lol: After being blessed by the Happy Demon, I became the harem king

Page 58

“Who wants to eat this?” Riven rolled her eyes.

As they talked, the two arrived at a clearing in the forest.

Noticing that Fain had suddenly stopped, Riven looked around and quickly spotted the brass harp in the center of the open space, with almost half of its body embedded in the ground.

Although it's described as brass, this harp is actually almost identical to the one Stellatu was in when he was fully liberated, except for size. However, compared to when he was fully liberated, the current brass harp doesn't possess the same eerie, almost living aura.

Then, in Riven's sight, Fain simply picked up the harp.

Almost the instant after Farn's hand landed on the harp—BOOM!

With a deafening roar, a burst of fire erupted from the harp almost instantly, forming a wall of intense heat that swept outwards.

Atop those taut strings, flames roared and surged, tongues of fire rolling, and eerie eyes burst forth from the flames, accompanied by a piercing roar—"Stellatu!! Freed!!!"

While he was roaring, Stellato suddenly paused, then belatedly looked behind him and saw the giant-like Fain and Riven looking down at him.

Looking at the boisterous Stellato, Riven scratched her head and said, "Uh... this guy is the Darkin you fought all night?"

"More or less, except this area is my territory." Upon hearing this, Fan nodded with a relaxed expression, then looked at Stellatu and said, "Now, let's have a proper talk, Stellatu."

154. The so-called Stellatus

Upon hearing Fan's words, the flames burning around Stellatu momentarily paused, but quickly returned to their original intensity.

A pair of eyes reflected a chilling light, unlike the flames. Stellatu said coldly, "I remember now! You're the guy who defeated me in Oshra Wazuan... Ha! If I'm not mistaken, you must have received the blessing of that pathetic wind god, right? That should be something to be proud of, after all, you defeated a Celestial Warrior of the noble Shurima Golden Legion head-on! But you're in for a bad time. You may be able to defeat me, but you can never kill me."

"You guys are the ones who can really brag." Hearing Stellatu's words, Fain couldn't help but sigh and politely greet him.

"What do you mean? The golden bloodline is gone, and you Ascended have all become more and more arrogant? Was Empress Wu Zetian too lenient when she was hunting you down? Or did the Twilight Protoss throw away your cerebellum when they sealed you away? Anyone who didn't know better would think you had won. You still couldn't be killed, and you act like the Darkin curse is quite enjoyable. Aatrox is already tormenting you to the point of wanting to destroy the world."

Upon hearing Fane's words, Stellatu was initially filled with shock and anger, especially when he heard about Empress Wu of Valoran; a hint of fear even flashed in his eyes. However, towards the end, when he heard news about Aatrox, the look in Stellatu's eyes underwent an extremely dramatic change.

Although Queen Vulture of Valoran has not appeared in League of Legends or even LoR, she is actually the second most important character in the Twilight of the Gods event, second only to the original Twilight Celestial Maitha – or rather, the second main character who did not officially appear.

If Maisa orchestrated the prologue to the Twilight of the Gods, designing the curse upon the Darkin from scratch, stripping these Ascended beings of their magnificent bodies and sealing them within weapons intimately connected to them, rendering them incapable of thought, then Empress Wu of Valoran was the key to plunging the Darkin into weakness.

Its first description appears in the backstory of Varus in the Ionia region. In the lore, Varus, at his peak, was hunted to the brink of death by Queen Wu of Valoran and her Vastaya Moon Chasers, and was ultimately sealed away.

As for the lore of League of Legends, those who know, know. While it exists, thanks to the excellent writing and Riot Games' superb operational planning, although it's a game that's been around for over a decade, progress in the lore development isn't nonexistent, but it's better than nothing. After more than a decade, they're still the same old idiots, with shockingly low work efficiency. If it weren't for the Battle of the Two Cities setting the tone, some people might still think that Warwick was cursed by Soraka to become a werewolf.

This has led to the fact that although the Queen of Valoran was described as early as the League of Legends universe update, several years have passed and there is still no further description of this being who openly ended the Darkin Wars.

Although Faen conducted his own investigation, among all the people he had contacted, the only one who had ever heard of Queen Elizabeth of Valoran was LeBlanc. And what LeBlanc knew was only a portion of her own memories; aside from knowing that she had a very deep connection with the Shurima Empire, she knew nothing else.

However, it didn't really matter. Because for Stellatau, she clearly cared more about Aatrox, as Farn had mentioned, than about Empress Wu of Valoran.

"General! You know the General?! What happened to the General! Tell me, mortal! Tell me everything you know!!"

Flames raged fiercely around him, Stellatu's eyes fixed on Fain, as if he wanted to devour him alive. But beneath this seemingly insane exterior, in the realm of the mind, every emotional fluctuation of Stellatu was clearly reflected in the vision of Fain and even Riven standing nearby.

They simply longed for news about Aatrox.

Farn was not surprised by Stellat's reaction.

Because Stellato can be considered the most die-hard fan of Aatrox.

In the Darkin War storyline, although the war ultimately devolved into a three-way conflict between the Protoss, Zoranny, and Aatrox, forcing Ryze to unleash the power of the World Runes to clean up the mess, in the early stages of the story, when Aatrox roared and summoned other Darkin warriors, while some did awaken, the actual number of Darkin truly awakened was less than one-tenth of Shurima's peak strength.

Especially after the Golden Bloodline was extinguished, the Ascended no longer suppressed their inner desires, vying and killing each other. Therefore, those Darkin who remained loyal to Aatrox were few and far between. And among them, Stellatu was undoubtedly the most loyal.

The reason most of the other Darkin, after being awakened, decided to join the war stemmed from their hatred for Zolani—Zolani, as an Ascended, was not skilled in combat, but rather in support. Her Ascended power was flesh magic. Coincidentally, Maisa's Darkin curse was based on flesh magic to be effective.

This is why, in the mouths of most Ascended and Darkin, Zolani is a traitor or a coward. The reason they killed Zolani, besides her betrayal, was also because their suffering was inextricably linked to her—before, they weren't entirely sure, but after sealing Stellato into their spiritual realm, Fan quickly understood why they hated Zolani so much.

The reason is simple: under the oppression of the Darkin curse and the effects of flesh magic, they would sense Zoranny's powerful aura. As the long seal gradually eroded their already limited sanity, naturally, all that remained of their spirit was a strong hatred for Zoranny.

However, the degree of rationality that different ascendants can maintain varies. This is due to both the strength of their own power and the thoughts of the ascendant themselves.

In the original storyline, Stellatau's determination to go to Shurima stemmed not only from her hatred for Zolani, but also from her loyalty to Aatrox—or rather, she wanted to fight alongside her general rather than kill Zolani.

In this situation, Farn has absolutely no need to rush.

155. The Importance of Levels of Life

Looking at the calm-faced Fan, Stellatu felt a surge of anger rising within him.

But as he met Fane's gaze, the flames around him burned briefly before quickly returning to their original calm. And as his thoughts cleared, the eyes attached to Stellatu gradually revealed a glimmer of humanity.

“State your conditions, mortal.”

“It’s simple, obey me.” Looking at Stellatu, who had regained his composure, Farn said calmly with his hands behind his back, “Obey my orders, follow my commands, give me the knowledge in your memory, and when necessary, entrust your power to someone I designate to use.”

Upon hearing Fan's words, Stellatu didn't even show anger; instead, he burst into a series of fiery laughs. After laughing, Stellatu said with hostility and malice, "Do you think that by defeating me you can control me at will? Or do you think that just because you mention the general's name I will unconditionally obey you? Don't dream! Even the general himself would respect me! You can't kill me; you'll just keep me sealed away. I'm already used to it!"

"Wow, that's awesome."

Upon hearing Stellatu's words, Farn didn't engage in further confrontation. Instead, he silently clapped his hands while simultaneously projecting his mental vision directly into Stellatu's mind.

The Realm of Pleasure, as Faen's territory, appears calm on the surface, but every thought within it is one-way transparent to Faen. Like Stellatu now, though her words are resolute and leave no room for negotiation, her heart is not truly so—she still yearns for freedom, longs to see Aatrox again, and harbors hatred, disgust, and even fear that is sealed within her.

However, her rationality and pride did not allow her to reveal her weakness, so she blocked all subsequent negotiations with a tough response.

When Stellatu saw what Farn had seen—that is, her true thoughts—Stellatu also fell silent.

For Ascended beings, the spiritual realm is not unfamiliar. In fact, while not all Ascended beings are proficient in the spiritual realm, a considerable number of Ascended beings do derive their power from it.

Although Stellato's flames are primarily energy of the material realm, this doesn't mean he's ignorant of the spiritual realm. On the contrary, upon realizing he was in the spiritual realm, Stellato instantly understood many things.

Looking down at his own body, after a long hesitation, Stellatu said in a deep voice, "When I awoke, I was wondering why I had lost those maddening incoherent words in my mind this time. Now it seems it's also because of the mental realm here?"

"More or less." Upon hearing Stellatu's question, Farn didn't mince words: "The delirium in your mind still exists. The reason I can't sense it is because the shielding effect of the mental realm separates your mind from the Darkin curse. The reason you can regain your sanity now is because of the emotions I control."

"The emotions you control?" Stellatu asked with suspicion.

“Happiness,” Farn said calmly. “The emotion I control is called happiness, which can greatly reduce the negative traits in an individual’s mind. The pressure from the Darkin curse in your mind still exists, but through the surge of happiness, this mental pressure has reached a delicate balance with your rationality. Of course, this is only within my mental realm. Once you leave here, unless the Darkin curse is completely lifted, you will still be affected by it.”

Upon hearing Fan's words, Stellatu fell into a brief silence once again.

If before, Stellatu would have stubbornly refused because of his pride as an Ascended—even if it would put him at a disadvantage—now, knowing that Fane could see through his thoughts, Stellatu no longer dwelled on his pride as an Ascended.

Since the other party can see my true thoughts, there's no point in continuing to pretend.

Thinking it over, Stellatu looked at Fan and said calmly, "What exactly do you want? If you have already mastered this level of mental power, then you should not lack the power that I possess."

This wasn't a negotiation; rather, Stellato wanted to figure out Fane's true purpose in recruiting him. After all, if before, Stellato had only regarded Fane as a mortal with great power, now, after learning about the existence of the spiritual realm, Fane was no longer a mortal in Stellato's eyes, but a high-level life form of the same rank as himself, an ascendant.

While one's level of life inevitably influences the strength of their power, there are indeed powerful individuals among mortals. However, if one's level of life cannot truly advance, such power is at best fleeting. For instance, the Kingdom of Icathia's development of magic was once considered to be at its pinnacle; even a mage with mediocre spellcasting skills could unleash magic powerful enough to threaten an ascended being through unique combined spellcasting techniques.

The Mage King of Icathia possessed magical power far exceeding that of ordinary Ascended beings—who, too, were ranked in different levels. However, this power was simply insurmountable for mortals, which is why it remained unknown to outsiders.

Even if they are individually powerful, their life level is still only that of mortals. Faced with such a glass cannon, the Ascended, who can only respond to the Protoss's attacks by 'sealing', have every reason to be proud.

But the spiritual realm is different—

At least, even among the Ascended, those whose power originates from the spiritual realm hold a slightly higher status than those whose power originates from the material realm.

This nobility has nothing to do with the strength of one's power, but rather with their ability to observe more than those who ascend to the material realm.

In this context, Stellato learned, to some extent, about the concepts and structure of the spiritual realm through some of his fellow Ascended. Simply put, the more prevalent an emotion is, the more it is desired, abhorred, or something that one is compelled to experience simply by living, the older and more powerful it is in the spiritual realm.

Even Stellato only knew about the emotion of happiness from snippets of conversation among his fellow ascendants in the spiritual realm.

156. The Past of the Ascended

The spiritual and material realms are both opposed and intertwined. They appear to be separate entities, but in reality, they are an inseparable whole.

In this situation, even Stellato himself was unsure whether those Darkin in the spiritual realm were truly sealed away by the Darkin curse...

"You can rest assured about that; they are indeed cursed." Hearing Stellatu's thoughts, Fane added:

"However, they are ultimately Darkin... or rather, members of the Ascended. Originating from the same Sun Disc of the Shurima Empire, the Darkin curse also applies to them. It's just that they can avoid some of the damage through their mental domain. Just like you now, you separate your mind from your body, or simply place your body into your mental domain to seal yourself away, thus preventing mental contamination from the Darkin curse."

Hearing Fane's words, Stellatu nodded thoughtfully. Although she seemed to have a fiery temper, she was chosen by the Ascended Queen Setaka in Shurima's thousands of years of history, received the collective recognition of the Sun Priests, and finally successfully underwent the trial of the Sun Disc to become an Ascended One. Stellatu was certainly not just a showy arsonist.

On the contrary, now that he has calmed down, Stellat has regained the focus and composure he once had as a fire mage—it is true that magic in Runeterra has its own consciousness, but that does not mean that all mages will be affected by magic itself.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that powerful mages in Runeterra either possess a personality that is highly compatible with their subconscious understanding of magic, resulting in a highly efficient casting process and powerful spells, or they are like Stellato, exceptionally rational, capable of scientifically understanding and analyzing the composition of magic, thus unleashing powerful spells without being overly influenced by the magical elements themselves.

Stellatu quickly inquired tentatively, "Is it... in Ionia?"

Stellato knew that Ionia was the place where the distinction between the spiritual and material realms was most blurred, and that those who ascended to the spiritual realm always held a special affection for it. It wasn't greed or excessive fondness, but simply a profound concern—because they knew the history of Ionia, even within the Shurima Empire, few dared to make contact with it.

In fact, Ionia has only truly come into the public eye in the last few decades... mainly due to Noxus's accelerated expansion and, more secretly, LeBlanc's growing awareness of the gradually activating energy in the spiritual realm.

Upon hearing Stellat's guess, Fain nodded in agreement.

Runeterra is vast, and each region has its own distinct philosophies. This results in different spiritual realms in each region, and even the environment, creatures, and spirits are all different.

A thick veil separates the two realms of Freljord, but the wildness of that region gave birth to the oldest primordial demigods. Noxus reveres power, war, and murder, thus attracting countless demons to cultivate, nurture, and consume the emotions they crave.

Even within Zaun, there are numerous spiritual realms of varying sizes, but due to drastic shifts in ideology—the split of the two cities, chaos in Zaun, and prosperity in Piltover—the resulting ideological currents have been tearing apart Zaun's original spiritual realm. Janna's state before meeting Fain is the best example. If it weren't for Fain, Janna would likely still be confined to her stone sculpture, bluebird form, only able to indirectly interfere with the material realm through storms.

Instead of what it is now, where one can directly bestow blessings or even descend into the material realm in their true form.

What Faen knows is actually derived from his understanding of the League of Legends universe—the new champion, Yuna, is a witch living at the end of the Darkin Wars. Her story is highly related to the Spirit Blossom Festival, and her personal comics, as well as the short film and comics about Xin Zhao's return home, indirectly prove that the gods of the Spirit Blossom Festival are not as simple as they seem on the surface.

One point is that while the Spirit Blossom skins use the images of playable League of Legends characters, they are not actually them. In the lore, they are heroes from ancient Ionia, and no one knows what they actually looked like. The skins are simply based on the similarity to their lore, and the actual Riven, Cassiopeia, Ahri, and those spirits of daylight and night have no real connection to them.

Within these days and nights, some deities impersonating them appeared. Although not all of them made an appearance, when Yuna prayed to her god describing the wicked foreign deity impersonating the day, its silhouette was not exactly the same as that of the Darkin Dragon Fan in LoR, but it was highly similar.

Considering that Ionia, due to the unique nature of its spiritual realm, has sealed away many Darkin—such as Rhaast and Varus—and that it was later revealed that the god worshipped by Yun'ana herself was also a Darkin in disguise, it can be basically confirmed that the fan silhouette is that of the Ascended, the Darkin Dragon Fan.

“Brambler, the Riftwalker,” Farn said.

Upon hearing Fan's words, Stellatu's eyes flickered, and he said with emotion, "It really is that guy... that guy used his ability to freely travel between the two realms during the Icathian War. If the mental realm can really reduce the mental oppression from the Darkin curse, then Blai should be the most likely to escape unscathed."

Upon hearing this, Fain simply gave an awkward but polite smile and shrugged.

Blai did indeed narrowly escape the initial calamity, but unfortunately, her final fate was still to be sealed away—yes, that's right, it was Yun'ana who did it. Her main deed was to kill this evil god disguised as Mingzhou.

According to what Faen knows, Blai's next appearance will be during the Darkin War. In other words, Blai should still be sealed away somewhere in the spiritual realm.

Seeing how easily Fane could articulate these mutually corroborating points, Stellato simply asked, "In that case, what do you want me to do? And what can you give me?"

With his arms crossed, Stellatu calmly said, "I certainly don't want to become a mad dog again, driven by rage and the Darkin curse, like before. But if the price of regaining my sanity is to suffer humiliation, I would rather be sealed away again."

157. Piltover in Disgrace

“If that’s the case, you don’t need to worry, because I don’t intend to restrict your personal freedom.” Upon hearing this, Fane also held out his hand to indicate that Stellatu was overthinking it.

"I don't need all your memories, just some of them about the ancient times, to identify the potential threats from the Void and some special immortal enemies. And other than that, I'll just lend a hand when necessary."

Fain said, “For example, when I’m not around, Zaun… or as you call it, Vazaun, needs your help with some things. Of course, you don’t need to personally come to the battlefield; just sharing your strength with some people in Zaun will be enough.”

"In return, I will help you maintain your sanity and, once you find Aatrox, convey your existence to him through your thoughts."

Farn could clearly sense that Stellato's feelings for Aatrox, besides loyalty, also included a complex mix of love, admiration, and reverence. Unfortunately, Stellato was, in reality, a rational person, and thus never took that final step.

As for taking what others want... well, Farn admits that sometimes the House of Lords can't beat the House of Commons, but there are conditions for Farn's House of Commons to reject a motion from the House of Lords.

At the very least, you have to conform to Farn's aesthetic—and what about Stellato?

Cursed by the Darkin and having completely lost his physical body, which is now engulfed in flames, Farn has no intention of turning his pestle into a hot dog—although he often uses the metaphor of a steaming baguette, Farn doesn't intend for the House of Commons to actually become that cooked.

Upon hearing Fan's words, Stellatu nodded and said, "If that's the case... okay, I'm willing to help you. Well, even outside of Zaun, if you need anything, you can tell me, and I'll do my best to help you. Of course, don't forget to keep an eye out for the General's affairs."

Although he seemed quite open-minded at the beginning, Stellato eventually revealed his true feelings – he lusted after Aatrox.

Faen nodded in understanding, but couldn't help but recall Aatrox's words, "Twilight Star Spirit! You deserve to die!!!"

It has to be said that in the field of letterpress printing, Aatrox is second to none in the entire alliance.

While thinking this to himself, Farn did not show it. Instead, he began to design how to make Stellatu's power available to the believers of Zaun through the transformation of the spiritual realm.

While Fane was still researching how to harness the power of the Ascended from the Happy Demon Osiris, Caitlin, having returned to Piltover after a long absence, could clearly sense that although Piltover still appeared prosperous on the surface, it was completely different from what it used to be when she crossed the middle square and arrived at the now virtually non-existent lower city of Piltover.

This is not just a change in the scenery of the streets, but a complete transformation of the city's citizens' emotions and spiritual core.

In the past, the Piltover people, let alone the Zaunites, would maintain their pride even when faced with ancient empires and kingdoms like Noxus and Demacia. There was no other reason than that they were born in Piltover, and in their eyes, Piltover, the birthplace of Hextech, was undoubtedly the beacon of civilization for the entire Valoran continent.

But now, as Fain crushes Piltover and the Noxian army with overwhelming force, all the pride derived from Hextech has turned into a panic called "technology is useless".

“These guys are making a big fuss over nothing.” Noticing Caitlyn’s reaction, Vi shook her head with a sigh and said, “Although I’m from Zaun, to be honest, what’s happening in Piltover right now is exactly the same as Zaun’s past… According to Vander, after the failed Sungate Uprising—or what you would call a rebellion—an invisible cloud hung over the entire city of Zaun. Many people simply gave up resistance and didn’t want to get involved in the conflict between the two cities anymore.”

"Of course, even so, I think Zaun still has its merits." Vi grinned, her face full of disdain and contempt, and said:

"Because even though Zaun was chaotic at the time, there wasn't any large-scale infighting. Instead, order was restored under Vander's command. You might not know this, but according to intelligence gathered by the Piltover garrison during this period, a considerable number of trading nobles used the guise of a banquet to discuss how to transfer their assets, leaving Piltover for Noxus, Demacia, or even that godforsaken desert of Shurima..."

Upon hearing Wei's words, a complex emotion flashed in Caitlin's eyes.