The Touring Censor-class cruiser, temporarily named Red Tiger, had already deployed its first layer of shields and was slowly drifting in space, like a barracuda enveloped in a bubble.
Her opponent was waiting in the airspace over 30,000 kilometers away. In space combat, this was almost considered close-quarters combat. However, there was nothing that could be done about it. Overall, although this drill was under the banner of "actual combat," it was ultimately a "show" segment of the Navy Celebration. Closer combat would allow the important figures on the Azure Princess, 200,000 kilometers away, to see clearly.
In short, the drill director's office had made the rules very clear from the beginning.
First, the battle duration was only one hour. If, after one hour, there was no decisive sinking or boarding victory, the battle's outcome would be determined by points. Yu Lian could understand this. They couldn't really expect the audience to watch them fight for an entire day, could they?
It was already quite generous of them to watch a single ship duel with the patience they would have for a movie or a play.
Moreover, in real combat, even if single ship encounters between warships of the same specification did occur, they basically happened in situations like disruption, hunting, and behind-enemy-lines infiltration after a full-scale war had broken out.
In such circumstances, neither side could have the idea or conditions for a prolonged, entangled battle.
Second, the airspace for engagement was limited to a spherical area of only a few hundred thousand kilometers in diameter. The official explanation, of course, was for safety considerations. If the student pilots really messed up and drove the ships too far, leading to danger, their own side might not be able to rescue them effectively, and so on.
Although the words were grand, to put it plainly, wasn't it still for the comfort of the important figures?
Although the combat situation would be broadcast in real-time, if they couldn't see the chaotic red and blue beams, the flashing explosions, and the roaring missiles in the distant starry sky with their own eyes, it would always lack atmosphere.
Yu Lian found this a bit hard to accept. It was a battle, after all. Did he not even have the freedom to be killed wherever he wanted?
But since he had already agreed to the drill director's office, he had to do a good job! Not just him, but a large group of his companions on the ship had worked so hard for so long, wasn't it all for this day? They weren't just fighting for so-called youth, but also for the most realistic demands. For the vast majority of the crew members on the Red Tiger, this battle might be their only chance to make a big impression in their lives.
Yu Lian looked in the direction of the Blue Faction ship in the distance, as if trying to discern its status with his naked eye. But in reality, in the vast sky, even with his eyesight as a two-ring spiritual energy user, he could only see a flickering light.
Immediately after, he heard Liu Li say, "The other party's communication has arrived. Can I connect it?"
Yu Lian tightened his collar, took his seat in the captain's chair, and then said, "Connect it."
Horatio Wien appeared on the screen in a neat military uniform, meticulous, with a serious expression, an arrogant demeanor, and an imposing aura. It had to be admitted that this guy, just by standing there, looked more like a captain than Yu Lian.
No, not just a captain of a mere ship with a few hundred people; although this guy was young, in terms of aura alone, it would not be out of place to say he was commanding a vast army. He simply had that kind of charisma.
A Fleet Commander in his twenties, though rare, was not unheard of.
He looked directly at Yu Lian with a serious, sharp, and powerful gaze, as if trying to force Hong Fang (Red Team) to surrender with his face.
"I hope it will be a good match!" he said in a deep voice a few seconds later.
"Absolutely!" Yu Lian said with a smile, then loudly declared, "Then, the Red Tiger and all her crew await your bombardment!"
Everyone on the bridge wanted to bury their heads under the table, filled with despair. This was naturally due to the embarrassing name of the ship.
Just as everyone on Hong Fang (Red Team) was about to suffer a morale-lowering debuff due to their captain's taste, Wien's full cheeks twitched, and then he loudly proclaimed, "All crew members on the Blue Monarch await your charge!"
Wien then disconnected the communication without explanation. Immediately after, Yu Lian could feel everyone's morale on the bridge expanding at a visible speed.
"You see, bad taste is always better than chuunibyou. This is the power of a causality weapon! I bet the Blue Faction crew is in a low mood right now," Yu Lian said to everyone. And so, the entire internal ship communication channel erupted in laughter, and everyone became joyful and spirited.
Half a minute later, a communication from the director's office arrived, reminding them that the battle was about to begin.
"After we start, immediately switch to second combat speed! Proceed according to Plan B!" Yu Lian shouted, "Also, ion main cannons, begin charging!"
"Have Paul's team on standby! Ready for ejection at any time!"
Yu Lian issued the following commands in an orderly fashion. He believed that Wien's rhythm on the other side would also be similar to his own.
Both sides activated their main engines almost simultaneously, preparing to move. But at this moment, a small interlude occurred.
Snowflake, who had just been dancing to Serena's song, was still hovering near the Azure Princess. Seeing the engine glows of the red and blue warships in the distance, she suddenly let out a joyful laugh and headed straight in that direction.
"Traitor!" Serena Mao, who had just walked towards the stage, stared expressionlessly at the little whale moving away and whispered, "This is the second time."
Feifei, who was waiting backstage, heard this and couldn't help but smile wryly.
"Sorry, Serena," Feifei said.
Serena turned her head, puzzled, and tilted her head towards the latter.
"When it's over, I'll treat you to ice cream," Feifei said with a smile again. "There's a really good shop on this ship."
Serena swallowed, and a vivid expression, befitting her age, finally appeared on her calm, clear face. However, when she looked at her agent walking towards her from a distance, she couldn't help but pout.
"I don't want to hear her nagging!" Serena said.
"Don't worry, I have a hundred ways to shake her off," Feifei said, suppressing a laugh, as she pulled Serena's hand and whispered. The latter's eyes once again showed a starlike glow.
"Fina, it's time for us to go on stage!" Someone waved to Fina from a distance. It was the main host of this celebration, also a well-known media personality in the Commonwealth, and one of Feifei's idols, Ms. Laura Share.
Feifei gave Serena a smile that filled her with anticipation, then walked over to prepare to go on stage.
Chairman Nockham clapped in a perfunctory manner, but his eyes, hidden yet fervent and reluctant, followed Serena's retreating figure until she left the main hall.
"Mr. Chairman..." Nihita whispered a reminder from behind him.
"Oh, oh!" The Chairman came back to his senses, seamlessly switching to an expectant diplomatic expression: "Next, it's the performance of our brave young people, isn't it? Uh, Snowflake won't cause any obstruction, will it?"
"Don't worry, they wouldn't fail to consider something like that," the Chairman said with a smile.
Just as Snowflake was about to intrude on the battlefield, two engineering ships blocked her path. The drill director and the celebration organizers were not so foolish as to not consider this issue, and had, of course, made preparations.
One of the ships projected various colorful lights, creating beautiful patterns in space, finally diverting Snowflake's attention.
The other engineering ship opened its belly and threw a series of food containers wrapped in synthetic material into space.
The food primarily consisted of meat and nutrient feed formulated with high carbohydrates and high vitamins. The outer wrapping material was synthesized from various elements such as metals, silicon, and carbon, which were also part of Snowflake's diet.
Yes, these Space Leviathan creatures that could roam in space, in addition to nourishing themselves with energy from stars, also fed themselves. Their diet not only included proteins, vitamins, and carbohydrates needed by normal organisms, but also a large amount of less common elements.
To put it bluntly, though they are large, they are actually quite easy to sustain; theoretically, they can live on rocks. Of course, eating meat would make them happy and grow better.
In short, the two engineering ships, like nannies with toys and snacks, finally lured away the little ancestor doted on by all the people of Blue Star.
Then, as the engines of both Hong Fang (Red Team) and Blue Faction successfully started, entering combat mode, the atmosphere in the venue once again grew lively.
Serena Mao, who had just returned to her lounge, sat there with a bland expression, exuding a lazy aura that was completely out of place with the rest of the ship. Her eyes were dull, her mind wandering, and her thoughts were entirely on the ice cream she had promised Feifei.
“According to the latest statistics, when you went on stage, the number of viewers had already exceeded 120 billion, a direct increase of ten percent! Serena, with this kind of popularity, this kind of influence, even in the Commonwealth, you must be one of the most popular!” her agent said with excitement.
“Oh…” the young singer still expressed her attitude with an almost flat tone.
The agent sighed helplessly and said, “The head office contacted me. They hope you can reconsider putting the focus of your activities on the Commonwealth mainland in the future.”
“Is that so?” She maintained the same indifferent attitude, as if everything around her, except for singing, had nothing to do with her.
“Also, regarding the head office… although we know they are just groundless rumors, they will still have some impact. We also hope that you can specifically refute these rumors. And, try to go out alone as little as possible in the future. I believe Chairman Nockham will certainly understand.”
Serena Mao’s eyes shifted, and she seemed to regain a little bit of her spirit. She slowly stood up and let out a long, indifferent sigh: “I want to go for a walk.”
“Ah, well, my dear, this is a ship…”
“A cruise ship! It has parks, swimming pools, and a commercial street,” she said.
“You still want to go shopping?” The agent’s voice rose an octave, but by then, the girl was already yawning and slowly walking towards the door.
Fortunately, this galaxy-renowned genius beautiful young singer wasn’t completely oblivious. She at least knew to wear a very inconspicuous tracksuit, tie her long hair into a ponytail and tuck it into her hood, and then put on sunglasses that covered half her face before heading out.
The agent knew that this young lady was always like this and that she couldn’t stop her, so she waved her hand helplessly, and two disc-sized robots followed closely behind.
When Serena went out, she hated having people follow her. Fortunately, there were always bodyguard robots in this world. Although their intelligence wasn’t high, their combat power was impressive; at least, dealing with common stalkers, paparazzi, or hooligans, and then calling the police, was no problem.
Moreover, these two disc-shaped bodyguard robots were actually quite cute, and girls could more or less accept them.
“Spirit of the Stars,” Miss Serena Mao really was just going for a casual stroll. This was also her habit after every performance; she would often walk aimlessly for an hour or two, completely clearing her mind as she walked. Perhaps it was because her small body contained such strong explosive power that she needed to constantly recharge.
The Azure Princess is also one of the largest ultra-luxury cruise ships in the All-Galaxy, so vast that it resembles a city, with complete facilities. Rather than a cruise ship, it’s more like a super-large space city, with not only dome parks and swimming pools but even theme parks and residential areas.
The so-called residential areas on this ship were large high-end dome villa districts, numbering two to three thousand. Some dignitaries felt that living on a large ship and cruising the galaxy daily was a very elegant vacation activity, so they directly bought villas there, staying for two or three months each year. Not only from the Commonwealth, but also many wealthy guests from foreign countries.
The Azure Princess was huge, and indeed large enough for the singer to wander around aimlessly.
Serena Mao was not tall, but her walking speed was not slow; rather than strolling, it was more like race walking. This was actually one of her “quirks.”
As she walked, her eyes still had that vacant, wandering look. But in reality, at that moment, she was actually, for once, seriously considering some things.
“I, I’m sorry. But I also have my own difficulties!”
“Thank, thank you for being willing to have dinner with me. In the future, can we meet once a week, no, once a month! This is my only request! Please, Serena!”
“…Serena, my little moon, wait until the election the year after next. Then I can openly acknowledge your existence!”
She frowned irritably, slowing her pace slightly, and then slowly passed through the commercial street—which was actually closed for security reasons—and then she returned even faster, staring longingly at an ice cream shop with its door only half-closed.
“Spirit of the Stars” was silent for a second, looked around, and then found a beverage shop that was also closed. However, perhaps for convenience when reopening, the outdoor facilities, such as beverage cups and seats, had not been moved inside.
“I’m so annoyed… So, Fina, I’m sorry, I’m going to sneak off.” She apologized in her heart to the friend she had only known for a few months, then walked forward and very naturally picked up a paper cup.
“Miss, Miss, this will violate your public image,” a disc robot flew to the girl’s side and reminded her in a low voice.
Serena Mao ignored it, held the cup, walked to the ice cream shop door, stood on her tiptoes, bent down, and stretched the paper cup in her hand towards the ice cream machine behind the railing door.
“Miss, Miss, this will violate your public image,” the robot continued to remind her diligently and loyally.
Serena was truly not tall enough, and in the end, she couldn’t even reach the ice cream machine. She thought seriously for a moment, then pulled down the two disc robots and stepped on their heads.
“Ascend!” Serena commanded in a lazy tone.
“This is a criminal act, this is a criminal act!”
Despite saying so, as the singer’s bodyguard robots, they still faithfully carried out their master’s command.
This time, she finally reached it, and the machine hadn’t been turned off. Serena looked at the cup filled with fragrant ice cream and swallowed. This was probably the first time in half a year that she could enjoy this refreshing delicacy.
However, just then, she stumbled, falling forward.
The professionally calibrated, top-tier bodyguard robots indeed acted with high sophistication; one quickly activated its magnetic function to stabilize Serena’s body. The other immediately performed an emergency hover, blocking Serena’s path, and then executed an armored ram into the railing door.
Then, there was a loud “clang.”
Serena Mao, along with her two robots, crashed into the ice cream shop, creating an immediate mess. Of course, protected by her two loyal robots, Miss Spirit of the Stars, though buried under a pile of shop fixtures, was unharmed and still held her ice cream high in her hand.
Thus, she didn’t notice that while she was dizzy and disoriented in the ice cream shop, a squad of heavily armed “mechanical giants” slowly ambled through a passage three blocks away from her.
Neither she nor they detected the other’s presence.