Not long after the fleet entered the Void, we arrived at the base of the Specter Fleet. To the Empire, these floating corpses were indeed too close. Although there was no concept of distance or coordinates in the Void, the proximity of information was still the only standard for determining 'distance' in this place. The Royal Fleet only needed to perform a single data calibration before they arrived at the position of the Specter Fleet, which meant that the 'distance' between them and the Specter Fleet had reached the position of the Specter Fleet.
Even with the Empire's Void detection technology, the sensitivity of the macro world network to Void undulations, and the special ability of the Courtyard of Death system, we only managed to detect the coordinates of the Specter Fleet when we were so close, and that was under the premise of using tracking probes. I have to say, this was a very embarrassing matter for the Intelligence Department. If not for the uniqueness of these Specter Fleet, I think the Chief of Intelligence would have found a hole in the ground and gone into seclusion to train.
After we got closer, we realized that there was an unusually powerful information interference layer around the Specter Fleet. This information interference layer was probably the main reason why so many Specter Fleet had not been devoured until now. The Specter Fleet constantly built a simulated World Barrier signal at the border to 'deceive' the Void, allowing the Specter Fleet to remain safe as if they were in a physical universe. Although we did not know whether this interference layer was formed by countless Specter Fleet or because the gigantic fortress at the core of the Specter Fleet had a barrier generator function, this barrier was enough to astonish people. Aside from the Xiling Empire, I had never seen such a thing in the hands of any other civilization.
The Royal Fleet did not feel anything when they passed through the information interference layer, except for a sudden tremor. Using Sandora's words, this tremor was the movement of us passing through the Specter Fleet's defensive barrier. I was very clear that the Specter Fleet must have been destroyed, or else I would have to start thinking about compensation again …
Sandora and I sat solemnly on the officer's platform. Sandora was seriously analyzing the information sent from the lower information link, while I pretended to analyze the same thing. Pandora and Pandora were discussing something quietly. When the massive Specter Fleet appeared on the radar, Sives reported that some of the Specter Fleet did indeed have more active energy signatures than the other Specter Fleet, but they were all at the core of the Specter Fleet, which was a million kilometers away from the Specter Fleet's border. Moreover, the energy interference along the way was so severe that the Specter Fleet's detection equipment could not pick up any more precise signals.
Sandora had been waiting for this moment, and immediately ordered, "Send out scouts and probe swarms to search the Specter Fleet along the way. Our main force will continue to advance towards the Specter Fleet! Make sure to set up gravitational traps along the way. Do not let your guard down in this place. "
Pandora also began to give orders to her own heavily armed guards. Even though she stood at the same height as Sandora, her aura was no less imposing than the latter's. "Spread out the escort fleet, deploy the high-speed cannons, and prepare for battle at any moment. Counterattack any hostile Specter Fleet!"
Following the two's orders, the Royal Fleet was the first to change its formation. A group of transport ships separated from the main fleet and released a large number of agile and advanced scouting ships. These small and agile scouting ships carried the latest design integrated scanners and experienced Empire agents. They split up into groups of three and rushed towards the nearest Specter Fleet, beginning to scan the Silent Graves. Special warships began to deploy gravitational traps and various spatial sealing devices. In this dangerous era, caution is never too much, especially when the Fallen Apostle might suddenly jump out of nowhere and smash us with a brick …
The Pandora Heavy Guards in the outer sphere of the Royal Fleet then took action. Eighty percent of the army's medium-sized warships and aircraft carriers expanded the formation of the fleet until the range of the Combined Shield reached its limit. After expanding the inner space of the fleet, these warships, who especially loved the art of explosion, began to deploy super-heavy cannon turrets. The latter was one of the signature songs of the Pandora Heavy Guards. The so-called super-heavy cannon consisted of two parts. One part was a fortress cannon larger than the Eiffel Tower, and the other part … was another fortress cannon … typical of Pandora's style.
The two fortress cannons took up 90% of the energy supply and slots of the entire turret, which meant that this super-heavy space sentry post basically had no defense. Therefore, they could only be set up inside the impregnable Combined Shield. This was why the Imperial Guard Corp had to expand the range of the Combined Shield. Pandora's thinking when formulating this tactic was like this: First, we'll open up a large enough base, then we'll fill it with cannons and explosives, and that's it …
How militaristic is this? Pandora is too ruthless. Back in junior high, when I fought with others, I was called a fierce and mischievous student by my teacher every time I brought a brick with me. If I were like her, not only would I carry a brick in my hand, but also have two maglev bricks floating around me … I would have been dissected by the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
But no matter what, I had to admit that this kind of thing was indeed quite a deterrent. At least this tactic of expanding the firepower to the extreme with the advantage of being in a group could allow one spaceship to exert the DPS of three spaceships. Although the endurance and defensive power of the spaceships were greatly reduced, Pandora's strategic thinking had always been "blow up the enemy first, and then you will naturally be safe", so it was used today.
While Pandora was deploying the fortress cannons, Visca was doing the same thing. However, her army had not been formed yet, so the little girl's warships were simply mixed in with Pandora's guards. This resulted in a black-and-red warship among every dozen or so silver-gray warships, standing out like a crane among a flock of chickens. At first glance, it looked like a group of captains had blended in …
"All the Longsong Cannons have locked onto the large Specter Ships within their firing range." Visca's eyes began to flow with starry energy. Her sister was the same as her. "It is estimated that the instantaneous firepower coverage will reach 40%. Considering that most of the Specter Ships are civilian non-warships, it can be assumed that the threat of the target is within the range of the army's annihilation."
"The outer layer of the Specter Fleet has been scanned. No signs of life or activation have been found."
At this time, the reconnaissance team that went to investigate the situation also sent back a message. It was expected. After reporting this, they immediately accelerated and rushed deeper into the gyroscopic starship cluster. There, the shipboard scanner found some active signals of the Specter Ship.
"Be careful. They may counterattack," I reminded them. Then, I focused my attention on the huge Specter Ships around me.
Frankly speaking, this was my first time coming into direct contact with the real Specter Ships. Before this, I had always learned about these things through eyewitness reports and video data. I had never seen the real thing before. Now that they were right in front of me, it naturally felt different.
In terms of average size, there was a huge gap between the Specter Ships and the Empire's warships. The Specter Ships' main spaceships were almost twice the size of the most common spaceships of the Imperial Army. On the other hand, the huge spaceships that were comparable to the Eternal-class spaceships were so rare that they could only be used as bystanders. Ninety percent of the Specter Ships were painted in black or very dark red. They looked oppressive and heavy. Linked to their name of Specter, they gave people the feeling of a graveyard of death. The design style of these spaceships was full of thick and sturdy lines. There were spherical and curved protrusions everywhere on the surface of the hull. Under these curved parabola shells, there were slowly flashing grayish-blue energy currents. They were distributed in parallel lines, like the cracks on the carapace of some arthropod insects. This design style was very different from the Imperial Army's straight, rigid lines and rugged appearance. I was used to seeing sharp and clear Empire warships (a certain round Expedition Class was the only exception. The Fortress Ship was really an exception). Now that I saw these Specter Ships, I felt that they were neither fish nor fowl.
"These things look like rotten potatoes," Qian Qian commented, pursing her lips. "Their aesthetic standards are terrible."
Liliana shook her head. "They look like animal organs to me. There are so many pieces of rotten meat."
I quickly tossed her aside. Her words were too disgusting …
At that moment, the first wave of reconnaissance troops responded through the communicator. "Sir! We have boarded a Specter Ship! This ship showed some activity a minute ago, responding to the approaching reconnaissance troops. However, after we took emergency measures, it suddenly went silent. We will send people to investigate the situation. "
The Specter Ship that the reconnaissance troops had boarded was a large spaceship that was close to the inner ring of the fleet. It was twenty-three kilometers long. It was considered a large ship in the Specter Fleet. We quickly connected the image from the officer's platform. The first thing we saw was that the unassuming black warship had been blasted with two large holes in the front by light missiles …
I think I knew what the 'emergency measures' that the commander of the reconnaissance troops had mentioned were.
A few well-trained Empire agents entered the Specter Ship after activating the cloaking system. The image of their surroundings was displayed in real time. The interior of the Specter Ship was just like its exterior. It had a bumpy feeling, like animal tissue. Rugged cables could be seen everywhere in the dark corridors and pipes. They were not buried under the walls of the corridors. Instead, they were exposed. They looked like veins that had been exposed after muscles had been torn off. They also looked a little like intertwined vines. Light flashed between the thick cables, indicating that the energy system of the Specter Ship was still operating normally. The Empire agents who had entered the spaceship cautiously moved forward. There were no signs of life on the detectors. Then, an agent from the Psychic Assault Force began to scan the surroundings.
"There are no thought reactions or high-level logical processes. This place is' dead '."
The agents deactivated the cloaking system but remained vigilant. They gripped their weapons tightly and continued to move forward. There was still an atmosphere inside the Specter Ship, which allowed sound to travel. The hollow echo of military boots on the alloy corridor was the only sound in the Specter Ship. It made the soldiers walking in the dark and creepy spaceship feel like they were walking in a nightmare. The image from the communicator was like a weird horror film made by a director who had won seven or eight Oscars at the Oscars. If three aliens jumped out of the screen at this time, I would edit this video and mail it to Hollywood …
First-hand information from the agents at the scene kept coming in.
"The artificial pressure is normal. The pressure fluctuation has stopped. It seems that the spaceship has plugged the hole by itself."
"We seem to be walking in a passageway for people to pass through. It is abnormally wide. Maybe the creators of the Specter Ship are a group of giant creatures. Along the way, there are unknown signs. The general information analysis rules indicate that they may be indicating the direction and position of the exchange point. There are emergency lights on the wall, but the main light cannot be activated. The power source has been cut off."
"… There is a large amount of ozone and chlorine in the artificial atmosphere. In addition, there are three extra-sequence elements. Preliminary judgment is that the occupants of these spaceships are carbon-based creatures, but no signs of life."
"Okay, we have reached the end of the corridor … Hmm, sir, it's strange. The energy flow of the Specter Ship seems to have stopped. The instrument shows that the internal pressure of the nearby psionic energy is decreasing … Number III, what's the situation over there?"
Number III referred to the reconnaissance ship parked outside the Specter Ship. When the agents entered the Specter Ship to check the situation, the small warship orbited the huge hull of the Specter Ship and scanned its outer structure. It sent back a surprising message. "The energy of the target spaceship is shrinking back to the central area. Its outer shell has lost power …"
The reconnaissance ship activated a more powerful scanning device and began to examine the internal situation of the spaceship. Suddenly, a rapid alarm sounded. "Retreat! Retreat! The energy reading of the core of the spaceship is soaring! It's going to self-destruct! "
The agents immediately activated the teleportation device and returned to the reconnaissance ship. Then, the reconnaissance ship and the two fighter jets nearby retreated at lightning speed. The three aircraft streaked across the sky, and at the starting point of the three light beams, the surface of the mountain-like Specter Ship suddenly became densely covered with large blood-red patterns, like a heart filled with blood. Then …
It exploded into a huge dazzling fireball.
Pandora immediately stood up and ordered loudly, "Prepare for battle! Charge all cannons! "
A rapid report sounded in the command hall. "A large number of Specter Ship engines have been activated. They are activating!"
The entire fleet entered combat mode almost instantly. Each spaceship began to charge the main cannons, and the sentry cannons that had long been set up were locked onto their respective targets, waiting for the order to attack. The nerves of the Empire soldiers were already in a state of brain hemorrhage. At this time, seeing an obvious' murder 'signal, they finally succeeded in having a brain hemorrhage …
However, the moment before the attack began, Lin Xue suddenly issued an emergency stop order to all units through the command link. She said loudly, "Stop!"
As a prophet, Lin Xue had a very special authority in the Imperial Army. That was, she could give the order to stop any unit in an extremely urgent situation, even including the generals and the emperor of the Empire. Of course, for the latter two targets, her method of stopping was usually a karate chop or a pinch of the ear. This type of authority was quite impressive, far surpassing the title of "Matriarch". However, this type of authority was absolutely necessary for Lin Xue. We needed the power of prophecy, and this type of power would often be used in emergency situations to change the tide of the battle. In the past, it had been proven that Lin Xue would sometimes only have a very strong passive premonition a few seconds before an operation was about to be carried out. And these few seconds obviously wouldn't be enough for her to write an application and for Shadora and me to discuss it for half a day … Bureaucracy kills people.
So, Sandora and I simply gave Lin Xue this emergency stop function. After all, everyone believed that she would not drop the ball at a critical moment. Well, for the Imperial Army, if even a prophet started to drop the ball, there would probably be no one who would not drop the ball.
"What's wrong, lass?"
I panted and looked at Lin Xue. "You scared me. If someone started charging, they would have sprained their waist by now."
"Don't attack them. Let's see what the ghost ships are doing."
Lin Xue pouted and gestured at the holographic projection not far away with her chin. "I suggest you let the Garden of Death system warm up now. The ghost ships are about to escape."
While Lin Xue was talking, a few seconds had passed. Under normal circumstances, if two fleets clashed at such a close distance, a few seconds would be enough for both sides to have their brains sucked out. In the era of firearms, one could go from being well-dressed to bleeding with just the press of a button. However, in reality, the Imperial Army did not move, and the ghost fleet did not show any signs of attacking.
The self-destruction just now didn't seem to be a signal to attack. It was just to distract us. Perhaps their goal was to force the empire's army to attack the damaged spaceships around us. Just as Lin Xue predicted, the Ghost Fleet was preparing to escape!
"Large-scale Void Jump Force Field detected." The mainframe's urgent alarm sounded on the bridge. "The target fleet will escape in one minute!"
The holographic projection on the commander's platform quickly changed. The ghost fleet, which was hundreds of kilometers in size, was divided into several independent parts. Some of the ghost ships were specially marked with a flashing warning box beside them that said "About to Escape". The largest box was the planet fortress at the center of the fleet. That behemoth was also trying to escape!
Thankfully, with Lin Xue's reminder, I had already connected to the Departed Garden. That powerful multifunctional Law Interference Equipment was now able to function normally in the void. In just an instant, the void where the fleet was gathered changed. Those Specter Ships and core fortresses that had been identified and had become somewhat blurry suddenly shook as if they had received a direct blow. At the same time, they returned to their physical forms.
At the last moment, we managed to stop the ships from escaping.
If the Imperial Army had really started to wipe out the other ghost ships, at least some of these warships would have had a chance to escape.
"What's going on?"
Sandora glanced at Lin Xue. "They're running away?"
"Have you forgotten the information we had before?" I said. "The ghost ships will avoid the Empire's warships."
After the escape was stopped, the ghost fleet quieted down again. However, the hundred or so ships that had been identified and were probably controlled by living people did not turn off their engines. This included the planet fortress at the center of the fleet. The lights on their surfaces flickered, and their hulls drifted slightly as if they were in a state of extreme conflict.
"I feel … they're trembling."
Liliana grabbed the guardrail in front of her, her eyes sparkling.
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