Chapter 132 131: 400,000 Warships
There was a dwarf planet there as well.
This dwarf planet had been named "Planet Huishen." It had a radius of about 700 kilometers, and its surface was rich in water ice and Tolin, giving it the same dark red color.
Evidently, the main fleet of the Blutuk Civilization was currently parked in orbit around Planet Huishen.
Their intentions were also quite obvious: to gather some initial supplies from this dwarf planet, which was relatively close to the Inner Solar System.
Li Qingsong hadn't expected the Blutuk Civilization, a civilization more technologically advanced than his own, to act with such caution.
He had originally thought they would charge directly into the Inner Solar System, pick one of the major planets, and launch an invasion to try and occupy it.
Li Qingsong could do nothing about a celestial body so far away.
He knew he couldn't possibly defend the entire Solar System.
At the edge of the Solar System, beyond Neptune, were countless dwarf planets like Pluto, Eris, Ceres, Enemy God Star, and Planet Huishen. There were also large asteroids—objects that couldn't be classified as dwarf planets but were still quite large in size and mass, some with diameters of several hundred kilometers. Li Qingsong alone had already discovered tens of thousands of them.
The number of undiscovered ones could only be higher.
Even with his technological capabilities, which in many ways had already surpassed those of Human Civilization, he couldn't find them all, let alone defend them one by one.
He simply didn't have that many troops.
In light of this, Li Qingsong's final decision was to defend only the Eight Major Planets and the Asteroid Belt, abandoning all trans-Neptunian objects.
If not for the Asteroid Belt's unique position, situated between the four rocky planets and the four gas giants, Li Qingsong wouldn't even have wanted to defend it.
With his forces concentrated in the Inner Solar System, the outer system naturally had to be abandoned. He could only watch as the Blutuk Fleet gathered supplies from that dwarf planet.
However, it wasn't a major problem.
Dwarf planets were, after all, resource-poor, so the amount of supplies they could gather was limited. Besides, since the Blutuk Civilization had mastered controlled nuclear fusion and used it as their main energy source, they would inevitably require large quantities of deuterium.
Ordinary hydrogen has another name: protium. A protium atom consists of one proton and one electron, with no neutrons.
Deuterium is an isotope of protium and contains one neutron. It is deuterium that can be used as fuel for nuclear fusion.
Protium cannot be used as fusion fuel. At least, the Blutuk Civilization couldn't do it.
They wouldn't be able to obtain much deuterium from a dwarf planet; it could only be acquired in large quantities from the four gas giants.
Under these circumstances, the fact that the Blutuk Civilization still chose to temporarily halt at a dwarf planet instead of immediately launching an attack against him...
The enemy's extreme caution made Li Qingsong's heart grow heavier.
Although the two sides had not yet officially clashed, mutual reconnaissance and probing had already begun.
Ever since the Blutuk Fleet was still over a trillion kilometers away, Li Qingsong had faintly detected the presence of satellites, Detectors, and other objects in the Solar System that did not belong to him.
As the Blutuk Civilization drew closer, more and more of these objects appeared.
Space was too vast, and these satellites and Detectors were too small. Even with his capabilities, Li Qingsong couldn't eliminate them all and could only let them continue their surveillance.
But it didn't matter. Just as he couldn't eliminate the Blutuk Civilization's probes, they couldn't eliminate his either.
So, Li Qingsong also deployed a massive number of reconnaissance satellites, spy satellites, and more, casting them directly into the sea of stars. He began his own surveillance when the Blutuk Civilization was still hundreds of billions of kilometers from the Sun.
Now that the Blutuk Fleet was stationary at Planet Huishen, Li Qingsong dispatched hundreds of thousands of satellites to conduct a comprehensive, 360-degree reconnaissance with no blind spots.
Reconnaissance, counter-reconnaissance; stealth, counter-stealth; elimination, counter-elimination—this clandestine battle of the reconnaissance phase had begun long ago. It had not ceased for a moment and was certain to intensify in the foreseeable future.
Through this continuous surveillance, the true strength of the Blutuk Fleet was finally revealed to Li Qingsong.
Li Qingsong saw that there were over ten thousand colossal Space-Air Carriers belonging to the Blutuk Civilization in the vicinity of Planet Huishen.
Each of these colossal Space-Air Carriers was over 15 kilometers long.
They resembled long tree branches, with a central spine from which numerous smaller branches extended. A variety of spacecraft and massive supply depots hung from each of these branches.
A single Space-Air Carrier could carry more than a thousand spacecraft!
In addition to the Space-Air Carriers, there were also enormous cargo ships whose dimensions were also measured in kilometers.
At this moment, the Space-Air Carriers, enormous cargo ships, and passenger vessels were all parked around Planet Huishen. Countless smaller ships zipped back and forth between the larger vessels like swarms of bees. Myriad lights flashed, and innumerable small engines spewed fire and light, nearly illuminating the entire dwarf planet.
A quick count revealed to Li Qingsong over 400,000 Warships of all sizes—they were easy to identify because of the highly distinct weaponry mounted on them.
Compared to the armed Scientific Research Vessels of the Blutuk Civilization's environmental survey team he had encountered last time, Li Qingsong could tell from their appearance alone that these Warships possessed immense power.
'The Molomans weren't lying to me. Their Warships are indeed far stronger than the armed Scientific Research Vessels...'
Powered by nuclear fusion, armored with high-performance special alloys, seeing with spatial-layer scanning radar, and computing with quantum chips. They had intelligent AIs built on advanced algorithms unique to those quantum chips, as well as a virtually endless supply of unmanned combat drones...
「Aboard the heavily guarded Blutuk Civilization flagship.」
Heirwe Supreme Leader wore a grave expression, silently lost in thought.
After a long moment, he raised his arm and said in a deep voice, "Have General Li Yuesen and General Harir come see me."
"Yes."
These two generals were the only candidates in his mind to lead the fleet in the first battle against Human Civilization.
Now, he had to make the final decision and choose between the two of them.
The two generals, both covered in silver-white scales, arrived together.
"General Li Yuesen, explain your battle plan."
General Li Yuesen paused for a moment, then said, his voice full of fighting spirit, "My strategy is simple.
"I will make Planet Seven my primary target. Planet Seven has a total of four major moons. I will focus my main assault on its first moon, capture it, and then build a base to gradually expand my control until I occupy the entire planet."
He elaborated on his battle plan in detail.
Heirwe Supreme Leader listened in silence. After a while, he asked, "How many Warships will you need?"
"Considering the disparities in technology and combat strength, I believe a total of ten thousand spacecraft will suffice. This force must include five large Warships, 500 support vessels—comprising industrial ships, repair ships, supply ships, and Supercomputer Ships—and unmanned combat assets equivalent to the cargo of 100 transport ships."
Heirwe Supreme Leader gave a noncommittal response and looked to General Harir. "How many Warships will you need?"
Harir said gravely, "Supreme Leader, I will need a total of over one hundred thousand spacecraft to ensure we can take Planet Seven with minimal losses."