In the following days, Li Lin roughly determined the remaining amount of radioactive minerals in the pit.
Though not as abundant as Rumble described, at least it would suffice for the current phase and even the next few decades.
The current issue was how to transport these minerals, which emitted radiation, back to the laboratory in Piltover.
After much contemplation, Li Lin temporarily abandoned the idea of mining and bringing back a portion by himself.
Firstly, he lacked containers capable of blocking radiation at the moment.
Even though the system store offered higher-grade purple or even orange Hextech chests than the blue one, they couldn't prevent radiation.
Secondly, the Valley of Songs was located in the southern part of Shurima, and it would take months just to return to Nashramae.
Moreover, he was planning to hunt down Rek'Sai and perhaps search for Malzahar on the way back, inevitably leading to unexpected incidents.
In the end, Li Lin made a decision: since there were still areas for optimization and improvement in the schematic of the miniature nuclear fusion reactor, he didn't currently need those minerals.
Therefore, he planned to wait until he returned to Piltover, where he would specially dispatch a fully armed expedition to hire local miners for mineral extraction.
This would also address the radiation issue, as anti-radiation equipment was not uncommon at Piltover University.
When the time came, he only needed Lady. Cassandra to make arrangements and expedite the production of a batch for the expedition team and miners to use.
Having made up his mind, Li Lin's thoughts returned to the system panel's Essence Store.
Having a plan was not enough; he also needed to prevent any accidents, especially considering that this place was previously corrupted by the Void.
According to Nasus, it would take several years for the Void energy to completely dissipate.
He selected an item in the store that belonged to the arcane magic of Icathia.
"Vigilant Eye Stone (Artifact): A magical item from the mysterious city of Icathia, used to monitor the outside world."
"Attributes: 1000 Health Points, 1000 Mana Points."
"Ability Effects:"
"Icathian Vision: After placing the Eye Stone, it will monitor a radius of 100 meters, consuming 25 mana points per second."
"Soul Binding: The Eye Stone will be bound to the placer, allowing them to share vision. Sharing vision consumes 120 mana points per second for both the Eye Stone and the placer (no distance limit)."
"Concealment: After placement, the Eye Stone will enter an 'invisible' state, unable to be perceived by the naked eye or ordinary magical senses, and cannot be destroyed by physical means, consuming 25 mana points per second."
"True Sight: The Eye Stone can detect targets in 'stealth' and 'invisible' states."
"Arcane Charge: The Eye Stone can absorb surrounding magic for self-recharging, restoring 15% of maximum mana points per second."
"Arcane Repository: Up to three Eye Stones can be placed."
This magical item was priced at 500 blue essences. Similar items included the rare-quality "Sentinel Eye Stone" and the fine-quality "Blossom Eye Stone."
The other two Eye Stones were priced at 250 blue essences and 100 blue essences, respectively, much cheaper than the Vigilant Eye Stone.
However, the Sentinel Eye Stone had a distance limit for vision sharing and lacked true sight.
As for the Blossom Eye Stone, it couldn't even achieve 'invisible' status and could be directly destroyed by physical means.
Li Lin gritted his teeth and directly spent 1500 blue essences to purchase three Vigilant Eye Stones.
He placed two of the Eye Stones in the empty space available for mining, while the remaining one was placed on the road leading to the pit to monitor whether the Void energy would cause anomalies.
After everything was set, Li Lin returned to the cliff he came from, activating the Blink function of his powered armor to return directly to the top.
Up at the cave, Sivir was idly preparing to glance into the pit.
In a flash of blue and white light, Li Lin appeared abruptly before her.
"Wow! You scared me!"
Sivir nearly instinctively threw away her Chalicar.
"You clearly have such an exaggerated ability, why didn't you just teleport like this when you went down just now?"
"I'm not familiar with the environment inside the pit, and there are remnants of Void energy below. If you were in my shoes, would you directly rush down like that?"
"..."
Li Lin gave Sivir a helpless look without waiting for her feeble rebuttal.
Unfortunately, her mask obstructed her view entirely.
After tidying up the ropes, Li Lin suddenly noticed Nasus had run over to Kassadin and Kai'Sa's side, engaging in conversation with them.
"Has Kai'Sa's exoskeleton evolved already?"
"You didn't take long to come back."
Sivir followed Li Lin's footsteps towards them.
"You didn't hear it? Just now, that little girl's cries of pain were really heart-wrenching... If it weren't for Nasus's help, I doubt she could have held on."
"Huh?" Li Lin paused for a moment upon hearing Sivir's words. "What happened?"
"The energy from that giant mantis's corpse was too much for Kai'Sa's body to handle; she almost collapsed... At least, that's what Nasus just said."
"..."
After careful consideration, Li Lin felt reassured.
In accordance with the original timeline, Kai'sa had been underground in this lightless abyss, accompanied by the Void, for a full decade.
She most likely returned to the surface only after completely clearing out the Void here.
In other words, Kai'sa defeated the giant mantis creature, now slain by Nasus, and devoured it at least in the last one or two years.
At that time, her strength and physical resilience were far beyond what they are now after only three years surviving in the Void.
Why didn't I think of this earlier? Thankfully, Nasus is here today...
Li Lin breathed a sigh of relief.
Kai'sa noticed the approaching figures, and her face, small and resilient yet full of vigor, broke into a smile of joy.
"Li Lin!" She waved to him excitedly, jogging up to them with a face full of excitement. "I've learned a new ability!"
Li Lin bent down slightly, his gaze meeting Kai'sa's at eye level. "Oh? Can I see it?"
"Of course!"
She glanced back at Kassadin and Nasus, then swiftly expanded and closed her Void exoskeleton helmet.
Before Li Lin could react, a fleeting sonic boom echoed.
Kai'sa's figure flickered, suddenly disappearing before him.
"Whoa!" Li Lin gasped, turning around to catch a glimpse of the residual image he had just seen with his eyes.
Unbeknownst to him, a Kassadin, now shielded with a faint purple barrier, had already flashed behind him.
After more than ten seconds, the Void barrier gradually dissipated, dissolving into the air.
So, this is the "Killer Instinct"...
This speed is even faster than my powered armor's "Overload Charge"!
"That's amazing..." Li Lin couldn't help but marvel sincerely.
"I'll call it Killer Instinct'."
Kai'sa, slightly out of breath, unfolded her helmet again, a faint hint of purple-black lips slightly curled upwards, evidently pleased with Li Lin's praise.
But her expression quickly turned to disappointment. "However, with the energy in my body now, I can only use this ability eight times in a row..."
Using it eight times in a row is already pretty good, you know? Consider that in your games, the cooldown time for your ultimate is quite long...
Li Lin didn't know what else to say, so he could only encourage her. "Just think, you're only 13 years old now. When you grow up, you'll definitely be stronger than you are now."
"Yeah yeah!"
Kai'sa's little face once again bloomed with a smile, showing the girlish look she should have at her age.
In the three years in the Void, she had already become numb, almost never smiling.
Today, unexpectedly reuniting with her father and making a friend like Li Lin who wouldn't reject her, Kai'sa's pent-up emotions were relieved somewhat.
"Are you done with your business?"
Kassadin and Nasus approached side by side, asking in low voices.
"Yeah, the Void hasn't devoured those radioactive minerals entirely. There are still many below, enough for our use.
"I think, after we return to Piltover, we can send an expedition team to mine these minerals... Of course, we'll cover the expenses."
As he spoke, Li Lin secretly observed Nasus's expression.
"These minerals are meaningless to the Shuriman Empire, and you witnessed the return of the Emperor, Azir. You also provided assistance in this battle. I believe he would be willing to grant you an unconditional mining permit."
Nasus paused for a moment. "When we return to the Sun City, I will report this matter to Azir and try my best to secure this as an additional reward for you."
"Thank you so much, Grand Scholar!"
Following the etiquette of Shurima, Li Lin clasped his hands together and bowed deeply to Nasus.
"It's a small token."
Then, Li Lin glanced at Kassadin, Kai'sa, and Sivir, and his gaze turned to the dark tunnel that led to the surface.
"Now, it's time to return to the surface."
(End of this chapter)