T4 Vermilion Bird-class Medium Interstellar Cruiser · bridge
"It's settled — the Sacred War Duel with the other side will be held sometime between early and mid-December." Zhao Chen looked toward Secretary Lilith beside him.
Lilith said with a slight frown: "Commander, I just took a look at the rules of this 'Sacred War Duel.' I've found that it isn't a single battle, but three decisive contests of different forms! Whoever wins the greater number of rounds wins the 'Sacred War Duel.'"
"I know." Zhao Chen nodded; this was something he'd known all along.
Nor had Zhao Chen proposed this 'Sacred War Duel' on a whim — it was entirely on account of a certain latecomer!
Quarterly Mission
Content: Launch a Sacred War Duel against the Holy Radiance Empire, and in the end win the Sacred War Duel.
Mission reward: issued according to degree of completion.
This was the quarterly mission, refreshed suddenly not long before.
Zhao Chen understood, then, why this quarterly mission had come late — so it had been waiting here for him.
Since the system had an arrangement, then, come what may, one takes things as they come; and so Zhao Chen had launched this 'Sacred War Duel' upon Saint Cana.
"But the first round of this Sacred War Duel is a one-on-one duel between interstellar battleship and interstellar battleship. No grade limit — only the requirement that it be an interstellar battleship. If I've not guessed wrong, the Holy Radiance Empire's side will surely send out their strongest at present, the T4 Retribution-Angel-class Heavy Interstellar Battleship! And on our side, all we have in service is the T3 Imperial-class Heavy Interstellar Battleship. Strong as the T3 Imperial is in itself, to try to challenge a T4 Retribution Angel across a grade — the difficulty of that is very great," Lilith said with some worry.
"Who says our strongest is the T3 Imperial? Don't forget — our darling little Annie is, at this very moment, building us the Owl Dragon's mightiest interstellar battleship," Zhao Chen said with a smile.
Lilith came to sudden realization — the Commander must mean that T4 Blue-Eyes White Dragon-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Battleship, still under construction, projected to be finished before early next year!
If it were that T4 interstellar battleship, then it did indeed have the strength to vie with that T4 Retribution Angel.
The trouble was… that T4 Blue-Eyes White Dragon-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Battleship of ours was still in the building stage.
"Get me Annie. Tell her to speed up the build of the T4 Blue-Eyes White Dragon-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Battleship — come what may, it must be finished and delivered before the end of November. She has my leave to push back the deadlines of the other build projects. This build task comes first. And notify Chitong; have her arrange me another crew team able to master a T4 interstellar battleship in the shortest possible time!" Zhao Chen instructed.
Before Charlotte set off for the Warhammer Interstellar Commonwealth, Zhao Chen had asked her who, within the present Owl Dragon Legion, could stand in for her post.
Zhao Chen had no small number of candidates in mind — Shen Bing, Baixue, Zhao Wan'er, Chitong, and others.
In the end, on Charlotte's counsel, it was judged that Chitong was the fittest — for of them all, Chitong had the richest combat experience and the most rounded combat knowledge.
And so the legion affairs Charlotte had originally overseen, Zhao Chen had handed over entirely to Chitong this stretch of time; who'd have thought Chitong would, of all things, manage it all in perfect order.
Zhao Chen couldn't even find a single fault.
"Very well, I'll go arrange it now," Lilith answered, and at the same time held a moment of silence for Chief Engineer Annie — it seemed Chief Engineer Annie was in for overtime again.
"Oh, right — to give the girl a little extra drive, tell her this: if she can guarantee the quality and have the T4 Blue-Eyes White Dragon-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Battleship finished, off the line, and delivered before the end of November, then at year's end I'll reward her with a batch of special-supply ingredients — a full month's portion for one person," Zhao Chen put in.
Lilith narrowed her eyes — it took a gourmand, sure enough, to know a gourmand best.
She could already picture an Annie brimming with vigor, "the will to struggle" written all over her face.
"Then arrange for all the Owl Dragon Legion's interstellar warships to hurry to this coordinate position, carrying sufficient strategic materials. Make every preparation." Zhao Chen pointed at the No. 5 star region, nearest the appointed duel-ground.
"Yes." Lilith nodded.
Zhao Chen sat in the captain's chair, eyes closed, resting, the relevant particulars of the Sacred War Duel surfacing in his mind.
The Sacred War Duel was divided into three rounds.
The first was for each side to send out one of its strongest interstellar battleships to duel.
The second had each side draw lots at random, drawing two ship-classes; the count of the two ship-classes could not exceed 100 ships, and one of the two must make up no less than 30% — an attack-and-defense battle.
The third was simple: each side's whole interstellar legion entered, the count of interstellar warships not to exceed 3,000!
A grand decisive battle within a set zone.
The second round had a certain element of luck in it — for the Holy Radiance Empire's people held that luck, too, was a part of strength, and that the Sacred Light shines upon the fortunate.
This Sacred War Duel was not only to protect the Chu River Star Region from the misery of a two-front pincer; it was, at the same time, to overawe the people of the Holy Radiance Empire and the Warhammer Interstellar Commonwealth.
To let this pack of them know: within the Starlight Empire there was a mighty force they could not provoke — and not to go courting a snub at a time like this.
In this way, Zhao Chen could set his mind at ease and boldly develop the five resource star regions.
"The Sacred War Duel… say what you will, this sort of interstellar-battle format is rather to be looked forward to. I wonder what sort of face that woman Saint Cana will wear when she meets the script that's coming for her," Zhao Chen muttered with a light laugh.
The victor of this Sacred War Duel had only one possibility.
That, and no other!
……
T4 Gemini-class Heavy Interstellar Industrial Ship · ship number one · production command center
Tromp, tromp, tromp, tromp—
Along with a burst of hurried footsteps, the production command center's electric door slid open.
Every eye gathered on the little kid outside the door… no — on the honored Chief Engineer.
"Chief Engineer, how is it you've come all of a sudden?" the person in charge here looked at the Chief Engineer in astonishment.
Wasn't this Chief Engineer Annie's off-shift rest time just now?
By what he knew of the honored Chief Engineer, she would absolutely not work a single second of overtime!
So long as it was off-hours, you'd absolutely never catch sight of her at any work post.
"Muster the heads of every department at once — I'm calling an emergency production meeting!" Chief Engineer Annie said, her expression uncommonly grave.
"Yes!" The person in charge at once went to arrange it.
Very soon a network meeting-platform was set up, the heads of every department gathered together.
"I now have a most important matter to announce: the build-project number 04QYBL, the lead-ship construction plan, is moved up from its original completion in early Year 34 to the end of this month!"
This code 04QYBL was, in fact, the T4 Blue-Eyes White Dragon's designation; everyone knew of this build plan.
But a project that had been meant to finish building early next year, moved up all at once to the end of this month — it left no small number of them agape.
"I know you all think the time's too tight. But this is, just now, a build task of the utmost importance to our Owl Dragon Legion — if there's a chance, we complete it; if there's no chance, we make a chance and complete it! Next, I need you all to draw up, so far as you can, a brand-new production plan. I'll arrange for all the T3 Furnace-class Heavy Interstellar Industrial Ships to work with you; the other production tasks can be pushed back. In sum, one line: whatever the cost, I must see this interstellar warship's construction complete before the end of this month!" Chief Engineer Annie's voice was iron-firm.
It set no small number of them boiling with fervor!
Chief Engineer Annie's eyes were like torches.
Yet in her heart she was fixed on one thing — that month's portion of special-supply ingredients!
Here I come!