Growing frustrated with the drawn-out battle, Lawrence's initial spark of fighting spirit was quickly extinguished upon witnessing the Storm Fleet's fearless assault on the radar. Despite his ruthlessness and cunning, Lawrence—a leader who had ruled the Demon Star System for centuries—was ultimately a coward, desperately clinging to life.
The older he grew, the more he feared death. Lawrence now wavered, struggling between advancing and retreating. Given the skill and resilience of the opposing fleets, breaking their defenses could take an entire day even with considerable losses. He knew that if he delayed further and allowed the Storm Fleet reinforcements to arrive, he would find himself trapped with little chance of escape.
Meanwhile, the connection between Feng Mo, Chu Yunjian, and Hua Yucheng remained unbroken, allowing them to coordinate seamlessly. Knowing that Feng Mo was on his way, Chu and Hua shifted from a defensive stance to an all-out offensive, deploying numerous T4 kamikaze drones from their carriers. These drones hurled themselves at the Demon Fleet in a destructive exchange of machine for ship.
Both sides fought fiercely, neither willing to yield an inch. As elite fleets of their respective factions, these forces consisted of seasoned veterans, with the Huyin Empire's soldiers proving superior in skill and discipline to the Demon Fleet's personnel.
Meanwhile, Ai Er had positioned her four T4 Scorpions on the battlefield, yet she refrained from engaging immediately. Instead, she maneuvered around to the Demon Fleet's rear. Spotting Lawrence's quasi-T5 flagship stationed at the fleet's rear as expected, Ai Er's suspicions were confirmed—Lawrence, always cautious and terrified of death, had placed his flagship at the rear to observe and command from safety.
"Scorpion 1 and Scorpion 2, lock onto the enemy flagship and await my command. Scorpion 3 and Scorpion 4, move into position on the left and right flanks and confirm when ready. Your task is to unleash a full-scale barrage on the entire fleet, focusing on maximum coverage of enemy ships."
The four Scorpions spread out, with two remaining at a distance behind the Demon Fleet, while the other two silently flanked the fleet from both sides.
"Commander, Scorpion 3 has reached the designated position. Scorpion 4 has also reached its target point," a crew member reported.
Ai Er nodded. "Scorpion 1 and Scorpion 2, move in closer. Scorpion 3 and Scorpion 4, initiate full bombardment of the enemy fleet!"
"Understood!"
In an instant, the two flanking Scorpions uncloaked, unleashing a torrent of missiles and torpedoes.
Lawrence, torn between fleeing and continuing the fight, was too lost in thought to notice the radar alert. His lieutenant, however, saw the sudden appearance of two cloaked bombers on the radar, his eyes widening in terror. He fumbled with his communicator, barely able to speak.
"Sir… stealth bombers!"
The lieutenant's cry snapped Lawrence out of his daze. His eyes fell upon the radar screen, where he, too, was momentarily stunned.
In a flash, missiles and torpedoes rained down, engulfing the rear of the Demon Fleet in explosions. T4 ships received extra "attention," with clusters of pulse torpedoes and kinetic beam missiles transforming them into raging fireballs.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A chain of explosions lit up the rear of the Demon Fleet, turning it into a sea of flames. Lawrence's eyes were fixed on the radar, watching as the green indicators representing his fleet's ships blinked out. In moments, over a hundred ships had been lost.
These were Lawrence's lifeblood—the foundation of the Demon Star System. He had already suffered greatly from losing nearly 300 ships in past skirmishes, and now another hundred ships were gone. At this rate, he would have nothing left to defend his territory.
But Ai Er wasn't done. Seizing the moment while the Demon Fleet reeled from the sudden chaos, she ordered a decapitation strike.
Two more Scorpions uncloaked in the starry void, launching nearly two hundred missiles and torpedoes directly at Lawrence's quasi-T5 flagship. With devastating precision, about a third of the barrage homed in on the flagship alone.
"Warning! Flagship under attack! Shields at maximum power. Close-in defense systems active. Commander, please issue orders!"
But Lawrence, too shaken to give proper orders, had no choice but to brace for impact. He trusted the flagship's heavy armor and shielding to withstand this barrage.
"Warning! Shield energy at 93%… 85%… 72%… 65%… 39%…"
By the time the Scorpions exhausted their ammunition, the flagship's shields had been depleted to 39%. The four Scorpions, now out of ordnance, turned to retreat, leaving the quasi-T5 flagship battered but operational. Its shields would gradually recover over time—but Feng Mo wouldn't allow that.
Before Lawrence could take a breath, the alert system sounded again.
"Warning! Multiple enemy ships detected in the rear. Scanning complete: one quasi-T5 ship, forty T4 ships, and numerous T3 ships."
Lawrence's heart skipped a beat—his reinforcements had arrived, and he knew all too well that the Scorpions' attack was just the prelude to the real onslaught.
As if that weren't enough, his lieutenant approached with yet another grim report.
"Lord, as of now, we've lost 63 T4 ships and 317 T3 ships—a third of our fleet is gone. I suggest sending a suicide squad to delay the enemy and buying time for our remaining ships to retreat to the Demon Star System."
Before the lieutenant could finish, another alert cut him off.
"Warning! Large incoming missile barrage detected. Close-in defense systems fully activated to intercept."
On the radar, Lawrence and his lieutenant could see a thousand missiles descending on the Demon Fleet like a meteor shower. Despite immediate countermeasures, over four hundred missiles managed to slip through.
Another wave of explosions rocked the fleet. Using machines like the T4 Scorpions and T3 Boxers was costly, and they were sparingly deployed. But in large-scale battles like this, their firepower was unmatched.
Watching the red dots on his radar wane even further, Lawrence's mind filled with dread. Grabbing his lieutenant by the arm, he barked an order.
"Gather a suicide fleet to intercept the enemy forces from both directions. Buy time for the flagship to retreat. Tell them that their families will be well cared for if they succeed. Their children will be granted noble ranks!"
"Yes, my lord!"
Realizing that he had no choice but to flee, Lawrence quickly ordered his quasi-T5 Vulture-class Battleship
to turn and escape, accompanied by ten T4 Black Rhino-class Escort Ships.
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