Chapter 281

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Protagonist:

Lin En

Lena

In the pitch-black universe, two human fleets maintained a fixed distance, sailing toward the direction of Kal II.

Within three days' time, Lin En's Second Expedition Fleet had consistently trailed behind Dominic's Tithe Fleet, like a group of cautious followers.

That steel torrent led by the Victory-class Battleship ahead never had any intention of slowing down to wait.

The James Tong's hull, interwoven with dark gold and claret, reflected dazzling radiance under the starlight.

It was like a proud noble, simply disdaining to look back at those "meager" ships behind it.

Lin En stood on the bridge of the Lightning Frigate, hands clasped behind his back, gazing at that elite force ahead.

Twelve Sword-class Frigates and one Moon-class Cruiser, before the James Tong, were tiny like flies circling a giant dragon.

"Sir, Major General Dominic's fleet has accelerated again; our engines are already at maximum output just to barely keep up." The Deputy Officer's voice carried a trace of fatigue.

"Understood." Lin En responded blandly, not feeling surprised.

Dominic not taking his Second Expedition Fleet seriously — this was a good thing.

It showed the other party was sufficiently confident in his own strength.

"Maintaining speed is fine." Lin En said, "No need to force it; we were originally here to assist."

"Yes, Sir."

Just then, the Communications Officer suddenly raised his head and reported loudly:

"Sir! The James Tong has sent a communication request; Major General Dominic invites you to visit his flagship as a guest."

Lin En's eyebrow twitched slightly.

It's come.

He had long guessed there would be such a day.

Dominic suddenly leading his fleet to rush toward Kal II — it was impossible he wouldn't ask anything.

He definitely had many questions about Lianggenna and the Green Skin Fleet, wanting to ask them clearly face-to-face.

"Reply to Major General Dominic, I'll arrive immediately." Lin En said in a deep voice.

"Yes!"

Ten minutes later, Lin En boarded his own Turbulence-class Frigate and rapidly approached the James Tong.

Viewing this powerful Victory-class Battleship at close range, that sense of oppression was ten times more intense than when observing from afar.

The James Tong's hull stretched ten kilometers long, its scale three times larger than Lin En's Gothic-class Cruiser.

The Turbulence-class Frigate entered the James Tong's landing bay.

The hatch slowly closed, the pressure equalization system emitting a faint humming.

Lin En disembarked from the frigate and was immediately stunned by the sight before him.

The landing bay was astonishingly large, capable of accommodating ten large transport ships simultaneously.

Entering the main hull interior, the floor was paved with polished black marble, reflective enough to mirror a person.

The walls hung enormous oil paintings depicting the battle exploits of the Veturia Family's ancestors through the generations.

Twenty guards clad in dark gold Power Armor, wielding Bomb Guns, stood neatly aligned on both sides of the corridor.

Their Power Armor were inlaid with gems identical to the James Tong's, and the Veturia Family crest was engraved on their shoulder armor.

Every guard stood tall and straight, eyes resolute, exuding a battle-hardened iron-blooded aura.

"Governor Sir Keli Feng, please follow me." An Attendant stepped forward and saluted Lin En respectfully.

"Thank you for the trouble." Lin En nodded.

The Attendant led Lin En toward the direction of the bridge.

Passing through the long corridor, Lin En increasingly felt the James Tong's terrifying nature.

On both sides of the corridor, every ten meters there was a defensive line, equipped with Heavy Explosive Guns and laser cannons.

Countless crew and soldiers bustled in the corridor; their footsteps hurried yet orderly.

No one shouted loudly, no one looked around curiously.

Everyone knew what they should do; everyone worked efficiently at their own posts.

Lin En noticed that from the landing bay to the bridge, they had passed a total of one hundred twenty security checkpoints and dozens of bulletproof doors.

Every checkpoint was guarded by sentries; inspections were strict to the extreme.

"How many crew does the James Tong have in total?" Lin En couldn't help asking.

"Replying to Sir, the exact number I'm also unclear on." The Attendant Officer replied respectfully.

"But the main combat personnel total 370,000, plus 100,000 technical and logistics personnel."

Lin En secretly clicked his tongue in amazement.

470,000 people operating a battleship eight kilometers long — not only not bloated, but maintaining such high efficiency.

This was fundamentally unimaginable in Brevis.

The Second Expedition Fleet's Moon-class Cruiser had less than 50,000 crew, yet command confusion frequently occurred.

The Veturia Family's military strength — indeed its reputation is well-deserved.

After walking about twenty minutes, they finally arrived at the bridge.

The bridge's great door opened, a wave of cold metallic breath rushing toward them.

The bridge of the James Tong was far larger than Lin En had imagined, fully the size of a football field.

A massive holographic star map hovered in the bridge center, clearly marking the shipping lanes, planets, and force deployments of the entire Calixis Star System.

Hundreds of officers sat at different consoles, each performing their duties.

Various indicator lights flashed with different colors of radiance, and the communication devices emitted a constant succession of reports.

But strangely, despite so many people working, the entire bridge was abnormally harmonious.

Only the sound of instruments operating and the static of communication devices.

The transmission of commands was terrifyingly efficient.

An order issued from Dominic's mouth could reach the most grassroots execution unit in less than a day.

Lin En silently calculated in his heart.

The James Tong's command transmission efficiency could actually reach fifty percent of his own fleet.

For the bloated, inefficient, bureaucracy-ridden Imperial Navy, this was simply a miracle.

Lin En's fleet could maintain efficient operation only thanks to Lena's Bug Swarm Will and the Gene Thief officers' Absolute Obedience.

Without the Bug Race's help, his fleet would probably not even be able to sail normally.

Yet Dominic's fleet, relying on strict training and a complete system, had achieved such astonishing efficiency.

This is the gap between the Empire's regular army and local motley forces.

"Governor Kerry, you've come."

A loud voice rang out.

Dominic rose from the command seat and walked toward Lin En.

Today he was not wearing power armor, but a crisp pink uniform, the Major General rank insignia on his shoulders glittering under the lights.

His red hair was combed meticulously, not a strand out of place, and his face bore a faint smile.

"Dominic Adult." Lin En bowed slightly, performing a standard Imperial Noble Ceremony.

"No need for ceremony." Dominic waved his hand. "I happen to have some things I want to ask you as well. Come, let's go to the restaurant and talk."