Natural Born General

For over ten minutes, caught between pursuit and evasion, the Oakes Empire's fleet finally escaped the 101st Task Force Fleet's firing range.

It had to be said that the Oakes Empire's warships performed significantly better than the Federation's. If not for this Asteroid Belt, they truly wouldn't have been able to engage the enemy; the warships' speed alone was vastly superior to humanity's.

Having shaken off the pursuit, Rex finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Report the losses!"

"Commander, we lost a total of 98 warships. Among them were 3 battleships, 5 battlecruisers, 12 aircraft carriers, 8 cruisers, 28 destroyers, and 42 frigates!"

"All 12 aircraft carriers are gone?"

"Yes."

Rex felt uneasy. Under normal circumstances, aircraft carriers wouldn't suffer 100% losses. An ambush would typically target other warships first, as aircraft carriers lacked offensive capability at long range.

Rex's reasoning was sound. This wasn't naval warfare from the planetary era; the operational radius of fighter jets surpassed that of anti-ship missiles. However, what Rex couldn't understand was the enemy's objective in doing this.

Twenty minutes later.

"Commander, in two minutes, the enemy fleet's rear will enter our firing range!"

"Excellent. Finally got you in my sights. Now it's my turn to pursue and your turn to flee!" Rex said fiercely, looking at the tactical display.

However, before Rex could celebrate for long, an anomaly occurred as the fleet traversed a cluster of asteroids.

One minute earlier, inside the flagship of the 101st Task Force Fleet.

"Report, the enemy will reach the buried nuclear bomb locations in one minute."

"Very good. Set the nuclear bomb detonation time for one minute and begin drilling into the asteroids."

"Understood!"

Drill Bombs were peculiar devices, rumored to be capable of destroying planets. They came equipped with their own power source and a super drill, allowing them to burrow all the way to a planet's core for detonation. However, humanity had never actually used them before. The entire 101st Task Force Fleet had dozens of them, and Lin Fan had used them all at once this time.

Upon receiving the order, these Drill Bombs, previously set up by mechs, began drilling into the asteroids.

One minute later, the Oakes Empire's fleet arrived precisely among these dozens of asteroids. The pre-set Drill Bombs detonated within the asteroids. Dozens of blinding flashes erupted, shattering the asteroids into countless fragments of various sizes. The Oakes fleet was immediately caught in the crossfire; their path was now littered with asteroid debris, making normal navigation impossible.

Seeing this, Rex was forced to order the fleet to decelerate and halt. Even so, during the deceleration, dozens of ships collided with asteroid fragments and were damaged.

It was at this moment that what truly broke Rex occurred.

"Deploy all mech units to completely annihilate the enemy fleet."

"Yes!"

The order was immediately relayed to the ambushing mech units. Nine thousand mechs surged out from the dense asteroid field and charged towards the Oakes fleet's warships. In the chaotic environment filled with debris, the fleet was immobilized, but the mechs were not. With their small size and high maneuverability, the mechs quickly penetrated the warship formations.

What followed was a massacre for Rex. Watching the warships around him being destroyed by mechs, Rex closed his eyes. He knew he had no chance left. Such a brilliant tactic, a series of step-by-step killing blows. Could this be Liang Xingchen? Rex couldn't help but wonder.

"Get the Ninth Prince to an escape pod, immediately!" Rex looked at Duolun, who was already stunned, and waved his hand, signaling the guards on the bridge to take Duolun to an escape pod. Rex could die here, but as for the Ninth Prince, despite being an incompetent theorist, he was still royalty and absolutely could not perish here.

Two guards saluted Rex and quickly escorted Duolun away.

Ten minutes later, as the last Oakes Empire fleet was destroyed, the battle concluded.

"Adjutant, report our battle results!"

"Yes, we destroyed a total of 208 Oakes Empire warships. Our own fleet suffered no losses. Mech units sustained 528 casualties, with 218 successfully ejecting. The rest..."

The rest, Lin Fan understood perfectly. It was true that in this era, mechs were the nemesis of warships once they closed the distance, but that was achieved through sheer numbers. Generally, a ratio of 20 mechs to one warship in close combat was considered excellent. However, in terms of value, the cost of a single warship was equivalent to hundreds of mechs, and a warship carried at least several hundred personnel. Therefore, 20 mechs trading for one warship was an incredibly profitable exchange. This was why many believed that once a swarm of mechs broke into a warship formation, it signaled the warships' doom.

"Immediately clear the battlefield, search for all surviving pilots. For any mechs that didn't eject successfully, search based on their last known positions. Try to find their bodies and bring them back!"

"Yes, Commander, I'll arrange it right away."

"After you've made the arrangements, send the battle report to Mars Base!"

"Understood!"

An hour later, Liang Xue reported to Lin Fan that the battlefield had been cleared. Of the 218 pilots who successfully ejected, 185 were ultimately rescued, and remains were recovered for 148.

This meant the final casualty report indicated a loss of 528 mechs and 343 pilots.

"Commander, while clearing the battlefield, we also discovered a life pod from the Oakes Empire. It's been captured by our mech units. There was only one person inside. The individual claims to be the Ninth Prince of the Oakes Empire and demands we accord him proper courtesy."

"Courtesy my foot! Lock him up as a prisoner of war. We'll hand him over to the Commander for disposition when we return!"

"Yes, Commander!"

"If there's nothing else, let the fleet depart. We're returning to Mars!"

"Yes, Commander!"

After the final results were tallied, Liang Xue completed the detailed battle report during the journey back and sent it to Mars Base.

Meanwhile, Liang Xingchen was in his office, feeling a bit anxious.

Judging by the time, the battle should be over by now. He wondered how it went. Was Lin Fan all talk, or was he a born commander? This battle would tell.

"Knock, knock... knock. Report!"

"Enter!"

"Commander, the 101st Task Force Fleet has sent back their battle report!"

"Oh? Quickly, bring it here for me to see."

The adjutant immediately handed over a document. Liang Xingchen took it and began to read it carefully.

"Haha, Lin Fan truly didn't disappoint us. Not a single one of his own warships was lost. With the sacrifice of just over 500 mechs, he completely annihilated the enemy's 208 warships and even captured the Ninth Prince of the Oakes Empire!"

"Yes, Commander. When I first saw this battle report, I could hardly believe it myself."

"Have you forgotten how he made me eat dirt at the Interstellar Military Academy? This kid is no ordinary person!"

The adjutant recalled the time he accompanied Liang Xingchen to the Interstellar Military Academy and suddenly understood. He hadn't seen anyone in the Federation's military cause the Commander such a significant loss during a competition before.

Considering that, this outcome seemed to fall within the realm of possibility.

"However, Commander, what should we do with that Ninth Prince?"

"We don't need to worry about that. The President will make the best possible use of His Highness the Prince, hehe!"