Chapter 969: Shall I Avoid His Sharp Edge?

Walton's Third Eye twitched violently, and a terrifying thought emerged.

That crimson fleet in the Kaipa-777 Region was not some isolated force deep behind enemy lines at all!

They were a lure! A lure to draw all their attention, including the Norn capital ships that had just been drawn away!

And the true Sharp Blade, that white fleet, had already bypassed all their defensive lines and entered the Sixth Star Sector!

Their targets were the planets, supply lines, and command hubs further in the rear!

"We... we have been tricked..."

Geluke's face turned deathly pale, and he muttered to himself.

Liara also understood the key, her psychic perception catching the wake left by that white fleet in the sea of stars, and a chill shot from her spine to the top of her head.

Colonel Walton turned around and roared hoarsely at the Communications Officer.

"Quick! Quickly contact the Norn Legion Commander! Tell him the rear is under attack! Tell him to stop advancing immediately and return to reinforce..."

His words came to an abrupt halt.

It was already too late.

In order to seek a "decisive battle," Norn's fleet had entered a shielded state, and conventional communications could not reach them at all.

Even if they could make contact, with Norn's arrogant personality, would he believe it?

Would he abandon the "within reach" victory before him and turn around to pursue an enemy that "dared not engage head-on"?

The Swarm tactic had failed, and as for Norn's frontal decisive battle, failure was only a matter of time.

Edge of the Kaipa-777 Region, the void.

Legion Commander Norn stood before the command console, looking at the red fleet in the distance that still maintained a tight defensive formation, and curled his lips in disdain.

"Finally... face to face."

Behind him, Norn, was the vast Fengqi United Fleet, with the capital ships of the "Fist of the Firmament" surrounded by a large number of conventional vessels.

"Legion Commander, sensors confirm the enemy fleet shows no signs of retreating or dispersing, and they are still maintaining their original defensive formation."

Norn snorted coldly.

"Hmph, they are quite composed. It seems they have made up their minds to withstand our frontal assault head-on. Order all ships to enter Level 1 combat readiness! Charge all weapon systems, maximize power to the Shield Generators! We will crush their arrogance with one unstoppable charge!"

The order was issued to the entire United Fleet.

The engine nozzles of countless ships spewed dazzling wakes, energy shields rose on the hulls, and turrets slowly rotated, locking onto the targets in the distance.

Norn watched the clusters of blue light points surging toward the enemy formation on the tactical screen.

He seemed to have already seen the scene of the enemy shields collapsing under his fleet's concentrated firepower, and the image of the "Guardian" warriors boarding enemy warships and slaughtering them.

Walton and his team's warning?

Nothing but the cowardly words of losers!

In the face of absolute power, any trick is futile!

"All fleets! Attack formation, charge!"

"Angel" Bridge.

Sanguinius watched the enemy fleet that had turned back once more.

"Father, the enemy fleet has entered extreme range. The quantity is approximately 18 times our own, with high-energy reaction units accounting for about one-third."

The Captain's voice came through.

"They have finally decided to abandon those pointless harassments and concentrate their strength."

There was no ripple in Sanguinius's blue eyes as he spoke.

Sanguinius tilted his head slightly and gave the order.

"Order the entire army to maintain formation and stabilize the shields. It is time to let these Aliens understand how powerless the piling up of numbers is in the face of the Emperor's will and the faith of the Blood Angels Legion."

Sanguinius's voice was clearly transmitted to every Blood Angels warship via the fleet broadcast.

"My sons! The Alien fleet has poured out in full force; they attempt to drown us with numbers! But I tell you, and I tell them!

Blood Angels, never retreat!

We shall forge a Steel Great Wall here that they cannot cross! For the Emperor! For Xiuluosheng!"

"Worthy of the blood of Sanguinius!"

A deafening war cry echoed on every ship.

Sanguinius withdrew his gaze from the battlefield and turned to his flagship Commander.

"I leave this to you. Hold their first wave of attacks and crush their spirit."

"As you command, Father!"

Sanguinius nodded and walked toward the passage behind the bridge leading to the weapon deck and the drop pods.

That pair of snowy white wings fluttered slightly behind him, exuding an aura of holiness and majesty.

An action squad composed of several Blood Angels Space Marines was already waiting there, fully armed.

They held Bolters and Power Swords, their Power Armor covered in "medals" left by battle.

They were the most valiant Blood Angels Space Marines Sanguinius had selected from the Legion.

Action Captain Carlos bowed his head in salute.

"Father, the Thunderhawk gunship is ready."

Sanguinius's gaze swept over his loyal guards, and he nodded slightly.

"Carlos, my sons. The enemy commander is hiding in his flagship, attempting to rely on the number of his fleet to win the victory. It is time to let him experience for himself what the Emperor's wrath is."

Decapitation strike! He would take action personally to strike at the core of the enemy force!

"We swear to follow to the death!"

The members of the action squad roared in unison.

To be able to follow the Primarch to execute such a glorious and dangerous task is the supreme honor of every Blood Angel.

Sanguinius was the first to step into that Thunderhawk Gunship, which had been specially reinforced and painted in the same scarlet and gold.

The strike team followed closely behind.

The hatch slowly closed.

Kaipa-777 Region, the void.

"Entering effective range!"

The Weapon Officer of the Firm Bastion reported loudly.

Norn's voice came through the fleet broadcast, carrying a resolute determination,

"All ships, lock onto targets, fire at will! Let these scumbags taste our fury!"

On the side of the Fengqi Fleet, tens of thousands of energy beams of various forms were fired, along with physical Missiles trailing long tails of flame...

The light illuminated the surface of nearby asteroids.

The torrent of energy slammed into the Void Shields, exploding into rings of violently rippling waves.

The light of the Void Shields flickered under the impact, dissipating the vast majority of the attack energy into the void.

Only a very small number of the most concentrated attacks could overload parts of the Void Shields and strike the armor of the Blood Angels warships.

"Their shields... how can they be so tough?!"

On the Bridge of a Fengqi Cruiser, the captain growled as they watched their ship's main battery's full-power strike only stir up a slightly larger ripple on the enemy's shields.

"Continue the attack! Do not stop! Drain their energy!"

Norn ordered sternly.

He believed that no matter how sturdy a shield was, there would come a moment when it would be shattered.

But the Fengqi Fleet was also suffering attacks from the enemy.

One could see that in the formation of the Blood Angels Fleet, those massive Cruisers were firing beams of Light Lance, while some Frigates and Destroyers opened fire with their broadside Macro-cannon Arrays.

Huge Rune Bullets and destructive energy Light Lances crossed the void, hitting the foremost targets in the Fengqi Fleet's formation.

Boom!

A Guardian Legion Destroyer charging at the very front had its reinforced ship-borne shields overloaded after taking direct hits from several Light Lances; the Macro-cannon Rune Bullets that followed immediately blew its prow and internal compartments into scattered metal debris.

Another Fengqi Cruiser from the regular fleet attempted to use dense Close-in Weapon Systems to Intercept the incoming Missiles, but with little effect. A large number of Torpedoes and Rune Bullets passed through the interception fire net and struck the belly of the Cruiser.

Explosions tore the warship's armor from the inside, flames and debris spewed from the breaches, and soon, the warship lost power, slowly tilting and disintegrating.

The Blood Angels' artillery fire always managed to seize the gaps in the Fengqi Fleet's attacks or the flaws exposed during formation changes, delivering the most lethal blows.

In the void, the light of exploding ships kept flashing.

The vast majority belonged to the Fengqi side.

Those old, thin-shielded regular ships were unable to withstand a single blow in the face of the Blood Angels' firepower.

Often, after a single volley, the signals of several or even a dozen ships would disappear from the tactical screen.

"Damage report! Cruiser '...' is in Silence! Destroyer '...' is heavily damaged and withdrawing from combat! The Third Guerrilla Detachment has lost over sixty percent..."

The reports rang out on the Bridge of the Firm Bastion.

Norn's expression turned somewhat ugly.

He had anticipated losses, but he had not expected the losses to be so disproportionate!

The firepower intensity and firing accuracy of the opposing fleet far exceeded his estimates.

Especially the strength of their shields!

"Do not panic! Maintain formation! Guardian fleet, push to the front! Absorb the main firepower! Regular fleet, harass from the flanks and look for opportunities!"

Norn adjusted his tactics and gave the order.

He could not retreat; once they retreated, the entire momentum of the attack would collapse.

The gray Capital Ship, Fist of the Firmament, began to accelerate, pushing to the very front of the fleet.

Their reinforced shields were indeed much sturdier than those of regular ships; although they rippled incessantly under the Blood Angels' artillery fire, they could at least hold for a longer time.

They used their hulls to cover the friendly forces behind them while returning fire with their own powerful cannons.

Ships on both sides were constantly being damaged; scenes of overloaded shields, torn armor, and destroyed turrets were everywhere.

But the overall situation remained extremely unfavorable for the Fengqi Allied Fleet.

The casualty figures on the Fengqi side were climbing steadily.

Norn clenched his fists, his fury burning.

He could not accept such a result! He had the numerical advantage, he had the Guardian Legion! How could he possibly fail to break the enemy's defensive line?!

"Pass the order! All ships, continue to advance! Close the distance! Prepare for boarding actions!"

Norn practically roared this order.

Since they could not gain an advantage in long-range artillery duels, then he would use the method he was most confident in: boarding operations, using the powerful individual combat capabilities of the Guardian Super Soldiers to destroy the enemy's warships and crush those scumbags hiding inside their iron shells!

In close-quarters melee combat, the Guardian would never lose to any enemy!

As the order was issued, the Fengqi United Fleet, especially the ships of the Fist of the Firmament, began to push forward forcibly regardless of damage, desperately trying to close the distance with the Blood Angels Fleet.

Seeing this, the Blood Angels Fleet, while continuing to fire, also began to accelerate to close the distance.

The Alien wants to close the distance to fight?

Should I avoid their edge?