Chapter 281: Shattering the Withered Foundations

Chapter 281: Shattering the Withered Foundations

October 8, 2024

"The Starlight Continent is the lowest limit of the Star Alliance. The higher this limit, the better the Star Alliance can develop."

After quickly reviewing the report from the Starlight Empire, Su Nan picked up the report from the Starlight Academy.

The first section was about the magic ships.

The development of magic ships was an order Su Nan had given himself, not only to explore the Rainbow Sea but also to prepare for potential naval battles when the Star Alliance ventures into other planes. It was better to be prepared.

"The three-tier classification system is sufficient for the Starlight Continent."

Su Nan nodded in satisfaction.

The Starlight Academy was still working on the third-tier magic ships. Truly manufacturing and putting them into practical use would take a considerable amount of time.

While the synthesis cube could produce a third-tier magic Ship, Su Nan didn't plan to do so. The synthesis cost was far higher than manual production.

For building a naval force, manual production was clearly the better option.

He couldn't always do everything himself. Let the academy handle its own research.

After finishing the Starlight Academy's report, only the Star Alliance's remained.

It was mainly about the progress of developing the Rainbow Sea.

However, after reading the content, Su Nan's expression turned peculiar.

"Divine Revelation?"

Su Nan frowned in thought.

The plane barrier hadn't been restored, so it was impossible for an external deity to reach into the Starlight Continent.

The Spider Goddess was an exception, infiltrating the continent through the Dark Forest's Shadowy Magic Tree.

Could there be another 'Shadowy Magic Tree' in the Rainbow Sea?

It was possible, but unlikely.

Su Nan believed the so-called Divine Revelation was more likely a disguise by some creature, using it to manipulate the Sirens for some purpose.

"Truly intriguing."

Su Nan's eyes glittered.

Falling Star City was within the Rainbow Sea, and Divine Revelation had appeared in Rainbow City. It was hard not to connect the two.

Regardless of whether they were connected or if it was a real deity, he couldn't allow anyone to meddle in his territory.

The truth would be revealed once he captured and interrogated the Sirens' leader.

With his decision made, Su Nan wrote his approval on the report and dispatched it to the Rainbow Bay.

While Su Nan's orders were en route to the Rainbow Bay, the war between the Star Alliance and the oceanic races had already erupted.

On the day the magic ships and octopus puppets arrived at Rainbow Bay, Xie Man and others led reinforcements to the artificial islands.

Since the three artificial islands were far apart, they decided to first occupy the one with the fastest construction progress, named Coral Island.

It was named after the colorful coral reefs located about four to five kilometers away, a rare material used to make potions. This was the primary reason the Star Alliance chose the location, to facilitate the collection of colorful corals.

In the Star Alliance's plans, Coral Island was expected to cover 1,500 to 2,000 square kilometers.

However, due to the interference of the Deep Sea Naga and the Sirens, only about 200 square kilometers had been completed.

They unanimously decided to complete Coral Island first before starting on the other two.

Once Coral Island was complete, the magic golem army could move in and establish robust defensive facilities.

By then, even if the Deep Sea Naga and the Sirens attacked again, they wouldn't stand a chance.

The number of supporting magic ships was limited, and it was better to concentrate forces on one island rather than scatter them across three.

This way, they could not only defend but also counterattack when faced with enemy invasions.

Their strategy proved sound.

On the fifth day after the reinforcements arrived at Coral Island, the Deep Sea Naga and the Sirens attacked again.

The five first-tier magic ships patrolling the surrounding waters immediately detected the approaching sea monsters.

Without any humanitarian warning, the moment the sea monsters crossed the warning line, the five magic ships opened fire simultaneously.

Zzzt! Zzzt! Zzzt!

Over thirty magic cannons fired in unison, their beams piercing through the water and hitting the sea monsters, shattering their heads.

The magic cannons, a true product of magic technology developed by the Starlight Academy, used magic stones as energy sources and were incredibly powerful.

In an instant, dozens of sea monster corpses littered the water, their blood turning the surrounding sea red.

At the same time, a piercing alarm sounded over Coral Island.

Xie Man and the others immediately rushed out. By the time they reached the coast, the five first-tier magic ships had already eliminated the invading sea monsters.

"It's the Sirens. They always start their attacks by controlling sea monsters to charge first," Andrea said, her expression grave.

As if to confirm her words, a loud conch shell blast suddenly echoed from the distance, mingled with the faint, enchanting melodies of their songs.

Dozens of massive humpback whales burst through the water, appearing in the distance.

Riding atop their broad backs were hundreds of Sirens.

More Sirens, armed with tridents, rode hunter sharks and emerged from behind the humpback whales, eyeing the magic ships with predatory gazes.

At the same time, a piercing alarm sounded from the other side of the island.

"Probably the Deep Sea Naga. They often attack from different directions to increase the pressure on our defenses," Andrea said, her face heavy with concern.

Fleming clicked his tongue. "They're enemies, yet they can unite against us when we're around."

"Considering we're outsiders, it's not surprising," Sherman said calmly, turning to Cole. "Cole, you and Fleming will handle the Deep Sea Naga. Can you do that?"

Cole nodded silently and turned to fly toward the other side of the island without hesitation.

Fleming quickly followed.

As they watched the two depart, Sherman turned his gaze to the approaching Sirens and took a deep breath, his expression firming.

"Let's act. We need to hit them hard this time, so they won't dare to bother Coral Island again. It'll make things easier for us in the future."

Arthur and Tanya nodded indifferently.

Instantly, their bodies glowed with brilliant magical light as they dashed toward the battlefield.

The moment the alarm sounded, the magic ships anchored in the harbor immediately set sail. Two Level 2 magic ships and three Level 1 magic ships headed straight for the Sirens.

Upon converging, the ten magic ships formed a solid line, creating a formidable defensive barrier on the water, like towering metal walls blocking the Sirens' path.

As the Sirens charged, they were met with a barrage of cannon fire.

In the past, when the Sirens attacked the island, they would face ranged attacks like arrows and spells. However, with the massive bodies of the humpback whales as shields, these attacks were largely ineffective.

This time, they tried the same tactic, but the result was far different.

The ten magic ships combined had sixty-eight magic cannons. A single volley turned the three leading humpback whales into sieves, blood gushing out in torrents, quickly turning the surrounding waters into a crimson sea.

If that was all, the humpback whales might have been able to push through the cannon fire by sheer numbers.

But the main turrets of the two Level 2 magic ships quickly shattered that illusion.

Buzz!

Two thick beams of energy crossed over a thousand meters, piercing through the heads of the humpback whales and exiting from their tails, creating a spray of blood that was almost blinding.

These powerful sea monsters, which would normally be at the top of the ocean food chain, were instantly killed without any resistance.

Buzz! Buzz!

The two main turrets fired every five to six seconds, sending beam after beam to cut down the humpback whales.

The dual barrage of cannon fire and energy beams created a dense web of destruction, turning the kilometer-wide stretch of sea into a death zone.

In less than two minutes, over thirty humpback whales were annihilated, their blood-soaked corpses floating on the surface.

The Sirens also paid a heavy price, losing over a hundred of their own.

The remaining Sirens finally managed to break through the death zone and reach the magic ships. However, when they looked up at the massive metal behemoths before them, they felt at a loss.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Rapid footsteps suddenly echoed from the ships, as if some multi-legged creatures were running quickly.

Then, creatures resembling octopuses suddenly emerged from the deck, leaping into the sea with a splash.

The surrounding Sirens instinctively thrust their tridents, but heard a sharp clang, as if they had hit something hard, causing their hands to ache.

"They're puppets!" one Siren shouted.

Hearing this, the other Sirens did not retreat but instead charged forward, brandishing their tridents.

Past experiences with Alliance puppets had taught them that these mechanical beings were clumsy once in the water and easy to handle.

But soon, they realized just how wrong they were.

Thick, dark tentacles burst through the water, moving so swiftly that the Sirens had no time to react. All they saw was a flash of darkness, followed by an excruciating pain in their chests.

Looking down, they found a metal tentacle deeply embedded in their chests!

The Sirens who had survived the Cannonfire were met not with a turn of the tide, but with a new wave of slaughter.

Facing thousands of Legendary-level puppets, the Sirens stood no chance. One by one, they were snatched away by the metal tentacles, their lives taken in an instant.

It was a completely one-sided massacre!

The Sirens soon broke and fled in all directions.

But they soon discovered their escape routes were cut off.

A group of human knights riding strange aquatic dragons had somehow flanked them, blocking their path to safety.

The knights, having taken potions to breathe underwater, mounted their aquatic dragons and began hunting the Sirens through the sea.

In the sky, Xeman, Athir, and Targana targeted the more powerful elite Sirens.

From the moment the Sirens launched their ambush to the end of the battle, it all lasted less than ten minutes.

The Star Alliance virtually crushed the Sirens with ease.

The latter part of the battle was nothing but a one-sided chase and mop-up.

Watching from the shore, Andelia was filled with amazement.

The magical ships' cannonfire, the octopus puppets' combat prowess, and the aquatic dragon knights' strength all left her in awe.

With such magical ships and an army, if their numbers grew, they could not only defend their islands but even venture into the deep sea to eliminate the Sirens!

In the end, apart from a few lucky survivors, over two thousand Sirens were nearly wiped out.

Even as the Sirens were known as the first intelligent race of the Rainbow Sea, such a massive loss was enough to cripple them, causing them immense pain.

On the other side of the island, though the number of magical ships was fewer, the Deep Sea Nagas' offensive was also weaker than the Sirens. Not long after Xeman's side concluded their battle, the fighting on the other side of the island also came to an end.

Over a thousand Deep Sea Nagas were nearly all destroyed.

In the final tally, they had lost only about thirty octopus puppets.

The aquatic dragon knights suffered no casualties, with only a few sustaining minor injuries.

The magical ships also suffered only minor damage, which could be easily repaired.

Compared to the bountiful victory, these losses were negligible!

Reuniting, the group wore joyful smiles.

"From this, the Deep Sea Nagas and the Sirens should not dare to underestimate us. At least in the short term, they shouldn't dare to invade Coral Island again."

Xeman said with a smile, then shifted his tone.

"But we can't let our guard down. If they come again, their attack will surely be more fierce. We must be prepared."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

However, events unfolded more smoothly than Xeman had anticipated.

Perhaps they had been severely punished, but from then on, the Sirens and the Deep Sea Nagas did not attack Coral Island again.

Instead, during Xeman and his group's later expeditions into the deep sea, they often encountered the Sirens and Deep Sea Nagas in battle.

For some reason, these two races seemed to have abandoned their efforts to hinder the Star Alliance's expansion in the Rainbow Sea, turning instead to fight each other.

Almost every battle ended with the Sirens emerging victorious.

After winning, the Sirens did not dare to attack the ships again, diving into the sea and vanishing without a trace.

Thus, the Star Alliance's artificial island project entered a period of peaceful and rapid development.

In the year 1292 of the Starlight Calendar, Coral Island was completed.

The Star Alliance now had a new city-state named Coral City.

The first magical golem factory and the first shipyard in the Rainbow Sea were established in Coral City, beginning full-scale production of octopus puppets and magical ships.

In the year 1293, Clamshell Island was completed, and Clamshell City was established.

In the year 1294, Red Shrimp Island was completed, and Red Shrimp City was established.

In the same year, the Starlight Academy developed the first Tier 3 magical ship and passed practical testing, officially deploying it in Rainbow Bay.

In the year 1295, during the month of Revival (February),

The Star Alliance's first fleet was established, named the First Naval Fleet.

The First Naval Fleet included five Tier 3 magical ships, twenty-five Tier 2 magical ships, and two hundred and fifty Tier 1 magical ships.

In the same year, during the month of Thunder (April),

The First Naval Fleet entered the deep sea, heading toward the Sirens' territory known as the Azure Eye.

War was imminent!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end