Chapter 191: The Lost Sky

Gao Yuan's requests had all been met, and he had no further demands for the time being. However, Gao Yuan's lack of desires caused some dissatisfaction among the generals.

"Leader, why not discuss our backup plan?"

Li Wen shook his head and said, "Since the backup plan has been discarded, there's no need to talk about it anymore."

From the uniform, it was clear that the dissatisfied general was from the navy.

"I stand by my view that we shouldn't abandon the most rational plan just because Xinghe opposes it. Yes, Xinghe refuses to use the backup plan, but since Nemesis has significant influence over Xinghe, why not let Nemesis know about this plan? Why not let Comrade Gao Yuan... know the truth of the matter before making the final decision? Isn't it a bit too hasty?"

Everyone fell silent, but Gao Yuan was a bit puzzled since everything had been set in stone. Why were there ripples again?

After pondering for a moment, Li Wen said, "Alright, tell Xiao Gao about it, but understand that the decision to abandon the backup plan wasn't solely due to Xinghe's opposition."

"Yes."

The naval general turned to Gao Yuan and said, "I am Han Guangming, the Navy Commander. Next, I will explain to you a temporarily shelved backup plan. This plan involves using an attack nuclear submarine to transport you and Xinghe to the Mediterranean or Red Sea region. In my opinion, submarines are much safer than traveling by land."

Gao Yuan said in surprise, "Nuclear submarines? Oh right, nuclear submarines—the ones that travel underwater. Why not?"

Li Wen gave a wry smile, then said in a grave tone, "Well, some things have been classified, and there are things you don't need to know. But since we're on the subject now, it's better to clear things up a bit."

After a moment's thought, Han Guangming began, "Let's start with the basics. After the Serpent People invaded, our aircraft suffered the most severe losses. To this date, no planes can take off as they would be immediately attacked by the Serpent People's small spacecrafts."

Gao Yuan nodded, and Han Guangming continued, "Next, comes our navy, or rather, all large vessels. When the Serpent People invaded, the first step was to release a virus, which, along with the destruction of all aircraft, was followed by attacks on large vessels at sea. Also, the Serpent People have been covertly observing humanity for decades, so their strikes were highly targeted, starting with our military vessels and then all civilian ships."

Gao Yuan nodded again as Han Guangming's face showed some anger, and he said, "In less than twenty-four hours, our navy, which had been built up over decades, was completely sunk. The aliens would fly over our surface ships and quickly cause them to sink. But! Our submarines were unscathed. To date, all of our submarines are intact."

That should be considered good news, right? Perhaps the Serpent People's microwave weapons were ineffective against objects under the water's surface?

That was Gao Yuan's first reaction, and it seemed Han Guangming thought the same.

"So, since we need to go to Africa, why not use submarines to transport personnel and supplies? It's certainly better than walking thousands of kilometers on foot."

Gao Yuan hesitated and asked, "Have these things been discussed with Xinghe?"

Li Wen nodded and said, "Yes, we wanted to understand the Serpent People's methods of attack first, and then we sought her advice since she will be going to look for the medical pod herself. But, according to Xinghe, if the Serpent People wanted to attack submarines below the water's surface, it wouldn't be impossible. It would, however, require a certain depth and consume more energy. Even if the submarines are just ten meters below the surface, the Serpent People would have to expend more than ten times the energy and over ten times the time to destroy them."

Gao Yuan curiously said, "I see, it's a tough choice... Can the Serpent People detect a submarine underwater?"

Han Guangming said, "If it's not deep enough, it's easily detectable, but if we descend to a sufficient depth, I believe the Serpent People would have difficulty in discovering us."

Gao Yuan pondered for a moment and said, "So the backup plan is to use a nuclear submarine to transport Xinghe and myself over?"

"Yes, that and a combat force that can be accommodated, of course."

Gao Yuan shook his head and said, "I don't know much about this, but it seems to me the risk is too great."

Han Guangming said urgently, "Don't panic, just listen to me first. Our submarines returned to home port from the open sea in forty-six days after the Serpent People invaded. If they had wanted to sink our submarines, they could have done it within those days, but the Serpent People didn't do so."

After contemplating, Gao Yuan asked, "Are you seeking my opinion now?"

"Yes."

Gao Yuan replied with a wry smile, "Then I'd rather not. My worry is that if the Serpent People decide to sink our submarine, there would be nowhere to hide aboard, and what does Xinghe think?"

Li Wen sighed softly, "Xinghe said she prefers to go by land and doesn't want to be trapped in a submarine for tens of days. Those were her exact words. However, she also can't prepare a risk assessment for our use of the submarine. We've considered that to land personnel using the submarine, we'd need to surface. Even if we use torpedo tubes to launch personnel out without rising to the surface, we'd still need to reach a depth shallow enough for human endurance. That depth is too risky as the Serpent People could easily detect it. Moreover, our army comrades haven't undergone the relevant training, so the risks are just too high."

Gao Yuan looked at Han Guangming and saw that he was looking at him as one would look at a life-saving straw, with a pleading gaze.

Gao Yuan dared not meet Han Guangming's eyes anymore.

Li Wen said in a low voice, "Comrade Han Guangming, we all understand how you feel, but no matter how anxious you are, you still need to stay calm. Traveling by land is indeed fraught with difficulties and dangers, but using a submarine is a gamble that could either succeed brilliantly or fail completely. If you think it through calmly, you will realize that we dare not take such a wild bet. Should we lose, we would lose all hope and the future of humanity. Now that you've expressed your thoughts, I hope you can be more composed."

Han Guangming lowered his head and said, "I'm being calm. I'm not being subjective... It's just that... is this the end for our navy... "

Everyone was silent, heaving sighs of despair.

"At least you still have submarines..."

An air force general in uniform stood up. He straightened his cap, and with a stoic expression, said, "Old Han, think of a way to make use of what little strength you have left. Don't be stubborn. In my opinion, this meeting might as well end here. I'm leaving first."

The air force commander lowered his head and walked out of the meeting room. His actions were indeed a bit disrespectful since Li Wen was still present, but no one criticized him.

After all, the navy still had submarines. The air force, on the other hand, had completely lost the skies to the Serpent People.