Parting with Reluctance

After landing, Aatrox reverted to his normal form, regaining his youthful appearance and radiant spirit. 💙☹ ☯🐺

He slowly walked to Shetaka and knelt down. "For the ever-growing strength and perpetual prosperity of the Naremajet, I, Aatrox, am willing to serve the Empress today. War is noble, and so am I!"

"No, Aatrox, you don't need to serve me; we all serve the Sun God!"

After she finished speaking, she helped Aatrox up, raised his arm high, and let him receive the respect of the people.

Rebeca stood behind the two, her eyes filled with envy. She took a step forward, but ultimately did not go closer.

Both were Celestial Warrior; she felt she had no right to be on equal footing, and she had even lost the courage to speak.

I've heard Rebeca tell this story before, and she was very regretful that she hadn't gone up to congratulate Aatrox. Now that she's here, I can finally help her!

"How about I go over and congratulate you?"

"I... I..."

"Go now, you won't get a second chance."

"Um!"

Inspired by me, Rebeca overcame her inferiority complex and went to Shetaka and Aatrox.

"Congratulations on becoming Celestial Warrior! Let's have a good match!"

"As you wish, little girl!"

Upon hearing this, Shetaka immediately became interested. "Great! I'd also like to see the prowess of the Ixtal warriors. How about we have a match now!"

"Not now! We should seize this excellent opportunity to kill the enemy!"

Aatrox's face darkened as he recalled the difficult defense he had been putting up these past few days.

In the past month, the combined attacks of the surrounding tribes have caused immense suffering to the soldiers of Naremajet. Not only have they suffered heavy casualties, but the city's food reserves are also dwindling, and if this continues, even the civilians will be affected.

News of Aatrox's ascension hasn't spread yet. If we seize this opportunity to break out, we can definitely defeat the enemy by surprise!

Shetaka agreed with this approach. She had just witnessed Aatrox's Ascended Form, whose power was in no way inferior to her own, and whose enormous size was very suitable for the battlefield environment.

They immediately decided to return to the barracks to formulate a battle plan and asked me to go with them:

"Come on, Ezreal, we need your strength."

"I apologize for the long delay. Now that Aatrox has successfully ascended, the rise of Naremajet is imminent. Please allow me to take my leave."

"So hasty? Wouldn't it be better to leave after we've won?"

"You will definitely win this battle, but establishing an absolute advantage is not something that can be achieved in a short time. I cannot interfere too much, please understand."

"Haha, alright then, I won't force you to stay. How do you plan to leave? Do you want to break out with us?"

"No need, we have our own ways. See you again someday!"

We say we'll meet again someday, but in the endless expanse of time and space, we may never meet again, and even if we do, we might not be from the same world.

Amidst the lingering gazes of the crowd, Ekko and I moved away, waiting until we found a secluded spot to activate the [Z-Drive] and begin the transfer.

After a dizzying spin, we returned to the ground. I was very nervous, wanting to know the exact time but also worried that we hadn't traveled to the right place.

We were currently in a patch of weeds, surrounded by a messy environment with lush vegetation, which looked like a mountainous area.

However, the environment alone doesn't reveal where this place is, and the surrounding aura is unfamiliar, neither like magic nor Elemental Power. If you sense it carefully... it's more like Spiritual Power.

"Where are we?" Ekko was equally confused.

"I don't know either. Let's ask someone first, just like before."

"You'd better be careful this time, and not get involved in any strange things like last time."

"Haha, don't worry, even if I run into someone I know, I'll pretend I don't recognize them."

The mountain path was extremely difficult to traverse. We trekked for quite some time without finding a way down. With darkness approaching, I had no choice but to use the Hextech Device on my wrist to move around.

This device has long been without power, it's a miracle it's lasted this long. I really wouldn't want to use it if it weren't a last resort.

After three flashes, we finally arrived at the foot of the mountain. By then, it was already dark, and Night Travel animals were beginning to stir. The howls of wolves were chilling.

It seemed unlikely that we could find anyone in this place, so Ekko and I quickened our pace, wanting to leave the mountains as soon as possible.

As we were on our way, we suddenly noticed lights in the distance, suggesting that people lived there.

Who would live in such a desolate place? Anyway, let's go check it out!

Upon closer inspection, I discovered it was a small wooden cabin, surrounded by a few wooden stakes and a fence that enclosed a small courtyard. The light I had just seen came from an oil lamp on one of the stakes, and it swayed precariously in the occasional gust of wind.

Judging from the building's architectural style, we can first rule out Demacia and Noxus. Based on the climate, it's neither Freljord nor Shurima either, so it must be Ionia.

However, the Ionia do not have the habit of living alone, and besides, they never use oil lamps, so using open flames in such a primitive environment would be very dangerous.

Without thinking too much, Ekko walked straight into the courtyard and called out, "Excuse me, we are two lost travelers. May I ask where this place is?"

There was no response from inside. Not knowing if anyone was home, I asked again out of politeness. This time, an elderly voice came from inside:

"Qing Luan Mountain."

After hearing this, Ekko asked me with a puzzled look, "What is he saying? I don't understand?"

"Qing Luan Mountain, his speech is quite clear."

"Really? I can't tell from that."

As soon as Ekko finished speaking, the door of the cabin suddenly swung open, and a gaunt old man stood in the shadows, holding a wooden cane; his features were obscured.

Who are you people?

"Hello, we are two travelers who stumbled upon this place. May I ask where this Qing Luan Mountain is located? Is it in Ionia?"

"Ionia? What are you talking about? This is Wolf Fang."

The old man denied me and said he didn't know anything about Ionia. He seemed to be a recluse who didn't care about worldly affairs, or perhaps this place was still before the Age of Exploration, Ionia hadn't been discovered yet.

"Where does Wolf Fang belong? Is it Demacia, Noxus, or somewhere else?"

"Are you two brats making fun of this old man?" The old man suddenly became angry, which puzzled both me and Ekko.

"Please don't be angry, we really didn't know where we were, that's why we came to bother you."

"I'll say it again, this is Langya! Langya Commandery is one of the thirty-six commanderies of Qin!"