Technical Department.
There was a war going on in the front, and the technical staff in the logistics department were also busy. According to their respective areas of responsibility, the voices in the built-in communicator came one after another.
"Check communication node a675, the signal fluctuation frequency exceeds the limit!"
"The line is broken, connect the ce34 line to the backup line!"
"The wave field of the explosion has too great an impact on signal transmission, please pay attention to monitoring!"
As starships whose damage reached the recycling standard were salvaged one after another, people in the technical department realized that the situation of this war was not optimistic.
Starships that are close, meet certain standards, and are successfully salvaged back to the main ship will be sent to the technical department for simple repairs and put back into the battlefield. During the repair period, the pilot will switch to the spare ship and return to the battlefield immediately.
Therefore, the people in the technical department can basically guess the situation of the war by just looking at the number of recovered starships, the degree of damage, and the energy status.
Ye Pei frowned: "The situation is not good. The returning starships are in a very bad state. They have run out of ammunition and their energy will be completely exhausted after flying a few more stars. The key point is that there are too many of them! If this continues, the spare ships will not be able to make up for this shortfall!"
Mondrian's expression was equally solemn: "We may be forced to retreat by then."
"I might lose, right?" Ye Pei, operating the small maintenance robot, sighed with a bitter tone, "I haven't lost in a long time. Now it's a little hard to imagine."
Mondrian was the same. He patted Ye Pei on the shoulder and said, "Everyone wants to win but not lose, but the battlefield will not obey one's own ideas. Don't be so depressed. The technical department will definitely be very busy next."
At this time, a question came from the side: "Can't this battle be won?"
Ye Pei looked over and saw Fantov and the two researchers who boarded the ship with him standing a few steps away. She immediately frowned.
It’s not that she has a prejudice, but when everyone in the technical department is so busy that they wish they could split themselves into two people, these three people gathered together to chat leisurely, holding a cup of steaming coffee in their hands.
Vantov had a privileged family background. He used to work at the Data Science Institute on Odin, where he had few projects and a leisurely life. Later, when the Secretary-General and the Commander arrived in Odin, the status of the Data Science Institute was repeatedly mentioned. No matter where he went, he was always surrounded by people, and everyone would give him face.
Now, he was being looked down upon by a young man who had not even finished Turan's course. Fantov felt annoyed, but he barely managed to hold back his anger and asked a question that concerned him more: "Why do you say this battle cannot be won?"
Although Ye Pei had a very bad impression of Fantov, he reluctantly replied, thinking that these three people had just joined the expeditionary army: "The battle situation is not good. But victory and defeat are common in the military. If you lose, you lose. You can win again next time."
When Fantov and the other two looked at each other, fear surged in their hearts.
Walking a few steps to the side, a man with a pale face asked in a low voice: "Are we really going to lose? Are the rebels going to attack? Will they kill all of us?"
Another person also lowered his voice: "I just heard someone say that there are not enough reserve ships. The rebels seem to have developed some new technology. We are completely powerless to resist. It seems that we are really doomed to lose! What should we do? Should we escape?"
The first person to speak spoke in a sharp voice: "How can we escape? There is space outside, we can't escape! We will all die here!"
Fantov's fingers trembled and a chill suddenly ran over him.
On Odin, he had never witnessed a war. When he boarded the ship, the expeditionary force was in the post-war repair period, and life was peaceful. Although he always heard people talking about the number of casualties and the amount of war damage, he had no sense of reality.
After all, it wasn't him who died.
But at this moment, the fire that lit up outside the porthole would make his heart tremble, and he wanted to squat and hide with every alarm on the ship's broadcast. The traces of shelling on the damaged starships he had seen in the past seemed like they were about to fall on him!
He even began to wonder, if the rebels took control of the command ship, would they kill everyone
The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became. Fantov broke out in a cold sweat and staggered two steps. Suddenly he thought of something, left the two people beside him, and walked quickly in one direction alone.
Ye Pei and Mondrian looked at each other, both a little puzzled. However, the tasks on their hands were increasing by multiples, so they had no time to care about other things.
After Fantov came up with the idea, he quickly went to the technical department's super optical computer.
Everyone was busy and in a hurry. No one paid attention to him, and no one knew what he was doing.
Taking a deep breath, Fantov took out an optical storage device, connected it to the super optical computer, and began to copy all the information and files within his maximum authority.
Faster... Copy faster! You must copy as many as possible before the rebels take down this command ship!
His forehead began to sweat, and his eyes were fixed on the rapidly flashing data. He thought, if the rebels really wanted to kill everyone, he could surrender and hand over these top-secret materials!
Yes, he also needs to set permissions so that no one except him can open this optical storage device to read the data!
Yes, yes, that's it... Maybe this way, the rebels won't kill him!
Many people praised the expeditionary force to the skies, but in reality, it was on the verge of losing.
He obviously just wanted to come up here to gain some fame and benefits. If he handled things properly, he might even be able to become the head of the technical department. Then, when he returns to the ground, it won't be difficult for him to enter the core military position.
His future is destined to be brighter than most people.
But he couldn't care about all that now. He didn't want to die in vain, and he didn't want to be implicated by the expeditionary force!
As for what will happen if this information is handed over to the rebels -
What does the life and death of the expeditionary force have to do with him
While he was afraid of being discovered, Fantov also felt a surge of excitement in his heart.
Those people in the technical department who looked coldly at him will die, Ye Pei who looked at him coldly will also die, and the two people who boarded the ship at the same time as him and wanted to steal his credit will not survive, but he will live!
At this time, there was a noise coming from afar. Fantov looked in the direction where the sound came from, worried that he had been discovered. Then he calmed down again. Not to mention that everyone was busy now, even if he was really discovered, he could find a reasonable excuse.
On the other side, Ye Pei and Mondrian were brought to Qi Yan by Lorenz and asked to assist Qi Yan temporarily.
Ye Pei and Mondrian looked at each other, both very confused.
Why did Qi Yan appear here at this time? In addition, what kind of assistance would they provide
Qi Yan didn't wait for them to figure out what was going on, and stated his request first: "I want to use a super optical computer, and the general has approved it."
Lorenz was in a state of panic, and before leaving, he only said, "He has the highest priority right of use!"
The super optical computer "Nandou" on the command ship has performance and computing power comparable to the Tianguang 3 of the Letao ISOC Equipment Center, and has been serving as an intelligent computing center on the command ship.
Ye Pei immediately led the way, and vaguely realized that Qi Yan's sudden visit to the technical department to use the super optical computer might be related to the current war situation.
Several people hurriedly arrived in front of "Nandou". Ye Pei saw someone standing next to the host with his back to the computer, so he said, "Sorry, the situation is urgent. Qi Yan has obtained the right to use "Nandou" next. Can you use an optical computer to process the data?"
Qi Yan's eyes were fixed on a certain point in the air, and he was thinking quickly about how to construct the model.
After hearing what Ye Pei said, Fantov, who was standing in front of the "Nan Dou", turned around with a fake smile on his face: "I'm sorry, I have urgent matters here too. I think your friend doesn't mind waiting for a while."
Instead of addressing Qi Yan by name, he used the phrase "your friend" and added emphasis on the word. The implication was that Qi Yan was brought by Ye Pei and had Ye Pei's connections, so he was not a member of the technical department at all.
The fire in his heart suddenly rose up, and Ye Pei's eyes were cold: "This is the order of the commander and the boss, please get out of the way immediately!"
Fantov glanced at the progress bar hidden in the corner of the screen and saw that about half of the data had not been transferred successfully.
On the command ship, only the "Nandou" has such a fast transmission efficiency. If it were replaced with another optical computer, the rebels might have boarded the command ship and the data had not been transmitted yet, so he would naturally not be able to get out of the way.
Seeing Qi Yan staring blankly at something like a pretty puppet, Fantov felt disdainful in his heart - she was just a vase, relying on her looks to gain the commander's favor.
"Commands and orders from the boss? How do I know that what you said is true?"
Fantov was determined not to give way and was prepared to delay time until the data transmission was completed.
What if he was in charge of the army? What if Lorenz was in charge? Anyway, when the rebels came, everyone except him would die! By then, even the expeditionary army would be gone, so what would be the command
Ye Pei had never met such a confused and shameless person. Without saying anything, he and Mondrian stepped forward to pull him away. Unexpectedly, Fantov struggled hard and blocked the screen of "Nandou": "Think it through, I am from Odin Data Science Academy! What is Qi Yan? He just relied on his face to curry favor with the commander! He doesn't know anything at all!"
After he finished speaking, many people looked at him.
Mondrian warned: "Vantov, you are delaying the military mission!"
"Qi Yan? What military strategy can he have?" Fantov said sarcastically, "It's not just me. Many people on this command ship have the same idea as me!"
After saying this, he lowered his head to brush off the dust on his shoulders and quickly glanced at the transfer progress bar - there was only one third left.
Feeling uneasy, he was a little worried that he would not be able to stop the people in front of him and ruin his plan. He quickly said, "When the battle is at a critical moment," he looked around at the people around him, "Aren't you worried about this prayer with unclear origins? Why do you suddenly insist on using 'Nandu'? Is there some unspeakable secret?"
The argument lasted less than a minute.
At this moment, Qi Yan's stagnant gaze moved, and he looked at Fantov and ordered in a cold voice: "Pojun, this man is too noisy, take him away."
Po Jun's voice came from an unknown device: "Yes!"
Hearing Qi Yan's words, Fantov took a step back defensively: "I am from the Odin Data Research Institute! You have no right to touch me!"
The next second, a robot came from nowhere, rolled onto rollers and stopped behind Fantov, twisted his arms, and forcibly took him away from the technical department.
Like Fantof, two people from Odin wanted to step forward to help, but in the end they remained silent.
Qi Yan did not delay for a second and stood in front of the super optical computer. While inputting a series of keys, he briefly explained to Ye Pei and Mondrian beside him:
"The rebels implanted a program into the starship pilot's body and connected it to the neural network, so as to achieve 100% control. And these implanted programs are controlled by the same system. Now, what we are facing on the battlefield is not thousands of rebels, but this system."
Not only Ye Pei and Mondrian, everyone who heard these words was shocked, and some even looked out the porthole involuntarily.
Under the dark curtain of space, it seems as if there is a dormant monster hiding, eager to drink human blood.
Ye Pei stuttered, "Then, Qi Yan, are you going to—" Her throat was dry, and she curled her fingers hanging by her legs, and asked fearfully, "Are you going to stop that 'system'?"
Qi Yan nodded: "Yes, I plan to intercept it and then crack it."
Ye Pei swore that, besides her, countless people took a breath of cool air at the same time to cool down their overheated brains that were flooded with huge amounts of information.
It is because of this understanding that we realize how terrifying the "system" that can control the simultaneous actions of thousands of starships is, and how vast its data flow is.
And how shocking would it be if the prayer of "intercept it, crack it" was actually accomplished
At this moment, seeing Qi Yan's firm tone, no one would raise any doubt.
He can really do it.
Of course you can.
Before the people around him could react, Qi Yan had already ordered Po Jun: "Connect to the communication."
Soon, several video dialog boxes appeared on another virtual screen.
Qi Yan typed the characters while saying, "I need a lot of data now, and I need your cooperation."
Dushan was the first to speak: "No problem! Just tell me what you want!"
Mei Jielin also spoke up immediately: "I will definitely cooperate with you! This battle is so fucking disgusting!"
Qi Yan nodded slightly: "I now need you to fire laser cannons at the enemy starship that has been confirmed to have abnormal reaction speed. About 100 rounds, 25 rounds each for the four captains."
He then instructed Po Jun: "Monitor the special signal flow that appears when the enemy starship dodges the laser cannon. Since it is the 'system' that is controlling it, then when the command reaches the starship at the end from the core of the 'system', a signal flow will definitely be generated."
Pojun: "Yes."
Mei Jielin said proudly: "Although my men's ammunition/powder storehouse is almost empty, we still have dozens of laser cannons!"
The light outside the porthole had not yet gone out, and Po Jun had already started reporting: "Abnormal data detected!"
Qi Yan: "Fifty seconds later, the second laser cannon will be fired, with a total of one hundred. Po Jun will continue to monitor. I will summarize and analyze the results as soon as I have constructed this processing model."
The air became tense as Qi Yan gave one command after another. Ye Pei's heartbeat quickened as she watched from the side. She was also surprised by Qi Yan's words "build a good processing model". She couldn't help but move half a step towards Mondrian. She lowered her voice to a very low voice for fear of disturbing Qi Yan: "How long will it take you to build this kind of model?"
Mondrian said with the same volume: "No, I don't know how to frame it at all."
Ye Pei thought, I'm not the only one who has no idea!
She has always known that she has a high IQ, or rather, most people in the technical department have high IQs. But at this moment, from the expressions of the people around her who have the same IQ as her, she can see that there is still a gap between high IQs!
The second batch of laser cannons fired.
Intermittent sounds were heard in the video dialog box, mostly from below, reporting that the ammunition was about to be used up, the destroyer array was being dispersed, and the damage rate of our starships was constantly rising.
Every time he heard a word vaguely, Ye Pei's fingers clenched a little tighter.
Until Qi Yan stopped typing: "Model architecture is complete, Pojun, start data import."
Taking advantage of the two or three seconds gap, he quickly moved his sore wrists twice.
Seeing from the corner of his eye that Ye Pei’s fingers were pinched so hard that the base of his palm turned white, he consoled him, “It’ll be alright.”
After saying that, Qi Yan pressed his finger on the characters again.
The waterfall-like data stream rushed through his pupils, making his eyes look cold and even with a hint of inorganic coldness, but it gradually dispelled the fear in the hearts of the people around him.
At the same time, in the battle, Chagall made a nearly extreme vertical dive to avoid the laser cannons fired at multiple angles from three enemy ships, and the system immediately prompted "overload".
Before he recovered from the black vision caused by the excessive force, Chagall swallowed the blood in his throat and controlled the destroyer with muscle memory: "Senior, how much ammunition do we have left?"
Calvin forced his eyes open, his chest rising and falling, and answered hoarsely: "The high-sensitivity cannons are empty, there are eleven laser cannons, and nine missiles! But you know, eight of the nine can be used, and the other one must be kept."
Chagall certainly knew this.
As is customary in the destroyer sequence, the last missile is kept for itself.
The chance of a destroyer that has lost its ammunition surviving the battle is infinitely close to zero. Instead of pinning its hopes on a slim miracle, it is better to use the last missile to blow up the enemy ship along with it.
Sometimes I can bring two ships with me, or pull down a medium-sized ship, which makes me a profit.
Chagall tensed his jaw muscles, and was a little confused: "Is there really no way to crack the enemy's tactics?"
Calvin groaned, "The captain has changed five combat strategies, but none of them worked because our roots have been dug up. In fact, war is the same whether it is in space or on land. We need weapons, equipment, and ammunition. We only have destroyers but no ammunition, which makes us no different from those floating metal wreckages."
That's true.
Chagall gripped the joystick tightly, but the unwillingness to admit defeat in his heart rose up: "But the commander still hasn't let us retreat!"
Calvin didn't understand: "What?"
"The commander will not let us die in vain! After confirming that the enemy has new treacherous means, the commander will definitely make the most correct judgment, such as using a certain tactic to make the large force retreat immediately to plan for the aftermath!"
Chagall recalled the battles he had seen when he was at the First Military Academy and which were commanded by Lu Fenghan. In none of them did Lu Fenghan gamble with human lives for victory.
Lu Fenghan would rather be labeled a "deserter" and be held accountable by the then Leto military high-ranking officials than sacrifice a life in vain.
"So," Chagall's eyes were bright, "I believe the conductor must have found a way! Senior, you can't lose heart. We have to hold on until a turning point comes!"
Calvin stared at Chagall for three seconds, curled the corners of his mouth, and thought to himself that he was really getting older and older, and his sensitivity was not even as good as that of his juniors.
Yes, didn't he know? If they were bound to lose this battle, Lu Fenghan would take them away from the battlefield even if he had to sacrifice his command ship.
Maybe there will really be a turning point.
"Okay," Calvin said with a smile, "Then let's live frugally! We still have 20 rounds of ammunition in total. If we can't hold out until a turning point comes, then we'll be betraying the expeditionary army's tradition of being stingy!"
Chagall also laughed: "Diligence and thrift are virtues!"
After saying that, he even took the time to high-five Calvin.
The two of them swept away their dejection, looked determined, and joined the torrent again.
Technical Department.
A total of six laser cannon firings have been carried out.
Qi Yan stood up straight, doing three things at once. While continuously importing data, he also improved the model structure and simply described his thoughts: "The speed of signal transmission is hundreds of thousands of meters per second, and the time required is even shorter. People really can't compare. But when people can sort out a thin 'line' from the messy signal flow, they can-"
Ye Pei blurted out: "Cut it off with one knife!"
Qi Yan nodded, his eyes focused: "Yes, cut this 'thread' with one knife."
In the destroyer, Chagall performed another almost extreme side flip. As his vision went dark, he felt that his internal organs were being squeezed and deformed by the huge force field, and he coughed violently twice.
Calvin frowned: "It seems that this enemy ship will not stop until it swallows us up."
They had just used a maneuverable jump to make a rebel starship crash into a floating meteorite, causing it to explode on the spot, but they didn't expect to be targeted again in the blink of an eye.
Chagall closed his eyes tightly and then opened them again: "There's nothing useful nearby, should we just bomb it?"
Calvin voted in favor: "Okay, try to hit it with one shot. We can't afford to waste it. I'll operate the destroyer and give you an angle. You fire. If we miss, we'll turn around and run!"
"good!"
The destroyer turned 180 degrees in space like a peregrine falcon, then sank, raised its gun muzzle at an angle, and a laser cannon left a dazzling white shadow as it flew towards the enemy ship at a high speed.
Chagall was ready to turn around and run, but the next second, he said in disbelief: "Hit...Hit? Impossible!"
My skills are definitely not that good!
After a moment of shock, he immediately reacted: "Senior... look!" He almost lost his voice at the end.
The enemy starship that had been as venomous as a poisonous snake a second ago was now floating directionlessly in space like a kite that had lost its string.
Looking far away, it was as if a pair of hands pressed the stop button at the same time, and a large number of enemy ships suddenly stopped, and a crisp "click" sound seemed to ring in people's ears!
It took Chagall a long time to find his voice: "This is... what happened?"
In the floating rebel starship, the person in the driver's seat had lifeless eyes and his head drooped, revealing the emblem tattooed on the back of his neck - it is said that this will make him favored by God.
In the middle of the logo, a square chip-shaped device is embedded, flashing red light.
The driver's hands were still on the joystick, but because of countless operations that exceeded human physiological limits, blood was oozing out of his facial features, forming lines, his face was swollen purple, and every visible blood vessel was bulging and bulging, as if it would burst in the next second.
In the technical department of the command ship, Po Jun spoke in a clear voice: "We have intercepted the signal transmissions of a total of 49 enemy destroyers! The above enemy ships have been confirmed to have lost their combat effectiveness!"
Qi Yan was not excited, and only said "hmm" faintly: "Continue to analyze the transmission path of the special signal flow. I want to follow this 'road' and enter the interior of the 'system'."
Pojun: “Yes!”
The surroundings were extremely quiet, with almost only the sound of Qi Yan and Po Jun's conversation.
Ye Pei felt it was unreal: "It was really... cut off?"
"Yes," Mondrian looked at the star map that was lit up by Pojun, "the enemy ships whose signals were intercepted were all destroyed by us in the past few seconds, which means that all their light points are extinguished!"
When he said this, he was still a little uncertain, feeling like an illusion or a dream. But when his eyes fell on Qi Yan's thin and slender silhouette, he immediately felt that everything became real.
Ye Peilian took a few breaths and said, "So now... is Qi Yan going to attack the core of that 'system'?"
Mondrian's voice was very light, repeating what Qi Yan had said before: "Intercept it, and then crack it."
It was as if they had witnessed a miracle.
"Yes, intercept it, crack it!" Ye Pei's eyes lit up, and he gradually came to his senses. He felt regretful, "We should really let that Fantov come and take a look. Is he commanding by relying on his looks? He knows nothing? He is the one who knows nothing!"
In the corner, two people like Vantov who were from Odin looked at Qi Yan who was standing in front of the super optical computer with shocked expressions.
They also came from Odin, and had always had a sense of superiority that looked down upon everyone else. They also supported Fantof's words, and helped spread a lot of "news" about Prayer. They looked down on this man who relied on his looks to get to the top from the bottom of their hearts.
One of them widened his eyes and moved his lips: "Didn't he get special treatment by currying favor with the commander? A vase... Impossible... He didn't even finish Turan's second grade class! Impossible!"
Moreover, Qi Yan is only twenty years old, and they are already a full generation older than Qi Yan!
At this moment, Po Jun spoke up: "Chief, the rebels' messenger has requested a call. Do you agree to connect?"
Ye Pei and Mondrian were both confused for a moment.
The rebel army's envoy, who is also the rebel army's cutting-edge scientific researcher, requested a call
Also, why did Pojun call Qi Yan "Chief"
Is it the title of a certain job title
Qi Yan thought for two seconds and replied, "Connect, hide the picture, change the voice."
He wanted to see who was the person who could create the "system".
Po Jun: "Okay."
A few seconds later, a virtual screen lit up in the air, and a middle-aged man with medium-length hair and wearing a white robe appeared in front of everyone.
His eyes were a little crazy, the wings of his hooked nose were flaring, and he was very excited: "You are Y! It must be... So you are on the expeditionary force's command ship! Apart from Y, there is no other person in the world who can break the system I designed in such a short time!"
His voice was hoarse and harsh, like an iron saw cutting through steel.
But at this moment, no one noticed this.
Everyone's eyes were focused on the young man in front of the super optical computer.
In the corner, the two people from Odin had blank expressions. One of them murmured, "Y? The number one Y on the blacklist? How is it possible? How could Y be only twenty years old? How could Y be him!"
He turned to the person next to him and read the same shock in the other person's expression.
But just like what the rebel "messenger" said, who else in the world besides Y could achieve this in such a short time
In the video, the messenger in white robes seemed to have been hit hard. He was already a little abnormal, and his sanity was shaky. After mumbling for a long time, he suddenly raised his voice, his eyes were fanatical, as if he had grasped the last straw:
"The system I created cannot be blocked! It is even more impossible to crack! Absolutely impossible! This is God's gift! This is God's wisdom! So what if you are Y? This is God's domain!"
"God's Realm?" Qi Yan stopped typing, his face pale with exhaustion. Across the countless starships, the continuous artillery fire, the stars, and the floating dust, he replied calmly,
"Then I will stand shoulder to shoulder with the gods as a human being."