Admiral Grayd’s command console was soon presented with the combat strength analysis of the Red Dragon Fleet. The M Military’s years of campaigning across Earth had given them unparalleled operational experience and readiness speed. Not even the complete annihilation of a carrier battle group in the Pacific by a mysterious force had affected the combat capability of the remaining fleets.
The Chief of Staff reported, “The Red Dragon has 15 surface warships in total: 5 cruisers and 10 destroyers. We have been unable to detect their submarine force thus far.”
Grayd slammed his hand on the table. “Shoot! Are the Red Dragon people freaks? Cruisers displacing 20,000 tons, destroyers displacing 10,000 tons—they’re using them as carriers!”
The Chief of Staff dared not speak. This battle would be difficult, primarily because they couldn't fathom the enemy’s true capabilities. These 15 warships were making their debut; no one knew their actual combat strength. Testing the waters would likely not end well.
Just then, a communications orderly reported, “Sir, our early warning aircraft have spotted the enemy’s early warning aircraft. Requesting instructions on how to proceed.”
Grayd waved his hand dismissively. “No interference. Ignore them.”
The Chief of Staff added, “From the images returned by our AWACS, there are no pre-designated aircraft landing platforms on the Red Dragon cruisers. The appearance of their AWACS now means one of two things: either the Red Dragon has successfully landed on the Wenlai coast and secured the airfields, or their fleet has hidden capabilities they haven’t yet revealed. Given that our satellites cannot scan that area, I advise caution, Admiral.”
Grayd fell silent for a moment, then addressed his subordinates, “What is your assessment of the comparative military strength?”
One analyst offered, “In terms of total displacement, we seem to be at a disadvantage, but we have the new F-88 attack fighters and nuclear-powered attack submarines. I believe that even if we can’t deliver a fatal blow, we can severely damage the Red Dragon fleet and crush their increasingly arrogant momentum right from the start.”
The Chief of Staff agreed, “I also support leveraging our carrier advantage by dispatching fighters to strike their fleet. Even if the attack is ineffective, the superior performance of the F-88s should allow them to withdraw safely.”
Grayd made his decision. “Good. Dispatch 15 F-88 fighters for a probing attack against their cruisers and destroyers. If their anti-air weapons prove too strong, immediately order the aircraft to withdraw.”
The order was relayed instantly. The high-energy steam catapults soon hurled the 15 F-88s into the sky. The jets circled briefly, settled into formation, and dove toward the Red Dragon fleet.
***“The M Military has 15 F-88 fighters heading toward our fleet,” reported the operations personnel to us.
Zhu Da asked me, “What should we do, Commander Zhao? Assign us a mission; should we fly up to intercept them?”
I waved my hand. “Do not reveal our anti-gravity devices for now. Although the anti-gravity gear we acquired from the Assassins is likely an M-Nation product, ours performs vastly better. We must keep it as our trump card for a critical moment.”
Cai Bao’er interjected, “Hurry and launch anti-air missiles to shoot them down.”
Zhang Dahai laughed. “Gentlemen, don’t distract the Commander. He has his arrangements.”
I said, “Now is not the time to showcase the cruisers’ strength. We will also deploy our own aircraft. Order Sub-carrier Jinxing 001 and 002 to surface immediately and launch 40 Shanying carrier-based aircraft to engage the F-88s!”
The Jinxing sub-carriers surfaced with incredible speed, churning up massive turbulence on the sea surface as their enormous hulls breached. Before the vessels had even stabilized, the shape of their hulls began to shift, rapidly revealing landing platforms on their decks. Immediately, Shanying fighters slid out from open hangar bays, accelerated briefly, and climbed swiftly into the sky.
The 40 Shanying fighters assembled and met the M Military’s F-88s. The M Military pilots were clearly caught off guard by the sudden appearance of 40 aircraft emerging from underwater; their formation briefly dissolved into panic. However, after a brief adjustment, they launched air-to-air missiles.
The Shanying fighter’s ordnance load had been greatly increased, and its defensive capabilities significantly enhanced. The pilots were all veterans chosen from the Air Force, boasting extensive flight hours. Led by their Wing Commander, they counterattacked the enemy aircraft.
Two Shanying fighters locked onto a single F-88. As the F-88 launched its air-to-air missile, they responded by firing interceptor missiles. It was clear that the M Military’s air-to-air missiles were inferior to those carried by the Shanying fighters. Seeing no advantage, the F-88s quickly pitched up, turned, and fled back.
The 40 Shanying fighters pursued closely. With the Wing Commander’s command, every aircraft simultaneously fired four close-combat missiles after the F-88s. Under this overwhelming superior force, bursts of fire erupted among the F-88 formation, sending wreckage scattering everywhere. After the first wave of explosions, the remaining three F-88s were intercepted and shot down by another volley of missiles before they could even reach the carrier screen’s alert zone.
At this point, the Shanying Wing received the order to return. Minutes later, the aircraft landed back in the sub-carriers’ bays. The landing decks vanished quickly, and the sub-carriers submerged, returning the sea to its former tranquility.
***Onboard the aircraft carrier ‘Grassroot,’ the operations personnel wore expressions of profound embarrassment. Suddenly, two behemoths had surfaced from the enemy waters, followed by 40 Shanying fighters—aircraft seen before at the West Jin battlefield—taking flight from these monsters. They had unanimously agreed to engage the Shanying fighters with air-to-air missiles, confident that the M Military’s dogfight missiles were world-class. To their shock, the result was total annihilation.
Grayd, his face grim, asked his intelligence officer, “Have you identified what those underwater monsters are?”
The intelligence officer replied, “Analysis of the returned data suggests they are a strange type of submarine. These submarines have massive displacements, even exceeding that of our largest current aircraft carriers. The Red Dragon’s Shanying fighters use these vessels to hide underwater. Their surfacing and submerging speeds are incredibly fast; their design level surpasses any known technology in the world.”
Grayd asked his staff helplessly, “We have now lost 15 aircraft. What do you propose we do next? The President issued strict orders that we must seize control of Wenlai at all costs. Give me your combat concepts.”
One subordinate suggested, “Deploy our ace submarines to attack the Red Dragon’s underwater hangars and surface warships. Once we regain air superiority, dealing with those 15 warships shouldn't be a major issue.”
The fleet was accompanied by five submarines of the M Navy’s ‘Wolf’ class or higher. Both their diving depth and displacement were world-leading. Among them were two built as exact replicas of the 'Mercury' class submarines that had appeared on the world arms market. However, since they could not yet produce the necessary 3x alloy themselves, these two replica Mercury-class submarines were in no way comparable to the genuine article.
Grayd was highly confident in the strength of these five submarines, yet he harbored significant doubts because the enemy’s warships and underwater hangars could evade radar scanning. “The enemy is hidden while we are exposed. Discovering their tracks remains the problem. Do you think deploying the submarines is appropriate?”
No one spoke. None of them wanted to bear the responsibility. If problems arose later, those who formulated the operational plan would face a court-martial. Grayd understood their hesitation. At this moment, he couldn't think of another solution, so he finally agreed to dispatch the submarines to fight.
The five mixed-class submarines stealthily submerged to a depth of 600 meters, using minimal power to mask the sound of their engines and propellers as they headed toward the Red Dragon fleet 200 nautical miles away.
The deep seabed appeared undisturbed. The radar and sonar operators dared not relax their vigilance for even a second. The enemy submarine force might be using anti-radar devices to hide in the water. They were moving like blind men; if the enemy suddenly appeared to ambush these five submarines, the consequences would be disastrous.
The submarines successfully entered effective attack range. The commander ordered them to surface and take attack positions. Since they had found no sign of the enemy’s submarines or underwater hangars, the plan called for a missile strike against the Red Dragon warships.
As the periscopes were raised, all five submarines sounded their alarms simultaneously, immediately followed by a shockwave hitting their hulls from an explosion. The commander learned instantly that his force had been surrounded by enemy submarines! They had used portable grenade launchers to destroy the hatches and communication radars of the five vessels.
Damn this anti-radar detection! It had left the M Nation forces blind, trapped in an enemy encirclement without even knowing it. Damn Grayd, sending the submarine force out knowing it was a suicide mission. Soon, a lookout reported the situation outside through the periscope. The enemy submarine force numbered no less than 20, and based on their external appearance, they were all likely enhanced Mercury-class submarines. Even if their side resolved to take the Red Dragon down with them, they likely wouldn't gain any advantage.
The commander quickly consulted with the five submarine captains. They unanimously agreed: surrender. M Military personnel were different from Dà Lóng (Great Dragon) Nation soldiers; when faced with a dire strategic defeat, they chose surrender rather than fighting to the death. After surrendering, the nation would use prisoner exchanges or other means to bring the personnel back home, whereas fighting to the end meant certain death.
White flags were quickly hoisted outside the hulls. The enemy did not needlessly slaughter the surrendered troops. Soon, several landing craft arrived to escort the M Navy personnel away, while the five submarines were towed back to the Wenlai port for eventual recycling in a steel furnace.
Onboard the ‘Grassroot’ carrier, Grayd and his staff waited anxiously, but no information came from the submarine force. When an early warning aircraft flew over the enemy sea area, it was met with missile strikes, forcing a complete withdrawal after losing two aircraft.
“I fear our submarine force has met misfortune; otherwise, there would have been some sign by now,” worried one operations staffer.
Another mused, “Could they have been destroyed without firing a shot? Why haven't we detected any anomalies here? The deterrent effect of those submarines is known worldwide, especially two of the newest models.”
A third suggested, “I suspect they were mostly captured. We must report to headquarters immediately. The enemy submarines are elusive and far beyond our capacity to handle. I advise the Ninth Fleet to withdraw from the Wenlai sea area immediately to avoid a complete rout.”
Grayd was furious. Having failed to meet the President’s expectations meant his military career was over. Out of desperation, he decided to stake everything, leading the carrier battle group to fight a decisive battle, relying on the carriers’ powerful anti-submarine and anti-air capabilities.
His staff could not dissuade Grayd, so they could only watch as the Ninth Fleet, covered by the few remaining F-88s, steamed toward the combat zone. Before the ‘Grassroot’ could even enter its optimal combat range, the enemy cruisers suddenly launched a massive volley of missiles, marking the start of the naval battle.
In the first exchange, the ‘Grassroot’ carrier group showed a clear disadvantage. The enemy’s five cruisers unleashed over 500 missiles in their initial attack, overwhelming the M task force’s ability to respond. Although they attempted interception and counterattack, their few 8-tube missile launchers were negligible in the eyes of the enemy. Immediately following the cruisers' first volley, the 10 destroyers opened fire.
Countless missiles rained down upon the ‘Grassroot’ carrier. Any counterattack or interception proved useless. Grayd sighed; he never expected the grand ‘Grassroot’ carrier to be defeated so utterly by destroyers. The enemy’s firepower was utterly terrifying—this was beyond human capability.
At this point, even if Grayd wanted to fight to the death, he couldn't, as the task force had not yet reached its most effective engagement range. The enemy’s weapon performance clearly surpassed their own. The outcome of this battle was a foregone conclusion: the M Military had lost.
Grayd wanted to fight, but he had to retreat; he could not gamble with the lives of thousands of soldiers. After sustaining heavy damage from two volleys, the ‘Grassroot’ turned tail and fled in disarray, followed by the remaining cruisers and destroyers in a rout.
Three days later, the M Nation’s three services held a secret meeting to summarize the lessons learned from the disastrous Wenlai Naval Battle. The new weapons displayed by the Red Dragon in this engagement included submarine-based aircraft carriers, and cruisers and destroyers possessing fearsome firepower capable of anti-ship, anti-air, and anti-submarine warfare. A common feature among the Mercury-class submarines and these new weapons was their ability to evade radar scanning—a critical issue the M Military urgently needed to solve. If the enemy remained hidden while they were exposed, winning a war, even without a weapons disadvantage, would be extremely difficult.
The Wenlai Naval Battle clearly demonstrated the Red Dragon’s tactic of achieving rapid concentration of overwhelming absolute force to strike their opponent. This rendered the M Nation's previous strategy, which relied on certain advanced weapons for deterrence, completely obsolete. The coming era would be one of pure strength competition; strategic deterrence would gradually lose its efficacy. Even contemplating nuclear war seemed unlikely, as the Red Dragon organization, capable of producing such advanced weaponry, probably had nuclear capabilities as well. Furthermore, their phantom-like submarines posed an immense threat to the security of M Nation’s homeland. If M Nation initiated nuclear war, they risked being the first target of a devastating strike, as they still had no idea where the Red Dragon organization's main base was located.
Following the military conference, the Congress immediately approved an increase of $100 billion to the annual military budget. A portion of this funding would be dedicated to researching an electronic telescope codenamed ‘Electric Eye,’ primarily designed to detect the Red Dragon’s anti-radar equipment. Another portion would be used to increase the quantity and firepower of weapons and equipment. Since the Red Dragon was suppressing the M Navy with sheer numbers and overwhelming firepower, the M Military, finding itself lagging in technology, could only respond with greater mass and fiercer firepower in future engagements.
The M Nation realized this path would plunge them into an endless arms race, while the Red Dragon’s weaponry seemed inexhaustible—no one knew the true extent of their power. Yet, knowing there was a tiger on the mountain, they had no choice but to venture toward it. The M Nation was riding a tiger it couldn't dismount. The Red Dragon showed no intention of peaceful coexistence with the M Nation, and the M Nation harbored no such desire toward them either. The struggle between these two titans had only just begun; the harder battles lay ahead.
Driven by fear of terrorists, the M Nation public did not oppose the sudden surge in military spending. President Jobs utilized the anti-terrorism pretext to solidify his position, uniting R, Australia, Flying Donkey, and other nations to issue a declaration calling for the eradication of the Red Dragon, threatening devastating strikes against their military bases in Wenlai if necessary.
Other nations, considering their own security, soon joined the M Nation’s camp, eventually allowing the M Nation to establish a global Anti-Red Dragon Alliance. They shared intelligence and, with M Nation’s assistance, produced large quantities of weaponry, vowing to fight to the death if the Red Dragon infringed upon their interests.