This was the first fleet battle to erupt after Yu Lian returned to New Shenzhou. Come to think of it, it might also have been the first time since he made a name for himself that he had led a fleet into battle formation and engaged an enemy fleet of comparable size and strength in a decisive battle.
And yet he felt no sense of crisis or duty at all. The other senior officers might have felt the same.
"The Imperials made a mistake," Yang Xiyi told Yu Lian.
Indeed, the Imperial fleet at Southern Heavenly Gate should have relied on the fortresses there to defend and counterattack, pinning the main Earth fleet under Yu and Yang along the Outer Ring until King Sorein's fleet arrived to complete the encirclement.
"They didn't have many options to begin with," Yu Lian said, offering a fair assessment.
That was true. In fact, once the Earth fleet crossed over, it had two choices: turn into the Spiral Arm and head for Terra to strike directly at Earth, or continue advancing toward Southern Heavenly Gate.
If the Imperial fleet at Southern Heavenly Gate wanted to neutralize that threat, it had no choice but to advance into the Outer Ring and meet them in battle.
"Marshal Farrell shouldn't be foolish enough to do that," Yang Xiyi mused. "We need intelligence from Earth's intelligence service."
"Don't overthink it. All the hesitation and struggle comes from not having won enough. If one victory isn't enough, then win two," Yu Lian said.
"Quite right." Yang Xiyi couldn't help but sigh. When they had been drawing up the plan, he had been the one to give Yu Lian confidence. Now that they were on the eve of battle, it was Yu Lian who gave him confidence.
In September of