Chapter 166 The Attack of the Earth Alliance_1
Earth Alliance, Combat Command Hall.
Everyone was silently watching, their eyes filled with grief and anger, as well as resolve and determination.
They had been through so much, the current predicament could not destroy their faith; it only left them with too much unwillingness to accept defeat.
Military Advisory Group: "Commander, the desperate assault plan has failed. It's proven that we underestimated the Moon Base, and we paid the price for our own arrogance.
"Furthermore, the self-destruction of the Moon Starport definitely involves some conspiracy. We speculate that this might align with the true nature of our 'Scatter Star' plan. It's possible that the Moon Base was also implementing a space torpedo plan.
"With the enemy aware and on guard, our 'Scatter Star' plan, intended for the defensive phase, might not be effective anymore. We can't defeat the enemy with the enemy's own tactics.
"Is there still a need for the turrets in our spaceport to continue the attack?"
Ye Chen: "Victory in war can be categorized into three levels: tactical victory, strategic victory, and political victory.
"The failure of the desperate assault indicates that we have initially failed tactically. The enemy's exquisite tactical arrangement granted them a temporary victory, which is worth our attention and learning.
"You are looking at a tactical defeat and feeling downcast, but I am quite pleased. Because strategically, we have already won."
Military Advisory Group: "Why is that? We are at an absolute disadvantage in terms of military strength."
Ye Chen: "Whether we look at military strength or the clever use of tactics, we are far behind the Moon Base, or rather, their commander.
"But from a different perspective, regarding the nature of the war for both sides, they disguised authority-level warships from 40 years ago as emperor-level ones, meaning they've been preparing for this war for 40 years.
"We believe in being always ready. The enemy prepared for 40 years, and how long have we been preparing? It's normal to fail tactically.
"But they've overlooked something. War is not about defeating the enemy on a tactical level. The key is to understand the opponent's strategy and political intentions through the war.
"To be the political winner, there are too many historical examples where one has won the war but lost the state.
"Their premature exposure of their strategy and political intentions, preparing for 40 years for a war they must win, tell me, what is that for?"
Military Advisory Group: "Commander, do you mean that the Moon Base doesn't intend to completely conquer us?
"Their intentions could be twofold. One is to engage in peace talks between Earth and Moon, to maintain competition and a relatively peaceful relationship, and ultimately we both face the threat of the Trisolarans together.
"However, once we escape the predicament, we could still launch a surprise attack on them. Long-term standoffs often end with the total destruction of one side, so it's very likely they won't choose this.
"The other is to merge with us, establishing a new alliance, which they would lead. This must be their real strategic and political intention.
"Strategically, our greatest advantage is not being afraid of failure. No matter how many times we fail, we can always start over, but for the Moon, one failure is enough."
Ye Chen: "Your analysis is correct on a rational level, but have you thought about what Lin Sen's purpose is in doing all this?
"If they wanted to merge Earth and Moon, all they would need to do is show their force, and we would have to submit. His real intention is to keep us in a state of competition and relative peace.
"None of us knows how long such a relationship can last, but only this kind of relationship is most favorable for dealing with the Trisolaran civilization a hundred years from now.
"Lin Sen's enemy has perhaps never been us. We've been overlooked by them.
"So we must prove that we deserve to be regarded by them as equals. The original attack plan remains unchanged."
Military Advisory Group: "Yes, Commander!"
...
Moon Base Command, Holographic Projection Combat Command Hall.
Moon Military Advisory Group: "Commander, the 'Dandelion' Plan has been a complete success, we've managed to annihilate half of the Earth Alliance's Thunderstrike Fleet using only the decoy fleet.
"Originally, we had also prepared the Anti-Slope Plan, but it seems now, as with the Space Mines Plan, there's no need for it.
"The remaining Thunderstrike Fleet, due to their excessive speed and inability to decelerate, are destined to become space coffins. We plan to carry out destructive asteroid interception in the asteroid belt.
"At the same time, the rescue operation for the escape pods of the Thunderstrike Fleet has already begun."
Before the war, Xiang Gaofeng didn't know from where the Earth Alliance's attack would come, but he had decades to prepare.
He had prepared many plans for this, and even without the support from the Trisolaran's Sophons, the Earth Alliance would still stand no chance in this battle, and it would be difficult to even force the Moon Base to use their 10th generation warships.
Xiang Gaofeng: "Your arrangements are excellent!
"Since the Earth Alliance has chosen war, then we will give them war!
"Initiate the Anti-Slope attack!"
...
Meanwhile, in the Earth Alliance Spaceport, several hangar doors opened, revealing enormous gun barrels, brimming with a dark and deathly aura.
The tense yet orderly adjustment work on the gun barrels was completed. With the issuance of commands, auxiliary systems and weapon firing mechanisms began to operate.
Suddenly, a dark beam appeared in front of the huge gun barrels, seemingly causing space itself to distort.
Since the dispersion of the ultra-high energy laser beam was minimal, from a distance, it was impossible to see the brilliant light emitted instantaneously from the gun barrels. The dark beams were only visible against the backdrop of Earth.
Sixty energy beams cut through the darkness of space, speeding towards the Starports on Mars, Mercury, Titan, and the designated targets in the Moon Space Fleet at the speed of light.
The moment the ultra-high energy laser beams hit their targets, they exploded with a tremendously shocking brightness, illuminating a vast expanse of space instantly.
The energy beams burned through the Starports' defenses in an incredibly short amount of time, as effortlessly as a hot knife through butter.
Sparks flew and molten steel poured out like lava erupting from the earth's crust, turning the entire Starport as if it had plunged into a sea of fire.
Although the temperature in space was near absolute zero, the scattered molten steel didn't solidify and coalesce, raging like tongues of flame in space, with flames tumbling, creating an unprecedented spectacle.
Each strike pierced through the entire Starport, the immense energy released instantaneous destruction all around, wiping out all facilities within several kilometers with every attack.
The entire space seemed to shudder at that moment, with light and debris intertwining, creating a heart-stopping scene.
This was the first time such weapons were used in actual combat, and their apocalyptic power left everyone in shock.
The Earth Alliance's attacks didn't stop. Each laser beam struck precisely at the critical parts of the Starport, ripping it into fragments and debris.
Despite the evacuation of the Moon Starport personnel, they were deeply shaken by such weapons, which were much more powerful than the weapons the Moon Base was still theoretically validating.
Everyone had underestimated the Earth Alliance, which had grown through iron and fire and was not to be trifled with.
The Earth Alliance also showed their strength to the world for the first time, and such weapons on a warship truly qualified as Planet-Destroyer Ships.
A single attack from a Planet-Destroyer Ship could completely destroy a planet's surface, the performance of these weapons had reached the level of the main cannon on human warships during the doomsday battle in the original text (as described in the original text).
What the Earth Alliance lacked was only time.