The hatch door hissed open again, revealing a squad of Wraith operatives, followed by a heavy trooper, making the compartment feel rather cramped.

The Wraith operative in command of this small action surveyed the situation inside the capsule, used his wrist communicator to signal the next wave of men to hold their position, then stepped forward and announced, "You are prisoners. Drop your weapons."

A middle-aged man draped in precious gems raised his head and declared, "I see all this desperate effort won't earn you much coin. I’m prepared to pay a ransom for safe passage—an amount you haven't dared dream of, enough to live luxuriously in any corner of the solar system for ten lifetimes."

"Less talk. Drop your guns and come with us. It's that simple. If you have other ideas, don't blame us for being impolite," the Wraith operative stated dismissively. Their sole purpose was to serve Yang Ying; material comforts or grand speeches held no appeal for them.

"We can negotiate. How about one billion? You split it with the pilots outside, then disappear somewhere remote and live happily. Aren't you mercenaries just after money?" the middle-aged man pressed his offer.

It was true that the soldiers in the Asteroid Belt had a reputation for valuing money over life—a common reality for most mercenary careers. However, this was not the case for Yang Ying’s subordinates.

"I'll give you ten seconds. If you don't surrender, I will have my men open both hatches. You have no chance of escape, and you shouldn't waste our time with such tiresome tricks," the Wraith operative said in a cold tone, unwilling to delay further. "Ten, nine, eight..." he began counting down.

"A great man knows when to yield. Put your guns down," Old Barrow commanded.

The pirates tossed their Hammer-Shot Rifles onto the floor, and the Wraith squad leader stopped his countdown.

Old Barrow turned to the Wraith squad leader and said, "I must see Yang Ying."

Things had reached this point; he couldn't possibly leave without meeting the man who had cornered him like this, or he would die with his eyes wide open.

"Whether you get to see the Commander is up to the Commander to decide," the Wraith squad leader replied in a standardized voice. He then instructed the flametroopers and heavy troopers to find some restraints—ropes or magnetic binders—to tie up the pirates, and used his communicator to inform those waiting outside the hatch that the mission was complete.

He then proceeded to the cockpit, piloted the escape vessel toward the Valkyrie flagship, and simultaneously reported Old Barrow's request to the flagship.

On the flagship, Yang Ying received the report from the Wraith squad leader and agreed to allow him to bring Old Barrow aboard.

After shutting off the communicator, Yang Ying murmured to himself, "Old Barrow. So it was him. I suspected as much. Only one of those two scoundrels, Old Barrow or Isaac, could possibly own an escape ship like that. Even San Yan’s entire fortune wouldn't buy that stealth vessel."

"Commander, after you acquire this stealth ship, what are your plans for it?" Xin Liya inquired, quite curious.

"Perhaps modify it into a yacht. After this battle, the position of our Tran Mercenary Group in the Asteroid Belt will rise significantly. It’s time to upgrade my old yacht," Yang Ying said with a smile.

"Just for a yacht?" Li Feiya turned her head and pointed at the radar screen. "Then what do we do with these twelve giant iron coffins?"

Liya was referring to the two captured cruisers, which were now devoid of propulsion and bridge sections; calling them iron coffins was quite apt.

"Our current standing is still that of a small mercenary group. According to the Mercenary Alliance rules, one must qualify as a major group to exclusively control a city. Therefore, our next objective is to achieve that status," Yang Ying did not directly answer the question.

"The Mercenary Alliance is a tool for the major mercenary groups, designed to protect their interests. Without the status of a major group, things are indeed difficult," Liya followed Yang Ying's train of thought.

"A prerequisite for becoming a major group is possessing at least one capital warship. Our battlecruisers won't be ready until the end of next year, so we need a transition period," Yang Ying pointed at the screen. "These iron coffins can be utilized."

"You mean we fix them up to use ourselves?" Holliya began to understand.

"Yes. The hull damage on these warships is extremely light; their cannons and other systems are perfectly intact. Only the propulsion and bridge sections sustained total destruction. With the engineering capabilities we have, fixing up two of them is certainly possible. Remember, we can even repair a battlecruiser!" Yang Ying stated.

"Do we take one, or all twelve?" Fei Ya asked again. While getting free warships was pleasing, she found the technology of these particular ships somewhat lackluster.

"Taking just one is certainly out of the question, but taking all twelve would be excessive. Anything beyond measure brings about a negative reaction. If outsiders knew we captured every cruiser on the battlefield, we would become abominations, isolated. Even the three great super-mercenary groups never attempted such a feat, let alone anything rumored in the Asteroid Belt, or on the battlefields of the Ancient Legion or the Earth Army. Besides, we lack the logistical capacity to tow all twelve cruisers back to base. My target is just two of the light cruisers; we must leave the heavy cruisers for outsiders to see," Yang Ying explained.

Yang Ying had not become arrogant due to the victory; this success was anticipated, and the disposition of the spoils had been planned well in advance.

He had no interest in the light cruisers either; they were merely a nuisance.

"What about the remaining warships?" Liya asked.

"We'll certainly blow them to pieces with missiles. The scorch marks on these wrecks will reveal our attack patterns, so all those traces must be erased," Yang Ying said.

"I understand," Liya nodded. Her expression became somewhat complex. "Commander, then who will pilot the three heavy cruisers?"

The surrounding female crew members also perked up their ears; this was a critical matter concerning their future prospects.

"What is your opinion? Do you want to pilot one?" Yang Ying threw the question back to her.

"No, I still prefer life aboard the Valkyrie frigates," Liya replied.

"And you all?" Yang Ying then inquired of the other crew members.

"No!" the crew responded in unison with spirited voices.

"Then we must resort to Plan B," Yang Ying said.

"What is Plan B?" all the crew members asked simultaneously.

"We will clone the crews for the battlecruisers first. They will serve on the heavy cruisers for a period, and when the battlecruisers are ready next year, they will switch roles," Yang Ying revealed Plan B.

Since the production of clones and the construction of the battlecruiser hulls utilized separate production lines, creating clones was much faster. They hadn't made them sooner because they lacked suitable warships for them. While the three heavy cruisers weren't exactly perfect fits, operating them wouldn't be difficult for battlecruiser crews. Moreover, this would allow the battlecruiser crews to accumulate combat experience earlier, enabling them to transition more smoothly once the actual battlecruisers rolled off the line.

Yang Ying selected three of the more advanced heavy cruisers on the holographic screen and instructed Quentin to destroy the remaining nine warships.

Although the warships in the Asteroid Belt were all older models, there were still differences among them. Some were ancient, near scrap. Others were only one or two generations behind the mainstream models, recently decommissioned. Yang Ying had decent luck; one of the five heavy cruisers was only one generation behind, originally belonging to the Giant Mercenary Group. Two others were two generations behind, belonging respectively to the Giant Mercenary Group and the Blood Skull Pirates. The remaining two heavy cruisers were antique models, three or four generations behind—hardly worth taking over even the light cruiser that was only one generation behind.

Yang Ying summoned more infantry units from the floating continent, who boarded the three heavy cruisers via transport ships. Using life detectors, they searched for any hidden mercenaries or pirates who hadn't made it to the escape pods and eliminated them one by one.

As for the remaining nine cruisers, the process was less meticulous. Squadrons of Wraith fighters swarmed around them. Yang Ying assigned some reserve units to join the siege. Each light cruiser was targeted by a hundred fighters, and each heavy cruiser by two hundred.

The fighters circled the warships while launching deadly missiles, targeting missile ports, thin armor plating, and any other potential weak spots. The power of a Wraith fighter's missile was not comparable to a heavy cruiser's main cannon; it was equivalent only to a Class Two uranium cannon. If it didn't hit a vital spot, the damage was minimal; the massive hull of a heavy cruiser could withstand such an assault.

However, when missiles achieved absolute numerical superiority, even small attacks accumulated into massive damage.

The Wraith fighters instantly unleashed hundreds of missiles onto the hulls of the warships, causing constant explosions of fire, especially at the missile launchers, where the enemy's own ordnance detonated, blowing large holes in the ships.

The second and third waves of attack followed. If one was particularly lucky, it might strike the ship's ammunition depot, causing a catastrophic explosion. This was the principle of "many ants can devour an elephant."

Under such concentrated fire, one light cruiser's ammunition depot was quickly hit, and the resultant explosion tore the warship in half vertically. Its thick outer armor warped and twisted, fire and smoke billowing from the rupture. The force of the explosion ripped the forward and aft sections apart, tearing any remaining connecting lines or alloy plates like tearing paper. In a matter of seconds, the warship was completely rent in two.

Then came the second, then the third—these warships, through their destruction, proved that the Wraith fighters’ reputation as anti-ship weapons was well-earned.

At this moment, a squadron of Wraith fighters escorted Old Barrow's escape pod to the side of the Valkyrie flagship.

Soldiers escorted Old Barrow and several key figures from the Blood Skull Pirate Group onto the flagship. Their bodyguards were not granted entry and were left tied up aboard the escape pod, guarded by a few flametroopers and heavy troopers.

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