The Empire begins with the Fourth Scourge.

Chapter 2778 Thron's Counterattack

2777, Thrawn's Counterattack
In the Roch system, Thrawn's flagship appeared in the starry sky amidst a white flash. Not far ahead was the spaceport set up by the Galactic Empire, where a small squadron was stationed to guard this forward base.

Transport ships are constantly busy delivering large quantities of combat supplies, preparing to quickly resupply the main fleet after this operation is completed.

Senior Inquisitor Antilis Tremaine breathed a sigh of relief, but said with lingering fear, "That being... was terrifying! We should report this to His Majesty the Emperor immediately! The Milky Way... has seen another such mysterious and terrifying monster!"

“I agree that we should report to His Majesty the Emperor, but before that, we should return to Metaron immediately,” Thrall said in a deep voice.

Tremaine was shocked. "What are you thinking? You actually want to go back to Metaron? No! Don't you know how terrifying that being is? I'm completely powerless against it! What you should be doing now is using remote communication to command our remaining fleet to return here as quickly as possible, and then we can make further plans!"

But Thron shook his head firmly and said, "If that's the case, then we've really lost. Whether you go or not, I have to leave right now."

As he spoke, he strode confidently toward the door, "Transfer to another warship and return to Metaron immediately!"

"Yes, sir!" His adjutant immediately made arrangements via communicator while following Thoron's footsteps.

These subordinates who had followed Thrawn for a long time always had an unspoken understanding with him. They would not question any of Thrawn's decisions, no matter how absurd they seemed.

Whether it's brainwashing or personal charisma, this is Thrawn's method of controlling his subordinates, and one of the reasons for his invincibility.

Antilis Tremaine stamped his foot angrily, cursing as he followed. He knew that Thrawn had now become the Emperor's most trusted choice to turn the tide, and he absolutely could not watch him go to his death.

They quickly transferred to an Imperial-class Star Destroyer, whose hyperspace engines could be started immediately without the need for cooling cycles.

The starry sky outside the window once again transformed into countless bands of light in hyperspace. At this moment, Thrawn explained to the terrified Tremaine, "My journey here is not without reason. Even that mysterious and powerful being has limitations."

"What did you say?" Tremaine was stunned. "Such a powerful being, if he were actually standing in front of me, I'm afraid I wouldn't even be able to look him in the eye. Where do you get the audacity to talk about his limitations?"

Thrawn nodded. "First of all, he's not powerful enough to control all of us. Otherwise, we'd be fighting the Battle of Coruscant, or the battle to protect the entire civilization. Secondly, his control is limited in number and distance, and all things considered, it's limited by the total amount of energy he can use."

His fingers tapped lightly on the control panel as he continued, "Moreover, the warships he controls are located in key positions in my formation. Therefore, in the previous battle, his goal was not to control our entire fleet, but to break through our defenses and directly control me. This further demonstrates that he is not invincible, and he is also very wary of our fleet."

“No matter what, it’s still too risky!” Tremaine shook his head.

Even from their previous encounters, he had lost his courage and no longer had the urge to face such a powerful being.

“This is not a risk, but a logical deduction based on the actual situation,” Thron said calmly. “Of course, if that powerful man’s previous actions were just a deception to mislead me, then it means that his strength and wisdom have long surpassed the limits of my understanding.”

He turned to Tremaine and said, “If it really comes to that, I will face my defeat with equanimity. But please, once you are certain I am under control, kill me. I believe you should be able to hold out for longer.”

Thrawn's calm gaze affected Antilis Tremaine, who couldn't even sense Thrawn's fear through his Force perception. Tremaine was also impressed and finally stopped objecting, sighing and saying, "Then, I'll go with you to your death."

The band of light outside the porthole vanished instantly, and the war-torn cosmos reappeared.

Without hesitation, Thrawn immediately took action. He connected to the command system, announced his return to all the warships present, and confirmed the change of command flagship.

Antilis Tremaine, who was also examining the holographic battle map, suddenly exclaimed, "You're right, General Thrawn! Our fleet is still fighting!"

On the holographic war map, the Galactic Empire's fleet, though in disarray, was still a formidable force. The Imperial-class star destroyers at the heart of the fleet possessed powerful deflector shields and heavy armor. Even without command, they maintained their last line of defense through sheer will to survive and rigorous training.

In contrast, the combined fleet of the Fist of Orega and Zarin had suffered heavy losses in the previous battles, and by now, there were very few of their ragtag warships left. Although more than a dozen Imperial-class Star Destroyers had been captured and joined their ranks, this did not change the balance of power between the two sides!
Because in addition to the Imperial-class Star Destroyers, the Imperial fleet also has a large number of light cruisers and frigates! If these warships are commanded properly, they can still pose a deadly threat to the Star Destroyers.

Thron's judgment was correct!

“That’s right…that’s right! This powerful being is not omnipotent. His goal is to directly break into the core of our formation and control you before we can turn the tide!” Antilis-Triumph said loudly, his gaze towards Thrawn now filled with admiration.

An Imperial Inquisitor with powerful dark forces actually worships an ordinary person? If this had been said before, it would have been laughed out of the minds of the dark believers.

"Now, it's our turn to fight back!" Thrawn's gaze sharpened, and he waved his hand sharply, his loud and magnetic voice resounding throughout the fleet, "All ships, act on my command! Do not be intimidated by the enemy's strange power! We are the Galactic Empire Navy, and we pilot the most powerful war machines in the galaxy! Even gods will tremble before our technology and power! Now, attack!"

"attack!"

"attack!!"

"Attack!!!" countless Imperial Navy soldiers roared.

Everyone was aware of the dangers of the battlefield. The sight of warships joining the enemy ranks without warning filled everyone with dread.

When they discovered that Thrawn had fled, although many cursed him for deserting like those Imperial Navy officers, and that it was the ordinary soldiers who would suffer in the end, most soldiers chose to understand because they had felt Thrawn's daily care and attention towards them.

After all, only if Thrawn survives will there be a chance to continue fighting.

However, Thrawn returned! Not only did he return, but he also brought a squadron of reinforcements! Although this reinforcement was small in scale, it offset the losses caused by the mysterious enemy controlling the warships. To the Imperial Navy soldiers, Thrawn's return was an act of unwavering loyalty despite knowing the immense danger, a testament to his belief that even with a high rank, he would share hardships and fight alongside the lower-ranking soldiers!
Many soldiers, once on the battlefield, are truly ready to risk everything; they are not afraid of death itself. What they fear is dying meaninglessly, sacrificing their lives for those bloated, incompetent noble generals!

However, Thrall has now shown them with his actions that this time, even if it means sacrifice, it is absolutely worth it!

The Galactic Empire's navy suddenly unleashed an astonishing momentum, their will became even stronger, and their morale soared to an extreme, even frenzied level!

An unprecedented sense of unity erupted within the fleet, and what they didn't know was that, because of this, Orega's mind control had become much more difficult.

Thanks to Thrawn's swift and effective adjustments, the Imperial fleet quickly reorganized. Their previous formation was broken, but Thrawn quickly ordered the warships to form defensive formations on the spot, first to stabilize their position, and then to launch a counterattack.

Moreover, Thrawn commanded hundreds of escort ships to form a strike force and launched a desperate attack on the flagship of the Fist of Orega—the Divine Will-class destroyer! Under the siege of a large number of escort ships, even though the Divine Will-class destroyer, which was more than 2200 meters long, had thick armor and fierce firepower, it gradually became unable to resist.

Although it was clear that the enemy commander, after realizing that Thrawn had returned, attempted to launch another attack and even located Thrawn's new flagship with great accuracy.

However, Thrawn still saw through the enemy commander's actions completely, and this time, he gave the enemy no chance!

Less than an hour after Thrawn returned, although the two sides were still engaged in fierce fighting, the outcome of the battle was already decided.

However, at that very moment, a sudden change occurred!

Just as the fleet of the Fist of Orega was still putting up a stubborn resistance and the two sides had not yet completely determined the victor, a golden light suddenly appeared on the battlefield.

The moment that golden light appeared, the sensors on the Soron flagship immediately activated their alarms. This indicated that the golden light contained incredibly terrifying energy!

Beside Soron, the poor senior referee Tremaine was pale with fright.

Because he saw that the golden light was actually a golden fighter jet, and another powerful force was inside the fighter jet!

“Another one has come…” Tremaine said in a trembling voice.

"This fighter jet?" Soron looked at the fighter jet image on the sensor. He saw that the fighter jet was all gold, and its elegant forward-swept wings had a beautiful blue energy glow. He couldn't tell if it was a semi-transparent material or the result of being composed of light itself.

He pondered for a moment but didn't get an answer. "An unfamiliar model, no, I should say, an unfamiliar industrial style."

“It’s the person sitting inside the fighter jet.” Tremaine finally recovered and explained, “The person inside, his light side of the Force is so powerful that it makes me feel nauseous.”

"So, he's an enemy of that mysterious person who can control our warships?" Soron also saw that the golden fighter jet launched an attack on the Divine Will-class destroyer without hesitation.

"In my judgment, this person was clearly much weaker than the previous one. But he was still not a terrifying being I could even dream of reaching." Antilis Tremaine felt his worldview was about to collapse...

What's wrong with this galaxy? Why have two such powerful yet completely unfamiliar super-strong individuals appeared in just half a day?
Solon frowned as he watched the battle footage sent back from the front. The golden fighter jet moved through the fleet with incredible maneuverability, as if it were in an empty field. It also used the two beam weapons equipped at the front to fire precisely, each shot hitting the weak point of the Divine Will-class destroyer.

Although the effect seemed insignificant, the Divine Will-class destroyer was actually trying to evade it! Clearly, the attack was not as useless as it appeared.

What surprised Soron even more was that the performance of this fighter jet was almost unbelievable!

First, this fighter jet can actually make sharp-angle turns! Second, the beam weapon it fires, which is of unknown origin, can actually curve and track within a certain range!
Every aspect of this technology is beyond the comprehension of ordinary people! It even gave Thron a sense of absurdity.

Out of professional habit, he briefly simulated a scenario in his mind of his own side engaging in combat with such fighter jets, and he immediately concluded that there was no chance of victory. The two sides' technologies were simply not on the same level.

However, at least for now, this fighter jet is a friend, not an enemy.

Solon immediately issued the order, "All forces, charge! Concentrate your attack on the enemy's Divine Will-class destroyer!"

Given the current situation, there is no doubt that the other side is going to escape. It would be best to severely damage that Divine Will-class destroyer at this time.

As expected, the Divine Will-class destroyer activated its hyperspace engine without hesitation and quickly jumped into hyperspace to escape.

To Thrall's surprise, even though the flagship fled, the Fist of Orega and the other warships of the Zarin combined fleet did not panic at all. They continued to fight bravely and organized their retreat in an orderly manner.

Thrawn attempted to pursue the Divine Will-class destroyer, but ultimately failed. Even as a warship from the Clone Wars era, this flagship version of the Divine Will-class destroyer remained formidable in both firepower and defense. This was partly due to its modernization upgrades and partly because this type of warship was exclusively used as a flagship, its construction was naturally carried out to the highest standards.

The Imperial fleet under Thrall's command has just recovered from its previous setbacks and has begun to gain the upper hand, but it is still too early to sink this Divine Will-class ship.

The golden fighter jet was clearly unwilling to give up, continuing to fire wildly even as the Divine Will-class destroyer leaped into hyperspace. It circled several times before finally stopping, only to turn and fly towards Thrawn's flagship.

A communication came through, and a golden-armored warrior was projected onto the screen in front of Thrawn. He was clearly not human, but his noble demeanor and powerful strength were still evident.

A powerful voice rang out, "En taro Adun! Brave general, I am Phoenix. I have come to capture Olega!"