Using the Hextech portal, Caleb once again teleported near the Sun Disc. After Nasus saw Caleb, he was not very surprised. He merely went inside and calmly reported his arrival.
With Nasus handling the capital's internal affairs and Renekton reorganizing the mortal army, order throughout Shurima was spreading farther and farther outward with the Sun Disc at its center. It was likely that before long, Shurima's former glory would be rebuilt. But before that, there were still countless problems to deal with.
Those who had arrived with Caleb were not only Atreus and Aphelios, who had already needed to return to Mount Targon in the first place, but also Kai'Sa, whose thoughts were fixed on Icathia, and Yuumi, who wanted to travel everywhere. Caleb had even brought along Qiyana and her people, who had come to reestablish channels of communication.
However, the last landing had nearly snapped Caleb's knees. This time, he used an entire mattress as a cushion. Although Shurima's sand was fairly fine and soft, falling from such a height was still a major problem. After all, without the exact altitude of the place, compared to getting stuck inside the terrain or even inside a rock, Caleb would still rather fall from the sky.
Of course, in Shurima, dead air and chaotic currents made it a forbidden zone for airships. Caravans could only rely on the most primitive methods of travel to conduct trade. Although it was not as efficient as the airships in other places, it was still a road that could truly be traveled.
Azir's gaze was as sharp as ever. Under this sky, aside from the great sun hanging high at the center, the Sun Disc was the most dazzling thing of all. Looking at such a radiant sun, even Atreus and Aphelios could not help frowning slightly. Both of them thought of the Solari, the strongest sect among all the faiths of Mount Targon. It was also the people of this sect who loyally guarded the gate to the celestial realm.
As for Caleb's proposal, both of them were actually tempted. After all, compared to facing things alone, people always hoped the ones around them were top-tier experts and shared the same goal.
"Emperor of Shurima, I offer you greetings on behalf of Ixtal."
Caleb was familiar with Azir and the others, so he could act a little more casually, but Qiyana was different. Before Ixtal closed itself off, it had been a vassal state of Shurima. Countless Ascended had also come from that place, but after the battle against the Void, they had basically withered away. After that, Ixtal, which had suffered a severe loss of talent, began a thousand years of isolation from the world.
There were naturally advantages and disadvantages to doing this. The disadvantage was that over all these years, they had completely failed to keep up with the world's development. But there were also benefits. For example, the Rune Wars three hundred years ago, and the earlier Darkin War, had nothing to do with this fertile land.
Although many people had instilled in Qiyana the idea that the empire would endure forever, as permanent as marble, this new empress did not think that way. Guarding one corner in the darkness and remaining safe from those dangers was not because of ability. It was luck.
When she learned that those people were only miners, no different from the attendants who served the royal family, just a group of noncombatants, that shock was naturally beyond words. Those things were actually not weapons. It was like the most basic Water Flow Spell and Breeze Spell, which could already achieve the purpose of killing.
And after touring Piltover, that sense of crisis only grew with each passing day. As the most advanced metropolis in the world, the Hexgate that could send people all over the world was not even the strangest thing about the Twin Cities. Even more terrifying was the mecha standing beside Zaun, the one called the Behemoth.
Qiyana had once passed by a jagged little mountain of strange stone, and the mecha from the so-called Mecha Project was not any smaller than that little mountain. Later, she learned from the kingdom's secret texts that it was a creation once used to resist the Void, called the Monolith. What she had passed by was only the last remaining fragment.
After seeing the Twin Cities' Hexgate and mecha, along with all those novel creations, how could Qiyana not want to rebuild their former glory? Yet the path of elemental mages had only been going downhill so far. Becoming Ascended and obtaining greater power was also the fastest way for Qiyana to catch up with the times right now.
The glory of ancient times had long since vanished. Their current backwardness was not something that could be changed overnight. Qiyana understood this very clearly. While Shurima still did not have many vassal states, Ixtal could provide resources and people, allowing the two sides to cooperate and grow stronger together. By the time Shurima's population returned to prosperity, Ixtal would probably also have a considerable number of Ascended.
"Is it just you, Emperor?"
Caleb looked around and did not see Aatrox. It was a good thing he had not gone to Ionia, or Rhaast and Varus would probably have rushed back to Shurima in a storm of sparks and lightning too.
"Xolaani is reshaping Yaanogel's body. As for Aatrox, he is watching the west," Azir said in a deep voice.
Caleb understood at once. The place where Mount Targon stood could be said to combine the traits of both the Freljord and Noxus. Although there were Aspects stationed there, beings higher than demigods, compared to demigods, Aspects basically did not care whether humans lived or died. In that case, tribes that worshiped different Aspects would naturally slaughter one another because of conflicting views.
As a result, fewer people engaged in production, and of course, some tribes would set their sights on Shurima's border. What had originally been a sacred land where people offered their cherished things to the Ascended was now already desolate beyond measure. With Aatrox stationed there now, the living environment would probably improve a lot.
If he had the chance, Caleb truly wanted to take a slow walk around and compare it to how this desert nation had looked when he had first arrived.
"Then you can talk. I'll head out."
As Caleb spoke, he was about to have Yuumi open the Book of Thresholds and teleport everyone to Mount Targon.
"Wait a moment," Azir said, asking him to stay.
"What is it?"
Although Azir was an emperor, Caleb was the Governor of Zaun. He and Shurima were only allies. It was not like Ixtal, which was a vassal of this top-tier power and took pride in producing elemental mages.
"The girl beside you comes from Icathia, correct?"
Caleb looked at the suddenly solemn hall and could not help nodding. Xolaani and Yaanogel walked out from somewhere unknown and stood on either side of the emperor. After the Shuriman emperor said those words, Kai'Sa's whole body could not help trembling.
If one spoke of Icathia and Shurima, then there was a very long story to tell. In short, even though Icathia had produced so many talented people, not a single Ascension slot had been granted to them. Kai'Sa had also heard, in those ancient rumors, of the hatred toward Shurima.
But under the current circumstances, Azir's intention in asking this question was already obvious enough.
Kai'Sa might become the first Icathian to receive the Ascension ritual.
// 20 chapters today! I hope you enjoy it.
//I uploaded a couple of Arcane/League fanfics, this one is nearing its end. Check it out!
//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810