Chapter 1 The Beginning - Valley of the Gods, West Sea.
A large number of warships have surrounded the area, the World Government flag fluttering in the wind, its black and blue cross symbol glaringly bright in the sunlight.
On the island, two towering mountains stand, their steep cliffs as sharp as if carved by a knife.
The sky is dark, overcast, as if a torrential downpour is imminent. Suddenly, a flash of light streaks across the gloom.
Space distorts, and an eerie light bursts forth.
Within the light, a massive ship slowly emerges, its hull crafted entirely of black metal, smooth as a mirror yet devoid of any reflection, exuding mystery and solemnity.
Boom!
The light curtain in the sky vanishes abruptly, and with a heavy thud, the mysterious black ship runs aground in the canyon.
Upon closer inspection, gear-like markings are etched on the hull, indicating the ship's ownership.
"Cough cough... This time the commotion is quite significant..."
Accompanied by a cough, a figure emerged from the cabin, the surrounding dust unable to conceal his pale blue eyes.
His short, pink hair gave him a distinctive yet energetic look, while a pair of glasses added a touch of scholarly refinement.
"However, this impact experiment was a success. This level of impact can no longer cause any significant damage. Now it's time to try something else."
A slight smile played on his lips as he patted his chest with satisfaction. With a flash of blue light, his exoskeleton-like equipment seemed to enter a new mode.
But before he could begin the next round of experiments, he realized a new problem: the environment here was completely different from where he had previously docked the ship.
"Again?"
It seemed this wasn't the first time he'd experienced something like this. The man didn't appear flustered. He glanced at the monitor on his wrist, confirming he wasn't dreaming, and began checking the ship's equipment.
"Compass damaged, power supply partially damaged, defense system operating normally, no supplies lost... Not bad, not as bad as I thought.
But where is this place? Bilgewater doesn't have this... Ionia?"
The man was puzzled about where he had been transported and was trying to repair the damaged compass when a shout came from afar.
"Hey buddy, are you trying to leave by ship? Give up, that's impossible. The navy has already surrounded God Valley, there's no way a ship can leave here. Heh heh!"
The cliff face beside him was steep, but it had several natural rock platforms. At this moment, on one of the lower platforms, a slightly exaggeratedly large face was revealed.
The big-faced man was waving at them from the edge of the cliff, with someone holding him back to prevent him from falling directly off.
As the words "God Valley" entered his mind, the man realized something was wrong, such as the language spoken here not being his usual language.
However, he was fluent in multiple languages, so this wasn't a problem.
The man's name was Sidiri Oran, and unsurprisingly, he was an orphan.
Having finally passed his postgraduate entrance exam, he was caught in a restart event on the eve of graduation.
His soul arrived in the world of League of Legends—Piltvorov on the continent of Valoran, a city renowned for its commerce and technology.
This time, Oran also received the double blessing of the Orphan buff.
On this magical continent, many mysteries lie hidden. One night, Oran discovered his talent—Dreams.
This was also why Oran first determined whether he was in a dream world.
Every night, he would enter a dream, and unlike ordinary people, Oran's dreams seemed to connect to incredibly fantastical places, even transcending the limitations of time and space in some areas.
Through countless nights, his knowledge grew rapidly, and he gradually rose to prominence in Piltover, becoming a rising star whose reputation rivaled Heimerdinger's.
Heimerdinger held a prominent academic position in Piltover, and all his knowledge was genuine, making him the best candidate for a newcomer.
Previously, Oran had personally led a ship to Bilgewater to acquire a batch of special materials and planned to negotiate a new business deal. Unexpectedly, after an experiment during his leisure time, Oran seemed to have encountered that mysterious event again.
Even his body underwent some changes during this process, becoming much younger, returning to the appearance of a sixteen or seventeen-year-old.
Due to his dream abilities, Oran's memory was quite outstanding. Even after more than twenty years had passed since arriving in Valoran, he still remembered some things from before, including the term "Valley of Gods."
However, this was limited to major events, such as the final outcome of a certain war.
He couldn't recall the specific details.
There were two people questioning Oran: the strange-looking, big-faced man with the afro, and a little girl who both looked dirty, with a target drawn on her clothes.
"Don't just stand there, buddy. My goal is to survive. You don't want to wait here to die, do you? If so, I won't waste my time here, hee-ha!"
After confirming Oran had noticed him, the big-faced man stood up and made a strange gesture, continuing to wait for Oran's answer.
"First, let's confirm something: what are your names?"
"My name is Ginny, and this is my older brother, Ivankov. Is this something important? And buddy, shouldn't you tell me your name? Or is your name just 'Little Brother'?"
Ginny asked, stuffing food into her mouth. The dark, unappetizing food looked unappetizing, but she ate it with relish.
"Just call me Oran. Let's talk downstairs. Your goal is to survive, so you need a plan, right?"
The slightly familiar name and the address of God Valley allowed Oran to determine the time and specific events, and he was completely certain of where he was.
Compared to the primordial land of Valoran he had previously imagined, this place was terrible.
Ivankov hadn't yet become the Queen of the Emporium, but his face was already quite striking. According to Oran's memory, Ivankov must have escaped successfully, otherwise there wouldn't have been a Queen of the Emporium.
However, he didn't intend to follow him directly. It's better to rely on yourself than others; only he himself is truly reliable. His presence here was already a variable, and entrusting his future to others was unwise.
Oran remembered some of the situation in God Valley. Whether it was great pirates like Rocks or Roger, or marines like Garp, or even Satan, one of the Five Elders—almost all the future notable figures could be found here.
But they all have one thing in common: nobody cares about the ordinary people on the island, and if they don't want to be erased from the world by the World Government, they have to rely on themselves.
Oran needed Ivankov and his companions to provide details about the island so he could devise a strategy. Given enough time, the supplies on his ship would suffice.
Ivankov's reason for approaching them was simple: he knew he and Ginny alone couldn't escape, so they needed help to form an escape team.
Whether slaves or former residents of God Valley, they were all prey for the Celestial Dragons, sharing a common ground.
While searching for companions, they were drawn by the sounds emanating from the island. When Ivankov and Ginny arrived, they saw the black ship that had already completed its journey.
Using trees and vines, Ivankov and Ginny slid down the gentler slope to the base of Oran's ship.
The ship's black hull was unlike any other on the high seas, its metallic sheen a rare sight.
Before they could think further, Oran threw down a rope ladder. They exchanged a glance, and the two climbed onto the deck one after the other.
The formal meeting, however, was far from friendly. The moment their feet touched the deck, the seemingly impenetrable deck flipped open, revealing two dark cannon barrels that extended and aimed at them.
"Don't be nervous, it's just my ship's automatic defense system. Come on aboard. Unless you make any aggressive moves, they won't attack you," Oran said, gesturing for the bewildered Ivankov and Ginny to relax.
The waters of Valoran were far from peaceful, and Oran's ship was naturally equipped with considerable heavy weaponry. This was why he dared to let outsiders board his ship; in a sense, it was also a way of reminding strangers not to act recklessly.
The panic in Ivankov's eyes vanished quickly, replaced by a sense of delight. Encountering someone with a large arsenal of weapons in this situation was certainly not a bad thing.
"Don't look at them yet. If needed, I'll naturally make them serve their purpose. Now, let's talk about the intelligence you possess, shall we?"
Oran could see what Ivankov was thinking. He didn't care about a few weapons; as long as they were effective, that was enough.
In this situation, sharing some supplies for the ultimate goal was not a problem.
"Let me explain. You probably don't know this, but basically, the Celestial Dragons organize this kind of event every so often. Disobedient slaves, criminals, and natives of the chosen host country become their prey. During the three-week hunt, the entire island's inhabitants are slaughtered, and the island becomes the World Government's new territory."
Ginny recounted her intelligence. The Celestial Dragons need time to select a location and prepare for the event, and the journey to their destination also takes time. It was during this time that Ginny and Ivankov saw an opportunity.
"The Celestial Dragons give prizes to the winners of the event, and those prizes are the key to our escape."
"Prizes?"
While listening to Ginny's plan, Oran also checked the ship's equipment. In this situation, Oran needed to confirm what items on board could be used to prevent any accidents.
"That's right, I'm an expert in theft and eavesdropping. The two prizes are a top-tier Devil Fruit that transforms you into a mythical blue dragon, and a Paw-Paw Fruit that can send you or someone else flying to a distant island. If we get these two fruits, we can escape using their abilities. With a bit of luck, we might even be able to get dozens more people out." Ginny waved her hand towards the sky as if to boost her confidence.
"Hey, Bro, this is our plan. Can you dismantle the cannons on your ship? The prizes are in the very center of the island; we need to prepare properly. We need more manpower…"
Ivankov looked around the Oran ship. Everything was new to him, from the unusual materials to the equipment—things he'd never seen before.
Ginny's movements weren't as obvious, but her eyes held an undisguised curiosity.
"Those weapons aren't suitable for mobile use. Come with me; I do have some things here that can be used, and I'd like to share my thoughts with you. Just a heads-up, don't touch anything carelessly, or you might get hurt."
Oran led the two towards the cabin, and they followed him cautiously, just as he had said.
The automatic defense cannons had been somewhat effective; even though they were curious about the things on the ship, Ivankov and the others didn't touch anything, keeping their questions to themselves for the time being.
Due to damage to part of the power supply system, the cabin was somewhat dim, and the unknown environment made Ginny a little nervous, but she continued, "I've already spread the word, hoping that the prize will attract others. Anyway, that's all for now. Do you have anything to add?"
Ginny and Ivankov's plan didn't have many details yet; after all, it was absolutely impossible for the two of them to succeed alone, so they had only created a rough framework.
"First, we can confirm that ordinary ships can't leave here, right?"
"Yes, warships have surrounded this place. I don't know how strong those people are; even flying out might be difficult… Your ship looks powerful, but it can't withstand that kind of firepower."
Ivankov's face was grim. Their plan had only found a glimmer of hope in a desperate situation, without fundamentally changing the course of events.
"So, what do you think of this?"
After passing through a corridor, Oran returned to his workshop, took out a pair of spherical objects from a box on his desk, and fixed them to the table.
The surface of the spheres wasn't a single metallic color, but was covered with intricate gold decorations. These decorations presented a precise mechanical texture, as if telling some unknown story.
As Oran pressed a switch, some cracks appeared on the spheres, and through the cracks, a faint blue light could be seen at the center.
Under the puzzled gazes of Ivankov and Ginny, Oran casually picked up a screwdriver from the table and placed it on one end of one of the spheres.
The next moment, with the sound of gears turning, brilliant blue light rippled and coalesced. The screwdriver was gradually assimilated by the light, and the gears on the outer side of the other sphere began to rotate, its ports lighting up.
As specks of blue light re-coalesced, the screwdriver reappeared intact on the opposite side of the other sphere.
(End of Chapter)