It was 04:45, the dead of night for the general populace. Although the hold of the Jingchen had been pitch black for fourteen hours, most people still adhered to the biological clock nature had set for them.

The same applied to the Golden Flame battlecruiser formation; at this hour, two-thirds of the crew were deep in sleep, leaving only one-third on active duty.

It had to be said, Yang Ying and his team had arrived at precisely the right moment!

In every sector traversed by the Science Spheres and the Valkyrie formation, all patrolling drones were silently neutralized, rendered blind to their passage.

The mercenaries of the Caesar Corps had not tasted the bitterness of a surprise attack in a very long time; they had grown complacent. The sharp vigilance that once defined these mercenaries before joining Caesar had now been superseded by advanced technology.

At this moment, they were unaware that in a contest of technology, they had already fallen behind.

Six Science Spheres were now closing in, entering the ten-thousand-kilometer range of the enemy.

"Right here will do; any closer and we’ll be picked up by their shipboard radar."

Pol announced over the channel.

The six Science Spheres halted, and the escort fleet followed suit.

The main computer of a Laureate-class battlecruiser was infinitely superior to drones, and it lacked a remote control system. To hack a Laureate-class cruiser, one would have to infiltrate the vessel itself and operate directly on their primary mainframe.

Hoo!

Pol let out a breath, rubbing his hands together. "Now for my favorite part. Everyone, prepare the EMP missiles."

"Received," came the replies from the commanding officers of the other Science Spheres.

The report Pol had given Yang Ying earlier was a full dissertation on the destructive potential of the Iodine EMP against the current warships of the Sol system.

He intended to prove that the "Iodine Missile" wasn't just for shattering Protoss plasma shields!

The term 'Iodine' was an abbreviation for Electromagnetic Pulse. It was a high-intensity pulse devastatingly effective against advanced machinery, capable of inducing instantaneous overvoltage in semiconductors, leading to component failure.

Since virtually all human technology relied on semiconductors, the Iodine Pulse could affect almost any human machine—unless that machine was fully protected by cumbersome and expensive electromagnetic shielding, well-designed wave guides, and similar measures.

The various warships under Yang Ying’s command were shielded against the Iodine Pulse, but the vessels built by the Caesar Group were not.

"Fire Iodine Missiles."

At Pol’s command, six missiles launched simultaneously from the six Science Spheres, targeting the six largest warships in the Laureate fleet: the Golden Flame, a Laureate-class battlecruiser, and the five other heavy cruisers!

In the vacuum of space, with no gravity or resistance, the missiles accelerated continuously, streaking toward the six warships with fiery tails like meteors, their speed increasing moment by moment!

"Keep firing! Target the five light cruisers next. The extra one is still for the Golden Flame!" Pol shouted. "One Iodine missile probably won't take down that behemoth."

The effective range of a single Iodine missile was only about one hundred kilometers. It could instantly paralyze a space station, but in the vastness of space, where warships were spaced anywhere from ten to hundreds of kilometers apart, the utility of a single EMP missile was greatly diminished.

Fortunately, the current number of Science Spheres was just enough to cover all capital-class and larger warships in the Laureate fleet.

As Pol’s command was relayed, the six Science Spheres instantly locked onto their targets via their fire control systems, and the second wave of Iodine Missiles was launched.

Onboard the Golden Flame, the alarm sirens blared shrilly.

"What is happening!" the ship’s Executive Officer demanded.

"Unidentified objects rapidly approaching at increasing velocity, likely missiles!" a staff officer yelled, staring at the radar screen.

"There are six of them appearing simultaneously!" another staff officer shouted.

"What! Six! That must be missiles!" The Executive Officer leaped up, shouting, "Hurry and wake the Captain! Tell him we are under enemy attack!"

"Yes!" A staff officer immediately bolted out of the bridge.

"Launch jamming waves immediately to deflect the missiles, then issue a general fleet warning, and contact the Hammer battlecruiser formation to inform them we’ve been attacked!"

This Executive Officer’s internal clock differed from most of the fleet; he slept by day and worked by night, ensuring his mind was at its sharpest now.

A staff officer frantically worked the control panel, then turned back shouting, "Our communications system has been severed! We’ve lost contact with the entire fleet and the outside world!"

"I’ve tried every jamming technique, but I can’t force the missiles off course!"

"Six more missiles have appeared! That makes twelve in total!" the two staff officers exclaimed one after the other.

"What!" The Executive Officer’s face went pale with shock.

At this moment, all observers had deployed jamming waves, completely isolating the Laureate fleet’s external communication channels.

The bridge door suddenly flew open, and Captain Kozmo of the Golden Flame strode in, his uniform askew—clearly thrown on in haste. His face showed fatigue, but his eyes were remarkably clear.

"Report situation immediately!" Kozmo commanded, taking his seat in the command chair.

"We are under enemy attack, twelve missiles are closing in. Our jamming efforts have failed... and our external communications are cut," the Executive Officer reported tersely.

Kozmo glanced at the radar display and ordered, "Launch interceptors! Execute emergency evasive maneuvers."

"Yes! Launch interceptors! Execute emergency evasive maneuvers!" a staff officer repeated the command.

Seconds later, the missile launch bays on both sides of the Golden Flame opened, and rows of missiles, trailing white smoke, streaked out. Over a hundred interceptor missiles flew toward the trajectories of the incoming Iodine Missiles.

However, in the vacuum of space, intercepting a missile already accelerating beyond one hundred kilometers per second was no easy feat.

It might be possible if the trajectory could be accurately calculated, but all missiles manufactured in the 26th century possessed variable thrust mechanisms, meaning their paths were constantly shifting and impossible to calculate—and the Iodine Missiles were no exception.

Twisting and turning, they punched through the screen of interceptor missiles.

"The enemy EMP missiles have breached our interception net!" a staff officer nervously reported.

"Launch the second wave of interceptors!" Kozmo commanded instantly.

Soon, another hundred interceptor missiles were launched.

But by now, the Iodine Missiles had increased their velocity slightly, making the chances of interception even slimmer.

Kozmo was aware of this. Seeing the EMP missiles punch through the second barrier on the radar screen and alter course as the warship maneuvered, he shouted, "Brace for impact!"

It wasn't just the Golden Flame; the other ten capital ships executed evasive maneuvers, but the Iodine Missiles remained locked onto them.

"Three... Two... One..." Pol counted rhythmically on his console.

"Detonate!"

Invisible shockwaves erupted around the warships!

Instantly, sparks erupted everywhere on these vessels. Walls, light fixtures, control consoles—everywhere wiring was laid, it was destroyed by the instantaneous overvoltage caused by the electromagnetic pulse!

On the bridges of all large warships, staff officers shielded their faces. The consoles before them were among the most densely wired parts of the ship. Electric sparks popped and crackled like fireworks at a festival.

However, on the bridge of the massive Golden Flame battlecruiser, although some sparks were visible, the extent of the damage was far less severe than on the heavy or light cruisers in the fleet.

Then, the second Iodine missile struck the Golden Flame, causing another series of electrical discharges that detonated components the first missile had missed.

Kozmo’s eyes were momentarily blinded by the flashes, but he did not blink. He remained as still and calm as a stone, saying flatly, "This is an EMP attack. A powerful pulse, indeed. But the Golden Flame was designed with the threat of Iodine in mind from the start. This level of impact is insufficient!"

Though he said this, Kozmo was inwardly shocked by the power of the Iodine Missile. He knew that the Laureate-class EMP shielding was designed to withstand the pulse generated by a nuclear detonation, which creates massive electromagnetic radiation capable of frying electronics a thousand kilometers away.

Yet, this seemingly innocuous missile contained an EMP pulse that even exceeded the intensity produced by a nuclear explosion. How could this not send a chill down his spine?

He needed to remain the rock of the bridge, however. To maintain morale, he could not display his shock.

"Report damage assessment!" the Executive Officer shouted.

"External communication systems are completely paralyzed, but internal comms are operational!" a staff officer reported.

"We never counted on that. Next," Kozmo stated steadily from his command chair.

"Thirty percent of the power system is damaged; the reactor cannot be engaged!" the staff officer said, his voice strained.

"That is a problem. Arrange for manual repair immediately. At thirty percent damage, if we rush, we might still manage it!" Kozmo ordered.

"Seventy percent of the weapons systems have malfunctioned, and the self-repair system is down, unable to fix them!" the staff officer continued.

"How many of the six main guns are still functional?" Kozmo inquired.

"Two are still operational!" the staff officer replied.

"Two, that’s still five times better than a standard heavy cruiser!" Kozmo said in a strong, steady voice.

Seeing Kozmo’s composed demeanor, the staff officers calmed down as well.

"The fighter craft in the hangar bays are still usable!" the staff officer’s tone was tinged with excitement.

"The hangar walls have electromagnetic shielding. It seems to have worked," Kozmo commented with a slight smile.

The recent atmosphere of dejection had lifted considerably. Kozmo surveyed the bridge once more. "This attack was almost certainly carried out by our target, the Tyrant Mercenary Group. You must heighten your vigilance. This is only the beginning; their main force will arrive soon. Though we have suffered heavy losses due to this sneak attack, remember, we are mercenaries of the Caesar Corps. We will not lose our confidence over a setback like this!"

"Yes!" the staff officers stood and replied.

Kozmo nodded, satisfied with their response. However, inwardly, he worried about the other ten large warships; their Iodine shielding was far inferior!

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