Chapter 41: Imperial Warships – Section 4

The massive hull resembled a giant whale in the deep sea. The appearance of the Moorish warship instantly shocked everyone. Its huge bow slowly emerged from the asteroid belt, pushing its way forward despite the impacts of countless asteroids. Asteroids hundreds of meters in diameter crashed into its sturdy armor and shattered into pieces. Debris of all sizes flew everywhere like a storm.
Oh, Mother Tiya. That’s the most chaotic asteroid belt!!
On the spectator stands, on the Flying Saucer Station, and even in the distant imperial borders, everyone who witnessed this scene was stunned. They stared in disbelief, unable to believe their eyes!!
How is that possible? How could it be!?
Who could hide in that terrifying asteroid belt for so long? Who could make such a huge imperial warship survive countless asteroid impacts before emerging at this critical moment?
One question after another arose in the minds of the spectators, yet none had answers. But everyone knew that the Four-Person Alliance was in serious trouble now.
After all, they were facing away from the asteroid belt. The direction from which the imperial warship appeared was a blind spot for all their ships, as well as their weakest point!!
Indeed, the Four-Person Alliance held a clear advantage at the moment, with their overwhelming number of imperial warships making them seemingly invincible! But nothing is absolute. Even the strongest spear can break. Imperial warships also had fatal weaknesses.
That weakness was the most vulnerable part of every warship: its stern!!
It was well known that ship design followed the principles of maximizing firepower and defense. Since the bow usually became the focus of enemy fire when entering battle, most of the armor was installed there and on the upper half of the hull. The stern, responsible only for movement, often lacked armor protection. Even imperial warships were no exception.
Of course, under normal circumstances, such a design posed no problems. On the contrary, it provided maximum protection during ambushes and strong firepower in battles. But no one should forget that nothing in this world is absolute. Even the strongest imperial warships could be doomed if enemies appeared behind them in battle.
After all, a warship without the ability to move was little different from a giant iron coffin.

That’s exactly the situation right now.
This massive warship, wreathed in a downpour of meteor fragments, suddenly appeared and disrupted every balance in the battlefield. The fleet of the Four-Person Alliance immediately fell into chaos. Despite seeing the deadly threat emerging behind them, they were unable to change the direction of their warships in any way.
The imperial warships were simply too huge. Although frictional forces in space can often be ignored, their forward momentum was terrifyingly strong. It was by no means easy to change direction hastily. And even if they had the will, it depended on whether Black Hair would give them such a chance!
Would Black Hair give them that chance?
“Bang.” A crystal-clear glass cup traced an arc through the air before shattering on the ground. Black Hair’s icy voice echoed throughout the cabin.
“Attack!”
“Yes, Commander!” Deputy Officer 57 became energized and quickly passed down the order.
At the same time, in the eyes of the onlookers outside, the monstrous warship that had appeared in the meteor belt finally spoke. And with that, it unleashed a saturation attack with tens of thousands of guns.
The main guns of the warships, their auxiliary guns, tens of thousands of close-combat defense cannons—there were even guided beams similar to missiles. In the blink of an eye, they struck behind the fleet of the Four-Person Alliance. Instantly, massive balls of fire exploded one after another, like flowers made of flames appearing in the dark starry sky. In just a short while, three of the Four-Person Alliance’s warships had their engines completely destroyed, leaving them frozen in space. Though their enormous size still exuded a sense of pressure, everyone knew they were no longer functional.
Originally, given the strength of the imperial warships, even if enemies appeared behind them, they wouldn’t suffer such a tragic fate. But this was after all a confrontation with an alien fleet. The imperial warships were powerful enough to dominate anywhere. Even their weakest sections had thicker armor than the bow armor of ordinary warships.
But now it was completely different. What appeared behind them was another imperial warship, just like theirs. The suddenly unleashed extreme firepower almost instantly suppressed all of their feeble counterattacks, destroying the firepower advantage the Four-Person Alliance had prided itself on in an instant. The loss of three warships was like a heavy weight that once again balanced the scales of war.

In the cabin of the Four-Person Alliance’s flagship, the four contestants were already drenched in sweat. The sudden change disrupted the battle situation they had worked so hard to achieve, causing them some anxiety. For a moment, the cabin was dead silent, except for their heavy breathing. Outside the nearby porthole, the flames from the exploding giant ships shone everywhere, like moving balls of fire.

“We can’t wait any longer. This must be contestant No. 336’s last resort. To watch his own allies get destroyed by us before showing up now—quite ruthless of him. This Imperial giant ship also appeared at just the right time. We’re truly cornered,” said an older commander among the four. Although his forehead was also covered in sweat, he remained much calmer compared to the other commanders, speaking in a steady tone.

Next to him stood the other three young contestants. Hearing his words, one of them nodded.

“At first, we ambushed him; now he’s ambushing us. It’s only fair. But seeing us in this state, our enemies on the other side must be even more impatient.”

“That’s inevitable. No one would miss the chance to crush someone who’s already in trouble,” said the third contestant, turning and walking to the porthole. Through it, he could see his own fleet fighting hard, while the artillery fire coming from behind seemed to have eyes of its own, hitting their tails precisely. One explosion after another lit up his face, distorting his expression.

“Well then, our waiting is over. As long as they come closer…”

“Our last intact Imperial giant ship will appear behind them, just like the ships behind us now, and tear them to pieces,” added the last commander, his young face twisted in fury.

“Victory belongs to us. We are the strongest generals of the Empire.” All four grinned, revealing their white teeth.

Everyone is prey, and everyone is a wolf. Who can really say anything for sure in this world?

Unlike the Four-Person Alliance, which had been prepared for the worst, the temporarily formed trio of dark-haired individuals didn’t have such complex schemes. Perhaps each of them was exceptionally brave, outstanding warriors in their own right. But they were still just warriors, certainly not comparable to marshals who commanded vast armies. So when they saw the miserable state of the Four-Person Alliance, they simply couldn’t hold back. The remaining three Imperial giant ships also stopped retreating and began pressing forward again.

The ship’s hull, ablaze with fierce flames and riddled with holes, seemed on the verge of collapsing at any moment. As it slowly sank, it evoked a sense of tragedy among all the spectators. Unnoticed, the spectators’ expressions changed.
The Moors respected the strong and even more so the warriors. These three commanders, despite being battered severely, refused to back down, and their actions undoubtedly earned the respect of every spectator. Even if they were eliminated in the next moment, they would surely gain many admirers. This was the foundation of the Moor Empire’s enduring dominance—the warrior spirit!
Yet in reality, if spirit alone could solve everything, there would be no need for so many schemes and deceptions.
Just as the three commanders returned to the battlefield, a bright white dot suddenly appeared in the sky behind them. It appeared so abruptly that before the spectators could even exclaim in shock, it rapidly expanded into a huge ring!
“It’s a teleportation gate! They have hidden troops too!!” One of the commanders in the trio screamed in terror.
It was already too late. Just like the ambush launched by Hei Fa earlier, a brand-new imperial warship emerged from the light dot behind them. In an instant, a barrage of gunfire, like the scythe of death, struck from behind. How could the already damaged ships withstand such a sudden attack? In mere moments, two ships turned into giant balls of fire.
The spectator stands erupted in chaos! Everyone was stunned by these successive reversals. After a brief stunned silence, thunderous applause erupted, expressing the highest respect for this thrilling final battle.
Truly worthy of being the final match of the Imperial Competition. Who would have thought both sides would be so outstanding? Ambushes everywhere, cunning tactics at every turn. What should have been a simple head-to-head clash turned into a series of twists and turns, keeping all spectators on edge.
But this excitement was about to end. With the appearance of the four-person alliance’s hidden troops, their precarious situation stabilized. Even if their main forces were destroyed by contestant 336’s killers, the score remained tied—each side still had one imperial warship, and neither could overpower the other.
Could it be that the empire’s once-in-a-century competition would truly end in a draw? Such a thing had never happened before in history… Unconsciously, many spectators sighed.

No one knew that, at this very moment, in that meteor belt that had just been cleared of the hidden attackers with black hair, four intact stealth warships were quietly hovering. Their position was perfect—right in the gaps between several meteor collision zones. Huge meteors passed by them, colliding repeatedly, yet not a single one could harm them.
Hei Fa was in one of the warships’ cabins, staring at the screen with a cold smirk.
“The mantis hunts the cicada, but the oriole is lurking behind. Who exactly is the oriole? One has to try to find out… A draw? I don’t like it.”
“Nor do I,” replied his adjutant, Wu Qi Shi, a faint smile finally appearing on his serious face.