I built an armada.

Chapter 886 Might Makes Perfect; If You Don't Back Down, Let's Fight.

Even though everyone was just as furious as Douglas, no one joined in the cursing.

Just then, the communications officer urgently reported: "Captain, come and take a look, we have received a call from an unknown number."

"An unknown call? Who sent it? Did you decipher it?" Douglas frowned, puzzled.

The communications officer quickly reported, "Captain, we are deciphering it."

At that moment, the entire main control room of the USS Condor fell silent, everyone waiting for the communications officer to decipher the contents of the message.

A moment later, the communications officer reported again: "Reporting to the captain, it's from the Longxia Navy's front-line fleet."

Longxia Navy?

These words sent a chill down Douglas's spine. He felt a sudden shiver run from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. At this point in time, this was the last thing he wanted to mention.

Just what I feared most came true. I was worried that I would suddenly be wiped out by the Dragon Xia Navy and reduced to the second-best of the Enterprise carrier fleet.

At this critical juncture, if an attack were to occur, he would be left with no choice but to rely on the USS Condor carrier fleet itself to fight back, as there would be no reinforcements to look forward to.

The garrison base could not provide support, nor could the USS Enterprise provide support. As for the USS Carl carrier fleet, they had already sent their air wing to support the USS Enterprise.

It's probably unrealistic to expect the USS Carl to launch another batch of carrier-based aircraft to provide support.

A batch of carrier-based aircraft have already left, and apart from those needed for fleet patrol and surveillance missions, there are probably not many carrier-based aircraft available to perform support missions.

Furthermore, even if the USS Carl carrier strike group could squeeze in enough support to provide a carrier air wing, it would still take a considerable amount of time from mobilizing the carrier-based aircraft to taking off and carrying out the support mission.

Douglas had carefully considered the plan, but the time allotted was already several minutes. How many carrier-based aircraft could he ultimately provide support?

I doubt there are more than thirty aircraft at most, right? Faced with the overwhelming attack of the Longxia Navy fleet, those wouldn't even be enough to fill a tooth gap.

If another aerial interception were to occur, those carrier-based aircraft would be even less effective.

While awaiting reinforcements, Douglas still felt he was following in Willis's footsteps, gradually approaching death amidst hope, with no way to reverse the situation.

Thinking of Willis's current predicament, Douglas couldn't help but shudder!

"We still have no idea what Willis's current situation is. We can only pray that he is safe and sound."

Douglas let out a long sigh and said helplessly, "Fuck, what's going on? We're supposed to be on the offensive, but we've ended up on the defensive!"

Actually, he just hopes that he can have a better ending and not end up with his entire army wiped out.

The key issue is that he still doesn't understand why the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier fleet, which can roam freely in other seas of the Blue Star, repeatedly runs into obstacles when facing the Longxia Navy in the Eastern Continent seas.

Now, both of our aircraft carrier fleets are in unprecedented crisis, reduced to the point where they have to pray for God's blessing. It's incredibly embarrassing to think about.

Seeing that Douglas hadn't moved for a while, the vice-captain shook his head helplessly, stepped forward and gently tugged at his arm, whispering, "Captain, the coded message from the Dragonxia Navy has been deciphered."

Douglas then came to his senses and looked at the communications soldier, asking, "What did they say?"

"Reporting to the captain, Captain Cao of the Longxia Navy's front-line fleet has ordered us to halt our advance and remain in place."

“If we continue to advance, they will launch an attack on us.”

The communications soldier, his face full of displeasure, gritted his teeth and began to report. How dare they be threatened by the people of Longxia!

It was bad enough that we were attacked by their ballistic missiles before, but now they're going even further!

"Did they really say that? That we should stay put?"

Douglas was visibly taken aback, somewhat incredulous, before changing the subject, "Damn Longxia people, they're not giving us any face at all! They told me to stand by, so I just stood by? Do they have any shame?"

"If I can't get to the battlefield within the allotted time, I'll be court-martialed, those bastards!"

Despite his complaints and venting of his dissatisfaction, he knew very well that once the other side launched an attack, they would inevitably suffer unprecedented and enormous losses after two rounds.

Seeing this, the vice-captain hurriedly reminded him, "Captain, please calm down. This is not the time to act rashly. Let's communicate with them first and see how things go before making a decision."

Douglas looked puzzled, not understanding why the vice-captain was so good-natured and chose to compromise.

"Captain, our situation is not good right now. If we don't figure out the situation, and they ambushed us halfway through the journey just like they did with the air wing that supported the USS Enterprise, the consequences would be unimaginable."

"Therefore, we should still be cautious."

At this point, the vice-captain suddenly narrowed his eyes slightly. "We are currently at a disadvantage. As the saying goes, when you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head."

After this reminder, the confused Douglas's eyes instantly became incredibly clear.

Their current environment is indeed extremely harsh, far from what it was like before the attack on the USS Condor. The carrier fleet's combat power has been reduced by at least half.

If they could still attack before, now they can only defend, at least until the Longxia Navy's front-line fleet is discovered.

The maritime conflict that is now taking place in the waters around Dongzhou has completely reversed, becoming their place of tribulation.

Willis didn't know how he got to where he was, but he knew very well that if he remained arrogant and ignorant, still thinking he was the best in the world, then he would probably face the danger of total annihilation.

After some deep thought, Douglas finally suppressed his anger and said in a calm tone, "Then contact them. I want to speak with them."

"Yes, Captain." The communications officer immediately sprang into action and established bilateral communication in no time. "Captain, communication has been established with the Longxia Navy's frontline fleet."

Douglas immediately stepped forward and said directly, "Hello, I am Captain Douglas of the USS Condor."

"Hello, Captain Douglas, this is Cao Youren, captain of the Longxia Navy's 10,000-ton destroyer. It's a pleasure to speak with you." Even though there was an armed conflict between the two sides, the necessary etiquette should still be observed when communicating, Cao Youren replied calmly, to show that the Longxia tribe was a land of etiquette.

At the same time, this also highlights the need for civilization and manners among the descendants of pirates like the Eagle Tribe, who are rife with barbarity and killing.

Douglas was only being polite because he was forced to.

"Captain Cao, I have received your coded message, but please forgive me for being unable to comply. My orders are to proceed to the battlefield to support the Enterprise carrier fleet."

"This is a direct order from above. I'm just the captain of the aircraft carrier, and I can't change it. After all, disobeying orders on the battlefield is no joke, and I hope you can understand."

Douglas's words did not surprise Cao Youren in the slightest, so he was naturally not in a hurry.

"Disobeying orders on the battlefield is indeed a serious crime, but that's your business."

Cao Youren calmly reminded him, "But I also need to remind you, are you clear about the current situation on the battlefield?"

Douglas frowned, but had to grit his teeth and say, "I don't know, please enlighten me, Captain Cao."

"You may not know this, but the Enterprise carrier fleet you are about to support has reached a ceasefire agreement with our navy on behalf of the entire fleet, and both sides are maintaining friendship and peace."

"Of course, you can doubt the truth of the matter, and I give you that right to ask your superiors, whether it's the military base or the Pacific Naval Command."

"I think you'll come to a conclusion soon. Therefore, whether you go there or not is no longer of any real significance."

Cao Youren paused briefly at this point, giving the other party enough time to process these explosive news.

Next, Cao Youren began to recount his story, without a trace of emotion, simply stating a fact.

In fact, he prefers to do practical things rather than negotiate.

"I also need to tell you something else: the Enterprise carrier strike group no longer has any air defense and anti-missile interceptors. It's like a piece of meat in our mouths; we can eat it whenever we want."

Do you think you can change this situation if you get there?

Cao Youren then launched into a long explanation, "By the way, the anti-ship ballistic missiles we launched earlier have already crippled your Vulture aircraft carrier. If you don't mind, we can launch another one until the Vulture is completely sent to the bottom of the sea."

Upon hearing these words, Douglas's expression instantly changed.

Holy crap, another one of those anti-ship ballistic missiles is coming. This is clearly not going to let him live any longer. If the next one hits the island superstructure directly, they're all doomed.

Thinking about how he had just escaped death, Douglas was furious. "Damn it, he's so unethical! He's threatening me now! I'm so angry!"
Before Douglas could speak, Cao Youren's voice came through the communicator: "I've calculated it for you. You used up a lot of anti-aircraft and anti-missile interceptor missiles when you intercepted the Yunfan II anti-ship ballistic missile, right?"

"How much ammunition do you have left? Do you have half of what you had before? But I want to tell you that we still have more than enough anti-ship missiles, enough to consume all the air defense and anti-missile interceptors you have."

"Even if you have reinforcements and can intercept the next round of saturation attacks, what will you do in the second round? Can you withstand our attacks?"

Upon hearing these words, Douglas felt his head buzzing. The USS Condor only had so many auxiliary ships. In the second round, without reinforcements, its fate would probably be dire.

Even though he was furious, he had nowhere to vent his anger. He couldn't very well yell, "Come on, you bastard, let's fight!"
“Mr. Douglas, I know that what I just said made you feel bad, but it is the truth.”

"I can also tell you that this combat plan has been tested on the Enterprise carrier fleet, and it has proven to be very effective. By the second round, your air defense and anti-missile interceptor missiles will be exhausted, and then you will be at our mercy."

"In that battle, we sank nine warships and severely damaged one, and we did so without completely destroying the Enterprise carrier fleet."

"But our orders to you are to prevent you from going to the war zone. If you disobey, we will annihilate you at all costs!"

Cao Youren's words were full of threat, leaving Douglas speechless. He now fully understood the tragic situation of the USS Enterprise.

Nearly ten warships were lost in total, no wonder the USS Enterprise was so anxious to call for support.

But when it's their turn next, where will the reinforcements come from? Their fate will probably be even worse than that of the Enterprise carrier fleet.

"Alright, I won't ramble on anymore. I'll give you three minutes to think it over carefully."

"If you continue to act recklessly after three points, we will directly start a war and show you how terrible your fate will be."

"At that point, it won't be a matter of skill or ability, but a matter of life and death! The choice is yours—to live or to die!"

After saying this, Cao Youren decisively cut off communication between the two sides. He had said everything he should and shouldn't have said. Now, the choice of whether to fight or make peace was up to Douglas.

Inside the main control room of the 10,000-ton destroyer, Cao Youren watched the reconnaissance aircraft on the radar display, its position constantly changing. It was getting closer and closer, and had clearly crossed the previously set red line of 120 kilometers to shoot down the target.

The reason why the order to open fire and shoot it down has not yet been given is simply to give the other side a choice.

"Captain, the enemy reconnaissance plane is only 116 kilometers away from our position. Should we shoot it down?" the vice-captain couldn't help but remind him.

Cao Youren shook his head slightly and said, "The situation has changed. Let's ignore them for now and focus on stopping the Condor carrier fleet."

"The reconnaissance aircraft will monitor the entire process and lock onto the target. We can shoot it down at any time."

After a slight pause, Cao Youren continued, "Wait three more minutes, and whether or not we shoot it down will depend entirely on Douglas's attitude."

(End of this chapter)