Super Mothership
In fact, he had anticipated this long ago. As long as the opposing commander was not utterly incompetent, they were bound to adopt such a commerce-raiding tactic.
He did not order the defensive fleet to pursue. With their second-hand, refitted ships, there was no way they could catch up with the enemy’s high-speed fleet.
And if a large number of ships were dispatched to intercept them, the defenses here would be left hollow. Without coordinated fleet support, it would be easy for the enemy to exploit the opening and break through.
Ship performance could be said to be the Ryan Clan’s fatal weakness. Whether in firepower or speed, they were no match for the regular forces of the Gemini Star civilization.
The Bronze Mecha Legion was powerful in combat, but at best it was just a mass of infantry. Competing with cavalry in speed and endurance was simply impossible.
Even though he understood Gemini Star’s intentions, the means available to counter them were limited. All he could do was watch helplessly as the enemy slipped farther and farther away.
Before long, the two retreating Gemini Star fleets activated their optical stealth systems. The entire formation gradually blurred, then vanished completely from the Ryan Clan’s radar.
Although gravitational radar could penetrate optical stealth, it was far from omnipotent. Its main drawback was its short detection range, which was proportional to the mass of the target.
For massive celestial bodies, the detection range could reach light-year scales. But for small-scale fleet targets like these, tens of millions of kilometers was already the limit.
“Chief, what should we do now? Those two fleets together have more than sixty warships. Their combat power isn’t strong, but they could still pose a threat to our logistics supply lines…” someone said worriedly.
“Relax. I warned Jinlok about this long ago. He cherishes his private fleet and wants to preserve his strength, pushing us out as cannon fodder. Then he should have been prepared for this outcome. This responsibility won’t fall on us.
As for protecting the supply lines, that’s not within our scope of responsibility…” A sharp glint flashed in the old clan chief’s eyes.
……
“Bang! A bunch of useless trash!”
As expected, when Jinlok—safely hidden in the rear—received the news, he only vented his frustration by smashing a cup and cursing them as useless, without actually going to trouble the Ryan Clan.
The Ryan Clan had indeed warned both sides long ago about the disparity in ship performance. But Jinlok’s fleet was essentially his private property; if it suffered damage, it would break his heart.
Jinlok’s calculations were shrewd. Even if all the mercenaries were wiped out, he wouldn’t care—he could always recruit another batch.
Unfortunately, he had misjudged the strength of the Gemini Star civilization from the very beginning. While it was far inferior to the Wolf Empire, it was by no means something a single wealthy merchant could swallow with ease.
At the very least, Gemini Star still appeared quite resilient. This war clearly wouldn’t end anytime soon.
War, no matter where it occurs, is the most money-burning investment of all. Even if mercenaries are cheap, their equipment and supplies require very real, hard cash.
Although the dozens of star systems under Jinlok’s control produced decent output and he could supply himself, with the spending also stimulating internal demand, he still couldn’t withstand this endless drain of funds.
He was already feeling irritable because of it, and now the enemy had pulled this stunt on him.
He found himself in a difficult position, like riding a tiger he couldn’t dismount.
One had to know that this wormhole had already been registered with the Wolf Empire, and Jinlok had merely purchased the “independent development rights” to it.
This model was like a land bureau’s wilderness development contract: you pay to lease a piece of wasteland and develop it.
No matter the outcome, you just hand over a portion as personal income tax.
But now, halfway through development, Jinlok discovered that the local residents’ “relocation compensation” was outrageously high—requiring additional investment!
That was a killer blow.
If he stopped investing, the early funds he’d poured in would basically go down the drain.
But if he continued, no one knew when this bottomless pit would finally be filled. It wasn’t impossible that he’d end up bankrupt.
That’s why gambling on rough stones is risky—enter the trade with caution…
Given the current situation, handing the Gemini Star issue over and requesting the Imperial military to take over the war would undoubtedly be the safest option—cutting losses.
But the question was: was Jinlok the type to cut his losses?
Obviously not. He would rather die than cut his losses! That would be even more painful to him than losing his life.
Now he could only hope that Kloros’s plan would succeed…
“Have our people reinforce the defenses. Double the escort strength of the transport fleets. Also, have the Fifth Fleet search the nearby star regions and wipe out those two annoying flies!” Jinlok said, rubbing his temples.
Every one of these actions meant increased costs—money he had worked hard to earn!
Damn those enemies!
“Yes, sir!”
……
The Titan Star System was the closest system under Jinlok’s control to the wormhole battlefield. The distance between the two was roughly one light-hour. At the current speeds of Wolf Empire starships, the journey would take a little over ten hours.
The Fifth Fleet was one of the five private fleets under Jinlok’s command, with a total of around 500 warships. Under normal circumstances, it was responsible for defending the Titan Star System.
In addition to that, it also handled the protection of the logistics routes for this war. One could say it was the greatest obstacle facing the Gemini Star fleets in their commerce-raiding operations.
However, just as Jinlok began mobilizing his forces to encircle and suppress the invading fleets, Nie Yun led his own fleet straight toward a specific set of coordinates.
Unlike Beckman, who was groping in the dark and could only gather intelligence bit by bit, Nie Yun had long since infiltrated the Ryan people’s intelligence systems, giving him the initiative.
Although the Ryan Clan possessed only limited knowledge of Jinlok’s internal affairs—troop deployments and the like were impossible for them to access—
as local natives, the Ryan people had an unparalleled advantage when it came to intelligence on the surrounding star regions…
Ten days later, after traveling at high speed and executing several disguised course changes, Nie Yun led the fleet to its planned destination.
What greeted them was an incomparably vast asteroid field!
“This is…” Everyone in the fleet was stunned by the scene before them.
Within a region roughly the size of the Solar System, celestial fragments of all sizes slowly revolved around a central white dwarf star. Fine clouds of dust permeated the entire star region.
What was shocking was not the scale of the asteroid belt, but the faint clues hidden within the shattered celestial bodies themselves.
Some of the fragments were as large as small planets, yet they were not naturally formed ellipses or near-spherical shapes. Instead, they were filled with jagged edges and fractured surfaces—more like planetary debris left behind after being struck by some immensely powerful weapon!
“This place… could it be a battlefield?” Catherine widened her eyes in astonishment.
“Who knows?” Nie Yun shrugged after putting on an equally surprised expression.
Naturally, Nie Yun already possessed some intelligence about this place, though it was far from complete.
The Shattered Star Region was a fairly well-known ruined system near the Titan Star System.
Just as Catherine had guessed, this had once been an ancient battlefield. It was said that the surrounding star regions originally belonged to a powerful civilization.
More than a thousand years ago, the Wolf Empire encountered this civilization, and large-scale war soon erupted between the two sides. The outcome was obvious.
Although the Wolf Empire ultimately emerged victorious, it faced ferocious resistance. In the brutal conflict, both sides reduced the primary battlefield itself to ruins—clear evidence of just how intense the fighting had been!
Even after a thousand years of change and development, this shattered star system remained desolate.
Yet its harsh and complex celestial environment gave rise to a special kind of force in the cosmos…
Pirates!
TL Note- Set Sail....
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