Chapter 524: Lost Contact_1

Zhuang Yue gave the order, "The Second Group Army, retreat immediately. Pay attention to the location where the light particles disappeared."

"Launch detectors to check it out, let's see what's going on over there!"

She knew that this must be a countermove by the Trisolarans, "All personnel, do not relax your vigilance! The enemy's counterattack is imminent!"

At Qingnu Star Command, Cao Yang was accompanied by more than a dozen new-generation generals.

Although the tactics and methods of combat were formulated by both Zhuang Yue and Cao Yang, Zhuang Yue was the supreme commander at the front, so after the battle started, Cao Yang had no specific command authority.

Therefore, he took a dozen gifted officers to observe the battle. As Zhuang Yue issued commands from the front, Cao Yang explained to everyone as if it were a live teaching session,

"Remember, you can be bold when setting strategies, but when facing an unknown enemy, you can't be too cautious!"

As if confirming Zhuang Yue's judgment, the radar of the Second Group Army suddenly showed a dense swarm of flying objects heading towards them.

Zhuang Yue ordered calmly, "All ships, evade immediately."

Then she looked at the intelligence staff.

The intelligence staffer immediately said, "On the radar, there is nothing at that location, but the direction from which the flying objects appeared is indeed where the light particles vanished.

"Additionally, according to radar feedback, most of these flying objects are composed of metal and are likely some kind of spacecraft."

Zhuang Yue rubbed her chin in thought for a few seconds and then said, "Then treat them as enemy ships, the opponent may have technology similar to the gyro civilization shield!"

She then looked at the wartime sand table to compare the speeds of both sides, "We won't make it into lightspeed, Second Legion prepare for battle!"

Looking at the numbers, those weren't Trisolaran fleets. If the Second Group Army could retreat unscathed, Zhuang Yue would immediately issue the order for a full-speed retreat.

After all, their main target was the Trisolarans; there was no need for unnecessary complications.

However, those flying objects were moving very fast, and they would catch up to the Second Group Army's fleet in a matter of hours.

Better to be ready for battle, with the warships spreading out as much as possible—the Monster Cannon was already prepared to fire.

In this way, they would be ready and relaxed rather than chaotic when the engagement began.

Jiang Yu suddenly spoke up from the rear, "The light particles from the Trisolarans earlier, could it be that they were guiding the targets for the other side? And exposing their position, forcing them to take action?"

A scholar on Zhuang Yue's side said, "That's very possible. The spatial reactions of light particles in the empty void of space and those passing through the fleet are different.

"They should be able to detect the Second Group Army's position and many detailed pieces of information through the flight path of the light particles."

Jiang Yu nodded, "Then it seems likely that the other side is a First Epoch Life Form, or like Earth, an Orphan Planet drifting between star systems.

"Only, this Orphan Planet must have a civilization, which is why they dispatched spacecraft to fight."

At this moment, the Trisolaran Charge Fleet suddenly changed course, but The First Army Group also arrived on the battlefield promptly.

Zhuang Yue commanded, "Finish the battle quickly! Then enter lightspeed again to support the Second Group Army!"

Jiang Yu's analysis gave Zhuang Yue some confidence.

Two Group Armies, tens of thousands of modern warships, as long as the new enemy wasn't an Advanced Civilization or God-level Civilization, Zhuang Yue was confident that both elite forces could retreat in one piece.

At that point, the high-speed flying objects entered the firing range of the Monster Cannon, and Zhuang Yue immediately issued the attack order.

No matter what type of civilization the other party was, as long as they were intelligent beings, in this Dark Forest they would be enemies upon encounter.

The enemy seemed to have no intention of dodging, and soon a number of flying objects were hit.

The intelligence staff reported the results to Zhuang Yue, "The first salvo hit over three thousand six hundred targets, but according to radar displays, the hit targets weren't annihilated but shattered!"

Shattered?

Many immediately realized something was amiss, because this was not the reaction to expect from getting hit by antimatter weapons.

Zhuang Yue quickly made a judgment, "It's very likely that we didn't actually hit the targets at all. Cease fire, wait till they're closer before firing again!

"Organize a charge fleet to break away from the battlefield and launch a counter-charge toward where the light particles disappeared!

"Dark Matter Detonator, stand by!"

When the Second Group Army set off, they took the only Grand Warship equipped with a Dark Matter Detonator, which was their ace in the hole.

Because the weapon's operation was complex and cumbersome, a single detonation required fifteen to sixteen hours of preparation—on the interstellar battlefield, it was practically a disposable weapon.

Therefore, Zhuang Yue wouldn't use this trump card until a critical moment.

Soon, the Second Group Army's counter-charge began.

From the current situation, the enemy didn't seem like an Advanced Civilization or a God-level Civilization.

Through the civilizations of Paradise, humanity had witnessed the means of God-level Civilizations, and even if it were an Advanced Civilization, it's estimated that the Second Fleet would have already been gone by now.

That's why Zhuang Yue decided on such a bold tactic of taking the offensive.

Soon, the flying objects launched by the enemy were very close to the Second Group Army, but the enemy still didn't carry out any attacks.

Under Zhuang Yue's direction, the second round of firing began.

This barrage was more intense than the first one, with careful coordination between the cannons, forming a large net composed of antimatter projectiles.

After the bombardment, many white lights appeared ahead, proving that this round of firing had an effect.

The intelligence staff reported, "According to radar displays, the enemy's flyers have a self-modifying trajectory mechanism; they should be intelligent spacecraft."

Zhuang Yue voiced the question on many people's minds, "But what are their weapons? The two sides are separated by only a few astronomical units now, why haven't they launched an offensive?"

Could it be that their intention was to ram the Second Group Army's warships?

Only by withstanding this offensive could they know the enemy's methods. Zhuang Yue ordered, "Prepare to attack with close-quarters weapons, all ships be alert to evade."

The close-quarter weapons on the new warships were incredibly fierce, making it impossible for the enemy's ships to get close.

When the enemy's ships came near, the close-quarter weapons of the Second Group Army's warships formed an even denser net, mercilessly reaping the enemy's ships, with none of the warships escaping the intensity of the assault.

Shortly after, not a single enemy warship remained, and all were destroyed; only some wreckage used its prior acceleration to drift through the Second Group Army's formation.

A palm-sized piece of wreckage pierced through the protective forcefield of the P-1326 Warship, the forcefield's resistance drastically reducing the debris' speed, posing no threat to the hull of the ship.

Yet, this piece of wreckage clung to the hull of the warship as if it had a life of its own, and a few minutes later, P-1326 lost contact.

The same situation arose all around the fleet. When a second warship lost contact, it immediately drew the attention of Galaxy III, but before it could understand the cause of the loss of communication, it promptly reported up the chain.

By the time Zhuang Yue and others received this message, eight warships had already lost contact.