This is a Big Problem

Xayah is a Vastaya, a race that is quite common in Ionia, and indeed throughout all of Runeterra.

Flowing through their bodies is not merely blood, but also potent magic.

Every Vastaya is a natural-born mage; from the moment they are born, they know how to use magical energy to reinforce their bodies and unleash various spells.

Furthermore, under normal circumstances, Vastaya are innately powerful.

However, they are also some of the individuals most susceptible to environmental influence.

The power of the Vastaya fluctuates with the concentration of ambient magic; when magical energy is abundant, these Vastaya are strong, but when magical energy is weak, or has been sequestered by some means, their strength wanes.

Humans, even those born amidst the magic of Ionia, cannot survive unscathed in places where magical elements have become nearly tangible, as the Vastaya can.

Given his own personality, not fully utilizing this characteristic would be nothing short of a fantasy.

For instance, one could store vast quantities of magic in crystals, transport them covertly, or use flying species to drop them onto Noxian battlefields to be detonated.

The moment a powerful magical eruption occurs, it would destroy everything in the vicinity, and the high concentration of magical elements would plunge the Noxians—who possess extremely low magical affinity—into a massive disadvantage; many might even have their souls forcibly ripped from their bodies due to the overload of magical energy.

At that point, one could dispatch a force of powerful Vastayan warriors to charge into the battlefield for a surprise attack, leveraging their natural traits to enhance their combat prowess and survivability.

Finally, troops composed of Ionians would move in to mop up, pacifying the chaotic magical elements and settling the aftermath.

A perfect biochemical weapon strategy, and it is foreseeable that such a method of warfare could drastically reduce casualties for both the Ionians and the Vastaya.

Most importantly, based on the spells Li Ke already knows, achieving such a thing is not difficult; one could even say it is quite simple...

The only difficulty is that the relationship between the Vastaya and the Ionians is not very good.

In order to develop more settlements, Ionians constantly bind magic, creating more low-magic zones, and within these areas, the strength and health of the Vastaya diminish, and their fertility even declines.

Therefore, it is rare for the Vastaya to coexist peacefully with the Ionians.

The reason Xayah goes on killing sprees is also related to the fact that Ionians have nearly wiped out some Vastayan tribes.

Moreover, in Ionian society, the Vastaya are despised.

The reason is simple: they are powerful, their appearances are strange, and their habits and customs differ—that is enough.

Thus, Li Ke feels that when he was searching for Xayah in the simulator, his intentions were definitely not just about finding his wife; there were other motives as well.

A grand alliance between the Vastaya and Ionia, or something of the sort—he was absolutely planning something like that.

No wonder it could attract so much attention and alter the destinies of so many people.

"How despicable I am."

Taking a sip of fruit wine and listening to Shen boast about his experiences, Li Ke nodded along, saying "yes, yes, yes," while continuing to ponder Shen's utility.

Although Shen couldn't help with his plans, he was still very useful, and he was a good person; as a friend, he could be considered an excellent choice.

But it seemed that the only way to make use of him right now...

Was to make himself feel a bit better.

"Speaking of which, Shen, what kind of person is Zed? Rumor has it that you are a man of few words, whose every action reveals a strict adherence to rules, while Zed is cold-faced and views rules and iron laws as absolute. But you, well, I've already seen what you're like, so what about Zed?"

Looking at the chatterbox in front of him, Li Ke truly couldn't associate him with the silent, stoic figure from the game, so he asked.

"What do you mean by 'seen what I'm like'!"

Shen immediately slammed the table and stood up, but looking at the wine in his hand and the fragrant hotpot before him, he sat back down, face flushed.

Because according to the rules, he should be lying on the roof right now, gnawing on cold, tasteless dry rations to avoid exposure, watching Li Ke eat the aromatic lamb hotpot and drink fine wine.

"I'm just relaxing a bit, what do you mean by 'seen what I'm like'..."

Shen grumbled with dissatisfaction. He felt that Li Ke was great in every way—unassuming yet capable, hardworking, and possessing both confidence and self-awareness regarding his own abilities; he was exactly the kind of person Shen liked to converse with.

But that mouth—if only he didn't have that mouth...

How could such a decent person have such a mouth?

But to avoid further embarrassment, Shen spoke up.

"As for Zed, don't let his usual cold face fool you, as if everyone owes him money; in reality..."

Shen lowered his voice, drawing Li Ke's attention.

"...he's a closet pervert."

Shen's expression was quite lewd, lacking any of the dignity of a Grandmaster of the Balance Order.

As expected!

A closet-pervert best friend would only be another closet pervert!

Li Ke silently took a sip of wine and added a piece of lamb to Shen's bowl, signaling for him to continue.

"Take Zed, for example. He looks even more serious than I do, but let me tell you, that day I snuck into the flower festival to see my fiancée, Ye Wu, and halfway there, I saw that natural-wavy white hair of Zed's that's going to go bald sooner or later! When I found him, he was staring unblinkingly at the arm of the girl next to my fiancée! He was startled when I arrived and almost fell off the roof."

Shen recounted his friend's dark history with a smug look, while Li Ke held his wine glass, his mouth twitching slightly.

Are you sure he was looking at the girl next to your fiancée? And not your fiancée?

Li Ke looked at Shen, who was laughing heartily without a hint of gloom, talking about Zed's comical expression at the time, and felt that he shouldn't view the future Master of the Order of the Shadow in such a light; they shouldn't be that kind of person.

Besides, Zed falling for his brother's fiancée, then killing his brother's father and betraying the sect to become Zed—what kind of trashy, second-rate drama is this?

How ridiculous.

It was his own mind that had become filthy.

But...

Why would you tell me something like this? Are we even that close?

Watching Shen continue to speak, Li Ke noticed something amiss. How could Shen so easily divulge such intimate secrets—matters concerning his close friends, his wife, his brothers, and even the classified affairs of his sect—to him?

Just as Li Ke was lost in doubt, Shen continued with a smile.

"And another thing, he once told me he liked women with large breasts, but let me tell you, what he likes most are a girl's feet! The other day, when we were out on a mission, he stared at a lotus-picking girl's feet for several seconds! Although, to be fair, those feet were truly beautiful... whiter than lotus roots, with perfect lines that made one want to hold and caress them."

There wasn't a hint of gloom in his smile, yet Li Ke shuddered as he listened.

It was because Shen was being far too candid with him, as if they were old friends of many years! But that was simply impossible!

If Shen were a blabbermouth, or if he were merely drunk, then this might just be a slip of the tongue. But if that weren't the case—if this were happening because of something on his own end...

Li Ke felt that he was in big trouble.