With a single command from Qin Yi, the vast army of Qin's Nation set into motion.
In just three hours, at the rapeseed flower port, warships departed one after another, their prows cutting toward distant seas.
A hundred warships advanced side by side, lined with soldiers whose grim faces and cold, unwavering eyes mirrored the blood-drenched path ahead.
"Everything along the way is the enemy!"
"Final destination, Sabaody Archipelago! Set sail!"
Officers roared, their harsh voices carrying over the decks as sailors leapt into disciplined action.
The pitch-black cannons mounted on the warships gleamed ominously in the sun, radiating menace. These were no simple inventions of the Pirate World, but the forged products of Qin's Nation industry, refined relentlessly during its great expansion.
After acquiring the technology of the Dragon Emperor World, Qin's Nation had kindled a fire of science, merging it with the essence of their civilization. Further fueled by the clash between Ninjutsu civilization and technological civilization, sparks of innovation had erupted, each strengthening the other, birthing power far beyond either world's limits.
"Vanguard units, increase speed! Sweep away all obstacles ahead!"
The command thundered across the sea. Instantly, the warships shifted into an unstoppable spearhead formation.
Splash!
The sea split apart as ship after ship surged forward, cutting through waves with blinding speed. White trails stretched endlessly behind them, like blades carving lines into the ocean itself.
At the center of the formation, Qin Yi sailed aboard a massive flagship surrounded by the steel wall of his fleet. His gaze was calm, but his heart burned with resolve.
"This time, our objective is nothing less than the full occupation of the Grand Line's first half."
"The Marines, the World Government, our clash with them is inevitable. Whether the war breaks out today or tomorrow makes no difference. Dispatch reinforcements from the homeland at once. Even with our Civilization Rank towering above this world's, I have a premonition that this will not be easy. This war must be swift, lightning swift! So fast, the enemy will be crushed before they even realize the war has begun!"
Qin Yi's voice echoed over the flagship, firm and resolute. He had already calculated every move. Large-scale wars always demanded preparation, but by striking first, Qin's Nation could seize the pace of history itself. Surprise would be their sharpest blade, cutting open the path to dominance.
"Your Majesty," A major general bowed low, his voice like iron, "Be at ease! General Yang is fully prepared. Five hundred thousand soldiers are mobilized as we speak! At this very moment, half a million troops are pouring into the Pirate World, one wave after another!"
Qin Yi gave a steady nod. Mobilizing half a million troops, complete with standardized weaponry, was no simple feat. Such deployment demanded immense time, resources, and coordination.
And this was no ordinary war. It was an inter-world operation, burdened with countless complexities: the laws of different realms, the unpredictable pressure of crossing dimensions. Even once they arrived, so massive an army could not simply be hurled into combat; acclimation would take time.
"Qin Lin, Yang Yi, Fang Lan!" His gaze sharpened as he called their names.
"Your Majesty, we are here!"
"You three will spearhead the vanguard. Your mission: crush everything in our path ahead!" Qin Yi's voice carried the weight of command, final and absolute.
"Yes!"
The three bowed low, and in the next instant, their figures blurred and vanished like shadows dissolved by the wind.
These three, in status, were equals to General Yang himself, pillars among Qin's military titans. Long retained at Qin Yi's side, their presence was testament to their unrivaled ability. But now, with war imminent across oceans and across worlds, it was only fitting they step onto the battlefield.
Qin Yi did not stop there. Orders streamed forth: to Hashirama, to Madara, to the assembled Kage and clan leaders, all veterans of their own worlds' wars, now bound by Qin's banner. Their realms of power were many, their allegiances diverse, yet strategy unified them into one blade aimed at the heart of the Pirate World.
When at last the command stream ended, Qin Yi drew his eyes closed, sinking inward. His thoughts sharpened, like steel tempered in fire.
From the instant they set foot in this world, he had chosen war. It was not an arbitrary decision but born of two inexorable reasons. First, Qin's Civilization Rank had surged, their power once more transcending old limits. Second, there was no longer any time to wait. The tides of history demanded speed.
Yes, there was merit in gentle conquest. Preserving worlds whole, maintaining their laws intact, always carried wisdom. But such luxuries no longer suited Qin's Nation in this hostile cosmos.
The sudden emergence of the Immortal Cultivator, King Shang Jiang, had stripped away any illusions of peace. This universe was a vast battlefield disguised as a stage. Qin Yi's heart knew it well:
In the early stages, even a King was little more than fragile flesh, an ant before Heaven's storms. One stumble, one hesitation, and oblivion awaited. Only by breaking through swiftly, seizing unparalleled strength, could one's fire avoid being snuffed out. Qin's Civilization, blazing with momentum, had no path except forward.
"This is no game of Otherworld travel," Qin Yi murmured, his words carrying like the low rumble of thunder.
"No voyage of leisure, no idle sampling of worlds' customs. This is a struggle for existence… a war for survival."
His eyes, half-lidded, brimmed with fire as he continued in thought.
The King's gift of the Myriad Realms Transfer was never meant for amusement. It was a tool of continuity, of survival, ensuring endurance in a universe vast enough to swallow worlds whole.
From his very first step into this reality, Qin Yi had already been pressed beneath the weight of survival. Only in the Naruto World had his foresight, his understanding, and his decisive action allowed him to avert annihilation.
And now, standing on the deck of his flagship while half a million soldiers marched behind him across seas and worlds alike, Qin Yi resolved once more: the fire of civilization must blaze higher, fiercer, eternal.
But foresight alone could not grant safety. Without strength, calamity would always return.
He had once looked through the Eye of the King, seeing clearly the struggles of countless races across the vast cosmos, and the desperate advance of Kings clawing for survival.
That single glimpse, that single strike, had etched a truth into his soul forever.
"Time is life."
Only through conquest, world after world, could the Fire of Civilization burn higher, consuming everything, leaping ceaselessly toward greater heights. Only then could survival be secured amidst the cruelty of the multiverse.
That was why Qin Yi finally understood why the path of Kings was always forged in iron and blood. Cold, ruthless, merciless. Because only such a path was fast enough, fast enough to outpace destruction.
And now, as Qin's Nation unfurled its banners and mobilized its immense armies, the entire Pirate World shuddered. None had expected them to dare lift their blade first, let alone against the Marines and the all-powerful World Government.
"They're insane! Qin's Nation has gone utterly mad, Ying Zheng has lost his mind!"
"A tyrant…! A true tyrant! To sweep across half of the first half of the Grand Line wasn't enough? Now he seeks the entire route?!"
"This is madness! Ying Zheng of Qin's Nation, history will curse his name for generations, etched in iron and blood!"
The world boiled with terror and uproar. Even the Marines were stunned, staggered by audacity that bordered on heresy.
Qin's Nation had not merely unsheathed their sword… they had already swung it.
On the seventh day, their colossal fleet crashed like a tidal wave upon Long Ring Island.
"Hurry, report to headquarters! We can't hold them!"
Marine warships, dozens strong, hurled themselves into defense on the surrounding seas. Yet under the endless storm of Qin's black iron cannons and the howling, shark-shaped missiles tearing through the skies, their resistance lasted mere breaths.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The skies thundered with fire. Warships erupted into flames as waves swallowed burning hulks whole. Amid the chaos, a Vice Admiral's face turned pale beneath the smoke.
"Retreat! Retreat! Their firepower is overwhelming!"
"How, how do they have these many weapons ready?!"
"This is impossible!"
But impossibility had already been shattered.
Wave after wave of barrage rained ceaselessly, shattering formations like clay before a hammer. Within three volleys, the proud Marine line broke apart entirely. Smoke choked the heavens, steel twisted, flames roared, until finally, only five or six battered Marine ships, half-burning and broken, limped away in disgrace.
At Marine Headquarters,
Bang!
The heavy desk cracked beneath the furious fist of Sengoku, the Fleet Admiral. His face was black as iron, voice sharp with incredulity.
"So fast! How could they possibly have this much military might!"
Even with the occupation of half the Grand Line, even with all his calculations, Sengoku could not fathom it. In such a short span of time, how had this nation, this Ying Zheng, assembled an arsenal that rivaled even the depths of Marineford?
(End of Chapter)
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