Qin Ming gazed at the Owl Dragon Legion's interstellar warships in the imaging, and at the points of light — each standing for an Owl Dragon Legion ship — beginning to appear on the interstellar holo-table.
At the Owl Dragon Legion's appearance, in truth Qin Ming felt no surprise at all.
Indeed, this whole stretch he'd been preparing for it.
The Owl Dragon Legion possessed a very strong combat capacity: adept at beating the many with the few, adept at ending fights fast by leaning on overwhelming firepower.
And it possessed besides a mysterious, mighty interstellar warship that could carry a certain number of interstellar warships in an interstellar jump — a function much like a star-gate's.
Why was it that earlier, with the Princes' faction's six interstellar fleet-groups holding an absolute advantage in numbers, their fight against Chu Changhe had been only a tug-of-war, with no marked result?
Chu Changhe's extremely strong combat ability was one reason.
The other reason was the very existence of the Owl Dragon Legion.
Qin Ming had never once meant to take the Owl Dragon Legion lightly.
Of the spies and interstellar scout-ships he'd sent into the Chu River and North Wind Star Regions, a full third were in the vicinity of the Owl Dragon System.
All to scout the Owl Dragon System's every move.
Though infiltrating the Owl Dragon System was very hard, keeping watch in the surrounding systems could still be managed.
And to meet this uninvited guest that might appear at any spot on the battlefield at any moment, the Princes' faction's six interstellar fleet-groups had all along kept 30% of their fleets in a non-combat stand-by state.
At the same time, the distances between them were such that the shortest support-time would never exceed a day!
In this way, wherever the Owl Dragon Legion struck, Qin Ming was confident he could hold the losses to the smallest.
But such a disposition also left Qin Ming unable to throw all his fleet-groups onto the battlefield and bring out his full strength.
Still, weighing the gains against the losses, the several fleet marshals had all agreed to an arrangement of this sort.
And before this great decisive battle, Qin Ming had already considered whether the Owl Dragon Legion might suddenly appear!
For which he'd drawn up a great many contingency plans.
Suppose the Owl Dragon Legion did not come here, but went instead to assault Huang Zhixiong's interstellar fleet-group at the North Wind Star Region.
Then they could ride the tide and take Chu Changhe.
Mighty though the Owl Dragon Legion was, it was Chu Changhe who was the banner of the rebel army across the way!
And another possibility was that the Owl Dragon Legion would come to reinforce his side, and launch an assault on them.
For this case, Qin Ming had early on had the marshals of the various fleet-groups ready their response.
"Marshal Qin!" Qin Ming looked to Qin Longcheng beside him.
Qin Longcheng, near enough at the first instant, began relaying a run of orders.
"The Royal fleet-group and the Princes' faction Combined Main-Fleet Group continue the encirclement of Chu Changhe. The North-Expedition First Main-Fleet Group and the North-Expedition Second Main-Fleet Group maneuver at speed; you two are charged with encircling and annihilating the Owl Dragon Legion. Cao Jianye, Lei Dachuan. I order you — whatever the price you pay, you are to annihilate the Owl Dragon Legion here!"
Though all were Imperial Marshals alike, in standing Qin Longcheng ranked far above these two new marshals, Cao Jianye and Lei Dachuan — so he naturally addressed them straight by name!
"Understood!"
"Set your mind at ease, Your Highness; I, Cao Jianye, will surely take the Owl Dragon Legion!"
"A trifling Owl Dragon Legion, a few thousand interstellar warships. There's no need for two fleet-groups; my North-Expedition Second fleet-group alone can kill that rebel Zhao Chen!"
By the related intelligence gathered before, and by the projections made of the Owl Dragon Legion.
In Qin Ming's estimate, the Owl Dragon Legion likely had about 5,000 interstellar warships, and at the most would not top 6,000!
The more so as only 3,000 had appeared here now!
Mighty though the Owl Dragon Legion's combat power was — rumor even had it forged uniformly of T3-grade interstellar warships, with no small number of T4-grade ones besides—
—set against two fleet-groups, 120,000 interstellar warships.
Say nothing of the Owl Dragon Legion; even were the Holy Radiance Empire's Sacred Angel Legion here, it would have no chance of victory at all!
Because of long preparation, these two fleet-groups soon left the main battlefield, taking a two-winged encircling posture, readying to wipe out the Owl Dragon Legion across the way.
In their eyes, the Owl Dragon Legion was but a bone a touch harder to gnaw.
At worst they'd pay a loss of 20 or 30,000 interstellar warships presently, and no matter.
Qin Ming said with a cold laugh: "Zhao Chen, I never thought you'd truly dare come. Since you dare come, then today you and your Owl Dragon Legion will surely be buried here! Qin Hu, watch well. Your elder brother, today, right here, will avenge you!"
For Zhao Chen's killing of his own younger brother, this hatred Qin Ming had borne right up to now.
At this moment, viewing the overall shape of the battle.
The Owl Dragon Legion here had but 3,000 interstellar warships, while what it faced was 120,000.
The warship-count comparison was a full 1 to 40!
At such a gap in numbers, think how one might, the Owl Dragon Legion had no hope whatever.
Owl Dragon First Legion · flagship.
Zhao Chen sat in the captain's chair, the very picture of ease, not the least like a man facing an enemy 40 times his own number.
"Report — the enemy fleet is closing on our fleet; the forward warships are expected to enter the firepower zone in five minutes!" Lilith reported from the side.
Zhao Chen propped his chin on his right hand, and raised his left.
A video window appeared before Zhao Chen.
"Baixue, this first round of attack — you arrange it. Interstellar missiles, fire away today to your heart's content; I'll keep you well supplied. I don't watch the process; I want only a result. You take my meaning?" Zhao Chen looked at Baixue across the way.
Baixue's post by rights should have been acting deputy commander of the Owl Dragon Third Legion; but considering the special nature of this campaign before them—
—when it came to large campaigns, Baixue had the more experience, and so Zhao Chen had transferred her over.
"Set your mind at ease, Commander-in-Chief; my 50 T3 Judicator-class Heavy Interstellar Missile Ships are already made ready. I ask only that the Commander-in-Chief let the enemy fleet in a little way — I'll be sure to let them savor, and savor well, our Owl Dragon Legion's warm hospitality." The wolf-girl Baixue licked her red lips, baring the fangs at the corner of her mouth, a string of drool trailing from them.
"How far you let them in is yours to say; for this first phase, our First Legion will support you across the board," Zhao Chen said.
"Yes."
Soon, the wolf-girl Baixue handed up a map.
Marked out on it were the zones the wolf-girl Baixue meant to bombard, and just how far the enemy fleets were to be let in — all noted out in detail.
And at the same time, on the interstellar holo-table.
The two enemy fleet-groups across the way were slowly entering this bombardment zone.
The feeling was for all the world like an abyssal behemoth opening its abyssal maw in the dark, while two who hadn't the least inkling were slowly walking on inside.
"Carry it out just like this." Zhao Chen nodded, satisfied.
He looked again to Lilith beside him.
Though the Commander-in-Chief had said nothing,
Lilith understood his meaning, and said: "Both of those matters have gone off perfectly smoothly."
Everything was ready.
Zhao Chen looked with a smile at those Princes'-faction interstellar warships on the interstellar holo-table: "This carnival of revelry prepared for our Second Prince is about to begin! I hope he'll like it."