"You're not human! You're not human!"
Within Morning Wind District, Pearl Prefecture was the second-largest city after Star Engraving Prefecture. It controlled the rivers and connected to Azure District beyond its borders. The coastal defense line, Sirius Lighthouse, also fell under Pearl Prefecture's jurisdiction. It held transportation, military, and trade importance, and was practically a smaller Star Engraving. If anything happened to Star Engraving Prefecture, all the administrative forces of Morning Wind District could be transferred to Pearl Prefecture.
Because political struggles had intensified within Star Engraving Prefecture and the Statistics Department had been purging dissenters, quite a few wealthy families had secretly moved to Pearl Prefecture. Pearl Prefecture had grown even more prosperous.
Yet the once-peaceful Pearl Prefecture had now been placed under complete military control by the Coastal Army. All the commoners hid in their homes, afraid to go outside. Several thousand soldiers surrounded the Prefectural Governor's Mansion so tightly that not even a drop of water could pass through, while tens of thousands of Coastal Army soldiers outside Pearl Prefecture were incorporating the "rebels" from Sirius Lighthouse.
In the courtyard of the Prefectural Governor's Mansion, a tall, burly man with a leopard's head, ringed eyes, swallow-like jaw, and tiger whiskers sat on the ground. His face showed terror completely at odds with his appearance as he trembled, holding a nine-ring saber. "You're definitely not human! You're a monster, a monster!"
If anyone outside had seen this scene, their jaws would have dropped in shock. This burly man was none other than Keda Ya, a fierce general under the former governor, the Nine Sea King, Lu Zhong. He had a fiery temper and unmatched courage, and had earned countless military merits. Yet now, he was trembling like a quail.
Lan Yan, fully armed, held his longsword under his