Six hours before the battle, inside the “Purple Cloud Sector”, one of the worlds closest to the edge of the Imperium that belonged to the Yun family…
During the past two months, more than ten main fleets of the Yun family and its vassal families had been gathered here to strengthen their armor and firepower, install the latest “Flying Lightning Command Chain” system, and practice the tactics required in the joint battle.
The “Solar Slingshots”, made of special materials that could absorb the energy of stellar storms and transform it into the impetus for space jumps, were shipped to a Sector that boasted a gargantuan star.
The Solar Slingshots were hexagonal metal panels that were slightly arced. After all the hexagons were connected like beehives, they turned into a magnificent metal pot. The metal pot, which was in silver at the beginning, turned crimson and looked like blood after absorbing tremendous furious solar energy.
The Solar Slingshots had been stretched to the maximum. As long as they were released, they would unleash the magnificent force that was enough to rip the space.
The dozen main fleets were all prepared to go. Organized like silver chess pieces symmetrically, they were formed into delicate and glamorous cubes in the boundless space.
Despite the conflicts among the four Kurfürst families and the undercurrents of the peripheral warlords’ troops, those main fleets of the Yun family were at least determined to win the battle and annihilate the “rebels” as soon as possible.
Their determination transmitted among the starships quickly in flashes and waves, adding thousands of colors to the silver cubes.
The four Adamantine Super Arsenal Warships, as centers of the mixed fleet, finally arrived at the jump point.
Whether or not the combat units inside had been unfortunately castrated due to the lack of funding, the four super warships truly deserved to be called “Adamantine” judging from their magnificent appearance. They were like four space fortresses that were moving slowly. The dense turrets, cannons, and launchers of drones and battle puppets on the surface made everybody feel dizzy when they looked. Their heartbeats were either accelerated to the fastest or reduced to none.
The four Adamantine Super Arsenal Warships were even more shocking than the flagships of the best fleets of the four families in terms of appearance. “Doom”, “destruction”, or “suffocation” were not enough to describe one-thousandth of their majesty and dominance.
To this moment, countless maintenance ships were still conducting the last strengthening and supplying around the four Adamantine Super Arsenal Warships, delivering all kinds of resources up above. Those warships were like black holes that had swallowed immeasurable ammunitions, fuel, battle puppets, and drones, but their stomachs were still not fed.
All the soldiers were deeply awed by the arrival of the Adamantine Super Arsenal Warships, particularly those from the vassal families as they had never seen such warships before.
At this moment, when they saw the four planets crushing at them overwhelmingly, they finally understood that “the largest super warships of the Imperium” was certainly not an exaggeration. The overwhelming oppression from them couldn’t be found from any other starships.
Standing on “Landslide”, one of the four Adamantine Super Arsenal Warships and his flagship, and inspecting his troops through the panoramic virtual light beams, Yun Xuefeng couldn’t help but feel more ambitious than ever. He was even about to draw his sword and dance in excitement.
As a fleet commander, his life was certainly worth it after having such a moment!
Yun Xuefeng was almost a perfect noble from every aspect.
He was almost two meters tall, strong and handsome. He was the best among his peers since childhood. Nobody ever stayed on top of him in any fight or competition.
In the Imperium’s counterattack, most of the nobles were hesitating and dawdling in the rear, waiting to steal the fruits of victory. Yun Xuefeng, on the other hand, considered it a shame to be like them. He commanded his fleet to charge forward and was henceforth known as “Scourging Storm”.
Somebody compared him to Lei Chenghu and called them the two pearls of the expedition army. Some even claimed that Lei Chenghu had become an old and toothless tiger, and that the Imperium in the next hundred years would be his.
Yun Xuefeng was not an idiot. He naturally knew that those adulations were not entirely true, but he had always been craving to tower over Lei Chenghu.
Although there was no chance right now, he would certainly be able to collide with Lei Chenghu’s Astounding Thunder Fleet after he razed the Seven Seas Grand Market, right?
By then, everybody would know which of them was better, “Yun” or “Lei”.
Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!
When the four Adamantine Super Arsenal Warships, divided into two groups, sailed into the pivot of his fleet respectively, Yun Xuefeng received a communication request from a distant world. The name of the person made him raise his lips in delight.
“Reporting to Commander Yun, my fleet and the ‘National Protection Army’ are ready. We can launch the first wave of jumps anytime!”
Li Wuji, Marquess Yongchun, appeared on the light beam. With a determined face, he said solemnly, “After the jump, my fleet and the National Protection Army will definitely gather as soon as possible and stall the enemy to buy time for the gathering of the ‘Adamantine Fleet’!”
“Good.”
Yun Xuefeng sighed and said, “I did not know that there were still men of loyalty and integrity like you in the four families, Marquess Yongchun. Had there been a few more loyal contributors like you, the situation wouldn’t have gotten as worse as today at all! Just rest assured and fight without concerns. As long as the battle is won, I will double compensate for your losses!”
“Understood. I will certainly do my best to serve my country and to return Commander Yun’s trust and appreciation!”
Li Wuji said in gratitude, “I did not expect that Commander Yun would give me such a high permission in the ‘Flying Lightning Command Chain’ and that more than 90% of the starships are commanded by me. That’s really…”
“Hehe. More than 90% of the starships in our coalition fleet belong to the vacillating warlords and local magnates, who will not move forward at all unless a gun is stuck to the back of their heads.”
Yun Xuefeng said gloomily, “Since you are so loyal to me and have such an excellent fleet, I certainly need to release part of the commandership to you. After we jump to the Seven Seas Space Zone, gather those loose cannons well and force them to fight hard. Whoever slacks off and tries to preserve their strength, don’t show any mercy on them but punish them according to the martial law!”
“Yes, yes, now that Commander Yun has put it that way, I will not hesitate even if I have to force all the warlords from the peripheral worlds to fight!”
Li Wuji rubbed his hands and declared determinedly. Then, he suddenly hesitated and changed the topic. “However, it’s easy to deal with the troops of the regular warlords. I am confident to control and manipulate them. But what about the starships of the Li family, the Song family, and even the Dongfang family? Commander Yun, you should know that they do not consider a minor ‘marquess’ to be a big deal at all. Even though I have relatively high permission in the command chain, they will not necessarily obey my orders.”
“Huh?”
Slightly frowning, Yun Xuefeng said in dissatisfaction, “Everybody knows that you work for me now. Who dares to disobey your orders? Your fleet has such a high combat ability. Are your starships all vegetarians?”
“That being said, if those people really disobey my orders, it’s not like I can set up the cannons and bombard them directly, right?”
Li Wuji said with a bitter smile, “I, for one, am determined to annihilate the rebels whatever the losses will be. However, many people from the Li family, the Song family, or the Dongfang family will want to preserve their strength. Just think about it, Commander Yun, will they follow my orders?”
Yun Xuefeng coughed rather embarrassedly. “Then, what’s your plan?”
“I’m not suggesting anything else. Even if I have to force those wavering guys to follow my orders with violence, I will not hesitate to do it.”
Li Wuji said, “However, my place in my family is very awkward when I am openly siding with Commander Yun without caring about the opinions of my family. If there is any conflict or misunderstanding between me and allies, it will be even more difficult for me to stay in my family. I’ll have nothing to defend myself if somebody punishes me for exceeding my authority in the future.
“Therefore, I was wondering if Commander Yun could give me a secret order with a soul signature on it, proving that everything my fleet and I do on the battlefield is authorized by you.
“Then, when I gather the loose cannons, should I encounter the starships of the four families, they would certainly be awed by Commander Yun’s prestige and follow my instructions as soon as I show Commander Yun’s secret order to them.”
“Hmm…”
Yun Xuefeng tapped his fingers for a long time. Looking at Li Wuji’s ambitious yet sincere face, he naturally knew what was on the guy’s mind. He was merely hoping to seize the opportunity to recruit more starships and expand his strength. When the loose soldiers were “temporarily” gathered by him, they would never be let back after the battle.
However, Li Wuji was his loyal dog right now. With a great war coming near, it would be highly inappropriate if he could not feed a few bones to him.
If he wanted to expand his strength, so be it. It was better to let Li Wuji expand his strength than to let the annoying guys of the Song family expand theirs after all.
Thinking that way, Yun Xuefeng waved his hands. “Alright, I’ll give you two secret orders personally and in the name of the ‘commander of the coalition fleet’. After we come to the chaotic battlefield, whoever disobeys you after reading the two secret orders shall be executed immediately!”
“Thank you, Commander Yun!”
Li Wuji’s eyes immediately turned red, and he was almost choked by sobs. “Commander Yun, you trust and support me so much that I cannot return one-thousandth of your favor even with my life…”
He forwarded exactly what Boss Bai spoke to him a few months ago to Yun Xuefeng without changing anything.
“Haha! Hahahaha!”
Yun Xuefeng had never considered his life above a septic tank before. Naturally, he was unaware of the stinky venom contained in Li Wuji’s words. He raised his head and laughed. “Alright, let go of your concerns and fight with your best. After the victory of the battle, our fate will be completely different from the past!”
“Yes.”
Li Wuji lowered his head deeply, preventing the guy from seeing the maliciousness overflowing from his eyes, and said in the coldest voice, “I have no doubt about that.”
