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

Only after all the disciples had left the temple did Ku Shuo lead Jie and An Bo toward the Temple of Balance.

Looking at the empty temple, Jie felt an indescribable bitterness in his heart.

He grew up here, cultivated himself here, and spent half of his life here.

But he had no regrets. He was willing to be a demon in order to repel the invaders and save the people of Ionia.

Arriving at the foot of the mountain where the temple was located, Amber was astonished by how steep the mountain was.

"No wonder you said not everyone can go up there, but the people I brought happen to be capable!"

Five of the more agile fraternity members nimbly leaped and landed on a boulder.

However, they hadn't climbed far when they fell down amidst screams, but because they weren't high enough, none of them were injured.

"Young people shouldn't be too young; they won't succeed if they're too impetuous."

Ku Shuo stepped forward, put his hands behind his back, and lightly touched the ground with one foot. As he walked along the mountainside, there was always a stone to step on each time.

"How much you can comprehend depends on your abilities." Jie coldly glanced at Anbo, then followed behind Kushuo, his speed not much slower than his.

The followers that Jie brought also had the ability to climb this mountain.

"Hmph, trying to stop me with this? No way! All of you, get on top! Climb slowly this time, and watch where you can get a foothold."

Jie and Ku first arrived at the flat area on the mountaintop, where two disciples of the Balance Temple were guarding the entrance.

Just as Ku was about to enter the secret chamber where the Shadow Tears were stored, he found that Jie was still standing in the same spot.

"What's wrong, Jie? Didn't you want to know why the Shadow Tears had to be sealed away?"

“Watch, Kushuo, this is the last thing I can do for the sect.”

Click!

The mechanism on the armor plate slid, and a pair of sharp blades extended from it.

"Jie, what are you going to do?" Ku said, his body tense. He no longer had the confidence to defeat his former disciple.

Just then, a hand landed on the mountaintop.

"Finally up! This is no challenge at all..."

Swish!

Amber's right hand was cut off during the robbery!

"how dare you!"

By the time Amber realized what had happened, it was too late. His body and right hand separated, and he fell off the mountain.

"Jie! How dare you betray me!" Amber's only remaining left hand barely gripped a protruding rock.

He turned and shouted towards the front yard, "Jie is a traitor! Kill his men!"

However, the mountain where the temple was located was too far from the front courtyard, and the sound could not travel there at all.

Jie calmly drew a shuriken from his waist and accurately struck Amber's left hand.

"Ah! Jie! I won't let you get away with this..."

Amber's voice faded into the distance; having fallen from such a high mountain, he had no chance of survival.

Jie's movements did not stop; several more shurikens were fired, slicing through the bodies of Amber's men.

They were already struggling to climb, and being hit by the shuriken made it even harder for them to maintain their balance, and they all eventually fell down the mountain.

"Jie, have you changed your mind?"

Ku Shuo was pleasantly surprised to see this, but Jie immediately held up his blood-stained blade in front of him.

"Enough talk, take me to the Shadow Tear!"

Helpless, Ku Shuo could only enter the dark room with Jie.

The remaining disciples of the Balance Sect wanted to follow, but were stopped by the followers brought by Jie.

The two arrived at the altar, where the transparent box containing the Shadow Tears was placed.

"Jie, listen to me, the Shadow Tears must be sealed because..."

Before he could finish speaking, Jie's sharp blade was already at Ku Shuo's neck.

"No need to say anything, I don't want to know. I must take the Shadow Tear today, or the city will fall tomorrow morning."

"No matter what the cost of using Shadow Tears is, I will bear it, and those who follow me are also willing to bear it."

"I'll tell you how to maintain equilibrium. As long as you die, the equilibrium will remain the same!"

Shortly afterward, the remaining disciples of the Balance Sect heard a scream coming from the dimly lit room.

"Master Kushuo!" They were extremely anxious, but there was nothing they could do.

Jie walked out of the room, holding a transparent box containing a black liquid.

"Bitter words are dead! He was weak, but I will give you strength!"

Zed's followers removed their masks, staring fervently at the box of black liquid, their eyes filled with longing.

"From this day forward, I officially establish Shadowstream, and I am the Lord of Shadowstream!"

He then looked at the remaining Equilibrium disciples: "Do you want to join Shadow Stream? Don't worry, it's okay if you don't join. Go find Shen and the others, I won't stop you."

The two disciples exchanged a glance, hesitated briefly, and then nodded together.

“Very well, now, I will grant you forbidden power.”

A few drops of black liquid flew out of the box and floated in front of everyone.

"Whether you swallow it or tattoo it on your body, you can learn the Shadow Technique. You'll have to experience the differences for yourselves."

As he spoke, Jie drew out a drop of black water and swallowed it himself.

He had just killed the leader of the Navori Brotherhood, but there were still several hundred members in the sect's front yard and thousands more outside the city of Saenze. If not handled properly, it could have serious consequences.

Zed first taught a few people the Shadow Arts, not only to enhance his own forces, but also to let the Brotherhood discover the power of the Shadow Tears.

Then, exploit their thirst for power to secretly control them.

He put the box in his arms, sat down to meditate, and began to comprehend the new power.

Others followed suit, wearing the robes or tattoos, and began their own cultivation.

It wasn't until noon that Jie was the first to regain consciousness. He glanced at the few people still cultivating in front of him, then turned and went back into his room.

“I’ll take half, you keep the rest. The Brotherhood will be in your hands, and you will command them to fight against the invaders.”

Jie took out a specially made container, poured out half of the black water from the box, and then put the box back on the altar.

"Your method can really give me control of the Navori Brotherhood?"

That aged voice belonged to none other than Ku Shuo, whom outsiders thought was already dead!

"I have my own shadow streams to take care of, how you operate them is your business. Time is of the essence, I need to hurry back and train a shadow legion, be careful not to get discovered."

When he came out again, the others who had obtained the Shadow Tear had all woken up, and none of them asked what Zed had done in the room.

Jie pressed the hidden mechanism, and the thick stone door of the temple slowly closed.

"let's go."

With the added benefit of the Shadow Tear, the journey down the mountain became much easier, and they soon arrived at the bottom.

Robber found Amber, who was badly injured, and his men.

"You asked for it."

He cut off Amber's bloody head and carried it toward the cult's front yard.

When the Brotherhood members saw Zed appear, carrying their leader's head, they immediately became agitated.

Even though the Brotherhood has a numerical advantage, it's not easy for them to escape from their home turf.

“You are still members of the Brotherhood.”

Jie snapped his fingers, and the people behind him who had acquired the Shadow Technique made a casting gesture. The next moment, an identical clone appeared around them.

The Brotherhood members were completely stunned.

“But your leader is no longer Amber, nor is it me, but someone else.”

“If you follow his orders, you will all have the opportunity to acquire this power.”

After saying that, Jie led the Shadow Stream disciples and hurriedly went down the mountain.