Pillar of Yita

The communication channel abruptly lost human voices, leaving only a cacophony of background noise. The Torch’s Captain grasped the Wind Detector, veins bulging, staring at the glowing Crystal, eyes bloodshot. ”Lord Captain, you’d better come up and see!” frightened cries from the sailors came from the deck.

”What is that thing?” He rushed onto the deck, snatched the telescope from the sailor’s hand, his face flushed, scar twisted like a worm, yelled at everyone, ”I ask you, what is that thing!?”

White clouds formed spectacular mountains and cliffs on the Sky Wall, like islands floating in mid-air, extending long Capes towards the mirror-like Sky Sea, the fringes of Featherization writing a few out-of-this-world meanings. And above the azure firmament, above the clouds, a small black dot slowly emerged in everyone’s Vision.

It was a rather peculiar Construct, connected to the right arm with a pitch-black long spear glinting under the sunlight, jetting streaks of Qing light behind, maintaining nearly identical spacing between each pair, arranged in a formation of seven into a giant arrow.

One formation, two formations... a total of seven formations emerged from behind the clouds, so small that they occupied only a corner of the sky. Yet everyone on the Torch involuntarily looked up, their Vision slowly following the unfolded giant arrows in the sky, mouths slightly agape, hearts naturally giving rise to an illusion of a Sky Wall.

But no one spoke, nor did anyone make a sound.

Even the Wind that gusted across the ship drowned in the sound of immense breathing and heartbeat, thudding loudly. With a clatter, the Captain’s telescope slipped from his hand, rolling over the deck, but no one cared, because the buzzing sound had reached directly above them.

”They’re coming down!”

”They’re diving down!”

Someone screamed hysterically.

The deck went from static to dynamic, as if the stalled time suddenly resumed flowing, everyone looking for shelter. Captain Sotolin felt himself tackled to the ground, turning to see it was his Bosun, he finally reacted, his flushed face shouting amidst panic:

”Musketeers, Musketeers!”

The cannons on one side of the ship were useless, they lacked that angle of fire since the Spear Cavalry swarms initially appeared from above the clouds, the Airship’s climbing rate couldn’t possibly reach the required Speed to respond, such a short time wasn’t even enough to initiate starting speeds.

But there were some counter-airstrike measures on the deck, Crossbow Cannon, Harpoon Gun, and Musketeers, Magic Guided Conductors and small Magic Guided Towers, previously used to counter those flight units that posed no threat to the Airship, slow-flying units like Flying Dragons, Griffins, and Giant Eagles.

But this time, the roles of attacker and defender changed.

The first wave arrows had already reached above the Torch, seven Spear Cavalry suddenly dispersed, howling downward.

The Magic Guided Gunners raised their rifles, difficultly aiming at these agile Constructs on the swaying deck—they pulled the trigger amidst commands, flame-hued smoke spouting from the gun chamber, but the bullets lost momentum and dropped before entering effective kill range.

Even limited successful hits would merely spark some fire from the Shield Bearer’s heavy deck.

Midair black dots were quickly enlarging.

Everyone held their breath in anticipation—

”Relax, relax,” Invoker’s Gunslinger Team Leader shouted from the deck, ”Let them get closer before attacking, aim better, listen carefully, aim better!”

Magic Guided Conductors and Elementalists had already cast their Spells, countless streams of Light rose from the Torch’s deck, passing through the seven Spear Cavalry, at this distance the power of Spells was far more potent than muskets, amidst the stream of light, two Spear Cavalry rolled and turned into fireballs.

Then they disassembled in mid-air.

Next, the Harpoon Gun roared, Steel Spears fired into mid-air struck the Spear Cavalry, some embedded into their Giant Shields, but others hit more crucial parts—the metal deck jangling with sparks drawing out lines. One Spear Cavalry took a harpoon hit to the head, body tilted, immediately lost Balance, spinning down into the Cloud Sea.

But the remaining Spear Cavalry had already lowered their spears, points bright flames burst from the spear tips, extending into golden beams stabbing towards the Torch’s deck. Yet on the Airship’s pristine tall sails, numerous flashing Qing Light Arrays immediately unfolded, even before the fire reached them, they exploded into icy crystal mist.

Ice crystals scattered and fell gently.

The flame protection Array on the mast was taking effect.

The Constructs missed their shot, dived through the smoke, whooshing past not far from the mast top, veering away from the Torch. But by now the deck’s Gunners finally fired for the first time, bullets traced a streak of fire, catching up to the fleeing Spear Cavalry from behind.

At close range, the Magic Guided Gun at last showed its immense armor-piercing capability, the bullets penetrating the Spear Cavalry’s Core Crystal from behind the deck, flames rose from the gap in the Armor, in a flash, they turned into a flashing fireball.