In League, but With the Taiwan Server System

A fully stacked Tear of the Goddess.

Equipment that could provide an enormous mana reserve.

In an instant, Chen Ce felt most of his depleted mana recover—there was even more than he had at full capacity.

His nearly interrupted [Meditation State] was promptly sustained. Pale green "Spirit Realm energy" once again swirled around him, perfectly isolating him from the burning chemical flames.

At last, the terrifying toxic fog gradually drifted away with the wind, while the flames' main burning area shifted to the other end of The Rift.

Death was still spreading, but Chen Ce had barely managed to endure it.

He slowly withdrew his consciousness from the Spirit Realm, and the pain in his body gradually returned.

Every inch of skin on his body had been burned black, with horrifying pustules and mucus oozing everywhere.

"It's... already... alright..."

Chen Ce struggled to loosen his embrace. The young woman he had shielded beneath him was completely unharmed.

"Chen Ce... Chen Ce...!" Irelia looked at those shocking wounds, her pretty face turning pale with fright. "I'll take you back... You'll be fine... Hold on...!"

Chen Ce weakly nodded, then shook his head.

He turned to look at the silver-haired female warrior lying on the other side of The Rift—Riven had also survived thanks to the protection of her Runic Blade, though she had fallen unconscious.

He suddenly realized something.

He wanted to speak, to ask Irelia to stop the disaster that was about to happen, but his badly damaged vocal cords and extremely weakened body could no longer support him in forming clear words.

"Save... Riven... Yasuo... elder..."

He could only force out a few slurred, incoherent words.

But to Irelia, they made no sense.

The young woman carried him onto her back, and the soft, warm sensation made his consciousness sink at once.

He was powerless to stop the tragedy now... Everything was already too late.

He had realized it too late.

"Hold on... I'll take you back..."

Only the girl's trembling, faintly sobbing voice lingered by his ear.

Until he completely lost consciousness...

May the Spirit of Ionia Guide You

Irelia shortened a journey that would normally take nearly an entire day into a single morning—even while carrying someone.

Before the afterglow of sunset had completely faded, she had carried Chen Ce to Karma.

She was panting from exhaustion, yet she did not dare waste even a moment.

Chen Ce was too badly injured.

Even worse than last time.

Blood mixed with mucus had soaked through his clothes and seeped onto Irelia as well.

The once neat and clean office was now covered in sticky fluid, while a pungent stench filled the air.

"Karma... Save... save Chen Ce...!"

Irelia panted heavily, her face filled with anxiety as she carefully laid the man from her back onto a cushion.

Compared to the Placidium Resistance Army's medical team, she trusted Karma more—among the successive Karmas, many had been masters who specialized in healing arts. Their medical skills far surpassed those of the Resistance Army's medical team.

If even Karma was helpless... then no one in the entire Placidium Resistance Army would be able to save Chen Ce's life, which hung by a thread.

"Don't panic. Slow down..." Karma helped Irelia position the unconscious Chen Ce, then roughly examined those horrifying wounds.

She looked at the bloodstains on Irelia's body. Without asking, she knew roughly how long Chen Ce had been injured—the blood that had seeped into Irelia's clothes had already dried, so it could not have been a short time.

Then, seeing Irelia's anxious expression and how she had rushed here for help without caring about her own condition, Karma could roughly guess what kind of terrifying attack Chen Ce had suffered.

Even the shield bestowed by the Spirit of Ionia had failed to protect him...

"Please... Save Chen Ce..." Irelia wiped the blood from the corner of her eye, but her vision remained blurry. Her entire body was covered in Chen Ce's blood—it had even seeped onto her fair skin—but she had no desire to wash it off.

Even if the bloodstains on her body were washed away, the bloodstains in her heart would never be cleansed.

Chen Ce... had become like this to protect her...

"Calm down first, Irelia." Karma soothed the agitated Irelia slightly, then immediately closed her eyes and used her unique "sixth sense" to examine Chen Ce's condition.

She "saw" something terrifying.

That blood... the fluid flowing through his blood vessels... had all turned black.

His bones had become soft and brittle, and even his bone marrow was filled with that strange chemical substance...

His heartbeat was extremely faint, and his breathing had nearly stopped. Saying he still had half his life left would be overestimating his current condition...

"The Noxians released a terrifying weapon... It was gas... and flames..." Irelia hurriedly explained, though her words were somewhat incoherent. "Chen Ce protected me... He used his body to block it... He shouldn't have done that..."

Karma nodded gently and silently continued examining the terrifying chemicals—she had no time to comfort Irelia now.

Fortunately, the latter gradually calmed down as well—as the leader of the Resistance Army, she should have been able to do so. It was only because this had dealt her too great a blow that she had briefly panicked and lost her composure.

After all... she was still just a girl under twenty.

The room gradually fell silent, leaving only the slightly anxious breathing of the two women echoing within.

After a long while, Karma opened her eyes.

But the expression on her face remained grim.

"His blood is full of that terrifying substance... The only way to save him is to drain his blood, but given his current condition, if we drain too much blood..."

Karma did not finish the sentence, but the meaning was already clear.

A moment later, she suddenly showed a look of realization, only to shake her head in distress soon afterward.

"Perhaps the people of Hirana Monastery have a way to save him, but the journey is far too long. He probably won't last until we get there..."

Upon hearing that, Irelia fell silent as well.

She was not skilled in medicine—she could even be said to know nothing about it—and she could not think of any good solution at all.

The two could only watch helplessly as Chen Ce's life slowly slipped away.

Just when all hope seemed lost, Karma decided to place her final hope in an invisible, intangible existence.

"Now, there is only one being that can save Chen Ce's life..."

She looked seriously at Irelia. Though her tone lacked confidence, it carried a trace of resolve.

"The Spirit of Ionia."

Karma and Irelia brought Chen Ce beneath the World Tree at Placidium Sanctuary.

With a heavy yet devout heart, Karma walked step by step toward the towering tree, whose life was as ancient as the First Lands themselves.

She gently placed one hand against the trunk, then slowly closed her eyes.

Spirit Realm energy spread around her, and the strange green radiance formed a subtle connection with the World Tree.

A string of obscure Ancient Ionian words softly left Karma's lips, while the fallen leaves beneath the giant tree gradually transformed into faintly glowing butterflies.

"Eternal Spirit of Ionia, sacred First Lands..."

"I am your most devout follower, willing to heed your guidance..."

"Chen Ce, one guided and blessed by you, filled with courage..."

"I can no longer save his dying life..."

"May I receive your guidance..."

Karma continued praying, and her connection with the World Tree grew deeper and deeper.

At last, the World Tree responded to her—to her plea, to the one who needed help.

Brilliant motes of light began to gather around Chen Ce. The magical reindeer symbolizing nature and peace wandered across the World Tree, letting out repeated cries.

Gradually, Chen Ce's entire body became wrapped in wondrous Spirit Realm energy, and those terrifying toxins began to seep out through his skin.

Karma's mind began to grow weary. The pressure of maintaining the connection to the Spirit of Ionia nearly made her faint.

Fortunately, her task was complete at this point.

"Chen Ce's connection with the Spirit of Ionia has deepened... The Spirit of Ionia has sensed him..."

She slowly opened her eyes and turned to look at the two people beside her.

"Take Chen Ce back... Now, you only need to regularly clean the toxins from his body... I'm not sure whether this will work, but this is the final method..."

A Kitten Eating Ham Sausage

Irelia brought Chen Ce back.

Toxins seeped from his body every second, and their violent toxicity burned his skin beyond recognition once again.

But... burning the surface of his body was always better than burning his organs and blood vessels.

He still had not awakened, and his breathing remained as weak as before. He looked like a "living corpse."

All Irelia could do was stay by his side at all times and wipe the toxins from his body.

In truth, she could have handed this kind of menial task to someone else—after all, as the leader, she had many matters to handle every day, and taking care of Chen Ce was not something only she could do.

She simply wanted to do it herself.

She would rather work overtime until dawn every day from now on, or even stay up all night, than leave Chen Ce in someone else's care once her work was finished.

Because Chen Ce had become like this for her.

He had done it to save her... If she merely left him to others, she would never be able to forgive herself.

However...

Perhaps there was one thing she had not considered yet.

She might not discover it until after completing Chen Ce's first full-body toxin cleansing...

Only one person was needed to handle Chen Ce's toxins.

The already weakened Karma did not remain with Irelia. On one hand, she truly was exhausted. On the other... she had thought of something Irelia might not have considered.

Something that might be rather awkward.

But then again... saving a life was more important than building a seven-story pagoda. In a matter as important as saving someone's life, anything else could be ignored.

She believed Irelia would be able to overcome her embarrassment.

Besides, she could tell that Irelia's attitude toward Chen Ce was rather... ambiguous.

A little embarrassment should be negligible to Irelia.

And what she needed to do now was prepare some "tonics" for the two of them.

"These herbs all need to be added... Hmm, add more."

Drawing upon the knowledge and experience of the successive Karmas, Karma requested quite a few herbs and similar ingredients from the Resistance Army's logistics unit, then carefully placed them into a pot one by one according to strict proportions.

Finally, she added water and lit the fire.

All that was left was to let it simmer.

"I hope everything goes smoothly..."

Karma moved a small stool over and sat before the stove, quietly watching the burning flames.

But just then, a soft, adorable cry sounded behind her.

"Meow~"

When she turned around, she saw a young female cat that looked as though it had just reached adulthood padding toward her—perhaps attracted by the aroma of the stew.