Due to unique historical reasons, the topography of Zaun itself lies somewhere between a rift and a deep well.
A height difference of over a thousand meters makes transit for Zaunites extremely difficult; most of the time, they are forced to ride pressure elevators that are by no means cheap.
In the original plan devised by Faen and the others, the Wind of Change intended to develop slowly, first occupying the Sump. They planned to wait until the Chem-Barons could no longer suppress their fear of the organization, at which point Silco would propose the "Gray" offensive. This would lay a solid foundation for the final occupation of all Zaun, pinning every last Chem-Baron to the pillar of shame as a warning to future generations.
To their surprise, the Chem-Barons were more decisive than Faen had imagined. Before the Wind of Change could even occupy the entirety of the bottom levels, the Barons decided to release the Gray. Since it had come to this, Faen had no intention of wasting time—he could feel that the moment the Gray was released, a massive wave of resentment surfaced not only in the Sump but also in the Middle Levels and Topside.
Most of these emotions originated from the old-timers of Zaun. They might be Silco's men, Vander's former followers, or henchmen of other Chem-Barons. Regardless, they were veterans of this city, and they knew exactly what the Gray represented. As the catalyst for Zaun's decades of suffering, anyone who dared to use the Gray would inevitably suffer the backlash of the public tide.
It was at this moment that Janna's power was perfectly displayed. The craving for hope was a shared authority between Ashlesh and Janna, though the former's dominance crushed the latter. However, resentment and rage did not fall under Ashlesh's domain, but they were exactly within Janna's sphere of influence.
With the contract complete and under Janna's guidance, these emotions within the Spirit Realm were entirely converted into the hope and joy Faen required. Intangible energy manifested within the Material Realm, and the energy within the swirling toxic waters began to grow incessantly.
Storms, water currents, and turbid flows—three distinct powers perfectly demonstrated the "Harmony" advocated by Ionians under Faen's control.
Subsequently, the three different energies began to spiral upward along the inner walls of Zaun as if possessed by life. The troops stationed at the Middle Levels, who had been wearing casual expressions, quickly realized something was wrong.
The earth was trembling.
In a daze, a chem-thug standing on a bridge pointed downward, his eyes filled with disbelief as he shouted, "What is that thing?!"
Amidst the thugs' panic, standing between the storm and the turbid flow, everywhere Faen passed, chemical wastewater and acid boiled in the drainage channels. Streams of water broke free from the constraints of pipes, letting out a fierce roar amidst the sharp, screeching noise of twisting steel at the call of the Lord of Water. Visible to the naked eye, sewage pools were drawn into thousand-meter-high waterspouts by the hurricane, mixing with massive amounts of waste liquid to become part of a frenzied torrent—a literal physical apocalypse.
While the thugs were still trapped in confusion and fear, the members of the Zaun Council in the Upper Levels were already plunged into intense shock and terror. They could not comprehend how such power could be born from the hands of a mere mortal. Yet even so, unless the slaughtering blade fell upon their very necks, they would not relinquish any power in their hands.
In the next moment, before the people could recover from their fear, the chem-thugs realized something was wrong with their own bodies. The Shimmer reagent tubes, which were supposed to be activated manually for high-intensity combat, suddenly took effect without their consent.
Countless bubbles rose in the tubes, and the reagents were injected into the biochemical circuits of these chem-thugs at a visible speed. It started as fear and panic, but quickly, as the drug took effect, intense and paranoid irrationality tore through their sanity, leaving only the combat instinct to face the enemy.
But at the very moment these chem-thugs collectively fell into a chemical rage, before the chem-tanks could even assemble on the bridge, what entered their vision was a liquid giant serpent carrying the wreckage of steel and rock, climbing upward against gravity.
"The tide recedes only to return—the carnival never ends!" Intense joy continuously stimulated Faen's nerves. A spark of unquenchable reason flickered in his eyes, but his face was filled with a terrifying ecstasy.
Turbid waves reached the heavens. Acid-etched bridge piers were the first to disintegrate under the impact of the flood; gears and rivets shattered into fragments in the torrent. The high-speed water flow caused its velocity to break through all physical limits. Heavy steam-armor was hit the moment it made contact as if struck by a sandblaster, instantly turning into a shredded sieve.
The massive amounts of chemical waste liquid within the water did not lose their potency due to the magical shroud. Even with a slight touch, the mechanical arms of augmented soldiers convulsed and burst within the uncontrolled magical flood. Devoid of any resistance, those three-meter-tall artificial bodies were pinned into the rocky vaults of Zaun's streets by the water, bloodstains squeezed at the crest of the waves into a mist of broken red.
Watching Faen's figure ascending, Zeri—who had been dazed—soon heard Faen's command through the connection of the Storm Mark. Subsequently, a thick layer of joy surfaced on her face.
As the Storm Mark throbbed violently, Zeri not only felt Faen's will but also sensed that brutal and grand "Joy" origin from the primordial demon across the distance. It was no longer an illusory message, but felt like an invisible, hooked, scorching hot meat stick stabbing ruthlessly into the depths of her soul, bringing the flesh along into a frenzied physiological resonance.
"Ngh... hah... ah!"
Zeri's delicate body suddenly stiffened. Beneath her originally tight combat suit, her breasts—which had swollen a size due to the excessive secretion of dopamine—were heaving violently. Her rock-hard nipples rubbed incessantly against the soaked fabric, bringing waves of electric, aching numbness. Even more unspeakable was the thick essence Faen had poured into her lower abdomen last night; having not been fully drained, it completely "boiled" under the resonance of Faen's combat aftershocks.
Accompanied by waves of uncontrolled spasms in her pussy, those warm, viscous white juices mixed with her gushing transparent love fluids. Like a burst dam, they forced open her red, swollen labia, sliding greasily down her long thighs, which were illuminated bone-white by the electric arcs.
This extreme shame of "losing control" in front of tens of thousands of worker brothers actually transformed into a peak-level ecstasy under the amplification of the Joy Factor. Zeri's eyes were hazy, her pupils instantly dilating into dazed heart shapes. Every step and leap she took felt like she was actively grinding frantically against that illusory baguette. She was squirting juices while discharging electricity; her petite yet athletic body twitched in waves due to the extreme shivering, and the shouts spilling from her throat were dyed with sweet, wanton moans.
"I'm... I'm going to break... Faen... give me more...!"
She suddenly gritted her teeth, forcibly converting this overwhelming bliss into even more violent electrical energy. Her entire being turned into a streak of green arc-light trailing lewd silver vapor, charging madly toward Faen's direction.
"The Wind of Change has sent a new message! Today, let us take back Zaun!!"
Hearing Zeri's words, the workers—who had been somewhat hesitant about what to do next—were first stunned, then all let out excited cheers. As Zeri turned into a bolt of lightning chasing the turbid flow upward, the workers quickly followed, either riding vehicles, taking elevators, or simply running behind her all the way up.
To be honest, given the height difference of Zaun, not many people could actually run all the way to the top. But the beauty of the Spirit Realm power lay exactly here—as long as the mobilization was sufficient, the moment they produced the corresponding emotions, they would directly become part of Faen's own strength.
Entering the Middle Levels with the force of a breaking bamboo, Faen felt the surges of ecstasy, exhilaration, and joy. An undisguised killing intent surfaced in his eyes. Under the effect of the Storm Mark, Faen could feel Silco's coordinates and directly lock onto the aura of everyone around him.
Ha, Caitlyn is here too? Perfect... I was just worrying about lacking a mouthpiece to communicate with Piltover.
With that thought, Faen opened both hands wide—
"Howl! O raging tides that tear the heavens apart!!"
Accompanied by Faen's roar,
The storm began to swallow the entire city. Waterspout after waterspout pierced through the waste pipes buried in the soil, mixing with the rotting limbs of synthetic beasts and chemical gels within, drawing them into the cyclone. Water washed, storms swept, and a massive amount of chemical synthetics merged in this instant into a pitch-black toxic sludge.
"Damn it! They're coming for us!!"
No longer looking at the screens of the broadcasters, the group cast their gazes directly at the window nearby, looking downward.
Within their sight, Faen didn't even bother to pretend anymore. A pair of eyes stared deathly at the secret tower where they were located; on his smiling face, his eyes were filled with undisguised coldness and killing intent.
"Damn it! This place is exposed!!"
Looking at Faen's gaze, Rannall's eyes were filled with horror. He immediately turned and said, "Leave now! To Piltover! I don't believe this guy would dare follow us there!"
Not just Rannall—witnessing Faen killing his way up at an incredible speed, the other Chem-Barons were also plunged into intense panic. In contrast, looking at his colleagues, Silco's face remained calm.
Because in the very next moment, Jinx kicked open the outer door. Bearing some mottled traces of battle on her body and looking thoroughly bored, she walked in from the outside.
Hearing the door being kicked open, the crowd turned their gazes toward the entrance. Upon seeing it was Jinx, their eyes showed a flash of surprise, but there was no other excessive emotion. They simply looked at Silco and shouted, "Don't just stand there, Silco! Don't forget you are the leader of the Chem-Barons! Do you think those Wind of Change guys will let you off? Don't forget, you were the one who personally ordered the release of the Gray!!"
To this, Silco's face was only filled with calmness and numbness. Without needing a word, Jinx sneered and used her foot to slam the door shut again, locking it tight.
Noticing Jinx's actions, Rannall and the others widened their eyes. "What are you trying to do, Silco?!"
"Who knows. But whatever it is, it will be better than now."
Silco leaned back in his chair, his face full of peace and numbness.
He had personally seen Faen's power and his goals. Janna's existence and origin. And finally, the contract between the two—though Silco didn't understand much about the Spirit Realm, things of that realm were just that miraculous.
As a Zaunite, when Silco truly saw Janna and felt the thoughts coming from the Storm Mark, he understood all the reasons why Faen did what he did.
Regardless, a Faen who mastered power and conviction was a better leader than any Chem-Baron. Even as a ruler, at least he would fill Zaun with joy.
After all, trying to find a group of people more evil than the Chem-Barons, even in a place as full of "talents" as Runeterra, was truly a tall order.
Gazing at Silco, the tallest among the many Chem-Barons—clad in brass armor with his head covered in a glass dome like a Celestial Dragon—said in a cold voice: "Don't waste time here! Kill Silco and then leave! That guy Faen is coming any second!"