The Shining Star Above The Heaven

For the next few hours after the arrival of the first visitors from outside the Barisan continent, the number of arrivals grew larger and larger. Some of them used cruisers, while others came in interstellar vessels. Those with cruisers flew directly toward the deeper parts of the continent, intending to explore and learn about it first.

The sight of flying cruisers and interstellar vessels along the coastline became common for the people living nearby. The scene truly amazed them, as this was the first time they had seen such transports. They wondered why the Barisan continent did not seem to utilize those kinds of flying transports.

As far as they knew, the only flying transport on the Barisan continent was the flying fortress, which was used for war. They had never seen anything like cruisers, which were smaller and much faster. If such transports existed on their continent, the Barisan continent would have much more varied transportation besides the teleportation portal.

As the visitors from outside became more numerous, their interactions with the locals of the continent grew more frequent. These outsiders first wanted to learn about the continent itself while also preparing for their journey to meet the ruler of this land.

For the great powers from outside, it would not be polite to simply explore the continent without first meeting its ruler.

At this moment, Aldrian, who was enjoying the palace scenery from the balcony of his room, could sense everything happening across the continent. With his domain's sense, he knew exactly what those outsiders were doing, and with his domain covering the entire world, he was aware that many more would soon arrive.

He sensed some familiar figures among them, interacting with the locals as they learned about the continent. There were no problems for now, which made him nod in appreciation at the outsiders' understanding. He only hoped that this situation would last, and that those outsiders would be sensible enough to take his warning seriously.

It would take some time before those people arrived at his palace, so he did not need to prepare for now. He could sense that they were taking their time to learn about the continent while making their way toward the palace.

A few moments later Sylphia appeared, entering the room and standing beside him on the balcony as she also watched the scenery.

"It has started. Those outsiders are already arriving one by one. My father said some of them landed on the coast of the Ivory Kingdom," she said, to which Aldrian responded with a nod.

"I just hope there will be no problems in the future. To be honest, I'm still quite nervous about the influx of outsiders while we are overall still much weaker than them."

Aldrian smiled as he hugged her waist and kissed her temple.

"You don't have to worry. I will always oversee the entire continent and make sure no great problem arises."

"I know. You are my strongest emperor, after all, and I know that once any problem arises, you can solve it easily. It's only my worry, so I said it aloud, not because I doubt your ability," Sylphia replied, which made Aldrian kiss her again.

"I know, my love. I know."

While the two lovers enjoyed their own moment, some of the outsiders were arriving at the cities and towns near the coast. Among them was the earliest group to set foot on the continent, the sea folk. After learning what they needed from the villagers along the coast, they took out a cruiser from their storage ring and continued their journey.

By now, they had already arrived at one of the coastal cities of the Doria Kingdom and had begun seeking further information about the continent. Everywhere they went, people turned their heads toward them, their unusual appearance drawing constant attention.

This was natural, as the Barisan continent had never seen a mixed race of humans and spiritual beasts like the sea folk. Everyone was curious about these newcomers. They had already known that outsiders might come, so they were prepared, yet they still could not help but watch them as if they were the most fascinating sight in the world.

As the sea folk strolled through the streets, one of her personal guards glanced around at the crowd and could not help but comment.

"Have they never seen someone like us before? Or are they simply curious about people from outside their continent?"

"I don't think they've ever seen us. Those villagers earlier were already a sign that they had never met sea folk before. It's no wonder these people look at us as if we're strange creatures," another guard replied.

"From our observations since we arrived, we can conclude that the information spread a few weeks ago about this continent seems true—the people here are weak. But I'm confused as to why. The energy here seems sufficient for people to break through to the Immortal Transition Realm. With their strength this low, this place is basically like a big piece of pie that many powers would want to claim," the earlier guard said.

"Well, that is, if they can defeat the protector of this continent," Princess Xeris interjected as she looked toward the floating land.

"Aldrian the Great. The people here truly regard him as a kind of god. Although we thought that was somewhat excessive, we must admit his strength is the real deal, based on what we saw that day," she added.

The battle between Aldrian and Tarius naturally drew the attention of the sea folk from the ocean depths, for a clash of that scale could not escape their notice. In fact, from the very moment the devils succeeded in creating the black pillar, the sea folk had sensed the disturbance on the continent, yet they could not enter it to investigate further.

Just as with the sea surface, they could not enter the continent from beneath the ocean because of the violent currents, which were truly dangerous even for those at the peak of the Pseudo-Immortal stage. These currents were so powerful that they could sweep away a massive creature like a mountain whale, and so sharp that they could pierce flesh with ease.

Those who dared to force their way into the continent through the sea would be dead before they even realized it, their bodies torn to shreds by the razor-like, overwhelming currents.

"I truly wonder how an existence like that could appear. How could this continent produce someone like him? Even when I recall that day, I still get goosebumps. There is no way such power could be unleashed by a mortal," one of the guards said as he looked toward the floating land.

"We might know soon. In any case, we need to keep gathering as much information as we can here before continuing our journey to the palace," the princess answered, before they resumed their stroll under the watchful eyes of the city's people.

Scenes like this with the sea folk could be seen across many parts of the continent, as more and more outsiders entered the coastal cities.

The Martal Empire's group received the same treatment, though the attention they drew was not as intense as with the sea folk, since they were human. The people were only curious about who they were and eager to catch a glimpse of those from beyond the continent.

"This is truly as His Majesty Aldrian said. This place is indeed lacking in terms of average cultivation level. I don't sense even a single cultivator at the Immortal Transition Realm in this city," Emperor Rozwald remarked.

Prince Ronwell nodded. "Yes, if there were no one like His Majesty Aldrian, then I can already imagine the chaos that would follow. The great pie called the Barisan continent, with its weak populace unable to defend it, the final fate of this land would be nothing more than a battlefield for countless powers fighting to claim it."

"This is the greatest weakness of this continent. And we could take advantage of that by offering His Majesty Aldrian something to ease his burden," Emperor Rozwald said.

Prince Ronwell wondered what his father was planning, but then a thought came to him. "Ah, yes. We could offer strong cooperation with His Majesty and build a much closer relationship with him."

"Are you from outside the continent?" a little girl suddenly asked the emperor, causing their conversation to stop. Emperor Rozwald and Prince Ronwell turned to look at the child nearby, who gazed at them with wide, curious eyes.

Her mother, carrying her in her arms, quickly covered her daughter's mouth and bowed deeply. "My apologies for my daughter. She is simply curious about Your Excellency. Please don't take her question too seriously."

Emperor Rozwald was slightly stunned, but he showed a gentle smile as he began approaching the mother. The people nearby grew wary, wondering what this group intended to do. Was he going to cause trouble despite the warning of Aldrian the Great?

The mother herself grew frightened as Emperor Rozwald drew closer, the only thing she could rely on being the silent reassurance that their emperor stood behind them.

However, the mother was stunned when the emperor took out a piece of candy from his storage ring and handed it to the child. The little girl accepted it with a bright, happy expression, while her mother, still nervous, allowed her to take it.

"Yes, we are from outside the continent. And please, don't be afraid, we have no intention of bringing harm by coming to this place. You may rest assured," he said, glancing at the mother as he spoke.

"You have a cute and beautiful daughter, madam. I hope you both have a good day," he added before continuing on with his group.

The mother watched them leave and let out a sigh of relief, smiling as she looked at her daughter holding the gift from the outsider.

The atmosphere in the coastal cities remained peaceful despite the influx of people arriving from outside the continent. Yet, within such an amicable setting, there were always those who sought to exploit the situation for their own schemes—just like the one who had just stepped onto the continent.