A Night at the Port

As the distance between the units continued to increase, Su Ming launched the "Rainbow No. 3" drone. It quickly climbed above the clouds and entered a low-fuel-consumption hovering mode to provide communication relay for the entire battlefield.

Soon, a report came through the communication channel from the squadron stationed on the first "Dawn Pioneer Class ship.

While they were repairing the ships, they were also interrogating prisoners. One captured High Rank officer revealed during the interrogation that General Tai'ao'duo was in the eastern battle group, but he did not know which warship he was on.

Su Ming sighed. Even if the captured officer knew the exact location, it was meaningless now. Given Tai'ao'duo's consistently cautious approach, he must have changed his flagship again after the escape began.

Su Ming stared at the radar screen. There were still four enemy ship signals remaining in the eastern sea area, all of them Dawn Pioneer Class cruisers.

"This is totally like opening a blind box," Su Ming murmured.

The chase lasted nearly four hours, and the Pansy finally caught up with its target. After routinely clearing the enemy's weapons from its deck and destroying its resistance capabilities, the second Dawn Pioneer Class warship of the day decisively raised a white flag and surrendered.

The massive boarding fleet launched another attack and quickly completed its suppression mission.

"Cease pursuit, all troops return to base." Su Ming decisively issued the order, ending this long chase.

The ships of the Light Fleet scattered and fled, making the pursuit extremely difficult. Whenever a target was locked onto and pursued, the other ships took the opportunity to desperately widen the distance.

Although theoretically the pursuit could continue, given the limited manpower available, the ability to process existing prisoners and capture ships has reached its limit. Moreover, the battlefield has been stretched to an extremely wide area, and the ability to deal with unexpected situations is becoming increasingly weak.

Furthermore, although the blizzard has weakened somewhat, it has not completely stopped. Night will fall in a few hours, and if the captured ships are not dealt with quickly, it will become a huge problem.

The Pansy turned around and began its return journey. It used thick cables to link its spoils, the Dawn Pioneer No. 1 I and Dawn Pioneer No. 2 II, with the precious magical warship, the Thorns of Atonement, and slowly sailed behind it as if dragging three huge prey.

Finally, they returned to the "Scourge of Absolution," the ship most severely damaged and riddled with holes by the Zijin magic. Everyone immediately threw themselves into the intense work of repairing it.

As darkness fell, the situation on the "Scourge of Absolution" finally stabilized thanks to everyone's efforts, and the fatal leak was completely plugged. The high-powered water pumps that Su Ming had set up began to roar and operate at full capacity, and the seawater level in the cabin began to drop significantly.

Su Ming finally breathed a sigh of relief—today's battle had finally come to a successful end.

There wasn't much on-the-spot adaptation this time; it was all about executing pre-planned strategies and simulations, and there weren't many tense moments. However, correspondingly, the pre-battle objectives were basically achieved.

A skilled strategist doesn't achieve great feats. Intelligence gathering and thorough preparation are the keys to a successful war.

Su Ming walked onto the deck and exhaled a long breath. The snowflakes in the air had subsided, and the blizzard was about to end completely.

Next, all we need to do is wait for the damage control team's report, and then we can complete the final cleanup.

Stacy's voice suddenly came through the earphones, tinged with a hint of caution, "Su Ming, are you there?"

"What's wrong?" Su Ming replied.

"Um... I brought some 'guests' back..." Stacy's voice trailed off.

"A guest?" A very bad premonition flashed through Su Ming's mind.

Almost simultaneously, Beianqi, on the bridge, shouted and urgently waved to Su Ming on the deck below, signaling him to come up immediately, "Su Ming! Large aerial targets have been spotted approaching at high speed! Each is over fifty meters long! There are twelve of them! They are rapidly closing in!"

Su Ming was silent for a moment, then exchanged a helpless look with Zijin on the other side.

He responded into the communicator, "You... bring it back."

****

Grodno port, evening.

After braving wind and snow all the way from Giant Horn Island, Rupert led the damage control team of the Final Bone Mad Machines and finally arrived at this transit port serving the Light Fleet.

The port is small, and many facilities show signs of hasty expansion. It is just a temporary transshipment point for supplies, with a dozen or so small supply ships moored in rudimentary berths.

Not far away in the deep waters of the open sea, two larger transport ships were anchored—a situation common in small ports where the berths near the shore are too shallow, forcing large ships to anchor in the deep water and rely on small boats to ferry personnel and supplies back and forth.

Some simple grease torches and lanterns flickered and burned in the biting wind, illuminating key locations such as the docks and warehouse entrances, casting long, swaying shadows. The pungent air was filled with the salty smell of the sea, the strong odor of wood tar and burning cheap grease, drifting along with the snowflakes.

A well-equipped and disciplined army of paladins was deployed here, strictly responsible for the guarding and protection of the port.

Having rushed here at breakneck speed, the damage control team members were somewhat exhausted, but Rupert didn't intend to let them rest for too long.

"Take a half-hour break, then attack immediately!" Rupert wiped the ice from his face and announced in a loud voice, a sly smile appearing on his face. "We'll be there just in time for their dinner! Let's hurry and have a hot meal ready for us, saving us the trouble of cooking!"

As a former sheriff of a small Northern Lands, he knows the local daily routine like the back of his hand!

But the cautious Hansite frowned, taking out his binoculars and scanning the soldiers on duty and patrolling. "This Holy Knights order looks well-trained and disciplined. Are we just going to charge in like this?"

"It's alright, we'll attack on time in half an hour." Rupert stood up from the snow, patted Hansite heavily on the shoulder, and then called to Jielusi, "The three of us will sneak in now and create some 'fun' inside!"

This port is not a closed military restricted area; large convoys transporting fresh water and food frequently enter and exit, among which are many merchants and porters.

None of the three, including Rupert, are necromancers: Rupert is a native of the Northern Lands, and Hansite and Jielusi have also lived in the Northern Lands for quite some time.

Their accents were flawless, giving them a natural advantage in blending into the port.

Just then, Ruixiuli stood up as well. "Take me with you. Otherwise, if Jielusi gets too carried away, she might lose control."

"I can do it," Jielusi replied immediately. "I've basically gotten used to this power by now."

"It's safer with me around," Ruixiuli insisted.

"But you're a necromancer!" Jielusi. "Those paladins are extremely sensitive to the presence of the undead; they'll definitely detect you!"

Ruixiuli didn't say much, but silently took out a dark gray cloak covered with intricate anti-magic array patterns from his bag, neatly draped it over his shoulders, and pulled the hood down to cover most of his face—it was the anti-magic cloak that Su Ming and Zijin had previously seized from the Plundering Clock, which could conceal their own magical fluctuations.

"Let's go!" he said succinctly.

Seeing Jielusi, Gerald stopped insisting and nodded. The four of them then headed towards the brightly lit port town.

****

At the simple wooden fence entrance, the guards indeed stopped them.

Rupert, Hansite, and Jielusi's impeccable Northern Lands accents hardly aroused any suspicion. Rupert, all smiles, offered to explain: they came from a nearby town; someone there had fallen seriously ill, and they had specially gone to the temple to fetch this healer lady, rushing back to treat her.

However, the snowstorm on the road is too severe, making it unsuitable for traveling at night. We earnestly request to stay overnight in port.

Ruixiuli kept his mouth shut and didn't speak. Rupert quickly explained that this was his poor "brother" who had unfortunately suffered a severe fire when he was a child, which had damaged his voice.

The guard looked suspiciously at the miserable face peeking out from under Ruixiuli's hood, then at Rupert with his honest and anxious expression, the gentle and refined priestess Jielusi, and the "old father" Hansite shivering in the cold wind beside him.

The guards questioned the group for a while, but couldn't find anything suspicious. Finally, they impatiently waved their hands and let them enter the town.

Once out of the guards' sight, Ruixiuli lowered his voice and asked, "Why not just bribe the guards? It would save time."

"In this dilapidated, makeshift port town," Hansite explained immediately, "Offering money to get in would actually suggest they have something to hide!"

"That's right, that's right!" Rupert wholeheartedly agreed, grinning. "Money is something you can't just waste!"

His gaze swept over a run-down little tavern emanating noise and the aroma of cheap beer, and he subconsciously licked his lips. "Especially wasting time on things that shouldn't be wasted!"

The town was much more crowded than usual, even creating a somewhat bustling and lively atmosphere. Not only were there sailors from the ships, but also a large number of laborers doing manual labor.

As soon as it got dark, all the simple restaurants in the town were packed to capacity, and many fishermen even turned their houses into temporary food stalls.

"Alright," Ruixiuli said, "Leave the paladin's garrison at the town entrance to me and Jielusi."

"Good luck to you!" Hansite said in a deep voice.

The four nodded to each other.

Ruixiuli and Jielusi disappeared silently into the depths of the narrow, dimly lit alley, as if blending into the shadows.

Hansite and Rupert looked at each other.

"One ship per person?" Hansite gestured with his eyes to the two large transport ships anchored in the open sea.

"I'll go left, you go right!" Rupert grinned, his eyes gleaming with eager anticipation.