131: Confrontation

The outskirts of the Kulha Star System.

Countless engineering starships came and went, constructing automated defense turrets.

They stretched for hundreds of millions of miles, almost covering the entire starry sky.

Ever since the star system's Chief Regent, Elo Yalik, declared independence, he had spent a vast amount of wealth constructing the star system's defense belt.

As the largest waste recycling and processing plant in the northern region of the Free Star Alliance, it possessed a unique advantage in this regard.

Countless abandoned wrecks were simply refurbished and transported to the border, with the intention of creating a heavily armed safe house.

Of course, the internal explanation was naturally that it was to defend against potential Galaxy Beast disasters.

"Tsk... what a waste of resources."

Zhang Huaiyuan shook his head while looking through the projection broadcast by the Statue of Liberty.

Perhaps because they were too eager for quick success, the quality of these defense facilities was extremely rough; their firepower was mediocre, they were prone to overheating, and their energy conversion rates were low... they were practically useless apart from their sheer numbers.

"Let's attack directly; we'll crush their armaments first."

After Zhang Huaiyuan scanned a few times and found nothing worth noting, he gave the order.

"Understood, Your Excellency."

"The Statue of Liberty is beginning to take control of the battlefield."

"Calculating optimal attack coordinates..."

"Synchronizing distance attenuation and magnetospheric convection effects..."

"Calculation complete, railguns beginning to charge..."

In an instant, the entire fleet, like a precision machine, quickly deployed into formation.

The eight secondary cannons on the flanks of every starship slowly extended, flickering with blue electric light.

They shifted their angles slightly, locking onto the targets marked by the Statue of Liberty.

"Charging complete, fire."

Following the order, countless blue energy orbs were ejected from the cannon muzzles, accelerated by electromagnetic fields.

Like a dense meteor shower piercing through the void, they fell, leaving neat trails of fire—spectacular and brilliant.

However, for the defense personnel of the Kulha Star System, there was no time to admire such a sight.

The range of the "legend generation ii" series starships far exceeded that of these shoddy defense facilities, and combined with the powerful stealth capability of "Shadow Walk," the defense facilities only reacted when the energy orbs were already approaching.

Piercing alarms blared almost instantly; all turret barrels turned, and the energy gauges below lit up one by one.

But it was already too late.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Every railgun round landed precisely on the coordinates marked by the Statue of Liberty and exploded.

It was just right, allowing the maximum firepower to perfectly cover every inch of the area.

This section of the defense belt was almost instantly destroyed completely, as if a huge donut had been bitten into.

"Enemy attack!"

"The First Brigade is entering combat status."

Only then did the defense troops stationed in the rear react.

However, they were, after all, well-trained regular troops.

Just a moment later, a full-sized large fleet ignited and took off, slowly advancing outward in a defensive formation.

"Damn it, where is the enemy? They didn't just fire a shot and run, did they?"

The fleet's Commander looked at the defense belt he had worked so hard to build, now reduced to ruins, and then at the unresponsive detectors, flying into a rage.

In interstellar warfare, having outdated detectors was like being blind, leaving one to be a sitting duck.

"My Lord, an unknown communication has come in. They claim to be subordinates of a guy named 'Zhang Huaiyuan' and demand that we immediately cease resistance, surrender, and submit to inspection, otherwise they will destroy the entire fleet."

At this moment, an adjutant walked up with an ugly expression to report.

"How bold!"

The fleet Commander frowned, and after recalling for a moment, he realized it wasn't someone from the most powerful factions of the Star Alliance, so he sneered:

"It's truly the case that once the Head of State leaves, any Tom, Dick, or Harry dares to pop out. Have the detector ships sail to the perimeter; I want to see what kind of character dares to actively attack my Yalik Family territory."

As long as it wasn't one of those main legions, he wasn't worried about a battle of the same level. The Kulha Star System didn't have much else, but it had plenty of materials and money, and could afford the attrition.

Moreover, the defense belt had finally been completed, only to be destroyed so much; if he went back to report without doing anything, he would likely be punished. If he could capture the invaders, it would be much easier to explain.

"As you command, My Lord."

The adjutant bowed and retreated to begin issuing orders.

"Relaying the Commander's order: the detector ships of the First and Third Squadrons are to advance at full speed, with the assault ships and frigates following closely behind to prevent any accidents. The remaining squadrons are to maintain their original formation, activate Ion Shields, and put weapons into charging status."

Immediately, the entire fleet began to advance outward.

On the other side, aboard the "legend generation ii" command ship.

"They actually dare to come out on their own?"

Zhang Huaiyuan was somewhat stunned looking at the images transmitted by the detector.

"Yes, they not only rejected the goodwill I brought but also insulted you; we really should teach them a lesson."

Asroth added fuel to the fire indignantly.

"Then let's have a head-on battle with them; it's a good opportunity to see the head-on group combat capabilities of the legend generation ii series starships."

Zhang Huaiyuan smiled indifferently.

Although he had previously resolved The Great Millstone Disaster Zone, except for a few insiders and the regions that the Statue of Liberty had deliberately publicized, most people thought it was the work of two Gods Chosen SSS-Class Strongest, and knew very little about his name.

But it didn't matter... after today, at least the entire Kulha Star System would remember his name forever.

"As you wish, Your Excellency."

The Statue of Liberty readily agreed, deactivating the fleet's shadow-cloaked state.

Suddenly, the two fleets faced each other from afar in the void.

"How did they appear? Wait, this is...!"

The Commander of the Kulha Star System's First Fleet looked at the suddenly appearing enemies, his pupils slightly contracting.

With his eye, he could naturally see that these warships were extraordinary, and he couldn't help but feel some regret for his rash advance.

However, things had reached this point, and he could only bite the bullet; if he retreated now, he would only be beaten for nothing and suffer heavy losses.

"Attack!"

Both sides issued orders almost simultaneously.

However, the "Wings of Freedom" legion, personally controlled by the Statue of Liberty, was clearly superior in both execution and starship performance.

While the opponent was still receiving orders and aiming, every legend generation ii starship had already locked onto its target position, and a semi-circular energy disk slowly extended from the front, slowly solidifying in the gravitational field.

This was a low-spec version of the "Super-Pressure Gravity Bomb" designed by Zhang Huaiyuan, specifically for low-intensity warfare.

Constructed with S-Class Star River Beast blood crystals, although its power was a notch lower, it still reached the mid-to-high standard of Level 8, and it had the advantage of sufficient quantity.

At the same time, the secondary cannons on both sides had also finished charging.

Without any pause, the sky-filling artillery fire roared out once more, igniting the dim starry sky.

"Crap, why is their execution so high! Damn it, Seventh and Eighth Squadron frigates, activate full-power shields and move up! That's an order, immediately!"

Seeing this scene, the Commander of the Kulha Star System's First Fleet was so anxious his eyes turned red, and he hurriedly grabbed the communication device and roared.

In this situation, the only way was to sacrifice a portion of the starships to buy time and seize back the initiative.

Military orders were like mountains; the two squadrons that received the order felt a chill in their hearts, but without the slightest hesitation, they activated their maximum power shields and pushed their thrusters to the max.

Amidst the spewing of desperate trails of fire, they broke away from the main force to face the sky-filling artillery fire alone.

Boom!