Janna Will Not Die

Because Li Wei had once come to the school looking for his younger sister Lina, and because his impoverished Zaunite appearance had made quite a laughingstock of him in front of Lina and her classmates.

Quite a few of the students present had seen Li Wei before and retained some impression of who he used to be.

In their minds, Li Wei should have been a rough, slovenly, dull-witted, careless standard Zaunite Apprentice—foul-mouthed, yet insecure and restrained before the rich, with a temperament utterly unworthy of his handsome face.

But the Li Wei standing before them now was still dressed in that same worn work uniform, washed until it had faded white. Yet he smiled confidently, his eyes were bright, his mind clear, and his speech refined. Even his every gesture seemed to brim with the power of battle.

That kind of earth-shattering contrast alone was already like a miracle.

Not to mention that this ordinary apprentice had suddenly become a "Wind Elementalist."

And perched on Li Wei's shoulder was a Blue Bird with lively, intelligent eyes, as though it understood human speech. Everyone knew that in folk legend, the Blue Bird was the incarnation of Goddess Janna and represented her will.

From his background to his bearing and appearance, Li Wei resembled the legendary Janna's Prophet in every way.

Of course, he also resembled one of those fraudulent charlatans.

Yet these future scientists found themselves especially receptive to that sort of thing.

Because in Runeterra, gods and magic truly existed. Blindly denying the existence of gods was what was unscientific.

So quite a few students quickly accepted Li Wei's explanation:

"Mr. Li Wei is the chosen one of Goddess Janna, so..."

Then Janna's Ideology was a true divine revelation.

Wouldn't those who followed Janna's Ideology all become believers of a true god, protected by an absurdly powerful goddess and able to swagger across Runeterra without fear?

If that was the case, what great undertaking could possibly fail?

"No, it's not that simple." Li Wei promptly noticed and extinguished this tendency to oversimplify the struggle.

He only wanted to give these students confidence. He did not want them to swing to the other extreme, lie flat and do nothing, then wait for a goddess to fall from the sky and save them from suffering.

"Janna does exist, but—"

"She is actually very weak now."

"More than two hundred years ago, this gentle goddess exhausted her divine power protecting Zaun during the Canal Explosion, in the face of that unprecedented earthquake and tsunami. Now her faith has been cut off, only a handful of believers remain, and her divine power has completely dissipated. She is no longer the goddess of wind who could command the winds and rain as she once was."

"Huh?" The students were astonished.

Some of the students who thought they had seen through Li Wei's methods, guessing that he would next bring out standard missionary rhetoric like "how powerful Janna is" or "what believing in Janna can do for you," were especially dumbfounded.

If you wanted to persuade others to believe in a god, how could you describe that god as so powerless?

"Because I already mentioned in that article that what Janna hoped I would promote was not herself, but the ideological theory she had summarized over thousands of years."

"What we must follow is not gods, but truth!"

"Janna is not our god either. She is our guide, our like-minded companion!"

Li Wei's words rang like thunder, leaving the room shaken.

The people of Runeterra had never encountered such a novel idea before—a god was no longer some lofty deity, but someone walking alongside them?

"Yes! Janna was not born great. All of Janna's power comes from human faith. When people believe in her, she grows strong; when people forget her, she perishes."

"So divine power never comes from gods. It comes from us!"

"This..." This astonishing theory, which struck straight at the essence of Faith Power, left everyone deep in thought.

At first, they were shocked to learn that Janna's divine power came from people. Then came disappointment, as they lamented Janna's current weakness and helplessness.

Then these clever people gradually realized what Li Wei truly wanted to tell them:

If divine power came from people, didn't that mean that as more and more people believed in Jannaism, the originally weak Goddess Janna would grow stronger and stronger?

Wasn't that... like buying insurance?

As long as they were willing to strive for Janna's Ideology, could they gradually shape a god of the human world who could protect them through their own efforts and faith?

"Creating gods through human strength!"

Many students who had originally held no hope for the struggle at all now came alive.

They gradually began to believe that this might actually work!

"So what exactly is Janna's Ideology?"

At last, a student asked this crucial question.

If they wanted to spread faith in Janna's Ideology, they had to explain exactly what that faith entailed.

Li Wei's article had only mentioned the what and the why. It had said nothing at all about the most important part: how to do it.

They had discussed that point before, but only ended up splintering into countless factions, wasting endless breath without reaching any conclusion.

Everyone wanted Li Wei to tell them—

"What exactly should we do? What are we supposed to pursue?"

Li Wei slowly picked up a piece of chalk, and every gaze in the room gathered on him.

Lina and the students held their breath nervously.

Viktor took out paper and pen with a focused expression.

Seraphine looked utterly confused. Still, she tried hard to prick up her ears and carefully savor every word Li Wei spoke.

Then Li Wei answered:

"How to do it—there is actually no standard answer to that question."

"Only by adhering to the principle of seeking truth from facts, constantly trying and exploring, can we find the path best suited to us."

Yes, there was no standard answer to this question.

Li Wei had centuries of accumulated theory, and Janna had thousands of years of experiences and knowledge. Yet even combined, they might not be able to create a path truly suited to Runeterra.

And he could foresee that on the road toward the future, the question of "what should we do" would likely bring even more discussions, more disagreements, and perhaps countless splinter factions.

"But no matter how everyone thinks about this question, no matter how severe their disagreements may be, they can still be fellow travelers, believers in Janna's Ideology."

"Because true believers in Janna, regardless of how great the differences in their gender, country, region, race, or ideology may be, regardless of what path they each try to take to realize their ideals—"

"Their ultimate ideals are the same, and their final goals are the same! That is—"

Li Wei heavily wrote a line of large characters on the blackboard:

"Great Harmony!"

What was Great Harmony?

Productive forces would be highly developed, social products would be abundant beyond measure, and people would possess lofty ideological awareness. Each would contribute according to their ability and take according to their needs.

It was a flawless dream.

Everyone was captivated by that dream. Their hot blood surged and burned, while their hearts trembled violently.

Seraphine did not quite understand Li Wei's profound theories. But she could hear that, at this very moment, nearly every soul present was singing something, shouting something.

Those souls were filled with light and warmth, stirring and moving Seraphine without her realizing it. Even as her power lost control once more, even as countless dark and painful melodies came flooding in like a tide from afar, she was no longer afraid or distressed.

She even inexplicably felt an urge to save those suffering souls and sweep away this dark canopy!

"However."

After the excitement came the awakening from the dream.

The more rational students gradually came to their senses:

Wasn't this ultimate goal a little too ultimate?

"Mr. Li Wei, what you've described is like a Bandle City of the spiritual realm, a utopia that is almost impossible to realize in the material world."

"Such a goal..."

"Can we really achieve it, just by ourselves?"

Countless doubtful, expectant, and puzzled gazes turned toward him.

And Li Wei's answer was actually, "No—just us alone, we can't do it."

"Huh?" The students froze.

Was this some kind of joke? He had said so much and described the ideal as so beautiful, only to say that they could not achieve it at all?

"Why do we have to achieve it right now?"

Yet Li Wei asked them without changing expression:

"Everyone, will you die?"

"Of course." The students looked bewildered.

They were human, so of course they would die.

"Then will Janna die?" Li Wei asked again.

"..." The students were stunned.

Janna was a god, a collective embodiment of Faith Power. She would never die.

"Janna will not die!"

"Her ideology will not die!"

"Our faith will not die!"

"As long as there are still people who believe, her spirit will forever drift above Runeterra, forever guiding humanity toward our ultimate goal!"

"So—"

"What are you afraid of?"

"Even if we die, even if we fail, so what?"

"Janna will always remain, and her ideology will always remain. If this generation cannot do it, the next generation can continue. If the next generation cannot do it, then there will be the generation after that, and the generation after that!"

"History rises in a spiral. Janna is always moving forward, and we are always moving forward!"

Li Wei did not think he himself would live to see that day.

Taking even a small step forward would already be a victory.

But he believed:

"One day—"

"The ideal will be realized!"