The starships accelerated at maximum speed!
For a newly constructed vessel, this was a formidable test. However, Feng Mo had absolute confidence in his own craftsmanship. Sure enough, ten minutes later:
"Report: Engine systems are fully operational, hull structure stable, energy levels sufficient, and flight remains steady without any irregularities!"
Hearing the reports from each section, Feng Mo felt reassured.
"Commander, next, we will conduct shield and weapons tests," Hua Qin informed him.
Three hours later, Hua Qin stood up, saluted Feng Mo, and announced, "Commander, the trial runs for both T4 Scorpion Tails are complete. No anomalies detected. Their performance is overwhelmingly superior, even compared to the T4 Lynx we faced before."
Feng Mo chuckled. With these two T4 Scorpion Tails, he wouldn't have to worry about any tricks the Bai Family might pull. As for dealing with the Bai Family's T4 fleet, he'd need to come up with a strategy.
"Well done, Hua Qin. Inform the fleet to prepare for the return journey."
That afternoon, the test flight concluded successfully, and the fleet returned to base. Instead of parking the two T4 Scorpion Tails at Storm Prime's spaceport, Feng Mo left them stationed in the asteroid belt. The Melo sisters, who were loyal confidants implanted with control chips, piloted the ships. They could be trusted entirely, and supply carriers would periodically bring them provisions.
Feng Mo was confident that they wouldn't need to remain hidden for long.
Back at Storm Prime, Feng Mo set aside his work to spend two days with Ai Er, only emerging from his quarters feeling refreshed on the third day, leaving Ai Er exhausted and resting.
He headed to his office and called Chu Yunjian over video. When the call connected, Chu Yunjian appeared in sleepwear, lounging on her bed with a relaxed, alluring demeanor.
Feng Mo, however, was in a calm and rational state, appreciating the view without other thoughts. He was still in "sage mode" after his recent experiences.
"Done with your retreat? I have something that requires your attention regarding the Bai Family," Chu Yunjian got straight to the point. Feng Mo raised an eyebrow. Over the past six months, the Bai Family had suffered greatly. Fengyun Starship Trading Company had seized market share, and the Tianqi Yue Family had added to their woes, leaving them in disarray.
Each month during Feng Mo's retreat, Chu Yunjian had sent him detailed reports on their efforts to undermine the Bai Family. Now, their starship sales had come to a grinding halt. The costs of mining raw materials, labor, and starship production taxes had left the Bai Family hemorrhaging money.
"What do you need me to do?" Feng Mo asked curiously.
"Currently, the Bai Family's starship trading company is on the brink of bankruptcy. They have a massive inventory of unsold starships and are heading straight for ruin. Besides, the Bai Family once paid you thirty million star credits plus five dark energy crystals as compensation."
"These were part of their old savings. However, our intelligence network recently uncovered another significant source of income for the Bai Family: the slave trade."
"Remember those three fleets that ambushed you? Their commander, Liang Guan, was in charge of the Bai Family's slave trade. After his death, the Bai Family picked up the business again within six months."
"In seven days, the first batch of slaves will be transported from deep space, passing through the Devil's System, U5 System, and U1 System, finally arriving in Auckland System."
"Your task is to intercept this fleet in the Devil's System and rescue the slaves. If you succeed, I can guarantee that the Bai Family will be finished by year's end."
As soon as Chu Yunjian finished, the Spark System interface appeared in front of Feng Mo, and a new temporary mission was added.
[Temporary Mission: Rescue the slaves being transported by the Bai Family. Reward: 1000 Points]
"Hey, Feng Mo, are you listening?" Chu Yunjian called, snapping Feng Mo out of his daze.
"Yes, Yunjian. Send me the details. Storm Fleet will handle it. We'll split the rescued slaves fifty-fifty."
Chu Yunjian gave Feng Mo a playful glare and replied, with a hint of flirtation, "You're too kind. Keep the rescued slaves for yourself. Your Storm System doesn't even have ten billion residents yet. You need to keep working on that."
Feng Mo felt a bit awkward. The truth was that the Storm System had once had ten billion inhabitants. But after Feng Mo's campaign against the Bisians, more than half the population had been wiped out, and the rest were enslaved laborers, leaving only about eight billion people.
With such a small population base, it was difficult to produce enough talent. That was why Ai Er had frequently traveled to Auckland System to bring back skilled slaves. Chu Yunjian was clearly aware of this situation, hence her remark.
"Thank you, Yunjian," Feng Mo expressed his gratitude sincerely, causing Chu Yunjian to blush slightly. Embarrassed by Feng Mo's heartfelt gaze, she abruptly ended the video call.
Shortly after, the details about the Bai Family's slave transport fleet came through, and Feng Mo examined the information carefully.
After losing a T4 Lynx and a T3 mid-sized fleet, and facing constant pressure for half a year, the Bai Family was no longer as financially strong as they had been. This time, their transport fleet included ten fully loaded T3 interstellar transport ships, escorted by a mixed fleet of one hundred T3 and T2 starships.
The flagship was a T3 Hive-Class Carrier, accompanied by a T3 Cheetah-Class Battleship and twelve T3 Peregrine-Class Destroyers. The remaining escort ships and support vessels were T2 class and not particularly threatening.
Armed with this information, Feng Mo didn't jump into strategic planning right away. Instead, he turned to Hua Qin, who had been waiting.
"Hua Qin, how is Storm Fleet's reorganization coming along?" Feng Mo inquired.
"Commander, you now command three fleets: Storm Fleet, the Explorer Fleet, and the Elven Fleet," Hua Qin reported.
"Storm Fleet has forty-four T3 starships, sixty-four T2 starships, and one hundred T3 mechas. The flagship lineup includes the Storm, a T3 Sea Lion, and two T3 Boxers. The main fleet has sixteen T3 Mantis-Class Destroyers and sixty-four T2 Black Bears. The logistics fleet comprises four T3 Copper Hammers, ten T3 Reindeers, and ten T3 Scarlet Wrigglers.
"The Explorer Fleet includes ten T3 starships and eight T2 starships, with one T3 Sea Lion as the flagship, four T3 Mantises, eight T2 Black Bears, one T3 Copper Hammer, and two T3 Reindeers and Scarlet Wrigglers each.
"The Elven Fleet has thirty T3 starships and ninety T2 starships, including a Storm, a T3 Sea Lion, four T3 Mantises, twelve T3 Rhinos, five T3 Reindeers, two T3 Copper Hammers, and five T3 Scarlet Wrigglers.
"All three fleets have completed construction, finished test runs, and are ready for deployment. Also, the Laila-Lacey sisters reported significant progress in exploring the Storm System. They discovered seven new resource planets: one T3-level and six T2-level. Full exploration of the system will take another six months."
Feng Mo nodded in satisfaction. The Laila-Lacey sisters were making steady progress, and more resource planets would increase the system's revenue.
"Hua Qin, have Storm Fleet resupply with ammunition and energy. We'll set out in six days. The logistics
fleet won't need to follow; we'll be back shortly."
"Yes, sir!" Hua Qin replied.
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