"Quick! Go report it!"
A slightly older officer finally reacted, screaming at the top of his lungs:
"A ship from Fontaine has arrived! A huge ship! Go report to Lord Hiiragi! Hurry!"
The pier instantly fell into chaos.
Some people scrambled and crawled toward the Kanjou Commission office.
Some panicked, trying to disperse the crowd that was affecting Inazuma's reputation.
More people stood where they were, looking up as if at a mountain, watching the steel beast named "justice" slowly sail into the narrow, old waters of Ritou.
Its shadow gradually covered nearly half the pier.
The cast darkness heralded an irresistible force that had arrived in this long-closed nation.
On the deck.
King stood at the bow, hands in his trench coat pockets, looking down expressionlessly at the chaotic, tiny Ritou pier below.
The sea breeze blew through his black hair and the hem of his clothes.
Behind him, Clorinde rested his hand on the sword hilt, standing tall as a pine, his purple eyes sharply scanning every detail on the pier, assessing potential threats.
Lynette stood quietly behind and to the side of King.
Lumine and Paimon also came to the ship's railing.
Paimon leaned on the railing, pointing down with a small finger:
"Eh, is this really Ritou in Inazuma?"
"How does it look even more dilapidated than before the Sakoku Decree was lifted?"
"And why do those people look like they're about to starve to death?"
"What on earth is going on?!"
Lumine looked at the panicked crowd below and the sharp contrast between the luxurious area in the distance and the dilapidated pier before him, his brows furrowing slightly: "Inazuma, why..."
Zhongli walked slowly to King's side, looking at the scene below and sighing softly:
"Though the Sakoku Decree is lifted, the long-standing problems remain."
"It seems Inazuma still has a long way to go."
King did not respond.
He just watched silently.
Watching this nation full of suffering.
At this moment, the emperor engine drummed frantically within his chest—
"Thump!"
"Thump! Thump! Thump!"
"Thump—!!!"
King's heartbeat, like the war drums of an ancient giant God, exploded over the Ritou pier without warning!
After breaking 10% of the limiter, King's body was undergoing unimaginable transformation and strengthening every second.
This heartbeat was no longer limited to the mundane realm.
The sound waves turned into physical ripples, exploding outward with King as the center!
The sky seemed to be struck hard by an invisible heavy hammer.
The thick clouds shattered in a ring, revealing the heart-stoppingly deep blue sky behind them.
The sea didn't just ripple; the seawater in the entire harbor suddenly sank.
Then it kicked up chaotic waves several meters high, violently slapping the long-neglected embankment.
Click! Click-clack—!
On the Ritou pier, all the glass windows of the buildings, regardless of age or material, shattered simultaneously!
Crystal shards poured down like rain, reflecting spots of panic in the sunlight.
The Kanjou Commission officers closest to the "justice" felt as if their heads had been hit head-on by a fist; their ears buzzed, their vision went black, their legs went weak, and they collapsed directly to the ground, a pale yellow wet stain spreading at their crotches.
That wasn't a deliberate release of full pressure.
It was merely a billionth part unconsciously leaked by King under emotional fluctuations with a single beat of his heart!
This single heartbeat—
The world lost its color, and the four seas were shocked!
Across the entire Inazuma archipelago, from Tatarasuna in the far west to Seirai Island in the east, all living beings.
Whether it was the Raiden Shogun meditating at the top of Tenshukaku.
Or Yae Miko strolling under the Sacred Sakura Tree.
Or the farmers working in the fields, the fishermen catching fish at sea.
In this instant, their hearts raced inexplicably, and a tremor from life's instinct surged through their spinal cords!
Livestock collapsed, birds fell in flocks, children wailed, and the hands of samurai holding their blades trembled violently.
It was as if a sleeping ancient beast on the heavenly throne had slowly opened its eyes to look down upon all living things, letting out a roar to the entire world!
...The pier was dead silent.
Only the powerless slapping of the waves remained.
Everyone was like a Frozen statue, faces pale, eyes blankly looking up at the giant steel ship and the man in the blue trench coat with an indiscernible expression at the bow.
No one dared move, no one dared speak, even their breathing was subconsciously held.
King frowned slightly and raised a hand to press his chest.
A bit out of control.
Since breaking the limiter,
The speed at which this body became stronger sometimes felt ridiculous even to him.
A slight emotional fluctuation could easily cause a huge commotion.
He took a deep breath, and the surging power within him, like a sea of stars, was forcibly restrained and soothed.
"Thump... Thump... Thump..."
The roar of the emperor engine quickly faded, changing from the world-shaking war drums to a low, suppressed rumble, and finally quietly vanished.
But that suffocating pressure was like a brand, deeply etched into the souls of every Inazuman present.
King ignored the ant-like gazes below and walked down the "justice" step by step along the gangway.
His The steps are very steady,Stepping on the wooden planks of the old pier,issue"creak"A soft sound.
This slight sound, in the dead silent pier, felt like stepping on everyone's heartstrings.
Clorinde followed closely with his hand on his sword, his eyes sharp as knives, scanning in all directions; any movement would meet his thunderous strike.
Lynette followed silently with light steps.
Lumine pulled the still-dazed Paimon to follow at the end.
Zhongli walked beside King, two steps behind, his expression calm, but his heart was already in turmoil.
He had lived for over six thousand years and seen countless grand scenes.
The sea of blood in the Archon War felt like yesterday.
But to cause the world to change color and a nation to fall silent purely through "momentum" like this... it was truly unheard of.
The group walked across the pier.
Wherever they passed, the crowd retreated in terror like the sea parted by Poseidon, leaving a wide path that no one dared stand on.
Those Kanjou Commission officers who were originally arrogant now wished they could pull their heads into their backsides.
The ronin gripped their sword hilts tightly, their knuckles turning white, yet they didn't even have the courage to pull them out an inch.
King's gaze fell on a figure curled up under a dilapidated eave at the edge of the pier.
It was a very, very Old woman.
Her hair was gray and thin, her face full of deep furrows carved by time and toil.
Compared to the brightly dressed samurai not far away, the elder before him was particularly jarring.
She wore thin, faded clothes covered in patches, shivering in the cool, salty sea breeze.
In front of her was a small bamboo basket and a ceramic bowl broken in half.
Inside the small bamboo basket were a few shriveled lavender melons.
A few Mora of the smallest denomination lay scattered in the broken bowl.
The emperor engine just now had scared her into prostrating on the ground.
The basket was overturned, and the lavender melons rolled all over the ground, covered in dust.
She didn't dare pick them up, only shivering incessantly.
King stopped and stood before the Old woman.
-------------------------
If you enjoy this story, you can read 70+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
Webnovel will keep getting 1 new chapter every day but Patreon readers can stay far ahead.
Maybe it's not a big deal now… maybe it will be later.
[email protected]/Greyhounds
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"