CHAPTER 163 - Encounter
Due to the temporary lack of remote real-time connection functionality, Li Lin couldn't share his vision with the storm through the holographic display screen of his power armor.
In other words, this manually operated floating robot had to remain within Li Lin's visible range.
After some thought, he eventually switched to a semi-automatic storm robot with a semi-intelligent auxiliary chip, letting it go down to investigate the situation.
If there was real danger below, it would only result in the loss of one robot, a small sacrifice in comparison to potential harm to themselves.
As the storm robot, emitting a blue-white light, slowly descended and disappeared into the darkness, leaving no trace behind.
After waiting for some time, Li Lin received a message from it.
"The crevice is about 75 meters deep, and there's currently no danger below," he informed Kassadin and Sivir.
"But according to the storm's report, there are many tunnels dug out by some kind of creature down there, leading in different directions. There's likely danger lurking inside, or it might delve deeper underground."
"Your Hextech technology has such remarkable features?" Sivir looked surprisedly at the other three floating storm robots in the air, feeling quite amazed.
"Strictly speaking, it's the result of upgrading and updating their chips, combined with the technology of Piltover's wireless radio transmission," Li Lin explained.
Of course, all these advancements were the result of my research.
Li Lin smiled and added silently in his mind.
Sivir nodded slightly, a glint of light flickering in her emerald eyes beneath her mask.
Such amazing Hextech technology, I wish I could have it too...
Her expectations for the power armor Li Lin promised to tailor for her were raised a few notches.
Kassadin temporarily sheathed his Void Blade. "Alright, since it's temporarily safe below, let's go down."
Taking out the prepared ropes and hooks for securing them to the cliff, the three tied themselves together and descended into the abyss.
After a period of climbing downward, the sunlight overhead gradually disappeared as twisted pillars protruding from the cliff obstructed it, dimming the surroundings.
They activated the night vision function of their power armor, and the scene in front of them suddenly became clear.
When the three reached the bottom, faced with numerous passages in front of them, they hesitated again.
Which one should they choose?
Kassadin looked around silently, then clenched his fist, and the purple Void Blade suddenly unsheathed.
"The Void Blade is very sensitive to the Void, it can sense where those twisted creatures are," he explained.
As he spoke, Kassadin walked a few steps towards a tunnel in front of him and glanced back at Li Lin and Sivir, gesturing with his chin.
"I can sense that this passage leads directly to the core of the Void Rift here, and we must close it... just like the Ascended Warrior Horok did thousands of years ago."
His voice was heavy.
Li Lin and Sivir could easily hear the resentment towards the Void in Kassadin's words.
They looked at each other, unable to see each other's expressions behind their masks.
Then, they hurriedly followed Kassadin's footsteps and advanced into the depths underground within the range covered by the magic scattering of Void Stone.
The environment here was drastically different from the surface.
The once normal soil had turned into saline-alkali land, almost completely white.
After being eroded by the Void, the land absorbed nutrients, the most immediate consequence being this.
Not only that, but a large number of twisted and hard ground blisters occupied most of the area.
They resembled rocks formed from dried-up trees, similar in color to the surrounding saline-alkali soil.
But in reality, these ground blisters were proof left behind after being eroded by the Void.
Seeing them was enough to show that this place was no longer suitable for the survival of life.
Under Li Lin's control, the latest storm robot floated at the forefront, about twenty or thirty meters ahead of the others, acting as bait to scout ahead.
Although it lacked flesh and blood, its interior had two energy crystals, just enough to attract the Void creatures driven by instinct, eager to devour energy.
Facing the occasional cold wind blowing from a certain direction, mixed with a slightly pungent smell, the three alert individuals proceeded quietly in the silent tunnel.
Suddenly, a faint scream of some "creature" pierced the silence, immediately drawing their attention.
"We have a situation..."
Kassadin's face turned stern, quickly gesturing to the two behind him to stop.
The Netherblade on his wrist shimmered with an unusual luster, and a metallic, sour taste filled the mouths of the three.
"One, two, three... the Netherblade senses that eight Void creatures are running towards us!" Sivir's complexion changed slightly.
"What? It took us so much effort to kill that bug at the Marrowmark Market before, and now eight of them are coming at once?"
"Eight is already considered few. This is their stronghold. In the core area, there could be tens of thousands..."
Li Lin quickly glanced at the environment around him.
The tunnel they were in was about four meters wide and five meters high.
It wouldn't be a problem to walk through, but it would be different if they had to fight here.
Fighting eight Voidlings in such a narrow space would only restrict their movements.
But they had already traveled hundreds of meters from the last fork in the road, and it was too late to turn back now.
"How far are the Voidlings from us?!" Li Lin asked Kassadin quickly.
"At this speed... they should be here in less than a minute, they're in the other tunnel ahead," Kassadin replied.
Various plans of action flashed through Li Lin's mind.
Following that, he swiftly arranged a strategy to deal with the Voidlings "Sivir, quickly return to the previous fork in the road, stay farther away from us. Your Chalicar will be more effective there. I'll have a storm robot cover you."
Sivir discerned the gravity of the situation without questioning and responded, "Understood!"
As soon as she spoke, she dashed towards the rear, while Li Lin switched one storm robot to full firepower mode, following closely behind her.
Then, Li Lin continued, "The other fork in front of us is about a hundred meters away. Can you use your spatial tearing ability?"
"Of course," replied Kassadin.
"I'll have these two semi-intelligent storms launch the first wave of interception against the Voidlings ahead. When they get close, we'll teleport directly into their midst, catching them off guard."
The piercing screams of the Voidlings were now close at hand.
Li Lin activated the armor covering his weapon systems, while Kassadin activated his power armor into "overcharge" mode.
However, amidst the angry and painful roars of the Voidlings, several intense explosions caused Li Lin and Kassadin to pause slightly.
"Why are there explosions here?" Kassadin furrowed his brows lightly and quickly glanced at the distant storms floating in the air, already in combat posture.
Why aren't they firing?
"The minds of those Void creatures are linked; they wouldn't fight each other. What's going on?!"
With Kassadin's reminder, Li Lin's mind churned with waves of shock.
Here, Kassadin would be the only one fighting the Voidlings.
If that was the case, their plan wouldn't work.
He quickly deactivated the full firepower mode of the storm robots, avoiding their indiscriminate attacks.
As Li Lin expected, a few seconds later, another round of intense explosions echoed from the front fork, illuminating the entire passage with a dark purple glow.
Following that, a petite figure covered in dark purple armor rolled out from around the corner ahead, her hands holding purple crystal spikes aimed at the approaching Voidlings.
The Voidlings let out agonizing howls, as one of them, with purple plasma on its body, was instantly detonated, piercing through its tough shell and killing it instantly.
"Two!"
A voice, a mix of unfamiliarity and slight familiarity, entered Kassadin's ears.
This is...
He stared at the figure with an obvious resemblance to the Void monsters, yet fighting against them, and possessing the voice of a human girl, his mind lost in thought.
Meanwhile, Li Lin activated his Data Mind, and the information about this girl appeared in his mind:
[Name: Kai'Sa (Kaisa)]
[Race: Human-Void (Symbiotic State)]
[...]
It's indeed Kai'Sa! With her here, we've saved ourselves a lot of trouble, no need to search for her in this maze-like underground anymore.
Compared to the stunned Kassadin, Li Lin felt a slight relief.
Meanwhile, Kai'Sa, who had just turned her head, saw Li Lin and Kassadin in power armor, as well as the three floating robots in the air, and quickly halted her steps.
"Void creatures in human form?! And they can fly? Am I really going to die here today..."
She didn't hesitate at all, temporarily ignoring the Voidlings approaching from behind. The purple crystals on her shoulders continued to heat up, emitting a dazzling light.
Even in death, Kai'Sa would use these creatures as a shield.
Anyway, there was no one left in this world for her to care about, or anyone who cared about her.
Before dying, facing these twisted and corrupted Voidlings, it could be said that she was making a last stand, killing two birds with one stone.
This was her attitude towards death.
Li Lin noticed that Kai'Sa had entered the "Void Seeker" stance, and quickly spoke up, "We are human!"
Under her chitinous Void helmet, Kai'Sa's eyes widened, "Huh?!"
Human?
How is that possible!
How could there be humans coming to this place? And what is the armor that looks so similar to my living skin on them?!
In Kai'Sa's moment of confusion, Li Lin quickly raised his hands, palms emitting a bright white light.
At the same time, he controlled two chip-equipped storms to quickly lock onto the monsters rushing behind Kai'Sa.
In an instant, blue-white electrical energy bullets and orange-yellow energy blasts illuminated the entire space.
Countless kinetic bullets and energy shells pierced through the Voidlings on both sides of Kai'Sa, pouring a torrent of firepower onto them. Two giant eyeless insects, comparable in size to adults, were blown apart in mid-air.
Kassadin, who reacted swiftly, quickly slashed his right hand in front of him, disappearing instantly from the passage.
The next moment, his figure abruptly appeared behind Kai'Sa, roaring ferociously at the other two Voidlings, which had already pounced into the air, and swinging his arm vigorously.
A vast surge of purple-black energy poured out in a fan-shaped range, instantly obliterating most of their bodies.
At the same time, Kassadin's deep and hoarse voice penetrated through his mask, snapping Kai'Sa's mind back to reality:
"Gazing in combat is a grave mistake! If you don't want to die, stop standing there stupefied!"
(End of this chapter)
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