The Celestial Warrior

The man was overwhelmed by the sun's relentless energy, but he wasn't destroyed; his scorched skin gradually recovered and shone with a unique luster.

Soon, he stood up in the light, and violent energy scattered in all directions, blasting the surrounding priests into ashes.

The man stood proudly, his appearance had changed; besides becoming enormous, his body had also undergone significant changes.

His skin turned sky blue, Golden Armor materialized on his limbs and chest, a pair of golden and blue wings sprouted from his back, and the giant sword in his hand was dazzling.

Its head resembled a monster, with two feather-like antennae that looked like a moth upon closer inspection, while its lower body was no different from a human's.

The crowd below the platform erupted in cheers, shouting the name "Aatrox." No wonder he looked familiar; it was the Arbiter Paladin, the Demon Blademaster.

That's when I realized something was wrong. How could the scene before me look so real? Wasn't I just looking at a mural? How did I suddenly feel like I was actually there?

When did this begin? Was it upon seeing Shetaka's dashing figure or the start of Aatrox's Ascension Ritual?

My thoughts suddenly became a bit muddled, then my vision flashed and the scenery changed; I was in the desert!

This is a golden desert, just like the place where Riven and I practiced the Flame Wind Force. Even though the sun overhead is blazing, I can't feel the heat, and I can't even lift a handful of sand when I bend down to try and scoop it up.

It seems there's no real tactile sensation; I can't interfere with this world, it's like walking through a painting.

Was this the magic of the mural itself? I wandered around trying to find a way out of this illusion, and soon I found someone lying on the ground ahead.

I rushed over and found it was a woman. Although her face was covered in blood, I recognized her. She looked exactly like Shetaka in the mural!

She was severely injured and on the verge of death in the desert. It seemed she had fled here and no longer had the strength to struggle.

As a bystander, I naturally couldn't help, and I didn't even know how I left.

Soon, several golden beetles crawled over, digging incessantly at the sand around Shetaka, seemingly trying to bury her.

She woke up then, and with difficulty raised her arm, but couldn't drive the insects away.

Finally, she gave up, staring at the sun, and spoke with extreme weakness. I leaned close to her ear and only caught the last sentence:

"Sun, please burn me with your light! I do not wish to be buried underground and plunged into eternal darkness."

As if hearing Shetaka's plea, the sun suddenly shone brightly, and then a Golden Light ray of light shone down, visible to the naked eye. I quickly moved away from her, only to realize later that the light could not harm me.

These beetles, like rattles in the priest's hand, connected with the sunlight and then poured into Shetaka's body.

Shetaka was already on the verge of death, and this seemingly painful light had no effect on her. Instead, she closed her eyes with a blissful expression, as if she felt that being destroyed like this was quite nice.

"Thanks."

I couldn't hear her voice, but I could tell from her lip movements that she was thanking the sun.

Of course, the sun did not destroy her; as the golden beetle turned to ashes, Shetaka stood up.

She didn't transform into a gigantic orc like Aatrox; instead, she wore a dark green suit of armor, just like in a mural.

Then a weapon slowly descended from the sky; it was the Khopesh called Khopesh.

"Thank you, Sun." This time, Shetaka's voice finally rang out.

→

No wonder the first Ascended depicted in the murals is Aatrox; it turns out that Shetaka didn't undergo any rituals and was directly chosen by the sun to become Ascended!

Watching her departing figure, I knew that an extraordinary pioneer had been born, who would lead people to build an unprecedentedly powerful and great empire— Shurima.

I had intended to leave the desert with her, but then everything went black again, and when I came to, we were in a different place.

This is a battlefield, where soldiers wave flags, shout, and charge into battle, and I am right in the middle of the two armies!

Soon, I was overwhelmed by the armies of both sides. Dark clouds filled the sky, and thunder rumbled. Under the trampling of thousands of troops, I did not despair, because I knew I would not be hurt.

Once I was away from the battlefield, I saw Shetaka charging into battle not far away, his Khopesh felling a large number of enemies with each swing.

Aatrox was equally invincible. He flapped his wings, and his greatsword struck like divine punishment, cleaving the earth in two as he slayed his enemies.

There are many ascended warriors I don't recognize; they are all orcs, some are cheetahs, some are turtles, some are falcons, some are snakes, and many others I can't tell the difference from.

At this time, Shetaka did not have many soldiers, but with her and many ascended warriors, each displaying their power, each one was worth a thousand troops.

Faced with such an army, no one could resist. Shetaka swept through the enemy lines and won the war.

The scene then shifted to several different locations, all depicting Shetaka leading his forces in battle, with an increasing number of soldiers and Ascended, and a vast territory expanding.

They charged into battle, and then celebrated their victory...

After several battle scenes ended, I arrived at a palace, its magnificence far surpassing any building I had ever seen.

Shetaka and Aatrox were strolling in the courtyard. Now that he had returned to his former size, Aatrox was quite a handsome man.

I walked over to the two of them and overheard them discussing moving the capital. It turned out that Shetaka was planning to move the capital from Naremajet to the east.

"This place is too remote. We should build a new city in the east, right in the heart of the empire, and move the capital there."

"I don't think this is good. We've risen to prominence step by step from here. Our own people feel pride when they hear the name Naremajet, while our enemies feel fear."

"But we are no longer the small city-states we once were. Our territory is now vast beyond anything we've ever seen, and it won't be long before we can establish an empire that spans the entire continent."

"I don't believe people will truly submit; they are merely forced into submission. One day, when they find greater power, they will rebel against us."

"Aatrox, your thoughts are as far-fetched as Naremajet's; this is not the kind of thinking a Celestial Warrior should have."

"I'm sorry, I only love my hometown and the people there; I can't trust anyone else."

"Then you can stay here. I've decided to build a new capital city in the east, and I've even thought of a name for it: Sun City!"

The two parted on bad terms, and Aatrox ultimately did not agree with Shetaka's ideas.

The other Ascended also disagreed on this matter. They split into two groups: most stayed in Naremajet with Aatrox, while the rest went to the new capital with Shetaka.

I don't know if Shetaka and Aatrox were each in charge, because I left the golden palace after they split into two factions.