Grand Elder Qinglan's counterattack strategy was simple. The enemy had only around two hundred aircraft. Although his side had lost dozens of spirit ships in the initial clash, they still held an overwhelming numerical advantage.
The thousand-kilometer distance between them was not particularly far for Cosmic Spirit Ships.
As long as his fleet spread out and avoided being caught together by those devastating shells, they still had a chance to push into attack range.
Once they could attack the enemy aircraft, Marshal Qinglan was confident he could wipe them all out.
Yet his counterattack ultimately died before it began, because the enemy transmitted an image to him through some means he knew nothing about.
He clearly saw three identical "little planes" circling above a vast city. Although the image showed an overhead view, Marshal Qinglan recognized it immediately. That city housed the Azure Empire's headquarters in the Corgi Star System.
"We Earthlings love peace! If you start a war without cause, we will immediately destroy every city on Corgi Star."
Those words sent a chill through Grand Elder Qinglan.
Although he had personally led over a million troops on this expedition to Coral Star, no fewer than two million remained stationed on Corgi Star.
They were all among the empire's finest troops. If those two million soldiers died on Corgi Star, he would have a great deal to answer for.
Of course, that alone was not enough to stop Marshal Qinglan's reckless plan. What truly made him consider retreat was discovering that all the little planes a thousand kilometers away had vanished.
The sight was both unfamiliar and familiar to Grand Elder Qinglan.
Unfamiliar because he had never experienced it himself, and familiar because it reminded him of the reports Dead Spirit had sent back earlier.
This mysterious enemy possessed