Rebirth of the Super Battleship
Chapter 220: Disappearance

To avoid the potentially existent trap would mean exposing those fifty thousand warships. But pressing forward might result in even greater losses.

Xiao Yu was caught in a dilemma.

Yet, there was no time left. Now, only less than fifteen minutes of travel remained before reaching the location the Molian Civilization had described as the trap.

Xiao Yu began thinking at high speed.

Luka Two had also fallen into silence. It understood that at this stage, its opinion no longer held weight in Xiao Yu’s mind. Xiao Yu would evaluate its worth, along with the thousand or so psychosocial scientists that had followed it, against the value of the fifty thousand warships, making a decision from a broad, strategic perspective.

Its life and death rested on Xiao Yu’s single thought.

“The situation can be considered from two angles. One: the Molian Civilization has begun to suspect Luka Two. In that case, the so-called ‘trap’ is very likely fabricated to deceive me. Two: the Molian Civilization has no suspicion toward Luka Two, and the information was merely revealed incidentally during the conversation. That would make the intel much more credible. But even if they still trust Luka Two, there’s little reason for them to share such information…”

“All in all, based on a comprehensive analysis, the likelihood of the trap being real is only about thirty percent. There’s a seventy percent chance it’s a fabrication.”

“In that case, I’ll take the risk.” Xiao Yu gritted his teeth and made his decision.

“All warships, maintain current course. Continue advancing.” Xiao Yu issued the new order, while also giving Luka Two the next directive: “Continue demonstrating sincerity to the Molian Civilization. If necessary, you may trade away a City-Class warship.”

“Hoo…” Luka Two exhaled softly. In that moment, its heart, suspended in dread finally relaxed.

It had taken a trip through hell and returned to the realm of the living.

“Master, please rest assured. I will win the trust of the Molian Civilization.”

Xiao Yu’s fleet surged forward. As they approached the location of the so-called “trap,” Xiao Yu grew increasingly tense.

“According to our current formation, the first ships to enter the trap zone will be a County-Class warship unit. If this trap does exist, then I’ll have no choice but to abandon Luka Two and, even at the risk of exposure, change course…”

Xiao Yu’s fleet continued forward quietly. From the outside, nothing seemed unusual. But within the ships, all the engines had already been shifted into standby mode, prepared to execute an emergency retreat the instant anything went wrong.

Gradually, the leading County-Class warship formation entered the supposed trap zone. But nothing happened. The cosmos remained as dark as ever. The star in the distance continued to shine brightly.

Yet Xiao Yu’s nerves didn’t relax. Instead, he became even more taut.

“Just because the County-Class warships encountered nothing doesn’t mean the others will be safe. Only once the entire fleet has crossed this area can I definitively conclude whether we’re in the clear.”

Following the first County-Class unit came the second, then the third…

Next were the City-Class warship units. After several hundred of them passed through, it was time for the first Province-Class formation, led by the Hebei.

Still, no sign of disturbance.

Now came the turn of the Beijing.

In terms of value, all the Luka individuals and their accompanying ships combined did not compare to a single Beijing-class vessel, because Beijing was Xiao Yu’s flagship. Xiao Yu himself resided aboard it. Ships could be rebuilt, lifeforms could be captured from other civilizations if the Luka’s were wiped out. But if Xiao Yu died, then everything would be over.

If he changed course now, there was still a chance.

“All of my detection instruments are running at maximum capacity, but I haven’t found any trace of a trap in this region. So now, one point is worth questioning: Can a Level 5 Civilization even build such a trap? Do they really possess technology that powerful?”

“Judging from all signs, the likelihood that this trap doesn’t exist has now risen to ninety-five percent. Five percent risk… to save those fifty thousand warships and the Luka scientists, it’s a risk worth taking.”

“Continue forward.” Under Xiao Yu’s command, the Beijing also entered the supposed trap zone.

“Do you see it? Do you see it? The master is risking himself for us! We too must be prepared to dedicate everything to him at any moment!”

Upon seeing the Beijing enter the trap as well, Luka Two felt a surge of indescribable emotion.

Voices rang out chaotically in the hall, with Luka personnel shouting loudly, “Always ready! Dedicate everything to the master!”

Xiao Yu saw all of this, but he had no energy to spare for it. His full attention was focused elsewhere.

The Beijing entered the “trap.” All the ships had entered the trap zone. Then, the leading County-Class formation exited the “trap,” followed by the City-Class units. Finally, the Beijing also cleared the trap area.

At that moment, Xiao Yu felt as though he had come back from the brink of death.

“So they really were lying? They really did suspect Luka Two and those fifty thousand warships?” Xiao Yu was overwhelmed with mixed feelings. “But at least, I weathered this crisis. Those fifty thousand ships weren’t exposed. Luka Two wasn’t exposed either.”

This was the best possible outcome.

Regardless of Xiao Yu’s internal emotions, outwardly, his fleet appeared as calm and steady as ever. Their speed and trajectory remained unchanged. Xiao Yu hoped to deceive the Molian Civilization through this appearance, so that they would dismiss their suspicions toward Luka Two.

Luka Two continued maneuvering within the Molian Civilization, preserving that hidden force for Xiao Yu. Meanwhile, Xiao Yu’s main fleet had already reached the orbit of the second gas giant in this star system.

To prevent a pincer attack from enemy forces, Xiao Yu had pursued this gas giant even though it had rotated to another side of the system. Only after eliminating all Molian forces on this planet could Xiao Yu safely advance further.

However, upon arrival, Xiao Yu found that no resisting Molian forces remained on the planet. All Molian ships had been withdrawn. Left behind were only automated military installations, ground artillery, space fortresses, and the like.

But these facilities had already been rendered inoperative under Xiao Yu’s onslaught from the digital realm.

“They’ve all withdrawn to the three rocky planets?” Xiao Yu pondered. After deploying several high-yield elemental decay grenades to obliterate the remaining base installations, Xiao Yu resumed his campaign.

“Since the so-called trap turned out to be false, then I should also reconsider the other piece of information they gave me, that reinforcements would arrive in ten days.”

“Clearly, in my current state, I lack the strength to confront a massive Molian fleet. In other words, I must retreat before they arrive. But the credibility of that intel must be questioned too. Who knows, maybe those ‘ten days’ were just a scare tactic to force me to withdraw without a fight?”

“Due to the star’s gravitational field, I can’t use curvature travel within thirty billion kilometers of it. At conventional speed, I can reach up to fifty percent the speed of light. That means I need to reserve about two days of prep time to escape. So, to play it safe, I estimate… I have three days left. No matter what the situation is in three days, I must evacuate immediately.”

After wiping out all Molian defense forces on the gas giant, Xiao Yu changed course and headed toward the rocky planet ahead.

“The Molian Civilization’s goods fall into four categories: biological, resources, intelligence, and technology. The intelligence and technology items are non-physical, but analysis suggests they’re all stored in a massive data center within this star system. This data center is built on the third planet from the star, that is the very planet I’m heading toward. Biological goods are also located there. The resource goods are stored on the second rocky planet. The first rocky planet is their rear base. For me, the first and second planets hold little value. But if time permits, I may try to reclaim the ten million tons of Alien Beast flesh stored there…”

“So, the primary target is this planet, extract all the scientists from it, and retrieve as much technology and intelligence as possible from the data center!”

Those fifty thousand warships of Xiao Yu’s had also been detained near this planet.

At present, the third planet had rotated to the far side of the star. Xiao Yu’s fleet ignored the first rocky planet, still on this side, and surged toward his target.

The distance narrowed. From here, the planet’s atmosphere was already faintly visible.

“Looks like all their remaining resistance is gathered here. Then let’s begin the final battle!”

Controlling his massive fleet, Xiao Yu’s heart surged with heat and anticipation.

But suddenly, something strange happened.

One of Xiao Yu’s ten Province-Class warships, the Henan, suddenly vanished.

It disappeared without a sound, without warning, vanishing into thin air. Xiao Yu couldn’t locate it anywhere. Even through superluminal communication, he was no longer able to re-establish contact with the Henan.