Chapter 154: Xerath, the Slave of Shurima
Although the Shurima Ascendant Legion, led by Setaka, Aatrox and others, successfully contained the void and melted and sealed the rift opened by the Icathian mage.

But they all knew that the disaster had not disappeared!
The Ascended Legion suffered heavy losses in this war, including the death of the War Queen Setaka, and the Ascended Legion that survived also changed their temperaments. They witnessed the horror with their own eyes, and then lost their souls and often burst into nameless anger.

Logically speaking, they are all strong warriors selected from generations of Shurima who have witnessed countless deaths, but their current behavior seems to be affected by the void.

Nasus began to study the matter in the great library he founded, trying to understand the truth of the Void and find a way to restore these brethren of his to their original state.

If there is anything to be thankful for, it is that although these Ascended ones have undergone drastic changes in their temperament, they are still noble Shurima warriors at heart.

Under the orders of the Shurima Emperor, they still obeyed the call of Shurima and fought for the empire.

Those rebellions that had become weakened by the drastic changes in Shurima were also pacified by the Ascended Legions.

Even though Shurima is weakened, it is still the most powerful empire in the world!
However, Nasus also discovered that after fighting the Void, even the originally peaceful Ascendants became more bloodthirsty during battle.

Even more tyrannical than his brother Renekton, as if all the humanity in them had been taken away by the Void.

Perhaps those Ascendants also realized this, but unfortunately they were unable to change the influence of the Void, so they placed their hopes on Nasus, the most knowledgeable Ascendant.

After Setaka's death, Nasus became the most respected person among the Ascended. Although his martial arts were not outstanding among the Ascended, his brother Renekton made up for it, and his knowledge and achievements were unanimously recognized by the Ascended.

Just like that, hundreds of years passed, and under the leadership of the Ascended Ones, Shurima was still the most powerful empire!
The trauma of that battle seemed to have healed over time. Perhaps if things continued like this, the Ascended ones would slowly recover, and Nasus would be able to find a way to help them. He could even find out the truth about the Void. The Ascended ones of the Shurima Empire could then counterattack underground and destroy the Void.

But now, no one could have predicted what was about to happen. The stars in the sky did not tell Nasus the exact answer.

The sky is of useless and dying stars.

……

Slavery has been practiced in Shurima for thousands of years, and nothing can change that.

Its life is even longer and stronger than that of powerful ascenders.

Perhaps in the Shurima Empire, which is full of talented people, some people have long seen the flaws and disadvantages of the slave system, but who would care about the slaves' thoughts?

Except for the slaves themselves.

After the fall of the Kingdom of Icathia, the Shurima Empire did not learn a lesson. Perhaps this was the limitation of the times. They even went further and conscripted slaves from other countries.

The fate of those small countries destroyed by Shurima was even more tragic. No matter what their original status in the kingdom was, they all became slaves of Shurima.

The little boy who was later called "Zeras" was born into such a slave family.

His parents were scholars captured by the Shurima Empire, but no one cared about their knowledge, and their lives were filled with endless slavery and obedience.

Unfortunately, the fact that Xerath was born into such a family meant that he was also a slave of the Shurima Empire; fortunately, he had parents who loved him, and his parents were scholars before they became slaves.

His mother taught him letters and numbers, while his father told him historical legends, hoping that this knowledge would buy him a better life.

In the Shurima Empire, these cheap slaves only needed to be plundered from other countries, and their value was not even as good as the animals driving the carts. It is conceivable what kind of scenes Zerath, as a slave, had seen since he was a child. It was under such circumstances that the boy vowed that he would never become a victim of hard labor and whipping like other slaves.

……

Looking at the picture, even as a child, Xerath had set such an ambition after seeing the living conditions of the slaves around him.

The audience in front of the screen can all empathize with the child's inner feelings.

"It turns out that Xerath was originally a slave of Shurima."

At this moment, no one could imagine that the glowing dark energy body a thousand years later was actually transformed by this little boy with a determined face.

During the commentary program, the two commentators felt as if they were suddenly enlightened.

"No wonder Xerath appears to hate the Shurima Empire so much!"

It would be difficult for a slave enslaved by Shurima to feel any gratitude towards this empire. Even his destruction of Shurima was considered excusable by everyone.

"But what happened between him and Azir?"

How did a slave possess the power to destroy a vast empire?
You know, although Shurima at this time is not as powerful as it was before the Icathia incident, it is still invincible in the world. The Ascended Ones are stationed in all corners of the empire and are still the most powerful force in Shurima!

The audience blinked and continued to stare at the screen.

……

As a little boy, it was difficult for Xerath to escape his fate at this time.

His family all served Shurima as slaves. One day, the boy's father lost his leg while digging a foundation for a monument to the emperor's favorite horse.

However, when this monument built for the emperor's pet was completed, Zeratul's father left forever.

No one cared about the life or death of a slave, and his father was left to die at the scene of the accident.

This is the cold slavery system of the Shurima Empire, and the little boy can do nothing about it.

Of course he was angry, but now Xerath could not change anything and could only keep it all in his heart.

His mother was afraid that he would suffer the same fate, so she begged a famous tomb architect to take him in as an apprentice.

Although the architect was reluctant at first, he soon noticed the boy's excellent observation of details and his understanding of mathematics and language, so he agreed.

However, the boy never saw his mother again after that.

(End of this chapter)