Chapter One Hundred and Thirty-Two of Jin Bang

  When the report of "Imperial Fleet Rapidly Approaching" came in, Commander-in-Chief Petrey of the Fourth Fleet of the Allied Forces was greatly shocked. On the entire holographic screen of the flagship Leod, a cluster of artificial light points gathered, and with a flicker, the brightness increased and the range rapidly expanded. Seeing this scene, everyone's heart was racing, their mouths dry and their tongues parched.

  "What's going on here?" The general stood up from his command chair, muttering to himself. "What is the Empire Army trying to do? What are they thinking?"

  Some people think he asked a bit too much. The intention of the Imperial Army is to attack the Fourth Fleet with all its might. It's not hard to see through this, but the leaders of the Allied Forces never thought that the enemy, who was surrounded on three sides, would take such a bold offensive! According to their original speculation, the Imperial Army, which was surrounded by many enemies, should have focused on defense, shrinking the front line into a dense formation. And the Allied Forces would attack from three directions at the same time, set up a net of heaven and earth, concentrate firepower, and slowly and surely consume the enemy's defensive capabilities.

  "What's going on? The enemy commander doesn't even know how to deploy troops! Who fights like this?"

  The commander-in-chief stood up from his seat, wiping the sweat on his forehead with the back of his hand, and said unconsciously, "It's not hot enough to make people sweat...". The temperature inside the ship was maintained at 16.5 degrees Celsius.

  "Commander! What shall we do?"

  The anxious voices of the staff officers also sounded a bit flustered. This tone violently pulled at every nerve of the general! Weren't you staff officers the ones who were loudly proclaiming that attacking from three directions would guarantee victory? So now, when faced with defeat, shouldn't you naturally take responsibility and come up with a countermeasure?! I didn't think that now you'd still dare to ask me "what to do"! However, this isn't the time to get angry.

  The Imperial Navy has 20,000 ships, while the Fourth Fleet of the Alliance only has 12,000. The situation is completely different from what was initially expected! Originally, it was planned to surround and annihilate the enemy's 20,000 ships with four fleets of 40,000 ships. Now, the situation has turned around, and the weak Fourth Fleet must fight alone against an enemy that is almost twice as numerous!

  "Urgent contact with the Second and Sixth Fleets! The Fourth Fleet is engaging the enemy at cosmic coordinates α7.4, β3.9, γ-0.6! Requesting immediate support at full speed!"

  "Affirmative, Commodore," replied Lieutenant Commander Nan of the flagship Leipheim, but his actions and expressions were filled with despair. The Empire's jamming waves greedily invaded the Alliance's communication circuits; Reinhard had scattered millions of jamming wave transmitters, which were now taking effect in space.

  "Dispatch four liaison boats, two each to Second and Sixth Fleets!"

  The lieutenant shouted with effort, the flash radiating from the screen momentarily whitened his face. The enemy began to attack, and the neutron beam cannon fired a hundred shots at once. The energy radiated out, expanding and producing a brilliant light that strongly stimulated the soldiers' eyes.

  Every corner of the Allied fleet, sparks flew everywhere, tiny energy particles colliding at high speed to produce sparks due to mutual occlusion. The general shouted with a forceful wave of his hand: "Vanguard troops charge! Entire fleet prepare for all-out war!"

  On the Imperial side, the vanguard was led by Lieutenant General Farrenheit. With a spirited tone, he gave the order: "Launch the combat boats! Prepare for close-quarters battle!" At the same time, they rapidly inserted into the depth of the Allied Fourth Fleet.

  "General Fahrenholt is really eager to make a name for himself, his charging speed is... ...it seems like he can annihilate the rebel's 4th fleet all by himself!" General Favniel muttered to himself as he gave out orders: "Let Fahrenholt charge ahead! Our fleet will maintain its artillery formation! Keep distance and fire in unison! Target - all enemies that block or evade General Fahrenholt! ...Hmm? Useless trash, even more useless than I thought! Forget it! All ships, maintain formation and fire at will!"

  The fleet of Admiral Fornell was always keeping distance shooting, indeed and effectively reducing the number of the Allied forces, but what completely crushed the Allied army's formation and fighting spirit was General Fahrunheit's decisive close-range torpedo boat raid! Just one round of raid, and the rest of the Imperial Fleet only had to deal with scattered "wild ducks".

  "What's going on here?!"

  The voice of Petre's Zhong rose up.

  Almost at the same time, Major Farenheit muttered in a low voice: "What are they doing?"

  The two of them gazed at the screen on the flagship, one's cries filled with despair and anxiety, while the other was calmly mocking and teasing.

  Four hours after the start of the battle, the Fourth Fleet was in complete disarray, with no intact combat formation or unified command system. Some were cut off and isolated, while others could only make a last-ditch resistance on their own.

  The flagship Leo had transformed into a massive metal block and was drifting towards the void. There was no sign of life inside the ship.

  The interior of the bridge was hit by concentrated enemy fire, and for a moment, the outer shell cracked open with a large gap. Due to the internal and external pressure difference, the body of Commander-in-Chief Petre was sucked into the vacuum, where would his body float to? What shape would it become?... No one knew.

  On the Imperial side, Reinhard had already learned of their complete victory at this stage. Merkatz reported to him through the communication screen. "Organized resistance has ended. Should we launch an attack on the Alliance's Sixth Fleet? Your Excellency!"

  "Yes! Target enemy's 6th fleet! Change to clockwise direction, continue advancing, and start attacking from the right rear of the enemy's 6th fleet in four hours. Each fleet reorganizes its formation and takes turns resting!" Reinhardt glanced at his red-haired friend, nodded slightly, and gave the order.

  "Ah, it seems that Fahrunheit has been convinced by the blond commander," said Favniel to his chief of staff, who had just finished talking with other admirals. "Gustav, give the order! The fleet will advance while repairing and replenishing supplies! Medical personnel and medical ships will immediately rescue the wounded! Immediately count the casualties! Count the losses of this fleet - no need for that. Fleet combat personnel will take turns resting within an hour and a half. In four hours, we still have a big battle to fight! But this time it can be easier, let the instructors and Vogel lead the vanguard."

  "Ja!" Hauptmann Schreiber replied curtly.

  "Right, inform the kitchen before leaving, send some butter cake and good wine up. What a pity there's no woman..."

  "Bearing four point five! Vessel contact detected! Unable to identify!"

  When the destroyer of the rear guard squadron reported, Commander-in-Chief Moya of the Sixth Fleet of the Allied Forces was having dinner with his staff in the dining room. The knife was stuck in the wheat protein pork chop, and General Moya glared at the liaison officer who came running from the bridge. The liaison officer was stunned by his glare. Everyone knew that Commander-in-Chief Moya was a rough and unconventional person.

  "What direction is 4:30?"

  The voice of Zhongjiang and his small eyes are quite matched.

  "It's... affirmative! Bearing is four point five degrees! Unable to determine friend or foe at this time."

  "Oh? Which direction is 4:30? Morning or afternoon?"

  Moye Zhongjiang's tone was extremely impatient, but he still put down his knife and fork and walked out of the officer's cafeteria. When he saw the chaotic scene of the staff scrambling around in a daze, his broad and sturdy shoulders shook with rage!

  "What's the tension for! The enemy can't appear in the 4:30 direction, because the enemy is in our advancing direction!" The lieutenant general shouted loudly. "We are advancing at full speed towards the battlefield. The second fleet must also take the same action, and with this, our army can attack the enemy from both sides, it's a sure win! No, it should be said that victory is certain! Whether it's in terms of numbers or situation..."

  "However, Your Excellency..."

  One of his staff officers interrupted the general's tirade; it was Major Rap.

  "What?"

  "It is estimated that the Fourth Fleet has already been defeated, and the enemy will shift the battlefield..."

  "Are you saying no matter what happens to the Fourth Fleet?"

  "Yes, originally we should have quickly joined the second fleet which has not suffered any damage, but now it's too late. I think we should order to prepare for battle, otherwise, we will only become the bait of the enemy."

  "The enemy's bait? Major! Your assumption is a bit too bold, isn't it?! It's us who are using the enemy as bait!"

  At this time, the two walked together to the bridge of the ship, and suddenly, due to an error in the gravity control system correction, one of them stumbled and almost fell. This was because it was not possible to quickly change direction, apparently the energy measuring device had detected destructive energy on the hull nearby.

  "Enemy troops approaching from the right rear!"

  The Sixth Fleet's communication circuits erupted into a stunned babble, but were quickly replaced by the din of confused shouting.

  The officers were all horrified! The communication was chaotic, the enemy was right in front of them, and various facts became proof of their previous heated debate.

  "Don't panic!"

  Mua Zhong was bellowing, half of which was to calm himself down. He regretted taking things too lightly, and his thick cheeks drooped weakly. The fleet's rear guard did not have the latest warships, so when the enemy launched a surprise attack from behind, they were powerless to resist.

  The Empire's army is behind us! - Does that mean the Fourth Fleet has been defeated? - Or did the Empire have a sufficient ambush set up from the start?

  "The enemy's forces have been estimated to be around 20,000!"

  The postal clerk's scream rang out again.

  "Twenty thousand? Not a single damage after engaging the Fourth Fleet?"

  Everyone felt a chill run down their limbs.

  "Counterattack! Open fire!"

  The commander's mind was in great disarray and he forgot that he had to restore order to the chaotic situation, so he could only issue this minimal command.

  "The officers of the Allied Forces are probably all monkeys! They don't learn from their lessons at all! Does our commander have some kind of magic power that makes our enemies stupid?" Fafnir muttered, adding in a voice so low only he could hear himself, "It seems like our own commanders are also becoming stupid..." The current Fafnir fleet of 6,300 warships had been repaired and resupplied, but in this attack they were only providing long-range firepower, with the close-quarters assault operations being commanded by General Melcart.

  The seasoned Admiral Merekatz's Imperial fleet formed a tight attack formation, emerging from the rear right flank of the Sixth Fleet of the Alliance and launching an assault. Neutron beam cannons fired brilliant flashes of death, shattering the weak magnetic fields of the old vessels in the Alliance's rear guard and piercing their hulls.

  Merkatz stared at the holographic screen, watching as a dazzling ball of light flickered in and out of existence against the dark backdrop of space. For over forty years, he had grown accustomed to this sight, but now, a strange sense of nostalgia welled up within him.

  In Merkatz's eyes, Reinhardt was no longer just the "blonde doll". This string of victories was not due to luck, but rather the correct insight and judgment, brewing into bold hypotheses that yielded the correct results. Originally, our army was surrounded on three sides, but he was able to adopt a tactic of breaking through one by one before the enemy could encircle us, this move was truly brilliant.

  He thought that he absolutely wouldn't have come up with this strategy, and even if he had, he wouldn't have dared to use it! And the same went for his former comrades-in-arms. Only young people who weren't bound by conventional rules could possibly do something like this. However, among his students there were also young officers who were in no way inferior to Reinhard, but that despicable personality and low character of theirs was really a headache for him. (You've been afflicted with Reinhard's incompetence aura, Fafnir language.)

  Perhaps the era of our generation of old soldiers has already passed. —— This thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

  The imperial army crushed the allied forces like a broken bamboo, gaining the upper hand in both artillery and melee battles. The entire army was unstoppable, firmly grasping the advantageous initiative, but although the Allied Forces counterattacked with determination to fight to the death, their commander himself panicked, rendering all this completely ineffective.

  "Full fleet! Turn back!"

  Mo Ya Zhong stood on the central platform of the command bridge, his voice greatly reduced. He had finally made up his mind! Before this, he would only arbitrarily yell at his subordinates.

  "Your Excellency! If we turn around, the situation will only get more chaotic! We should turn clockwise and advance at full speed to reach the enemy's rear!"

  Major Lap's proposal seemed to bounce off General Quigley's imposing physique.

  "We haven't even reached the enemy's rear yet, and more than half of our soldiers have already been wiped out! Switch to a pincer movement!"

  "But..."

  "Shut up!"

  Mu Ya's whole body trembled with rage, letting out a furious roar. The lieutenant didn't dare to speak again, having realized that his superior lacked a calm head. He quietly retreated to the side. In his heart, he couldn't help but think of his friend: "Yang, if it were you, what would you do at this moment?"

  "Apologize! You should apologize for insulting the monkeys! The commander of the Allied fleet is not even as good as a monkey!" said General Shutek, the chief of staff behind Fafnir, looking at the ugly performance of the Allied forces. Meanwhile, Fafnir's attention was mainly focused on the 3D movie on his "Commander's Special Screen", occasionally glancing up at the large screen displaying the battle situation. "Rudolf, as a fleet commander, your character is really despicable! Who watches movies during battles?!"

  "Huh? Gustav! What are you looking at now? Which idiot was it that pulled out this 'treasured item' with a smirk on his face?" Fafnir said without turning around.

  Not mentioning the two scums on the command seat's poor hobby, Favniel fleet's attack was completely not delayed and didn't make any mistakes. "Instructor Merkartz is so awesome, we can just slack off."

  The massive body of the flagship Pecamon of the Sixth Fleet began to turn around, and the ships following behind also turned around. However, in the chaos of battle, turning around was not an easy task, and the experienced Melkatz seized the opportunity to take advantage of the opening.

  The beam cannons fired by the Imperial Army poured down like a meteor shower, and the energy shields and magnetic fields collapsed one after another due to excessive load. The Allied fleet was almost completely destroyed.

  The maelstrom of energy on the old battlefield reappeared on a new one. Mira General and Rapp Colonel felt as if only the Allied fleet's vessels were rolling alone in the turbulent waves.

  "A large number of small vessels are rapidly approaching the flagship!"

  Communications soldiers shouted, one of the screens displayed a large number of Wulguru machines, and soon most of the screen images were also occupied by groups of Wulguru. They flew in quickly, launching beam attacks at extremely close range.

  The battle begins! Sparta kicks off!

  The order was given too slowly! At the moment when the Spartan broke away from the mother ship, Wang Er Gulei had already been waiting there! The cruel beams shot out in unison, and the Alliance's fighter planes only had a share of death, then turned into fireballs flying everywhere!

  "Commander! Look!"

  The communications officer pointed to one of the screens and said. The light spots were dense, the Imperial Army was pressing in, among which the enemy's fleet could be seen continuously, the bridge was filled with a suffocating sense of oppression, Pekamon had been surrounded!

  "There's an incoming signal with a light!"

  The communications soldier muttered a report to his superior in a low voice.

  "Let's take a look!"

  As Moya remained silent, Major Lapp had no choice but to speak up. His voice also sounded hoarse and low.

  "Your ship is completely surrounded, there is no way to escape, surrender quickly and our army will deal with you leniently..."

  After the interpretation was finished, countless gazes and endless silences all fell onto General Mu Ya's massive body. Everything now awaited the Commander's decision!

  "Surrender......?"

  The commander grumbled, his face suddenly changing greatly.

  "No! I'd rather be incompetent than a coward!"

  Twenty seconds later, white flashes enveloped them heavily.

  "Now only the Second Fleet remains. Gustav, this time we will ask to take the vanguard!" Fafnir Lieutenant General said to the Chief of Staff.

  "Lord Ragnvald, sir! Requesting permission for this fleet to spearhead the attack on the enemy's Second Fleet!" Fafnir said with a serious and solemn expression through the visual comms.

  Reinhardt's face flashed with a pained expression: "Since the noble officer demands a fierce battle! Then let your fleet take the lead!"

  Anxious emotions have reached a boiling point!

  On the bridge of the flagship Borokus of the Allied Forces' Second Fleet, an invisible gloom hangs over them, and they wonder when the enemy will strike. The order for first-class combat readiness has been issued, and all personnel are wearing space suits, but the feeling of unease still pierces through their space suits, making their hearts and gallbladders cold!

  "The Fourth Fleet and Sixth Fleet seem to have been annihilated!"

  "We've been isolated! Now, the enemy's numbers are greater than ours!"

  "Give me intelligence! What's going on? How is the current situation?"

  Although strictly forbidden to whisper to each other, the uneasy atmosphere made them restless, which was beyond human control. Now, can we still annihilate the Imperial Army, which is only half of our original number, and return triumphantly?

  "Enemy fleet approaching!"

  Suddenly, the voice of the communications soldier came through the microphone and echoed throughout the bridge.

  "The position is from one o'clock to two o'clock..." Yang muttered.

  He had just spoken when the report from below came through.

  "Bearing one point two zero degrees, elevation eleven degrees, closing in fast!"

  The bridge of the flagship Borokus was filled with a tense and solemn atmosphere at this moment, but Yang seemed completely unaware.

  As expected! After defeating the Sixth Fleet of the Alliance, the Imperial Army advanced from the right rear to the left front of the Sixth Fleet, forming a natural curve, with an arrow pointing directly at the last Second Fleet. Since the Second Fleet was advancing in a straight line, the Imperial Army also appeared in the direction of one o'clock to two o'clock.

  "Prepare for battle!" General Pait ordered.

  It's too slow! —— Yang thought to himself.

  Forward! All

  "Open fire! Full power!" Fafnir slumped in the command seat and gave orders.

  "Your Excellency! Don't you think we should slow down a bit? At this rate, the gun barrels of our fleet may soon overheat." said Schuttk?mpfer.

  "No need! I reckon we won't have to wait until our guns are overheated. Besides, by the time they do overheat, we'll already be within close combat distance. We can use the Wang Er Gu Lei and Thunderbolt boats then."

  The Fornian fleet maintained a conical formation as it launched its attack, with one thousand warships forming the arrowhead, flanked by massive motherships, cruisers shielding destroyers in the center, and firing cannons at long, medium, and short range in an orderly manner, successfully suppressing the vanguard of the Second Fleet.

  "All ships! Open fire!"

  The order has been given, but it's hard to tell which direction is forward. Because a dazzling flash that scorched the retina obscured the vision of everyone on the bridge.

  With a difference of only half a second, the hull of Borodino was blown open by energy shocks upwards, and it shook violently.

  Wails and angry roars mixed with the sounds of falls and crashes, Yang also inevitably fell to the ground. His back suffered a strong impact, almost unable to breathe, through the protective shield, he could feel the surrounding noise and strong airflow, Yang struggled to adjust his breathing frequency, using his palms to protect his temporarily blinded eyes.

  The amount of light entering the surveillance screen has not been adjusted, this is an unforgivable serious mistake, who should be responsible for it? Such a mistake has occurred, it seems that it's hard to win now!

  "This is the after gun turret! Bridge! Respond! Requesting instructions!"

  "Engine room! This is engine room! Bridge, please respond!"

  Yang opened his eyes, and his entire field of vision was filled with green misty clouds.

  He sat up and found someone lying nearby. Dark and thick **flowed from the corner of his mouth to his chest, covering his entire body….

  "Commander-in-Chief!"

  Yang shouted loudly and rushed forward to help General Pate up, while examining the general's complexion.

  The inner wall of the cabin burst open, and the air pressure dropped rapidly. Several people who did not press down the magnetic boot switch were sucked out. Due to the automatic repair system's working gun being able to spray a sealing mist on its own, the crack quickly closed again.

  Looking around the bridge and finding no one standing, Yang gently put down the communication device, confirmed that it was still functioning normally, and then began to issue instructions.

  "Admiral Pate is injured, medical officer and medic rush to the bridge! Operations officer investigate the damage of the ship immediately and repair it, then report back, go! The entire fleet is in combat state now, aft turret doesn't need to wait for orders to act! Hurry up with your task, clarify the enemy ships ahead and continue attacking! What's wrong with the engine room?"

  "The situation on the bridge is worrying! The engine room has not been damaged!"

  "It seems that the bridge is still operational, don't worry! Please focus on your own posts!"

  He looked around the bridge again.

  "Which officer was not wounded?"

  "I'm fine! General!"

  A man came walking with an unsteady gait.

  "You... uh...?"

  "Major Rao of the General Staff!"

  From the space suit's protective helmet, his eyes and nose were small, and from his face, he looked about the same age as Yang. The only others were two pilots and a communications soldier, who stood up with their hands raised.

  "Isn't there anyone else?..."

  Yang patted the cheek of the face wearing a protective helmet. This means that the headquarters of the Second Fleet has been paralyzed!

  The military doctor and medic rushed over! They busily examined General Pate's injuries, his chest having violently crashed into the command platform, with broken ribs piercing into his lungs. They added insult to injury by saying: "His luck is really bad!" On the other hand, Yang's luck was not bad, which was beyond doubt.

  "General Yang..."

  The physically and mentally exhausted General Pate called out to his young aide.

  "The command of the fleet is given to you..."

  "Me?"

  "Among the remaining officers, your military rank is the highest! Your military talent is also..."

  The voice was extremely weak, and Zhongjiang had fainted. The military doctor hastily called for the emergency rescue robot ambulance.

  "He has quite a high opinion of you?" Colonel Lao said emotionally.

  "Really?"

  Major Rao, who was unaware of the disagreement between Pai and Yang, found Yang's response incomprehensible. Yang walked over to the comms device and pressed the external communications button. After all, mechanical structures are more reliable than humans!

  "Attention all fleets! I am Lieutenant General Yang, Deputy Chief of Staff to Commander-in-Chief Pai!"

  Yang's voice spread out in the void space.

  "The flagship Borodino was hit by a shell and Admiral Patey unfortunately suffered serious injuries. By order of the Commander-in-Chief, I will continue to act as deputy commander of the entire fleet!"

  As he said this, he took a deep breath, also giving the soldiers a brief buffer time for their astonishment.

  "Don't worry, everyone! As long as you follow my orders, you'll be saved! Those who want to survive must remain calm and follow my instructions! Although our current situation is not good, the most important thing is to win in the end!"

  Oh! I'm also exaggerating! —— Yang sighed with a bitter smile, but didn't reveal his inner thoughts on the surface. As a commander, no matter how disheartened or depressed he was, he couldn't show it and had to hold his head high, put on a brave face, and confront everything.

  "We will absolutely never lose! Until new orders are given, each ship is to focus solely on taking down the enemies in front of them! Over."

  "It's on... The Magician." Fafnir said in a very soft voice after hearing the words from the comms, then "Don't get too cocky! Keep your distance! Continue to put pressure on the Second Fleet!"

  Yang's voice reached the ears of the Imperial Army. On the bridge of the flagship Berne Hill, Reinhardt's beautiful eyebrows were slightly raised.

  "You won't lose, just follow my orders and you'll be saved...? I didn't think there was such a shameless guy even among the rebel army!"

  His eyes shone with a cold light like ice chips.

  "Have come to this point, still want to turn the tide?... Hmph! Alright! Gilfeather! Let's go see how capable he is!"

  "Yes!"

  "Battleships re-form ranks! Pass it down, entire fleet forms a spindle-shaped formation! Do you understand?"

  "Do you want to break through from the center?"

  "Not bad! That's right!"

  Gillfieth Eis relayed Reinhardt's orders to all fleets of the Imperial Navy.

  "Damn it! I knew that blond-haired guy was no good! If you just kept your distance and fired, we would have won! We outnumber the enemy! And their morale has been low for a long time! Did that blond kid even study military tactics?! We've already heavily damaged two of the enemy's fleets, and if this last fleet just maintains its current course, it will collapse, and we'll be completely victorious! Shit! It really doesn't concern me! Shuttkrafter, open communications! No choice but to do my duty as a subordinate!" Fafnir cursed.

  "Lord Raglan, I think it is enough to maintain the frontal attack. Our troops have already destroyed two of their fleets and our ammunition consumption has been quite large. The current situation is that as long as we maintain the attack, forcing them to collapse or retreat, we will be completely victorious. There is no need to take the risk of adopting a central breakthrough tactic."

  "This is the perfect opportunity to thoroughly defeat the enemy! And yet you want to give up this once-in-a-lifetime chance and let the enemy retreat, which would be utterly passive! What is our mission? It's to punish the rebels and annihilate the enemy! You say we should retreat to preserve our existing victory, but the task entrusted by His Majesty the Emperor has not been completed, what victory can we talk about? Are you using strong words to justify your own cowardice?" Reinhardt sharply rebuked General Fafnir, and he wasn't entirely unreasonable.

  Fawkes couldn't come up with any reason, it's not like he could say that Yang would play such a trick, right? This reason can't convince any normal commander, "Alright, I was wrong. Sorry, sir. I'll still fight with all my might as the vanguard."

  "Alas, Jin Mao wasn't wrong either. The enemy's morale is low, and under normal circumstances, a central breakthrough could indeed thoroughly defeat the enemy... Moreover, the mage's tactics are really too abnormal. However, no matter how he plays it, at most it will only reduce casualties slightly."

  When not wearing a helmet, Yang always held the military cap in his hand and habitually scratched his black hair. When the difference in forces was not great, the more advantageous offensive method was to break through the center and use the semi-encirclement tactic. He guessed that the enemy would probably adopt a more active attack method, and indeed he had anticipated it!

  "Colonel Lao!"

  "Yes! Deputy Commander!"

  "The enemy is forming a spindle-shaped array and may be planning a central breakthrough!"

  "Central Breakthrough?"

  "After annihilating the Fourth and Sixth Fleets, the Imperial Army's morale was greatly boosted. It is only natural that they would adopt this tactic!"

  Rao Shaoxiao was bewildered by Yang's argument. But in his heart, Yang thought that the repeated defeats of the Allied Forces were just like Rao Shaoxiao's current expression, a manifestation of the Empire's active combat tactics!

  "What do you plan to do about it?"

  "Currently thinking of countermeasures!"

  "But how are we to communicate with our own personnel? Electronic communications will be intercepted by the enemy, it's too dangerous! Optical signals are no good either. And using a messenger boat would take too much time!"

  "Don't worry! We can use multiple communication circuits, order each ship to open the tactical computer's C4 circuit, and pass on this message. This way, even if the enemy intercepts it, they won't be able to make a judgment for the time being!"

  "So, has the acting commander already thought through the battle plan and inputted the intelligence into the computer? … Is it still useful now that the battle has begun?"

  "It's better than having no plan at all, right? If it's nothing, then don't ask again."

  Yang's tone was a bit harsh. Since Queen Cassandra of Troy, prophets who warned of defeat could not avoid being given the cold shoulder.

  "Pass down the orders quickly!"

  "Yes! Pass the order at once!"

  Rear Admiral Lao rushed to the communications officer who had just arrived. With only 5 people operating on the bridge, it was not enough, so 10 more were summoned from various departments within the ship, including Lieutenant Colonel Atipol. Due to the limited number of surviving crew members, they could only be drawn from these thinly manned departments.

  The Imperial Army calmly formed a spindle-shaped formation and began to advance. The Allied Forces welcomed them with cannon fire, but the Imperial Army didn't budge an inch. As the distance between the two sides narrowed, countless grid patterns were woven from the dense beams of light that crisscrossed each other.

  Fawneil's Imperial vanguard troops advanced towards the Allied position without slowing down.

  "The enemy fleet is charging over!"

  The voice of the signal soldier was high-pitched and sharp.

  Yang looked up at the display board, which was equipped with a 270-degree wide-angle detector. From the image, it could be seen that the enemy was approaching at an accelerating speed, and their movements were swift and decisive. In comparison, the actions of the Allied forces seemed quite slow, and even showed signs of lacking fighting spirit. It seemed that they had no choice but to respond to the attack!

  What's good to do now?

  Yang sat with his legs crossed on the command desk, but his heart was not as calm as he appeared. For now, the enemy's actions were still within Yang's predicted range, the problem lay in our side's actions. If we could follow his battle plan, it would be fine, but if we took a wrong step, the whole army would be defeated and the situation would become irretrievable! What to do then?

  He rubbed his hair and muttered to himself, "Let's pretend I'm still stupid."

  He cannot predict everything and cannot take reckless action. In fact, work that exceeds one's capacity is a responsibility that no one can bear.

  Yang saw on the computer detector that a simulated formation of the battlefield appeared, and a simple graph showed the configuration of the two armies.

  Sometimes there will be small fluctuations in the opposite direction, but from a holistic perspective, it can be seen that the Imperial Army is advancing and the Alliance Army is retreating.

  Moreover, the speed at which they moved against each other was increasing. The Empire advanced further forward, and the Allied forces retreated one step backward. The small fluctuations in the opposite direction disappeared, and the simulated formation image became clearer and simpler. Anyone could see that the Empire's victory was within their grasp, while the Alliance was doomed to defeat.

  "It seems we've won!"

  Reinhardt muttered. The strategy of breaking through the center seems to be working!

  On the other hand, Yang also nodded in agreement with Major Rao.

  "It seems like everything is going smoothly!"

  He didn't say anything reassuring.

  What made Yang worried was whether our troops would listen to his own instructions?

  At this point, victory is impossible! However, it's not impossible to stand undefeated. The prerequisite is that our troops must implement this combat strategy!

  "Why was the attack so smooth?"

  Reinhardt's face began to show a look of confusion.

  He stood up from his seat and stared at the screen on the cabin ceiling, a feeling of unease was surging inside him.

  Our army advances, the enemy retreats. Under the central breakthrough offensive, the Allied forces are splitting and retreating in two directions from left to right. Whether it is the situation displayed on the screen, the simulated formation reconstituted on the tactical computer's detector, or the battle report transmitted back by the vanguard group, all declare the same situation.

  Reinhardt felt a dull thunder in his chest, a growing sense of being duped that was eating away at his nerves.

  "If...the enemy fleet hadn't been held back by our army..."

  He clenched his left fist and raised it to the corner of his mouth, lightly tapping his teeth with his index finger. At this moment, he suddenly realized the enemy's intention!

  "Oh no!......"

  The low murmur of his soliloquy was drowned out by the shouts of the communications soldiers and went unheard.

  "The enemy army has been cut off into two halves by our army! What's going on? They are now rapidly circling around to both sides of our army!"

  "Jill Fizzies!"

  In a stunned scream, Reinhardt called out to the red-haired vice-palace.

  "We've been outmaneuvered...... The enemy has split into two routes, apparently aiming to attack our army from the rear. The central breakthrough tactic has been foiled... How infuriating! I was too careless! General Fafnir's cautious tactics were correct!"

  The blond young man clenched his fist and struck the podium heavily.

  "It's now! All Wargre and torpedo boats launch a simultaneous attack, return after exhausting ammunition! The entire fleet accelerates! Break through!" Favniel gave the order at this moment. The long-reserved Wargre and torpedo boats launched an attack on both sides of the Allied fleet, causing great chaos and losses, but the overall situation on the battlefield did not change much, the Allied fleet still maintained its separation to both sides, allowing the Imperial fleet to pass through, then quickly turned around and began attacking the rear of the Imperial fleet.

  "What should we do? Should we turn back and counterattack?"

  Jill Fei Ai's voice was still calm and had a temporarily stabilizing effect on her excited superior.

  "Stop joking! Am I supposed to do something even more humiliating than being outranked by the commander of the enemy's Sixth Fleet?"

  "Well, there's nothing for it but to go on!"

  "That's right!" Reinhardt nodded, signaling the communication soldier. "All fleets! Full speed ahead! Attack the enemy's tail in reverse gear in a clockwise direction! Fast!"

  "Alright, nothing to do with us. So being a vanguard does have its perks after all. Shuttkrafter, what do you think the final Erlach will do?"

  "God knows."

  Thirty minutes later, the formations of both sides were linked in a ring shape, forming a wonderful scene. The vanguard troops of the Allied Forces launched a fierce attack on the rear of the Imperial Army, while the vanguard troops of the Imperial Army attacked the rear of one of the two divided Allied Forces.

  On the bridge of the Beerenberg, a furious cry rang out!

  "This is an awkward formation, isn't it just a war of attrition?"

  Reinhardt muttered in a low voice.

  News of the death of the high-ranking commander reached his ears, and General Elrah's flagship vanished! He ignored Reinhardt's order to advance at full speed, turned back to counterattack the Allied Forces, and was directly hit by a neutron beam cannon while turning around, disappearing without a trace.

  The enemy was hot on his heels, but he turned back right in front of them - what a moron! He's brought this upon himself and can't be saved! That being said, there's no denying that this is the first high-ranking commander of the Imperial Fleet to fall in battle. The Empire's dreams of victory are now shrouded in darkness!

  Not long after, the artillery fire of both armies continued to go back and forth, but their formations gradually pulled apart, as if they had a tacit understanding, forming intervals between each other. As the distance increased, the sound of gunfire suddenly stopped, and the flying energy density also rapidly became thin.

  The "Yasutai Star Domain War" has come to an end like this.

  Personnel participating in the battle, Imperial Army 26.57 million people, Allied Forces 41.259 million people. In terms of ships, the Imperial Army had more than 23,000 ships, and the Allied Forces had more than 40,000 ships. The number of deaths on the battlefield was over 1.534 million for the Imperial Army and over 15.789 million for the Allied Forces. The number of ships destroyed or severely damaged was over 2,200 for the Imperial Army and over 24,600 for the Allied Forces. The losses of the Allied Forces were about 10 to 11 times those of the Imperial Army, and the Empire's invasion of the Asahi star system also came to an end here.

  After the war, Rainer Krammer was promoted to Field Marshal General and other Admirals who participated in the war were also promoted one level. Rudolf von Favini finally climbed to the rank of General at the age of 28, and his friend Schütteckow also reached the position of Lieutenant General at the same age.

  How future historians will evaluate this battle, let's not talk about it for now. After the first meeting between Reinhard von Lohengramm and Yang Wenli, the pace of historical trends accelerated rapidly. Everything has just begun.