Malphite's voice was so deep that it echoed loudly in the confined space, louder than the most powerful Hextech amplifier. Even Li Lin, with his enhanced body, felt his eardrums ache and his head spin. Hewlett and Shulei were even worse off, crouching down and covering their ears in pain.
Li Lin quickly put on his helmet to block out some of the noise. "I understand, but could you... speak a bit softer?"
"Oh, my apologies."
Realizing the humans' discomfort, Malphite softened his voice, even his breathing became gentler. The mine trembled again as the giant stone shifted, causing small rocks to rain down from the ceiling. Malphite's form morphed, revealing a face with eyes, a nose, and a mouth, resembling a human. His eyes, dark as deep pits, opened slowly, shimmering like precious golden crystals from the Shuriman mines.
A prominent nose and a rough, uneven mouth gurgled, expelling clouds of dust as if he were sneezing or coughing.
"Sorry, I'm still digesting," Malphite explained.
After a while, Shulei recovered, covering her nose and mouth, and stepped in front of Li Lin, squinting at Malphite's enormous eye. Her curiosity about the unusual rock creature outweighed her fear.
"Are you... a spirit of the mountains? Or something else?" she asked softly.
Malphite's rocky brows furrowed, the sound of stones grinding together filling the air. His voice was puzzled. "No, at least I don't think so... I believe I was once part of something greater, but then..."
Malphite paused for several seconds before continuing, "Then I was born, continuing to fight enemies... There's so much chaos in this world, it's hard to remember clearly."
"Enemies?"
Shulei raised an eyebrow, glancing at Li Lin, whose expression was hidden behind his helmet, and at Hewlett, who looked utterly confused.
"What enemies?"
"Some kind of non-existent beings... creatures that only know how to devour."
Malphite's voice was deep and slow, his luminous eyes lost in memory. Shulei inhaled sharply but choked on the dusty air, coughing violently. "I think... I know them," she said between coughs.
She took a Hextech respirator from her bag, putting it on for easier breathing.
"They dwell in the southern deserts and occasionally hunt in Swarms. The locals call their lair Kahleek Sai, but in northern Shurima and among outsiders, it's known as the Sea of Bones."
Shulei was originally from Shurima, her hometown near the eastern mountains, downstream of the River of Life, close to Kahleek Sai. She had grown up with tales of lost Icathia and knew about Rek'Sai and her kind from her parents.
"Yes, the Sea of Bones... They were once imprisoned in the depths of that salted land, but now... they move through the crust like the roots of a poisonous tree."
Listening to their conversation, Li Lin sighed inwardly. Shulei was referring to the Voidborn creatures that once occupied the Sea of Bones, Rek'Sai and her offspring, the Xer'Sai. But Malphite seemed unaware of these desert-dwelling void monsters.
Otherwise, Rek'Sai and her kin wouldn't have survived to be hunted by Ascended Nasus and devoured by Kai'Sa for her evolution.
Malphite was talking about the Void's corruption of Runeterra, the "Void tendrils" in the earth.
Despite his intelligence, Malphite seemed a bit slow...
"Kahleek Sai's Rek'Sai was killed by the Ascended warrior Nasus," Li Lin interjected.
"What?!" Shulei was stunned, looking back at him. "The legendary Rek'Sai is dead? Killed by..."
"I witnessed it during last year's Shuriman journey with the Ascended scholar."
Shulei's expression beneath her mask was one of utter shock, rendering her speechless. She had thought Li Lin was exaggerating—how could a craftsman from Piltover be friends with a demigod?
After all, Nasus hadn't been seen for decades since he last traveled with a purple-skinned mage.
But as soon as Li Lin opened his armor, Malphite's reaction dispelled her doubts.
"This... this feels so familiar..."
Malphite's eyes widened as if he wanted to break free from the confined space.
The mine trembled again, and large chunks of stone fell from the rapidly cracking ceiling. The wooden supports groaned under the pressure far beyond their design limits. Under the control of the AI, two mechanical engineers moved forward, deploying a "steel barrier" to shield Hewlett and Shulai from the falling debris.
"Stop moving!" Li Lin urgently commanded Malphite
, "You're going to collapse the mine!"
"Oh, sorry."
Malphite settled down, his dust-covered eyes blinking and focusing intently on the round, sun-disc-like yellow amulet hanging from Li Lin's neck.
"I remember now. This is... the Ascended Amulet! Each Ascended was equipped with one. It grants strength from the sun disc."
The Ascended Amulet...
Shulai's gaze turned to Li Lin, her eyes wide with shock, barely able to contain her gasp.
"This was bestowed upon me by Azir Emperor of Shurima," Li Lin explained.
"Shurima... The Shuriman Empire no longer existed when I gained consciousness," Malphite said, his voice tinged with sorrow. He clearly retained some memories from when he was part of the monolith.
"The Desert Emperor has returned, in the perfect form of a celestial warrior. You might consider visiting the former royal city, the Sun Disc City, to find him," Li Lin suggested with a smile.
In the original timeline, Malphite was unaware of Azir's resurrection. Azir, likewise, did not know that a sentient shard of the monolith had survived the battle with the Void.
If Malphite could reunite with Azir, it would add a powerful warrior to Azir's ranks, making it easier to deal with the Xerath issue.
"Azir... I understand," Malphite sighed. "Perhaps he can restore me to my original, complete form. I dislike my current state."
Azir certainly couldn't do it, and who knew if Horok was even alive. The monolith had only one remaining fragment...
Maybe, if I have time to thoroughly research Rune technology, Li Lin mused.
"By the way, Malphite, you mentioned earlier that there are Void tendrils underground... Do you know how extensive they are?"
Finally, the conversation shifted to Li Lin's primary concern.
"It's not just tendrils. There are also creatures resembling manta rays... But don't worry, I've already devoured them. It won't be long before I crush them," Malphite said with a slight laugh, causing more rubble to fall from the ceiling. "But you shouldn't dig too deep. There will be more of these creatures."
Li Lin frowned, "Void-corrupted manta rays?"
"Yes, if I'm not mistaken, that's what you call them. I heard sailors describe them when I approached their ships in the ocean."
Malphite furrowed his brow, releasing a cloud of dust. "But I don't understand why the people on those ships screamed and attacked me with hooks and cannonballs... I only wanted to say hello."
"They were probably terrified," Li Lin said, unsure how to respond. "Given your size, they likely mistook you for a monstrous sea creature."
"I'll be more careful next time... I'll surface earlier to greet them."
Um...
Li Lin fell silent, and Shulai couldn't help but laugh softly. She found this rock creature, Malphite, rather endearing.
Taking a deep breath, Li Lin realized the conversation had strayed. He needed to regain control.
"Let's get back to the main topic. Do you know the source of these manta rays? Can we eliminate it?"
Malphite remained silent for a few seconds, his crystal yellow eyes growing serious. "I wouldn't recommend going there. Even I can't guarantee I'd come out unscathed."
"Really? What if we had the help of the Grand Scholar, Nasus?"
Given that these Void creatures were from Runeterra, they should be creations of the corrupted material world.
Unless it's like the abomination that the Watchers created in Freljord, which even the demigod Anivia couldn't handle, having to resort to mutual destruction, other Void creatures shouldn't be on the level of demigods.
After a long pause, Malphite exhaled heavily, nearly blowing Hewlett and Shulai away.
"I don't know..." His voice was even more somber. "It's a city consumed by the Void... Belveth... and within it, there's a presence that even I fear."
"What?!"
Now it was Li Lin's turn to be shocked.
A Void creature that could instill fear in Malphite...
How is that possible?
"In that area, southeast of Kahleek Sai, there used to be a thriving city," Malphite recalled, fragments of memory from his time as part of the monolith flashing through his mind. "Yes, Belveth, on the border of Shurima and Icathia... When we were whole, we flew over it. The city had already been consumed by the void.
"But back then, such a terrifying entity hadn't yet emerged. Otherwise, we wouldn't have gone to Icathia; we would have fallen at Belveth."
Hearing Malphite's description, Li Lin's breath caught.
To challenge the monolith, driven by thousands of powerful elemental mages and dozens of celestial warriors...
How powerful must that entity be?
Shulai, who understood Shuriman, was even more baffled.
She knew every word they were saying, but put together, they made no sense to her.
"...Is it a Watcher?" Li Lin reluctantly voiced his fear.
"A Watcher? No, no..."
Malphite shook his head. "It's more like... a collective consciousness, if I can describe it that way.
"If I ventured into that area, I'd be devoured instantly, with no chance to resist. So I advise against going to Sai Kahleek, especially Belveth, the devoured city.
"The Void there is beyond our ability to combat... So we can't eliminate the source of the corrupted manta rays."
There's nothing that can't be dealt with, even the Watchers...
Otherwise, this world has no future.
Li Lin felt a heavy weight on his heart. "Thank you for your advice, Malphite. It's very useful to me."
(End of chapter)
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