Chapter 528: The Leaf Insect Plan_1

After the Charge Fleet cracked the enemy's trap, they immediately reported the situation to Zhuang Yue.

Through careful reconnaissance, they had mostly figured out the method the huge planet used to hide itself.

It had been setting up a delicate gravitational field around itself at a distance of one to two astronomical units, which could affect the gravitational radar's information-gathering process.

And between star systems, optical telescopes were of little use; it was impossible to see the huge planet hiding in the darkness.

If they truly saw the adversary, it meant that they were already in close proximity to each other.

This differed from the gyro civilization's barrier, it was just a "blinding tactic" for the gravitational radar.

Upon learning of the Charge Fleet's encounter, Zhuang Yue immediately gave the order, "Hold firm, wait for reinforcements."

Then she ordered The First Army Group, "Leave the Sixth Army to annihilate the Trisolaran fleet, the rest of the armies enter lightspeed immediately to support the Charge Fleet!"

Just as the main force of the First Army had just entered lightspeed travel, the combat radar suddenly reported that they had detected more than sixty spacecraft on the other side of Star System Three.

According to the images captured by the system's probes, these spacecraft were spherical, matching the shape of Trisolaran ships.

The other two fleets, composed of outdated vessels, likely launched that suicidal offensive to cover for the escape of these sixty-plus warships.

At this moment, the main force of the Second Group Army was tied down by the second wave of attacks from the huge planet, and the main force of the First Army Group had just entered lightspeed and couldn't be contacted.

Zhuang Yue had no forces available to block them, and there were not many probes left, unable to organize an effective self-destruct attack.

The strategy of the Trisolarans had become clear: use the huge planet to hold back humanity's main force, creating an opportunity for some to escape.

Before the battle began, every curvature spaceship manufactured in Star System Three fled immediately.

However, the industrial foundation of Star System Three was still weak, and the speed of manufacturing curvature engines was very slow, so the sixty-plus ships currently fleeing did not possess the capability of curvature flight.

This was a desperate measure, but it was better for a part of the people to escape than for the entire army to be annihilated.

Once they were beyond the radar monitoring range and shut down their engines, it would be almost impossible to find them in the dark outer space.

The Trisolarans also paid a heavy price to achieve this goal; very few people from the First Fleet had managed to escape before the battle began.

To cover for those sixty-plus warships, more than 70% of the First Fleet's Trisolarans would die in this campaign.

Their ancestors were among the first invaders of the Solar System.

But their fate had been full of hardships because the technology for interstellar travel was immature when they set out, and many of their companions had died during the long journey.

Midway through their march, the Dark Forest deterrence was established by Luo Ji, forcing them to turn back.

Following that, the Trisolarans underwent a technological revolution, and the First Fleet managed to retrofit their ships with the available technology, improving their speed and endurance.

Later, Cheng Xin took over the deterrence power, and they thought they had seen the dawn, but soon the Solar System State and Starship Earth extinguished that glimmer of hope.

The wandering journey in space continued!

Around Year One of the Galaxy, the First Fleet finally found a suitable star system to settle in.

Initially, they leisurely manufactured curvature spaceships to catch up with the main force.

It wasn't that they weren't eager, but their equipment and technology were severely outdated, and manufacturing curvature engines was extremely difficult.

Just as a complete industrial system was established and they started catching up with the main force, Earth arrived.

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It seemed as if there was an unspoken understanding between the two sides, even the direction of their escape was the same.

Trisolarans had never been indecisive when making choices. When there was a possibility they could be detected outside the star system, they had already begun to prepare for the current battle.

Over sixty warships with a chance of successful escape, although not equipped with curvature engines, should be outfitted with the latest matter stream engines, accelerating significantly faster than the older warships.

As they were about to leave the detection area of human radars, many Trisolarans paid their respects toward the battlefield.

This was both a salute to their compatriots covering their retreat and an homage to humanity.

When the two had first made contact, humanity was far behind, yet now, they were the ones being hunted by humans.

But what they didn't anticipate was that the misfortune of the First Fleet was far from over.

...

In Zhuang Yue's forward command post, a staff officer reported, "The Third Corps has reached the predetermined battlefield. The Strategic Department's analysis was very accurate—sure enough, the enemy's escape direction is opposite to the direction of the Three-Body Star System."

Trisolarans might have not imagined that their old rival, Jiang Yu, had long guessed their intentions: the main battlefield would be at Star System Three, and it was very likely that the Trisolarans would stir up the waters before fleeing.

Based on Jiang Yu's guess and the intelligence received, the Strategic Department had deduced the Trisolarans' strategy, which allowed Zhuang Yue and Cao Yang to arrange their tactics accordingly.

The position where the Third Corps emerged from lightspeed was right in front of those sixty or so enemy ships. Although they were not directly ahead, they had enough opportunity to snipe the escapees.

This sniping effort, while meticulously planned, also involved an element of luck, as it was impossible for just one army group to surround an entire star system.

The Trisolarans were also unlucky, but when formulating the battle plans, no one expected that the Third Corps' emergence from lightspeed would be so close to the fleeing ships.

Zhuang Yue immediately issued an attack order to the Third Corps, and the Trisolarans aboard those sixty plus ships were in despair.

Humanity had become incredibly powerful, and they were now sufficiently cautious; the Trisolarans from the time the First Fleet departed were no longer their match.

There was little suspense in this ambush; after all, humanity held the decisive advantage in this battle.

After destroying over twenty enemy ships, Zhuang Yue communicated with the Trisolarans, "Hand over Yun Tianming to us, and we'll let you leave."

After waiting a few minutes without a response from the Trisolarans, the attack continued.

The Strategic Department had already analyzed that Yun Tianming held extraordinary significance to the Trisolarans, so he was likely to have been sent away early on.

These Trisolarans, who had escaped at the last moment, were surely in contact with their main forces. The lack of a response now meant that in the Trisolarans' view, the value of Yun Tianming was higher than that of the remaining thirty-plus ships.

Thus, the Third Corps had no choice but to strike hard.

Back at Blue Maiden Star, Jiang Yu gave Belinsky a knowing look, and Belinsky, understanding the cue, went to a corner and entered a code on his computer.

Suddenly, the computer screen displayed: Activate the Ye Chong Plan!

In the battle raging ahead, in order to capture any Sophons that might be observing nearby, three fleets, regardless of the intensity of the combat, deployed mobile "Catcher" systems to roam around the battle's periphery.

The battlefield of the Third Corps was no exception, boasting several dozen ships equipped with the "Catcher" system.

After destroying two Sophons and confirming there were no others within millions of kilometers, a small logistics ship performed a strange launch.

What made it strange was that although something was launched, neither radar nor optical telescopes could detect what had been launched.

This was a new technology developed by the Solar System State Academy of Sciences, inspired by the barrier technology of gyroscopic civilization.

In the dark universe, the small barrier achieved near perfect stealth, just like a leaf insect on a tree, hard to detect, hence it was named the Ye Chong Plan.

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