Eventually, the strip returned to the original saga format. Many "holes" began to appear in the plot as this point, direct contradictions of what had gone before, and even for a work of fiction, some of the stories bordered on farcical. Vek had to undergo a psychological ordeal in the mystical Realms of Death to ensure his dedication to the Cold Blue Flame of Noxian justice. He was purged of his human emotions, became a Servitor once more, and returned with a burning hatred of humanity, charged with its execution, despite the fact that the Dread Council had lifted the death sentence.