Chapter 104: The War Dragon's Maiden Combat Test

Chapter 104: The War Dragon’s First Combat Test

Liu Shaoyu didn’t know why the thought came to him, but it seemed to have appeared and been expressed in an instant.

He didn’t feel like he had spoken aloud, yet he distinctly sensed that he had indeed conveyed something.

“The War Dragon has no vocal apparatus,” Wang Weifu explained.

“What you want to express is transmitted through mental waves, which can only be received and decoded by special devices. This is also a means of confidential battlefield communication.”

Now Liu Shaoyu understood. He still had many questions about the War Dragon, but this connection wasn’t just for amusement—there were more experiments to conduct.

“Testing begins. Tactile feedback test starting,” the technician announced methodically, proceeding through the data tests one by one.

During the tests, Liu Shaoyu’s understanding of the War Dragon deepened continuously.

After a long period, he finally heard the voice announcing the end.

“Basic tests complete. Proceeding to comprehensive testing phase.”

Liu Shaoyu had assumed the previous tests were all there was, but now he realized those were only the basics. What did comprehensive testing entail?

While pondering, he did not shut off his mental link, and there was a deliberate reason for this.

Sure enough, his question was decoded and displayed clearly on the receiving terminal through the mental sensors.

“Comprehensive testing means real combat,” said Wang Weifu on the other end.

“Real combat!? Could it be…?”

“Haven’t you noticed where we are right now?” Wang Weifu’s tone turned playful.

“I see it, but… is this really okay?”

No answer followed. When Liu Shaoyu heard the voice again, he decided he would give Wang Weifu a lesson once this was over.

Because just like that, Liu Shaoyu was thrown out.

“War Dragon Unit One, unbind.”

Then, the floor panel beneath his feet suddenly vanished. Under a burst of reactive force, Liu Shaoyu was propelled outward.

In fact, when connected, Liu Shaoyu had already sensed his location.

Thomas’s powerful auxiliary functions were fully on display at this moment.

And what Wang Weifu called real combat training was actually…

While Liu Shaoyu was conducting his experiments, the entire Earth Federation was undergoing drastic changes.

In just twenty hours, some earth-shaking events unfolded—like the scene before Liu Shaoyu’s eyes.

Countless starships densely packed together, all of similar design. Their hulls gleamed white metal, adorned with intricate golden patterns.

The crucifix emblem on the hulls indicated their origin.

“The Crusader Fleet,” Liu Shaoyu muttered softly.

At this moment, he was using the War Dragon’s visual imaging system, which gave him an exceptionally enhanced view. Switching modes, the War Dragon’s eyes rivaled the most advanced space telescopes.

Viewing the emblems on each ship clearly, a smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he thought:

“Whether expected or not, it’s all here. Looks like the Church is serious this time.”

Liu Shaoyu was not surprised by the unfolding scene. The planet he was on, and the entire star system, served as the bioengineering experimental sector of Galactic Universal Technology Corporation.

Meanwhile, the Vatican Dominion had begun tearing at the mask of diplomacy, the timing just right.

Clearly, this place and time meant the people before him had come specifically for Liu Shaoyu.

As the earliest beneficiary of the God Project, the discoverer of the new genetic technology, and the first to benefit from it, Liu Shaoyu had indeed thrust himself into the eye of the storm.

Though he hadn’t done much, being in this position meant everyone was watching his every move.

For example, the Vatican’s surveillance.

Before now, no one had paid attention to the military strength of a nation whose faith outweighed its political power.

Or rather, it had no real military force.

But these starships were no paper tigers—Liu Shaoyu knew their origins.

The red crosses belonged to the Religious Guard, black to the Bounty Corps, white to the Galactic Maintenance Forces.

As for the hollow red and white crosses… Liu Shaoyu had never seen those before. And the ships bearing these marks were the most numerous.

So numerous that the combined number of other types of ships amounted to only half as many.

There were a total of four hundred combat formations, with one thousand two hundred warships.

This meant at least four hundred carriers.

“They really want to kill me,” Liu Shaoyu admitted, feeling the anxiety.

Yet such a deployment was more symbolic than practical—in other words, a battle wasn’t guaranteed.

That was their thinking. But the Chinese side had a different view.

Remember, the thousand-plus warships before him were part of Liu Shaoyu’s experimental mission.

This wasn’t a mere scientific experiment—it was a military operation! And Liu Shaoyu held a military rank!

Facing the War Dragon was the Crusader Fleet formation.

“Commander Payne, they only… sent one out? What should we do?” a young man of about twenty with red curly hair and a prominent nose, clearly of European descent, asked.

“Clane, my boy, you’re still too young. At times like this, he’s more afraid than we are,” replied Payne, the temporary commander of the Crusader Legion, also European.

Clane lowered his head in thought before speaking again.

“But Commander, do we really just wait like this?”

Clane’s eyes, filled with yearning, fixed on Payne, who sat behind the command console.

Seeing Clane’s gaze, Payne smiled faintly.

“We have to wait for the old man to speak before we move. Who else but him is the grand commander now?”

Afterwards, Payne’s eyes drifted to the ceiling. His smile hinted at some amusing thoughts.

Meanwhile, Liu Shaoyu was lost in thought.

One thousand two hundred warships was no small number. Though the star system wasn’t the core territory of the Earth Federation, it was still within its domain.

Their silent appearance—was the Republic’s Glory really so passive? Or… had something truly changed?

“Before we start, at least tell me what’s going on,” Liu Shaoyu said.

Better to ask directly than to guess. He knew Wang Weifu knew more than he did, through whatever channels.

“Talks broke down. This is a show of force. Our side’s intention is to provoke him.”

“Why stir up conflict?”

“It’s not that we want to, but we can’t wait until everything is destroyed before responding. Remember, the star system behind you is valuable.”

Liu Shaoyu scoffed at this explanation. Who would believe it? No one would deploy a thousand warships silently without orders.

Unless they bypassed the star gate and made a long-distance jump.

If that were the case, wouldn’t they starve on the way?

Liu Shaoyu waited, and so did the Crusaders.

He didn’t believe the Shen family—or even China—would let him face so many warships alone.

The Crusaders waited, for God was always merciful. He would give a final chance—if only they repented.

To the readers:

I missed the update yesterday... What a blunder. My apologies.