The Final Bastion. Under the strict command of Hong Du Lasi, the soldiers of the Hongxian Federation launched a suicidal assault. They threw themselves with desperate ferocity against the defensive line that Davao had constructed around Dabo, built from warships and fortresses.

For both the Hongxian Federation and the Davao Republic, this war represented the largest commitment of forces and the grandest scale ever seen. In total, nearly two hundred carrier ships, thousands of destroyers, millions of mechs, and almost ten million combat aircraft were deployed by both sides.

The Supreme Commander for Davao was General Yang Binggang, the former Minister of Military Affairs. Only he possessed the necessary prestige and capability to command a conflict of this unprecedented magnitude.

General Yang Binggang had not slept in over a month, and even with his Level Ten physical conditioning, the strain was becoming unbearable. Yet, he could not rest; he had to remain constantly aware of every shift on the battlefield. A moment of inattention would spell disaster. No matter how exhausted he was, he could only clench his jaw and endure.

The responsibility weighing on him was immense. Behind him lay the spatial jump point leading to the heartland, and on the other side of that point was Lanling Star, Davao’s most populous residential world.

Furthermore, these were the last remaining main forces of Davao. He had to hold this line until the reserve forces could achieve combat readiness.

However, there was a distinct disparity in strength; the enemy possessed over twenty warships more advanced than their own, causing Davao immense trouble. Moreover, the enemy possessed a greater overall number of vessels. It was only thanks to the pre-established fortresses that he had managed to hold out for this long.

Only the hundred largest anti-air cannons, positioned across all sectors, posed a credible threat to the enemy's advanced warships.

Those must be "Quasi-Satellite" class battleships. Yang Bingchang stared intently at the more than twenty pure-black new-model warships, which were visibly larger than even the Wushan-class vessels.

No wonder their armies had suffered repeated defeats—the enemy possessed warships a full tier above theirs, and in such numbers.

"Damn the Hongxian Federation," Yang Bingchang clenched his fists tightly. According to the laws of the Grand Cosmic Federation, any nation capable of manufacturing "Quasi-Satellite" class warships was automatically upgraded to the second stage of a mid-level civilization, prohibiting them from waging war against lower-level nations.

"If I survive this, I will personally lodge a complaint against you with the Angke Empire," Yang Bingchang muttered with deep hatred.

Just then, a shift occurred within the Hongxian Federation fleet. The flagship, heavily shielded and protected, suddenly accelerated, breaking free from the escort of dozens of surrounding warships and charging directly toward the fortress line.

Yang Bingchang shot to his feet, roaring, "All main cannons prepare! Target the enemy flagship!" He fixed his gaze on that single vessel. Regardless of why the enemy commander had suddenly gone berserk and charged the fortress, Yang Bingchang would not let this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity slip away.

Under the might of a hundred colossal cannons, each capable of outputting 200,000 units of energy, even a "Quasi-Satellite" class warship absolutely could not withstand the barrage.

Davao had paid an astronomical price at the Free Star auction to acquire these hundred cannons; they were truly their final trump card.

The flagship's sudden movement immediately threw the entire Hongxian Federation line into disarray. Many warships followed the flagship’s lead, creating a gap between themselves and the rest of their formation.

"General Assault," Hong Du Lasi commanded expressionlessly.

Just moments ago, they had received another order from the Supreme Command: cease fire within fifty minutes, or face military judgment.

While a commander in the field often possesses the discretion to disregard orders from afar, a death sentence command like this allowed for no resistance. Having been in the military's upper echelons for so many years, Hong Du Lasi was privy to many unspoken secrets.

For instance, punishing a defiant fleet commander required no deployment of military police; a single order could strip the general of his commission, stripping him of command authority over his vessels.

He had only fifty minutes left.

Just as everyone expected him to back down, Hong Du Lasi executed a truly reckless maneuver—piloting the flagship directly toward the enemy fortress.

As the flagship's captain, he held vast override authority, allowing him to bypass the standard operating crew and seize direct control of the ship.

Once the flagship moved, the escorting destroyers were compelled to follow; their absolute duty was the flagship’s protection. Any damage to it would constitute a severe dereliction of duty.

Under Hong Du Lasi's shouted order of "General Assault," and seeing their flagship leading the charge directly into the enemy lines, the trailing warships dared not hesitate, chasing after it frantically.

In a short time, spurred by the flagship, the entire Hongxian Federation line rushed headlong toward Davao’s fortress network.

The so-called fortress was an incredibly slow-moving aerial bastion. It sacrificed speed for unparalleled defensive strength. Its outer hull was practically impervious unless bombarded by weapons delivering over one million units of energy.

The hundred fortresses guarding the spatial jump point formed a complex polyhedron, sealing off the area completely. Attack from any direction meant facing several fortresses simultaneously.

The fortresses were colossal, nearly five times the volume of a Wushan-class warship, and significantly larger than the Mars. They were the ultimate defensive instruments, especially when coupled with the terrifyingly powerful mega-cannons, a combination that gave any fleet commander nightmares.

The only way to breach a fortress's defense was through sustained, close-range bombardment. From a distance, the weapons were ineffective. But getting too close meant the fortress's own massive guns could reduce an attacker to fragments with ease.

The Davao Federation had survived this long entirely due to these hundred fortresses. The warships hidden behind them were reduced to little more than transport elements, as the energy consumption of the fortresses was staggering—a veritable energy black hole, draining 1,000 units of energy per minute, per fortress.

One hundred fortresses consumed 144 million units of energy daily—an astronomical figure. Their internal power cores could not sustain this for long; constant replenishment was mandatory.

The enemy fleet was closing rapidly. Yang Bingchang’s palms were slick with sweat as he kept his lips pressed tight, waiting for the attackers to enter his effective range.

The first to fire were the Wushan-class warships positioned behind the fortresses, as they possessed longer range. With the fortresses acting as shields, dozens of Wushan-class vessels unleashed their full firepower.

Under Yang Binggang's direction, all available firepower was concentrated on the enemy flagship. Destroying the flagship would inflict a crushing blow upon the enemy.

Ultimately, most of this barrage was absorbed by the escorting destroyers surrounding the enemy flagship. Unable to evade, the escorts suffered grievous losses; nearly one-third of them were destroyed in this initial wave, and another third sustained various degrees of damage.

The trailing enemy ships retaliated in fury at the sight, unleashing thousands of brilliant light beams that crisscrossed the void of space.

The spectacle of hundreds of warships exchanging fire with light cannons was breathtaking. In the deep darkness of space, only thousands of shimmering streaks were visible, intermittently punctuated by blinding flashes of light that momentarily illuminated nearby vessels before fading back into boundless obscurity.

The Hongxian Federation warships pressed forward rapidly toward their arrowhead-like flagship, which had already cycled in a new set of escorts. This area was the epicenter of the heaviest fire.

Upon entering the fortresses' operational range, the Hongxian Federation had already lost one-tenth of its fleet, including five "Quasi-Satellite" class carriers. These advanced warships were not indestructible; sufficient concentrated fire could tear through their defenses.

Those five unfortunate "Quasi-Satellite" vessels were annihilated simultaneously by impacts from over one hundred main cannon equivalents, exploding into wreckage instantly.

Even in warfare, the most advanced ship carries the risk of destruction. The principle of 'many ants can bite down an elephant' applied—when countless beams fired concurrently, evasion became impossible.

By contrast, Davao’s losses were negligible—only one Wushan-class ship disabled after its tail section was grazed by a stray energy bolt.

Yang Bingchang finally grasped the enemy’s intention but could not fathom why their commander would choose such a mutually destructive approach. If they had simply maintained the previous pattern—probing attacks interspersed with periods of attrition—they could have effortlessly secured victory by draining Davao’s energy reserves.

However, he had no time to ponder the enemy's strategy. His immediate task was to exploit this opening and inflict maximum casualties on the enemy fleet.

Seconds before the enemy entered the range of the main defensive emplacements, Yang Bingchang decisively gave the order: "All fortresses, rotate! Bring main cannons to bear on the approaching enemy!"

Yang Bingchang calculated tensely. He had only one chance. While the hundred colossal cannons possessed immense destructive power, their recharge cycle was excruciatingly long—a full half hour.

The enemy would reach their close proximity in just three minutes. Therefore, he had one shot.

"Fire!" Yang Bingchang bellowed.

Thirty fortresses simultaneously vented massive energy projectiles from their enormous muzzles. Thirty colossal beams, each trailing a long tail of energy, streaked toward the location of the enemy flagship.

The instant the primary cannons fired, the enemy flagship moved. It shifted laterally by a precise margin, narrowly evading five of the colossal beams aimed directly at it.

Amidst more than a dozen continuous explosions, the flagship, completely unscathed, surged toward the fortress cluster, its speed nearly double what it had been moments before.

Yang Bingchang was stunned. Its velocity was beyond anything he could have imagined; it had managed to dodge those five seemingly certain kills.

"Fire!"

At his command, another thirty great cannons launched their shots, all directed at the flagship. These thirty beams formed a dense, overlapping net, encompassing the space immediately surrounding the vessel. At such close range, even with supernatural speed, it should be impossible to evade such a broad curtain of fire.

Just as Yang Bingchang was certain the flagship would be obliterated, a thin, pale-green ray shot out from the vessel, striking one of the incoming energy beams.

Under Yang Bingchang's horrified gaze, the targeted beam—charged with 200,000 units of energy—simply vanished.

The flagship passed safely through the net of energy fire and continued its rush toward the fortress line.

P: Finally finished writing; look at the time, nearly midnight again. Considering how hard I work every day, please cast some monthly votes! Help me secure a decent ranking on the monthly chart. I beg you.