Chapter 141 - 140: Weakness
Li Qingsong knew that his opponent had likely already discovered his limit: he could only control a maximum of 160,000 warships at once.
But it didn’t matter. If they knew, they knew. He hadn’t planned on hiding it for long, anyway. It was impossible to keep it a secret forever.
’So what’s your next move?’
Li Qingsong felt a sense of gravity, but also a hint of curiosity.
As Li Qingsong stood on high alert, he saw that his opponent’s tactics had indeed changed.
The massive fleets no longer massed together. Instead, they began to disperse, maneuvering on a large scale throughout the Solar System. They would scatter and regroup, and their targets no longer seemed fixed, but appeared entirely random.
One moment they were attacking Jupiter, but the assault didn’t last long. It caused minimal damage, and he suffered few casualties. Then, just as suddenly, they would cease the attack, the fleet would rapidly withdraw, rendezvous with several other groups, and then move on to attack Mars.
The other fleets scattered throughout the Solar System did the same, striking one planet for a short time before moving on to another.
It looked something like a war of attrition, or perhaps guerrilla warfare.
’Guerrilla warfare against me? Can their supply lines even handle that?’
Li Qingsong was perplexed.
At this stage, the Blutuk Fleet’s supply chain depended entirely on extremely distant dwarf planets at the edge of the Solar System, deep in space.
A single dwarf planet had limited resources, forcing the Blutuk Fleet’s mining crews to make long, arduous treks between them, expending immense effort just to gather enough minerals and resources for the war front.
’Under these circumstances, they weren’t seeking a swift, decisive battle, but were instead... stalling for time?’
’The enemy must be plotting something.’
Li Qingsong thought about it but couldn’t figure out what his opponent was planning. Still, it was enough to command his full attention, prompting him to re-evaluate his entire defensive system.
His defense was anchored by the Eight Major Planets. Each planet had its own comprehensive, unmanned defense system, garrisoned with massive numbers of Interstellar Cannon Platforms, Unmanned Warships, Interstellar Mines, and Ground Air Defense Bases.
Each planet also had its own reserves of Clones and Manned Warships, and all eight planets could provide mutual support.
Moreover, his consciousness could transfer between locations instantly and without restriction. If the battle on any planet became critical, he could immediately shift his focus there. By completely eliminating any communication delay, he could command Wukong and the Manned Warships to unleash their full potential.
He also had the home-field advantage in interstellar transport. His supply fleets were escorted by vast numbers of unmanned forces, and every planet had more than enough resources to sustain the fight...
’No matter how I look at it, my defensive system is airtight.’
’In that case, I’ll just play along.’
For a time, the situation within the Solar System shifted once more.
The massive, planet-wide battles of before ceased. The conflict devolved into a series of small-scale skirmishes, ambushes, and raids.
The scale of each individual engagement was drastically smaller, yet the brutality and overall intensity of the war escalated once more.
At its peak, thousands of separate battles raged simultaneously across the Solar System. Over a hundred thousand warships of all types were scattered from the orbit of Neptune to the orbit of Mercury. Fighting was everywhere, and the roar of cannon fire was constant.
The vast Solar System had become a meat grinder, relentlessly chewing up the warships and soldiers of both sides and pulverizing them into the finest interstellar dust, which then merged with the void.
The fighting was brutal and the attrition immense, but Li Qingsong was not the least bit flustered.
’The reason was simple: I have the Eight Major Planets backing me. My resources are infinite. I can replace every Clone that dies and every Warship that’s destroyed!’
’A war of attrition? Bring it on. Who’s afraid of whom?’
’You, on the other hand, must be finding it harder and harder to resupply. Your numbers of warships and soldiers must be dwindling, right?’
’I’d like to see you try to outlast me!’
...
On the flagship of the Blutuk Civilization, a high-level council meeting was underway.
"Supreme Leader! We cannot allow Harir to continue wasting our civilization’s precious warships, resources, and the lives of our soldiers!"
"Engaging the enemy in a war of attrition is foolish! We can’t possibly outlast them!"
"In all this time, what has Harir accomplished besides wasting resources and lives?"
"Relieve him of his command! Supreme Leader, I implore you to relieve him!"
The council chamber was simmering with rage.
Heirwe Supreme Leader looked at the incensed council members, his expression remaining placid.
He knew full well that the outrage was not limited to the high-ranking officials before him.
Each official represented a powerful interest group in a specific sector. And behind those interest groups were vast segments of the populace.
Their indignation was less their own and more that of the powerful interest groups and countless citizens they represented; they were merely their mouthpieces.
Clearly, General Harir’s performance had incited opposition from nearly everyone in the civilization, from the highest echelons to the common citizen.
This wave of dissent was so powerful it had solidified into a consensus.
’Relieve Harir, punish him severely, and let another general lead this war!’
’But... I know with absolute certainty that Harir is right.’
’He is the only one who can lead us to victory in this war between our civilizations.’
’That being the case, it falls to me to weather these storms.’
’This is my duty.’
’Harir, I won’t let these internal politics affect you in the slightest. I will bear all the pressure from behind the scenes. You just need to focus on your task.’
Heirwe Supreme Leader calmly rose to his feet.
The hall fell silent at once.
"This matter... is not up for further discussion. I have made my decision to let Harir lead this war, and I will not be swayed.
I am telling you this, and I will tell the people the same.
You may not understand now, but in time, you will."
With a flick of his sleeve, Heirwe Supreme Leader departed.
The hall remained quiet. Not a single person dared to stand and object.
Over the years, Heirwe Supreme Leader’s prestige had become deeply ingrained in the public consciousness. Once he took a firm stance, no one dared to oppose him.
’Since he has made up his mind, then... let it be done.’
A political storm that threatened the entire civilization was forcibly suppressed by Heirwe Supreme Leader through his personal authority alone.
On the front lines, the brutal fighting continued unabated.
General Harir wore a grave expression day in and day out. He averaged only four hours of sleep a day, far less than normal, yet his mind remained in a state of morbid exhilaration.
The Supreme Leader’s expectations, the public’s pressure, the hope of his civilization...
Everything rested on his shoulders.
Time slipped by. Then one day, during another intelligence briefing, as he watched the war AI display data gathered from across the entire Solar System, a strange light flickered across General Harir’s face.
"I’ve found their weakness.
Yes, I’ve found it."