“That does make sense.”
Li Yao paced back and forth like ants on a hot pot, before he said, “However, I believe that Lei Chenghu is still a reasonable man who can see the big picture. If he is really a devoted patriot and considers the greatest interests of the civilization of mankind, he will definitely have enough rationality and patience for him to sit down and listen to me slowly.
“If it doesn’t work out, I’ll find a way to sneak into his flagship and kidnap him. I’ll lock him in a secret room, tie him up, whip him, and put a chainsword on his neck. Then, I’ll have a straightforward and heartfelt conversation with him. Will there be any way for him to resist?”
“What did you say? I am not hearing you correctly, am I? Come again?”
The mental devil scorned, “You really think that Lei Chenghu is a mediocre general like Yun Xuefeng, and the Astounding Thunder Fleet is a worthless troop that merely shows off with the equipment like the Adamantine Fleet? Let me tell you, the Astounding Thunder Fleet is a real great army that has been tested by bloody battles for a hundred years. Even the ace fleets of the four families might not be as experienced as the Astounding Thunder Fleet. Even a common soldier in the Astounding Thunder Fleet may be a survivor in the cold, demanding frontline after hundreds of fierce battles against the Covenant Alliance. I can’t possibly imagine how scary such a fleet is, and you are hoping to break through the defense of the Astounding Thunder Fleet, sneak into the flagship, and capture their commander? In your dream!”
“I’m not fighting on my own; there are still you and Boss Bai who can help me, right?”
Li Yao smashed his fists hard and gnashed his teeth. “In any case, this is our only opportunity. If we cannot persuade Lei Chenghu, everything will be doomed. Nothing can possibly stop the second rise of Blackstar the Great. The future Imperium of True Human Beings will be even more horrible, so horrible that even the Immortal Cultivators today won’t be able to suffer it.
“Faced with such a dark future, we have no choice except to wager everything and take our chances!”
Taking a deep breath, Li Yao controlled the pores on his head to expand to let out the excessive heat provided by his brain cells. After lowering the temperature of his brain, he sorted through his analysis just now in utter calmness, ensuring that there weren’t any flaws, before he contacted Boss Bai again.
The communication with Boss Bai did not go so well.
The Coalition Fleet of Pyromaniacs seemed to have been caught in an area of fierce battles with strong interferences. It took a long time before the connection was established intermittently. On the light beam that was full of waves and flakes, Boss Bai looked twisted and fuzzy too.
“Boss Bai—”
Li Yao had been observing the updates of the battle. However, it was barely possible for the warships to send the latest battle data back to the Seven Seas Grand Market. He could only ask directly, “What’s the environment in space right now? Have you been engaged with the Astounding Thunder Fleet?”
“What environment? Madness! Everybody is mad! It’s completely out of control!”
Boss Bai’s eyes were red, and his hair was messy. Intense steam was popping up from his body, making him look like a boiling furnace. “Yun Xuefeng is out of his mind. He is now leading his main fleet to rush at the Astounding Thunder Fleet, planning to have a head-on clash with Lei Chenghu to decide the final winner!”
“What?!”
Li Yao was stunned. “How did it happen? Isn’t Yun Xuefeng overestimating himself?”
“Hehe, those arrogant nobles always overestimate themselves. They believe that the whole universe is born for them and that everybody must spin around them like satellites around a star.”
Boss Bai snorted heavily and said, “Before Lei Chenghu showed up, Yun Xuefeng had gathered five Adamantine Super Arsenal Warships as well as almost ten thousand main warships. The situation on the battlefield couldn’t have looked better. The warlords, local magnates, and even experts of the other three families pledged loyalty to him yet again. The victory seemed right up ahead. He was so confident of himself that he really thought that he was a rarely-seen genius and a legendary ‘general’!
“However, Lei Chenghu’s arrival shattered all his fantasies. The victory that was more and more tipped to him was pulled back by Lei Chenghu. The cooked duck was about to fly away. How could Yun Xuefeng not be infuriated?
“Also, he and Lei Chenghu were known as the ‘two pearls of the expedition army’. There were conflicts between them in the first place. Lei Chenghu did not necessarily consider him to be a big deal, but his jealousy for Lei Chenghu was deep to the bones. He had been thinking to defeat Lei Chenghu in a head-on clash on the battlefield to defend his so-called dignity. Now that a great opportunity was presented to him, how could he miss it?
“Furthermore, he had no choice except to attack. After the Astounding Thunder Fleet jumped over and annihilated a branch fleet led by an Adamantine Super Arsenal Warship quickly, it sailed at Yue Xuefeng’s fleet at a high speed. If Yun Xuefeng did not want to collide with Lei Chenghu, he had to back off for millions of kilometers to avoid Lei Chenghu’s edge.
“You know the situation on the space battlefield very well too. Both parties were on the precipices of confidence. The forces of both parties were observing. Neither of them could back off easily. If either of them backed off, it might lead to a landslide crush with one moment of carelessness!”
Boss Bai told Li Yao that, after annihilating an Adamantine Super Arsenal Warship unstoppably, Lei Chenghu announced his arrival through public channels to all the starships on the enemy’s side and his own that were scattered all over the space zone. He also issued a “Letter To The Soldiers Of The Imperium”.
In the Letter To The Soldiers Of The Imperium, Lei Chenghu did not stress the disagreement between the reformists and the Kurfürst families or pursue accountability in the civil war. Instead, he included 99% of the soldiers engaged in the battle from the perspective of “a common soldier of the Imperium”.
“A great enemy is still before us. The main force of the Covenant Alliance hasn’t been destroyed yet and may attack the heartland of the Imperium anytime. In such a time of crisis, the Imperium of True Human Beings cannot afford a civil war!
“No eggs in a fallen nest will be intact. Whatever your stance is, if the Imperium is screwed, the interests and even everyone’s life will be screwed!
“Whether you are loyal to the reformists, to the free coin, to the four Kurfürsten, or to nobody but the folks of your hometown, everybody fighting on this battlefield right now shares a common identity, which is that you are a soldier of the Imperium!
“A soldier of the Imperium should not fight another soldier of the Imperium. As the purest soldiers, we shouldn’t be instigated or manipulated by any force. Our glorious blood should be shed in places that are more valuable, in the battlefields against the Covenant Alliance!
“Now, in the bleeding Seven Seas Space Zone, countless people used to fight by my side in the cold trenches in the frontline. They saved my lives or were saved by me too many times. Our blood has been melted together. We are life-and-death brothers. I’m unwilling to meet any of you with weapons!
“If you are willing to believe me, a common veteran of the Imperium, one more time, gather around me, and let’s combine all the starships here and all the soldiers of the Imperium who are willing to fight for their country into a real army!
“The army will boast unparalleled strength and can achieve all goals. It will defend the great Imperium and win the ultimate glory as well as everything you want!”
It was the general content of the Letter To The Soldiers Of The Imperium.
Deterred by Lei Chenghu, at least half of the starships in the four families’ coalition fleet were wavering and returning to a neutral stance again. Also, as time went by, more and more starships were turning neutral. The situation was less and less in Yun Xuefeng’s favor.
Yue Xuefeng’s fleet was closest to Lei Chenghu’s Astounding Thunder Fleet. If he backed off, they might as well surrender directly.
Therefore, for the big picture and for personal reasons, Yue Xuefeng had no choice except to activate his troops and start a duel with Lei Chenghu!
“Yue Xuefeng has the greatest trump card, which is our fleet.”
Boss Bai said, “Although I only set one third of the starships to public, allowing him to detect, he is already overjoyed. He asks me to detour to the back of the Astounding Thunder Fleet and ambush the enemy. I can only accept the command on the surface. I’m actually in a dilemma and waiting for the updates on your side. Should we fight Lei Chenghu?”
“Of course not. Lei Chenghu is a target that we can try to win over, if not the greatest opportunity for us to reverse our failure into a victory. I believe that I can persuade Lei Chenghu somehow. Wouldn’t the Astounding Thunder Fleet and the Coalition Fleet of Pyromaniacs be invincible after they are joined together?”
Li Yao said, “However, I will need your assistance!”
Looking at Li Yao in the eyes, Boss Bai frowned. “For some reason, I have a feeling that I won’t like what you are going to say next. However, why don’t you tell me first what assistance you need?”
“It’s very simple. First of all, you have to bite Lei Chenghu’s bottom and tear apart the Astounding Thunder Fleet’s formation, creating an opportunity for me to sneak in. That’s certainly not a problem with Boss Bai’s marvelous commanding skills, right?”
Li Yao went on, “Of course, you can make the battle look intense on the surface. It will be best if you and Lei Chenghu are dying with each other in other people’s eyes. That way, more people will be fooled by our trap!
“However, since we are going to collaborate with them later, we cannot afford any real losses. So, it will appear rather intimidating and obstreperous, but no actual damage will be caused to the fleets of the two parties. I know that it is not going to be a problem for the legendary Boss Bai, right?”
Gloomily, Boss Bai gnashed his teeth. “Anything else?”
“Yes…”
Pondering for a moment, Li Yao snapped his fingers. “Right, can you deliver a message that only an experienced commander like Lei Chenghu can understand with your delicate starship operation techniques, giving him enormous military pressure and making him realize that he will be dead for sure if he doesn’t cooperate with us? That way, it will be easier for me to reason with him!”
“Hehe.”
Boss Bai said with a fake smile, “If that is all the help you need, why don’t I…”
He hesitated and did not say anything for a long time. Li Yao couldn’t help but ask, “Why don’t you what?”
Boss Bai suddenly burst into a fury and snapped, “Why don’t I give the fleet to you so that you can command it?”
