-31- Shimmer? Not at all!

Hatred can either deepen over time or slowly dissipate. 

Silco and Vander, these former brothers, today, they have finally sat down together once again.

Holding Silco's outstretched hand, Vander spoke in a deep voice, "In any case, we need to talk."

The conversation between Silco and Vander continued until nightfall. During this time, Linwin sat silently between the two of them, serving as a well-behaved mascot.

Linwin listened attentively, and as the discussion progressed, he could even craft a little story from Silco and Vander's conversation. 

The story was quite simple and not as complicated as Linwin had initially thought. Silco wasn't the villain Linwin had imagined him to be, and the reason Benzo treated him with such an attitude was probably more about Benzo's own personality.

In summary, Vander wronged Silco first, and Silco made his mistakes later. The two of them had differing philosophies. 

However, Silco still respected Vander and hoped to bring him back into the fold, while Vander rejected Silco's more aggressive ideas and wanted a stable development for the Black Ally.

But after Linwin's appearance, Vander began to change. He wasn't convinced by Linwin; he was impressed by Linwin. Everyone in the Black Ally now believed that Linwin could lead them well because he was simply too strong.

As for Silco, he, like Vander, was also won over by Linwin's strength.

After talking it out, they realized that there wasn't as much hatred between them as they thought. After all, they were once like brothers.

"So, shall we leave it at that for today?" 

Linwin let out a big yawn. He hadn't had much sleep in the past three days, and now that he finally had some downtime, he was feeling quite tired.

These past few days had involved a lot of running around the Undercity, and Linwin felt like a brick, similar to the week he spent in the Upper City. The only difference was that in the Upper City, he had a nice little room, good food and drinks, and a soft, comfy bed.

The treatment... well, it was no wonder that the Zaunites envied and admired the lifestyle of the Upper City.

Silco stood up when he heard Linwin's words. He looked at Vander and remained silent for a long time before finally saying, "Then I'll come back next time."

Vander hesitated for a moment, stood up, and looked at Silco. He said, "Silco, you can move back to the Black Ally. Since we're planning to build a new Zaun together, trust is essential."

Silco was momentarily taken aback, and he remained silent for a very long time. 

It was only after Vander began to wonder if he had said something wrong that Silco let out a deep breath and sighed, "Do you know how long I've been waiting for you to say that? My time has been frozen since 'that day,' but today, it has started moving again."

Silco continued, smiling, "But let's forget it. I can't get used to living in the Black Ally anymore."

Silco then looked at Linwin, who was dozing off in the lamplight, and extended his hand to snap his fingers in front of Linwin. He said loudly, "Linwin, I'll continue to develop Shimmer, but I can promise you that in the future, the Shimmer sold in Zaun will only be Shimmer with the side effects removed, well, it's unlikely to completely eliminate them."

"Silco, now that we have hextech technology, do we even need Shimmer?" Linwin furrowed his brow, and Shimmer didn't sit well with his senses. While it was powerful, it posed risks to the human body and had severe addictive qualities.

"Do you know why I named it Shimmer?" Silco walked to the front door of the Last Drop Tavern, placed his hand on the door handle, and turned back to Linwin to explain, "It's called Shimmer because it's a faint but hopeful light."

"It's not just what you see now, Linwin. It also has strong healing effects that you haven't seen yet. Today's Shimmer 2.0 has already made some progress. Although there is some pain after consumption, diluted Shimmer can perfectly treat life-threatening knife and gunshot wounds."

"Isn't that beautiful?"

Linwin: "???"

"Are you sure about this? You're telling me that this messed up concoction can still be used as medicine?" Linwin obviously found this hard to believe.

"Take a 2.0 for now, and when the 3.0 is ready, you can try that one too," Silco said, touching a small vial containing a dark purple liquid and placing it on the nearby table. He then smiled and walked out of the Tavern.

As for why Silco himself brought this to the Black Ally... well, that didn't need much explanation, did it? 

Outside the door of the Fumigator's Tavern, there were a few burly men guarding Silco, and they initially gave Vander an unfriendly look. But then, they nodded to Linwin, who was standing beside Vander.

The reason they were rude to Vander was that they didn't believe in his decision as Zaunites. In their eyes, Vander's path was a dead-end, and Silco was the future of Zaun.

As for why they nodded to Linwin...

Well, there wasn't much to say. They were scared!

"Seems like they don't like me?" Vander said, somewhat surprised.

"Of course, when the two of us stand together, it's easy to see who's more popular," Linwin said as he walked over to pick up the vial Silco had left behind, and when he tried to grab it, he nearly dropped Silco's Shimmer 2.0.

The reason he had this reaction was that the data he received left him speechless.

[Corrupting Potion (Incomplete: Consumable)]

Quality: ★

Effect: After consumption, it will increase strength by 12 points and agility by 7 points. It also provides 2 points of stamina recovery per second, lasting for 12 seconds.

Side Effects: This is an unrefined Corrupting Potion. While it has the effect of increasing strength and recovering minor injuries, it also comes with the drawbacks of hallucinations and addiction, as well as a slight impact on the intelligence of the user.

"Vander," Linwin said, holding the Corrupting Potion – no, it was Silco and Singed's Shimmer – with a smile on his face, a somewhat bitter and frightened smile.

How could Linwin not know about the Corrupting Potion? 

Originally, when he heard that Silco had come up with Shimmer 2.0, Linwin didn't have much of a reaction. It wasn't surprising for alchemical technology to produce something like this. 

However, when he found out it was the Corrupting Potion, Linwin started to question life itself.

This early game god item, the potency of a mix suitable for mages and top-lane tanks, how could Linwin not know about it?

With this realization, Linwin suddenly figured it all out. No wonder when he was in Fiden's place, the monsters he'd cut off their arms with his sword grew back flesh buds where their limbs had been when Linwin was about to leave.

Does Shimmer have the ability to regenerate severed limbs? 

If Singed can develop Shimmer 3.0 in two years, then maybe it won't be weaker than the Hextech technology developed by Jayce. 

After all, is Silco the type of person who lags behind?

If it weren't for Linwin, this guy might have already been spreading Shimmer everywhere. He's undoubtedly capable of posing a threat to Piltover!

"He's formidable, and of course, I know that," Vander shrugged, thinking that Linwin was exaggerating. How could Silco be more formidable than him?

"No, you don't understand, Vander. Silco's prowess is truly beyond our imagination. This little thing I have in my hand could genuinely threaten Piltover," Linwin said, holding Shimmer, and continued, "It can create something potentially more powerful than you."

Linwin paused, and he suddenly realized that if it was still Shimmer 1.0, the monsters it created, depending on the user's physical strength, should have an average value less than Vander. They were mostly just braindead after consuming it.

But with Shimmer 2.0, Linwin had noticed during the fight with Fiden that the users of 2.0 had self-awareness. 

They knew exactly what they were doing at the time, even if they suffered brain damage afterward, that was a later consequence. 

Plus, the new Shimmer could increase strength by 4 points and agility by 2, along with its injury recovery effect. It was far stronger than what Linwin had seen a month ago.

Imagine if it was just Shimmer 1.0, the creatures it created would be less potent than Vander on average, but they'd be pretty much brain-dead due to the intense side effects. 

However, with the Shimmer 2.0, Linwin had observed during the fight in Fiden that the users could maintain their self-awareness and cognitive abilities. The new Shimmer was vastly more potent than what he'd seen a month ago.

It was enticing!

But only a little bit, as Linwin realized that the healing effect of Shimmer 2.0, on closer inspection, wasn't that significant. It was akin to a game. Linwin was already an Level 18 tank; did he need Shimmer at that point?

This world wasn't a game world; it was real. Shimmer might be beneficial for "ordinary people," but it was useless for "the strong."

If Linwin gave this stuff to the likes of Ornn, Anivia and others, to enhance their attributes and recover from injuries?

Haha.

Looking at Vander, Linwin continued, "It's definitely more powerful than you."

"Imagine if we had thousands of you charging the bridge together back then. Could the Piltover Enforcers really have stopped you?" Linwin asked Vander.

Vander thought for a moment, then raised his head and said, "They could hold their ground. They have guns, men."

"But could they be unafraid of death, and could they regenerate severed limbs?" 

Vander fell silent, disbelief in his eyes, but Linwin nodded firmly.

"And, Vander, this thing from a month ago isn't as powerful as it is now," Linwin said, shaking his head in disappointment. "Singed is still developing 3.0, and there could even be 4.0 and 5.0 in the future."

"Who is Singed?" Vander asked, 

"He's a formidable guy, someone who can stand on equal footings with Professor Heimerdinger."

Vander was shocked, "Someone like that came down to Zaun?!"

Linwin didn't reply, holding the Potion in his hand, filled with anticipation. 

Just imagine Zaunites wielding Hextech technology and Shimmer going to negotiate with the Councilors. 

At that time, would they still be able to ignore the voices of Zaunites? 

Could they still ignore the suffering of the Zaunites after witnessing the power of Zaun?

This was the power of technology. This was the alchemical technology that belonged to Zaun.

To be honest, this should not be my confusion. 

Shimmer and the Corrupting Potion are incredibly similar. 

Both are purple, and both enhance attributes and have regenerative properties. 

The Corrupting Potion enhances damage, while Shimmer goes even further, efficiently healing wounds with a single drop. It's almost like a miraculous potion.

From this, it's clear: Corrupting Potion is Shimmer!