Chapter 105: Not a Word More to Say

Thousand days of training, a single moment for deployment.

Liu Shaoyu had no idea how long they had been gathering a fleet of this scale, but he knew that today, the War Dragon would finally stretch its limbs for its first experimental trial. If its performance matched the theoretical specifications, all would be well; but if something went wrong, he would be the one paying the price today.

Even now, Liu Shaoyu struggled to believe that war had truly begun. In reality, the fleet before him was merely a preemptive measure following the failure of diplomatic efforts. As for how long they had been preparing this preemptive strike, no one could say. It was rumored that high-level negotiations were still ongoing, though no one held much hope for their success. The military, in particular, was the most pessimistic.

Suddenly, he felt a ripple in the surrounding space. One by one, starships materialized around Liu Shaoyu. They were silver-hulled metal warships—the Third Interstellar Fleet of Huaxia. Through the red star and shield insignia on the hulls, Liu Shaoyu recognized the fleet immediately. The Third Fleet was also known by another name: the Homeland Security Interstellar Guard. Tasked with external defense and internal security alongside the Seventh Army, they served as the armed branch of the Huaxia National Security Agency, though the agency formally held only usage rights, not command authority.

As the warp jump concluded, Liu Shaoyu frowned. The numbers were… frankly disproportionate.

"They have far too much faith in me," Liu Shaoyu muttered to himself, while simultaneously making a decision: he would not strike unless they did.

"Incoming communication request."

Liu Shaoyu hesitated for a moment before connecting.

"This is the commander of the Huaxia Third Interstellar Fleet. Major Liu Shaoyu, effective immediately, the military command has decided to restore all your military ranks. This operation will be conducted under the temporary jurisdiction of the Third Fleet. Here are the documents."

Liu Shaoyu was bewildered. Why now? Why do this at such a moment?

"This morning, Huaxia officially issued a directive permitting citizens to transfer their consciousness into clones suffering from physical functional failure. The 'God Project' has been officially approved for mass production."

"So, my identity can finally be brought into the light?"

"Yes. In view of previous experimental requirements, the identities of certain test subjects are being formally consolidated."

Thomas promptly resolved Liu Shaoyu's confusion. Even so, these documents had arrived with suspicious speed—as if they had been prepared specifically for this moment. A major typically held the rank to command a wing, yet for this operation, his "wing" seemed to consist solely of himself. While the War Dragon certainly possessed the capability, it felt like a case of using every resource to its limit. Liu Shaoyu felt a flicker of resentment, but there was nothing to be done.

Events were unfolding in a direction Liu Shaoyu had hoped to avoid. Everything he had done previously was in preparation for this inevitable outcome, but clearly, it was still not enough. The timing was wrong; he was not prepared, yet the danger was already upon him.

For Liu Shaoyu, this was brutal, but for the Crusader fleet, it was exhilarating.

"Klaen, do you remember what I told you the Huaxia are best at?" Paines asked.

"Hmm… I recall it being 'scheming and intrigue'?" Klaen replied after a moment of contemplation, using the Chinese term for the concept.

"Hahaha, yes. You are as sharp as ever. No matter how powerful they become, they always trip over the same issue."

"But…"

"Oh, that was just an accident. They have only themselves to blame—their souls have been corrupted, and they shall suffer in the frying pan!" Paines grew impatient. "Oh! God! How long must they keep talking?"

It was not just Paines; Liu Shaoyu was waiting anxiously as well. The War Dragon’s advanced sensory capabilities could even detect the transmission of nearby radio waves. They were indeed negotiating, Liu Shaoyu thought; that much was obvious. But what he wanted to know was: what were they talking about?

The War Dragon’s biological structure could no longer be classified as merely machine or organism. Its existence seemed to mark a new trend in human evolution, albeit one that was artificial. Liu Shaoyu could sense the radio transmissions around him, but could he decipher their meaning? The War Dragon was equipped with receivers for standard radio communication, but this perception of waves did not belong to the same system. How could he convert what he sensed into data through his equipment? It was a problem, but clearly not one that could be solved at this moment.

Suddenly, Liu Shaoyu felt the thin strand of radio waves between the two sides vanish.

"The talks are over." Liu Shaoyu was perhaps among the first to know this, and he would soon be among the first to learn the results. The negotiations here were connected in real-time to Earth Command; thanks to modern technology, such long-distance information transfer took less than a ten-millionth of a second.

"The People's Republic of Huaxia hereby formally declares war on the Vatican Catholic State." A voice echoed throughout the Federation’s star sector. This marked the start of the civil war once again.

In truth, this civil war had never ceased since Earth became a Federation, ranging from political offensives to armed conflicts. Although the various governments of the Federation tried their best to hide or distort these armed skirmishes, the truth could not be buried. Reports of "pirate attacks" on military fleets were common, though the term "pirate" held many definitions.

But this time, it was clearly no mere pirate raid. War was imminent.

"All attack wings, attention: disperse formation. The operational mission for this engagement is to provide cover for the War Dragon." The fleet commander began issuing orders through the combat command system.

Liu Shaoyu, now linked into the system, received every instruction clearly. He was surprised by this distribution; there was no need for an entire fleet to escort him just to test the War Dragon’s limits, unless there was an ulterior motive. In truth, Liu Shaoyu had already considered much. Regardless of the significance of this battle, he had finally entered the sights of certain people. This was, without a doubt, a test for him.

"Hahaha! I have waited too long for this moment! Lord! Let your glory shine once more upon this decaying world!"

Following Legion Commander Paines' words, the Crusader formation’s warships finally began to move. Liu Shaoyu observed the changes in the enemy's formation, instructing the computer to capture and highlight the images, using high-intensity calculations to infer their next move. The ships moved as if traveling along pre-drawn lines. Powerful electromagnetic surveillance was unleashed through the War Dragon, and Thomas converted the electromagnetic field of every unit into numerical data.

"Attention, target 425 showing heat signatures and electromagnetic fluctuations," Thomas’s voice alerted Liu Shaoyu.

Inside the War Dragon, the exchange of information had shifted entirely from verbal communication to direct electrical impulses transmitted to the brain’s nerves. Liu Shaoyu had adapted to this rapid method of communication, though he wondered if, in the long run, he would eventually lose the ability to speak—or if he was already regressing.

"Come then, let me see the power of the War Dragon," Liu Shaoyu whispered to himself.

He engaged the War Dragon’s propulsion system. With the combined force of reaction mass and particle jet propulsion, the War Dragon’s form vanished, appearing a second later in front of the warship designated as Target 425.

He reached out and gripped the vessel. The battleship, with a long axis of thirteen kilometers, was held fast in the War Dragon’s hands. He exerted pressure. The vacuum of space prevented the transmission of sound, but the soft metal layer on the War Dragon’s surface allowed Liu Shaoyu to feel only a slight resistance, as if he were crushing a dry biscuit.

Before Target 425 could fire a single laser beam of the engagement, it was reduced to fragments.