vncnus Page 25
Page 25
Amidst the swirling wind, birds flew out of the tunnel, landing on the walls on either side, and even on Janna's statue. Their tiny, sesame-seed-sized eyes blinked curiously at Fain, and a few bolder bluebirds even hopped onto him, curiously observing who had attracted the Guardian's attention.
After a moment of stunned surprise, Salafine suddenly exclaimed, "I heard that!"
"Huh? What did you hear?" Zeli looked at Salafine, puzzled. Although she had strained her ears, Zeli couldn't hear any sounds other than the wind and birdsong.
"Singing!" Salafine's eyes shone with anticipation and curiosity.
“It’s singing! It’s singing I’ve never heard before! Not just birds, but many people! I can feel it, it’s the voice of Zaun! Just like… just like Mr. Farn from yesterday!”
Salafine quickly said, "Yesterday, when Mr. Farn announced the establishment of the Winds of Change, I heard that same melody playing in people's hearts! And now it is! I hear it too, it's the song of change... no, it's the winds of change arriving!"
Zelly's eyes widened in surprise upon hearing Seraphine's words. Jinx and the others, however, were more puzzled—not everyone knew just how wondrous and powerful Seraphine's abilities were.
But no further explanation is needed. Because within that surging storm, a pure white, ethereal figure quickly appeared.
44. The Weakened Janna
Within everyone's sight, the raging storm gradually transformed into white ribbons as it was constantly blown about. Then, the storm, stretching across the sky, converged and swirled towards the statue. In just a moment, it formed a pale cocoon of storm. As the storm spread, a tall, ethereal woman, draped in white gauze, appeared in everyone's view. However, compared to ordinary people, this woman's temperament and the aura she exuded were completely different.
She seemed detached from the world, like a legendary elf, untouched by worldly concerns. Her azure eyes were like sky-blue amber, clear and bright.
Almost instantly upon seeing this woman, the ancient name flashed into people's minds—Jane Arem, the origin of the word 'Guardian' in ancient Shurima. In present-day Zaun, she is known as 'Jana'.
"Jana really exists?!" Zeli couldn't help but exclaim softly.
Zeli had heard her mother tell legends about Janna since she was a child, but that didn't mean she truly believed Janna existed in this world. After all, legends are just legends, like bedtime stories, often forgotten the moment she opened her eyes. Even after she deeply believed in her disappearance, as she grew older, Zeli came to understand just how dishearteningly different the gap was between childhood fantasies and the real world.
And now, you're telling Zeli that this bedtime story is actually true?
Who could accept this? We'd already accepted it as a fairy tale, and now it's actually happening. The impact this has on people's understanding and worldview is immense.
Scanning the crowd, Janna glanced at Zephyr, Jinx, Hilcone, and the rest of the group, a hint of surprise in her eyes. She seemed not to have expected Fain to bring so many people. However, Janna didn't feel any aversion because these people weren't strangers to her.
Janna was born from the wind—Ancient Zaun, the oldest port city in Runeterra, is a place where sailors and merchants alike silently pray for calm and sunny weather to facilitate their voyages. Her essence is somewhat similar to Faen's pursuit: a yearning for beauty and happiness.
That is why, no matter how Zaun changes, as long as people still yearn for happiness, Janna will never disappear. At most, her abilities will weaken due to a lack of faith, but she won't die or be crippled like those unfortunate primordial demigods of Freljord.
The Wind of Change is the name that Faen gave to the organization, but in reality, it is also the authority held by Janna herself—the wind is inherently ever-changing.
In this situation, whether it's Zeli, Jinx, Hilko, Vander, or anyone else—as long as they are children of Zaun and are striving for Zaun's revival—the Naga will sense their presence through a reflection in their spiritual realm.
In the past, Janna might have taken this opportunity to have a good chat with these children from Zaun. But things are different now. Fain is here, and Janna knows she has more important things to do…
"Nice to meet you, happy devil."
demon?
Hearing Janna address Fain, Hilko and the others standing nearby were slightly taken aback.
Although they all knew that Fane's power originated from the blessing of the joyful demon Osiris, to be honest, they remained skeptical until they received confirmation from someone of sufficient authority. At least, among those present, perhaps only Zeli, with her innocent heart and pure love, truly believed Fane's words. The others, even Shuona, and now Seraphine, harbored doubts about the fact that Fane's power originated from a demon.
Especially Salafine—she didn't sense any malice from Farn, so how could he be a demon?
But now, Janna's words undoubtedly confirmed that part of their uncertainty.
Meeting the gazes of the crowd and sensing the emotional turmoil within them, Faen's face also showed a hint of helplessness: "You too, demon of change~"
"A demon? Hmm... This is the first time someone has called me that." Janna wasn't angry at Fane's words, but said gently, "But I can understand why you say that."
Seeing the calm Janna, Fain nodded, then looked at the group behind him and explained:
"You should not let simple names cloud your judgment. Demons are essentially beings of the spiritual realm, and they obey their own nature. Spiritual beings born from fear will constantly create fear, and spiritual beings born from pleasure will constantly create pleasure. Based on this, fundamentally speaking, the terms 'demon' and 'elf' used by people have no effect on spiritual beings. The reason they are called that is simply because their ways of doing things are different."
"For example, you need to see what a person does and says to know whether they are a good person or a bad person."
As he said this, Fane shrugged and said, "Of course, I actually still like the title 'demon.' After all, 'happy elf' sounds too effeminate."
Upon hearing this, everyone exchanged glances and then nodded in understanding.
After a moment of silence, Hilko coughed lightly and said, "So... what is the reason we've come to see Janna?"
"So that when I'm not around, someone can feel the changes between the two cities."
After exchanging a glance with Janna beside him, Fain also said:
“Jana was born from the ancient people of Zaun’s yearning for a better life, and in that respect, her concept overlaps with mine. However, compared to the pure joy I represent, Jana, born from the ever-changing winds, represents more of a determination and action for a better future—the so-called change. Based on this, whether it’s Vander, you, Hilko, Zephyr, Jinx, or anyone else who wants to make Zaun prosperous, they all share the same ideals as Jana.”
“Your determination to make Zaun better strengthens Janna’s power, and Janna will use that power to make Zaun better. It’s a virtuous cycle, which is why I wanted you to know about Janna’s existence.”
Upon hearing Fane's words, the others exchanged bewildered glances. After observing in silence for a moment, Janna looked at Fane gently and then said, "So, you're going to make them my chosen ones first?"
"God's Chosen... I guess so, but it's not certain yet."
Upon hearing this, Farn fell into a brief moment of thought, then shook his head and said, "Your power is currently too weak; you don't have enough capacity to mass-produce Chosen Ones and Familias. However, the lower levels of Zaun are now under my control. How much power can you draw from them?"
“About one-fifth.” After a moment of silence, Janna reopened her eyes and said, “The changes at the bottom of Zaun were caused by you. Although I was born in Zaun and have a closer connection to the spiritual realm of this land, the quality of Ossilash in the spiritual realm is far beyond what I can contend with. This one-fifth is already the limit that I can reach.”
Hearing this, Fan nodded in understanding.
The number of emotions a person possesses corresponds to the number of spiritual realms they have. In fact, some of these spiritual realms are not merely emotions, but rather lost fragments of Runeterra's history.
Janna was born in Zaun, and thus can be strengthened by the ideologies that arise from this land. If a conflict were to erupt, Janna, located in Zaun, would have a home-field advantage. However, this only applies to ordinary spiritual beings—O'Sherlock was born from the first joy of Runeterra. He represents the joyful sentiment of the entire Runeterra.
In this situation, regardless of which city-state or spiritual realm in Runeterra experiences happiness, it directly enhances Ossilash's power. Therefore, Janna's so-called home-field advantage is completely ineffective against Ossilash's status.
This is actually quite common among beings in the spiritual realm—many so-called demons cultivate a large number of followers. These followers are similar to the relationship between Fane and Osiris. They are all blessed by the Great Demon, thus achieving a leap in their life level from a single material realm being, and thus becoming able to perceive the spiritual realm. There are also some who are purely spiritual beings, such as someone's thought. They then attract the attention of the Great Demon, receive blessings, and possess independent self and consciousness.
The sole mission of these trained followers is to generate more emotions for their great demon master.
For example, Nocturne, the Eternal Nightmare, is originally a mental assassin construct created by shadow magic, a form of black magic originating from the Rune Wars era. It was only due to the collective panic of the Rune Wars era that he gained consciousness, began feeding on fear, and ultimately became the Fear Demon.
While these creatures don't appear in League of Legends (LOL), a large number of Nightmare creatures do appear in the League of Legends card game, Legends of Runeterra (LOR). These Nightmare creatures primarily survive by draining people's energy and attacking their dreams. The emotions generated by nightmares are mostly used as taxes—delivered to Fiddlesticks, the first and most ancient primal demon of Runeterra, representing fear. A small portion is absorbed by Nocturne himself, and the remaining residue becomes the reward for the lesser demons and their minions.
However, creating a Familia also requires resources, and Janna is currently too weak.
45. Contract, Janna recognizes her master?
Looking at Janna, Fain could sense her current state.
Although the poison of faith that Janna suffered from was not as severe as the withdrawal symptoms that caused the primordial demigods in Freljord to either die or be crippled upon stopping the drug, Janna's condition has now weakened to a certain extent due to the long-term lack of the supply of faith power.
Under these circumstances, it's no wonder that Janna couldn't influence the changes in Zaun in the material realm.
According to Faen's speculation, Janna's initial weakness was not a sign of giving up resistance, but rather a sign of conserving her strength and waiting for the right moment to strike.
Because during the most prosperous imperial era in Shurima, due to the continent of Valoran, the kings would be so overwhelmed with awe and moved to tears simply by arriving in the capital city of Shurima.
In that era, hordes of ascended celestial warriors could easily crush a few so-called chosen gods, and resistance was futile for a minor local deity like Janna. Moreover, ancient Zaun was a trading hub where ideologies shifted frequently, and the nascent Janna probably couldn't absorb much genuine faith power.
In this situation, Janna could only hide her faith and wait for the situation to change before plotting Zaun's future.
But who would have thought that after the Shurima Empire era came the Darkin Warlord era, and then the Rune Wars era. Each era had countless intriguing twists and turns—
During the Darkin Warlord era, Runeterra was nearly dragged into the abyss of destruction by the out-of-control Darkin Celestials. During the Rune Wars, human warlords abused rune power, forcibly annihilating countless civilizations. The continental shelf was shaken several times. Even now, Noxus still has a gap in its coastal area that is almost the size of three Shadow Isles, which was blasted out by runes.
None of them were within Janna's control, as she had become weakened by the lack of faith during the Shurima Empire era.
We finally reached a peaceful era, a time when Janna could interfere with Zaun's material realm. But then, things shattered.
Ancient Zaun has become a dual-city. After much back and forth, Zaun has deteriorated further, and Janna has grown weaker. Now, for Janna, creating a so-called Chosen One is like risking her life—does she really think blessings are as easy as pouring water, readily creating a large number of them? Those truly high-level Familias, aren't they all custom-designed to suit their specific characteristics?
After thinking this through and remaining silent for a moment, Farn said, "I'll help you."
"..." Upon hearing this, Janna fell silent, then tilted her head and said, "So, what's the price? Are you going to offer Zaun to Osiris?"
"No, in fact, Osiris is also my enemy." Fane shook his head—Osiris was born of pleasure, but ultimately went too far down the path of extreme sensations, eventually attempting to break through to the Immortal Celestial Realm. It sounds impressive, but in reality, it proves that this path is a dead end. In Fane's view, it is a stark warning from the past; anyone who tries to emulate it will die. It can only be used to avoid pitfalls.
If it were any other primordial demon, Fane would probably have to lie low for a while, but Osiris...
In the game, Nera has a line, "Wrath in vain in the prison, demon, now I am in charge," which she says to Osiris.
Ossilash gained his freedom through a deal with Nera. The deal involved Ossilash granting Nera the power to become a hero. In return, upon Nera's death, her body would be used by Ossilash, thus granting him his freedom.
From another perspective, as long as Nera lives, Osiris's influence will be very limited.
Especially after this period of getting to know each other, Fan was basically certain that the reason Osiris blessed him and even gave him her concept, aside from the uniqueness of his soul, was that Osiris wanted Fan to walk the same path as her. When the time was right, she would bypass the agreement with Nera and be reborn by possessing her body.
If it were an ordinary person, or even someone who was not familiar with Ausilex's background story, after receiving this blessing, they would probably quickly embark on the path of extreme sensory stimulation, just as Ausilex imagined.
Improving one's power in a joyful and effortless way—there's simply nothing more satisfying in this world. Unfortunately, Fain knew, and was well aware of, the ultimate consequences of pursuing this path.
This is precisely why, although every time Fane significantly undermined Osilesh's power, he could feel Osilesh's seductive voice whispering in his ear, essentially tempting Fane to delve deeper, Fane never showed any intention of engaging with him further.
It's always just a fleeting taste, filling the void of ultimate sensory experience with greater, more ordinary joys and hopes.
And now...
“We can forge a pact, originating from my very essence in the spiritual realm,” Farn said. “As the oldest being in this world, you should know the foolish things O’Shilles did tens of millions of years ago in pursuit of ultimate pleasure. Now that she is sealed away, she cannot interfere with my decisions. I can share the authority I wield with you to create chosen warriors that belong to us… or rather, to Zaun.”
Upon hearing Fane's words, Janna fell into a brief silence. Then, frowning, she said, "If you haven't been completely controlled by Osiris, then what are you doing this for?"
“For a better future,” Farn said candidly, “I need power, even if it comes from the trap Osiris set for me. Though dangerous, it is the most powerful ability I can currently wield. I know parts of the past and the future, which has allowed me to see many terrible disasters. And to protect myself from these calamities, and to protect those who love me and those I love, I need power.”
“Osiris was born from the emotions of all life on Runeterra. So from another perspective, as long as I can establish a joyful connection with all life on Runeterra, then even if she is the one who holds the power of joy, I can still contend with her, resist her, and even usurp it.”
By the end, Fain had clenched his fist. His eyes showed no sign of moral remorse for uttering the word 'usurpation'.
Spiritual beings in the spiritual realm can enhance themselves by creating the emotions they need. Similarly, in addition to this, there is a more direct way for beings in the spiritual realm to become stronger—by devouring their own kind.
Demons of the same kind devouring each other is a common occurrence in the spiritual realm. Based on this, even the greater demons don't prevent their own minions from fighting amongst themselves. Because the essence of their devouring is simply a process of advancement from lower-level beasts to higher-level beasts. And in this process of mutual scheming and infighting, the intelligence of these beasts is enhanced, and more emotions are generated for them to consume.
Now, what Farn needs to do, what he wants to do, and what he is preparing to do is to eat up Ausilex's blessing—or more accurately, to eat up the sugar coating—and then fire the cannonballs back.
Based on this, Fan never considered himself a saint or a savior. But if it gave Fan power and the confidence to protect those he loved, he was willing to play the role of a savior.
Looking at Fane before her, Janna tilted her head slightly, a hint of confusion still lingering in her ethereal eyes. Not human, as a being of the spiritual realm, Janna's thinking differed from ordinary people. As she was now, having received Fane's response, Janna didn't stop there, but continued, "But this is of no benefit to you."
Janna calmly said, "In terms of status, you inherit the concept of the primordial joy of Osiris, while I only possess the hopes of the people of Zaun for the future. Sharing this authority with me may, in the long run, make Zaun an anchor for the entire Runeterra. But this also means you will have to prepare more for Zaun and put in more effort. Otherwise, what I gain will be far more than what you can gain."
“So this is just a contract,” Farn said. “I can’t stay in Zaun forever, so I need a friend to help me manage things here. I’ll be in charge of the big picture, but I don’t have enough time to work out the details. As for our contract—if we can’t reach an agreement on something, then you must be my lord. If you still don’t want to give up, then we’ll go our separate ways.”
Upon hearing this, Janna pondered for a moment, then nodded, her voice still ethereal and calm: "I am willing to form a covenant with you and become your lord. But even so, we do not have enough power to create our own chosen ones."
Janna calmly said, "My power has been severely weakened by the division of Ancient Zaun. Although the concept you represent is ancient, its power in the spiritual realm is insufficient to create a large-scale blessing."
Upon hearing Janna's words, Fain nodded in understanding.
Fan is not a purely spiritual being, which means that Fan is destined not to be able to elevate other beings' life status at will like a true spiritual being.
But this problem is easy to solve—
“Hunt some demons,” Fane suggested. “If I remember correctly, there should be quite a few powerful demons’ minions here in Zaun. If we take their quality from the spiritual realm, even if we can’t create minions of the same level, we can still create a group of elite warriors connected to Zaun’s spiritual realm.”
Upon hearing Fan's words, Janna pondered briefly before nodding and saying, "That is indeed a solution. Let's do as you say, Master."
"..." Upon hearing this, he remained silent for a moment, then raised an eyebrow and couldn't help but ask, "Why are you calling me master?"
46. Osiris's Wrath
“Because this contract is based on you,” Janna replied calmly.
“No need for that. I'd much rather we be partners with aligned interests and shared goals, rather than a master-servant or superior-subordinate relationship.” Looking at the calm Janna before him, Fane more or less realized that Janna's emotions weren't as rich as those of ordinary humans, but rather closer to the so-called “three-nothing”: speechless, taciturn, and expressionless. This refers to various types of people and their outward expressions characterized by extremely limited speech, concise word choice, and frequent silence.
But upon closer reflection, Fain felt that Janna's calmness might not be as simple as it appeared. It was likely related to her own state—the Twin Cities were originally one city, but now that it was divided, it would naturally affect Janna's condition. Coupled with her continuous weakening over a long period, her ability to express herself might also be affected accordingly.
After all, in the realm of spirits, apart from primal demons or primal elves like Osiris and Fiddlesticks who represent the most primitive emotions, all other spirits are destined to die.
However, some spirits refuse this kind of death, refuse to be forgotten, and thus constantly create similar emotions. Thus, they become what are known as evil spirits or demons.
As for Janna... her essence is the ever-changing wind, so theoretically her emotions should be even more volatile. However, judging from her current state, she is clearly in extremely poor condition. Perhaps she will only be able to reach her full form when the two cities achieve mutual understanding and integration in the spiritual realm.
Because Janna seems to have been out of the public eye for a long time, but in fact, in LOR, Nera was able to successfully cross the ocean and reach Freljord to fight the Undying Berserker Revolibear when she was on her legendary journey.
However, the two cities in Legends of Mir 2 (LoR) developed independently. Although they appear to be two separate cities, they actually developed distinct civilizations. The Battle of the Two Cities also differs significantly from the world of League of Legends (LoL), belonging to different timelines within the same universe.
Hearing Fane's words, Janna's brows furrowed in confusion, but she quickly replied calmly, "If this is your request, then I will comply."
“I would prefer your agreement,” Farn corrected.
"As you wish, I agree."
Fane abandoned his attempts to persuade her and instead extended his hand to Janna. Seeing this, Janna nodded. A moment later, the runes representing the concept of Osiris on Fane's hand began to twist and radiate a bluish-green light. As the light appeared, everyone present could clearly feel a strange joy spreading through the air.
This joy is not merely a simple matter of happiness factors, but pure joy itself. It stems from the first joy generated by the first consciousness in Runeterra, allowing people to clearly perceive the ancient history and long-forgotten past within it. However, the vastness of the world within is simply too immense, and those with insufficient mental capacity can often only see the parts of the past that they are familiar with.
Whether it was Hield, Jinx, Shura, or anyone else present, amidst the joy of Runeterra's early days, all they could see were the most beautiful memories hidden deep within their hearts. But before they could fully savor them, that power vanished with a gust of wind. On the back of Fain's right hand, in addition to the Seven Hands of Ossilash, a storm mark had appeared.
In Fane's perception, the power within his body, besides the joy originating from Osiris, also included a portion of the storm inherent in Zaun itself.
This storm is not merely a manipulation of wind, but rather, like the flowing waters of Osiris, its essence lies in the Zaunites' yearning for a happy life. It is hope and change. By deeply perceiving this power, Fain can even communicate directly with Janna on a spiritual level—a communication that transcends the physical barriers of distance, taking place entirely within their spiritual realm. It requires no words, but rather a resonance revered by the Ionians, allowing the other to directly understand all the meaning conveyed, regardless of language, tone, or context.
With his eyes closed and a slight sense of the wind, Fain could clearly perceive the direction of every inch of Zaun's land and every gust of wind. With a little attention, he could control it. Although, due to the region, this control would cease to function once Fain left Zaun, he didn't mind—because his primary fighting style still relied on flowing water.