241: Chapter 241 Dawn Team in Positions! Lu Chen Finalizes Blueprint Transaction

Day 70, 8:37 PM.

Cockpit.

The radar scanning line on the panel rotated round after round.

To the south, three stable light points had stopped five kilometers away. Iron Spear, Starbreaker, and Lava—three lv.3 fortress-class Mobile Cities—were spaced two kilometers apart, facing north in a fan formation. Their positioning was complete.

From entering the radar at 3:47 PM to coming to a halt at 6:00 PM, the lead formation took over two hours to complete their deployment.

Lu Chen stared at the cluster of light points on the south side of the panel, waiting for new signals to emerge.

8:37 PM.

The scanning line swept past two degrees west of true south.

Two new light points appeared simultaneously on the eight-kilometer boundary.

The signal strength was a notch fuller than that of the three Lv.3s in the lead formation.

"The main force is here." Zhou Yuan stood straight up from his chair.

Lu Chen didn't move, staring at the signal strength readings.

Two light points, one in front and one behind, spaced about five kilometers apart.

The signal cross-section of the one in front was slightly smaller, while the one behind was nearly double the size.

"The one in front is the Observer, and the one behind is the Furnace." Zhou Yuan compared them against the formation sequence list. "Two Lv.4s; it matches the organization Forge gave us."

"What about Dawn?" Zhao Tiezhu asked.

"Bringing up the rear twenty kilometers back," Lu Chen interjected. "No matter how large a Lv.5's radar cross-section is, it won't be scanned from twenty-eight kilometers away."

The scanning line rotated once more.

The two Lv.4 light points advanced steadily, their signal strength continuing to rise.

"Cheng Zheng." Lu Chen pressed the direct communication button.

"Present."

"Your main formation has entered my radar. Two Lv.4s, two degrees west of true south, at the eight-kilometer boundary."

"Received." Cheng Zheng replied quickly from the other end. "The Furnace and the Observer are expected to be in position ten kilometers behind us in forty minutes."

"And Dawn?"

"Dawn is twenty kilometers behind the Furnace; it will arrive in another hour and a half."

"Good." Lu Chen noted the time. "Once the entire main force is in position, I want to speak directly with Forge."

"Forge is on the Furnace," Cheng Zheng answered briskly. "Once in position, he will switch into this direct frequency."

"Good."

Communication switched back to standby.

Lu Chen leaned back in his chair, his finger tapping twice on the edge of the desk.

9:15 PM.

The two Lv.4 light points stopped thirteen kilometers to the south, just outside the edge of the eight-kilometer radar range.

But the signal strength was still readable.

A Lv.4's radar cross-section was large enough that Polaris's eight-kilometer radar could capture faint echoes even at thirteen kilometers.

"They're in position," Zhou Yuan confirmed.

Lu Chen nodded.

Another twenty minutes passed.

The communicator vibrated.

42.7 MHz, a military encrypted frequency band.

It wasn't Cheng Zheng's voiceprint.

Lu Chen pressed answer.

"City Lord Lu."

It was a middle-aged male voice, speaking at a moderate pace, every word carrying weight.

"Forge," Lu Chen said the name.

"The first time we've spoken directly." Forge chuckled on the other end. "Before, I always had Zhou Yuan and Cheng Zheng run errands; I've inconvenienced you."

"No inconvenience." He didn't bother with pleasantries. "Is everyone here?"

"Everyone is here. Six cities, traveled four hundred and eighty kilometers from the Iron Curtain Frozen Sea, and not a single one fell behind."

"Good." He brought the conversation directly to the main point. "Forge, I want the blueprint list."

The other end didn't respond immediately.

"Cheng Zheng passed it on." Forge's tone didn't change. "You want to see the list first before deciding on Polaris's specific role."

"Correct."

"City Lord Lu, is this matter urgent?"

"It is." Lu Chen revealed his bottom line. "The Degradation window is on the night of the seventy-third day. Once Degradation is finished, I'll have an extra thirty thousand Truth Points in my hands. How those thirty thousand points are spent depends on what blueprints you give me."

"Thirty thousand points." Forge repeated the number. "What do you plan to invest in?"

"A 155mm Electromagnetic Acceleration Railway Gun," Lu Chen said plainly. "Ten thousand points. Plus a Radiation-proof Lead-lined Inner Shell for seven thousand points, and a Gas Turbine Generator Set for ten thousand points. Three major components, twenty-seven thousand points."

"A railway gun." Forge's tone rose half an octave. "Do you know the range of that thing?"

"I don't." Lu Chen answered candidly. "The technology tree only gave the name and points; the performance parameters only appear after unlocking. But with 'Electromagnetic Acceleration' in the name, the range won't be less than twenty kilometers."

"Above twenty kilometers," Forge added. "The 300mm Siege Cannon on our Furnace has an effective range of twenty-five kilometers. If your railway gun can truly achieve electromagnetic acceleration, its theoretical range should be between thirty to forty kilometers."

Thirty to forty kilometers.

The hand Lu Chen used to hold his pen paused for half a second.

"This is that 'bigger gun' you mentioned." Forge spoke plainly. "Iron Hoof's crusher is Lv.5, with front armor thickness exceeding eight hundred millimeters. If my 300mm Siege Cannon hits it, it can tear the outer layer but can't penetrate the core cabin. If your railway gun can achieve electromagnetic acceleration, its kinetic energy penetration depth will far exceed that of chemical energy artillery."

"So you need my gun." Lu Chen stripped away everything to the core interest.

"Yes." Forge didn't deny it. "The ultimate goal of the Joint Strike is to paralyze Iron Hoof's crusher. If we can't paralyze that Lv.5, even a victory would be a pyrrhic one."

"Then what about the blueprint list?"

"I'll give you three choices." Forge's speaking speed quickened slightly. "First, five Lv.3 weapon system blueprints, with an estimated yield of eight thousand to twelve thousand Truth Points after Degradation. Second, two Lv.4 power system core blueprints, with an estimated yield of fifteen thousand to twenty thousand points after Degradation. Third, an original data chip from a pre-civilization military research institute; the content is undecrypted and the Degradation yield is unknown, but the Furnace's database shows its information density is extremely high."

Lu Chen noted the three options on paper.

"The second option." He didn't hesitate.

"Lv.4 power system core blueprints." Forge repeated. "Two of them. One is a complete design for a High-pressure Steam Turbine Set, and the other is the theoretical framework for a Sourcefire Coal Crystal Fission Reactor."

"Degradation yield of fifteen to twenty thousand."

"Yes. A conservative estimate."

"When will they be handed over?"

"After the battle is over." Forge set a firm deadline. "Once Polaris has completed its agreed-upon role in the Joint Strike, they will be handed over on the spot."

"What is the agreed-upon role?"

"Initial contact." Forge spoke plainly. "When Iron Hoof's main force pushes over, Polaris will act as the first trigger line. Your radar will lock onto targets and feed the coordinates to Cheng Zheng's three Lv.3s. Once Iron Hoof's formation is exposed, my main formation will bite in from the flank. The time you need to hold out—from Iron Hoof's first shot until my main formation enters range—will be no more than forty minutes at most."

"Forty minutes."

"Forty minutes." Forge repeated. "Don't try to tank concentrated fire for forty minutes. Iron Hoof's first round of fire will hit The City-State. You only need to keep your radar running and feed data while The City-State takes the hits. Within forty minutes, Cheng Zheng's cannons will be able to cover Iron Hoof's vanguard."

Lu Chen held the tip of his pen over the paper.

Forty minutes.

During the forty minutes The City-State was under fire, Polaris would hunker down in The City-State's shadow and feed data.

This job... he could do it.

"Forge."

"Present."

"I'll take the forty minutes. But there's a prerequisite."

"Speak."

"During Degradation, Polaris will be stationary and immobilized. If Iron Hoof pushes over while I'm decomposing, your lead formation must step up."

"How long for Degradation?"

"Three to four hours."

"Three to four hours." Forge was silent for a moment on the other end. "Polaris loses mobility during Degradation, making it effectively a sitting duck. You want my three Lv.3s to act as your shield during this period."

"Correct."

"Very well," Forge answered decisively. "But there's a condition."

"Name it."

"Once Degradation is complete, the railway gun must be online within two hours."

Lu Chen quickly ran through the process in his mind.

Degradation finishes, Truth Points are credited, the railway gun node is unlocked, and the system executes the physical modification.

Based on previous experience with Lv.3 nodes, major weapon systems usually required fifteen to thirty minutes for modification.

"One hour." He gave a tighter number. "One hour after Degradation is complete, the railway gun goes online."

"One hour." Forge agreed readily. "Deal."

"Deal."

"City Lord Lu." Forge added one last thing. "Get a good night's sleep tonight. The days ahead won't be easy."

"You too."

The communication was cut.

Lu Chen set the communicator back on the desk and leaned into his iron chair.

Neither Zhou Yuan nor Zhao Tiezhu made a sound, waiting for him to speak.

"You heard it." He flipped open his notebook and wrote a few lines on a new page.

Joint Strike Role Confirmation: Initial contact, feed data, hold for forty minutes.

During Degradation: Lead formation's three Lv.3s act as shields.

Participation Reward: Two Lv.4 power system core blueprints, handed over on the spot after the battle.

Railway Gun Online Deadline: One hour after Degradation completion.

He slapped the pen onto the desk.

"Zhou Yuan."

"Present."

"Send out tonight's bulletin as usual. Add one line: All six cities of Dawn are in position, and the Joint Strike has entered standby status."

"Understood."

"Zhao Tiezhu."

"Present."

"From now on, all four Phalanx CIWS systems are to switch to hot standby. Start charging the Ray Cannon; it should be fully charged in forty-five minutes."

"And after it's fully charged?"

"Keep it at full power." Lu Chen stared at the empty sector on the north side of the panel. "When a signal pops up in the north, that's when the countdown to war begins."

Zhao Tiezhu stood up and strode toward the door.

At the door, he paused for a moment.

"City Lord."

"Speak."

"Forty minutes... it's enough."

He pushed the door open and left.

Only Lu Chen and Zhou Yuan remained in the Cockpit.

Zhou Yuan pulled his chair to the panel and sat down, staring at the radar scanning line.

"City Lord, you really should get some sleep."

"Wait for a signal from the north."

"What if one doesn't appear tonight?"

"Then we wait until it does."

Lu Chen picked up his thermos and tilted his head back for a gulp.

Plain water, chilled to the core.

On the panel, the six light points to the south glowed steadily.

To the north, it was still empty.