First, take down the Sword Demon, then save Runeterra.

Atto walked over to the giant shovel in a few steps, a relaxed smile appearing on his face.

"Finally found her, the demigod who's been hiding herself. In comparison, finding Lissandra was much easier; she always stays in the Frostguard Fortress in the far north."

"Demigod Ornn? A shovel? Hahahaha~" Aatrox once again displayed his signature grotesque laughter.

"Who said this shovel is Ornn himself? You're a guy whose true form is a sword, so even if it really is a shovel, you have no right to laugh at it..."

Aatrox's laughter stopped abruptly.

"This is a demigod who lives in his own world, always immersed in forging, so he hates trouble. In some ways, we are similar." Ato sighed inexplicably.

"Do you remember the first time we met? You were stuck in the ground beneath a broken bridge in Bilgewater. I touched the hilt and entered the world within the Demon Sword."

“Of course I won’t forget that if I hadn’t lost in the battle of wills, I would still be free now.” Aatrox’s tone was clearly tinged with resentment.

"This shovel has a similar effect to the magic sword. Touching the magic sword will take you to the ancient battlefield in your consciousness, while it will send us to Ornn's Hearthland, a hidden space he created."

Atto stepped forward and reached out to touch the front of the giant shovel. Suddenly, his vision blurred, and his figure disappeared from the spot. The next moment, he appeared in a closed space filled with lava.

The surrounding temperature made him frown slightly, but it didn't have much of an impact. After all, due to the modifications the Darkin Blade had made to his body, even in the cold Freljord, clothing served more as decoration.

This is a cave that is hundreds of meters high. There are only a few scattered stones on the ground to step on, and the rest is covered by lava.

But this did not hinder Atto. He nimbly leaped forward among the rubble and soon passed through the scorching lava zone, arriving at a gate large enough for the giant to pass through.

The door was not closed. Behind the door was a room filled with various huge instruments and equipment. A similarly huge figure was standing with his back to Atto, repeatedly striking the iron forging table with a hammer, making a "clang clang clang" sound.

The robust figure was fifty meters tall, with magma flowing across its body surface, and a pair of curved ram horns on its head.

As if sensing the visitor, he stopped what he was doing and turned around. His bright red beard covered his face, with only his yellow eyes showing.

With each breath he took, scorching hot air escaped, further raising the surrounding temperature.

Ato couldn't hide his excitement, and the corners of his mouth involuntarily turned up.

Aside from Aatrox, who had no physical form, this was the first time he had seen a truly powerful being in Runeterra, the first time he had seen a being that even Aatrox could not guarantee he could defeat.

Ornn, the demigod—the elder brother of the three demigods of Freljord.

He brought in seawater to cool the Hearthland, causing a snowstorm that lasted for a hundred years in Freljord. He didn't even need the faith of mortals to maintain his godhood.

"A dangerous demonic sword, burdened with a heavy past." Ornn saw through Aatrox's true nature with just a glance, but he did not take any drastic action.

"But you, mortal, I cannot foresee your destiny. You do not belong to this world, you are a visitor from another realm?"

"Wow... such sharp eyesight? Is this what a demigod is?" Ato exclaimed softly.

"How did you get in? There haven't been any visitors here for years." Orn put away his hammer and stepped forward to examine the two "little bugs," not caring about their background.

"Don't throw shovels around carelessly, or someone will track you down."

Upon hearing "not belonging to this world," Ato suddenly recalled a memorable scene from a novel he had read in his previous life, and began to imitate the character's lines.

“As expected.” Orn sighed. “Throwing away that shovel was a mistake. You can go now, I have things to do.”

After saying that, Orn didn't wait for Ator's response and walked to the forging table, swinging the forging hammer again.

“I knew it.” Ator shrugged. Orn didn’t like being commissioned to forge things.

His brother, another demigod, Volibear, the embodiment of power, asked him to forge equipment for his followers, but he refused.

This led to a three-day, three-night battle between the two demigods, which affected the nearby Lu family members, resulting in their complete annihilation.

Later, the three Ice Sisters asked Ornn to dig out the Howling Abyss, a process that was extremely difficult.

Ator didn't leave; if he could obtain the scabbard forged by Orn, his journey would be much less troublesome.

He walked to a spot where he could clearly see the forging process, and silently watched Ornn being forged.

Ornn seemed to be absorbed in forging as well, and didn't say anything to urge him on, focusing entirely on the work in front of him.

The sound of Ornn's forging hammer striking the iron block was powerful and rhythmic; with each strike, a trace of demigod power was infused into the iron block.

As time went by, the once lifeless iron block seemed to be infused with life, and Ator even felt the iron block cheering.

With the final hammer blow, the iron block was shaped into a regular iron ingot, from which a gentle light shone.

Even though Ator didn't understand forging, he knew that the iron ingot had become perfect under Orn's forging.

“This is meteorite iron.” Orn picked up the iron ingot with his huge iron clamps, a look of satisfaction appearing in his eyes.

“It came from the stars. I found that it was rich in iron, so I brought it back, removed the impurities, and the work I forged with it may become the most satisfying work I have made in nearly a thousand years.”

“This is it.” Ato rubbed his hands excitedly. “Demigod Ornn, the greatest blacksmith in Freljord, could you please forge a scabbard for me?”

"Don't rush to refuse. If there is only one blacksmith in the world who can forge a scabbard for this sword, it can only be you."

Ato didn't give Ornn a chance to speak, drawing the Darkin Demon Sword from behind him and controlling him to release his aura. Instantly, a blood-filled and extremely powerful force was released.

“This power…” Orn was about to refuse when his attention was drawn to the power revealed by the demon sword. He narrowed his eyes, as if recalling something. “I have felt a similar power before.”

"How many years ago was that? Maybe five thousand or six thousand years ago, a supreme being descended upon this world, in a place far to the south."

“I was far away in Freljord and did not go to investigate. That being did not remain there for long before disappearing. I can sense the power within this demonic sword; it comes from that being.”

Ator certainly knew what Orn was describing.

Aurelion Sol was tricked into coming to Runeterra by the ancestors of Queen Setaka. He was given the crown, and his energy was extracted and poured into the Sun Disc, which then allowed mortals to ascend.

This is the true origin of the Ascension Ritual and the Ascended, and the reason why a higher level of power must be needed to destroy Aatrox.