Meng Changfeng remained silent for five seconds over the communication channel.
Then he spoke.
"All crew of the Thunder, acknowledged! Full assault!"
"All crew of the Shadow Blade, acknowledged! Full assault!"
...
Qin Bei Wang nodded.
"All ships, assault!"
The command was given.
The engines of eight starships simultaneously erupted with blue light at maximum power.
In deep space, this small fleet began accelerating like an arrow released from its bow, shooting straight toward the distant enemy formation.
On Qin Bei Wang's holographic star chart, the eight blue dots representing their forces arranged themselves in a perfect assault wedge formation, their speed steadily increasing.
Ahead, the twenty-four red dots remained in a single-file formation, apparently unaware of their movements.
The distance was rapidly closing.
"Detecting large fleet signals! Azimuth 177, elevation -3, distance—one hundred million kilometers!"
The sensor operator's exclamation echoed across the Imperial Glory's bridge.
His fingers froze on the data pad as he slowly looked up.
"Repeat."
"Federation fleet detected on our flank! Estimated numbers... eight ships! Flagship unidentified! They're cutting in from our four o'clock position at extreme velocity!"
The bridge fell into dead silence.
Wells abruptly stood up, the hem of his tactical robe sweeping across the armrests of his command chair.
He rushed to the main tactical screen in two strides, his fingers moving through the air to call up sensor data from that direction.
On the right side of the screen, where deep space had been empty moments before, eight glaring blue dots now shone brightly.
They were arranged in a standard assault wedge formation, all pointed toward the rear of their fleet.
Where only the slowest Dragon Lizard Fleet was positioned.
"How is this possible..." the adjutant murmured, his face pale. "Our flank reconnaissance array clearly..."
"The flank array operates at only 30% of the main array's power."
Wells' voice sounded as if it were being squeezed through his teeth.
"Because our primary threat was from the front."
He stared at the suddenly appearing fleet, his mind rapidly calculating.
One hundred million kilometers—in space combat, this was an awkward distance.
Too far to engage immediately.
Too close to adjust formations in time.
More critically, his fleet was currently pursuing the fleeing "Pluto Fleet" in a single-file formation.
The distance between his lead and rear ships stretched over one hundred fifty million kilometers.
The vanguard was already approaching the area where the "fleet communication signals" had been detected earlier.
While the slow Dragon Lizard Fleet was still struggling to keep up from behind.
If they turned around now to engage the enemy at their rear, the entire fleet would need thirty minutes to complete the maneuver.
Thirty minutes was enough time for the enemy to fire seven or eight full salvos.
If he didn't turn around and continued forward, he would expose their vulnerable rear completely to those eight enemy ships.
"Commander, we..."
The adjutant's voice trembled.
Wells didn't respond immediately.
His eyes darted rapidly between the two threats on the tactical screen.
The potentially existing "Pluto Fleet" ahead, and these eight fresh warships that had just appeared behind them.
Pincered from both directions.
A complete encirclement.
And he himself, like a foolish snake, had marched straight into the center of the net.
"We've been set up."
Wells' voice was low and icy. "It was all planned from the very beginning."
"What do we do now...?"
"Retreat."
Wells' tone was resolute.
"Order the entire fleet to abandon pursuit, turn to heading 092, and disengage from the battlefield at full speed. The Dragon Lizard Fleet at the rear will break through on their own and rendezvous at the third rally point."
"But Commander, if we retreat now, the Dragon Lizard Fleet will..."
"Gore Victor can fend for himself."
Wells cut him off, his gaze cold and ruthless.
"Preserving the direct fleet is our top priority now. Relay the orders, execute immediately!"
The command spread instantly throughout the direct fleet and the Dragon Lizard Fleet via quantum communication.
The massive fleet began emergency turns, engine plumes tracing chaotic arcs in deep space.
But the drawbacks of the long snake formation were now exposed.
While the forward ships could turn easily and those in the middle could still adjust, the Dragon Lizard Fleet at the rear required much more time to match the turning rhythm.
Amid this chaotic turning process, the forward reconnaissance ships delivered their final report.
"Commander! We've caught up with that 'reinforcement fleet'..."
The voice over the comm channel sounded absurd.
"It... it's just a single ship. One Gale-Class Cruiser. All those multi-fleet communication signals were simulated by it alone!"
The air on the bridge seemed to freeze solid.
Wells stood motionless.
His fingers pressed against the console edge, knuckles white with tension.
On his weathered face, confusion first appeared, then realization, finally transforming into towering rage.
"One ship..."
He repeated in a low voice filled with self-mockery and fury.
"I was fooled by one ship. Played like a fiddle by a single cruiser."
He recalled every decision he'd made earlier.
Deploying main forces to pursue, adjusting formations, worrying about ambushes, deciding to retreat...
All of it had been built upon a false premise.
They had been chasing the Pluto Fleet.
The truth was, only one lonely cruiser had been performing a solo act in deep space.
But this was no time for anger.
He forced himself to calm down, his gaze returning to the tactical screen.
The eight enemy ships at the rear were already closing in on their fleet's backline, while his fleet had completed less than one-third of its turn.
Worse still, the Dragon Lizard Fleet at the very rear was about to be exposed to enemy fire.
On the bridge of the Kunlun Mountain, Qin Bei Wang watched the slowly turning red snake formation on the holographic star chart.
"They're trying to run."
Qin Bei Wang said slowly.
"Should we pursue?"
Zhuang ZhiXuan asked.
"No."
Qin Bei Wang's fingers moved rapidly across the console, locking onto a starship in the middle of the Dragon Lizard Fleet.
It was the Dragon Lizard Fleet's flagship, the "Fire Lizard," an old Imperial battlecruiser with heavy armor but sluggish mobility.
"Thunder to Kunlun Mountain."
Meng Changfeng's voice came through the comm channel.
"Thunder has locked onto the Dragon Lizard Fleet flagship, ready to fire at any time."
"Leave it to the Kunlun Mountain's main cannons! The flagship of a Sub-Level Fleet makes perfect inaugural targets for its two main cannons!"
Qin Bei Wang said with a laugh.
On the bridge, everyone held their breath.
They knew what was coming next.
The Kunlun Mountain's most powerful weapon, the Heavy Particle Beam Main Cannon known as "Sky-Opening," possessed enough firepower to vaporize a small asteroid in 0.3 seconds with a single shot.
However, its lengthy charging time and massive energy consumption typically limited its use to two or three discharges per battle.
Qin Bei Wang decided to reserve the first volley for that outdated, obsolete flagship.
"Target locked.
Enemy flagship 'Fire Lizard'."
His voice remained calm.
Immediately, the Gunnery Chief's voice came through the communication channel.
"Distance: two million kilometers.
Azimuth correction: -0.3 degrees. Beginning charge sequence."