233 Each Goes Their Own Way

In the boundless sea of sand, a Shimmer flickered, and then two figures fell out of that Shimmer.

"Ptooey! Ptooey! Ptooey!"

Emerging from the sand, Yuan Chen spat out the sand in his mouth with some annoyance. He brushed the dust off his body and said with a disgruntled expression:

"I'm really fed up with that Jax guy! Even if we can't go in, can't we at least stay a little while? The mages of Icathia are so rude."

"Give me a break, they have their reasons for doing this."

Upon hearing Yuan Chen's words, Ryze shook his head, brushed the dust off his clothes, and said with a helpless expression:

"Although I haven't seen the Zilean you mentioned, time magic does exist... Jax said also aligns with your guess."

"If Zilean truly can see the future across multiple timelines, then his actions are understandable. Compared to that, Jax's injuries, though severe, are truly extraordinary."

As he spoke, Ryze remarked with some emotion:

"Especially that unknown energy within him... unlike any energy I've ever known. It doesn't originate from the Outside World, but from within himself... like blood, surging forth with each heartbeat, filling every corner of his body, constantly strengthening and enhancing him."

"This is what extraordinary professions are like," Yuan Chen said, shaking his head.

"His extraordinary power is a special force called 'Qi,' which allows him to sense, predict, enhance, attack, recover, and move. While it sounds impressive, he's not good at group combat. In comparison, his arms are more of a concern."

Yuan Chen glanced back at the distant, purple-glowing Icathia, and said with a hint of solemnity, "Given enough time, it's only a matter of time before Jax becomes Legendary Profession. And in the previous battle, it burned through most of its reserves..."

"Although he has begun to revive, his foundation has been damaged... With such a damaged foundation, it is impossible for him to break through to the legendary level."

Hearing this, Ryze nodded as if he understood, but didn't offer any further comment. He simply gazed into the distance and then said, "If that's the case... is there any point in us still being together?"

"Um?"

Yuan Chen let out a soft, puzzled hum. Ryze then said, "I can sense the aura of another rune... We should be near Kahri Sai now. I plan to head to Kovira first, then follow the Kahri River to the Marrowmark Market, and from there go to Skarnash in the Shurima Desert. What about you?"

Upon hearing Ryze's words, Yuan Chen also fell into thought.

Of Runeterra, Shurima is second in size only to the Valoran Continent. In this context, Shurima, with its elongated, map-like shape, has a distinctly different terrain compared to other regions.

The Shurima Shurima divided into two regions: the Dawn Oasis in the Serpent Isles on the eastern frontier of Shurima.

In ancient times, Shurima was so powerful that it was able to name the entire continent after itself because the Shurima Empire controlled the course of the great rivers.

In addition, the extraordinary power of the Sun Disc Shurima to be covered with oases even in the desert.

Now, recalling the general terrain of Shurima, Yuan Chen's brows furrowed with regret as he said:

"It's a bit of a pity... I was planning to go to Nashramae in the east, where there are probably many things and people I need to confirm."

Nashramae a city located directly north of the Great Cypress Desert in Shurima, and also in the Shurima capital, directly north of the lost Sun Disc. On a map, it's located directly above.

Although this city is not particularly famous throughout Runeterra, Yuan Chen is well aware of the important role it plays in the story of Shurima.

Simply put, nearly half of the Great City of Demacia appearing in the game in Shurima have appeared in Nashramae.

At the same time, as a city-state located right next to the sea, it faces the Valoran Continent across the sea. Both Demacia and Noxians have a large number of merchants and their ships travel through this area.

Yuan Chen's journey to Nashramae wasn't solely to find clues about Nasus; more importantly, it was to ascertain the overall situation in Runeterra by observing the merchant ships docked at Nashramae's port...

If necessary, Yuan Chen may need to end his Shurima journey early.

However, Nashramae and Yuan Chen are currently quite far apart. Although the Book of Thresholds records Nashramae's coordinates and the portal, it's a pity that the Book of Thresholds has just completed the construction of the Icathia portal and is currently in a cooling-off period...

Or rather, it is in a state of exhaustion and is simply unable to transmit effectively.

Thinking it over, Yuan Chen subconsciously reached out his hand, ready to ask Ryze to give him a ride.

Unfortunately, upon hearing that Yuan Chen's destination was different from his own, Ryze's face showed a hint of regret, but he didn't say anything more, simply nodding and then saying:

"Then I'll set off now. Let's meet in Icathia."

After saying that, Ryze took a deep breath, his eyes flashing with arcane runes, and he opened his hand and slammed it onto the ground. Accompanied by the hum of magic, surging energy poured into the ground and the surrounding space.

The next moment, a giant mirror formed beneath Ryze's feet. Although it was called a mirror, in reality, only Ryze was reflected on it. Apart from Ryze himself, the rest of the scenery was endless yellow sand. Only in the dim light could one vaguely see the shadow or trace of a desert fortress.

Shortly after the mirror was formed, Ryze's outline began to glow with blue arcs of light, and then the entire fragment shattered into a beam of mirror that flowed into the soles of his feet.

A storm arose, then subsided.

In just a moment, yellow sand filled the sky, and then Ryze disappeared from Yuan Chen's sight.

Arcane Shift.

Looking at the enormous void created by the Arcane Shift, Yuan Chen opened his mouth, then withdrew his hand somewhat helplessly and spat out the sandstorm that accompanied the teleportation shockwave.

He glanced at the boundless sea of sand, sighed, determined his direction, said nothing more, and then strode away into the distance.

Although it was called Kahri Sai, Zilean actually just teleported Yuan Chen and the others to the outer border of the Icathia and Kahri Sai deserts.

Thinking it over, Yuan Chen could only put on a hood and cover his mouth and nose with a coarse cloth to prevent sand and dust from hitting his face, and began a new round of hiking.

I hope the journey will be uneventful.