The communication screen suddenly lit up.
The face of General Zhao Yanzhi, Commander of the Azure Dragon Fleet, appeared on it.
A cold sneer hung at the corner of his mouth, filled with undisguised mockery.
"These Empire barbarians."
He spoke, his voice carrying a relaxed tone like a cat toying with a mouse.
"Earlier, they were thinking of dividing forces, trying to make us think they would warp away from the Tyrol Galaxy and the Turkmen Star System."
He paused, his sneer deepening.
"Now it seems..."
"They've clearly lifted a stone only to drop it on their own feet."
He tapped on the screen, pulling up the latest battle data.
"After dividing forces, their fleet strength is even weaker."
"Without enough troops to cover the rear, they'll only die faster."
Jiang Yubai turned his head to look at him.
His steady face lacked the relaxed smile of Zhao Yanzhi.
He spoke slowly, his voice not loud but carrying the caution unique to a seasoned veteran.
"General Zhao Yanzhi."
"Don't let your guard down."
Zhao Yanzhi raised an eyebrow.
Jiang Yubai continued.
"Beware of a cornered beast."
Zhao Yanzhi was taken aback for a moment.
Then he laughed.
The smile grew wider, more relaxed.
"Don't worry."
He leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms, his tone carrying an indescribable confidence.
"We have two Sequence Fleets, over two hundred thousand starships."
He paused, his gaze falling on the red dots fleeing across the tactical screen.
"Are we afraid of their two heavily damaged fleets?"
Jiang Yubai looked at him, silent for a second.
Then he nodded.
"Let's hope so."
Not long after.
The outer perimeter of the AEWL-849 Jump Point.
The Imperial Fleet finally charged to this location.
That airspace now flashed with green light on the tactical screen.
AEWL-849 Jump Point.
The largest jump point in the Elvira Star System, Blue Moon Star System, Lou Yang Star System, and Shang Yu Star System.
The channel diameter is three times that of an ordinary jump point.
Curvature stability is five times that of an ordinary jump point.
A single jump can accommodate five thousand starships passing through simultaneously.
The jump interval requires only half an hour.
This was why Slate and Thatcher chose to retreat here.
Bridge of the Ares.
Slate stared at the green dot on the screen growing closer and closer, a hint of relief finally appearing on his tense face.
Almost there.
Almost.
The communication screen lit up, and General Thatcher's face appeared on it.
That weary face now actually wore a trace of a smile.
"Slate."
His voice came through the communication channel, carrying a rare lightness:
"My first initial is E."
He paused, the smile at the corner of his mouth deepening:
"Yours is T."
Slate was taken aback:
"So?"
Thatcher laughed out loud:
"So, let my side jump first, how about that?"
Slate's brow twitched slightly.
He subconsciously recited his own name in his mind.
Travis Slate.
T.
Thatcher's name.
Evan Thatcher.
E.
In alphabetical order, E does indeed come before T.
He couldn't help but let out a soft laugh.
The smile was faint, but in such a life-and-death moment, it felt especially rare.
"You really are a clever one."
He shook his head, his tone carrying a hint of helplessness and a touch of indulgence.
"If we went by surname initials, it would be our side withdrawing first."
Thatcher shrugged.
"That won't do."
"It took me a lot of effort to come up with that excuse."
Slate waved his hand dismissively with a smile.
"Go on, quickly."
His expression turned serious again.
"Time waits for no one."
Slate didn't care about the order of who went first.
As long as they could withdraw, that was enough.
Thatcher nodded, and the communication ended.
On the screen, the Pandora Fleet's formation began to adjust.
Those battle-scarred warships started gathering at the entrance to the Warp Point.
Five thousand warships of the Pandora Fleet began to move slowly toward the Warp Point entrance.
Their silhouettes were like a tide, their Tail Flames like a forest, drawing dense, crisscrossing blue trails of light in the Void.
The remaining Imperial warships were not idle.
They quickly deployed into formation, establishing a loose defensive line around the perimeter of the Warp Point.
It was not a line meant for a last stand.
It was meant to buy time.
Battleships held the center, Cruisers positioned on the flanks, and Destroyers advanced forward for reconnaissance.
The formation was spread out, with distances between each ship exceeding the norm.
There was only one purpose for this.
Even if sunk, they could buy a few more seconds.
Meanwhile, the Destroyers that had been at the rear of the fleet, responsible for covering the retreat, did one more thing as they withdrew.
They deployed a large number of Lane Blockade Mines.
The mines were not large, only a few meters in diameter, pitch black, nearly impossible to detect with the naked eye in the Void.
They were ejected by launchers into the rear Airspace, drifting apart slowly under Inertia.
No Active Signal.
No energy fluctuations.
Like a floating, harmless patch of Space Debris.
The Federation Fleet's vanguard was pursuing too aggressively.
The three leading Destroyers charged almost at full speed into the newly laid Minefield.
The captain of the first Destroyer stared at the Imperial Fleet growing closer on his screen, a smile of imminent prey on his lips.
"Faster!" he shouted.
Before his words faded.
The hull jolted violently.
On the port side, a Lane Blockade Mine was grazed by the hull, triggering the fuse.
The Focused Fragmentation Warhead detonated less than three meters from the Armor.
Tens of thousands of high-velocity fragments slammed into the hull like a torrential downpour.
The port side Armor was instantly riddled like a sieve.
Compartments depressurized.
Personnel were sucked out into the vacuum.
Then the second, the third.
That Destroyer seemed to have crashed into an invisible death zone.
Explosive flashes erupted one after another across its hull surface, spreading from the bow to the Stern.
In less than ten seconds, it blew apart into two sections.
The second Cruiser sensed something was wrong, its captain roaring to Evade Hard to Port.
But it was too late.
Its massive hull was too large a target.
Three Blockade Mines were drawn to it simultaneously, colliding with the hull during its turn.
The explosions hit the Engine room.
Thrusters shattered.
The Fusion Reactor leaked.
Uncontrolled plasma gushed from the Breach, forming a blinding purple band of light several kilometers long.
That Cruiser lost power and began to drift slowly, spinning in the Void.
It became a living target.
The third Destroyer had slightly better luck.
It only struck one mine.
But the location of that mine was precisely beneath the bridge.
The explosion tore away half the bow, and everyone inside the bridge vanished.
The Destroyer, now without command, drifted forward another three thousand kilometers under inertia before being finished off and sunk by the Imperial Fleet ahead.
The sacrifice of these few ships bought the Imperial Fleet precious minutes.
Minutes later.
The first wave of five thousand Imperial warships began to warp.
Blue light engulfed them.
Then they disappeared.
Jump Point Z-78.
Blue warp light erupted in the Void.