Thereafter the several Owl Dragon legion fleets crossed this lane one after another.
At this crossing of the lane by the Owl Dragon legion fleets, the Demon Race interstellar warships were like tigers slapped upon the rump, wild with rage to come forward and tear these fellows to pieces.
But that "line of defense" lay like a chasm set by heaven across the path of these Demon Race interstellar warships, and they simply could not get over it!
Seeing this, the three demon commanders were leaping and roaring in their haste, and yet could do nothing whatever.
They could only watch with their own eyes as these Owl Dragon legion fleets passed through and sailed off into the distance.
The hour of passage first planned for was, under Charlotte's arrangement, in fact only 40 minutes.
The Owl Dragon First Legion and the T5 Hades-class Interstellar Dreadnought crossed this lane as the last batch.
And at this time at last, the hard-pressed interstellar warships of the Owl Dragon Second Legion and the Owl Dragon Fourth Legion could begin slowly to draw in and withdraw from that first end of it.
But… in the end there were some interstellar warships that could never be withdrawn, and were at the last swallowed by the enemy's interstellar warships.
Through all of this Zhao Chen stood upon the bridge; his gaze passed through the port and rested upon those interstellar warships of the two Owl Dragon legions that had come through near five hours of fighting.
He said nothing, but only watched quietly, and kept his eyes upon them.
Until at last their interstellar warships had wholly crossed the lane and were hurrying off toward the other seven Owl Dragon legion fleets in the distance.
And that lane behind them, held fast for near five hours, at this time vanished utterly.
The interstellar warships of the Owl Dragon Second Legion and the Owl Dragon Fourth Legion gathered themselves together once more.
Only that this time the number of interstellar warships was plainly nothing like what it had been five hours before.
Two video windows appeared before Zhao Chen.
Chitong and Su Lan.
"Report, Commander. The Owl Dragon Second Legion and the Fourth Legion have completed the appointed combat task!" Chitong reported.
"Very good. You have done very well!" Zhao Chen praised them. "But what comes next, you…"
Su Lan smiled slightly. "Set your minds at rest, Commander, and go and carry out your combat task; this place is given over to us. Before this we could never fight with a free hand; now… we may let these fellows have a good look at what we are!"
In the plan of operations as it stood.
The Owl Dragon Second Legion and the Owl Dragon Fourth Legion would, after the first-phase combat task, remain here and go on fighting the remaining Demon Race interstellar warships.
Which task, for two Owl Dragon legions that had only just come through a hard battle, was a task of very great difficulty.
A single careless step, and they might even be destroyed to the last ship.
But looking to the whole, it was a thing that could not be altered.
The remaining eight Owl Dragon legions must reach the ambush ground; they had no choice.
Zhao Chen drew a deep breath, and gave Chitong and Su Lan a military salute. "This place… is given over to you!"
Chitong and Su Lan gave the Commander a military salute in turn. "We shall be here, awaiting the good news of the Commander's triumph."
The video windows closed.
Lilith looked at the weight of care upon Commander Zhao Chen. "You need not be too anxious; have we not held a card in reserve?"
Zhao Chen let out a sigh. "I am not anxious that they should fail; I am only anxious that their losses will be too great. In those five hours of fighting just now, how do the Owl Dragon Second Legion's and Fourth Legion's losses stand?"
These figures Lilith, being Secretary, of course had.
But had it been possible, she would in fact have been unwilling to show them to the Commander at such a time, for she knew the Commander was not one who could look upon his own side's dead and wounded with a cold blood.
But seeing the firmness in the Commander's eyes as he asked.
Lilith reported the figures all the same. "As of this moment. The Owl Dragon Second Legion and the Fourth Legion have lost near 3,000 interstellar warships in all, of which a third are interstellar warships so gravely damaged that they had to be given up of necessity."
The loss of 3,000 interstellar warships.
Zhao Chen closed his eyes. In the whole of the first campaign against the Demon Race before this, they had lost only 3,000 interstellar warships.
"But those two legion fleets of theirs also destroyed near 20,000 of the enemy's interstellar warships! The exchange ratio reaches six to one — a very fine showing indeed!" Lilith produced a figure that was not bad at all.
The exchange ratio in that first battle against the Demon Race had been fifteen to one, so this looked far short of the earlier showing.
But bear in mind that this time there were only two Owl Dragon legions, with no T5 interstellar warship to help them, and no fleet of interstellar missile ships either.
And they had besides to carry out the tasks of tearing the enemy's line open, creating a safe lane, and keeping that safe lane.
To produce an exchange ratio of six to one was already a most formidable record of arms!
"Which is to say that the enemy has 40,000 interstellar warships left," Zhao Chen muttered.
Lilith nodded, and said nothing further.
Zhao Chen opened his eyes, and his gaze was like a falcon's. "Let us not waste what the Second Legion and the Fourth Legion have paid. Let us give a fitting welcome to our guests from the Demon Race. 300,000 interstellar warships. I want every one of them left here!"
The tone in which Zhao Chen said it was like an order handed down!
At the same time, after the Owl Dragon's main body had gone.
The three demon commanders' Demon Race interstellar fleet, seeing pursuit and interception hopeless, naturally turned their rage upon these two Owl Dragon legion fleets before them.
Forty thousand Demon Race interstellar warships opened their attack upon two Owl Dragon fleets with a bare 3,000 interstellar warships left, and had even begun to form a ring about them.
With every sign of meaning to annihilate them here to the last!
The three demon commanders handed down their orders in a mad rage.
"Tear them to pieces! Tear them to pieces!"
"These cursed creatures — destroy every one of them here; let not a single interstellar warship think to leave!"
"Since we are to be punished by His Majesty, then these creatures must pay the price in blood!"
Beneath the fierce attack of 40,000 interstellar warships, those 3,000 Owl Dragon-line interstellar warships seemed a single leaf of a boat beneath a raging wind and a great sea.
Tottering, and yet holding on and holding on.
And just at this time, upon the starship radars of the Owl Dragon interstellar warships and of the demon interstellar warships here alike, a starship energy response appeared over a wide range.
Far off, the light thrown out by the engines of interstellar warship after interstellar warship shone like a host of stars.
Several video windows connected to Chitong and Su Lan.
"Forgive us — we are not late, I hope?" Princess Blanche said with a smile. "Our Giant Dragon Legion fleet-groups, 200,000 interstellar warships, come to your support. This time our Dragon-folk tribe will make these demons pay the price with our own hands!"
"Heh heh heh, a chance for me to lay on at last. Hundred Beasts Legion, 200,000 interstellar warships, make ready for battle!" the Fury Bear tribe's chieftain Big Bear said in excitement.
Charlotte's father, Chieftain Ted, said with a smile, "I am ordered to lead the Dragon-Tiger Legion fleet-groups, 100,000 interstellar warships, to your support."
Five hundred thousand interstellar warships!
Not the equal of the Owl Dragon Legion, granted; but to work with the Owl Dragon Second Legion and the Fourth Legion in dealing with this remnant demon fleet before them was no trouble at all.
This local war seemed to be only just beginning!