Chapter 51

Chapter 51: The Second Psionic Combat SkillAs the “Qinyuan” launched its attacks at sub-light speed, the rebel fleet also opened fire, unleashing their firepower on the pirate fleet without any hesitation.

The “thin-skinned, big-hearted” pirate warships exploded one after another. By the time the pirates realized what was happening, the “Qinyuan” was already circling around their fleet. Sᴇaʀch* Thᴇ NøᴠᴇlFire.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Caught in a pincer attack, the desperate pirates didn’t hold out for long. With the last cruiser destroyed by the “Qinyuan,” the real battle between the two sides began.

With its sub-light speed flight capability, the “Qinyuan” was invincible in small-scale fleet battles. When the battle ended, it was already an hour later.

After a hasty cleanup of the battlefield, Lin Zhichen piloted the warship towards the site of the main fleet battle. Originally, nearly a thousand starships were engaged, but by this time, only over seven hundred remained.

He didn’t continue to harass them. Instead, Lin Zhichen sat back and patrolled the starry expanse, preventing any sudden reinforcements, while waiting for both sides to exhaust themselves. This wish was finally realized after a full five hours—by then, the total number of warships left on the battlefield was no more than a hundred, and neither side showed any intention of stopping.

For these die-hard fighters who fought to the end, the “Qinyuan” showed no mercy, taking them down one by one until the last damaged rebel battleship desperately unleashed its firepower.

But it was futile. The battleship’s bulky hull granted it armor far thicker than other warships, but now, with its energy shields destroyed, it appeared quite pathetic, like a clumsy bear being tormented by the nimble “Qinyuan.”

Nimbly dodging the battleship’s bombardment, the “Qinyuan” maneuvered into a perfect firing position. The three electromagnetic cannons immediately launched a volley.

The electromagnetic projectiles shot out swiftly, striking the battleship’s rear engines. Although the hull was sturdy enough to withstand the impact, the destruction of the engines meant the projectiles were stopped by the ship’s compartments, unable to reach the energy chamber.

The battleship, now devoid of power, was like a sitting duck, posing no threat to the “Qinyuan.” The coil guns fired without hesitation, and after a dozen volleys of “point-blank shots,” the energy chamber was finally destroyed. In a brilliant energy explosion, the massive steel behemoth was torn apart.

“This is the first, but it won’t be the last!” Lin Zhichen finally smiled as he watched the burning giant. Casually collecting the spoils of war, he followed the usual practice: the first time sinking a ship of a certain class always yielded some extra rewards, like the blueprint before him.

“Battleship Blueprint!”

A hint of joy appeared on his face. The Onoban-class battleship, with a total length of 1.3 kilometers, was equipped with a particle light spear main cannon. Its high-energy concentration array could destroy several cruisers in a single strike!

This heavily armored giant ship, much like the battleships of World War I, boasted heavy armor and heavy firepower, possessing undeniable battlefield deterrence in space combat. Each dazzling beam it fired was enough to melt a small asteroid.

Compared to the rare flagship-class battleships and space carriers that relied on relatively fragile fighters, it was the mainstay of fleet battles!

Of course, it was impossible to construct it in a short time. The more powerful the warship, the more of a gold-devouring beast it became. The current Meteor Mercenary Group was not yet qualified to obtain it, but the time for its emergence wasn’t far off.

By this time, a full five to six hours had passed since the beginning.

Without any intention of lingering, Lin Zhichen quickly gathered the spoils of war, and the “Qinyuan” swiftly jumped through space towards the solar system—the cargo hold was once again filled with loot.

The drop rate from NPC skirmishes was much lower than the normal monster drop rate, but the sheer number of warships on both sides made the acquired loot quite substantial.

This time, aside from selling the spoils, which could bring in about 800 to 900 energy credits, there were also blueprints for a dozen or so frigates and destroyers.

However, no amount of loot could compare to what he had truly gained.

After multiple intense battles, especially after destroying a battleship, his sub-light speed assault finally broke through to the master level, beginning its transformation into a psionic combat skill.

“Name: Lin Zhichen · Elite (Red)

Gender: Male

Age: 21

Talents: 1: Heaven Rewards Diligence (Purple): Effect 1: Effort brings rewards; skill practice leads to improvement. Effect 2: Members within the faction benefit from this talent.

2: Gate of Time and Space (Blue): Opens once a month, searches for time-space imprints, and opens temporary instances.

3: Psionic (Red): Effect 1: Awakens psionic abilities. Effect 2: Skill learning speed +10%.

Occupation: Captain · Elite (Red, Apprentice)

Skills: 1: Psionic Cultivation (Red, Warrior 37.14%)

2: Lethal Strike (Red, Beginner 33.54%): Critical hit +2%

Psionic Combat Skills: 1: Ship Command · Elite (Red): Effect 1: Ship evasion +25%*10 Effect 2: Sub-light speed travel speed +25%*10; Psionic Consumption: 50; Duration: 30 min

2: Sub-light Speed Assault · Elite (Red): Effect 1: Sub-light speed bombardment accuracy +25%*10 Effect 2: Sub-light speed bombardment damage +25%*10; Psionic Consumption: 60; Duration: 30 min

Psionic Energy: 312

Evaluation: Witness my celestial might!”

“The second psionic skill!” Lin Zhichen exhaled, a smile appearing on his face.

After transforming it into a psionic skill, he could feel a more refined mastery over the sub-light speed assault. With a mere thought, the “Qinyuan” turned into a beam of light, and he began testing the speed he could now perfectly control.

1.2km/s

1.8km/s

2.5km/s

…

3.1km/s

4.6km/s

…

12.5km/s！

It wasn’t until 12.5 km/s that Lin Zhichen felt the pressure. At this point, his psionic perception and mental computation speed were nearly at their limits.

Simply by transforming it into a psionic skill, the sub-light speed assault’s speed increased from 1.2 km/s to 12.5 km/s!

What benefits did the increased assault speed bring?

It meant that the “Qinyuan” could now maintain a running and gunning speed of 12.5 km/s, up from 1.2 km/s, while keeping the same firing frequency.

When encountering enemy fleet lock-ons, the faster the speed, the lower the probability of being locked on by shipborne electronic control systems, making it safer.

The psionic transformation of the sub-light speed assault brought a qualitative leap to this skill.

Satisfied, Lin Zhichen made a few circles in space, shaking off the pursuit of two NPC fleets. He then piloted the “Qinyuan” back to the solar system once again.

“Big brother, how did it go? Did the pirate faction and the rebel faction determine a winner?” Lin Ke asked. He hadn’t accompanied Lin Zhichen on this trip to the Dakan star system.

“No, they’re still fighting. It looks like they won’t determine a winner anytime soon,” Lin Zhichen shook his head. “That’s a good thing. You can fish in troubled waters.”

However, he felt some pressure in his heart. Despite the prolonged fleet battle, the number of main fleet ships in both factions hadn’t decreased, indicating how many warships each faction gained per refresh cycle.

This was unequivocally bad news, meaning that the number and scale of NPC bases in this star region far exceeded his expectations. When he had to face them in the future, the pressure would be even greater.