"Big Head, you go that way, but don't stray too far. Korsa, you go this way, and sprinkle the camel blood in that direction, releasing a finger-length amount of blood every three meters."
On the yellow sand, old Xia Er, his face covered by a cloth, looked around with his cloudy old eyes and gave orders in an orderly manner.
After the Xia Er gave the order, a group of Shurima people quickly followed his instructions and walked to the four directions. Every few meters, they would sprinkle the camel blood from their sheepskin bags onto the ground. The bloodstains and the hot sand made a sizzling sound, and a fishy smell spread out.
Xia Er bent down to the ground, pressing his palms to the yellow sand, his cheek against the back of his hand. His palms burned and ached, but he endured the pain, closed his eyes, and listened intently.
"They're here!"
Underground, Xia Er heard a gurgling sound, like a spring gushing forth, but Xia Er knew that the yellow sand beneath the Sea of Bones had long been torn to pieces by the Xer'Sai.
Hoping there's water underground? You might as well hope gold falls from the sky!
As Xia Er's voice rang out, the people who had dispersed from all directions rushed toward the center centered on Xia Er. There was a hint of panic in their eyes, but it was quickly replaced by determination.
We can't be afraid. Since we've chosen to do this, we can't be afraid!
"Lord Li Ke, please don't kill these Xer'Sai!"
On the ground, Xia Er looked up at the sky and roared loudly.
He immediately offered an explanation. "Rek'Sai possesses intelligence. If a large number of Xer'Sai die, Rek'Sai will sense it. In order not to alert them, we must imprison and capture this group of Xer'Sai!"
From high above, Li Ke could see Jax and Taliyah hiding on a hill not far away.
As for Jinx... well, she was all alone to one side, hiding in the shade reading a comic book.
As for whether leaving Jinx alone would be dangerous, Li Ke believed it wouldn't.
Because at this moment, Jinx, who was holding the comic book in both hands, had a beautiful little Jinx bird nestled on her head. The little blue bird had covered its face with its wings and was sleeping soundly.
Janna arrived in an instant, and Li Ke naturally called Janna along as well. After Shurima was just as dangerous as Freljord, and who knew if some other guys would suddenly appear when they fought Rek'Sai later.
Although he didn't want to admit it, Li Ke felt it was possible.
Both he and Jax possess Demigod combat power. Rek'Sai, while only possessing superhuman strength, still has a Demigod behind Rek'Sai.
As a traitor within the Void, Bel'Veth attempts to devour Void and become Void master, the true empress. Her ambition is undoubtedly immense, but at the same time, her power is also incredibly formidable.
Rek'Sai is under the command of Bel'Veth, so Li Ke believes that fighting Rek'Sai will most likely draw out Bel'Veth, and then a Demigod- level battle will most likely break out.
A battle between Demigod can affect Runeterra, and powerful beings from all directions can sense it. Who knows, some curious onlookers might come to join the fun.
However, Li Ke wasn't worried about that kind of thing happening, because he had many friends now!
It seems there is only one Demigod and three near- Demigod (Li Ke, Jax, and Aatrox).
But in reality, if Li Ke shouts something in his Soul Blossom, he can summon three or four Demigod to help him fight in no time.
"I understand," Li Ke replied to Xia Er's reminder, then added, "Don't leave the area I've designated."
Xia Er and the others nodded and crowded together, huddled together next to Aatrox, who had been embedded in the sand.
Aatrox unleashed a massive burst of malevolent energy, forming a shield to protect the Xia Er and his companions, to which Aatrox offered no objection.
After all, the Xia Er and his people were Shurima, and good Shurima at that, so Aatrox was naturally willing to protect them.
Underground, the blood of the sand camels attracted a large herd of Xer'Sai, causing a disturbance in the sand, much like when the Taliyah used magic.
Seeing this, Li Ke stretched out his right hand, then put two fingers together and touched his forehead. The lotus mark on Li Ke's forehead slowly bloomed, forming a beautiful pink and white lotus flower. His hair also grew longer until it reached his waist, and from the roots, Li Ke's hair began to turn pink and white.
With his elemental mastery gathering wind elements, Li Ke locked onto each of the Xer'Sai that leaped out of the sand, and instantly, the Wind Cage trapped those giant Xer'Sai.
Amidst the pitiful howls, in just a moment, Li Ke captured dozens of Xer'Sai. The Xer'Sai continued to surge out in droves. In just a short while, hundreds of Xer'Sai were trapped in the wind cage, unable to move, squeezed and emitting mournful cries.
Xer'Sai has extremely strong sensory organs, so they need to be kept floating in the air; otherwise, the commotion would be too great, and Rek'Sai would notice the situation here in advance.
Because if Rek'Sai manages to escape when her underlings disappear one by one, only to be found trapped on the ground screaming in agony, then something truly amiss.
Time passed slowly, and soon, after more than ten minutes, Xia Er saw that there was no movement in the sand, so he looked up at Li Ke and said, "Lord Li Ke, we need to find another place. All the Xer'Sai around here have been lured away."
"What about these Xer'Sai?" Li Ke's right hand remained raised, maintaining the wind magic.
"We can only keep him imprisoned for now," Xia Er said after a moment's hesitation.
He worried that if these Xer'Sai died, the Rek'Sai would get the news in advance, since no one could be sure whether the Xer'Sai population had such a way of transmitting information.
Just in case, this is the only way.
Seeing this, Li Ke nodded, "Alright, then keep him imprisoned. Xia Er, let's find another place to continue."
"Yes."
No one would have imagined that beneath the 10,000-meter-deep sands of Shurima, there exists another world.
Amidst the thick sand and rock, countless purple tunnels, intersecting like silk threads, stretch across this world. These tunnels were meticulously crafted by the Xer'Sai, allowing them to appear from one corner of the world to another.
The people who commissioned these tunnels are the masters of this strange world.
A group of small purple fish swam in the world below the tunnel. Purple coral swayed, and traces of human civilization could be vaguely seen in the buried wasteland. The group of small fish swam through the dilapidated ruins and appeared at the other end, where they saw an enormous purple beast, about twenty meters long, with a pair of fangs like small hills, sleeping peacefully.
The small purple fish bumped into the giant beast once, twice, and then the beast awoke, its huge claws reaching forward, its thick tail swishing. The beast stretched, its jaws opening to reveal a row of densely packed sharp teeth.
"Gegedadada"
A sound of incomprehensibility came from its mouth. It turned its head to look at the group of small fish that had disappeared, and then looked up at the top of the tunnel.
Its people are heading towards a certain place. Wait, why are so many missing?
A question arose in its mind. It was not very intelligent and could not think about complicated things, but the decrease in its subjects made it somewhat flustered for a moment.
It wasn't worried about its people, but about its own safety.
Because the number of Xer'Sai has decreased, it will be unable to complete the task assigned to it by its master. Unable to complete the task, it will be transformed into one of the swimming fish, becoming a part of her.
Thinking of this, the giant beast shuddered and then quickly swam upwards.
Yes, swim away.
This is an "ocean," a hidden underwater world beneath the yellow sands, a place called the Pale Violet Sea.
After swimming into the tunnel, the giant beast immediately began to chase after the people who had flocked there. Its speed was countless times faster than that of an ordinary Xer'Sai, and in the blink of an eye, it appeared in another tunnel.
But the tunnel was clearly too small for its enormous body, so it lunged forward with its massive claws to expand the tunnel as it dug.
But unbeknownst to it, just above one corner of the tunnel it had dug, an underground cavern began to tremble with its riot.
The dark, sunless cavern was littered with the corpses of small Void creatures. These were creatures that had been summoned and left behind in Runeterra, sprung from the Void. Rek'Sai looked down on them, as these creatures were incredibly weak and reeked of a foul odor. They were typically small, beetles the size of puppies and tasted terrible.
Although they are both Void creatures, Rek'Sai and they are actually enemies; their relationship is not one of "devourer and devoured," but rather one of true adversaries.
This was its master's intention. Rek'Sai didn't quite understand why its master thought this way, but it just needed to obey its master's orders.
"Gegeldaladada!" Rek'Sai roared angrily at the Void Worms she had attracted.
Under normal circumstances, it would have pounced on these creatures, crushed them, and devoured them long ago. But now, it doesn't have that time. It must find out the reason for the disappearance of its people as quickly as possible.
However, as if suddenly seized by a wicked sense of humor, Rek'Sai deliberately dug towards the location of that underground cave, attempting to destroy it and have those damned insects crushed to death by falling rocks!
"Gedadada~"
A joyful sound came from the Kog'Maw, and Rek'Sai happily left. However, it did not notice that after it left, in the underground cave affected by its movements, a figure slowly crawled out from under two stone slabs to avoid falling rocks.
Her long, black hair cascaded smoothly over her shoulders. Dodging the falling pebbles, she looked up at the blinding light that appeared above, revealing a delicate and perfect face through her black hair. On that beautiful face, there were several strange purple lines on both sides of her cheeks.
"."
"Light"
A murmur echoed in the underground cave. The woman stretched out her hand, her long, slender fingers gleaming with a purple light at the tips. She reached out to touch the beam of light, and in the light, her outstretched hand was covered with sharp, purple thorns. Upon closer inspection, one could see that her skin was entirely purple, resembling a hard carapace. Most astonishingly, that purple skin seemed to writhe.
After a moment's hesitation, she gripped her hand tightly as if making a firm decision. Beneath her pale face, purple skin began to spread across her neck, quickly forming a bizarre purple mask that completely covered her.
Purple buds resembling pods appeared on her shoulders. She raised her hands toward the light, and purple light gathered in her palms. The next moment, a terrifyingly powerful light blast appeared and blasted toward the rock layer above.
However, aside from the loud noise, the purple light projectile did nothing to achieve its intended purpose.
Gritting her teeth, the woman unleashed a series of light blasts, but the result remained unchanged.
Just as she was feeling somewhat helpless and about to give up, a blinding green light suddenly appeared. The light was as gentle and calm as ripples caused by a drop of water falling on the surface of water, but she was startled by it.
Breathing became difficult, and a stinging pain shot through her back. The green light felt comfortable to her, but to her vibrant skin, it was like its natural enemy.
As the ripple-like green light spread into the underground cave, rocks shattered, and the corpses of the Void Worms she had hunted instantly vanished into nothingness, but she remained unaffected.
Upon seeing this, she reacted instinctively.
"No, I have to get out."
Ignoring the resistance of the spikes and enduring the pain of the sharp points piercing her flesh, the woman forcefully activated her skin—a skin that brought her pain, yet also hope.
Her body lifted off the ground as she struggled to fly toward the green light, which seemed to be drawing something closer. At the same time, her powerful hearing picked up on countless pitiful screams.
That was the cry of the Void Worm; it was this green light that was killing the Void Worm.
"I am the master of this body, and you are merely my tool!"
Taking a deep breath and enduring the pain, she finally flew to the top, then looked at the purple rock formations and reached out to touch the green sword light.
In the Pale Violet Sea, schools of purple fish surged toward a ruin, then swirled around a huge, abandoned windmill.
The next moment, a wing stretched out, and this single wing was countless times larger than the abandoned windmill. Then, the wing suddenly folded, and an enormous figure emerged from the ruins, surrounded by schools of purple fish.
A deafening sound rang out, causing the gap between the Pale Violet Sea and the Shurima space to tremble, and thousands upon thousands of purple remoras emerged from the gap.
The sound seemed capable of bending and compressing everything, like a murmur or a roar, a hymn composed of a million voices.
Beneath the sound, countless spaces are pieced together and layered upon each other, expanding endlessly.
It expanded upwards, growing wildly.
The remoras swarmed around her, surging upwards with her, and the eerie purple ocean seemed to move along with her.
"Utterly stupid thing."
Two eerie lights emerged from the chest of the enormous figure, both ferocious and terrifying, yet exquisitely beautiful.
The next moment, she appeared above the collapsing tunnel, accompanied by a purple wave. With a shriek, the purple light collided with the green light, instantly crushing the green light and carrying the purple sea upwards.
Shurima, the deepest part of the Sea of Bones.
Xia Er stared wide-eyed, dumbfounded, at the crack that pierced through the Sea of Bones.
The crack was tens of meters wide, but its length was endless, as if a sword had cleaved the Sea of Bones in two.
In the very center of the cleaved earth, a colossal beast was roaring in agony.
That was Rek'Sai, the Nocturne feared by the people of Shurima, but at this moment, it roared in helpless terror like a beast threatened with death.
In the air, the Lord of Zaun was flying calmly.
Old Xia Er looked at him, wanting to ask—if you're not Deity, then I must ask, what kind of being qualifies as Deity?
This sword strike—slices through the boundless yellow sand!
The Sea of Bones was instantly cleaved in two!
Li Ke, however, did not look at the awe-inspiring gaze of old Xia Er; his gaze even swept directly over Rek'Sai, who was howling on the ground.
Although Rek'Sai was Li Ke's primary objective on this trip, serving as an important specimen for the Twin Cities to prove the existence of the Void to the world.
But in terms of specimens, the Xer'Sai alone is enough to prove it, although the large size of the Rek'Sai makes it more likely to attract attention from various countries.
But the real reason to capture Rek'Sai is because it's truly important, as it's one of the few Void creatures that possesses intelligence.
Rek'Sai is a potential subject of future research for scientists in both cities.
If we hand it over to Singed while it's still alive, Singed might just gain some inspiration from it.
Who knows, maybe they'll develop Shimmer 4.0 by then?
Therefore, Li Ke's all-out sword strike did not kill Rek'Sai, but instead spared its life.
At this moment, Li Ke's gaze was fixed on the ground, because he sensed that the power of his sword strike, which should have continued to destroy the underground Void creatures, was blocked and devoured by another powerful force.
Seeing this, Li Ke simply clapped his hands calmly.
On the distant hill, Jax was already ready for battle without Li Ke needing to clap his hands to remind him.
Because he also sensed the approaching force.
She made no attempt to hide her presence; she appeared with Jax's familiar scent.
Aatrox also went berserk, constantly cursing in Li Ke's mind, his voice filled with disgust and rejection of that power.
Jax took off the long staff he had been carrying, reached out and grabbed it, and with Jax other hand gently tore off the strips of cloth covering it, revealing the true form of the Eternal Flame.
Then, he leaped out.
With the Eternal Flame held high, Jax moved like an ape, the flames spitting from the club's tip creating a beautiful trail in the air before slamming the club heavily onto the ground.
"Boom!"
It created an even bigger commotion than what Li Ke had done; Xia Er and the others were even momentarily levitated as a result.
Jax let out a triumphant roar, shouting:
"Snort!"
"Bring it on!"