Chapter 218: Crushing the Old and Decaying
“Starlight Continent marks the lower limit of the Star Alliance. The higher the lower limit, the better the Star Alliance can develop.”
After quickly scanning the report on the Prosperous Star Empire, Su Nan picked up the report from Starlight Academy.
The first report detailed the development of the Magic Ship.
The research and development of the Magic Ship was an order personally given by Su Nan.
This initiative was necessary not only for the advancement of the Rainbow Sea but also in anticipation of naval battles that the Star Alliance would likely face when conquering other realms in the future. Thus, he was preparing ahead of time and taking precautions.
“A three-level classification system is sufficient for use in the Starlight Continent,” Su Nan remarked, nodding in satisfaction.
Starlight Academy was still working on breaking through to the three-level Magic Ship. It would take considerable time before they could actually manufacture them and reach a point of practical application.
Although they could synthesize three-level Magic Ships, Su Nan did not plan to pursue this route.
After all, the cost of synthesis was far higher than that of manual manufacturing.
He decided to let the Academy handle the research; he could not do everything himself.
After reviewing the report from Starlight Academy, the last one remaining was the report on the Star Alliance.
This report focused mainly on the development progress of the Rainbow Sea.
However, as he read through the contents, a strange expression emerged on Su Nan's face.
"Divine Revelation?"
Su Nan pondered deeply.
The Dimensional Barrier had not yet recovered, so it was impossible for an outside god to have reached into the Starlight Continent.
The previous Spider Goddess was a special case, having infiltrated Starlight Continent by utilizing the Dark Demon Tree in the Black Forest.
Could it be that the Rainbow Sea had another 'Dark Demon Tree'?
While that was a possibility, it seemed unlikely.
Instead, Su Nan was more inclined to believe that the so-called Divine Revelation was merely a guise employed by some creature, using it to manipulate the Siren for its own purposes.
"How interesting," Su Nan mused, his eyes glinting with intrigue.
Falling Star City lay within the Rainbow Sea, and yet the so-called Divine Revelation had manifested within Rainbow City.
This connection was hard for him to ignore.
However, regardless of whether the two were linked or not, and regardless of whether it was a real god or not, he could not allow any troublesome entities to disturb his territory.
"The truth will be uncovered by simply capturing the Siren clan leader and interrogating him.
With this plan in mind, Su Nan approved the report and dispatched someone to convey the orders to Rainbow Bay.
Just as Su Nan's commands were en route to Rainbow Bay, the war between the Star Alliance and the Marine Race had already begun.
On the same day that the Magic Ship and the Octopus Puppet arrived at Rainbow Bay, Sheman and his team were leading reinforcements to Artificial Island.
Since the three Artificial Islands were relatively far apart, after some discussion, the group decided to focus on the island that was progressing the fastest in construction, known as Coral Island.
The name was derived from the Rainbow Coral cluster located four to five kilometers away from the island.
Rainbow Coral is a rare material utilized in potion-making, which was a primary reason why the Star Alliance chose this site for land reclamation—to facilitate the collection of Rainbow Coral.
In Star Alliance's plans, Coral Island was expected to cover an area of fifteen hundred to two thousand square kilometers.
However, due to the interference from the Deep Sea Naga and Siren, Coral Island had only been filled to less than two hundred square kilometers thus far.
Everyone unanimously agreed to complete the construction of Coral Island first, before beginning work on the other two islands.
Once Coral Island was finished, the Golem Legion could move in and establish comprehensive defensive facilities.
At that point, even if the Deep Sea Naga and Siren attacked again, they would not fare well.
The supporting Magic Ships were limited in number; rather than scattering them across three different islands, it was wiser to concentrate their forces in one location.
This way, when facing an enemy invasion, they wouldn't merely defend passively but could also launch counterattacks.
Facts proved their considerations were correct.
On the fifth day after the reinforcements settled in Coral Island, the Deep Sea Naga and Siren launched another attack.
The five Level One Magic Ships patrolling the waters surrounding Coral Island were the first to detect the approaching sea monsters.
Without any humanitarian advance warning, once the attacking sea monsters crossed the warning line, the five Magic Ships opened fire simultaneously.
Sizzling sounds erupted!
More than thirty rays from Magic Cannons shot into the air, covering the sky and the earth. They pierced the surface of the sea and struck the sea monsters beneath the waves, penetrating their heads."
"Magic Cannon is a genuine product of Magic Technology developed by Starlight Academy, harnessing Magic Stone as its energy source, and its power is truly formidable.
In an instant, dozens of Sea Monster corpses surfaced beneath the water, the surrounding seawater stained red with blood.
At the same time, the sharp sound of alarms echoed through the skies of Coral Island.
Sheman and the others on the island rushed out immediately, and by the time they reached the coast, five Level One Magic Ships had already decimated the attacking Sea Monsters.
"It’s the Sirens; they always initiate their attacks by controlling Sea Monsters," Andrea said solemnly.
As if to confirm her words, the loud sound of conch shells blasted from afar, faintly intertwined with beautiful singing.
Dozens of enormous Humpback Whales suddenly breached the surface of the sea, revealing themselves to the onlookers.
Upon their broad backs, hundreds of Sirens were riding.
More Sirens, wielding tridents and riding Headhunter Sharks, emerged from behind the Humpback Whales, glaring fiercely at the Magic Ships.
At the same time, piercing alarms rang out from the other side of the island.
"It must be the Deep Sea Nagas; they often separate from the Sirens to attack from different directions, increasing the pressure on our island's defense," Andrea remarked, her expression growing more serious.
Fleming clicked his tongue, saying, "They are clearly opposing forces, yet they can unite against us."
"After all, we are outsiders," Sheman replied calmly, glancing at Coley. "Coley, you and Fleming need to handle the Deep Sea Nagas. Is that alright?"
Coley nodded silently, turning and flying toward the other side of the island without hesitation.
Fleming quickly followed.
Watching them depart, Sheman shifted his focus back toward the encroaching Sirens, took a deep breath, and his expression became serious.
"Let’s move. Let’s deliver a harsh blow to these creatures so they won't dare to attack Coral Island so easily again. This will make things easier for us in the future."
Artier and Tagana nodded in agreement.
The three of them instantly radiated brilliant Spell Light from their bodies and surged into the battlefield."
As soon as the alarm sounded, the Magic Ships docked in the harbor immediately set sail. Two second-tier Magic Ships and three first-tier Magic Ships headed straight for the Sirens.
After converging, ten Magic Ships lined up in a row, forming a solid defensive line on the sea, resembling a towering metal wall that blocked the path of the Sirens' attack.
When the Sirens launched their charge, they were first met with a barrage of artillery fire.
In the past, whenever the Sirens charged towards the islands, they would also face long-range attacks from bows, crossbows, and spells. However, with the massive bodies of the Humpback Whales acting as shields, these long-range attacks could not inflict effective damage on them.
Now, they intended to repeat that old tactic, but the subsequent events caught them entirely off guard.
The ten Magic Ships boasted a total of sixty-eight Magic Cannons. With just one volley, the three Humpback Whales at the front were riddled with holes. Fresh blood gushed out like a fountain, instantly transforming the surrounding area into a sea of red.
If that had been the extent of the assault, the Humpback Whales could still rely on their numbers to withstand the artillery fire and approach the Magic Ships.
But as the main cannons of the two second-tier Magic Ships opened fire, this hope was quickly shattered.
Buzz!
Two thick beams of light traversed over a thousand meters, piercing through the heads of the Humpback Whales and exiting from their tails, sending up a burst of glaring crimson blood.
This powerful sea monster, which ranked at the top of the marine food chain, was instantly slain without any chance to resist.
Buzz! Buzz!
The two Spell Turrets fired at a rate of once every five or six seconds, each ray blasting out and constantly claiming the lives of the Humpback Whales.
The dual artillery fire intersected and struck, the dense rays of light weaving into a net that covered the sea in front of the Magic Ships, transforming this thousand-meter stretch of water into a Death Domain.
In less than two minutes, more than thirty Humpback Whales were completely wiped out, becoming blood-soaked corpses floating on the surface of the sea.
Siren had already paid a steep price, losing over a hundred lives.
The remaining Siren barely managed to break through the Death Domain and reach the Magic Ship. However, when they looked up at the mountain-like Metal Beast before them, a profound sense of helplessness washed over them.
Tap, tap, tap!
Rapid footsteps echoed from the ship, resembling the hurried movements of some multi-legged creature.
Suddenly, creatures that closely resembled octopuses burst forth from the deck, leaping into the sea with loud splashes.
The surrounding Siren stabbed at them with their halberds, only to hear a sharp clang as if they had struck a hard object, sending a jolt of pain through their hands.
"It's a Puppet!" one Siren shouted to alert the others.
Upon hearing this, the nearby Siren did not retreat; instead, they charged forward, brandishing their tridents.
Previous encounters with the Star Alliance Puppet had taught them that these beings were clumsy in the water and could be easily dealt with.
However, they soon learned how mistaken they were.
Thick, black tentacles erupted from the water, their speed catching the Siren completely off guard. They barely registered a black blur before experiencing a jolt of pain in their chests.
Looking down, they saw a Metal tentacle deeply embedded in their bodies!
The surviving Siren who had endured the cannon fire found no respite; instead, they faced another wave of slaughter.
Confronted by thousands of Legendary Puppets, the Siren stood no chance. One by one, they fell to the Metal tentacles.
It was a completely one-sided massacre!
Panic set in as the Siren broke down and scattered, attempting to flee.
But they quickly discovered that their escape route was blocked.
A group of human knights riding strange subdragon species had somehow circled behind them, cutting off their retreat.
Having consumed Underwater Breathing Potions, the knights mounted their Water Wyverns and began to hunt down the Siren in the sea.
Up in the high sky, Sheman, Artier, and Tagana specifically targeted the more powerful elite Sirens for their assault.
From the beginning of the attack on the Sirens to the end of the war, the entire process lasted less than ten minutes.
The Star Alliance forces almost completely crushed the Siren troops with overwhelming might.
The latter half of the conflict was entirely a one-sided chase and mop-up operation.
Andrea, who had been observing the battle from the coast, was utterly amazed.
Whether it was the firepower of the Magic Ship or the combat prowess of the Octopus Puppets and Water Wyvern Knights, everything was eye-opening and worthy of admiration.
With this kind of Magic Ship and army, as long as the scale was increased, defending the island and charging into the Deep Sea to annihilate the Sirens wouldn't be a mere fantasy!
By the end of the battle, aside from a few fortunate ones who managed to escape, more than two thousand Sirens had been almost completely wiped out.
Even though the Sirens were regarded as the most intelligent race in the Rainbow Sea, such a massive loss was enough to cause them significant damage and heart-wrenching pain.
On the opposite side of the island, although there were fewer Magic Ships than on the front, the Deep Sea Naga's offensive was also weaker compared to the Sirens. Not long after the battle on Sheman’s side ended, the conflict on the other side of the island also reached its conclusion.
More than a thousand Deep Sea Naga were similarly nearly annihilated.
When the losses were finally tallied, it turned out that their side had only lost around thirty Octopus Puppets.
The Water Wyvern Knight Unit suffered no casualties, with only a few sustaining minor injuries.
The Magic Ships also incurred just a few instances of damage, which could be restored with a bit of maintenance.
Compared to the abundant results of the battle, this slight loss was truly negligible!
After regrouping, everyone’s faces were filled with joyful smiles.
“After this, the Deep Sea Naga and Sirens shouldn't dare to look down on us again. At least in the short term, they shouldn't disturb Coral Island,” Sheman said with a grin, then shifted the topic.
“But we can't let our guard down either. If they come again, their offensive will likely be even fiercer this time, so we need to be prepared.”
The crowd nodded in agreement.
However, events unfolded even more smoothly than Sheman had anticipated.
Perhaps having been severely beaten, the Siren and the Deep Sea Naga refrained from attacking Coral Island for some time.
Conversely, Sheman and the others later ventured into the Deep Sea area several times by boat and witnessed the Siren and the Deep Sea Naga engaged in fierce battles.
For reasons unknown, these two races seemed to have abandoned their attempts to obstruct the Star Alliance's expansion in Rainbow Sea, turning instead to fight one another.
Almost every battle ended with a victory for the Siren.
After each win, the Siren refrained from attacking the ships again, fading into the depths of the sea without any lingering attachment.
With the Siren's distraction, the Star Alliance's artificial island construction project entered a phase of peaceful development, and progress accelerated rapidly.
In the year 1292 of the Starlight Calendar, Coral Island was completed.
The Star Alliance welcomed another city-state under its jurisdiction, named Coral City.
The first golem factory and shipyard in the Rainbow Sea were established in Coral City, commencing full-scale production of Octopus Puppets and Magic Ships.
In the year 1293 of the Starlight Calendar, Clam Island was completed, leading to the establishment of Clam City.
In 1294 of the Starlight Calendar, Red Shrimp Island was completed, giving rise to Red Shrimp City.
That same year, Starlight Academy developed the first tier three Magic Ship, which passed live combat tests and was officially deployed to Rainbow Bay.
In 1295 of the Starlight Calendar, during the Month of Revival (February), the first fleet of the Star Alliance was established, named the First Naval Fleet.
The First Naval Fleet consisted of five tier three Magic Ships, twenty-five tier two Magic Ships, and two hundred and fifty level one Magic Ships.
Later that year, during the Month of Thunder (April), the First Naval Fleet entered the Deep Sea area, heading towards a region known as Azure Eye, where the Siren resided.
War was on the verge of breaking out!
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