socalfunplaces Page 88
Page 88
“Yes.” Upon hearing this, Lady Zan nodded and said, “To master the true Blade Dance, Irelia must know why she is fighting, and she also needs to understand what war represents and what battle brings. Only in this way can she avoid disrupting the balance between the two realms while wielding the Blade Dance. And in this, what is sealed on the island of Pelor… is also the key to allowing the Blade Dance to reappear in the world.”
Although it wasn't explicitly stated, from the way Mrs. Zan looked at him, Farn was somewhat certain that Mrs. Zan already knew a great deal about the matter.
Thinking this, Fain nodded: "I will protect her."
Upon hearing this, Madam Zan showed no doubt and simply nodded, saying, "Then I have nothing to worry about..."
As she spoke, Lady Zan turned her gaze to the members of the Zan family standing to the side and said, "In the name of our ancestors, the descendants of the Zan family, in the name of the new generation, join the revolution of the new era and drive out every single invader from the other side of the sea!"
Upon hearing Madam Zan's words, everyone in the Zan family agreed.
In the past, this would certainly have caused dissatisfaction and rebuttal among many people. Even though Lady Zan was the pillar of the Zan family and a renowned master of silk dance throughout the Land of the Beginning, she was still still within the traditional boundaries of Ionia and would be subject to corresponding influences.
But things are different now—after Lady Zan recounted many stories from Ionia's ancient times, the Zan family's thoughts were already connected to matters related to Blade Dance.
Even in Ionia, a land that reveres hermits, seekers of truth, and ascetics, there are still those who yearn to become like Karma, the Enlightened One. This is because it's not merely about power and glory, but because becoming an Enlightened One represents boundless knowledge and wisdom. Based on this, their thoughts are now completely captivated by Blade Dance.
Admittedly, only Irelia can master Blade Dance. But once Irelia achieves mastery, the Zan family will undoubtedly gain more knowledge and respect from others. This is an immense temptation for every member of the Zan family.
After everyone else had left, Fain remained in the Zan family shrine. Only when almost everyone else had gone, leaving just Fain and Irelia, did Lady Zan summon Irelia again.
Looking at the still-youthful girl, a slight sigh appeared in Lady Zan's eyes, but she didn't say anything. She simply held the girl's slender, white hands and gazed at her silently. Under Irelia's puzzled gaze, Lady Zan softly asked, "Irelia, what are your thoughts on the engagement with Fain?"
Although Irelia had anticipated that her grandmother would bring this up today, she never expected her grandmother to say it so suddenly, especially in front of Fain. This caused the girl's face to flush red. After a long pause, she stammered softly, "I...I'm fine, of course."
“This isn’t a matter of whether it’s unrelated or not.” Upon hearing this, Madam Zan shook her head and said, “The training of Blade Dance is itself a tempering of the heart. If you choose this to meet the expectations of your family, then you’ve put the cart before the horse…”
As she said this, Lady Zan shook her head and said with a helpless and distressed expression, "It's also my fault. When you first came back, I saw that you looked at your senior brother with a strange look in your eyes, and since Fane is such a handsome man, I asked him rashly. Now that I think about it, I was blinded by the reappearance of Blade Dance and the changes of the times... So, Irelia, if you don't want to, you can say it now."
As she spoke, Lady Zan looked at Farn with apologetic eyes and said, "I know that breaking my promise is a great offense, but Mr. Farn, please understand that this is of great importance to both the Zan family and Ionia. Whatever compensation you ask for, I will do my best to fulfill it."
Upon hearing Mrs. Zan's words, Farn shook his head and said, "There's no need for that. Rather, the situation was indeed somewhat special at the time. Now that we've calmed down, we should indeed leave this matter to Irelia to decide for herself."
After speaking, Lady Zan and Fain simultaneously turned their gazes to Irelia beside them. Meeting their gazes, Irelia opened her mouth, her delicate face filled with embarrassment and unease. It wasn't that she was unwilling, but the sudden, formal question, demanding a definite answer…
Still a young girl, Irelia lowered her head and whispered, "I...I definitely would..."
As if to prove she wasn't influenced by her family, Irelia changed the subject, mentioning that when she first arrived at the Sanctuary, Fain was the first to greet her. She also mentioned that Fain helped Cynthia with her studies while she was busy, helped her with bone-opening exercises before and after her daily training...
Seeing Irelia getting increasingly flustered as she spoke, Lady Zan nodded in agreement, then looked at Fain and said, "It seems my worries about this were somewhat unnecessary."
"This is also for Irelia."
As he said this, Fain stroked his chin, momentarily struggling with how to integrate Irelia into his current family atmosphere.
Although Fain got along very well with the girls, even to the point of feeling like a fish in water, he wasn't stupid. He was well aware that his current family atmosphere was completely different from what people expected of a family. And even his girls, while enjoying their company, maintained their elegance and status in public.
Neither Seraphine, Zephyr, nor Caitlyn showed any intention of revealing their actual living conditions to their parents. As for Jinx and Vi… although Vander had been resurrected, it was clear that he didn't want to know too much. After all, given the unique atmosphere of Zaun and the incident that happened to the sisters in their childhood, Vander was already quite satisfied that they could be together peacefully now, and he had no intention of asking too many questions or interfering.
But Irelia... grew up in the traditional atmosphere of Ionia. Let alone accepting it, Faen now even has to seriously consider how to let Irelia understand the story that happened to him during the time he was away from Ionia, and the bonds he formed with those girls.
Thinking this, Farn's face remained unchanged. He looked at Lady Zan and said, "I will protect Irelia... If there's nothing else, let's rest for a bit and then continue our journey."
"Have a safe journey." Mrs. Zan nodded.
278·Transformation
The next morning, Fain and Riven began packing again, ready to depart. However, before leaving, a new problem arose regarding the handling of these Noxians—the Zan family didn't have enough food. Moreover, the village was unwilling to support these enemies who had invaded their homeland.
After a battle, Dukur's army had more than 5,000 men left, while the village where Zan's family lived had only about 2,000 people, including the elderly, women and children.
In this situation, dealing with these more than 5,000 prisoners was not a matter of military victory for the entire Zan family, but a huge political and survival crisis. The slightest mishandling could lead to devastating consequences.
The most obvious problem was that the village was too large to be properly managed. Especially after Farn left, the Zan family simply lacked the capacity to control, imprison, and support five thousand professional soldiers in the long term. Therefore, Farn directly contacted the Temple of Eternity, asking them to take the prisoners away.
Before that, weapons were confiscated, and the units were broken up and dispersed. Officers were detained separately, while the others underwent labor re-education—once war begins, the spirit of the land finds it difficult to resonate and communicate with humans. A mountain of farm work awaits, and any extra manpower is naturally put to use as needed.
“The biggest problem will be the staff to guard this place until the Hall of Eternity arrives.” Looking at Lady Zan, Farn also said, “It looks like you’ll be busy for a while.”
“It’s already much easier.” Hearing Fan’s words, Lady Zan smiled helplessly and said, “If it were up to me, it would have taken a lot of time to contact the Temple of Eternity or to disperse and reorganize these Noxians. Now that the most troublesome structural problem has been solved, the rest of the work has become much easier.”
Lady Zan did not possess the Twin Dragon Seals from Karma. In this urgent situation, if Lady Zan were to send someone to the Temple of Eternity to relay the message, it would take at least one or two weeks.
However, Faen wasn't too surprised, because the fact that the Twin Dragon Seals could unconditionally gain the recognition, obedience, and assistance of the vast majority of spirits in Ionia already proved their value. In this situation, for Karma herself, the bestowal of the Twin Dragon Seals was probably not a simple matter; it would require discussions, negotiations, and a final consensus among the many previous Karmas within her mind.
Thinking this, and glancing at the back of her hand, Fain could roughly guess that Karma had bestowed the Twin Dragon Marks upon her with a somewhat headstrong attitude. And those old things in her mind…
Shaking his head, Fain didn't dwell on it much. After all, the old folks' outdated ideas were closely related to Ionia's past environment.
Thinking this, Fain glanced at the Noxian prisoners being scattered and reassembled—once these prisoners arrived at the Hall of Eternity, those elders and sages who shared Fain and Karma's path, intending to bring change to Ionia and adapt to the coming new era, and those still outdated and conservative old fogies, would naturally reveal themselves in their interactions with and treatment of the prisoners.
While pondering, Farn and the others resumed their journey. As they entered the border region, the brutality of war came into view.
Almost the instant the group stepped onto the earthen slope, the salty sea breeze that had been blocked by the slope, mixed with the slightly pungent smell of rust and burning gunpowder, wafted over.
The coastal bay that once teemed with colorful sailboats now stands a fleet of black iron ships from Noxus. A quick glance confirmed that Swain wasn't here—Swain's flagship, the Leviathan, was said to be one of the most technologically advanced magical creations in Ionia, or even in Piltover, or throughout Runeterra. Here, most of these were scaled-down versions, and some weren't even as fully powered by magic and charcoal steam as the Leviathan, requiring additional sails.
Even so, compared to the small fishing boats common in Ionia, these sailing ironclad warships were still terrifying behemoths. Standing tall on the sea, they were so imposing that one didn't even know how to fight them.
Apart from the nearshore area, the once golden sand has also faded.
The soft sand was covered with messy ruts, and adult dragon lizards, barely able to control them, dragged camel carts carrying heavy weapons of war onto the shore. The traces left on the beach looked like festering sores.
On land, in order to obtain enough timber, Noxian craftsmen are working together to fell the ancient trees that are sacred to the Ionians. In this land known as the Land of the First Life, these ancient trees themselves possess life and consciousness, but to the Noxians who have no understanding of this, even if the spirits of the ancient trees wanted to cry out for mercy, they would not hear a thing.
As they watched the amber resin flowing from the cross-section of the tree stump, which they then jokingly smeared onto their waterproof boots, even Akali, an impulsive and fierce Shadow Fist ninja, and Shen, the Eye of Twilight who was usually able to control his emotions, couldn't help but clench their fists as they walked alongside Fain.
Noticing Shen's actions, Jie didn't say anything, but simply patted Shen on the shoulder before going to Fain's side and asking, "What should we do?"
"Take a rest first."
Compared to the excited reaction of the Ionian people, Fahn wasn't particularly surprised. Ultimately, expecting invaders to respect you is unrealistic. These Noxian soldiers were there for military merit; who would bother learning about Ionian culture on top of battle?
Not to mention these Noxians, even Fain himself sometimes couldn't stand Ionia's dogmatic traditions, which were as long and tedious as an old woman's foot binding cloth.
After estimating the time, Fan said unhurriedly, "Tonight, we'll take care of the leader of this fleet first, then head to the flagship and take a ship to Pelor Island."
Upon hearing Fain's words, especially the suggestion to deal with the fleet's management first, this time, not only others but even Shen remained silent. Akali, meanwhile, licked her lips, her eyes gleaming with eager anticipation as she gripped her chain scythe.
279. On the Eve of Battle
After resting for a while, night soon fell.
Watching Shen polish his longsword, Akali raised an eyebrow and said, "Looks like Master isn't always as weak as we thought."
"It's not weakness, but making the right decisions and choices."
Upon hearing Akali's words, Shen shook his head and calmly said, "Akali, I know that many times, I seem too weak and pedantic to you. But this is about the balance between the two realms. As guardians, we should be more cautious than anyone else."
"Is this really because of caution, or because of anger?" Akali questioned.
After a brief silence, Shen shook his head helplessly and said, "Faced with such a scene, which Ionian could not be angry?"
Akali was somewhat surprised to hear Shen so frankly express his anger. Shen was usually incredibly cautious. And now, he was so open about his anger? She wondered to herself, if it were her… well, perhaps she would have made up some excuses.
Shen remained calm in response, saying quietly, "The soil of our birth nurtured us, and the spirits of all things are like our family. I know I am angry, but I will not let them influence my decisions."
Upon hearing Shen's words, Akali tilted her head in confusion.
"Then why is that?" Akali asked, puzzled. "Isn't what you're doing now because you're angry? Or perhaps you don't even realize you're angry? And you're just giving yourself an excuse, saying it's a calm judgment?"
"You think too little of your teacher." Before Shen could say anything, Faen, who happened to be passing by, shook his head helplessly and walked towards the two of them.
Upon noticing Faen, Shen quickly bowed in greeting. While Shen had initially considered Faen a peer, after all that had happened, he now clearly understood that Faen far surpassed him in both ability and understanding of the world. Moreover, Faen now represented the will of Venerable Karma, demanding utmost care from Shen.
In contrast, Akali seemed much more relaxed, but a hint of unease flashed in her eyes when she heard Fain's words. However, she quickly recovered and prepared to greet him. But before she could even speak, Fain waved his hand, interrupting her.
“There’s no need to be so tense, we’re all friends.” Shaking his head, Faen then looked at Akali and said, “As for the question you just asked Shen… the answer is actually quite simple: what kind of enemies does the Path of Balance face?”
"The enemies of the Order of the Balance? Need you even ask? They're obviously those who disrupt the balance between the two realms," Akali shrugged. "Now it's the Noxians, and before that, it would have been those evil spirits, right?"
“That’s right, evil spirits, these beings of the spiritual realm.” Hearing Akali’s answer, Fain nodded and continued, “These evil spirits born of the spiritual realm excel at finding the flaws in others’ hearts. Shadow Fist practitioners can easily become reckless and headstrong if they’re not careful. It is precisely because they are aware of this that the Shadow Fist has always followed the wisdom of the Twilight Eye. In this respect, Shen has done a very good job.”
Upon hearing Faen's words, Shen Xian was slightly taken aback, then nodded thoughtfully.
The current Shen is actually quite immature—his true growth came after the Ionian War ended, when Jhin escaped and began to wreak havoc on the Ionian people again, and after he and Zed came to understand each other, he realized the true mission of balance. One of the characteristics of Ionia is that they don't speak plainly; they always say things that are cryptic and abstract, unwilling to express them directly.
Of course, this isn't because they can hide it; it's simply because their understanding of the spiritual realm is far deeper than what others tell them. However, in the era to come, some outdated things are destined to be discarded.
Just as the two were still thinking, Fan patted them on the shoulders and said, "Don't just stand there, get ready for battle. We're going to land on Pelor Island tonight... and to truly complete our mission, I estimate I'll have to log off for a while. During my absence, it'll all depend on you two."
Upon hearing this, Shen and Akali exchanged a glance, then nodded and said, "Okay, I understand."
After leaving the master and apprentice pair, Fain then came to Irelia's side.
The current Irelia gives off a completely different vibe. Her loose-fitting dancer attire has been replaced by a tight-fitting, breathable, and sufficiently strong and elastic battle suit—the same one from the original artwork. However, her weapon is not the broken blade of the Zan family crest as depicted in the original artwork or the setting, but rather a miniature spirit sword passed down through generations of the Zan family, known only to the head of each family, wielded by each successive head, and passed on to the next head of the family.
Although he already knew that Irelia's awakened Blade Dance might have an extraordinary origin, Faen really didn't expect that it would be related to the Sword Dancer—the Sword Dancer is a limited edition skin for the seventh anniversary celebration in the Jade Sword Legend series of League of Legends.
Of course, the so-called 7th anniversary limited edition is actually just a random affix added by the Chinese server to make more money. But on the other hand, this also shows the quality of this skin. Putting aside the special effects, the artwork is indeed top-notch.
The Jade Sword Legends skin's universe setting is also quite high. While its numerical values don't quite reach the extraordinary level of Aurelion Sol, if compared to the Runeterra universe, it's at least above the level of the Celestials of Mount Targon or the original demigods of Freljord. But now it seems...
It should just be a mutual approach, not a single entity. Farn thought—because according to Lady Zan, the sword-wielding immortals of this world obtained the essence of the Ionian spirit during the ancient war, thus gaining the ability to divide worlds. This alone contradicts the Jade Sword series' world-building, which centers on 'weapons'. If one had to pinpoint a reason, were they simply different forms within the same world?
Thinking this through, Farn didn't dwell on it. Instead, he looked at Irelia, who was repeatedly inhaling and exhaling, and said, "You seem very nervous?"
Upon hearing this, Irelia chuckled shyly.
"Senior brother, can you help me relax a bit?"
280. Irelia's Thoughts
Upon hearing Irelia's words, Fain didn't waste any words and immediately started helping her stretch.
As a pair of large, warm hands landed on her soft body, Irelia couldn't help but gasp. A moment later, she got up from the bed and stretched vigorously. Feeling as if her body had come back to life, Irelia said energetically, "Oh! I feel completely alive! Senior brother's technique is getting better and better!"
Upon hearing Irelia's words, Fain simply smiled and didn't pay much attention. Others might not be entirely certain, but Irelia had indeed been trained by Fain ever since she joined Sonia's tutelage. Fain personally handled her daily stretching and relaxation, and he even knew exactly what her body was going through at different ages.
After some activity, Irelia took a deep breath and looked at Fain, saying, "Senior, I'm ready."
Seeing the determination and stubbornness in the girl's eyes, Fain nodded without denying it. After a moment's thought, he extended another finger. Under Irelia's questioning gaze, a glistening drop of liquid caught the girl's eye.
Facing the girl's questioning gaze, Fain did not hide anything, but explained the many effects of the happiness factor, as well as its related side effects.
After listening, Irelia opened her mouth almost without hesitation, letting out a soft "ah-oh" as she took Fahn's finger into her mouth. Fahn didn't need to do anything; her delicate tongue immediately wrapped around it, licking and teasing it. Fahn could even clearly feel a tickle on his fingertip. Looking up, he saw a clear joy and a subtle liking in Irelia's eyes.
"Doesn't that mean there are no side effects? And speaking of which... since Sister Riven is so close to Senior Brother, did she also consume some of his bodily fluids?"
"I did eat it, but how did you know?"
Faen looked at Irelia with some surprise. If he remembered correctly, Riven was usually very restrained in front of Irelia, and because of the complex environment in Ionia, Faen rarely went all out like he did in the stress-free newbie village of Twin Cities—he would hold back during the day and then unleash his pent-up energy on Riven at night.
Was it because Irelia was sleeping next to her every time they did it? No, that doesn't make sense. Under the soothing effects of the "happy factor," Irelia always slept very deeply. Especially after Riven accepted herself, every time she accidentally splashed liquid on Irelia's face, Irelia didn't react, and Riven would just lick it back into her mouth.
"Because Sister Riven and Senior Brother are always together, and although Sister Riven seems aloof, she actually feels exceptionally happy every time she hears Fain's orders."
Upon hearing Fain's question, Irelia didn't hide anything, simply smiling and saying, "Others might not be able to sense it, but I'm a dancer. Riven might be able to hide it verbally, but her body's instinctive reactions definitely won't escape my notice. She must really like Senior Brother, after all, he's so outstanding!"
“That’s true.” Hearing this, Fain nodded in deep agreement. His slightly smug expression elicited a series of silvery laughs from Irelia. After laughing, Irelia proactively hugged Fain. She wrapped her arms around his body, her delicate face pressed against his firm chest, feeling his strong, steady heartbeat, and whispered:
"Don't worry, Irelia won't make things difficult for my senior brother... Hmm, if someone could teach me how to get along with my senior brother more comfortably, I would relax a little."
At first, Fahn didn't think much of Irelia's words, but then he noticed something subtle. He looked down at Irelia, who was nestled against his chest, and asked suspiciously, "Irelia... what do you take Riven for?"
"Uh?" Hearing Faen's question, Irelia was slightly taken aback, then scratched her face a little embarrassed and said, "It's... it's like... a maid or something when you're sleeping?"
Hearing Irelia's somewhat embarrassed expression, Fain understood why she thought that way—although Ionia now upholds the equality of all beings, some ancient customs are still deeply rooted in this land that has been at peace for thousands of years. Among these are personal attendants such as maids and bed warmers.
Although many scholars and wise men consider this a pedantic and erroneous practice, there are indeed people who enjoy it. Especially since Ionians rarely leave their homeland, many villages in remote mountainous areas still preserve ancient customs, not to mention similar feudal dregs.
Of course, as a beneficiary of the system, all Fain can say is... feudalism is good, and its dross is good! In order to prevent these feudal dross ravage the other people of Ionia, we must know ourselves and our enemy, and we will never be defeated! We must thoroughly understand the extent to which the dross has been corrupted, and then thoroughly reform it.
There are two types of people that Fain hates the most: one is someone who is promiscuous and plays with others, and the other is someone who prevents Fain from having proper emotional connections with girls.
As a person who loves purely, Fain is determined to love everyone, to love all of them, and to leave no one out.
Thinking to himself, Fain gently ruffled the girl's long, silky black hair and said, "Alright, we'll talk about this later. Right now, we have other things to do."
After dealing with numerous miscellaneous matters, Fain and his group quickly approached the Noxian coastal fleet under the cover of night. To be honest, there wasn't anything particularly difficult about it. The Order of the Balance, as an Ionian sect designed based on ninjas, was inherently adept at covert operations.
Akali's slender figure moved swiftly through the shadows at the edge of the light and in the blind spots of the crowd. Having been skilled at fighting in the dark since childhood, Akali was like a fish in water in the night. Before the sentries could even notice that someone had passed by, Akali had already appeared behind them and lifted her scythe across their Adam's apples.
With Akali leading the way, those who were less skilled in stealth were able to quickly enter Noxus's coastal outpost.
281·Carnivorous Beast Karan
Kalan stood atop the fortified walls of Philol, his gaze sweeping across the Narrow Sea toward the inland lands of the First Lands—the land now known to humankind as Ionia.
Karan neither liked nor disliked humans. In his view, humans were just one of many species living on this land. Although their existence did affect the growth of natural magic, it was undeniable that these humans possessed wisdom and power that many flesh-toothed beasts could not comprehend.