Though he had long suspected that the Noxians had a secret base somewhere in Druna, Karya was still rather surprised when he followed his Magic Mark and found the entrance.
He guessed it might be a relic from the Noxian Empire era.
It wasn't that he had an astonishing sense of time. He simply couldn't think of any reason the Noxians would build a secret underground base like this. The Noxian Empire, by contrast, seemed quite fond of hidden, secret projects.
As it turned out, Karya's guess was entirely correct.
This underground fortress, known as the Gate of Rebirth, was indeed an ancient creation from the Noxian Empire era.
However, Karya was wrong to think that the fortress had anything to do with the Well of Darkness.
The Well of Darkness had appeared even before the Noxian Empire. Like the Shadow Isles, it had originally been a place where Runeterra and the Land of the Dead converged. Over generations, it had been fortified, built up, and stocked with countless secret magical artifacts, eventually becoming what was now the Immortal Bastion.
The Gate of Rebirth was different.
This underground fortress was actually a product of the Rune Wars.
When the Noxian Empire and the Kingdom of Camavor contended with each other, the World Runes were used in warfare.
At first, both sides merely drew power from the World Runes to unleash devastating magical attacks.
But as the conflict escalated, both sides realized that drawing on the World Runes was no longer enough to meet the demands of war. Moreover, those who tapped into the World Runes were affected by them, gradually descending into madness. Spellcasters capable of directly drawing power from the World Runes were precious to either side, and losing them like that was a painful waste.
So the Rune