From the direction of Guili Plains, a thunderous roar erupted.
The clouds high in the sky seemed to be shattered by some unseen force, scattering in all directions.
Countless citizens lifted their heads, faces filled with excitement as they stared skyward.
The gods, too, raised their gazes in curiosity.
And Jiang Yan—he curled his lips into a smile.
Today, before the people of Liyue and the gods of the Seven Nations, the Liyue Air Force would officially reveal its edge!
With another deafening boom, a flying vessel—resembling an aircraft carrier—slowly descended from the heavens.
In an instant, the watching crowd collectively lost their voices.
Eyes widened. Mouths gaped open.
A… monster?!
Even the six gods atop the reviewing platform—everyone except Morax—rose to their feet in shock.
Liyue truly possessed the ability to fight in the skies!
Although Jiang Yan had mentioned the existence of an air force before, the six gods had all assumed that so-called "aerial combat" would only be possible with Jiang Yan's or Morax's direct assistance.
But the moment this colossal flying vessel appeared, their assumptions were utterly shattered.
Humanity had truly broken free of the earth's shackles and ascended into the sky!!
How could that not be shocking?
"What appears before us now is Liyue's Air Force!"
"Yes—just as its name implies, the Liyue Air Force is a force capable of fighting in the skies!"
"This is the first public appearance of our air force, and its arrival signifies—"
"That Liyue will break free from the shackles of the heavens!"
"That the people of Liyue, like birds, can soar high through the skies!"
"This is a crucial step in Liyue's development—and an enormous stride forward for the people of Liyue!"
A low hum resonated from the flying vessel, and a steady, authoritative voice transmitted down to the ground.
"Liyue Air Force—Aerial Fortress Zi Rat—salutes the Geo Archon and the Immortal Lord!"
"May Liyue endure for ten thousand generations!"
The flying vessel was equipped with amplification mechanisms similar to loudspeakers—the same kind Jiang Yan had used on the reviewing platform.
Unlike the army and navy, whose branches were named after Liyue's regions, Jiang Yan did not organize the air force using geographical divisions.
Instead, he adopted the Twelve Zodiac from his previous life:
Zi Rat, Chou Ox, Yin Tiger, Mao Rabbit, Chen Dragon, Si Snake, Wu Horse, Wei Goat, Shen Monkey, You Rooster, Xu Dog, and Hai Pig.
That's right—according to Jiang Yan's vision, the air force would be divided into twelve branches, just like the Millelith Army and the navy, only using zodiac designations instead of place names.
The aerial fortress before them had been modeled after the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarriers from the Avengers films Jiang Yan had once watched in his past life, redesigned and rebuilt upon the foundation of a traditional flying vessel.
A single aerial fortress carried twenty assault flying boats internally.
In other words, one aerial fortress alone could function as an entire army!
And why was it called an aerial fortress?
Because it truly lived up to the name—
a fortress in the sky.
In its design, Jiang Yan had not pursued the balance of speed and power typical of standard flying vessels.
Instead, he had focused on defense—reinforcing it relentlessly, pushing its durability to the absolute limit!
Every aerial fortress carried, at its underside, a Demonic God Resentment Bomb.
If a war ever showed signs of turning into a defeat, the aerial fortress would become the ultimate tool to reverse the situation.
It would withstand all incoming attacks and precisely drop that weapon—detonating like a nuclear blast.
And if even that failed to annihilate all enemies?
Then the aerial fortress would accelerate downward with all its mass, crashing into the ground like the Jade Chamber once did—turning itself into a colossal bomb.
The final move.
A move of mutual destruction.
After Jiang Yan returned the salute, countless openings suddenly appeared along the hull of the Zi Rat aerial fortress.
One after another, bullet-shaped flying boats shot out at extreme speed.
Their overall design resembled massive bullets—sharp at the front, wider at the back. On either side, small openings revealed the cold gleam of Guizhong machine guns within.
Twenty flying boats formed various formations in the sky, then proceeded to circle the entire parade grounds once.
Below the platform, Moon Carver wept openly, sobbing uncontrollably.
Guizhong and Cloud Retainer, meanwhile, avoided his gaze guiltily.
My floating stones…!!!
Those are all my floating stones!!!
That's right.
To build this air force, Moon Carver's entire family fortune had practically been emptied.
Even now, he couldn't forget the scene of Guizhong and Cloud Retainer bringing Morax to his home—coaxing and deceiving him together.
Didn't you say you'd only borrow them for research and return them in two days?!
Then you tell me—while touching the floating stones embedded all over those flying vessels—how exactly you plan to explain this?!
Although Jiang Yan later compensated Moon Carver generously—giving him many rare stones and exotic minerals gathered from other nations—Moon Carver still couldn't let go of his floating stones.
That was because the very prerequisite for flight was the embedding of floating stones!
At the final moment, the sharp tip at the front of each flying boat suddenly lit up, unfolding mechanically.
A Guizhong energy cannon emerged, already fully charged.
Then—accompanied by several thunderous blasts—the energy cannons fired brilliant beams straight toward the distant sea.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!
Countless explosions erupted across the ocean's surface, and massive waves surged toward the shore.
After enduring successive bombardments from both navy and air force, it was as though the sea itself had grown enraged—howling winds rose, and towering waves came crashing in.
The citizens cried out in alarm; some children even burst into tears on the spot.
Yet aside from the frightened children, there was no fear on the faces of the other citizens.
Why would there be?
The Immortal Lord and the Geo Archon were right here.
What could possibly go wrong?
Even if the heavens themselves collapsed, the Immortal Lord and the Geo Archon would surely find a way to shatter the sky!
This was the blind, unshakable confidence the people of Liyue held in their Immortal Lord and their Archon.
Jiang Yan raised his hand and lightly waved it through the air.
Vector Manipulation—activated!
The disturbed air began to spiral violently above the sea, forming a tornado-like tempest that instantly shattered the incoming waves. The ocean quickly returned to calm.
In an instant, thunderous cheers erupted from the crowd, countless voices shouting the Immortal Lord's name in unison.
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