The Valley of Songs lies amidst the mountains to the southeast of Shurima's continent.
Within this remote mountainous path, there are many hollow rocks whose origins remain unknown.
When the scorching desert heat of the day meets the howling winds of the night, these rocks emit eerie mountainous sounds, hence their name.
However, remoteness is not always favorable, especially for survival in such extreme and harsh environments; one should never fully trust human nature.
According to Kassadin, travelers trekking through the Valley of Songs, especially at night, need to be particularly cautious.
Although there are no large bands of robbers like Kthaons here, there are still quite a few groups of bandits roaming about.
However, due to their long years wandering in such terrain, most have lost their hearing, while others suffer severe hearing impairment.
Therefore, as long as one avoids making fires at night and hides in remote areas, the chances of encountering bandits are not significant.
Of course, these concerns are irrelevant to Li Lin, Kassadin, and Sivir.
With the rugged mountain path ahead, the three of them left the Skallashi and camels at Marrowmark Market, each carrying the necessary basic supplies.
As they traversed the noisiest part of the Valley of Songs, the three of them put on earplugs in advance, hardly exchanging any words along the way.
After spending three to four days, they finally reached the outskirts of Kassadin's original village.
"Ever since my village was swallowed by the Void, there aren't many bandits left on this road," Kassadin sighed as he looked towards the towering black pillars in the distance.
Since the earth's bedrock was torn apart by the Void, and the village sank underground, these twisted pillars that rose from the ground have become the iconic landmarks of this place.
After almost three years, this place has been completely engulfed by yellow sand, leaving no traces of the ruins behind.
Li Lin and Sivir remained silent, standing a couple of steps behind Kassadin.
Listening to his rather melancholic tone, they didn't know what to say.
"All right, next, we'll be facing that group of corrupted and twisted monsters. Are you two ready?" Kassadin left all the supplies at the camp.
It wouldn't be good if all the unprotected water and food were contaminated by the spatial pollution in that area.
Although there were enough supplies in the Dawnlight for the three of them to last about a month...
Sivir took off her Chalicar from her back. "What's there to prepare? If we encounter those monsters, we just kill them, right? Fighting is routine for me."
Li Lin glanced at her. "Can you resist the erosion of the Void?"
She subconsciously touched the emerald barrier pendant that Nasus gave her. "Um... With this, I should be able to, right?"
"It can only resist magic, but the power of the Void is not magic."
"How do you even know about this?" Sivir raised both her brows, surprised by Li Lin's words.
"I've said it many times before, read more books, and you can be as knowledgeable as me."
"Does the book even mention this?"
Sivir looked incredulous, but Li Lin remained silent, busying himself with the supplies he brought in the Dawnlight.
Why do I always feel like punching him...
She glanced at the powered armor on Li Lin, clenched her fists, and gave up on her bold thoughts.
Forget it, I won't bother competing with you.
Just as Sivir was pondering, Li Lin took out a suitcase from the Dawnlight and handed it to her. "Put this on."
"Your powered armor isn't suitable for me." Sivir shook her head, politely declining. "It's too big."
Li Lin forcefully stuffed the foldable powered armor into her hands. "We don't know the conditions underground; having protection is always better than none."
After some consideration, Sivir accepted the suitcase and, with Li Lin's help, put on the powered armor.
Subsequently, Kassadin hid the supplies in a discreet location, carrying only a small amount of dry food and two water flasks with him.
However, what caught the attention of Li Lin and Sivir was the delicate small box he held in his hand, engraved with mysterious runic symbols.
Kassadin had shown it to Azir in the Sun City before, containing a Void Stone that could prevent corruption and erosion when entering the Void.
"Previously, Azir mentioned that as long as we don't touch the core area like the Void rift, contact with the Void won't immediately lead to corruption."
He looked at Li Lin and Sivir, raising the small box in his hand. "I don't know the protective range of this stone. Let's try it out in the peripheral area first. If it can only protect me, you two shouldn't get involved too deeply."
Both of them nodded simultaneously, agreeing with Kassadin's viewpoint.
Subsequently, Kassadin directly opened the box, revealing a small stone shimmering with a purplish-black light, its surface uneven and covered in cavities, before them.
A metallic sour taste filled the mouths of all three, and a faint ancient magic aura permeated the air.
As Kassadin extracted the stone from the sealed box, an inexplicable chill swept over his entire body, a tremor from the depths of his soul.
This trembling sensation from the depths of his soul was something Kassadin had never experienced, even when facing the fierce desert behemoths in the past.
Sivir stared at the Void Stone, suddenly feeling as if her gaze was deeply immersed in it, forcing her to quickly avert her eyes.
"This thing gives me a strange feeling..." she gasped, her heart still pounding.
Fortunately, this was a magical item, and Nasus's emerald barrier had already blocked most of its effects.
So her feeling was not as strong as Li Lin's and Kassadin's.
Especially for Kassadin.
Time passed by minute by minute.
After just touching the Void Stone, it seemed as if time had been infinitely prolonged, frozen in this moment.
This feeling came and went quickly. After just a few seconds, Kassadin returned to normal.
But now, the Void Stone had begun pulsating, syncing with his heartbeat as if it had become a part of him.
Sivir looked anxiously at the purplish-black stone in Kassadin's hand, then quickly averted her gaze again. "Is this... normal?"
Of course it's not normal...
But for the next few years, it wouldn't have any effect on Kassadin.
Li Lin shook his head, silently reciting to himself.
"It doesn't matter. I only hope that before it completely devours me, it will allow me to kill a few more Void creatures and that 'Void Prophet' Malzahar." Kassadin's voice contained no emotion.
"..."
Sivir opened her mouth, but in the end, she couldn't say a word.
Comforting others...
If she could prevent others from becoming even more saddened and angry, that would be good enough.
"All right, judging from the current situation, the Void Stone has quite a wide coverage area, at least a few meters. If you come closer to me, it should also protect you from Void corruption."
Kassadin paused, glancing back in the direction of his home. "Now... it's time to delve into the Void."
(End of this chapter)
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