Jiang
- For the Temple of the Jade Serpent mob, see Jiang (Temple of the Jade Serpent).
 Jiang | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Gender | Female |
| Race | Pandaren |
| Affiliation(s) | Order of the Cloud Serpent, Pandaren Empire |
| Occupation | Founder of the Order of the Cloud Serpent |
| Status | Deceased |
| Companion(s) | Lo |
Jiang (or "Ji" for short) was the first pandaren to ever tame a cloud serpent. She was a hero of the Zandalari Troll Wars, and became the founder of the Order of the Cloud Serpent.
Biography
During the Zandalari Troll Wars, just after the founding of the Pandaren Empire, a young girl from Dawn's Blossom[1] named Jiang was walking through the Arboretum when she heard a noise. A small cloud serpent lay there on the ground, injured and near death. With a mother's gentleness, Jiang took the creature into her arms and into her care. She named him Lo, and they became fast friends.[2]
However, the townsfolk shunned Jiang, and begged for her to get rid of Lo before he became old enough to hurt her.[2] During that time, the cloud serpents were feared by the pandaren, as the beasts were seen as violent and aggressive creatures, and even to approach one was to flirt with danger.[1]
However, one day, the Zandalari army had pushed as far south as the Jade Forest. Jiang answered the call to arms and defended her people on the beaches. During one of the battles, Jiang nearly perished at the hands of a troll spear, but just as the weapon was inches from her heart, Lo came to the rescue. The serpent, only half grown, swooped in and ripped the troll limb from limb. He then gathered up the wounded Jiang and flew her far from the battle to safety. When she was well enough, Jiang approached the leaders of Pandaria's defenses, the warrior monks who defended the land from the trolls and other dangers. She tried to explain to them how serpents could help, how Lo had saved her, and how she knew how to turn the tide of battle, but her words fell on deaf ears. The monks were mired in their own wisdom and chose to continue their defense in the way they sought fit, but their rejection only fueled Jiang's resolve.[2]
Several days later, the Zandalari had pushed in from the coast, and the pandaren champions stood their ground on the great bridge near Dawn's Blossom. The Zandalari numbers were vast, and their bat riders fought in such a way the pandaren had no counter to. Just as the battle was thought to be lost, however, Jiang swooped in on Lo, plucking the Zandalari from the bridge and striking down their bat riders.[2]
The war would still take many months to win, but the tide of war had turned. Soon, Jiang started training other pandaren how to ride as she did, upon the backs of other serpents,[2] and soon a small army arose. Flying into battle at Jiang's side, these serpent riders became known as the Order of the Cloud Serpent.[3] The trolls knew there was little they could do to win by conventional means, so Mengazi, commander of the Zandalari forces, turned to his final tactic: resurrecting Lei Shen, first emperor of the mogu empire which the pandaren had overthrown prior to the Zandalari Wars. A battle erupted at the Tomb of Conquerors, where Lei Shen's corpse was enshrined, and Jiang sacrificed herself to kill Mengazi and prevent the resurrection. The Zandalari fled, and the war was won.[3]
There was great celebration throughout the empire, but also mourning, especially for Jiang. Lo was seen circling the skies above the Jade Forest for decades after the war, seemingly searching for his friend and rider. The other serpent riders honored Jiang's memory by codifying her teachings in the Order of the Cloud Serpent.[3]
Notes
- Jiang died much like how Kang did 100 years earlier to kill Emperor Lao-Fe, during the Pandaren Revolution. Jiang's sacrifice also had much the same effect.