I changed the world.

Twelve space torpedoes were launched in succession. Simultaneously, the ship's railguns on both sides began charging. Unlike traditional gunpowder weapons, these weapons use electromagnetic acceleration to launch tungsten or depleted uranium alloy projectiles. Their range and firing speed are far greater than those of gunpowder weapons.

"2000 kilometers..."

"3000 kilometers..."

…………

"4500 kilometers..."

…………

"6000 kilometers..."

…………

"7000 kilometers, prepare for detonation..."

The distance between the two sides closed rapidly. Because the radar was severely jammed, the torpedoes used optical mode. As the explosion was about to occur, everyone on the fleet closed their eyes and shielded their eyes with their arms as a protective measure.

Fireballs then lit up in the distance...

....................................

On the beacon tower, Zhang Jing, who was still sitting cross-legged in the void, turned his gaze from that direction and shook his head slightly. The power of this space torpedo was indeed extremely great, even exceeding his imagination to some extent. To be honest, in terms of absolute destruction, even he could not withstand such a torpedo.

Zhang Jing was not clear about the mechanism of this weapon, but it seemed that he had underestimated the weapon systems developed by modern human civilization.

However, while its absolute destructive power is strong, it's useless if it doesn't hit the mark. Zhang Jing clearly saw that the fleet's second torpedo attack was obviously deceived by some illusions!

But the real danger was already close at hand...

As he pondered this, he turned his gaze back to himself.

Compared to the beginning, the area of ​​the array around him has shrunk by nearly a third. The Tai Chi formed by lightning and the surrounding chaos are grinding away like a millstone. Some strange shadows wander at the boundary between the two. However, if these shadows get too close, they may be dragged back by chains formed by the sudden surge of lightning. At this time, the tiger-dragon on Zhang Jing's shoulder has also been released. As long as a monster is dragged back by lightning, it will pounce on it and tear it to pieces!

Besides the area where Zhang Jing was located, the surrounding areas were already covered by that spider web-like structure. Zhang Jing could even see that in areas that the array could not reach, even greater changes were taking place. The boundary between the void and reality was gradually being eroded. The being hidden in the void was extending a considerable part of its body into the real world to project greater power.

Below Zhang Jing, a brief but fierce defensive battle had just ended, and some soldiers were cleaning up the battlefield. Zhang Jing noticed that some soldiers were even behind cover, their left hands clasped behind their right, seemingly bowing in his direction and muttering something. This was a typical Taoist ritual, symbolizing that all things carry yin and embrace yang, and it was often used in temple prayers.

The battlefield, a place of life and death, places immense physical and psychological pressure on soldiers, especially when they are facing bizarre creatures beyond their comprehension. Seeking solace in religion is therefore perfectly normal.

A strong vibration came from his knee. Zhang Jing withdrew his gaze and turned to the Heavenly Punishment Sword on his knee. The formation he was using at the moment was actually drawing on the power of the Heavenly Punishment Sword, which did not put much pressure on him. This was why he could still be so calm and composed.

Even now, he is consciously limiting the power within the Heavenly Punishment Sword, maintaining an overall state of being suppressed by the opponent. However, the Heavenly Punishment Sword clearly does not want to be suppressed indefinitely; Zhang Jing can feel the impatient clamor within the longsword.

"Wait a little longer..." Zhang Jing reached out and patted the long sword on his lap, squinting as he gazed at the chaos in the distance.

.............................................................................................

The distant firelight was gradually dimming, and the scorching heat, accompanied by electromagnetic pulses, swept across everything in front of them. The preliminary damage assessment had been completed, and the enemy targets that had appeared in the target area had disappeared without a trace.

This result thrilled many officers, including Deng Yuean, proving that human weapons were indeed highly destructive against these monsters!

Some officers already had smiles on their faces.

However, their smiles froze the next moment.

A series of piercing alarms rang out on the warships, and a large number of unidentified targets were once again detected. However, this time, they did not appear tens of thousands of kilometers away from the fleet, but rather in an area less than 50 kilometers from the edge of the fleet.

A swarm of monsters, resembling a swarm of bees, surged out at such close range and rushed towards the fleet!

Too close! Absolutely too close!

Deng Yue'an issued a series of orders, deploying the fleet to immediately engage in close-range defensive operations.

Chapter 593 A Sudden and Unexpected Attack

In the space age, this distance is practically face-to-face, having already breached all outer and even mid-range air defense zones, and directly entered the fleet's close-range air defense range.

At such close range, high-powered weapons like heavy electromagnetic pulse torpedoes become completely ineffective, and many other weapons become unusable before they even begin to be deployed. These excessively powerful weapons, used at such close range, would also cause damage to friendly ships.

The fully charged shipborne railgun began firing. This weapon, propelled by electromagnetic acceleration, possesses immense destructive power against physically formed enemies. However, this time, the attacking enemy seemed to lack a physical form, rendering the railgun's shells extremely ineffective against such adversaries.

In fact, for humanity today, especially for special agencies like the Fourth Division of the Special Crime Investigation Bureau of the Imperial Ministry of Justice, this is not the first time they have encountered such formless demons. However, for reasons of secrecy, this is indeed the first time that most of the fleet's crew members have encountered such an opponent.

Fortunately, when boarding the ships, Director Lee of the Fourth Division of the Special Crime Investigation Bureau suggested assigning some subordinates with "experience in special operations" to various ships. The idea was that in case special creatures boarded the ships, these people could strengthen the internal defenses of the starships.

This was originally a casual move, since if such a thing really happened, it would mean that the fleet's defense network had been completely breached and the entire fleet was on the verge of life and death.

However, at this moment, these people actually made a difference.

"Captain, please let me say a few words."

In the command tower of the destroyer "Lishan", Zhu Xuting was standing not far from Captain Huang Haizhong, observing the outside scene through the huge porthole of the command tower.

Upon boarding, he was assigned to the destroyer "Lishan". At that time, his other subordinates were arranged in the adjacent compartment, ready to provide support at any time.

Seeing what was happening outside the porthole, Zhu Xuting couldn't help but speak up: "We've faced similar demons before. These demons don't have a specific form, so physical weapons like gunpowder weapons aren't very effective against them. Instead, energy attacks like jets, flames, high heat, and magnetic storms might be more effective. I suggest you adjust your weapon types."

Captain Huang Haizhong was a very talkative person. He had chatted with Zhu Xuting for quite a long time along the way, partly out of politeness and partly out of curiosity, and was particularly interested in the experiences of Zhu Xuting and others in carrying out special missions.

Normally, everyone in the Fourth Division of the Special Crime Investigation Bureau is extremely cautious when discussing such topics. However, this time, due to the needs of the mission, they also need to urgently educate these previously ignorant fleet personnel on some knowledge that might save their lives in the future. Therefore, they did not hide anything and chose to talk about what they considered important.

Therefore, in the eyes of these fleet members, Zhu Xuting, a member of the "special department" who was full of mystery in their eyes, naturally became the so-called "professional".

Therefore, when he spoke up to remind him, Captain Huang Haizhong did not show much resistance and immediately adjusted the strategy, and a new order was subsequently issued.

Multiple rows of lasers positioned on the sides of the destroyer immediately activated, emitting several sword-like beams of light. At the same time, a dozen short, stout objects, resembling meteorites, were launched from the sides of the destroyer.

After these objects are ejected, the rocket engines at their tails ignite, propelling them further away...

Just as these meteor-like objects flew to a distance of about twenty kilometers from the fleet, they came into contact with the vanguard of the monsters. After a few breaths, a violent explosion occurred, and these meteor-like objects exploded violently.

The "Meteorite-2 Space Mine" is a highly controversial weapon because humanity has never directly participated in any real space warfare before; all weapons have been developed through exercises and simulations. Space mines like the one used in this instance fall into this category.

The space mines were designed to resemble meteorites. Their original purpose was to be placed near important enemy shipping lanes or ports. The meteorite shape allowed them to evade enemy observation, giving them the opportunity to approach enemy ships or important enemy space facilities, detonate, and destroy them.

However, this weapon, which has never been used in actual combat, has been considered a useless tool. The concept of this weapon originated from sea mines during the Age of Exploration. However, the space is countless times larger than the ocean and is much easier to observe. In wartime, if the enemy is on guard, these weapons disguised as meteorites may not have the opportunity to easily get close to the enemy. In fact, in the vast universe, the chance of even encountering the enemy is very slim.

Regardless, it was indeed deployed as a weapon on the destroyer, and at this moment, the captain of the Huanghai, who was familiar with all the weapons on his ship, made the most correct choice since the start of the battle!

Intense heat accompanied by an electromagnetic pulse erupted at a distance of approximately 2 kilometers from the destroyer, an extremely dangerous distance for a destroyer. While the destructive power of the space mine is not as great as that of the Flamingo II heavy electromagnetic pulse torpedo, which is used as a nuclear weapon, its explosive force is still considerable because its hypothetical targets are fully armed enemy warships and heavily fortified aviation infrastructure.

Especially at a distance of 25 kilometers, the warning lights inside the destroyer sounded an urgent alarm almost instantly after the explosion.

Just before the explosion, the destroyer Lishan, under the command of its captain Huang Haizhong, began emergency defense operations against the electromagnetic pulse.

The destroyer began rapidly releasing plasma from both sides of its hull; this plasma is a new type of material used to defend against electromagnetic pulses. When an electromagnetic pulse interacts with plasma, the plasma exhibits properties completely different from those of ordinary conductors or media.

Under certain conditions, plasma can reflect high-power microwaves and absorb electromagnetic pulses, making the microwave power transmitted into electronic equipment lower than the interference or damage threshold. When the incident angle of high-power microwaves changes, plasma can change the propagation direction of electromagnetic pulses, thus preventing damage to electronic equipment.

Even so, due to the extremely close proximity, some of the more sensitive electronic devices were inevitably damaged.

Chapter 594 High-Angle Maneuver

Alarms for damaged instruments blared throughout the ship, and all compartments were urgently assessing the damage. Meanwhile, damage control teams, wearing special patches, rushed into critical compartments to begin emergency repairs.

As it turned out, Captain Huang Haizhong's response at the critical moment was extremely effective. A large number of monsters on the side of the Lishan destroyer were severely damaged, and the large group of smaller monsters at the forefront were almost wiped out.

After only glancing at the results of the attack, and without even waiting for a damage assessment, the captain of the Huang Haizhong ship issued subsequent orders.

More than a dozen "Meteorite 2 Space Mines" were launched, and soon another round of explosions occurred!

However, on the other side of the fleet, the Changshan destroyer used more conventional close-in defense methods, with rapid-fire cannons and laser weapon systems attacking the incoming monsters. However, in terms of effectiveness, it was obviously much worse than the Lishan, with some monsters that had broken through the defense network already rushing to extremely close range.

At this moment, fleet commander Deng Yue'an also noticed the successful method of the Lishan and immediately informed all ships. However, the ships that relied on light communication received the signal with a certain delay. Although all ships adjusted their defensive strategies and launched a large number of space mines, the serious consequences had already occurred!

By this time, a few monsters had already broken through the fleet's air defense perimeter. If the garrison at the beacon tower were present, they would certainly be able to identify these monsters as the "ghosts" they had dealt with many times before.

The crew members were horrified to discover that these formless "ghosts" could penetrate the warship's thick armor as if they were nothing, rush into the ship's interior, grab any crew members they could find along the way, and then roar out from the other side of the ship.

At this time, the rest of the fleet often witnessed a horrific scene: a struggling human phantom being dragged through space by the monster, only to be torn apart and devoured. Then the monster would continue its second wave of attacks, searching for the next victim...

The fleet's internal defenses had also begun to operate, but they soon discovered that firearms were ineffective against these monsters. Bullets could penetrate these shapeless creatures without causing any damage; instead, firing a shot would attract their attention and make the user vulnerable to attack.

At this time, the personnel from the Special Crime Investigation Bureau's Fourth Division, who had been pre-positioned on the warship, played a significant role. Among their equipment was an enhanced version of the electromagnetic rifle. Compared to the few electromagnetic rifles equipped by the Earth Defense Force, their weapon had been specially modified, making it smaller and portable, while maintaining its power.

However, even so, when actually facing such a fast-moving monster that often suddenly bursts out from the bulkhead, leaving no time to react, the resulting casualties are still extremely terrifying!

"Don't stop! Keep firing, don't let them rush over!!!" Working with a subordinate, two electromagnetic rifles focused their fire, tearing apart a "ghost" that had almost reached them. Zhu Xuting turned his head and shouted loudly to the weapons operator beside him, whose body was trembling slightly.

The weapons operator's forehead was covered in sweat, but his hands continued the operation without stopping. Just then, another ghost rushed out from the bulkhead behind him!

This wasn't the direction the Lishan destroyer was facing. This ghost had probably broken through the defenses of other destroyers and circled around to the other side of the Lishan to launch its attack. However, discussing which friendly ship had "escaped" was pointless at this point. Caught off guard, the ghost's grappling hook swept across the weapons operator and then burst out from the other side of the destroyer's hull...

The weapons operator immediately collapsed onto the control panel, his face still showing a look of terror.

Fortunately, before the ghost could turn back after rushing out of the Lishan, it was captured by the laser on the Lishan and then burned up in mid-air.

Unfortunately, this was the second weapons operator to fall. Even so, a third weapons operator immediately stepped forward without a word to take over his comrade's work, and the body of the fallen weapons operator was placed beside him.

Strictly speaking, this was the first true interstellar war that humanity had ever faced.

The war had already reached its climax from the very beginning!

Fortunately, things seem to be developing in a positive direction. As the ghosts that broke through the lines were eliminated one by one, the monsters were showing signs of exhaustion under the continuous suppression of the surrounding electromagnetic pulses.

Of course, the fleet also paid a considerable price. In addition to the deaths of personnel, almost every warship suffered some degree of damage, which was an inevitable consequence of detonating space mines at close range.

Fortunately, as electromagnetic pulse attacks are a major means of interstellar warfare, current warships have considerable countermeasures against them, such as the use of shielding materials and the installation of filtering equipment, which makes the overall damage still within an acceptable range.

Inside the command tower of the Songyue, Deng Yue'an still looked solemnly at the scene outside the porthole.

Suddenly, he issued a new order: "Recalculate the spectral and magnetic field variation parameters of the surrounding area, pay attention to any special cases that exceed the average value, and report any anomalies to me immediately."