As the Jifeng attacked the alien warship, the Second Fleet, the Great Bear Fleet, and the Old Rice Fleet in other directions also achieved their respective victories with heavy casualties.
Shortly after, the Europa Fleet destroyed an enemy ship at a great cost.
Even scattered warships belonging to different countries managed to destroy one enemy ship each.
Although the human warship formations were in different directions, every step of the fleets' actions was the result of countless hours of refinement, and every command issued by the command center provided the most appropriate guidance to the fleets at critical moments.
Behind those commands were tens of thousands of staff members who had repeatedly analyzed the situation day and night, experiencing countless sleepless days and nights of urgent work.
It was no exaggeration to say that this was the most dangerous moment in human history, bar none!
The human fleet, at the cost of half its warships sunk, drew the enemy into a fierce close-quarters battle. Both sides, disregarding everything, poured all their firepower onto the enemy, either destroying their targets or being destroyed by them.
The battlefield was filled with explosions, flying debris, and wreckage of warships.
By this point in the battle, both sides were entangled. The command center no longer needed to issue any orders, nor could it. Behind every pair of eyes focused on the battlefield was an anxious heart.
The aliens, finding close-range combat disadvantageous to them, had been trying to disengage, but how could the human warships give the enemy a chance to regroup? They persistently held onto their targets, refusing to retreat even under immense pressure.
Facing this desperate counterattack, the aliens, for the first time, realized what kind of race humanity was. Many aliens felt a sense of dread and fear for no apparent reason.
The Jifeng, having successfully destroyed an enemy ship, continued its relentless charge.
Enemy fire continuously rained down on the Jifeng, and the warship could disintegrate at any moment. However, all the crew members had but one thought: to destroy another enemy ship before their own warship sank.
Even if it was just to pierce the enemy ship's shield, creating an opportunity for their allies to finish it off.
At this point, it was all about momentum and who feared death less!
However, the Huben, which had been trailing the Jifeng, suddenly accelerated forward, shielding the Jifeng behind it and unleashing a torrential barrage of firepower at the enemy warship ahead.
The rain of shells pierced the shield in mere seconds, and then the two sides engaged in a brutal close-quarters struggle.
When a nuclear missile shattered the enemy warship, ending the fierce battle, the Huben, which had entered the fray mostly intact, had lost more than half its hull.
But the Huben's propulsion was still operational, and its remaining weapons could still be used. It unhesitatingly continued its assault.
The Jifeng immediately charged forward, attempting to shield the Huben.
The Huben could have easily done so and had the right to hide behind the Jifeng, but it did not. Instead, it continued to shield the Jifeng from the front.
When the enemy's next volley of fire came, the Huben disintegrated in mid-air.
However, it not only shielded the Jifeng from the bombardment but also bought precious time for the Jifeng's shields to recover a little.
The Jifeng no longer cared about shields. The only thought on everyone's mind was to destroy the target!
The warship charged towards the enemy warship under a hail of fire, unleashing all its firepower onto the target. With a flash of light in the void, the shields shattered under the furious assault.
Just as they were about to destroy the enemy warship with a final push, it was as if an invisible hand drew a pause. The Jifeng's frenzied firepower suddenly faltered, leaving only a few harmless laser strikes hitting the enemy warship.
Gu Haibo's expression froze, "What's going on?"
The gunner's gaze was despairing, "We're out of missiles, and we're out of shells..."
"Ram them!" Gu Haibo once again issued the ramming order. The battered warship, like a lone warrior charging into enemy lines, was solitary and resolute.
However, at this very moment, a voice suddenly came over the radio, "Leave it to me!"
Gu Haibo's gaze sharpened, and he was astonished to see a squadron of fighter jets appear to the Jifeng's left. "Provide covering fire!" He racked his brain, but couldn't figure out when this squadron of fighter jets had caught up.
But at this moment, the Jifeng unleashed its close-range firepower to its fullest. The scattering volleys of ammunition, like a giant net, shot down the alien fighter jets in sight one by one.
Outside the warship, Ling Xiao, in the number one fighter jet, remained silent. He raised his right hand in a salute to the Jifeng, then pushed the joystick all the way forward.
The tail of his aircraft erupted with a rushing wake, and the fighter jet, performing rapid rolls and large-scale maneuvers, surged towards the enemy warship at a speed far exceeding that of the warship.
Eight fighter jets followed closely behind, like a flock of agile swallows, weaving through the dense artillery fire.
Before they could even approach the enemy warship, two fighter jets were hit and exploded.
With no time to mourn their fallen comrades, Ling Xiao executed a nimble roll, closing in on the enemy warship and unleashing all eight missiles from his aircraft's belly.
Two particularly conspicuous heavy missiles, as thick as clasped arms, trailed dim exhaust flames as they flew unhesitatingly towards...
The four drones that had been following the fighter jets also crashed into the enemy warship at the same time.
The remaining six fighter jets did the same, but as they detached, the enemy warship's shields suddenly regenerated. Two fighter jets, unable to evade, crashed into the shields and exploded into flames. kuAiδugg
Behind those two balls of fire, four drones were destroyed by the enemy warship, and eight missiles were intercepted, with six of them destroyed. The explosions obscured half of the enemy warship.
However, more missiles and drones flew in. They broke through the expanding flames and smashed into the enemy warship.
With a blinding flash of light, the enemy warship broke in two.
More missiles hit, and amidst continuous flashes of light, the enemy warship was annihilated.
Gu Haibo intended to find his next target, but when he looked up, he found the battlefield had fallen silent. Eight out of eleven alien warships had sunk, with only three escaping the battlefield from afar.
He sadly discovered that there were 45 warships at the start of the offensive, and now only 11 remained... 34 to 8, meaning an average of 4.25 human warships were exchanged for one alien warship.
Later, he learned that one enemy warship was destroyed by a salvo from the orbital defense system, making the actual attrition ratio 4.8 to 1!
The Zhonghua, Great Bear, Old Rice, and Europa fleets still had some remnants, but the participating warships from multiple countries were reduced to a single crippled survivor.
The more than 400 space fighters also endured an extremely fierce battle, with only 64 surviving.
Having fought to this extent, humanity had truly exhausted all its strength. The casualty rate of participating personnel reached an astonishing 92%, a level of brutality comparable to hell. The surviving warriors were henceforth bestowed with a title that bore the memory of pain and sorrow: Hell Warriors.
The remaining alien warships voluntarily disengaged from the battlefield, drawing a heavy pause to this brief but brutal engagement.
All members of the human fleet wanted to pursue and completely annihilate the enemy, but the immense consumption left the remaining warships incapable of pursuit. They could only retreat with regret.
The ceasefire time was March 22nd, 5:47 AM.
This was a moment destined to be recorded in history. For the first time, humanity, through its own efforts, had frontally defeated an invading alien fleet. It was no exaggeration to call it a historic moment.
Humanity's extraordinary courage in battle deeply shocked the surviving Brain Fish. They kept their distance from the human fleet, even though humanity was left with only eleven battered warships.
Ah, and there were two intact space carriers, but the carrier-based aircraft groups were decimated, reducing their overall combat capability by at least 30%.
Purely in terms of strength, the 12 alien warships' combat power far exceeded that of the human fleet. However, war was not simply about who was more advanced.
The Brain Fish were merely a group of bandits who preyed on the weak and feared the strong, while humanity was composed of professional soldiers willing to sacrifice their lives to defend their home!
The contrast was stark.
Both sides were unable to continue fighting. The three alien warships maintained their altitude and distance, refusing to leave.
The human warships retreated towards Earth to quickly fabricate new hull sections. However, the expended ammunition and missiles would not be replenished anytime soon, and damaged equipment could not be repaired, reducing their combat effectiveness to an all-time low.
The 64 fighter jets, however, completed their repairs and preparations in the shortest possible time, ready to sortie again.
After returning to the mothership, Ling Xiao collapsed onto his bed. The scenes from the battlefield flashed through his mind, and the shrill screams still echoed in his ears.
Those were the final reverberations of his fallen comrades in this world.
He hugged his pillow tightly, burying his face deep into it, as if trying to use the sensation of suffocation to alleviate his inner pain.
War was no child's play, nor a joke. On the battlefield, death could come at any moment.
Ling Xiao's personal terminal suddenly vibrated. He didn't move.
After a while, it vibrated again.
He finally raised his wrist and saw a message from Ou Zhanpeng: Ling Xiao, are you okay?
How are you doing? Why aren't you speaking?
Each terminal was a node on the data network. Through the network's feedback, Ou Zhanpeng could ascertain Ling Xiao's general condition and determine if he was still alive.
With a deep sigh, Ling Xiao replied: I'm fine, I just don't want to talk.
Ou Zhanpeng understood his sentiment: Get some good rest, talk to you later.
Gently exhaling, Ou Zhanpeng's heart, which had been in his throat, settled.
Because the alien warships remained near the moon, the pre-fabricated warship modules could not be launched. Their allies were fighting desperately against the alien fleet, but they could only watch helplessly.
Although the final outcome was a pyrrhic victory, it was a victory nonetheless.
Gong Yiding immediately announced the good news to the entire base, but everyone's hearts were heavy, and they couldn't feel happy.
In a corner of the screen, the countdown, with only 42 minutes remaining, continued its unhurried pace.
Ou Zhanpeng frowned: Why isn't this thing over yet?
He had initially thought it represented the time of the alien invasion. A few hours of error didn't matter, but now that the battle was over, the countdown signal persisted. What did that mean? Was it the final stubbornness of the mysterious entity?
This made no sense. Was the mysterious entity that bored?
Moreover, the mysterious entity knew the exact time of the alien invasion years in advance. That was too miraculous. Even if the mysterious entity had a deep understanding of the Brain Fish's industrial capabilities, being able to pinpoint the time to the month was remarkable, and to the week was a miracle. How could such an accurate countdown appear?
Unless the mysterious entity had mastered the secrets of time and could see the future at a glance.
Otherwise, the only explanation was that the mysterious entity controlled the aliens, and the mysterious entity was the manipulator hidden behind the truth!
But what was the mysterious entity's purpose? Was it playing cat and mouse?
"What are you thinking about?" Xie Yu nudged Ou Zhanpeng. "Let's go, there's still a lot of work to do!"
Although the battle was over, the battlefield still needed to be cleared, and warships needed to be built around the clock. Otherwise, if another wave of aliens appeared, humanity would be completely finished.
Therefore, Gong Yiding called for all personnel at the base to work overtime. No matter what, the problem could not arise from the Luojian Mountain sector.
Ou Zhanpeng snapped back to attention and shook his head, "Nothing."
Xie Yu, thinking he was still immersed in the battle, consoled him with a sigh, "Don't overthink it. We won, and that's the best outcome."
Ou Zhanpeng pulled at the corner of his mouth but didn't explain. As everyone walked out of the command center, a piercing alarm blared again.
Everyone turned and rushed back into the command center. On the main screen, the three alien warships had dispersed, and monitoring data showed their orbital altitudes were decreasing!
Xie Yu roared, "The enemy warships are approaching Earth!"
Facing the formidable enemy, the battered human warships once again set out, splitting into three routes to intercept the enemy vessels.
The two space carriers flew at the very front, with 64 fighter jets escorting them.
Although the previous battle had resulted in heavy losses, it had also demonstrated humanity's spirit. Facing a powerful enemy, humanity no longer showed any timidity or fear.
But the enemy warships soon slowed down, stopping outside the range of the human warships. They seemed poised to attack, yet gave the impression of hesitation and indecisiveness.
The enemy warships were positioned just outside the range of the orbital defense system, and all human firepower fell short.
Both sides were wary, and they remained in a standoff.
As time ticked by, Ou Zhanpeng suddenly had a thought: Could the alien species be waiting for reinforcements? But humanity had already established a comprehensive sky monitoring network, from Earth to Jupiter. All areas within Earth's line of sight were under human surveillance.
At this moment, apart from those alien warships, no other enemy warships had been detected anywhere.
Many others shared similar thoughts. Their gazes shifted, inadvertently falling on the countdown, which now showed only a few dozen seconds remaining.
Could it be...
"What is that!" a startled cry rang out, and everyone's attention snapped to the screen.
At the edge of the battlefield, a particularly conspicuous black spot suddenly appeared. It was positioned exactly between Earth and the moon, causing a small piece of the blue and white Earth to disappear.
Ou Zhanpeng's eyes widened, and he stammered, "A, a, a wormhole!"
A completely black alien warship emerged from the wormhole onto the battlefield.
It was not the icy white warships of the Brain Fish, but a warship strikingly similar to the severed warships, a true alien warship!
The wormhole closed behind the black warship as the countdown reached zero.