Chapter 103: Engaging in Battle Amidst the Void

“Yuying?” Upon hearing the voice, Qian Ye felt a surge of joy in his heart. However, Wei Po Tian’s face changed dramatically. He had just been speaking in a way that suggested he was about to say something unpleasant, and now he had been caught red-handed—his luck couldn’t have been worse.

Zhao Yuying strode into the room, carrying the eye-catching Kai Shan on her back. Though she moved with great haste, her breath was contained, and her footsteps made no sound. Zhao Yuying had not appeared on the battlefield of the Giant Beast’s Slumber, and Qian Ye had been a bit worried. Now it seemed that after a long period of recuperation, her strength had not diminished but rather improved.

Seeing Zhao Yuying, Wei Po Tian awkwardly smiled, and he began to inch towards the window, clearly planning to escape. But with a swift motion, Zhao Yuying aimed Kai Shan’s terrifying cannon at the window and barked, “Where do you think you’re going? Get back here and stand still, you wretch!”

Wei Po Tian’s face turned pale. At such close range, he had no confidence that his Thousand Layer Mountain could withstand a shot from Kai Shan. He had no choice but to return obediently to the center of the room, far from the window.

Qian Ye’s eyelid twitched, and he hurriedly stepped in front of Wei Po Tian. Given Zhao Yuying’s personality, she might very well pull the trigger. Even if she didn’t seriously injure Wei Po Tian, the barracks would be destroyed if Kai Shan fired.

Zhao Yuying glared at Qian Ye, put down Kai Shan, and snapped, “Oh, you want to play the hero, huh?”

Qian Ye let out a sigh of relief and quickly changed the subject, “Yuying, why are you carrying Kai Shan in the camp?”

“In times of war, fighting can break out at any moment. It’s more convenient to have it with me,” Zhao Yuying said confidently. The two men, however, broke out in a cold sweat. Could there really be random fights in the Imperial camp? And with whom?

Qian Ye then remembered that the Zhao family wasn’t stationed in this camp. Puzzled, he asked, “Isn’t the Zhao family supposed to set out from Suya? Why are you here?”

Zhao Yuying sat down at the table and glared at Qian Ye. “We might have to fight the Eternal Night fleet before landing. Fleet battles in the void are no joke, and you haven’t experienced them. What if you get into trouble? So, I brought a warship. You should join me.”

Wei Po Tian, who was standing nearby, suggested, “If you only have one, why not join our Wei family fleet? We can look out for each other.”

This time, Zhao Yuying didn’t refuse and readily agreed. Despite her eccentric nature, she was always serious about matters of importance.

The three of them discussed their next steps and then went off to make final preparations for the battle.

The Wei family fleet was scheduled to depart in the second wave, two days later. The floating vessel Zhao Yuying brought was considered her flagship and was placed at the rear. Soon, it was time to depart. Qian Ye, already prepared, boarded the floating ship with Zhao Yuying.

A moment later, a resonant horn sounded, and several Imperial high-speed warships ascended into the sky, spreading out to guard the airspace over Yuan River. The main warships of the Imperial fleet followed, their massive, dark hulls rising with surprising lightness, as if they had no weight at all.

This was the Third Imperial Fleet, responsible for escorting the vast landing fleet to the Voidland. After completing their formation in the air, the fleet turned and headed deeper into the void. Only then did the landing fleet begin to ascend.

The landing fleet consisted of nearly a thousand assorted floating vessels, rising like a flock of startled birds. Countless large and small, various types of floating ships lifted off, gathering in different regions of the sky.

From Yuan River, two main Imperial legions, two top-tier noble families, and the armies of more than a dozen smaller noble families, as well as many free fighters without clear affiliations, were setting out. The main legions still maintained some order, but the noble families were chaotic, with their various types of floating ships flying around haphazardly, forming a noisy, crowded mass.

The Third Imperial Fleet seemed to have anticipated this, leaving behind numerous small patrol ships to guide the noble families into assembling in different airspaces. Even so, it took half a day to barely complete the formation, and the fleet began to follow the direction of the Third Fleet.

Zhao Yuying brought a high-speed escort ship, which was an improved design by the Zhao family based on the Imperial standard warship. Its performance was significantly better than that of the same class of Imperial floating vessels.

Knowing the journey ahead was long, Qian Ye retired to his cabin to meditate and prepare himself for the best possible state before landing. Zhao Yuying also abandoned her casual ways and focused on her own training.

After flying for a day and night, the landing fleet had stretched out like a long snake, with the formation beginning to disintegrate. Even some noble families struggled to keep their floating ships from falling behind.

While Qian Ye was meditating, the ship’s alarm suddenly blared. He opened his eyes, leaped up, and reached for Thunder. But as soon as he held the gun, he remembered that they were still in the void, and Thunder would be useless here.

Qian Ye put down Thunder and rushed out of the cabin, heading to the upper deck.

By then, Zhao Yuying had already arrived at the captain’s room, looking gravely at the distance.

“What’s happening?” Qian Ye asked.

“An ambush fleet from the Eternal Night,” Zhao Yuying replied hastily.

Through the porthole, Qian Ye saw the distant Eternal Night fleet. These floating ships looked menacing, with rounded bodies and eight long legs extending from their sides, resembling giant spiders. The most striking feature was the sharp spikes on the hulls, which were not just for show. In close combat, these spikes could easily tear through the hulls of floating vessels.

It was evident that this fleet belonged to the Spider Demons. Among the dark races, the Spider Demons’ shipbuilding skills were perhaps only slightly better than the Werewolves’, but their ships were reliable and durable, and they were inexpensive to build.

The Spider Demon ambush fleet consisted of about a few dozen ships. As soon as they came into view, they accelerated, scattering in all directions and fiercely attacking the Imperial landing fleet.

Although the scale of the two fleets was vastly different, the Imperial landing fleet was mainly composed of troop transports, which had little offensive power. The number of actual warships providing escort was limited. Some lesser nobles even used cargo airships to fill the gaps, resulting in a lack of speed and a stretched-out formation.

Zhao Yuying fixed her gaze on a Spider Demon warship that swept past in front of her and shouted, “That one! Follow it!”

The Spider Demon warship was more than twice the size of Zhao Yuying’s escort ship, but she showed no fear, commanding the captain to give chase. Through the portholes, they could see the Imperial escort ships advancing, engaging the Spider Demon warship. The warships from the noble families also left their positions to join the fight, leaving only a few to protect the landing ships.

The Zhao family’s escort ship soon demonstrated its superior performance, outpacing the other Imperial ships and closing the distance with the Spider Demon fleet. Soon, they were only about a kilometer away.

At that moment, the escort ship shuddered, and a two-meter-long metal arrow, glowing with a faint light, shot out, aimed at the Spider Demon warship. Suddenly, the eight legs of the Spider Demon ship lit up with the glow of origin power, and the massive ship turned agilely, dodging the arrow. From a distance, it looked like a living Spider Demon warrior, swift and flexible.

Under Zhao Yuying’s command, the escort ship shuddered again, launching another large arrow. But it narrowly missed, grazing the edge of the Spider Demon warship.

“Waste!” Zhao Yuying angrily pounded the control panel.

The Spider Demon warship, seemingly aware of the Zhao family escort ship’s capabilities, ignored the pursuer and, using its superior agility, maintained a safe distance, heading straight for a group of smaller noble family ships. This group consisted of a dozen or so differently shaped transport ships, with only a few small armed floating vessels for protection.

The Spider Demon warship charged in brutally, taking a few hits, and broke through the blockade of the armed ships, plunging into the inner circle. It spiraled, crashing into one of the transport ships, slicing open several long gashes in the hull with its sharp spikes.

Several dozen origin power shells from the side of the Spider Demon warship exploded inside the damaged transport, causing a series of fierce explosions.

Seeing the raging fire erupt from the transport, even Qian Ye, who was inexperienced in fleet warfare, knew the ship was doomed.

The Spider Demon warship’s eight legs flexed, and it launched itself into the air, heading for the next transport. The transport ships, despite their attempts to flee, were too slow to escape the relentless pursuit of the Spider Demon warship.

“Waste! A bunch of wastes!” Zhao Yuying was furious. Her escort ship had fired its arrows four or five times, but most were dodged. Only one hit, inflicting a minor injury that did not affect the Spider Demon warship’s combat capability. Under Zhao Yuying’s watchful eye, the Spider Demon warship had already destroyed three transports.

Each explosion of a transport meant the death of hundreds of soldiers in the void. Perhaps the stronger warriors capable of floating might have a chance of being rescued by friendly ships, but the rest would fall into the void with the burning wreckage.

The operator of the Spider Demon warship was clearly a skilled fighter, evading attacks at the last second and refusing to engage in a protracted battle with Zhao Yuying.

Qian Ye observed carefully and noticed that the ends of the eight legs of the Spider Demon warship had arrays of origin power, which generated water-like ripples, enabling the ship to change direction. From a distance, it looked like a giant spider walking on water.

Zhao Yuying wanted to take control of the cannons herself, but without her command, the escort ship’s captain might not be able to keep up with the Spider Demon warship. Zhao Yuying’s sharp eyes and experience allowed her to predict the enemy’s movements and maintain a relentless pursuit, otherwise, they would have been left far behind.

After watching for a while, Qian Ye realized that the Zhao family escort ship was faster, had more firepower, and better braking, but was less maneuverable. The chaotic battlefield, with burning shipwrecks and numerous transport ships flying around, suited the Spider Demon warship perfectly.

After figuring out the situation, Qian Ye made a decision. He walked over to Zhao Yuying and said, “You handle the ship. I’ll take the cannons.”

Zhao Yuying’s eyes lit up, and she immediately said, “Good! You, take Qian Ye to the gun turret!”

As Qian Ye disappeared down the ladder to the deck gun turret, the captain whispered, “Miss, Qian Ye has probably never used a warship’s cannons. Is this… appropriate?”

Zhao Yuying coldly replied, “Even if he misses every shot, he won’t be any worse than these wastes!”

The captain’s face turned red, and he dared not say another word.

It wasn’t that the crew of the Zhao family warship was incompetent, but the operator of the Spider Demon warship was a true master of fleet warfare. Such a person, if placed in the Empire, could easily command a main battle cruiser.