Chapter 1342 Star Sea (147)
The long Warship Blade, carrying an unparalleled gleam, fiercely slashed against the black hull.
The surface of this Nether Battleship was covered in thick scales, and although its defensive capability was no weaker than the Empire's Space Battleship's superalloy armor, it was easily cleaved open by the bright blade.
Revealing densely packed, hive-like crystalline fill inside.
In the next moment, Wang Chen operated the War God Mecha to raise the Particle Cannon high, inserting the cannon muzzle into the gap.
Pulled the trigger!
Boom!
The fierce particle beam ruthlessly pierced through the crystals, deeply penetrating the interior of this alien battleship, igniting a violent explosion.
Wang Chen immediately retreated backward, lest he be shocked by the blast wave from the Nether Battleship's self-destruction.
At the same time, his close-defense laser cannon fired repeatedly, shooting down several Ghost Fighters pursuing him.
Then, the already imploding Nether Battleship was hit by another barrage of cannon fire, breaking into several pieces on the spot, and scattering countless fragments into the Void.
Wang Chen then soared upward, his vision suddenly cleared.
Appearing before him was a giant, fiery planet.
Flame Star.
This planet is the only life-bearing planet within the Flame Star Cluster, but when first discovered by the Imperial Exploration Team, its life forms were still very primitive, with no intelligent beings born yet.
Moreover, Flame Star's environment is harsh, with scarce water and oxygen, and frequent volcanic eruptions on its surface, so the Empire was unwilling to invest resources for transformation and development, merely declaring ownership.
Until it was occupied by the invading Nether Tribe.
Now Flame Star is no longer what it once was, nearly a quarter of its surface is covered by a colossal black-purple alien substance, as if it has grown a giant malignant tumor.
Even from hundreds of thousands of kilometers away, Wang Chen can still clearly see this Nether Hive!
The war between the Empire and the Nether Tribe has persisted for hundreds of years, but understanding of the Nether Hive remains superficial, as no one has been able to delve inside for exploration.
Although in previous wars, the Empire destroyed several hives.
Since entering the starfield where Flame Star Cluster is located, the allied fleet has been intercepted by three Nether Legions.
The Nether Tribe's side clearly did not expect such a swift and violent counterattack from the Empire, caught off guard, three legions came one after another employing reinforcement tactics, resulting in them being annihilated one by one by the advantaged allied fleet.
Only after heavy losses did the Nether Legion react, withdrawing all forces to defend Flame Star Prime.
The allied fleet did not give the opponent any time to breathe, immediately launching a final battle!
The battle started ten hours ago, through a tough and remarkable fight, the Empire's side, at the cost of severely damaging one Titan-class Battleship and sinking five cruisers along with hundreds of various types of warships, finally succeeded in opening a pathway to attack the Nether Hive.
At that moment, the Royal Glory Battleship broke away from the escort of numerous warships, charging to the forefront of the fleet.
Its bow emitted a bright light.
This is the charging characteristic of the superweapon equipped on the Royal Glory Battleship—Planet Annihilator Cannon!
The Planet Annihilator Cannon is the pinnacle of imperial military power, only mountable on Titan-class Battleships and Space Fortresses, its power is terrifying, capable of obliterating a medium-small sized planet with a single shot.
Of course, Flame Star Prime is considered a large planet, Destroying it would require coordinated strikes from five Titan Ships multiple times.
Even that might not ensure total destruction.
In fact, unless absolutely necessary, the Empire would not destroy any large or medium-sized planets within its territory.
Because the destruction of a planet could potentially cause disruption in the operations of the entire star cluster, further affecting neighboring star regions unpredictably.
The Empire once had such a painful lesson.
Moreover, each time the Planet Annihilator Cannon is fired, it inflicts structural damage on both the cannon and the Titan-class Battleship.
This damage is irreversible.
It's an enormous cost!
But facing the Nether Hive, the Royal Glory Battleship had no such concerns, continuously increasing the power output of the core energy furnace, fully supporting the charging of the Planet Annihilator Cannon.
Under normal circumstances, the Planet Annihilator Cannon takes 15-30 minutes to complete charging.
The Royal Glory's technology is the most advanced, equipped with the latest model of the Planet Annihilator Cannon, with a charging time that cannot fall below 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, the Nether Legion's side was clearly aware of the imminent crisis, countless medium-small sized warships and Ghost Fighters took off from the hive, rushing towards the allied fleet.
Not only that, but this colossal alien nest also emitted a purple glow, enveloping itself.
This is the force field defense shield of the Nether Hive.
Facing the frantic counterattack of the Nether Legion, the large and small ships of the allied fleet immediately opened fire, high-energy particle beams traversing the Void, blowing up enemy ships one after another, the scene incredibly spectacular.
Despite suffering heavy losses, the Nether Legion did not retreat, concentrating fire on the Royal Glory Battleship.
However, the Royal Glory Battleship, like a reef standing amidst the raging sea, no matter how fierce the storm, relied on its powerful defense and the escort of numerous warships, completing the super main cannon's charging.
Just after 15 minutes, an extremely thick energy beam shot out from the bow of the Royal Glory Battleship, instantly vaporizing all enemy ships blocking the way, penetrating the atmosphere of Flame Star.
Striking upon the Nether Hive!
This earth-shattering moment left the entire space battlefield in awe.
Yet the destructive energy beam launched by the Glory suddenly shattered and dissipated silently upon impact, failing to pierce the force field defense shield of the Nether Hive!
But soon, two more Titan Ships rushed forward and fired their Planet Annihilator Cannons at the Nether Hive.
The Royal Glory Battleship had attracted everyone's attention, while these two battleships had completed their charging soon after, only a minute apart, launching a devastating strike on the enemy.
The force field defense shield of the Nether Hive endured the second strike, but the outer glow fluctuated violently, its brightness dimmed considerably.
When the third shot landed, this layer of defense crumbled away!
Simultaneously, numerous cruisers, destroyers, and escort ships of the allied fleet launched tens of thousands of missiles.
The speed of space missiles is obviously slower than main cannon energy beams, but a distance of 20-30 thousand kilometers only takes a matter of minutes in range.
Such a short time is clearly insufficient for the Nether Hive to restore its force field defense.
Despite Ghost Fighters desperately intercepting, a large number of missiles still descended from the sky, exploding on top of the Nether Hive.
Next, various imperial warships, including Titan-class Battleships, began closing in for bombardment.
The Nether Hive's doom has come!
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Here's the second update.