Chapter 104: The Bait

Qian Ye climbed into the turret, replacing the gunner inside. Under his guidance, he quickly grasped the operation of the frigate’s ballista.

The operation of the frigate’s ballista was not complex, but its difficulty lay in the relatively slow initial velocity of the massive arrows, giving the target ample time to dodge. The arachnid warships took advantage of this weakness and managed to evade attacks repeatedly.

However, the ballista had low requirements for origin arrays and ammunition, and its range surpassed that of ordinary origin cannons, making it the preferred weapon for agile frigates.

Once Qian Ye understood the operating method, he turned the wheel handle, and the heavy turret responded by pivoting towards the nearby arachnid warship.

“Yo… Young Master Qian Ye…” The gunner beside him watched in astonishment as Qian Ye single-handedly rotated the turret, speechless with amazement.

The turret weighed several tons, and its rotation relied on the assistance of origin arrays. The gunner needed to activate the array first and then adjust the direction, a process that was relatively slow. This slowness was the reason it was difficult to hit the agile arachnid warships. Yet, Qian Ye managed to rotate the turret with sheer brute force, astonishing everyone around.

In Qian Ye’s hands, the heavy turret moved like a simple city gate cannon, turning much faster than usual. He held his breath, aimed, and pressed the pedal hard. The frigate shook, and an arrow flew out!

When the arrow was launched, the gunner and several loaders immediately showed strange expressions. The shot was not just slightly off; it was wildly inaccurate, missing the arachnid warship by tens of meters. The arachnid warship didn’t even need to change course to avoid being hit.

Sure enough, the arachnid warship made a slight adjustment to the left, returning to its original course without bothering to avoid the wayward arrow.

The gunner and loaders fell silent. They were all loyal to Zhao Yuying, and due to the young lady’s face and Qian Ye’s identity, they dared not voice their thoughts.

Qian Ye, seemingly unaware of his poor aim, loaded a new arrow and pressed the pedal again. This time, the shot was marginally better, flying over the arachnid warship. Though it gave the arachnid ship a fright, it still missed by more than ten meters.

After two shots, Qian Ye remained unperturbed and focused on aiming once more.

In the bridge, Zhao Yuying let out an excited cheer: “Well done!”

Her exclamation startled the captain, who she glared at, saying, “What are you staring at? Speed up!”

The captain instinctively increased the speed to maximum, but he had doubts. The arachnid warship’s agility far exceeded that of the frigate, and increasing speed meant a higher risk of losing them. Similar situations had occurred before.

However, after accelerating, the captain suddenly noticed the distance between them and the arachnid warship rapidly closing. The observing gunners and loaders realized that Qian Ye’s inaccurate arrows were always waiting ahead where the arachnid ship would try to change course.

The arachnid warship seemed agitated, and its next two turns were much more pronounced, but both were forced back by Qian Ye’s arrows, forcing it to fly almost in a straight line.

Straight-line flight came down to pure speed, and the uniquely shaped arachnid warship was no match for the Zhao clan’s frigate. In no time, the distance between the two ships closed to just five hundred meters! At such close range, Zhao Yuying was tempted to board and attack directly.

This time, Qian Ye finally found his mark. An arrow hit the side of the arachnid warship, damaging one of its limbs while another became less responsive.

This blow made the arachnid warship less agile, like a spider with a missing leg, though the impact was minimal.

Qian Ye fired another arrow, which, due to the arachnid warship dodging a derelict lander, hit again, severing two more limbs. All three broken limbs were on the same side, making the warship clumsy and its flight path unstable.

Facing a less agile opponent, Qian Ye no longer needed to do anything. The well-trained Zhao clan crew could handle the situation. The frigate circled the arachnid warship, pouring handheld origin cannons and arrows onto it, nimbly avoiding counterattacks.

Qian Ye fired another arrow, destroying several cannons on the arachnid warship, significantly reducing its firepower.

With this, the arachnid warship’s fate was sealed. However, known for its thick armor, the warship endured for a while before exploding under the relentless bombardment.

The frigate circled the wreckage, confirming there were no survivors, then turned and headed towards another battle.

After the initial chaos, the remaining frigate fleet of the Imperial Third Fleet regrouped and fought the arachnid assault ships in groups, using tactics and coordination to gain the upper hand. The arachnid ships were destroyed one by one.

After half of their ships exploded, the arachnids couldn’t sustain further losses and began to retreat. But retreating wasn’t easy. Many of the noble fleet’s escort ships were elite, high-speed vessels, faster than the arachnid ships. After a pursuit, the four arachnid ships left behind to cover the retreat were all destroyed, ending the battle.

Sitting in the main turret, Qian Ye calculated that he had destroyed two and severely damaged one arachnid warship, a remarkable achievement for a novice turret operator.

However, Qian Ye wasn’t particularly happy. His gaze fell on the porthole, where a twisted steel plate, almost piercing through, was embedded. The plate was half-burnt, with a severed arachnid arm stuck to it, charred.

The plate was mostly embedded in the turret’s outer armor, just a few centimeters from completely piercing the porthole. If it had, Qian Ye would have been in danger. The only way to stop it would have been to use his East Peak, but there was no room to wield it in the cramped turret.

Though the battle wasn’t large, Qian Ye felt the danger and cruelty of void fleet warfare. In the realm of origin cannons and giant ballistas, individual strength was fragile and often helpless.

Another difference from land battles was the casualty rate. When a ship exploded, ordinary soldiers couldn’t survive in the void, and even War General level warriors had to rely on luck.

Most arachnid warships likely had at least one Viscount-level strongman. But fighting outnumbered, with enemies surrounding them, they received no help when their ships exploded.

Qian Ye saw three or four dark strongmen escape from their falling ships, but in the void, surrounded by the Imperial fleet, they were hunted down and killed.

A ballista designed to pierce the thick armor of a warship would shatter even the resilient body of an arachnid. Only Divine General level figures could sway the battle, while most War Generals were lucky to survive.

Even with Zhao Yuying’s excellent piloting skills and Qian Ye’s precise shots, their impact on the overall battle was negligible.

In the turret, Qian Ye felt the insignificance and powerlessness of human strength in the vast void for the first time.

The battle ended, and after a quick cleanup, the Imperial landing fleet resumed its journey, leaving floating wreckage in the void. In this fierce battle, dozens of transport ships were destroyed, killing nearly ten thousand soldiers before they could reach the battlefield.

Though the losses were shared among various clans, the human cost was real.

The arachnids also suffered heavily, with over half of their elite assault fleet destroyed. In fleet warfare, this was a significant loss. The first ship Qian Ye destroyed was commanded by an arachnid whose piloting skills matched Zhao Yuying’s.

Qian Ye stepped out of the turret, returned the position to the original gunner, and walked to the bridge. In the distance, he could see the Wei clan’s fleet advancing steadily. The Wei clan was one of the two superior noble families in the fleet, but their floating fleet ranked fourth. Due to the ongoing conflict in the Far East, they needed to keep enough ships to maintain air superiority.

Despite the slight numerical deficiency, the Wei fleet was disciplined and well-trained. Their ships, both warships and transports, were all military-grade. In the recent battle, the arachnids wisely avoided the Wei fleet after initial contact.

On the other side, the smaller noble families and lower-class warriors in their humble floating boats lacked the Wei fleet’s menacing aura. It seemed the intense battles in the Far East had not only brought losses but also hardened the Wei clan. It was no wonder that history saw many wise men leave the comfort of the inland to fight and expand the empire’s borders.

In the silent void, the massive Imperial landing fleet continued its advance.

After the ambush, the fleet slowed down and kept a tighter formation. The price paid in blood and lives made even the most rebellious warriors understand the void’s cruelty, and they obediently followed the Third Fleet’s commands.

However, the Imperial Third Fleet did not send additional escort ships. The terrifyingly powerful main fleet was hidden somewhere in the void.

On the bridge, Zhao Yuying handed her duties back to the captain and joined Qian Ye, saying, “Good job! Next time, I can trust you to man the ship alone.”

Qian Ye smiled bitterly, “I’m not a child.”

Zhao Yuying glared, “I remember when you were running around naked…”

Bringing up that topic, true or not, always made Qian Ye surrender, “Fine, whatever you say.”

Zhao Yuying lit a cigarette and tossed one to Qian Ye, asking, “What are you thinking about?”

“Isn’t smoking prohibited on the ship?”

Zhao Yuying scoffed, “Who cares about the rules? On this ship, I’m in charge.”

“So, can others smoke too?”

“If they can beat me, they can smoke. Otherwise, I’ll break their legs!”

Qian Ye looked at Zhao Yuying, seeing her smug expression, realizing there was no point in trying to instill a sense of responsibility.

“Yuying, we were ambushed. Why didn’t they increase the escort force?”

The vast void and the newly discovered floating land made their current route unpredictable. Encountering the dark race warships was unlikely a coincidence. Clearly, the Imperial landing fleet was being tailed, and more battles were expected.

Zhao Yuying blew a smoke ring, watching it rise, and patted Qian Ye’s shoulder, “Don’t think about it. There won’t be reinforcements.”

Qian Ye frowned, “But with the current escort force, if another arachnid fleet comes, we will suffer more losses.”

Zhao Yuying laughed coldly, “So what? Do you think those bigwigs care about a few losses? Most people in this fleet are just cannon fodder. To conquer the floating land, it’ll take more than them. People like us are the main force, but not the deciding factor.”

Qian Ye’s frown deepened. He understood Zhao Yuying’s meaning and the harsh truth, but it was hard to accept that so many trained warriors could be so easily sacrificed.

Zhao Yuying saw Qian Ye’s expression and said, “Half of this war is on the floating land, and the other half is beyond. The fleet commanders likely want to destroy the Night’s main fleet, even if it means sacrificing the entire landing fleet. Once the Night’s void forces are gone, the land will eventually fall to the Empire.”

“The entire landing fleet is bait?!” Qian Ye still found it unbelievable, given the fleet had hundreds of thousands of troops.

“Why not? If the bait isn’t significant, how can it be called a war of national fortune?” Zhao Yuying sneered.

Qian Ye slowly calmed down, sighing, “If we were in their position, we might make the same decision, right?”

Zhao Yuying gazed out the window, “When you can make that decision without hesitation, you’ll truly be grown-up.”

Qian Ye’s heart skipped a beat, and the image of a silver-haired figure flashed in his mind. He had more access to military reports now, always searching for news of that person. He didn’t know what he was looking for, but the repeated absences due to injuries made his heart clench.

Qian Ye fell silent, sighing, “Maybe I’m not cut out for command. The front lines are where I belong.”

Zhao Yuying, lost in thought, said, “No one wants to be a general, but someone has to sit in that chair. So, the ones who do, aren’t necessarily happy.”