Rebirth of the Super Battleship-Chapter 44: Prototype Energy Weapons

Due to the lack of advanced long-range communication technology, the flagship The Solar could not stray too far from the battlefield. At greater distances, signal delays would severely impair the operability of the fleet, drastically reducing its agility. In a battle of this intensity, a ship without maneuverability would essentially be a stationary target in space.

Currently, The Solar was stationed 50,000 kilometers from the main battlefield. At this range, most of the fleet experienced a signal delay of less than 0.2 seconds, which was barely acceptable.

After ensuring his safety through the surveillance of thousands of micro-satellites, Xiao Yu sent The Voyager and forty other reserve ships into battle. The Solar remained in the rear to oversee the conflict.

Under no circumstances was The Solar to engage in combat. Despite being the most heavily armed, well-defended, and largest ship in the fleet, The Solar was Xiao Yu’s flagship and required the highest level of protection. Any damage to The Solar would be catastrophic, as Xiao Yu would lose the results of millennia of work in an instant.

With The Voyager and its forty accompanying ships joining the fray, the battle grew fiercer.

Even so, the addition of The Voyager failed to tip the balance of high-level combat in Xiao Yu’s favor.

The enemy flagship proved to be overwhelming. Both The Voyager and The Tianyuan were massive 200,000-ton-class ships, but the enemy flagship was at least 50% larger, making it a 300,000-ton-class vessel, possibly even surpassing The Solar in size.

More concerning, the enemy flagship was equipped with a new type of weapon. This weapon’s firing mechanism resembled Xiao Yu’s high-rate machine guns, but instead of bullets, it launched bluish energy clusters at incredible speeds. Xiao Yu’s preliminary calculations estimated the velocity of these projectiles to be 30% the speed of light, or 90,000 kilometers per second.

At such velocities, Xiao Yu’s ships had no chance of evading. In fact, nearly half of the destroyed ships in his fleet had fallen victim to this strange weapon.

If not for Xiao Yu’s extraordinary fleet control, which barely managed to counterbalance the enemy’s firepower, he feared his fleet might have been completely annihilated.

Fortunately, this weapon appeared to have significant limitations. It could not be fired at long range, consumed immense amounts of energy, and required extensive preparation time before each shot. Otherwise, even The Solar in its rear position would not have been safe.

“This must be a prototype energy weapon,” Xiao Yu concluded after extensive calculations.

Energy weapons remained purely theoretical for Xiao Yu, yet to be developed. These weapons combined the flexibility of laser technology with the destructive power of nuclear weaponry. Xiao Yu predicted that in the next phase of space warfare, energy weapons would replace conventional bullets and missiles to become the dominant force on the battlefield.

The current mainstay of space warfare involved projectiles accelerated by electromagnetic forces. High-power electromagnetic coils propelled bullets to terrifying velocities of several thousand kilometers per second, relying on their kinetic energy to damage enemy ships. However, this approach had its limitations: pure kinetic energy was insufficient to inflict decisive damage.

Nuclear missiles were powerful but slow; bullets were fast but lacked impact. Laser weapons were the fastest but suitable only for precision strikes.

“If only I could obtain the technology to produce energy weapons…” Xiao Yu thought to himself.

So far, the battle had raged on for three hours.

Of Xiao Yu’s original 650 ships, only 460 remained operational. Among the 190 losses, 160 ships were destroyed in combat, while 30 were heavily damaged and withdrawn to the rear for emergency repairs.

The enemy, starting with over 500 ships, now had 352 still fighting.

With 460 ships against 352, Xiao Yu was at a disadvantage.

“Sigh… My soft power far surpasses theirs, but in terms of hard power… my ships simply can’t match theirs. Their defenses, firepower, and maneuverability are all superior. They’ve already ventured into energy weapon research, while my technology hasn’t reached that stage yet.”

Xiao Yu let out a sigh, maintaining his focus on directing his fleet in the heated battle.

The fight continued for another hour before the enemy began showing signs of retreat. It was evident that the war had taken a toll not only on Xiao Yu but also on the enemy, who could no longer sustain their losses.

In response, Xiao Yu fired another round of bullets and micro-missiles, destroying three more enemy ships. He then allowed the remaining enemy forces to retreat without pursuing. First, he was wary of a potential trap; second, his fleet needed time to recuperate.

By the end of the battle, Xiao Yu’s fleet had been reduced to just over 400 operational ships. Including those not involved in the battle or under repair, the total fleet strength was now fewer than 600 ships. The enemy, starting with over 500, retreated with fewer than 300 ships remaining.

“Sigh,” Xiao Yu let out a weary breath as he began the intensive process of repairing his fleet.

“From the 1,073 ships that departed from the Solar System to fewer than 600 now, and we’re only halfway through the journey. So many ships have been lost,” he thought somberly.

This was despite having detonated over a hundred nuclear bombs above the enemy’s planet, inflicting heavy damage. Yet, Xiao Yu had still suffered devastating losses.

“This can’t continue. My losses are too severe,” Xiao Yu contemplated. “I need to find a way to end this battle as quickly as possible.”

“Exterminate this civilization! I must wipe them out entirely. My resources are dwindling too fast. If I can’t completely destroy them and extract sufficient resources from their planet, even if they let me go, I may not be able to reach the Tianyuan IV star system.”

Without fuel, Xiao Yu would lose the ability to correct his trajectory or decelerate—a fatal scenario.

“And the energy weapon technology… How could I give that up? I won’t be able to develop it myself before reaching Tianyuan IV.”

“To annihilate this civilization, the hydrogen bombs must take center stage. Laser cannons are ineffective against an entire planet. Hmm? Wait, it might not have to be hydrogen bombs. I might have another way…”

If Xiao Yu still had physical eyes, they would now be glowing like light bulbs.

A malicious plan had emerged from his calculations.

If executed successfully, this plan would annihilate the enemy’s forces without significantly damaging their infrastructure or equipment. This would allow Xiao Yu to acquire their technology and resources with maximum efficiency.

“Well, since it’s either them or me, trying to cling to ideals of mercy would be hypocritical at this point,” Xiao Yu mused to himself. “However, if I am to implement this plan, I must first weaken their interstellar fleet further. Otherwise, if they launch desperate suicide attacks after realizing their doom, it could cause significant trouble.”

The enemy flagship’s primitive energy weapon had left a shadow in Xiao Yu’s mind.

If Xiao Yu were to seize their planet, their interstellar fleet would have no other option but to retaliate with suicide missions. Surrender was impossible for a civilization so alien to his own. As for escape? Without their planetary base, where could they go? The vastness of space offered no refuge, and the nearest star system was five light-years away.

Choosing to flee would mean choosing a slow death, adrift in the cold void of space. Any intelligent lifeform with logical reasoning would instead opt to return and fight to the death.

Xiao Yu sighed again, refining the details of his plan while waiting for the next clash with the enemy’s fleet.

After such a brutal battle, both sides needed time to lick their wounds.

During this period, Xiao Yu didn’t remain idle. Occasionally, he launched a hydrogen bomb or two toward the enemy’s planet to keep them on edge. However, since his coordinates had been exposed, very few of these bombs made it close to the planet.

With his location known, the enemy could focus entirely on intercepting attacks from one direction without worrying about others. Their interception rates improved dramatically. Xiao Yu couldn’t send missiles with propulsion systems on roundabout trajectories either, as the engine’s flame and radiation would make him even more conspicuous.

After realizing the diminishing effectiveness of his nuclear strikes, Xiao Yu decided to abandon the tactic, conserving resources in the process.

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Aboard the massive Solar, Tianyuan, and Voyager, all County-Class ships, Xiao Yu had established temporary shipyards. Swarms of robots worked tirelessly to repair damaged vessels, refuel them, and restock their ammunition.

Among the fleet, over a dozen ships deemed irreparable were completely dismantled. Components not immediately needed were sealed for future use, while salvageable parts were repurposed to repair other ships.

“My resource reserves are running low,” Xiao Yu thought with frustration. “I can’t compete with an entire planet’s resources. Even a barren planet has more to offer than I do.”

“First, the flagship sniping plan! As long as I eliminate their flagship, their ability to coordinate and cover their fleet with firepower—and that terrifying primitive energy weapon—will be significantly diminished. Their combat strength would drop by at least 30%!”

“If… the flagship sniping plan succeeds, then I’ll proceed with the… civilization extermination plan!”