Legends of Runeterra

"Your Excellency!? Great Elder, you..."

"Hehe, Your Excellency, please take a seat."

The elder stroked his beard with a smile and motioned Li En to sit on the stone bench.

After pouring a cup of tea for Li En, the elder spoke slowly.

“About a week ago, Lord Shenlong sent down an oracle, telling me that a new chosen one had appeared and asked me to prepare for the blessing ceremony.

My Lord, I believe you also came here under the guidance of the dragon!"

"Uh...yeah."

"In that case, I believe you are ready to accept the blessing?"

"Of course, this is the purpose of my trip. But Great Elder, may I ask what exactly is this blessing ceremony about? Also, before I came here, I asked about it. It is rumored that a few years ago, a monk once displayed the power of a dragon. I wonder if this is true or not?"

Li En's words made the Great Elder pause, with a complicated look on his face.

He picked up the teacup, took a sip, and then spoke slowly.

"Ah~! Your Excellency, this is a long story. Let me first introduce you to the blessing ceremony!"

"Great Elder, please speak."

"Since its founding, our Temple of Shuoji has been worshipping the 'Spirit of the Dragon'. Lord Shenlong was moved by our piety and specially bestowed the 'Power of the Dragon'. After being blessed, the chosen ones can control the 'Power of the Dragon' and maintain peace in Galen Province and even Ionia.

The 'Power of the Dragon' is divided into three levels according to the situation, namely 'Walker', 'Awakened' and 'Venerable'.

The "Walkers" are monks with the most outstanding moral character and martial arts selected by Shuoji Temple. They hold their own ceremony and accept the test of the "Power of the Dragon".

The ‘Awakened One’ is the ‘Practitioner’ who constantly hone himself, uses the ‘Power of the Dragon’ to perfection, and breaks through to a higher realm.”

As the Great Elder spoke, he looked towards Li En, his eyes filled with reverence for the dragon.

"Finally, there is the 'Honorable One'. This is the person chosen by Lord Shenlong himself, that is, you, Lord Li En!"

"I see..."

Seeing that Li En seemed to be lost in thought, the Great Elder continued his story.

"As for the rumors you mentioned, there was indeed such a monk several years ago. His name was Li Qing. The boy was gifted and his martial arts improved very quickly, but he was too arrogant.

While we were still trying to find a way to sharpen his mind, he found a way to summon the spiritual realm from the ancient books in the library, and finally in the competition in the martial arts class, he forcibly summoned the "power of the dragon", causing the five elders who came to save people to be seriously injured and paralyzed. "

"So now he..."

"Li Qing exiled himself out of shame and has been away for a long time. He was indeed chosen by Lord Shenlong, but unlike you, Lord Shenlong did not directly send down the oracle.

The Fifth Elder does not blame him, this is all our fault..."

"This is Li Qing's own choice. You don't have to blame yourself too much, Great Elder. When he thinks it through, he will come back naturally."

"Thank you for your comfort, Your Excellency!"

The Great Elder sighed lightly and nodded.

Then the two chatted for a while until it got dark.

"Your Excellency, the ceremony is ready. Which day do you think would be best for holding it?"

"The sooner the better. If possible, it would be best to start tomorrow."

"Yes, sir, as you wish."

The disciples were arranged to take Li En to rest, and the great elder personally participated and supervised the monks to check the arrangements of the ceremony site again overnight.

...

On the second day, the rising sun shone on Shuoji Temple.

Burn incense, bathe, and rinse your mouth with tea.

Li En changed into a pure black outfit that was similar to a martial arts uniform but more exquisite. It was provided by Shuoji Temple and was woven from some rare magical plants.

It is impervious to water and fire, and difficult to be damaged by swords. It is specially prepared for the blessing ceremony and is strong enough to withstand a certain degree of "dragon power" to avoid the embarrassing scene of the subjects being naked after the trial.

Moreover, since Li En was selected by Shenlong himself, the performance of his clothes is even better.

"Your Excellency, the ceremony is ready."

"Well, Third Elder, please lead the way."

Holding the nine-tailed white fox in his arms, Li En, led by the third elder, went to the ceremony site with several people.

The highest peak of the Shoji temple complex.

The square, which is several thousand square meters in size, is paved with simple blue bricks. Looking around, there are at least four or five hundred monks waiting quietly here.

After placing Ali on the mat prepared by the monks and whispering some instructions in her ear, Li En came to the lotus pond with a diameter of more than 30 meters in the center of the square under the gaze of many monks.

Nodding to the Great Elder, Li En used a [Quick Step] to arrive at the circular platform made of white jade in the lotus pond, and then sat down cross-legged with his eyes closed.

The seven elders surrounding the lotus pond sat cross-legged at the same time, chanting in a low voice.

The monks outside also put their hands together, bowed their heads and began to chant.

As the monks chanted, black and blue clouds gradually covered the sky.

The black clouds accumulated more and more, gradually pressing towards the top of the peak, until they stayed about a hundred meters above the ground.

"Hoo~!"

There was a light breeze at first, then it grew stronger.

"Wow~!"

The clouds were stirred into a vortex by the strong wind, and the center of the vortex was facing Li En.

"Boom~!"

Silver-white lightning flashed, illuminating the center of the vortex that extended upward.

Of all the people present, only Ahri raised her little head, and in that fleeting moment, she saw a majestic dragon claw that was large enough to cover the entire mountain.

"嘤~!"

Ahri ducked back out of habit, then she remembered that Li En was in the middle of the pool. Helplessly she could only curl up into a ball, holding her tail and shivering.

"Roar~!"

Along with a sacred and majestic roar, the dark clouds were completely lit up by lightning and turned silver-white.

“Boom! Crack!”

The thunder rolled and the monks present all felt a tightness in their chests.

"Wow~!"

The lightning vortex spun rapidly, the silver-white lightning quickly gathered towards the center, and the vortex turned black again.

When the strong wind stopped and the thunder dissipated, a ball of lightning nearly a hundred meters long was quietly suspended in the air.

Under the gaze of everyone, it slowly descended and shrank rapidly at the same time.

When it reached above Li En's head, it turned into a ball of light the size of an egg.

"Om~!"

The ball of light fell on Li En's chest and slowly melted into it.

"Boom~!"

Endless lightning flashed suddenly, and Li En's figure was obscured by the lightning. In an instant, the entire lotus pond turned into a thunder pond.

"Ugh!!!"

Cries of pain echoed throughout the square.

Unimaginable pain came over him, and Li En felt as if his entire body was about to melt in the lightning.

"嘤~!"

Ahri stood up from the mat instantly, a pink light flashed, and she appeared in human form. Ignoring the terrifying lightning, she rushed directly towards the thunder pool.

"Wait, Miss Ali!"

The great elder waved his hand, and invisible energy blocked Ahri.

"Hey, let me go, stop this ceremony! This is not a blessing, Li En is almost... about to..."

Ahri gritted her teeth, but couldn't utter the word.

"Don't worry, Miss Ahri. It is recorded in ancient books that if the divine dragon personally blesses one, one will shed his mortal bones. Your Excellency will be fine. But if you rush forward rashly, the 'power of the divine dragon' will hurt you!"

"Really...really?"

"God of War, if I deceive you, I will cut off my own heart meridians on the spot!"

Seeing the Great Elder swearing on his faith, and with the glimpse of the majesty of the dragon just now, Ahri temporarily believed him.

"Okay...Okay..."

Ahri twirled her sleeves unconsciously with her hands, staring at the center of the thunder pool with a worried look on her face.