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

Two warships, one after the other, sailed into the island of Philol in Ionia.

The other two ships did not come to the vicinity; their target was the continent of Ionia, specifically the western province of Navori.

The moment the ship lowered its gangway, Amistan's orders arrived.

"Soldiers! Charge!"

Amistan roared with all his might, followed by the roar of thousands of soldiers who charged down the gangway, brandishing their weapons.

There wasn't a single Ionian in sight around the coastline, but their tools lay scattered in the fields not far away.

They had already hidden themselves after seeing the warships approaching.

Atto stood among the soldiers, nodded to Riven beside him, and then vanished without attracting anyone's attention.

Riven stared in the direction where Ator had disappeared, took a deep breath, and forcibly shifted her attention to the war in front of her.

She led her newly assigned squad and charged into the land of Ionia.

……

After leaving the army, Ator went into the shadows, removed his Noxian armor, and placed it in his scabbard.

He changed back into the black robe he had always worn and removed the disguise from his face.

He wouldn't look out of place in the crowd in Ionia now.

"First, go to Wuji Village in Baru'e Province to find Master Dolan."

Ato remembered that when Ornn gave him the divine scabbard, he told him to give Dolan a message if he ever saw him again.

We must act quickly, or it will be too late. Master Dolan died in Singed's alchemical flames.

"To get to Baru'e Province, we need to find a boat..."

Ator heard shouts of battle coming from afar; it seemed that Noxus and Ionia had already clashed.

Philol Island is not large, and Atto reached the other side of the island in less than half a day.

He saw a village on the distant beach.

The village was small, and dozens of figures were busily stuffing things onto the large boat.

"The Vastaya..."

Relevant information flashed through Ator's mind: they were a special species living in Ionia, generally humanoid but with obvious animal characteristics.

Ato thought for a moment, then quickly approached them.

As they got closer, Atto noticed that these Vastaya looked a lot like monkeys.

The Siji Ape Tribe!

Atto's arrival startled them for a moment, but they relaxed their guard slightly after seeing his appearance.

"Which sect are you a disciple of?" an older monkey stepped forward and asked, looking at the greatsword on Atuo's back.

"I come from Wuji Village. Where are you going? There are soldiers from who-knows-where attacking this island in the distance. We must hurry back to the sect to report to our master!" Ato fabricated a lie with a straight face.

"The Wuji Sect..." The old monkey was relieved.

"We are also heading to Baru'o Province to seek refuge with the Wuji Cult. Master, please come with us! Ionia is facing an external enemy, something that has never happened in tens of thousands of years! This is a very serious matter!"

"Then I'll have to trouble you." Atuo didn't stand on ceremony and, led by the old monkey, boarded their large ship.

When the army's voices reached the nearby sea, the remaining macaques were startled and hurriedly ran onto the ship, leaving behind some of their luggage.

"Hurry up!" the old monkey commanded them to raise the sail, and several young monkeys rowed with all their might.

Only when Philor Island disappeared from sight did the Simi ape tribe on the ship breathe a sigh of relief, believing that once they reached the province of Baru'e, they would be safe.

"Master, what is your name?" the old monkey asked respectfully as he approached Atuo.

"I'm still far from being a master. The name my master gave me is... Ji." Ato followed the format of Ionian names and also made up one for himself.

"So it's Master Ji." The old monkey nodded. "Master Ji, tell me, how dare those external enemies? The balance of Ionia for ten thousand years is about to be broken!"

“They don’t care about any sense of balance,” Atto said indignantly. “Despicable outsiders!”

The province of Baru is not far from the island of Filol. As the sun rose the next day, they stopped at the mouth of the Ipo River and landed on this land.

"I'm going to report to my master about the foreign invasion. I'll take my leave now!" Atuo clasped his hands in a fist salute to the old monkey, left the port town, and ran towards the mountain first.

"Master Ji is truly skilled... Kong, if you have the chance, why don't you also become a disciple of the Wuji Sect?"

"Grandpa, what is the Wuji Sect?" asked the little monkey named Kong curiously.

The terrain of Baluo is high in the middle and low around the edges, and the Wuji sect was established on the highest mountain in the middle.

Since its founding, Wuji Sword Dao has considered itself aloof and sage-like, living in seclusion from the world, and few outsiders have witnessed their swordsmanship.

Atto continued uphill, and along the way he saw many apprentices wearing blue training clothes, carrying firewood, going up and down the mountain path, seemingly exercising their physical strength.

Everything was as usual, as if the Noxian invaders didn't exist.

"How do I find Master Dolan...?"

"Perhaps we should start with the Wuji Sect. In any case, let's get there first."

"There's no tension here at all, like a war is imminent... Ha, they need someone to give them a good whack on the head."

When he saw the Wuji Sect's mountain gate in the distance, he was stopped by a Wuji swordsman wearing a silver Taoist robe and sporting a goatee.

"This is a sacred area of ​​our sect. Non-disciples, please leave immediately."

The long sword in his hand was not drawn; it was simply held horizontally in front of Ato, preventing him from passing.

Beside the swordsman was a strangely shaped helmet with seven glowing eyes on it.

Atuo certainly knew who he was, but he never expected to run into Master Yi so easily.

He raised his hands to indicate that he had no intention of fighting.

"Please tell Master Dolan that his former master asked me to pass on a message to him."

The swordsman squinted and asked warily, "How do you know Master Dolan is currently within the sect? Also, Master Dolan is nearly ninety years old; how could his master still be alive?"

“It is true.” Ato took two steps back. “Please inform him, Master. He will definitely come to see me. I will not enter the sect; I will wait here.”

Yi frowned, but still turned around and went into the mountain gate. He called another fellow disciple out to watch over Atuo, and went to the back to invite Master Dolan.

At this moment, Master Dolan was having tea and discussing philosophy with Yi's teacher.

“Master Dolan, Master.” Yi’s voice came from outside the door.

"What's wrong, Yi? Why aren't you on your duty guarding the mountain gate? What are you doing here?"

The master wasn't trying to give Yi a warning; he was very satisfied with his most outstanding disciple.

Yi Wei bowed and entered the pavilion where they were discussing the Dao.

“Master Dolan, a swordsman from an unknown sect has arrived outside the mountain gate. He says your master has something to tell you.”

"what?"

Dolan stood up abruptly. He was thin and slightly hunched over, but still quite strong and healthy.

"My master...my master...hahaha! He acknowledges me as his disciple!"