Sky-cracking Rider

"Command Center, the main force Light Wing Ships of the Rebel Army have been spotted, requesting permission to engage!"

Chen Fei had already taken down three Light Wing Ships, and naturally, the remaining one was his responsibility.

He wasn't foolish enough to make the same mistake twice; after a near-fatal collision, he wouldn't dare attempt another.

Heh, who knows!

"The intent of the Light Wing Ships is unclear, 'Rookie,' hold your position!"

However, the Defense Command Center didn't issue an order to move but instructed him to remain in place.

The operation of the Mechanical Dragon had already been covered by a memorandum of understanding from the Slan Dynasty through other channels, but the defensive forces at the Dimensional Gate Management Substation, belonging to Blue Star Sovereignty, hadn't received authorization to allow combat personnel to enter Slan Dynasty's territory and airspace. Being able to deploy armed unmanned drones was already the limit.

This meant that the defensive forces could only act in a defensive manner and were unable to support the attacking Chen Fei.

If the Dimensional Gate Management Substation could have acquired the relevant authorization, it would mean that the Blue Star Sovereignty's forces could continuously surge through the Dimensional Gate. The rebels in Nandu City would likely be wiped out in an instant, as worthless as chickens and dogs.

After all, no matter how you look at it, a mere continental rebel army could never stand against the entire Blue Star Sovereignty Coalition Forces.

Moreover, any Sovereignty that could set up a Dimensional Gate to connect to Cangqiong Star was undoubtedly formidable. Since a Dimensional Gate connecting two civilized planets was such a critical strategic node, the Slan Dynasty of Cangqiong Star naturally had reservations, as not giving up an inch of territory is the fundamental baseline for any nation.

"Alright then!"

Chen Fei, unwilling to give up, launched more than ten unmanned reconnaissance drones, including some even faster jet-powered ones.

However, they were successively shot down just outside the 40-kilometer radius of the first-level alert zone and didn't even come close to reaching the second-level alert zone.

The Rebel Army was almost impenetrably guarded against any foreign aircraft. Even without anti-air systems intercepting them, Rebel soldiers with high levels of archery skills could take down drones with Railgun Combat Rifles.

Under the cover of a large number of drones and "Sky Falcons," the last remaining main force Light Wing Ship of the Nandu City rebels was slowly and calmly approaching the Ground Portal Gate Management Substation.

It was at this moment that a fleet of Light Wing Ships appeared in the sky, not as reinforcements from the Slan Dynasty but as reinforcements for the Rebel Army.

These Light Wing Ships were not main force types but were escorted by two slightly smaller support type Light Wing Ships and a swarm of civilian Light Wing Ships, all bearing the Rebel Army's flag— the flag of the Tessa Empire.

Without a doubt, they were all enemies.

Having lost three main force Light Wing Ships, the Rebel Army had forcibly conscripted a batch of civilian Light Wing Ships to compensate, possibly even arming them with weaponry.

It seemed that the Rebels also had some clever figures, knowing how to make the best use of existing resources to organize a combat force that could be put to good use.

Missiles rose from the Dimensional Gate Management Substation, targeting the increasingly nearby cluster of Light Wing Ships. The Defense Commander was well aware that letting these unfamiliar Light Wing Ships get close would likely not lead to anything good.

He directly communicated with Chen Fei, who was on standby.

"'Rookie,' take out those Light Wing Ships with your mega cannon!"

The Defensive Command Center of the Dimensional Gate Management Substation was ultimately reluctant to send Chen Fei out on the Mechanical Dragon. After all, when that guy went berserk, even his own people were afraid, and the scene where he slid out of the cockpit like a lump of mud was truly terrifying.

The more reason they had to conserve his use, one slip and he could be gone.

Without this trump card, the Dimensional Gate Management Substation would be even more passive, as they now had only the means to be on the receiving end without their offensive capabilities.

As the missile cluster pounced on the cluster of Light Wing Ships, the latter naturally wouldn't just sit there to be hit. They used every means at their disposal— jamming bullets, intercepting missiles, kamikaze drones, and a protective "Sky Falcon" firepower net— to explode the incoming missiles midair and to avoid any Light Wing Ship being hit.

Civilian Light Wing Ships also had protective barriers and magic shields. Although at least a whole order of magnitude lower than military-grade, they could still withstand some of the attacks. However, once the defenses were overloaded, the ship's fate of being shot down or exploded in the air was inevitable.

"Received, 'Adam,' ascend to 600, go straight for those Light Wing Ships coming in from behind!"

The sneaky main force Light Wing Ship had been cautious all the way, and even at this moment, it hadn't reached the second-level alert zone. However, the other fleet of Light Wing Ships had recklessly entered the second-level alert zone and was less than 70 kilometers from the Ground Portal Management Substation.

The Combat Mobility Armor, in its floating mega cannon mode, slowly adjusted its barrel. The rail inside the electromagnetic track glowed slightly, followed by a huge whoosh as compressed air burst from various parts of the cannon body to compensate for the recoil and re-align the barrel. Even if it weren't floating and relied on the ground, it would face the same issue.

A 600mm Demolition Bomb, traveling at five times the speed of sound, roared out, followed by another. They were launched continuously at an interval of two seconds per bomb.

At this point, Chen Fei still hadn't fully recovered his combat strength and relied entirely on the artificial intelligence AI "Adam" for autonomous operations, including aiming and firing.

How could he not delight in taking down enemy targets just by moving his mouth? Even if others had the AI "Adam," they didn't have the industrial grade Metal Elemental Psychic Power that could evolve the Mechanical Dragon into a floating mega cannon.

The cluster of Light Wing Ships that arrived first, combined with the speed of the 600mm Demolition Bombs flying towards them, would make their first close encounter happen about 30 seconds after the Floating Mega Cannon's first shot.

In that time frame, at least fifteen shots could be continuously fired, thoroughly blocking the Light Wing Fleet's space to evade.

Although the Dimensional Gate Management Substation specifically allocated a batch of powerful "shells" to Chen Fei, he didn't use them this time. Those types of ammunition were more suitable for bombarding ground targets, where their killing efficiency would be higher.

By the time the two support-type Light Wing ships leading the armed civilian Light Wing ships attempted to scatter and avoid the approaching shells, it was already too late.

While the maneuverability of the Light Wing ships was superior to that of the Blue Star's Magic Cube Warships and Sky Patrol Ships, which each developed along separate technical lines, their superiority was limited.

After all, their size was set, not something they could evade just by wishing to.

Attempting to escape the barrage of railgun fire in such a short time was nothing less than a pipe dream.

Fireballs exploded one after another in the sky, as the Light Wing Fleet began to suffer the Justice Judgement of the 600mm Demolition Bombs, especially the two military support-type Light Wing ships, which received nearly one-third of the bombardment's special favor.

Compared to the Demolition Bombs, the civilian-grade protective barriers and Magic Shields proved to be somewhat frail.

One hit breached the defenses, two hits pierced the soul, and there was no need for a third. One civilian Light Wing Ship shattered mid-air and plummeted to the ground with flames and smoke trailing behind, especially its fragmented Light Wings, which scattered sparkles of light in the sunlight.

The Light Wing Fleet was not without the ability to counterattack; a large number of spells were released, creating a denser web of fire in the sky, much like fireworks.

Many shells were intercepted midway and exploded without even the chance to reach the Magic Shields or protective barriers.

In such a large-scale contest, if a Light Wing ship was downed, and the crew failed to mount their personal escape gear or board the escape pods in time, the result would be quite grim.

While the explosion's fire still hadn't dissipated, there were very few parachutes and escape pods drifting down or scattering, and many people were stunned into unconsciousness in the first moments, missing their precious chance to escape.

The two military support-type Light Wing ships craftily decelerated in an emergency and took cover behind the civilian Light Wing ships, using these armed civilian ships as shields; thus, they successfully dodged most of the bombardment.

Just Chen Fei's single mega cannon was far from enough. Other positions of the Dimensional Gate Management Substation also joined in the assistance shooting, with missiles, other railguns of the same type, and directed-energy weapons all in play.

"Pay attention to that main force model, it's accelerating!"

As the Light Wing Fleet drew the attention of the Ground Portal Gate Management Substation, the main force model Light Wing Ship with unclear intentions quietly passed the second level alert boundary and charged at full speed towards the first level alert circle. It would only need at most 5 minutes to reach the space above the Dimensional Gate Management Substation.

More missiles soared into the sky, making an all-out effort to intercept this ill-intentioned main force model Light Wing Ship.

The Rebel Army's remaining main force model Light Wing Ship pushed all its protective barriers and movable Magic Shields to the front, intending to withstand the anti-air intercept fire from the Dimensional Gate Management Substation.

"Are they attempting a diversion?"

Chen Fei looked at the Light Wing Fleet, continuously bombarded by the Floating Mega Cannon and then at the main force model Light Wing Ship, getting ever closer. The two were not in the same direction.

He guessed that the Light Wing Fleet, being pummeled into disarray, was providing cover for the main force model Light Wing Ship's movement.

"Boost the protective barrier strength to 100%!"

The Defensive Command Center began to announce.

Like Chen Fei,someone else had guessed what was happening and started to take precautions.

As long as the Rebel Army couldn't enter the range of the protective barriers, the Dimensional Gate Management Substation wouldn't be in danger of falling.

30 kilometers away.

Individuals with good eyesight could already see tiny black dots emerging on the horizon with their naked eyes.

The main force model Light Wing Ship, pushing its protective barrier and Magic Array, began exchanging blows with the Dimensional Gate Management Substation. The Rebels were desperately fighting, placing numerous spellcasters on deck, manually casting Magic Shields to the best of their ability to resist the attacks coming from the ground.

Human Order spellcasters could just about withstand the explosion of missiles with their Magic Shields, but the kinetic energy carried by the projectiles fired by railgun weapons could easily penetrate the Defense Magic of Earth Order spellcasters. Once the Magic Shields and other Defensive Magics collapsed, a mental shock was inevitable, causing some adverse reactions. If these reactions weren't addressed by rest, they would gradually accumulate and could even lead to irreversible damage.

It wasn't just the main force model Light Wing Ship and the ever-dwindling Light Wing Fleet— even the ground Rebel forces were furiously launching attacks. Thus, the battle evolved into a war of attrition, with each side holding the other at bay.

The intentions of the Rebel side became increasingly clear, and the truth was about to be unveiled.

When the main force model Light Wing Ship, already struggling, was just 23 kilometers from the Dimensional Gate Management Substation, it suddenly changed direction.

At that moment, someone noticed that the Light Wing Ship had dropped an unidentified object.

"Be careful! It's a high-powered tactical weapon!"