-"Your Majesty!"
-"Empresses!"
The crowd below started to cheer as they woke up from their stupor. Most of the civilians were familiar with us, often seeing us working here and there, especially with Ningguang and Astraea, who regularly show themself in the city.
The guests, on the other hand, were barely familiar with us and, more often than not, spoke and met with our representatives. Only a few of those who met us during the Qlipoth's meeting had known our appearance.
-"The march already started, so the first group should be here shortly."-Nobu looked into the distance.
~"What about the guests?"
-"All invited arrived, but there are some who were brought as companions of others."-Ningguang scanned the crowd below us.-"What surprises me are those Cultivators brought by Meng. There are quite a few of them, but they are not overlords of major forces. Most of them are heads or representatives of ancient families."
~"Many ancient families entered a long recession, being overtaken by sects in many fields. We are the opportunity to overturn that trend as we don't want to take over their world, only act as hands-off shopkeepers."
-"Especially attractive to them is knowledge about true immortality we possess. Those families exist only because of the backing of one or a few ancestors, but even Empyrean has a limited life span, and they are approaching it."
~"Indeed. The possibility of extending their lifespan by helping them enter the Path of Abundance is something they can't miss. Even if they have to trade their allegiance for it."
-"Meng and Piaoyu are fully responsible for them, so we don't have to worry about that matters."
-"You guys always turn the subject back to work. Chill out and focus on the fun."-Nobu rolled her eyes at us.
As Nobu was right that there was time and space for everything, I focused on the public square below as the steps of the units could be heard closing in.
The first units to appear were the Cloud Knights, commanded by Jing Yuan. After we assimilated the Xianzhou Alliance into Hold, the armies and populations of the whole Hexafleet underwent restructuring and migration.
The whole previous military of the Xianzhou Alliance was split into four armies of Hold, and Cloud Knights kept those most experienced in frontal combat and following the Path of Hunt. This was the biggest army in Hold right now, as over half of the previous Knights remained in this Order.
They were the first to walk into the square, the five thousand most elite Cloud Knights, each wearing silver armor that, despite undergoing modifications, still retained the distinct style of the Xianzhou. Each of them wields a glave, having a sword by the belt and bow on their back. They do not specialize in any particular field but encompass a wide range of mystical abilities as key members of the Hold's Loufu forces.
Assisting them on Loufu are two more armies under the Cloud Knights Order, the Cloud Wardens and Verdant Knights. Cloud Wardens were transferred from the Ten Lords Commission, becoming a unit specializing in suppression and more incorporeal types of enemies, while Verdant Knights are mostly made from Foxians and act as shock troops.
Those two units also walked on the square. Cloud Wardens carried their heavy guillotine blade and wore armor modified to give more resistance to mystical forces, while Verdant Knights sported light armor modernized from their previous porcelain armor and wielded swords and bows like Cloud Knights.
To become a Knight in Hold, one had to become a Pathstrider. This was something that many couldn't achieve easily, as even before, most Cloud Knights never entered Path of Hunt. Luckily for many, mutations that one undergoes under MANTIS and training regime helped them become Pathstriders.
But this still took some time, and as such, right now, the total number of Cloud Knights slowly approached four hundred thousand, with more than twice that still undergoing training to become a Knight. This figure does not include the new recruits who began military training this year.
Right after them, Nobu's Ember Knights entered. Ember Knights retained some former Xianzhou Knights, but to become the Ember Knight, one had to walk the Path of Destruction, not Hunt. Because of that, most of them were original soldiers who served Nobu in her world.
Ember Knights used red and black colors like Nobu, while their armor used elements characteristic of Nobu's Japan in their style. As for weapons, each of them was equipped with a rifle that was created by joint efforts of Dr. Mei, da Vinci, Xianyun, and Hephaestus, who used techniques and technologies from many words to create a weapon capable of manifesting Path of Destruction to attack.
Ember Knights use a variety of such weapons, focusing on ranged combat and overpowering their enemies. In their ranks, they are not divided into sub-units like Cloud Knights, not existing for long enough to form specialized armies.
The third Knight Order that entered was Lapis Knights, commanded by Kenshin. This Order chose the Path of Preservation, becoming the strongest defensive Knights in Hold. They used bronze and orange as their colors to reflect their unmovable nature by associating with earth, with the style of Xianzhou.
Each of them is dressed in heavy armor that, under the hands of Vill-V, Herta, and Tesla, became an exosuit providing assistance to one wearing it with mechanical, electronical, and even mystical components. The second noticeable part of the equipment was the shields each Knight possessed, enchanting the defensive capabilities even further also by mixing mysitc and technology. The remaining weapons were standard ones that could be seen in other Orders.
Close behind, the Thunder Knights, commanded by Ei, approached the square. Inheriting island hopping style of wars of Inazuma, they specialized in warfare on ships and performing desants. Of course, now they perform those maneuvers in space. Picking purple as their color and Hunt and their Path, their numbers were made up of half by Inazuma Samurai and half by previous Xianzhou Knights.
As for weaponry, they used armor with similar capabilities to Cloud Knights, only changing style to match Inazuma, and weapons also followed that trend, swords becoming katanas and glaives becoming naginatas. Special to their Order were Starskiffs that were modified and upgraded by Aranyani, Albedo, and Tesla, turning them into unmatched fighters among the stars.
The last Order that entered the square was Ichor Knights, commanded by Ibaraki-douji. Being composed only of Onis, they obviously followed Path of Destruction, and by picking bright yellow as their color, they were most noticeable of all Orders.
They wore armors that were created from Traces of Abundance, giving them the appearance of Marastruck while providing power to heal like those at the same time. They entirely forgo any technological elements in place of fully empowering their Oni blood and power, becoming perfect berserkers on the battlefield.
The weapons were created to channel that power, enchanting it with Path of Destruction, thus forming characteristic yellow blades that cut through any matter in their way. As for their forms, most Ichor Knights used katana or nodachi, with rare spears here and there.
Closing the parade were Soldiers of Hold. Due to the demanding requirements to become Knights, many individuals were unable to meet them and consequently became Soldiers of Hold. They possessed much lower strength compared to Knights but made it up with their numbers, as per one Knight in training, there are ten Soldiers.
The person who was chosen as the main commander of the Soldiers was Yingxing, former Blade, and assisting him are Theresa and Doctor, who finally decided to take the name of Yuki.
They were outfitted with much more modern-looking armor and weapons that didn't require Paths to operate. They performed mostly logistical roles, along with operating machines and working behind the main lines assisting Knights.
Right now, there are relatively few active Soldiers, only around a hundred thousand, but if everything goes according to Nobu's plan, by the end of the fifth year, that number will rise to two million.
Looking at the most elite of the Hold's forces, I could not help but think of the enemies we would face in the future. Human Faction is estimated to possess trillions of soldiers, with at least ten million elites they call Adeptus Astartes. Chaos Faction are about the same, but they can revive indefinitely given enough time, while Tao Faction and Eldar Faction are considered to be neutral at the moment. Not to even mention Tyranids, who can't be counted due to Propagation now empowering them.
I quickly cleared my mind, deciding to cross that bridge when it arrives, and focused on the present. Knights and Soldiers stopped their march in front of us, performing a salute and waiting for their orders.
-"Salute!"-Each commander ordered their units.
After nodding in appreciation, Nobu stepped forward to address her subordinates.
-"Ladies and gentlemen, you stand here today with clean boots and pristine blades. Each of you pledged your very souls to receive those, becoming Knight or Solider. I don't know why you chose this career. I can't understand your motivations or yearnings."
Nobu extended her hand and grabbed the [Banner of Command] that appeared.
-"But I promise you, by the next year, you will need to clean your boots and polish your blades. Heed my order!"
-"Yes, Ma'am!"
-"You shall kill and die for the Hold. But no matter what, you shall never be defeated."
-"Yes, Ma'am!"
-"Good. March off."
Under that command, all forces saluted again and moved, entering through the gate under us into the High Grounds. The whole event lasted around two hours in total, but looking at the spectators, it achieved the intended results. When the last Soldier disappeared from view, five of us also retreated to the Palace, where the second part of the event will take place.
As to not delay any longer, we sat on our thrones and motioned for Zhongli to start. The main doors opened, and the representatives of Hold's vassals entered inside. One by one, they approached us and paid their respects before swearing fielty.
People from Nobu's Japan, Liyue, Inazuma, Sumeru, Ionia, Yōkai, various ethnic groups from Terra, and even Meng and Piaoyu brought people from their Sects, officially joining forces with Hold despite their previous reluctance.
After getting the official part out of the way, we then moved to a more comfortable meeting room and proceeded to discuss matters that the vassals raised. This meeting allowed them to skip many layers of bureaucracy, addressing things they thought were important for them and Hold as a whole.
Most of them were mainly about resources and policies on expansions and development, but among all the topics, few attracted my attention.
~"So the war between Demacia and Noxus erupted once again?"
-"Yes. Demacia was able to squash mage rebellion, eliminating hidden danger, while Noxus, after losing their holdings in Ionia, needed to achieve something to raise morale."-Irelia answered.
~"That is understandable, but why did you bring it up here?"
-"Because we received an invitation from a group of Celestials who want to preserve the world, ending wars to unite against a common foe."
~"From Targon?"
-"Yes."
~"When is that meeting to take place?"
-"In two months at the foot of Mount Targon."
~"I'll go there with Feng. A common foe that even Celestials can't defeat on their own might be worth our attention."
-"We hadn't even dealt with our first enemy, yet you seek another one? Marrying you was not a bad decision."
~"Glad to please you, Nobu, but I'm more interested in the Void existing in the world of Runeterra. I'm researching it along with Abyss of Tyvat and
other similar forces in many words, but I can't produce any results at all."
-"You think that those are associated?"
~"I don't know. I can only try."
Another matter that I decided to get involved in personally was the issue with the environment on Terra. After stabilizing the world and containing most of the Originium, the world entered a period of recovery, but the damages sustained proved beyond what could be resolved on its own.
After analyzing the data gathered by Talulah, Alina, and Nine, we decided that terraformation is the only way to restore the Terra to a normal state. While there were people capable of achieving that aside from me, the difference in efficiency was big enough to prompt me to act.
Ruan Mei was already experienced in cultivating environments, so she will be tasked with preparations, but in half a year, the Terra should be green again.
The meeting lasted a little over an hour, after which everyone went their way. I also returned to work, focusing my attention on my research.
As the routine fully returned, the time also started to pass quickly, though before I could get used to it, my journey to the Far East finally ended. The month-long voyage was rather boring, and aside from talking with Take and his familia, there was nothing to do.
Children of Take familia quickly became familiar with Jingliu and Cellinia, training with them in their free time. While I also tried to be friendly, the respect shown to me as someone equal to god was preventing any closer relations from forming.
Aside from Take, only Mikoto finally started to treat me somewhat normally, but this happened because I started teaching her how to control and use her gravitational magic, so she started looking up to me as her teacher.
When we touched the ground of the Far East archipelago, another god was waiting for us there, along with carriages to travel inland. He looked like an old sailor, with arms bigger than my head and a shaggy gray beard.
-"Welcome guests from afar."
-"So I'm not welcome here?"
-"Haha. This is as much your home as it's mine, Take. Welcome back."
-"Yes, it's good to be back. Yue, this is Azumi-no-isora.
~"Pleasure to make an acquaintance. I'm Yue."
-"Just call me Azumi, and I'll call you Yue. Ōmikami told us to take you to the capital for a few days before starting the journey to Takamagahara, so please forgive me for wasting your time."
~"I don't mind. Visiting a new place is never a waste of time in my eyes, and after listening to Take's prases of your lands, I have many things I wish to see with my own eyes."
-"I'm glad to hear that. Your accommodation will be prepared by one of the noble families in the capital, but if you need anything, feel free to speak to me or Take."
-"I'll remain with Yue to act as his guide, as I promised before."
~"Thank you."
-"I see that I'm not needed here."
-"Don't be like that, Azumi. Better help me take revenge on Yue. I have never met someone so good at Shōgi."
-"Shōgi? Sure, I consider myself quite versed in that."
~"If I were to defeat all Far East deities in Shōgi, would I become a god of Shōgi?"
-"Who knows? We can try."
-"Indeed, many of those guys would happily challenge you."
-"Lord Azumi, we are ready to depart."-A child of Azumi familia notified us.
-"Let's go then. While I like the breeze on the seashore, I believe you would prefer a cozy room after a travel."
Climbing into the carriage, we soon rode into the capital city of the Far East, as well as the home of the main Shinto shrine in the mortal world.