A Round Ends, Battle Concludes!

A single inch of shortness means a single inch of danger—air combat maneuvering sounds romantic, but for every pilot, it's an incredibly perilous affair. When two fighters of equal performance enter a dogfight, it's very likely that only one will fly back alive.

"Prepare for engagement!"

The moment Zhang Peng spoke, they closed to within 1 km of the three unidentified aircraft. Liu Jun felt an indescribable unease and yanked the stick without hesitation. Under his control, the [139] executed a defensive barrel roll, the Flying Shark tracing a three-axis maneuver as if flying along the inner wall of a barrel.

"Xiao Jun, what the—"

Zhang Peng was startled by Liu Jun's sudden move, because the J-15S was still a dual-seat "trainer"; the rear seat was typically where the instructor or mentor sat, with control authority over the front seat (unadjusted). When both pilots manipulated the aircraft, the flight control system would prioritize the rear seat's inputs.

Just as Zhang Peng asked this, the surfaces of the three unidentified aircraft ahead flickered. The [140] reacted a beat too slow and was struck by an unknown attack. The elevator and rudder on the tail of the aircraft exploded with a bang, and one engine caught fire.

The engine fire extinguishing system activated, and the blazing flames were put out by the system. With one elevator and one rudder lost, the airframe's aerodynamics were compromised, handling performance drastically reduced, and the left engine flamed out.

The two pilots of the [140] quickly managed the emergency amid piercing alarms. Fortunately, they were in a dive, allowing gravity to accelerate the aircraft. The veteran pilot in the front seat fought the control stick with all his strength. Thanks to the J-15S's excellent aerodynamics, with the canards acting as elevators, the aircraft stabilized and avoided entering a dangerous spin.

"What happened?"

Zhang Peng stared in disbelief as the lead aircraft [140] was damaged. The unidentified aircraft's attack came without any warning, and the strike was incredibly fast!

He tried to open communications to ask about the other aircraft's damage, but all channels were jammed and blocked, making it impossible to talk. Still, a single glance at their flight attitude told him the damage was severe.

Can they fly back? Zhang Peng worried, but now wasn't the time to be distracted. In that brief moment of inattention, two of the three unidentified aircraft charged toward his and Liu Jun's fighter, while the remaining one continued toward the damaged [140].

As they crossed paths, Liu Jun reduced throttle and pulled the stick, attempting to engage in a single-circle maneuver with these triangular aircraft. Even though intelligence from the earlier WJ-7 reconnaissance indicated their maneuverability was decent, maneuverability was often tied to speed.

A single-circle maneuver is a tactic used in close-range dogfighting. It occurs when two fighters pass each other, and one chooses to turn away from the opponent, so that when they meet again, their flight paths don't form a closed loop.

The enemy was climbing up from below, naturally losing speed to gravity, while he was diving, giving him greater speed.

In the instant Zhang Peng was stunned, Liu Jun pulled the stick full aft. He heard [Max G] in his ears, but before the warning finished, his vision went black. The immense G-force knocked the veteran pilot unconscious.

Liu Jun had no mind to spare for his mentor in the front seat. If he didn't pull full aft, he'd lose that tiny angular advantage.

Despite the J-15S being heavy, the maneuverability provided by the canards and elevators made it like a nimble fat man.

The vortices from the canards swept over the wings, providing lift augmentation. With the stick full aft and throttle reduced, the J-15S's nose pivoted rapidly. As it turned, Liu Jun endured massive G-forces, using trained breathing techniques to resist the G-load. His vision grew darker, and he experienced the classic [Blackout] from positive Gs, with blood forced to his lower body. The anti-G suit fought to push that blood back to his brain, preventing hypoxia-induced unconsciousness.

Hoo-ha! Hoo-ha!

The mask supplied Liu Jun with ample oxygen. The enhanced skills [G-Force Tolerance] and [Physique Enhancement] played an unimaginable role at this moment!

In the struggle against G-forces, G-Force Tolerance kept him conscious and in control of the aircraft beneath him, while Physique Enhancement prevented his stamina from being drained by the short-term G-load, instead allowing it to slowly recover.

Though his naked eyes couldn't clearly see where the unidentified aircraft he was circling with was, [Situational Awareness] clearly "told" him the target's exact position.

Just as the nose was about to point toward it, he noticed a slight angle between the J-15S and the enemy—the nose couldn't align. Instinctively, like muscle memory, his right foot stomped the rudder pedal. With the rudder adjusted, the nose yawed downward by 6°. At that moment, Liu Jun didn't hesitate and pulled the trigger!

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The GSH-30-1 cannon roared to life, a whip of fire lashing out from behind the right side of the cockpit, striking at empty air.

The blackout faded, and the world regained its color, but Liu Jun saw nothing on the firing trajectory. Just as he thought he'd missed, flames suddenly erupted in the air. The triangular aircraft from before vanished, and at the point of the cannon's fire, an unidentified aircraft appeared as if by teleportation, flying straight into the fire whip. With a boom, it was blown apart midair.

Like glass shattering on the ground, countless iridescent fragments tumbled toward the sea below. Liu Jun roughly understood where that strange dissonance came from—his vision and his senses didn't match!

At that moment, Liu Jun's mind was calm, with no thrill from downing an enemy aircraft. His eyes locked onto the triangular aircraft heading for the [140]. After that delay, his fighter's speed had dropped, putting distance between them!

He pushed the throttle to the max, high-quality fuel flooding the combustion chamber. The engine ran at full power, driving the J-15S upward in pursuit.

No good! Not enough thrust! Liu Jun realized that even with the throttle maxed, he couldn't catch the triangular aircraft. He pulled the safety catch on the throttle, and once the limiter was disengaged, he shoved the throttle forward another notch.

[Afterburner Mode Activated!]

The engine entered afterburning mode. The oxygen compressed into the engine by the compressor wasn't fully consumed in the combustion chamber. Afterburning burned this residual oxygen by injecting aviation fuel into the exhaust nozzle, providing extra thrust.

Whoosh!

A long exhaust plume with Mach diamonds shot from the tail nozzle. The J-15S under Liu Jun's control felt like it had been kicked hard from behind, rocketing upward.

"What's going on?"

Zhang Peng, just coming to from being knocked out by G-forces, hadn't even seen what was happening around him before his head lolled again—his student's steep climb knocked him out once more.

In afterburner mode, the J-15S's fuel burned at a furious rate, but it also reduced the aircraft's weight, rapidly closing the distance to the enemy.

At that moment, Liu Jun glanced at the rearview mirror and clearly saw another triangular aircraft locked onto his six o'clock. A sense of dread kept surging.

Dangerous! Very dangerous! The J-15S couldn't withstand the enemy's attack!

He looked at the damaged [140], then back at the triangular aircraft behind him. Liu Jun's gaze was firm as he flew upward.