Marvel: The other side of the double-passing door is Devouring the Stars

Chapter 459 Target—The Enemy Fleet!
The three nodded and turned to leave the training base.

Standing by the sea, watching the sunset in the distance, Rowan took a deep breath.

“Finally, we’re about to set off,” he murmured.

“Yes,” Hong remarked, “this mission will be our first real step into the universe.”

"No matter what dangers lie ahead," Thor clenched his fist, "we will fight side by side to protect our home."

“That’s right,” Rowan turned to his two brothers, his eyes filled with determination, “For Earth, for everything we cherish, we must win this battle!”

The next morning, at Earth Spaceport.

The Virtual Universe Corporation's strategic warship, the "Conqueror," lay silently moored outside the port. This colossal warship, five thousand meters long, was entirely deep blue, its surface engraved with countless intricate patterns of laws. Under the sunlight, these patterns shimmered with a faint glow, radiating a chilling energy fluctuation.

Hundreds of main cannons line both sides of the ship, each with a ten-meter caliber, capable of firing energy projectiles with the power of a full-force attack from a cosmic-level powerhouse. At the bow is a super-large main cannon with a caliber of fifty meters; that is the Conqueror's ultimate weapon—the Planet Destroyer Cannon, said to be able to destroy a small planet with a single shot.

Around the "Conqueror," more than four hundred other warships of various types were moored. These included one hundred capital warships, each over a kilometer in length and equipped with powerful firepower systems. There were also three hundred auxiliary vessels such as frigates, destroyers, and supply ships, as well as countless small fighter jets and reconnaissance aircraft.

This massive fleet was the expeditionary force assembled by the Virtual Universe Corporation to defeat the Kara civilization.

Rowan, Hong, and Thor stood on the boarding platform of the spaceport, gazing up at the steel behemoth before them.

"What a huge fleet!" Thor exclaimed. "Several times larger than the Kara fleet."

“This is just one expeditionary force of the Virtual Universe Corporation,” Hong said. “It’s said that the company has thousands of such fleets throughout the universe.”

"The universe is so vast," Rowan exclaimed. "We were just like frogs in a well, seeing the sky from the bottom of a well."

Just then, a holographic projection appeared in front of the three of them. It was Maurice.

“Are you three ready?” Morris asked.

“Ready,” the three answered in unison.

“Very good, board the ship,” Morris said. “Your cabins are in Sector E of the Conqueror. Once you arrive, familiarize yourself with the ship's layout. We will depart promptly in two hours.”

"Yes!"

The three boarded a small shuttle and flew towards the Conqueror. The shuttle passed through the ship's energy shields and entered the massive hangar. The hangar's interior was astonishingly spacious, stretching for several kilometers, and contained hundreds of fighter jets and shuttles.

"This place is practically a mobile city," Thor said, looking around. "This hangar alone is bigger than the central square of the China base city."

A guide in a silver uniform walked over.

"Are you three Rowan, Hong, and Thor?" the guide asked politely. "My name is Susan, and I'll be guiding you to your accommodations."

"Thank you for your trouble," Rowan nodded.

Susan led the three through the hangar and into the ship's interior. The Conqueror's interior was extremely complex, with corridors leading in all directions, and staff were busy everywhere. Some were checking equipment, some were transporting supplies, and others were conducting pre-battle training.

“The Conqueror has a permanent crew of 50,000,” Susan explained, “30,000 of whom are combat personnel and 20,000 are support staff. This expedition also carries an additional 10,000 special operations personnel.”

"Sixty thousand people!" Hong gasped. "This ship really is like a city."

Susan led the three to a spacious cabin in Sector E. The cabin contained three beds, training equipment, entertainment facilities, and even a small meditation room.

“This is your accommodation,” Susan said. “If you need anything, you can contact me through the terminal on the wall. Have a pleasant journey.”

After saying that, Susan turned and left.

The three put down their luggage and began to familiarize themselves with their surroundings. Rowan walked to the window and looked out through the huge porthole. The blue silhouette of Earth slowly rotated in their field of vision, beautiful yet fragile.

“I don’t know when I’ll see it again,” Rowan said softly.

“It will be soon,” Hong walked up to him, “we’ll be back after the mission is over.”

“I hope so,” Rowan nodded.

Two hours later, the Conqueror's broadcast came on.

"Attention all personnel, the fleet is about to set sail. Please take your positions. Ten minutes to go."

Rowan and his two companions arrived at the observation deck, where a large crowd had already gathered. Everyone wanted to witness the spectacular sight of the fleet setting sail.

The countdown continues: "Ten, nine, eight".

"Three, two, one, set sail!"

The Conqueror's engines roared to life. Huge energy nozzles spewed forth blazing blue flames, propelling the five-thousand-meter-long behemoth forward slowly. Around it, other warships also started up, and the entire fleet began to move in an orderly fashion.

From Earth, it was an absolutely spectacular sight. More than five hundred warships were lined up in neat formation, the light from their engines illuminating half the sky.

The fleet accelerated away from Earth's orbit, heading towards the outer solar system. As they passed the moon, everyone saw the shocking scars on its far side—the remains of the battle with the Kara fleet.

"Remember these scars," Morris's voice boomed across the fleet, "the humiliation inflicted upon us by the Kara civilization. This expedition will make them pay the price, letting the entire universe know that planets protected by the Virtual Universe Corporation are not to be violated!"

"Inviolable!" A deafening roar erupted from the fleet.

The fleet continued forward, increasing its speed. Upon passing Mars' orbit, the Conqueror activated its warp drives.

Space began to warp at the bow, forming a massive spatial tunnel. The fleet filed in and vanished from the solar system in an instant.

By using warp drive, interstellar journeys that would normally take months or even years can be compressed into just a few days.

In warp drive space, the scenery outside the ship became extremely bizarre. Starlight was stretched into long lines, and space itself appeared strangely distorted.

“It will take five days to reach the Kara system from here,” Morris called a meeting with all participating personnel. “During these five days, everyone must be fully prepared. According to intelligence, the Kara civilization already knows we are coming and will certainly have prepared their defenses.”

"Will they send a fleet to intercept us?" a general asked. "Very likely," Eric nodded. "The Kara civilization won't wait for us to reach our home planet. Their best strategy is to intercept us en route and fight far from their home planet."

“Then we must prepare for an encounter,” another general said.

“That’s right,” Morris said, pulling up a star map. “Based on our flight path calculations, if the Kara fleet wants to intercept us, the most likely location is the Red Moon Starfield. It’s about three light-years from Kara’s main star and is a region densely populated with meteorites, making it ideal for an ambush.”

"Should we change course?" someone asked.

“No,” Morris shook his head, “changing course would be a much longer route, and it wouldn’t necessarily avoid the enemy. We’ll proceed along the original route, and if the enemy is indeed lying in ambush in the Red Moon Starfield, we’ll defeat them head-on.”

“But fighting in the meteorite zone is disadvantageous for us,” a general worried.

“Indeed, meteorites will interfere with the accuracy of naval guns and limit the maneuverability of warships,” Morris acknowledged. “But similarly, this will also be a limitation for the Kara fleet. Moreover, our fleet far surpasses theirs in both quantity and quality, and even in unfavorable terrain, we are confident of victory.”

"So what's our tactic?"

"A frontal assault," Morris stated decisively. "Use overwhelming firepower to crush the enemy. The Conqueror will lead the charge, breaking through their lines directly. Other capital ships will follow, while frigates will clear out smaller warships. Fighter squadrons will disrupt their reconnaissance systems."

"And what about us?" Rowan asked. "What is the Special Operations Team supposed to do in fleet warfare?"

“You will remain aboard the Conqueror and await orders,” Maurice said. “If the battle goes well, you won’t need to participate. But if something unexpected happens, you may need to carry out special missions—such as raiding the enemy flagship or assassinating the enemy commander.”

“Understood,” Rowan nodded.

"Alright, everyone go back and prepare," Morris announced, adjourning the meeting. "We expect to arrive in the Red Moon Starfield in three days; that will be the decisive battle."

For the next three days, the entire fleet remained on high alert. Warships underwent comprehensive overhauls, weapon systems were repeatedly tested, and combat personnel conducted live-fire simulation training.

Rowan and his two companions were also busy. They repeatedly practiced various surprise attack tactics in the virtual combat pod, making sure everything went perfectly.

On the evening of the third day, the alarm on the Conqueror suddenly sounded.

"Warning! Warning! Large energy reaction detected ahead, suspected to be an enemy fleet!"

Everyone rushed to their battle stations. Rowan and his two companions arrived at the command center, where Morris stood in front of the holographic star map, his expression grave.

“As expected, they were waiting for us here,” Morris said coldly.

The holographic star map showed numerous red dots about 100,000 kilometers ahead of the Conqueror. These dots were densely packed and incredibly numerous.

"Enemy ship count complete," the intelligence officer reported. "One hundred and twenty main warships, six hundred auxiliary vessels, and over five thousand small fighter jets."

“One hundred and twenty capital warships,” Eric frowned. “More than we expected. It seems the Kara civilization has mobilized its entire force.”

“That’s not all,” Leah said, pointing to a peculiar point of light on the star map. “Look at this energy reaction; its intensity far surpasses that of other warships. This should be the superflagship of the Kara civilization—the ‘Destruction.’”

"The Annihilation?" Thor asked疑惑地, "What's that?"

“The national treasure of the Kara civilization,” Morris explained, “is a super warship eight kilometers long, equipped with their most powerful weapon systems. It is said that this warship once single-handedly defeated an enemy fleet of fifty ships.”

"Eight thousand meters!" Hong gasped. "Bigger than the Conqueror."

“And what’s even more troublesome,” Eric said, “is that, according to intelligence, the Annihilation is carrying the ruler of the Kara civilization—Karac. He is a fourth-tier cosmic-level powerhouse, stronger than any of us.”

"Cosmic level fourth rank?" Luo Wen's heart sank.

"All warships, listen to my command," Morris ordered. "Full speed ahead, prepare for battle! The Conqueror will lead the charge, followed by the main fleet. Frigates, spread out in a fan formation. Fighter squadrons will launch a preemptive strike to disrupt enemy detection systems."

"Yes!"

The entire fleet sprang into action immediately. The Conqueror's engines were powered to maximum, and the giant ship's speed rapidly increased. Behind it, one hundred capital ships followed closely, while three hundred escort ships spread out on both flanks, forming a massive attack formation.

At the same time, thousands of small fighter jets took off from the hangars of various warships, like a swarm of silver bees, heading towards the enemy fleet.

The Kara fleet had clearly also detected the arrival of the Virtual Universe Corporation's fleet. The massive Annihilation began to move, its enormous hull surrounded by a crimson energy shield, radiating a terrifying pressure.

Around the Annihilation, 120 Kara capital ships formed a triangular attack formation. Six hundred auxiliary ships were positioned behind and on the flanks, creating a formidable defensive line. More than five thousand Kara fighters circled ahead of the fleet, awaiting the enemy's arrival.

Two massive fleets confronted each other in the Red Moon Starfield, separated by a vast asteroid belt. Some of these asteroids were only the size of a house, while others were comparable to small satellites, drifting slowly through space.

"Fifty thousand kilometers from the target," the Conqueror's navigator reported.

“Keep going,” Morris calmly commanded.

"30,000 kilometers from the target."

"Maintain course."

"Ten thousand kilometers from the target!"

"All main guns, prepare to fire!" Morris's voice echoed throughout the fleet. "Target—enemy fleet, free fire, open fire!"

boom! ! !
The Conqueror's hundreds of main guns opened fire simultaneously. Blazing energy shells tore through the silence of space, trailing long plumes of flame as they hurtled towards the Kara fleet. Behind it, other warships also opened fire, countless energy shells raining down like a storm.

In that instant, the entire star field was illuminated. Blue, white, and gold energy beams intertwined to form a massive firepower net, covering the front of the Kara fleet.

The Kara fleet immediately retaliated. The super cannon at the bow of the Annihilation ship unleashed a ten-meter-thick beam of crimson energy, blasting towards the Conqueror. Other warships also opened fire simultaneously, red energy projectiles colliding with blue projectiles in space.

boom! boom! boom! boom!
A series of explosions echoed throughout the universe. The collision of energy projectiles created one massive fireball after another. These fireballs reached temperatures of tens of thousands of degrees Celsius, instantly vaporizing nearby meteorites and turning them into molten lava that sprayed everywhere.

Some energy projectiles pierced through the barrage and struck the target warship.

A Kara frigate was hit by the Conqueror's main guns; its energy shield was pierced instantly, leaving a huge hole in its hull. The chain reaction of explosions inside the ship caused it to disintegrate in a violent blast, scattering into countless fragments in all directions.

(End of this chapter)