When the Kona Civilization's missile swarm struck the Plasma Bugs' spherical defensive formation, the entire stretch of orbit seemed to catch fire.
Over a thousand exhaust trails bore down from deep space with an orderliness that made scalps prickle.
Decoy missiles curved away first, racing past the edge of the Plasma Bugs' close-in defenses.
The next second, blue-white Close-In Defense Beams swept across space.
The beams crossed like blades, slashing down, but only shredded a batch of hollow decoys.
The exploding fragments spread silently through the vacuum, like a handful of silver dust scattered into the darkness.
Inside the Tianshu Command Center, everyone watched the screen tensely.
The constantly updating trajectory data from the Sky Eye System flickered in their pupils.
Han Niba stood before the command console, his shoulders and back rigidly straight.
Staring at the enormous black-purple sphere formed by nearly three hundred Plasma Bugs clustered together, he murmured:
"Wait, just a little longer..."
"Wait for their shields to fall out of alignment."
The Kona Civilization clearly knew the logic behind the Plasma Bugs' defenses very well.
The first wave of decoy missiles drew their close-in defensive fire.
The second wave of false targets abruptly doubled back, disrupting the rhythm of the Plasma Bugs' targeting.
The third wave of heavy kinetic warheads hid behind the complex trajectories, refusing to enter the optimal interception zone.
There was nothing flashy about these tactics, but every step hit the Plasma Bugs where it hurt most.
Hey, I'll just rub against it without going in.
I'm just playing!
At the staff officers' station, someone could not help lowering his voice.
"The Watcher's tactics... sure look familiar."
Someone beside him replied reflexively:
"A thousand-year-old AI fighting an old opponent-of course it knew their tricks."
The black-purple sphere formed by the Plasma Bugs began