20 Mature

Chapter 21: 20 - Maturity

Hearing Nedeli's words, Yuan Chen raised an eyebrow and looked at her teasingly.

"We're talking about fairness. You were the one who attacked me first, right? As the victim, I was merely acting in self-defense, perhaps with excessive force at most, but you can't pin all the blame on me."

At this, Nedeli fell silent.

If she were a woman from the city, she could easily come up with excuses, like "Even if I'm 99% at fault, aren't you at least 1% responsible?"

But having grown up in the wilderness, Nedeli knew right from wrong. Yet, feeling the pain in her hands, even though she knew she was in the wrong, Nedeli stubbornly turned her head away, no longer looking at Yuan Chen.

"You were the ones who trespassed into my hunting grounds... that's the law of the wild."

"I understand, territoriality. But we aren't purely beasts, are we?"

Hearing Yuan Chen's words, Nedeli merely snorted twice and then said:

"Regardless, I'm not leaving here. I belong to the wilderness. Your so-called civilization only strikes me as laughable. You won't convince me. Even if you're stronger than me, the only way to take me away would be by force."

She paused, then said with a hint of helplessness, "This is my home... and my family."

As Nedeli spoke, Yuan Chen's gaze shifted towards the cave beside them. Noticing the sounds from within, some cougars cast wary glances—

Though they were wild beasts, they could sense Nedeli's distress. Even without human intelligence, and despite being solitary creatures of the feline family, they had come to regard Nedeli as their leader.

They had grown up together.

"I know you, Nedeli," Yuan Chen said, nodding. "I can see your past... and your near future."

"..." Nedeli remained silent, scrutinizing Yuan Chen with suspicion.

Yuan Chen, in turn, continued to imitate a prophet, mimicking the actions of a seer.

"You were an infant abandoned in the forest. No one knows who your parents were. A cougar with cubs adopted you, nurturing you as one of her own. You are a member of the pack, a child of this wilderness...

So I won't force you. You can rest assured of that."

Hearing this, although Nedeli didn't know where Yuan Chen had gotten this information, it struck a painful chord from her past. After a moment of silence, she pretended to be nonchalant and said:

"...It's good that you know."

"But the wilderness will not remain peaceful for long."

"...What do you mean?"

Hearing Yuan Chen's words, Nedeli raised an eyebrow.

Yuan Chen then turned his gaze towards the distant mountain range of the Miasma Jungle.

On these towering, cloud-piercing mountain peaks, dense elemental mists churned. Along the coast, the Miasma Jungle had, over the past millennium, isolated Ixialia from all external exploration.

Even though the prospectors of Piltover knew better than anyone how rich the mineral deposits here were, their engineering teams had never managed to truly open up this land...

Because these mountains were filled with danger and death—

Rampaging beasts, soaring dragons, elusive path guardians, the extremely xenophobic Ixialian natives, and even the land itself seemed to devour life...

Even powerful empires like Noxus had never given up exploring here, but all they ever left behind were things like cheese bread... and they never took even a single leaf.

"You should know the destructive power of an Elemental Dragon when it goes berserk."

Yuan Chen said:

"We need to set traps and lay bait. But even so, a berserk Elemental Dragon will still completely destroy this entire area...

Your arms are unusable. To recover them fully, even with herbs, magic, and blessings from the wilderness, will take at least two months.

And to recover to your peak condition without any lingering injuries will require at least three months."

"We will begin the dragon hunt in one month... The jungle you are in is the only suitable terrain."

The location of Nedeli's nest was a basin surrounded by mountains. The height difference between the mountains and the basin could be used to seal off the sky with crossbows, luring the dragon here.

Therefore, even without the Azure Starfire incident, negotiating with Nedeli was an inevitable process.

"Are you threatening me?"

A hint of anger entered Nedeli's voice. Beside her, sensing their leader's emotions, the Cougars coiled at the cave entrance began to pace back and forth, growling low in their throats, appearing restless and agitated.

"Don't make this difficult for me." Yuan Chen gazed directly into Nedeli's eyes, his expression unwavering:

"Avoiding harm and seeking advantage is also a virtue of wild creatures, isn't it?"

Hearing Yuan Chen's words, Nedeli gritted her teeth, but in the end, she calmed down—

Calmness was a virtue, and more importantly, a hunter's resolve.

"I can leave here... but helping you is impossible."

Nedeli said coldly:

"Thanks to you, I now need those little ones to hunt for me just to get enough food. I will leave here, but that's all."

"What if I can make you recover instantly?"

"..."

Narrowing her eyes and looking at Yuan Chen, Nedeli said decisively:

"You can't... this wilderness itself has told me that you possess a strange, evil power. It's the key to your rapid recovery, but don't think about using that cursed power on me!"

Hearing Nedeli's words, Yuan Chen's pupils contracted slightly--

Nedeli could detect the trace of a demon? No, that wasn't right. It must have been a coincidence. Nedeli didn't have such an ability. It was her blessing, it was this wilderness itself that sensed Oshirresh's aura.

Ixialia was very mysterious. The fact that this wilderness could perceive it didn't mean others could... but even so, he had to find a way to truly conceal it.

Thinking this, Yuan Chen's expression remained unchanged as he said:

"No, it's not the power within me, but another kind of blessing."

As he spoke, Yuan Chen took out a jar. The ethereal blue Azure Starfire, even in the daytime, cast the entire cave in a layer of dreamy stardust.

The moment this flame appeared, Nedeli couldn't help but narrow her eyes--

She could feel her body and soul yearning for this flame. Even though her reason kept telling her to remain vigilant, her heart couldn't help but beat a few extra times.

Forcing herself to turn away, Nedeli grumbled, "I don't need it."

"Are you sure?" Yuan Chen weighed the jar in his hand and said, "You were staring at it so hard just now, your eyes were practically dripping..."

"I was just a little worried," Nedeli refused to admit it and simply turned her head to say:

"If this thing is really precious, why aren't you using it! That evil power you have shouldn't be anything good either, right?"

"Uh... that's a bit complicated." Hearing about Oshirresh, Yuan Chen frowned helplessly.

For someone who didn't understand Runeterra's past, hearing the name Oshirresh wouldn't mean much. But anyone who understood the birth and concept of demons, or even anyone who could sense the nature of this power, would naturally be wary.

Joy was indeed a good thing. But so were debauchery, indulgence, and acting recklessly beyond moral boundaries, all of which could also produce joy.

And this kind of joy, born from breaking free from existing constraints and disregarding morals and laws, was more intense than ordinary joy. It could more effectively increase Oshirresh's power, thus yielding rewards.

But this power was based on the gifts of the primordial demon... casually accepting something from someone else was not a good thing.

For example, the last person who accepted the Star Spirit Crown, no matter how much of a creator god he was, ended up being a star slave for tens of thousands of years, completely losing face.

After a moment of silence, Yuan Chen said directly, "I do covet this power."

As he spoke, Yuan Chen lifted the jar in his hand. The slowly burning flame within churned with pure Order Power. This was the purest Heavenly Power, carrying the light of order from the very beginning of the world's creation.

This wisdom and profundity originating from the Immortal Heaven were enough for a mortal to possess endless life and gradually transform into a god on this journey called life.

It wasn't a power granted through "possession" like the Star Spirit Chosen, but a true becoming a part of the Immortal Heaven, able to roam the boundless cosmos with one's own will.

Undeniably, Oshirresh also possessed such potential, representing joy. With sufficient growth, Oshirresh might also possess the power to devour the emotions of gods. But... what did that have to do with Yuan Chen?

"..." Nedeli remained silent. She just watched Yuan Chen quietly, waiting for his explanation.

The call of the wilderness drew Nedeli away from Yuan Chen, as that ominous power could only bring disaster. But Nedeli also had her own thoughts... and what truly made Nedeli decide was what Yuan Chen was about to say next.

Knowing this, after a brief silence, Yuan Chen decided to simply tell Nedeli the truth—

It wasn't that sincerity was a killer move, but rather that some things, if deliberately concealed, would only get worse. The blessing or curse from Oshirresh was a part of himself that he couldn't escape at this stage.

Since that was the case, he might as well say it directly. He had no intention of being Oshirresh's dog anyway.

"My power originates from a demon, and I am one of the Nascent Demons, the Lord of Joy, Oshirresh."

As the words fell, a restless wind swept through the wilderness outside the cave, rustling the dense forest and making the leaves whisper. It wasn't cool, but rather somewhat eerie, as if warning Nedeli to stay away from this ominous freak.

After a long silence, Nedeli frowned and looked at Yuan Chen, saying:

"What is a demon?"

Without fear or vigilance, Nedeli's tanned skin was adorned with the pure beauty of illiteracy, untouched by the ravages of compulsory education.

"What did he do to you? Lord of Joy? He doesn't sound like an evil guy?"

This left Yuan Chen speechless—

Right, Nedeli had grown up in the dense forest with her Cougar mother, isolated from human civilization. Let alone demons, creatures that most people only knew from legends, she didn't even know the connection between her own race, the Vastaya, and Ionia.

Though somewhat speechless, Yuan Chen recounted the events concerning Oshirresh and his own experiences, emphasizing that the "joy" the demons sought was by no means a good thing for humans.

"For example, for a hunter, the thing that brings him joy is hunting. After believing in Oshirresh, he would gradually lose his bottom line.

It would start from simply surviving, and eventually evolve into an obsession with hunting itself.

He would hunt by any means necessary, starting with wild animals, and eventually turning to everything he saw, whether human or beast, pregnant or about to give birth. In his eyes, they were all just prey to obtain 'joy'."

Yuan Chen tried to explain in a way that even an illiterate person could understand:

"Then he would become a puppet of joy, losing himself and obeying the primal instinct of desire. The power I used to defeat you back then originated from this."

"Demonic power is chaotic, filled with impure contamination. This chaos and disorder has taken root within me over time.

And the power within this flame comes from the Order Power of the heavens. Once I try to use it, the Order Power within will immediately purge the demonic power in my body, and I will die along with the demonic power being purged."

"..."

Hearing this, Nedeli glanced at the flame in the jar again. After a moment of silence, she closed her eyes. Accompanied by the breeze from the wilderness, she finally nodded in understanding, her wariness slightly receding.

"The wilderness told me you are not lying... If you are truly willing to give me the power within this flame, then I am willing to help you. But speaking of which..."

Having confirmed the truth of Yuan Chen's words through the Wilderness Blessing, Nedeli then asked directly:

"Then how do you plan to resist this curse called... uh, Oshirresh?"

"Find an opportunity and take care of her."

A cold glint flashed in Yuan Chen's eyes as he made a decisive chopping motion.

At the same time, a charming laugh echoed in Yuan Chen's heart. He remained expressionless, ignoring it.

"Didn't she save you?" Nedeli sounded somewhat surprised. "You just said that she saved you from inside that Sea Beast during the shipwreck."

"This was a transaction. I will repay her, offering a sacrifice and reward that satisfies her. My grateful repayment to her does not affect my resolve to get rid of her!"

Yuan Chen said calmly, "I will happily and gratefully take care of her. Afterwards, I might regret and feel ashamed for repaying kindness with treachery, but that will only be afterwards."

Hearing this, Nedeli couldn't help but purse her lips as she looked at Yuan Chen.

"You're really... I don't know how to describe you."

Yuan Chen, his expression unchanged, gave an OJBK gesture and said:

"The civilized world generally calls this maturity."