Lin Fan's voice was somewhat cold, and Zhang Hu could not help but shudder.
"Commander's orders: leave none alive. Move!"
Immediately afterward, the bridge filled with the whizzing of laser guns, screams, and curses. Yet only a few seconds later, everything fell silent again.
"Lin Fan, you killed the Ninth Prince too. Wasn't that a little inappropriate?"
"The Oakes Empire's main force of 30,000 warships has already crossed the Asteroid Belt and is fiercely battling the commander in Sector 016. Their remaining 90,000 warships are also on the way. If we lose this battle, humanity will perish. If we win, the Oakes Empire will not have enough strength to attack again for at least ten years. So, the Ninth Prince had lost his value."
"More importantly, who told them to dare lay a hand on my wife?"
"That last reason was the real reason, wasn't it?"
Of course, Liang Xue knew that everything Lin Fan had said before was merely an excuse. Even though the war had already begun, as long as they held the Ninth Prince, they would still have a good chance of forcing Adams to withdraw. He was not as useless as Lin Fan had claimed.
Still, Liang Xue felt sweet inside.
"Some things are better left unsaid once you see through them. You still have a lot to learn, wife!"
"Beep beep. Commander, this is Will. How is the situation on your side?"
"Mm, Liang Xue has been rescued. Wood and Duolun are dead!"
"Good, it's good that Deputy Liang has been rescued. But Commander, we have a thorny problem now. Long-range sensors have detected a fleet in Sector 031 approaching our battlefield. It is expected to enter the combat zone in fifteen minutes."
"Don't worry. They're our own people. Keep tying down the enemy's main force on your side. Don't fight them head-on, but don't give them a chance to break away either. Understood?"
"Yes! Understood!"
At that moment, Will recalled the message Lin Fan had previously instructed him to send through the secure channel.
So the fleet approaching them should be the reinforcements. But whose fleet was it? Judging from the detected scale, there were probably around 5,000 warships.
Wait, the Fourth Fleet had 20,000 warships. The 15,000 currently fighting fiercely in Sector 016 were only part of them. Dozens of small fleets were carrying out patrol missions throughout the Asteroid Belt and could not return in time. Their numbers added up to roughly 5,000 warships.
So that was it. The commander and Lin Fan had not sent those fleets to the battlefield. Instead, they had ordered them to secretly assemble somewhere in the Asteroid Belt, waiting until Lin Fan's earlier message.
Will suddenly understood the key to everything. In an instant, he was no longer worried about the battlefield before him. The commander had planned everything several hours ago. What was there to worry about? He only had to carry out the orders without deviation.
Lin Fan led Liang Xue to where the group had parked their mechs. Just like last time, the two entered the same cockpit.
"Everyone, disengage immediately! Withdraw along the planned route!"
After flying out of the Transport Ship with Zhang Hu and the others, Lin Fan immediately issued the order to all the mech pilots.
In a place like the Asteroid Belt, it was naturally no easy task for warships to withdraw from an intense battlefield. Mechs, however, were entirely different. They only needed to hide inside any dense asteroid cluster, and the warships attacking them would lose their targets.
As for the nearly 400 Oakes Empire warships ahead that were entangled with Will, their commander had wanted to turn back and provide support after discovering that something had happened to the Ninth Prince's rear position. Unfortunately, Will gave them no such opportunity.
Whenever the enemy tried to turn back, Will commanded his fleet to burst out from behind asteroids and launch a fierce assault. When the enemy turned around to eliminate the 101st Task Force Fleet first, Will withdrew his fleet back into the asteroid cluster.
Will faithfully carried out Lin Fan's orders. He did not engage the enemy head-on, but neither did he give them a chance to break away. The Oakes commander was so furious that his teeth itched, yet there was nothing he could do.
If he ignored the 101st Task Force Fleet, made a direct 180-degree turn, and went back to rescue them, the enemy would surely attack fiercely during the turn, causing massive losses. Then, while he was rushing back to provide aid, they would bite at his rear and pursue him all the way.
Of his current 372 warships, fewer than 100 would probably make it back to the Ninth Prince in the end, let alone rescue him.
The fleet on the other side could not spare any forces either. Its remaining seventy-plus warships and more than 20,000 fighters were locked in a melee with over 8,000 mechs. There was simply no way for them to withdraw and rescue the Ninth Prince.
Just as the Oakes commander was growing irritated after being sickened by Will's tactics several times, another message arrived and plunged him into despair.
"Commander, a human fleet has appeared on my flank. Its numbers are... around 5,000 warships!"
"What?"
According to the latest report, the 90,000-warship reinforcement fleet led by Lord Adams would need another thirty-six hours to arrive. The vanguard fleet was still locked in fierce battle with the human fleet. His side had only a little over 500 warships in total and was already in an overwhelmingly unfavorable position. What could they use to fight 5,000 human warships?
The commander fell silent, unable to see any path to survival.
"Turn around immediately. Head for the Transport Ship regardless of losses. At the same time, order the warships guarding the Transport Ship to select the one in the best condition, bring the Ninth Prince aboard the flagship, and use its speed advantage to evacuate with him! All other warships will stay behind with me and cover the retreat!"
The Oakes commander decided to make a final gamble, sacrificing the entire fleet to get the Ninth Prince out.
But he did not know that, after Lin Fan led the mech forces away, the remaining sixty or so warships in the central area had already dispatched landing craft toward the Transport Ship.
The fleet began turning. Seeing the opportunity, Will charged out from the asteroid cluster once more and attacked fiercely. This time, however, the situation was different. The Oakes Empire fleet completely ignored the severe losses Will was inflicting and continued turning.
Inside his mech, Lin Fan connected to the approaching reinforcement fleet through Secret Channel No. 7. Liang Xingchen had already issued orders to them: during this battle, all thirty-two of their fleets would be under the unified command of Major General Lin Fan.
"Have twenty fleets coordinate with the 101st Task Force Fleet from the flank and wipe out the enemy. Send two fleets to support the mech forces on the third battlefield. The remaining ten fleets will eliminate the surviving enemy forces on the second battlefield in the center."
After the order was issued, the thirty-two small fleets began moving in accordance with Lin Fan's commands.
As for the fleet on the primary battlefield that had completed its 180-degree turn and was retreating, its commander's expression was extremely grim. Just to make that turn, his fleet had directly paid the price of 120 warships. And now, the 101st Task Force Fleet was biting at their tail and attacking from behind.
"Commander! Bad news!"
"What now?"
"The central guard fleet reports that they sent landing craft aboard the Transport Ship, but... but..."
"Speak! But what?"
"But they found the Ninth Prince's body!"
"A body... a body..."
The commander leaned back lifelessly in his seat, muttering without pause.
It was over. This time, everything was over. Even if they returned, there was only death waiting for them!
Before you continue