Unbeknownst to them, it was already past noon, but the sky outside had darkened as if it were the evening before nightfall.
While the crowd in the exhibition hall was still in confusion, the next moment, through the glass windows, a purple flash of lightning illuminated the venue, making Lin Lan's pupils constrict sharply.
If he still didn't understand what was happening now, then all the time he had spent dealing with the Sirens would have been for nothing.
He had already learned through the Western Continental network of the Orlan United States that the Leviathan living in the Great Trench of the Teaching Country could land and attack coastal cities.
The skin and tentacles of a typical Leviathan are dark green, and Lin Lan had already seen two of them.
The Sea King that Jian Qian'ou mentioned was the leader of the Leviathan group, legendary and entirely purple in color.
A new Sea King only emerged once every few hundred years.
According to the information from the Teaching Country, the Sea King was not only much larger than ordinary Leviathans, but it also possessed the power to command the Leviathan group and wield purple lightning magic!
One Sea King alone was terrifying enough, but its appearance usually signaled the arrival of at least a dozen Leviathans!
Only such a massive group of Leviathans landing together could truly be called a natural disaster!
According to the available records from the Teaching Country, centuries ago, during an attack by the Sea King Leviathan,
the Pope was severely injured, the Holy Knights were nearly wiped out, more than half of the high-ranking mages from the Magic Association were killed or wounded,
and the casualties among other combatants and civilians were countless.
After such a great cost, the Teaching Country finally managed to kill that Sea King Leviathan and avert the natural disaster.
After quickly recalling all of this, Lin Lan clenched his fist.
Now he understood.
The reason the Sirens had not launched their attack immediately after causing the storm was probably to control the Leviathan group and prepare to land and attack Yunhai City!
This was the natural disaster caused by the Sirens!
The crowd, now suddenly plunged into darkness, was in turmoil.
However, since most of the people present were port zone commanders and fleet girls, with high-ranking personnel from Tian'ou Group like Sun Dewang also in attendance, the chaos was quickly suppressed.
Even when two more thunderous rumbles followed the purple lightning, no one lost composure.
"Hehehe, Commander, we will protect you. Don't be scared," a voice from behind Lin Lan came, and his concerns were slightly eased when he heard Eji'er's voice.
"I'm not scared. Don't talk nonsense. August, as soon as we exit the building, you and Zeppelin will release the carrier planes to the seaside.
The Sirens are coming," Lin Lan said, turning to the witch August.
"No problem, familiar. I will do as you wish," August nodded lightly, knowing exactly what to do in this situation.
Soon, following the crowd, Lin Lan, along with Sui Qiong and the fleet girls, descended the motionless escalator.
The first-floor exhibition hall of the building had also plunged into darkness, with only the dim light of phone screens illuminating the crowded space.
Outside, the storm raged, and except for those who had parked in the underground garage and were heading further down, most people were trapped inside.
Qi Yue and the two commanders from Yalang City had already become separated from Lin Lan due to the dark surroundings.
Fortunately, Sui Qiong, Nimi, Akashi, August, and Eji'er remained close to Lin Lan, never straying far from him.
"Meow, if they were selling flashlights right now, they'd be making a fortune," little merchant Akashi whispered, not forgetting her old business even at this time.
"You're good at business. There should be backup power in the building.
How about helping me check where Ulrich and the others have gone?" Lin Lan said while looking around, searching for Ulrich and the other Ironblood fleet girls.
At that moment, the mocking voice of Deutschland came from beside him:
"Lower beings, are you looking for us?"
Lin Lan turned to see that Ulrich, Zeppelin, and the others had somehow gathered around him in the darkness.
"Commander, I understand the situation now, but we still don't know how large the Siren fleet is for this attack.
We need to go out and let Zeppelin and August deploy carrier planes for reconnaissance," Ulrich said softly, taking advantage of the dim light from the phone screens.
"Right, let's head out. Staying here serves no purpose," Lin Lan nodded to Ulrich.
After confirming that none of his fleet girls had fallen behind, he looked out at the torrential rain outside, tucking his phone into his pocket.
There was no need to worry about getting drenched now; it was crucial to understand the situation on the coast as soon as possible.
"Boom, boom!"
But at that moment, a series of dull sounds erupted outside the building. Lin Lan quickly recognized that these were not thunderclaps.
They were explosions.
Yunhai City had been shelled and bombed.
This sent the crowd inside the building into another frenzy, as many still didn't understand what was happening.
Soon, a loud, piercing alarm echoed from every building above in the city.
The entire Yunhai City was engulfed in the ear-piercing alarm, and all the regular citizens of Yunhai City immediately stopped whatever they were doing, their faces filled with disbelief.
In the exhibition hall, the noise of the crowd increased once again. Many were frantically pulling out their phones, refreshing the screen to find out what was happening.
Lin Lan, listening to the familiar alarm, couldn't help but smile bitterly.
Yes, it was the city destruction alarm again. He had heard it once before in Yalang City.
It seemed like he had some strange connection with this alarm.
Since the city destruction alarm had already sounded for Yunhai City, it meant that the city was truly on the brink of life and death.
Lin Lan decided not to waste any more time in the hall.
Just as he was preparing to leave the building with Sui Qiong and the fleet girls, a voice that was both old and firm reverberated throughout the hall:
"All Navy port zone commanders, listen up!"
This voice halted Lin Lan's steps, and all the chaotic noise in the hall was silenced by the voice, as if a spell had been cast. The hall fell into complete silence.
Following the direction of the voice, Lin Lan saw, aided by the dim light from others' phones, that it was Li Hongjun standing above on the escalator, looking down at the crowd.
"A few minutes ago, a large fleet of Sirens was discovered off the coast of Yunhai City, along with... dozens of sea beasts, Leviathans from the Teaching Country!"
"You all studied this in the naval academy. Leviathans are amphibious creatures; they can land!"
"The Siren fleet and the Leviathan group are heading towards Yunhai City.
They've chosen to attack our Orlan United States' most prosperous and important city on the West Continent."
Li Hongjun briefly explained the situation. After hearing his words, many of the wealthy merchants and senior officials from Tian'ou Group felt their legs go weak.
Many had already started running, trying to flee the building.
But all the port zone commanders and fleet girls, including Lin Lan and the Ironblood fleet girls, stood still, waiting for Li Hongjun's next orders.
"Tell me, what was the first thing you learned when you joined the Navy?" Li Hongjun's voice, though old, was filled with a heavy killing intent, which made every naval commander stand straighter and answer loudly:
"We are the sharp blades and heavy shields of Orlan, and we swear to keep the Orlan flag flying high over the seas forever!"
The synchronized shouts stunned the remaining wealthy merchants and Tian'ou Group personnel, who widened their eyes, staring at the naval commanders in the hall.
These port zone commanders had only recently been ordinary people, just like them.
But in this moment, they finally realized something.
Port zone commanders were also part of the Navy.
And the Orlan Navy had existed since the day Orlan United States was founded.
Even though the Orlan United States' ships had evolved from wooden sailing ships to ironclad ships, battleships, and aircraft carriers, and now to those small, adorable fleet girls,
Even though the government of Orlan United States had changed time and time again, and even now, the Zhuhai Sea Commercial Association had tried countless times to abolish the Navy and opposed it at every turn.
But the spirit of the Orlan Navy had never died.
"Hehehe, humans, this is getting interesting," said the red-eyed black Emden beside Lin Lan, observing the situation with a deep smile.
Lin Lan understood why Emden would say this.
Because this Emden, the flagship of the Ironblood High Seas Fleet, had been the one who issued the "Eleventh Section" scuttling order in Scapa Flow, fully understanding the mood of the Navy commanders here, who were ready to face death without hesitation.
Now, with the sudden Siren attack, along with the Sea King Leviathan and the Leviathan group.
If the Navy didn't stop the Siren fleet and the Leviathan group overseas, and let them land, Yunhai City would surely be destroyed.
Yunhai City was the beacon of Orlan civilization on the West Continent, and despite the Siren disaster, it had never fallen to the Sirens.
Now, millions of ordinary people had yet to evacuate.
The Navy had no retreat; they could only fight to the death.
Before reinforcements arrive from other cities, everyone here must, with their fleet girls, fight and hold off the Sirens and Leviathans!
Lin Lan silently observed the heavy atmosphere in the darkness, not continuing to listen to Li Hongjun's mobilization and deployment of the battle plan.
In the darkness, he quietly left the building with Sui Qiong and the fleet girls.
After all, as an intern commander, he was likely to be assigned to second-line defense, and wouldn't have his fleet girls face the Sirens head-on.
If that were the case, by the time he saw the Sirens, most of the port zone commanders and fleet girls would likely have already died in battle.
He didn't want to witness such a brutal situation.
So, he chose to confront the Sirens himself, eager to see what exactly the Sirens were planning in their attack this time.
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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta
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