The T3 Blizzard-class Light Interstellar Battlecruiser's Blizzard-class heavy cluster-laser bow cannon finished charging, and a blue cluster-laser lanced straight at the already-locked T3 Porcupine-class Medium Interstellar Destroyer!
At the same moment, that T3 Porcupine loosed a cluster-laser of its own. But the gap between the two was like a little toothpick beside a hot dog. Each struck the other ship's star shield. The clash of cluster-laser against star shield was a scene like an asteroid slamming into a planet.
T3 Porcupine — Bridge
"Warning! Star shield under attack — star-shield energy at 95%… 90… 85… 80… 75…"
The Black Boar-folk chief rose from his captain's chair in alarm. He'd known the enemy ship was strong, but this bow cannon's power was frankly terrifying; his shield energy was dropping faster than he'd ever seen.
"Gulp…" said the Black Boar-folk chief. "A single cluster-laser shouldn't… shouldn't be able to smash my T3 Porcupine's shield outright…"
He stared, unblinking, at that flashing figure — green fading to a yellow at 30%, and at last freezing at 15%. The chief dropped back into his captain's chair, wiped the sweat from his brow, and let out a long breath. "What in the world is that warship — a single shot, and power this monstrous. Pull us away from that ship at once, and put more ships on escort." No sooner had the Black Boar-folk chief given the instruction than he heard the ship system's alarm.
"Warning! Interstellar missiles inbound!"
"Warning! Enemy shells inbound!"
The Black Boar-folk chief looked again to the view-window outside the ship. Beyond the shield, three interstellar missiles struck it one after another. And then the shield shattered outright.
"Warning! Star shield under attack — shield energy at 10%… 5… 0!"
"Warning! Star-shield system energy fully expended."
The Black Boar-folk chief's face went deathly pale, his pupils dilating — for on the ship radar, four electromagnetic-cannon shells were about to strike the hull! Those were the four 2500mm-caliber medium railgun main guns of the T3 Blizzard!
Boom.
A great crash sounded in the Black Boar-folk chief's ears — the sound of hull armor struck; the whole bridge shook, arcs of electricity even flickering across it. The bridge lighting suddenly dimmed, then the emergency lighting came on, far dimmer than before.
"Cough, cough…" Before the Black Boar-folk chief could react, he felt the floor beneath his feet give way. Then his terrified eyes saw a rent split open beneath him, and a fearsome suction dragged him straight into that gap… As he was pulled out, he glimpsed the cross-section of his own warship, and then he was in the open void, watching several great cracks appear along his ship's hull. After that… his consciousness scattered away.
"Report — our ship's four follow-on railgun shells successfully struck that T3 Porcupine's bridge, tearing the enemy hull open. That T3 Porcupine has lost combat capability." Aili reported the news at Zhao Chen's side.
At the same moment, the system's prompt sounded in Zhao Chen's ears.
Completion rate updated: destroyed one T3 warship — completion 35%.
Completion rate updated: killed target figure "Black Boar-folk chief" — completion 40%.
It seemed that T3 Porcupine-class Medium Interstellar Destroyer had been the Black Boar-folk chief's command ship.
"Had it been an ordinary battleship, perhaps your ship could have withstood that round. A pity — what you faced was the T3 Blizzard. You chose the wrong opponent," Zhao Chen said, calm as drifting cloud.
Having annihilated a T3 warship, the T3 Blizzard — as if nothing more than the most ordinary thing had happened — went on racing forward. Passing another T3 Gargoyle-class Medium Interstellar Frigate on the way, it annihilated that Gargoyle in passing. For this Gargoyle was the very ship gravely crippled under the T3 Phantom Assassin's attack earlier, without being destroyed outright; now the T3 Blizzard needed only one round of fire to deliver the finishing blow.
Completion rate updated: destroyed one T3 warship — completion 45%.
"Warning! Our ship is locked by a T3 Venomous Scorpion-class Medium Interstellar Cruiser's main gun!" The system prompt sounded. But Zhao Chen wasn't the least bit alarmed. Charlotte had long since angled the shield toward that T3 Venomous Scorpion. As dense fire fell on the shield, ripples spread across it, one after another.
"Warning! Star shield under attack — star-shield energy at 42%."
Zhao Chen watched that T3 Venomous Scorpion. If he wasn't mistaken, of the remaining T3 warships, this T3 Venomous Scorpion should be Han Tianwang's command ship.
"Report — this T3 warship's shield system is of far too high a quality! It far exceeds an ordinary T3 interstellar battlecruiser's shield system!" the deputy captain said helplessly at Han Tianwang's side.
"I don't want these excuses — what I want is that accursed T3 Blizzard destroyed!" Han Tianwang seized the deputy captain's collar and berated him.
The deputy captain was helpless; this was simply the fact. That T3 warship — a battlecruiser though it was — had such combat power that even a battleship, before it, would have to call it "daddy." Just what monster had designed this warship? It was too freakish.
"Report — our fleet's rear has been struck by the 500 Snake-folk warships; with the formation in disarray, we've suffered heavy losses! Report — the enemy fleet before us has begun attacking of its own accord. One T2 battleship and 10 T2 frigates are pressing an assault on us; our front-line fleet… can't quite… hold!" a crewman now reported a string of bad news.
Han Tianwang roared, "That T3 Blizzard you can't handle; those 500 Snake-folk warships you can't hold. And now you can't even settle one battleship and 10 frigates?"
Faced with Young Master Han's scolding, the deputy captain and the others exchanged looks.
The deputy captain spoke up. "Young Master Han… it's not that we're useless; it's that these warships are simply too uncanny. If you don't believe it, see for yourself. This T2 frigate is riding right up in our T2 destroyer's face and wailing on it point-blank, and that T2 battleship has gone straight after our T3 frigate!"
Han Tianwang looked to the display window. Sure enough, a T2 battleship was driving straight at one of their T3 Gargoyle-class Medium Interstellar Frigates — one of the only two left of their five T3 frigates!