the Firelord's head. His body erupted in mid-air as if bursting, spewing molten lava everywhere! The exploding flames spread like a fiery plumage across the sky, obliterating the entire ground structure of the castle. Not only that, but the very stone walls around the cavern melted and warped, and the space of the entire cavern expanded, seemingly out of thin air. The intricately carved shapes that had once adorned the walls were reduced to ash, ceasing to exist.
Galen's Light Construct hovered in mid-air, completely enveloped in a golden barrier, the platform beneath his feet having vanished entirely!
"Hiss!" Looking at the utterly transformed environment around him, Galen gasped in his heart! The sheer power of the Firelord's disintegration and explosion was terrifying! Fortunately, his reaction had been swift enough; otherwise, at such close range, he would have been forced to waste that precious Resurrection Cross!
However, the ordeal was not yet over. Ragnaros could not be dead yet! Previously, after Galen had slain Al'Akir on the Throne of the Four Winds, a unique elemental force of the elemental domain had descended—the will of the elemental domain itself, attempting to choose him as the new Wind Lord. At this moment, Galen sensed no such will. There could only be one possibility: Ragnaros was not truly dead!
Galen, from within the core of the Light Construct, closed his eyes. His mental power scanned the churning lava beneath his feet with all his might!
Suddenly, he opened his eyes, and two golden lights burst forth from the eyes of the Light Construct, locking onto a specific corner of the lava like powerful searchlights!
"Found you!"
Then, he used the Holy Light Grip once more, plunging it into the molten lava, and from its depths, he pulled forth a miniature version of the Firelord!
Though now a mere miniature of his former self, the Fire Lord's shrunken form was still comparable to a regular fire elemental. Yet, Ragnaros was utterly consumed by terror, his arrogance replaced by abject defeat! He could no longer even lift the mighty Sulfuras Hammer, and the very fire laws of Azeroth were being stripped from his soul. His strength plummeted from godhood, rendering him vulnerable to even a common fire imp or a lowly lava giant. Now, Ragnaros was nothing more than a fish on a chopping board, utterly helpless before the towering Light Giant!
"Spare me, God of Holy Light of humanity! I am willing to surrender! I am willing to serve you!" The once arrogant Fire Lord, now held captive in the colossal palm of the Light Giant, begged for mercy, his voice a desperate, crackling plea!
Hearing the Fire Lord's pathetic words, the Light Giant raised him to its massive head. "Too late, Ragnaros!" Galen's voice boomed, resonating with divine judgment. "Azeroth has no place for you anymore!"
"Ah!"
"No!"
As Galen tightened the Light Giant's fingers, Ragnaros let out a final, agonizing shriek.
"Poof!"
With a sickening sound like a watermelon bursting, the tiny, flame-like Fire Lord was utterly crushed, his essence scattering into nothingness.
The Fire Lord Ragnaros had fallen!
With the death of the colossal Ragnaros, the raw essence of fire within him rapidly condensed into a singular, pulsating Fire Core, its surface etched with the shimmering pattern of a crown of flames! Just like the Wind Scepter Galen had obtained after slaying Al'Akir, this was the very authority of an elemental lord, the tangible manifestation of elemental godhood in reality!
The Light Giant's colossal form dissolved into glittering motes of light, dissipating into the scorching air, revealing Galen's human figure once more. Galen beckoned, and the essence core, shaped like a fiery crown, flew towards him, settling into his outstretched palm. This was the immutable rule among the elemental spirits; once utterly killed in their native plane, their elemental power and authority would belong to the victor.
As long as Galen properly absorbed the Crown of Fire, he could immediately ascend to become the new elemental god of fire. Alternatively, Galen could choose a new successor, allowing them to absorb the godhood left by Ragnaros, thereby replacing Ragnaros and becoming the master of this fiery world. Given Galen's unwavering dedication to the path of Holy Light, he would most likely choose to empower another subordinate to become the new elemental god, then utilize the Heart of Origin to unite the power of all four elements under his banner.
Now, the godhood of two of the four elemental lords had been secured, leaving only the Stone Mother Therazane and Neptulon the Tidehunter. Compared to Ragnaros and Al'Akir, who had rejoined the Old Gods' insidious camp, Therazane and Neptulon were relatively rational beings. In the original timeline, both had even joined the Earthen Ring during the Legion's invasion to collectively resist the Burning Legion. Therefore, Galen would strive his utmost to spare the lives of these two living elemental lords, provided they proved sensible.
With the Crown of Fire in his possession, Galen temporarily controlled the Firelands. He immediately cut off the supply of fire elementals to the surrounding areas. For a time, Beth'tilac, Shannox, and Baleroc found themselves unable to replenish their dwindling powers, and were swiftly defeated one by one by the various Wild Gods who had been holding them at bay. Thus, all of Ragnaros's direct fire elementals were annihilated, leaving only the scattered fire elementals on the far outskirts of the Firelands. While some of these lesser elemental lords might harbor ambitions to compete for the vacant elemental throne, with the Fire Crown firmly in Galen's hands, they couldn't cause the slightest ripple of defiance!
The elements, which had been in chaos for hundreds of thousands of years, were now poised for a new order, a new beginning under Galen's guiding hand.