In the League, But It's the Taiwan Server System

That "monster" stood over four meters tall, his skin a greyish-black reminiscent of a rotting corpse, yet as hard as refined steel—impervious to blades, arrows, water, and fire. In his right hand, he gripped a double-headed battleaxe of absurd proportions, longer than the height of a normal adult man and wide enough to serve as a shield.

Despite his massive frame, he ran with startling speed—faster, even, than some inferior steeds.

His extreme size granted him extreme strength; each swing of his axe easily slaughtered a row of Resistance Army soldiers, or he would simply crush them into pulp with a savage charge.

Anyone who dared to stand in his path was mercilessly ground into dust.

As for ranged attacks, while they might keep one alive, they could hardly inflict a scratch—his steel-hard skin repelled even the most powerful arrows, and only the giant ballistae atop the city walls could barely pierce his hide.

Yet, even then, they failed to deal any substantial damage.

He had no life to begin with; why would he fear a few extra arrows stuck in his body?

Moreover... those giant ballistae on the walls could not fire at him many times.

He possessed a deep obsession with defensive fortifications; the moment he spotted a high stone wall, he would charge at it like a madman, and any immobile giant ballista he touched was shattered on the spot.

In the span of this day and night, he had already smashed through no fewer than twenty walls.

He sprinted toward Placidium, the alchemical weapons strapped to his back sending a chill down the spine of any who saw them.

It was foreseeable that once he reached Placidium, those alchemical weapons from Zaun would leave the entire city a graveyard, turning the land into a living hell.

Even Irelia, leader of the Ionian Resistance Army, and Karma, the embodiment of Ionia's spiritual tradition, could not help but feel a deep sense of dread toward the terrifying monster.

"The situation is not good..." Irelia's brows furrowed, her inner unease growing. "Because of the events at the Placidium Plains and southern Wuju, I pulled many troops away days ago. I fear we cannot hold him back now..."

She paused for a moment, then pointed a slender finger at the toxic mist behind Sion. "The Windswordsman is not here, and those damned alchemical weapons are difficult to deal with... We have been played..."

"The main issue is that monster," Karma said softly. "The remaining Resistance fighters in Placidium are only enough to handle that well-equipped, well-trained Noxian legion. That monster must be dealt with by us."

"Yes..." Irelia took a deep breath and slowly raised her hands.

The countless blade shards behind her drifted in response to her movement, eventually forming a swarm of sharp blades hovering around her body.

Blade Mastery, the legacy of the Xan House.

"We must try."

"Indeed." Karma closed her eyes, and brilliant energy from the Spirit Realm began to surge around her.

A moment later, she cast a sturdy magical shield upon herself and Irelia—though it might not fully withstand the alchemical weapons, it would certainly be better than the last time.

Ever since the incident at Dragonspine Canyon, she had been diligently studying that terrifying chemical flame, eventually refining her magical shield.

The current shield was slightly less effective against physical attacks, but its protection against poison gas and fire was more than doubled.

"Come, let us first try to halt his advance."

Irelia bent her knees slightly, then exerted a burst of force.

Her lithe body dropped from the high wall, caught by the swarm of blade shards just before hitting the ground, and she began to surf upon the blades toward the massive monster.

Bolstered by Karma's magical energy, she flew with incredible speed, reaching Sion in just a few breaths.

The latter subconsciously dismissed her as just another "bug" no different from the Resistance soldiers he had crushed, neither stopping nor attacking, but continuing his reckless charge.

Irelia let out a cold snort. The blades beneath her feet instantly split into countless shards, and under her command, they all slashed toward that massive, hardened body.

Puff, puff, puff—!

The blade shards easily sliced through the skin that even arrows could not pierce, the sound of flesh being torn clearly audible.

Yet, not a drop of blood spilled.

Because Sion was a dead man. A cruel warlord who had been dead for nearly a century.

The blade shards had successfully inflicted damage, but such "flesh wounds" were negligible to his massive frame.

Seeing this, Irelia flew forward again, closing the distance to Sion once more.

At the same time, Karma prepared her attack—the Spirit Realm energy swirling around her reached its peak, and powerful magic brewed within the ring of jade behind her, emitting waves of intense green light.

Both of them unleashed their attacks almost simultaneously.

"Ionia, stand tall!"

"Sae Eleisa Tera Vi!"

The moment Irelia's blade shards touched Sion, they expanded into a sharp iron curtain of blades. As he collided with it, his body and legs were instantly pierced, carving away large chunks of flesh.

Karma's Inner Flame struck Sion dead-on, the violent, bursting energy leaving a ring of soul-fire on the ground—the same technique she had once used to instantly annihilate an entire Noxian warship.

The two massive attacks kicked up clouds of dust, and the towering figure seemed to finally come to a halt.

The stationed Resistance fighters witnessed this and erupted into desperate shouts and cheers.

But... Irelia and Karma, the ones who had struck the blow, remained with furrowed brows and grim expressions.

As the attackers, they knew all too well...

This strike could not possibly have destroyed Sion—the feeling was entirely wrong...

Sure enough, as the dust settled a moment later, a figure still standing came into view.

Even more terrifyingly... he began to run again.

His mangled body sprinted at full speed, looking even more horrific and ghastly than before, his pace swifter than ever.

Beyond that... a portion of the alchemical weaponry on his back had also detonated in the preceding flames...

At this moment, his entire body was engulfed in chemical fire, leaving behind a trail of terrifying toxic mist with every stride he took...

If before, one only had to avoid standing in his path to survive, now, even getting close meant certain death!

"WAR--!"

A horrific roar shook the heavens as his massive frame charged straight toward the city wall.

And behind that wall lay countless Resistance Army soldiers and innocent local residents.

Irelia and Karma knew they could not retreat.

Because behind them stood the entirety of Ionia!

"Never waver--!" Karma cast her magical shield once more.

Irelia recalled all her blade fragments, standing firmly before Sion.

The terrifying monster drew ever closer, yet neither woman showed the slightest intention of dodging.

Finally, the two sides collided head-on for the first time.

In an instant, the magical shield on Irelia shattered completely, and the blade fragments orbiting her body scattered to the ground, no longer able to strike the enemy like living companions.

A mouthful of blood sprayed from her lips.

Karma fared relatively better, but she was still unable to halt Sion's advance—her Inner Flame... could not deal full damage to Sion, who possessed almost no consciousness and was essentially a walking corpse; its effect was minimal.

Yet, the result of their self-sacrifice was merely a momentary pause in Sion's momentum.

Sion's left arm was completely severed, and the knee of one leg was bent entirely backward, yet he continued to run toward the wall, albeit at a slightly slower pace than before.

The horrific toxic mist began to spread, cresting over the city wall and seeping through the city gates.

Despair gripped everyone.

If even the Blade Dancer and Karma could not stop him, who else could possibly hold back this terrifying monster...

Irelia watched helplessly as Sion brushed past her, an unprecedented sense of despair rising in her heart.

She crawled toward Sion inch by inch, attempting to grab his heel... even though she knew it was impossible.

"As long as I have a single breath left... you will not harm the people of Ionia..."

Her head grew heavier, her consciousness blurring, yet she continued to crawl toward that receding, massive back out of pure muscle memory.

And just as she was about to lose all strength, she suddenly saw a familiar figure.

Standing right before her.

She smiled bitterly.

Is this... a final flashback...

I'm sorry... Chen Ce... I couldn't protect everyone...

Irelia's scarred arm began to fall, signaling her total defeat.

However, a warm, large hand caught her wrist just before it dropped.

"It's alright now." A familiar voice reached her, and Irelia's heart jolted.

She used her last ounce of strength to lift her head, seeing that familiar face beneath the backlight—she saw clearly that this was no hallucination.

"Sorry, I'm late... You've worked hard until now; leave the rest to me."

A spear and a longsword rang out in unison.

The gale began to rise...

Author's Note

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Chapter 58: He Still Has Zombies, Brothers

Chen Ce had finally made it in time.

Although Sion was now incredibly close to the city wall, as long as he hadn't actually struck it, there was still a chance to turn the tide.

"Ahri, take Irelia to a safe place first."

Chen Ce handed a Corrupting Potion he had pulled from his pouch to the fox-girl beside him, then strode toward that massive back with his weapons in hand.

"Give the potion to Irelia first. Consider your wages for today a debt I owe you; I'll pay you double next time."

"Oh~!" Ahri was not an unreasonable person; she knew what was important and what was secondary, so she didn't haggle, immediately taking the Corrupting Potion and carrying Irelia away.

With no further worries, Chen Ce's pace quickened, gusts of wind swirling around him.

With the aid of the gale, his speed was no slower than Irelia's when she flew on her blades.

This was the very reason he had been able to arrive here within a single day.

In just a few breaths, he dashed in front of Sion before the monster could touch the wall.

His height of less than two meters appeared incredibly small before Sion's massive frame of over four meters, like an underage child standing before a world champion weightlifter.

But the weapon in his hand was no toy for a child's play.

He raised the Doran's Spear above his head with his right hand and spun it at high speed, the stance of Counter Strike forming in an instant.

The longsword in his left hand was no mere decoration either; swift, violent gales gathered upon its edge, emitting a series of sharp, whistling shrieks.

Of course, the mindless Sion could not comprehend any of this.

He did not believe an Ionian only as tall as his own axe could pose any threat to him.

"DEATH--!"

Sion charged forward recklessly, attempting to smash the human before him into the city wall itself.

But clearly, he had underestimated Chen Ce's strength.

Or rather... he had overestimated his own battered, decaying body.

The moment he collided with his opponent, a violent gale instantly engulfed him, wind blades sharp as razors carving his skin to ribbons.

The areas previously wounded by Irelia and Karma crumbled further under the onslaught of the wind blades, large chunks of rotting flesh peeling away from his bones, only to be swept up by the gale and pulverized into mist within the vortex.

It was a "bloody storm" in the most literal, physical sense.

Of course, Chen Ce, having taken the brunt of Sion's charge, was not unscathed—the immense force sent his "insignificant" body flying, a searing pain seeping from his skin deep into his internal organs.

But it was not enough to instantly incapacitate him.

Having already been baptized by a round of attacks from Irelia and Karma, Sion's strength was a shadow of its former self; taking a direct hit while prepared was, at most, "very painful."

"Noxian puppet, there are no turret plates here for you to feast on!"

The moment Chen Ce landed on the city wall, he pushed off with his legs, launching himself back toward his foe.

And the Doran's Spear in his hand spun to its absolute limit.