Valoran, the Immortal Fortress of Noxus.
This war fortress, forged from a dark, unidentified metal, is the power center of the Noxian Empire. In stark contrast to the light and purity of Demacia, everything here exudes power and aggression. Towering towers pierce the clouds like swords, the skulls of enormous, ferocious war beasts hanging on the walls, and the faint, pervasive smell of blood—all testify to this nation's absolute worship of "power."
At this moment, in the most central circular hall of the Immortal Fortress, known as the "Commander's Council," the atmosphere was more solemn than ever before.
Darius, the Hand of Noxus, clad in heavy, blood-stained black armor, his brow furrowed like two drawn battle axes. Beside him sat his brother, Draven, the Glorious Executioner, idly toying with his throwing axe. Seated at the head of the council table was Swain, the strategist of Noxus. His left hand, corrupted by demonic energy and shimmering with a crimson glow, rhythmically tapped the table. On his shoulder, the raven named Beedle seemed to sense its master's emotions, emitting a few uneasy, hoarse cries.
Besides them, the leader of the Black Rose, the Deceiver LeBlanc, and the Sinister Blade, Katarina du Ccao, also made a rare appearance at this meeting.
“Demacia…is destroyed.” Swain’s voice, low and hoarse, broke the silence. “In less than three standard days, the city of light, once hailed as ‘unbreakable,’ was reduced to ruins. Garen Crownguard was captured. The entire Demacian royal family and nobility were uprooted.”
This news came like a thunderbolt from the heavens, leaving all the Noxus executives present in disbelief.
"How is this possible?" Darius slammed his fist on the table, making a loud noise. "Those cowardly Demacians, though disgusting, their 'Fearless Vanguard' are not lambs to the slaughter! Not to mention those damned anti-magic stone colossi!"
“That is the truth.” Swain’s eyes gleamed with wisdom and solemnity. “My raven brought back some ‘images’ from the ruins of Demacia. Our enemy is an army we have never seen before, from ‘outside the world.’ They possess a floating fortress capable of tearing through space, their soldiers wear indestructible armor, and they wield a kind of pure ‘energy’ weapon that we cannot comprehend.”
With a gentle wave of his hand, a blurry yet still shocking image composed of demonic energy appeared in the center of the hall.
The scene depicts the "Throne of Calamity" descending upon the City of Light. It shows Irelia cleaving the "Judgment" in two with a single sword strike. It also shows the Calamity Vanguard slaughtering the Dauntless Vanguard like harvesting wheat.
Every scene sent a chill down the spines of these Noxians who revered power.
"What...what kind of power is this?!" Even the unruly Draven lost his smile, replaced by an unusual solemnity.
“According to Black Rose’s intelligence network,” LeBlanc’s alluring voice rang out, but her tone was unusually serious, “this army calls itself the ‘Empire.’ Their supreme leader is called the ‘God-Emperor.’ And leading the army is a white-haired banshee known as the ‘First Apostle.’ She… possesses near-divine power.”
"Gods?" Darius scoffed dismissively. "In this world, there are no gods! Only absolute power! If they dare come to Noxus, I, Darius, will chop their heads off one by one with my battle axe!"
His words were filled with the unique, wild fighting spirit of Noxus.
However, Swain shook his head.
“Darius, put away your pointless pride.” His voice was like a cold wind. “Our enemy has arrived.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than a piercing alarm, blaring through the entire Immortal Fortress, suddenly sounded!
A Noxian messenger, covered in blood, tumbled and crawled into the council hall.
"Commander... Commander! The 'Iron Wall' fortress at the border has lost contact! Just now, we... we saw... an aerial fortress larger than a mountain appear above the fortress!"
Everyone's face turned deathly pale instantly.
The Throne of Calamity has arrived.
---
The "Iron Wall" fortress on the Noxian border.
This war fortress, constructed from millions of tons of steel and obsidian, is the strongest shield on the eastern border of the Noxian Empire. Tens of thousands of elite Noxian soldiers, along with hundreds of menacing war machines, are stationed here year-round.
However, at this moment, this fortress, which was said to be able to withstand the onslaught of any mortal army, was trembling.
The "Throne of Calamity" floated silently above it, its massive, oppressive form casting a shadow over the entire fortress.
Irelia stood atop the throne, coldly looking down at the Noxian soldiers below, who were now in chaos and resembled ants.
"Gaia, analyze the target."
"Analysis complete. Target: Noxian standard military fortress. 34,000 soldiers, 320 heavy war machines. Energy shield level: 'Low'. Fortification weapons: traditional artillery and crossbows. Overall threat assessment: Negligible."
“Hmm.” Irelia nodded slightly, as if listening to a trivial weather report.
“His Majesty the Divine Emperor’s order is to witness a ‘war.’” Her voice was devoid of any emotion. “Then, let them have a ‘war.’”
"Pass on my instructions."
"'Destroyer Garrosh' led the First and Second Heavy Armored Legions to crush their city gates from the front."
"'Shadow Apostle' Li Yao led the Third and Fourth Assault Corps to clear out their city defense units from the air."
“‘Titan Armor’ Balin is responsible for deploying ‘Cataclysmic Warriors’ to indiscriminately ‘purify’ the interior of the fortress.”
"Yes, First Apostle."
As Irelia gave the order, several massive hatches opened beneath the "Throne of Calamity".
Garrosh, like a demon god from hell, carrying his enormous battle axe enveloped in pale white energy, was the first to leap from a height of ten thousand meters!
Behind him stood thousands of equally tall and imposing heavily armored soldiers, resembling steel golems.
"boom--!"
Garrosh's massive body, like a meteorite, slammed heavily onto the gate of the "Iron Wall" fortress, which was forged from a hundred meters thick alloy!
There was no earth-shattering explosion.
There was only a dull, teeth-grinding thud.
The massive city gate, which was strong enough to withstand the impact of siege beasts and was covered with defensive runes, was blasted open in an instant, along with the city wall hundreds of meters around it, leaving a huge, smooth hole!
Countless Noxian soldiers, before they could even scream, were blasted into a cloud of blood mist by the irresistible impact!
"For the Empire!" Garrosh roared, his voice modified and devoid of humanity. He led his heavily armored legions, trampling over the remains of his comrades and the corpses of his enemies, like an unstoppable black tide, surging into the fortress!
At the same time, thousands of black, ghostly figures shot out from the other side of the "Throne of Calamity".
It was Li Yao and her assault team.
Their speed was too fast for the naked eye to follow. The energy bows in their hands fired precise and deadly white beams of light.
The massive ballistae and alchemical cannons that Noxus was so proud of, deployed on the city walls, were precisely targeted and eliminated by these death beams before they could even fire. The Noxian soldiers who controlled these war machines were also shot dead one by one.
The entire fortress's long-range defense system was completely paralyzed in less than thirty seconds.
Then, true "despair" descended.
At the bottom of the "Throne of Calamity," tens of thousands of grotesque monsters, resembling a mixture of metal and flesh, were dumped down like dumplings being dropped into a pot.
These are the new "Cataclysmic Warriors" created by Demacia's "first-class" men!
These former Demacian soldiers have now become mindless monsters, driven only by the instinct to kill. They roar and, with their mutated, blade-like claws and mouthparts that spew corrosive liquid, frantically attack every living thing in their sight.
They were once Noxus's most hated enemies. Now, however, they have become the sharpest blade in the empire's hands, slaughtering the Noxians.
This scene is filled with endless, cruel irony.
Within minutes, the entire "Iron Wall" fortress was transformed into a living hell.
The Noxian soldiers, though brave and fearless of death, couldn't even leave a mark on the Scourge's vanguard with their steel weapons. Their magic was child's play before the Annihilation Field. And their pride in their ferocity and courage seemed utterly laughable and powerless before the irrational, crazed Scourge warriors.
Resistance is futile.
From the very beginning, the battle was a one-sided massacre.
Irelia hovered silently above the fortress. Like an indifferent spectator, she admired the spectacle below, a tapestry of blood and fire known as "war."
Her task was to "collect" the highest quality "emotional memes" that were full of "power" and "desire to conquer".
And all of this will reach its zenith in the heart of Noxus, at the Immortal Fortress.
"All troops, advance!" she issued the cold command.
"Target: Immortal Fortress."
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