Silence…
Within the bridges of that body of interstellar warships which, upon Princess Leona's order, had cleared a space in the defensive position.
Every one of them was at this moment shaken by the sight before their eyes.
These captains had been wondering still why, at such a pass as the present, Her Highness the Princess should hand down so strange an order.
Now this thought was flung to the backs of their minds.
In their minds there was one thought only.
It is truly big…
An enormous interstellar warship stood revealed before their eyes.
Even the T4 Armored-Dragon-class Medium Interstellar Frigate, the pride of their Warhammer, was beside this interstellar warship for all the world a newborn infant standing at a grown man's feet.
To say nothing of the T3 and even the T2-grade interstellar warships.
The captain of a T2 interstellar warship, looking through his viewport at this giant ship in the distance, felt as though he had sailed his boat up beside a sheer cliff — and, raising his head, could not see the top of it.
"This… is the Owl Dragon's T5-grade interstellar warship…" Leona gazed at this interstellar warship that had appeared out of empty air. She had guessed a moment ago what was about to appear.
But when this legendary interstellar warship truly appeared here, in this moment, and she saw it with her own eyes, she still could not master the shock within her.
Thereafter she saw, upon this giant ship, great gun after great gun extending outward, taking their aim at that Demon Race fleet in the distance which ought by rights to have been encircled by her own, and making ready for battle.
Hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss.
A video window presented itself before Leona at this moment, and opposite was that man — that man Leona would not forget so long as she lived.
"Leona, kindly move every interstellar warship in this direction clear away." Zhao Chen marked out an area upon the star chart.
Leona looked, and it was the area lying between this T5 interstellar warship and that Demon Race fleet.
"Yes… yes, very well." Leona set her subordinates at once to arranging it.
"That is… is there anything you require us to do?" Leona asked.
Zhao Chen was blank a moment, and then said, "Mm… you need not concern yourselves hereafter with the Demon Race fleet in this direction. You need only take charge of the Demon Race interstellar warships in the other directions. Besides which, this area is to be kept clear. Without my permission no interstellar warship is to enter within its compass."
Leona looked at Zhao Chen in astonishment. By the sense of these words of his.
Could he be making ready to deal with the Demon Race interstellar warships in that direction upon his own strength alone?
But even after the hard fighting down to this hour, the Demon Race fleet in that direction still had near 25,000 interstellar warships!
"Do not be anxious. Leave it to us." Zhao Chen smiled faintly, and thereafter closed the communication channel.
And left behind him a Leona torn and unquiet at heart.
"Xue Xiaoxiao, is there any problem?" Zhao Chen looked at Xue Xiaoxiao, who was laying out the combat assignments.
Xue Xiaoxiao was at the combat command station setting out combat tasks without cease. For an interstellar warship to open an attack is by no means so simple a thing as handing down a single order — that man excepted, of course.
So far as they went, to set this war-beast in motion required a considerable expenditure of effort and preparatory work.
But for all that, Xue Xiaoxiao without turning her head still made the sign for all clear. "Rest easy, everything is normal. The operational plan as laid down may be executed."
Thereafter Xue Xiaoxiao looked to the navigator ahead and ordered, "The Hades to advance at full speed. Raise the star-shield field. All weapon modules to combat standby. No attack is to be opened without my order."
"Understood!" said the crew of the bridge's several departments.
The T5 Hades-class Interstellar Dreadnought began slowly to move forward.
Those Warhammer interstellar warships lying in the Hades-class Interstellar Dreadnought's lane all began to carry out Leona's order and steer clear of that lane.
There were some T2-grade interstellar warships getting clear in haste of which, viewed from certain angles, one had the feeling that in the next second they would be crushed to fragments by this oncoming giant.
The oppression of it was too great by far.
"Who in the world built this giant ship?" The captain of a T4 Dragon-Knight-class Heavy Interstellar Cruiser looked through his viewport at this giant ship as it sailed slowly past beside him.
The distance being rather close, he could at this moment see through his viewport nothing of the other's starship but its pitch-black hull armor.
And… one main gun passing across before his very eyes.
Gulp.
This captain gulped.
Good heavens above. This main gun's caliber was larger than the bow-gun of his own starship. It was fortunate it was not turned upon him; for should such a shot come, there would truly be no bearing it.
At this hour the Demon Race fleet opposite had noticed this giant ship that had appeared out of empty air as well.
Nor could they very well fail to notice it, this giant ship being far too large.
And it seemed besides to carry a certain force of presence with it as it came on stage.
"What is that?" The demon commander sat in his captain's chair, looking at that giant ship opposite in puzzlement.
"Unclear. Some manner of giant ship type, presumably?" the adjutant muttered beside him.
"This size of hull… can it be a T5-grade interstellar warship?" The demon commander muttered it with knitted brows.
The adjutant shook his head at once, and said with a scornful laugh, "How could it possibly be a T5-grade interstellar warship? If this crowd here had a T5-grade interstellar warship, how could we possibly have destroyed their hundred and fifty thousand interstellar warships so easily before, at a cost of only 3,000 of ours? And even our own T5-grade interstellar warships were only researched and built these last few years."
The demon commander felt too that what his adjutant said was very much to the point.
By their earlier judgment, the degree of this place's interstellar civilization and technology was not high, and could barely reach the T4 grade. How could they possibly conjure a T5-grade interstellar warship out of empty air?
"However that may be, we must not be careless. Have every one of our starships that can attack this interstellar warship take aim at that ship, all of them. Destroy it for me!" The demon commander looked at this giant ship with a certain discomfort at heart.
"Understood!" The adjutant went to arrange it.
Upon the Demon Race fleet's side, more and more interstellar warships began to take aim at that giant ship coming slowly on opposite.
But they discovered by degrees, in astonishment, that this giant ship seemed somewhat out of the common.
Its star-shield energy was very strong; bearing the attacks of so many of their interstellar warships, it endured for a remarkably long time.
And it was closing without cease besides.
By now it had gone from its original position at the middle of Leona's fleet position to a position between Leona's fleets and this Demon Race fleet — and leaned indeed toward the Demon Race fleet's side.
"Entering optimal combat distance." Xue Xiaoxiao raised a hand and called up an authorization interface. "Open the 'Hades Domain.'"
Palm-print scan complete… DNA scan complete… iris scan complete… authorizer identity confirmed… authorizer number two, Xue Xiaoxiao… authorization valid
Confirm activation of the 'Hades Domain'?
"Confirm." Xue Xiaoxiao said it without wavering.
'Hades Domain' activated