At first, people thought it was just an overly heavy cloud.
It wasn't until beams of light began to gather at the cannon muzzles of the Sky Fortress that the people of Golin City gradually realized things were more complicated than they imagined.
Sky Fortress Unit Two is 170 meters long and 130 meters wide. It abandoned the city-like layout of Unit One; its overall structure is sharper and straighter, and it hangs in the sky with an oppressive presence.
It no longer carries a large number of Sky Ninja Corps soldiers. This isn't because Shinno has suddenly become fond of the lives of his subordinates—though he does value them, especially when he can hear their most heartfelt shouts of "Long live the Kingdom in the Sky!"—but rather, it's because they are too inefficient.
Thanks to the financial support from the consortium, which he obtained from Lord Arima, Shinno now possesses a vast amount of heavy firepower.
The weight of twenty Sky Ninja Corps soldiers can be traded for a heavy artillery piece, which is clearly more practical in actual combat.
Furthermore, Unit Two is equipped with a genuine Zero-Tail core, which has absorbed the negative emotions of millions of people over half a year.
It can be said that in terms of speed, range, power, and barrier defense, it's several times superior to Sky Fortress Unit One.
This is the true weapon of war, and it's also the reason why Shinno, knowing that Linto was coming, didn't pack his bags and run, but chose to stay and confront him head-on.
Based on Shinno's estimation, his win rate against Linto is about fifty-fifty.
"This is a theoretical win rate. In an actual battlefield, there are too many factors that influence the outcome of a war, such as—"
Through the display screen, Shinno saw the vast oasis city below.
He picked up the comms device.
Shinno's voice echoed in the ears of millions of Golin City residents.
"To all residents of Golin City, a notice is hereby issued: The terrorists led by Linto have currently invaded the city and are committing acts of violence. We will complete the suppression work tonight. Please, all citizens, stay in your homes and do not move about freely, to avoid…"
Shinno emphasized.
"Unnecessary casualties."
After he finished speaking, he tossed the comms device aside and gestured to his subordinate.
"Fire… remember to aim for the civilian areas."
Shinno wanted everyone in the city to know that Linto had arrived in Golin City.
If Linto chose to protect himself and not stop this destructive ray, his so-called ideals would be shattered—aren't you called 'invincible'?
Doesn't the invincible one even dare to face this?
If Linto made the choice that truly aligned with his heart and rushed out to block the cannon fire with his own body, that would be even better.
The destructive ray's power is comparable to a Tailed Beast Ball. Shinno doesn't believe any normal human could withstand such a blow.
The main cannon's muzzle glowed brilliantly. After a second of charging, the destructive ray shot out.
Not only the main cannon but also the eighty-one secondary cannons mounted on the sides of the Sky Fortress fired simultaneously at that moment.
Shinno stared at the screen.
The Sky Fortress looked down at the city below, and the screen displayed despairing faces looking up at the sky.
Among them were officials holding swords, searching for Arima Teruki.
There were old men and women going to the church to collect eggs.
There were the "rats" who followed Iwamine Genmasako.
And there were many more workers who hadn't finished their shifts.
Just a few seconds ago.
They were sitting at the assembly lines, looking up at the sky through narrow windows.
The workers heard Shinno's words.
Every gear on the assembly line was covered in machine oil, running incredibly smoothly. In contrast, their brains, after working for more than ten hours straight, were already like rusty clocks, unable to think and analyze the meaning of those words precisely or calmly.
All they could do was stare blankly out the window.
Watching the beams symbolizing death converge, they felt no fear, no panic, only a numbness that had seeped into their bones over days and weeks, a numbness that reached deep into their very marrow.
However, a roar arrived even before death.
"What are you looking at!"
The workshop supervisor's roar echoed: "Get back to work! Even if you die, die at your posts!"
The workers flinched.
The workshop supervisor was just a middle-aged man around forty, with a pot belly, less than 1.7 meters tall. Any young man among the workers could easily overpower him.
But no one dared to defy him.
This ordinary middle-aged man, in this small workshop, was more terrifying to the workers than the artillery fire descending from the sky.
Because the artillery fire might not land on them or their families, but if they angered the workshop supervisor, they would lose their jobs.
Hunger, poverty, and disease would follow, dragging them down little by little, making them fodder for this oasis city.
They couldn't be unemployed.
This job was hard-won by the workers. There were many people in the market who were more diligent than them but still unemployed. If they didn't cherish it, someone else would replace them the next day.
But the workers didn't know.
The fact that there were always some people unemployed in the market was precisely the leverage used by the consortium to control people, continuously squeezing their working hours and lowering their wages.
They lowered their heads, ignoring the falling artillery fire outside the window, and were about to resume work.
Only a thin young man was still looking at the sky. He tugged at his fellow worker and pointed outside the window. His hoarse voice, transitioning through puberty, echoed in the workshop.
"Look… someone."
Everyone's gaze once again turned to the sky.
They saw a sword.
A giant, straight sword, spinning as it flew towards the sky. It impacted the destructive ray with great force.
But how could a single sword block the Sky Fortress's full-power shot? It merely delayed it for less than half a second before its spinning momentum stopped, and it was about to be blasted away.
Just then, a hand grasped the hilt of the sword.
"Linto!"
Shinno burst into laughter: "Foolish! So foolish!"
"To risk everything for a bunch of lowly peasants and withstand the destructive ray, Linto, you really are an imbecile! In that case, don't worry about the strain, increase the power to 150%!"
"Yes!"
The destructive ray, already seven or eight meters wide, surged again, pressing down on Linto like a mountain.
Gazing eyes from across the city focused on Linto; he looked so small.
If one could use Chakra manipulation, infusing Chakra into their eyes would reveal Killer Queen and Aerosmith working together again.
Aerosmith was strafing the secondary cannon fire, trying to blow them all up in mid-air.
Linto had countless ways to avoid this blow.
But since he was here, he wouldn't dodge.
This had nothing to do with the foolishness Shinno spoke of.
It was simply because Linto knew that this was something others couldn't do, but perhaps he could, so he stepped forward.
Two Stands were strafing the other artillery fire.
Linto also distanced himself from Daichi, who could lend him strength.
All he had to rely on was this body and the sword in his hand.
Linto had never directly confronted an attack of Tailed Beast Ball level before. Now he knew how fierce such an attack was.
His clothes shredded, and the golden flames were continuously extinguished under the onslaught of the destructive ray. Every inch of his skin was being stripped away, only to regenerate, and even his regeneration speed was being suppressed.
But——
Linto raised his head, his breathing gradually steadying, and stared at the Sky Fortress.
"Nothing special."