Chapter 531: Coming Without a Shadow, Leaving Without a Trace

"An unidentified target has appeared at 22 degrees off our port side, distance 19.7 nautical miles!" The destroyer captain's voice came through the communication channel, clearly laced with panic, "It... it's huge! The radar shows a length of over 80 meters! But the height... my God, the height is only about 10 meters!"

The entire CIC fell into shock once again. 80 meters long, yet only 10 meters high? This simply overturned the basic concepts of conventional ship design. Even more terrifying, this behemoth was maneuvering at a speed exceeding 250 knots, which completely exceeded the scope of known human technology.

"What is it doing? Is it going to attack the Van Buren?" Captain Thompson asked nervously.

"No... it doesn't look like an attack posture," the destroyer captain replied, his voice trembling, "It seems to just be... circling us, as if it's observing us... wait! It disappeared! It's gone from the radar!"

"What's going on?" Captain Thompson demanded loudly.

"I don't know, sir! It just... disappeared! It was clearly visible on the radar a second ago, and the next second it was... gone!" The destroyer captain's voice was filled with disbelief.

At the same moment, the Haowei's radar captured the signal again: "Target appeared 35 nautical miles directly in front of the aircraft carrier! Speed 290 knots! It's charging toward us!"

"Intercept! Intercept immediately!" Captain Thompson ordered hysterically, "All Anti-aircraft Systems prepare to fire!"

However, the moment before the Anti-aircraft System could lock onto the target, the radar signal disappeared once again. Immediately after, the destroyer Sherman reported detecting the target, located on the outermost escort perimeter of the fleet. But when all attention turned there, the radar on the Haowei's starboard side captured the signal again.

The entire fleet fell into complete chaos. This mysterious "Ghost" seemed to be everywhere, yet it seemed capable of vanishing into thin air at any moment. It easily penetrated the defense net of the world's most powerful navy, weaving back and forth between the various warships, yet always remained outside of weapon range, like a predator teasing its prey.

Inside the Kunpeng control cabin, Li Mingyuan calmly piloted this behemoth, watching the scene of the Star-Spangled Country fleet scurrying about like headless flies, and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Pangu, their communication content is truly wonderful," he said easily, "Did you hear that captain mistaking us for a UFO?"

"Confirmed, the intercepted communications contain multiple speculations regarding an unidentified flying object. Simultaneously, a significant rise in the internal emotional index of the fleet has been detected; the panic level has reached 7.8, approaching the critical threshold."

Li Mingyuan nodded with satisfaction: "Very good, this is exactly the effect I wanted. Now, let's teach them another lesson."

He adjusted the control parameters, and the Kunpeng began to execute more complex maneuvers. It first charged in a straight line toward the central area of the Star-Spangled Country fleet at a speed exceeding 300 knots, suddenly turned sharply at a position only 30 nautical miles from the Haowei, then passed through the narrow gap between two destroyers at an incredible maneuvering angle, and finally appeared briefly directly in front of the entire fleet before vanishing once again into the vast sea.

This series of actions was precise to the second, showcasing the Kunpeng's astonishing maneuverability and Li Mingyuan's extraordinary piloting skills. More importantly, it delivered a clear message: we can approach you at any time, yet you are powerless to do anything about it.

Inside the Haowei's CIC, the atmosphere had evolved from the initial shock and panic into a deep sense of powerlessness and despair.

"It's toying with us," Captain Thompson said in a low voice, his eyes hollow, "Like a cat playing with a mouse."

"What can we do?" Commander Martin asked, his tone filled with frustration.

Captain Thompson was silent for a moment before saying with difficulty: "Continue tracking it and collect as much data as possible. At the same time... send an emergency report to fleet headquarters and request reinforcements."

"Reinforcements?" Martin repeated in surprise, "Do you think more ships can solve the problem?"

"No," Thompson gave a bitter smile, "but we need to make our superiors understand what we are facing. This is not an ordinary threat; this is... a disruptive force. It could change the rules of the game for naval warfare entirely."

Meanwhile, the Kunpeng's "cat-and-mouse game" continued. Li Mingyuan had it circle the Star-Spangled Country fleet time and time again, appearing and disappearing in different ways each time, leaving the enemy both confused and unable to predict its next move.

The most stunning performance occurred before Li Mingyuan decided to end this "exercise." He piloted the Kunpeng to charge directly from the front of the Haowei aircraft carrier at a top speed of 350 knots, leaving an incredibly clear trajectory on the radar. The entire Star-Spangled Country fleet was on high alert, with all weapon systems aimed at the threat charging head-on.

However, just 10 nautical miles from the aircraft carrier, almost at the moment of entering the range of the Anti-aircraft weapon, the Kunpeng suddenly performed an incredible vertical climb, leaping from the sea surface to an altitude of 200 meters, flashing with a dazzling silver light in the sun, displaying its beautiful and fluid silhouette, then dove down like an eagle striking the sky, re-submerging into the ultra-low altitude above the sea surface and vanishing without a trace.

This "appearance" of just a few seconds was enough for everyone in the entire Star-Spangled Country fleet to see the true face of this mysterious visitor—it was not any kind of aircraft or ship they knew, but an unprecedented existence, a monster that seemed to have broken the laws of physics.

The captain of the destroyer Van Buren was the first to erupt on the communication channel: "Good God! Did you see that? What the hell was that thing? It's not a ship at all, and it's not a plane! That was... that was..."

"Calm down, Van Buren!" Captain Thompson ordered sternly, though his own voice was also trembling, "All ships report the target's last known position! Repeat, all ships report the target's last known position!"

However, only a chaotic chorus of voices answered him. Some said the target went east, some insisted it vanished to the west, and others even claimed to have seen it shoot vertically into the high sky. Every Radar Station, every warship, and every observation post gave different reports, yet not one could confirm the true location of that mysterious visitor.

"It's like... like a ghost," Commander Martin said in a low voice, his tone filled with awe, "Coming without a shadow, leaving without a trace."

Captain Thompson clenched his fists tightly, his face as grim as iron: "No, it's not a ghost. That is Beijixiong Guo, or... some other country's new type of weapon. I'd bet this is just a test, a show of force. They want us to know they have this capability, and then watch how we react."

He turned to the Communication Officer: "Send a top-level alert to fleet headquarters immediately! Content: Fleet has encountered an unknown high-speed, low-altitude platform with unconventional maneuvering capabilities and stealth characteristics, suspected to be a new type of weapon system. Recommend immediate elevation of global alert levels, especially for the Taiyang Fleet."