Chapter 160: Chapter 160
Chapter 160: Micro-control Master
Although Li Ye was eager to know exactly how many monstrous Mobile Cities there were in the Taranis Ocean—
The map was densely packed with Light Dots, far too many to count.
A rough estimate suggested the number exceeded a thousand.
More than that, Li Ye's gaze fell on the top-left corner of the map, where the Tomorrow Alliance was located.
"Why did we fall back so far again?"He was shocked.
Because it was impossible to determine direction in the Black Fog Sea Region and they had drifted in the darkness for several hours, the Tomorrow Alliance had effectively retreated several hundred nautical miles, growing farther from their destination.
Thinking of this, Li Ye couldn't help gnashing his teeth.
"These monsters are damned! I only wanted to mine a bit of ore!"
He then sighed helplessly and picked up the Walkie-talkie, ordering the Tomorrow Alliance to continue advancing southeast.
In the time that followed, Li Ye didn’t roam around the Watchtower or Cockpit as usual, but instead stayed in his room, excitedly fiddling with this map only he could see.
The map’s duration this time was one week—long enough for the Tomorrow Alliance to traverse the Taranis Ocean and reach the Southern Continent.
The Mobile Cities shown on the map even displayed their races:
Human, Naga, Merfolk, Minotaur, Kobold, Sea Crocodile.
The numbers of Mobile Cities on both sides were completely incomparable.
Very soon, Li Ye noticed a Light Dot on the map.
It was located northeast of the Tomorrow Alliance, maintaining a constant distance as if tracking them.
And the map clearly showed its data—
A Naga Level 3 Submarine, 6 nautical miles away.
Its owner, a Level 2 Naga Mobile City, was 78 nautical miles away.
"Well damn, it's still following us!"Li Ye was stunned.
Thinking it through, that Level 3 Submarine had likely discovered them when the Tomorrow Alliance entered the Black Fog Sea Region, and had been trailing them ever since, transmitting Intelligence. Official source ıs n͟o͟v͟e͟l͟f͟i͟r͟e͟.net
This explained why more than a dozen monstrous Mobile Cities had converged to intercept the Tomorrow Alliance.
"We need to remove this thorn."
Li Ye sneered as he picked up the Walkie-talkie, issuing a series of commands.
On the upper Armor Deck, the Vanguard Armed Gunship slowly ascended. With the Tomorrow as the center, it began its routine patrol.
Although the Level 3 Submarine was on alert, once it noticed the Gunship’s flight path, it quickly understood it had not been exposed. The other side was merely on routine patrol.
However, as the Vanguard Armed Gunship flew over the Submarine's waters, the Bomb Bay suddenly opened, releasing a torrent of MK6 Depth Charges.
At the same time, the Tomorrow accurately fired two Black Shark Torpedoes in its direction.
It all happened so abruptly that the Level 3 Submarine had no time to react.
Though the Naga urgently executed submersion and evasion maneuvers, it was still too late.
Several MK6 Depth Charges exploded near the Submarine. High-pressure shockwaves struck its hull at speeds exceeding a kilometer per second. The Submarine’s steel shell, like a metal can pounded by a giant, instantly caved in, and several rivets flew off.
The two torpedoes hit the hull directly, creating several breaches through which seawater surged in.
The Submarine immediately began a series of emergency risk-avoidance maneuvers.
"Seems like the power of Level 2 Depth Charges and Level 2 Torpedoes is still insufficient."
Watching the Submarine still sailing on the map, Li Ye sighed with genuine emotion.
"In that case, let’s continue."
With his next command, the Vanguard Armed Gunship resumed its precision bombing, and the Tomorrow launched torpedoes once again.
This time, the Level 3 Submarine could no longer hold out.
The torpedoes and Depth Charges blasted open numerous breaches. Its outer shell instantly crumpled and cracked. Seawater rushed in at a rate of dozens of tons per second. Many cabins warped under hydraulic pressure.
Under the intense underwater explosion, it slowly sank.
After seeing the light from the Submarine disappear on the map, Li Ye nodded.
"Alliance Leader, why did you suddenly open fire? Was there an enemy just now?"Zhou Xing's puzzled voice came through the Walkie-talkie.
Not just him—Yang Zheng and Fang Yong also asked with confusion.
From the three’s perspective, the Tomorrow and the Vanguard Armed Gunship had suddenly launched fierce attacks in a certain direction, as if they had discovered an enemy.
"Nothing much. Just pulled out a thorn."
Although he was a bit hungry, he couldn’t be bothered to eat, and continued studying the map.
Li Ye wanted to locate Storm Island on the map, but Storm Island didn’t fall within the scope of Mobile Cities, so it wasn’t displayed.
So he changed his approach.
Storm Island often had Mobile Cities stationed there. As long as he found an area densely populated by Human Mobile Cities on the map, he could locate this Mobile Island.
However, what puzzled him was that Human Mobile Cities were completely scattered on the map.
Not only that, but the Monster Mobile Cities were grouping up to hunt them down.
This situation didn’t look good.
While pondering, something on the map caught Li Ye’s attention.
To the southeast, a Level 2 Mobile City was approaching.
The map detailed its data, including latitude and longitude.
Minotaur Assault-type Mobile City, 95 nautical miles away, located at 18°7′ south latitude, 165°8′ east longitude.
Its configuration included a Level 2 Airship, Level 2 Small Submarine, Level 2 Speedboat, and Level 2 Cannon.
Li Ye immediately disabled the lists for Level 2 Items, as well as Level 1 and Ordinary-grade Items.
This long string of data was far too obtrusive on the map, even covering the Light Dot representing the Mobile City.
To him, it was assumed that enemy Mobile Cities would have Level 2 Cannons, Level 2 City Armor, and a series of Level 2 Vehicles.
With the current strength of the Tomorrow Alliance, they could handle it.
What required the most attention were the Level 3 Items on those Monster Mobile Cities.
So, he set the filter level to Level 3.
This Minotaur Mobile City clearly hadn’t noticed the Tomorrow Alliance and continued advancing unknowingly.
Judging by the shortening distance between them, they would meet in just over an hour.
Li Ye thought for a moment, then got an idea.
"Yang Zheng, prep the Electromagnetic Railgun. Fire along 18°7′ south latitude, 165°8′ east longitude."he ordered via the Walkie-talkie.
While preparing to follow the order, Yang Zheng voiced his concern.
"Alliance Leader, you’re giving such precise coordinates? What’s out there in that direction exactly?"he asked in surprise."Also, the Peacemaker doesn’t have a Radar System—I can only aim and fire by feel."
Li Ye wasn’t surprised.
Radar belonged to High-grade Items. For ordinary Level 1 or Level 2 Mobile Cities, it was simply out of reach.
But if he wanted the Electromagnetic Railgun to perform better, he had to find a way to get one for the Peacemaker in the future.
Surprised as he was, Yang Zheng also expressed his concern.
One shot from the Electromagnetic Railgun wasn’t cheap—a single Projectile consumed 100 units of Level 2 Iron Ore, and the Railgun itself would suffer wear and tear.
In fact, if not for the bonus effect that reduced wear by 20%, the damage would accumulate even faster.
If the Electromagnetic Railgun broke down completely, it would take a large amount of Level 3 Iron Ore and matching components to repair it.
This was exactly why Yang Zheng was always so cautious about firing the Railgun.
"Just do as I said."Li Ye said.
Seconds later, the Electromagnetic Railgun on the Peacemaker fired.
Through the map, Li Ye could clearly see the Light Dot representing the Minotaur Mobile City flashing rapidly—this was a signal of being attacked.
Shortly afterward, the Light Dot slowly vanished.
"It really worked."he exclaimed with joy.
The full-map coverage combined with the ultra-long-range strike of the Electromagnetic Railgun was simply too powerful—capable of eliminating enemies thousands of miles away in one hit!
In his excitement, he picked up the Walkie-talkie again.
"Yang Zheng, how much Level 2 Iron Ore did you just mine in the Black Fog Sea Region?"
"Roughly 2500 units or so. What’s up, Alliance Leader?"
Li Ye paused for a second, then spoke.
"Save it all for restocking the Railgun Projectiles. And from now on, only fire the Railgun on my command."
Yang Zheng hesitated for a moment.
For the Peacemaker, 2500 units of Level 2 Iron Ore could produce a large stockpile of Projectiles, enough to sustain multiple rounds of powerful, intensive firepower strikes.
Spending so much Iron Ore all at once on Projectiles was a painful thought.
But in the end, he agreed.
"Alright, I’ll do it."
Since he was genuinely hungry, Li Ye had no choice but to head to the Public Canteen to eat.
Back in his room, he reopened the map and focused intently.
Now, within a dozen nautical miles of the Tomorrow Alliance, a Human-side Mobile City had appeared.
Behind it, sixty or so nautical miles away, five Monster Mobile Cities were in pursuit.
Upon discovering the Tomorrow Alliance, that Human Mobile City immediately sounded two long and one short whistle blasts—indicating a desire to communicate.
Li Ye sent out a Black Hawk Helicopter, bringing a few of their trusted personnel onto the Armor Deck.
What he didn’t expect was that this Mobile City turned out to be the Silver Messenger, which the Tomorrow Alliance had once rescued in the Valley Zone.
Upon learning it was the Tomorrow Alliance, Lord Zhang Tao personally came to speak with Li Ye.
He informed Li Ye of two terrible pieces of news.
Storm Island had been attacked by the Giant Fish Swarm and was already destroyed.
Upon learning the news, the Monstrous Civilizations began encircling and suppressing Human forces in the Taranis Ocean.
"Good thing we ran into you!"he breathed a sigh of relief."Let’s return to the Western Wasteland Continent together—it's better to have company on the way."
However, upon learning that the Tomorrow Alliance wouldn’t be returning with him but would instead continue heading to the Southern Continent, he was momentarily stunned.
"Isn’t that a bit too risky?!"
Li Ye lightly shook his head.
Crossing the Taranis Ocean might have been a risky move in the past, but now he had the map as his confidence—his heart felt far more assured.
This time, Zhang Tao fell into hesitation.
The Silver Messenger only had two routes now.
First, to continue the lone escape and evade the countless encirclements of the Monster Mobile Cities to return to the Western Wasteland Continent.
Second, to join this Mobile City Alliance and traverse the Taranis Ocean to reach the Southern Continent.
Moreover, the Tomorrow Alliance’s configuration was indeed excellent, which ensured safety along the route.
Just thinking about that unknown, brand-new continent sparked a trace of anticipation in his heart.
There would be many new zones there, and the Silver Messenger could continue to grow.
In the end, he clenched his teeth and nodded firmly.
"Alright, then I’ll go with you all!"
Li Ye embraced him as a gesture of welcome.
To facilitate communication, he handed Zhang Tao a Walkie-talkie.
After dispatching the Black Hawk Helicopter to escort Zhang Tao and his men back, he returned to his room and gazed at the map thoughtfully.
The map showed that the five Monster Mobile Cities were accelerating their pursuit.
Two Naga Assault-type Mobile Cities, one Minotaur Defensive-type Mobile City, one Merfolk Assault-type Mobile City, and one Kobold Fire-support Mobile City.
Among them, the Minotaur city possessed Level 3 City Armor.
At this current speed, they would catch up soon.
Considering that the strength between both sides was not vastly different, and with the advantage of the full-map view, Li Ye decided to initiate combat.
He immediately picked up the Walkie-talkie and issued battle preparation orders.
Zhang Tao was a bit dumbfounded, while Zhou Xing and the other two remained composed.
After all these days, they had become immune to Li Ye’s extraordinary decisiveness.
"Understood. We’ll prepare for combat immediately."
The Iron Whale turned its heading, charging directly toward the approaching enemy.
The Peacemaker began loading various Cannon Shells and equipping the Electromagnetic Railgun with freshly forged Projectiles.
The Tomorrow sequentially deployed Convoy One, Convoy Two, and the Destroyer via the lift platform. The Black Hawk Helicopter, SH-60 “Seahawk” Anti-Submarine Aircraft, and Vanguard Armed Gunship took off in succession. Combat Personnel on the Armor Deck quickly took their positions.
The Silver Messenger also began its battle preparations. It had two Level 2 Shadow Cannons, and its waterborne combat force was primarily composed of Small Submarine groups.
Li Ye’s gaze fell on the Monster Mobile Cities.
"Yang Zheng, fire your Electromagnetic Railgun at the coordinates I give."he commanded."Exact location: 60°1′ north latitude, 150°6′ west longitude."
As the Peacemaker’s Electromagnetic Railgun fired, Li Ye saw the Light Dot representing the enemy Fire-support Mobile City flicker noticeably.
But the flickering was faint, indicating the damage was not severe.
"Probably just hit the flank,"Li Ye thought.
After all, without Radar direction, the accuracy of the Electromagnetic Railgun wasn’t high. Hitting at all earlier had already been impressive.
In the time that followed, the Light Dot symbolizing the enemy city remained lit, clearly indicating it was still alive.
Through the map, Li Ye saw those enemy Light Dots accelerating and spreading out—clearly startled by the shot.
The Light Dot for the Fire-support Mobile City was moving slowly. Likely, its Power Engine had been struck by the Projectile, reducing its speed.
"Yang Zheng, how long until the next Electromagnetic Railgun shot is ready?"he asked.
"Roughly 6 to 10 minutes."
"Continue to fire only on my command,"Li Ye replied,"That last Electromagnetic Railgun shot has alerted the enemy. They’re spreading out."
"Five Monster Mobile Cities."
"If we’re lucky, we might be able to eliminate them all before they even get close."
"By then, everyone will be able to claim the resources from those Mobile Cities."