As Ye Xi summoned the [Abyss Core], a black radiance swallowed the entire Liyue Harbor waterfront.
Pedestrians on the streets froze in their tracks. Sailors and dockworkers along the shore stood rooted to the spot, dumbstruck.
"Good heavens! What — what is that!?"
"That pressure... it's terrifying.... I can barely stay on my feet!"
"What's happening — are we under attack!?"
"Quick! Where are the Millelith!"
"..."
The crushing, oppressive force set people trembling all over.
Zhongli, who had been quietly enjoying his tea, set down his cup. Taking advantage of the commotion, he transformed into a streak of light and shot to a distant mountaintop.
He gazed toward the source of the black radiance, his expression heavy.
Just then, several more streaks of light appeared on the horizon.
Cloud Retainer, Moon Carver, and Mountain Shaper were all racing in at full speed.
Even Xiao — the Conqueror of Demons — had leapt over from Wangshu Inn.
Sensing Zhongli's aura, the Adepti touched down one after another.
"Rex Lapis, what has happened in the harbor!?"
"This power — it's dreadful! Has some demon or monster run amok!?"
"I cannot see clearly — not at all! This immortal cannot pierce through that black fog!"
The three True Lords strained their eyes, yet all they could see was the black radiance pouring outward from the Abyss Core. There was simply no way to make out what lay at its source.
"Rex Lapis, allow me to go take a look!"
Xiao volunteered at once and made to move forward.
But Zhongli raised a hand and shook his head. "Hold. The source is our young friend Ye Xi."
"What!? It's him?"
"That young fellow!? He's making this much of a scene!?"
"What on earth is he doing — this immortal cannot make heads or tails of it."
Just as the Adepti were consumed with curiosity, the black radiance began to dim.
The light swept out across the surface of the sea.
There, on the calm waters of the Sea of Clouds, a translucent outline shimmered into being — ghostly and half-visible, as though something were materializing from nothing.
Then the sea surged.
Nearby cargo ships began to pitch and roll, tossed up and down by the sudden swells.
It was as though some colossal thing was descending into the water!
"It's a mechanism technique! He's constructing a mechanism — right here, right now!"
Cloud Retainer's face was a picture of astonishment. When she crafted mechanisms, it was always small-scale work — nothing ever came close to a spectacle like this!
Today, she was truly seeing something for the first time.
Up on the Jade Chamber, the three little secretaries had also noticed the strange commotion at the harbor and were growing anxious.
Before long, the outline on the water began to solidify and take shape.
Enormous mechanical components coalesced into solid matter, and a hull of jet-black steel gradually revealed itself.
The crowd at the docks couldn't hold back their cries of astonishment.
"That's... a ship!?"
"Impossible! It's enormous!"
"How can something that massive float on water?"
"That color — it's nothing like a wooden ship! What in the world is it made of!"
The seasoned captains and sailors who had spent their lives on the water had seen all manner of things.
But a scene like this — this was a first.
Slowly, the black light faded away.
A colossal steel vessel stood upon the sea.
Gazing upon this iron leviathan, Ningguang, Keqing, and Yae Miko all stood there slack-jawed.
The Millelith soldiers who had accompanied them were shaking at the knees.
None of them had ever witnessed anything so utterly terrifying.
Nobody understood what Ye Xi had just done. How had he pulled it off? How had he conjured a ship that size out of thin air?
"This... this is what you called a cargo ship!?"
Ningguang could barely trust her own eyes.
An ordinary cargo ship was perhaps fifty-odd meters in length. Even the largest vessel in the Southern Cross fleet — the Alcor — stretched only a hundred meters from stem to stern, and that was total length. Strip away the bowsprit and the stern, and the hull alone was barely eighty meters.
The colossus before her had no such delicate ends to speak of, and it measured at least a hundred and seventy meters — if not more!
On that vast, open deck, who could even guess how much cargo could be loaded in a single run?
One voyage of this ship would carry more than twice the Alcor's haul.
Ye Xi withdrew the Abyss Core and nodded with quiet satisfaction. "So? The quality's not bad, is it?"
"Not bad? This is..."
"Is this a fortress on the sea? Using it just to haul cargo feels like a bit of a waste, doesn't it?"
Keqing couldn't suppress the urge to get on board and have a proper look.
A ship this size — how many people could it hold? You could use it as an ocean castle and still have room to spare!
Ye Xi smiled to himself. Using a cruiser as a cargo ship was absolutely overkill — pure dimensional reduction in terms of capability.
He had, of course, stripped out the parts that weren't needed for this purpose: the weapons systems, the original propulsion systems.
After his round of modifications, this cruiser had been converted into a self-perpetuating vessel running on [Energy Cores] — eternally self-powered.
Enormous cargo holds. Incredible speed.
"Guuji, what do you think of my ship?"
Yae Miko's eyes gleamed with undisguised excitement. She praised it again and again: "It's wonderful~ It's truly wonderful~"
"So, can I have one~?"
Ye Xi just smiled without answering, a playful look in his eyes.
For Inazuma, ships were the lifeblood of transportation. What wouldn't a giant vessel like this bring to the nation?
This was nothing like Ningguang's Jade Chamber. The Jade Chamber was Ningguang's home — whereas this cruiser could haul cargo, serve as a fishing vessel, and become an undisputed master of the seas.
As for giving it to the pink-haired fox — well, that would naturally depend on how sincere her offer was.
In her mind, Yae Miko was already picturing it: if they mounted offensive cannons on the deck, people could use this ship alone to defend themselves. This was an overwhelming force of power!
The sight of the massive vessel's true form sent the entire harbor into an uproar.
"That really is a ship!"
"Good heavens — the person standing beside Lady Ningguang built this!?"
"That man couldn't be some immortal Lady Ningguang invited, could he!"
"This ship looks like it's made of iron! How many people would it take to row something like that!?"
"How strange, how utterly strange — there are no sails!"
"Wait, there aren't even any oars — how does it move!?"
"..."
Before long, the more knowledgeable onlookers began to notice something was off.
The Adepti on the mountainside had noticed the same thing.
"What remarkable mechanism technique — but how does this great beast move?"
"Moon Carver, have you forgotten? The flying machines that young friend used before could take to the sky without a second thought. Are you really worried a ship can't manage to move?"
"I... well, fair enough."
Cloud Retainer thought for a moment, then still shook her head. "This immortal truly cannot fathom how this mechanism technique works. Rex Lapis, have you discerned anything?"
Zhongli shook his head. All he could perceive was that Ye Xi had drawn upon the power of the Abyss.
As for that black cube hovering in the sky — he believed it must be a power unique to Ye Xi alone.
This was the first time he had ever witnessed such a force.
Seeing that Zhongli had no answer, the Adepti were all deeply shaken.
If even Rex Lapis could not see through it, they — mere Adepti — had even less hope of understanding!
Back at the harbor.
"Master, I want to go up and have a look — may I?"
Hearing the barely-restrained eagerness in Keqing's voice, Ye Xi gave a nod. "Let's go. A walk on board — you said it yourself, so how could I possibly refuse you?"
Keqing felt a warm rush of delight in her chest. It was nice to feel a little spoiled.
Truth be told, Ye Xi was equally curious to go up and see it himself.
Honestly speaking, this was also his first time observing a cruiser up close.
A great nation's warship, a cutting-edge fighter jet — these were every boy's dream!
He had built himself a toy this magnificent; of course he was going to play with it.
Ningguang immediately gave the order: "Instructor Feng, have the Millelith prepare — we are boarding."
"Yes, my Lady!"
...
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