Empire Conquest
Chapter 184 - 180: Annihilation

Chapter 184: Chapter 180: Annihilation

West East Ocean, over thirty kilometers south of Nagiu Port.

Du Kang completed one last circle around the transport ship that was about to sink before he pulled back on the control stick and headed southward with the "Flying Fish."

After giving the order to return to base, Du Kang glanced at his watch.

It was nearly eleven o’clock; in less than half an hour, the forty or so "Flying Fish" and "Wasp" aircraft had sunk all the transport ships.

There were only five transport ships and three bulk carriers.

Du Kang’s focus had been on the last one.

But the battle was not over yet.

As Du Kang began to climb with the "Wasp," two "Typhoon" fighters dove down, strafing the lifeboats in the water with their machine guns.

In the high sky, more than a dozen fighters loitered, hesitant to return home.

They were actually waiting for the lead aircraft of the squadron to leave.

With a senior officer present, many things were not so convenient.

Although Du Kang was never against beating the Saiyi to a pulp, as the Acting Commander of the Air Force Wing, he definitely couldn’t disregard military discipline and regulations.

"The prohibition against killing and mistreating prisoners of war" was a military law decreed by Emperor Shiwu.

Du Kang didn’t meddle further.

It wasn’t just that he loathed the enemy who had started the war, but also because in a few days, after the Fleet returned to the Empire’s homeland, the Third Shipborne Air Force Wing would be no longer his concern.

He was only the Acting Commander.

Although the formal appointment had not yet been issued, after this battle was over, Li Yunxiang would surely stay on to continue partnering with Bai Zhizhan.

Then, Du Kang would have nothing to do with it.

Of course, Du Kang didn’t bear any grudge, as he owed Li Yunxiang a great favor, having come to the Navy under his leadership.

It was just that he felt it would have been such a pity to leave the Third Shipborne Air Force Wing without doing anything at all.

As a result, he took a bottle of sweet wine and silently slipped onto a bomber.

It couldn’t really be put that way, though, since on the "Peijing," his rank was the highest, and not even the Captain had the right to command him.

Fortunately, Li Yunxiang didn’t get angry when he found out, but instead had him go to the front line to command the battle.

Du Kang wasn’t dumb; he knew that by making this arrangement, Li Yunxiang wanted him to focus his energy on the fight, not to dwell on useless things, and certainly not to mess things up because of a few sips of liquor.

Attacking the transport fleet held no challenge anyway.

Because the ship-borne aircraft arrived in batches, with only a small squadron each time, they could only bomb one transport ship, so after the first two transport ships were bombed, the enemies on the remaining ships were already prepared, wearing life jackets and ready with lifeboats in advance.

At least three transport ships had lowered lifeboats before being bombed.

Additionally, many of the enemies jumped into the sea wearing life jackets to escape.

As a result, after the destruction of the transport fleet, more than a dozen lifeboats were left behind, along with even more enemies wearing life jackets — none of them surrendered.

They couldn’t surrender if they wanted to.

The Imperial Navy warships were hundreds of kilometers away; these enemies wouldn’t know who to surrender to even if they wished.

Surrender to the bombers flying overhead?

If it had been in the open sea, it wouldn’t have mattered. It wouldn’t be long before the bloodshed by the wounded would attract back the sharks scared away by the explosions. And if they weren’t eaten by sharks, they would die in a matter of days, or even weeks, from dehydration and starvation.

But here’s the thing — this was not the open sea.

Nagiu Port was about thirty kilometers to the north.

Don’t think that the enemy having lifeboats makes a huge difference. For those who are good swimmers, especially after putting on a life jacket, swimming to a distance of thirty kilometers isn’t much of a challenge.

Don’t forget, it’s now noon, with the water temperature around ten degrees Celsius. As long as you stay warm, drifting thirty kilometers wouldn’t be a problem.

Under the influence of the will to survive, many people can unleash potential far beyond their normal limits.

Based on Du Kang’s judgment, those fighter jets rushed over precisely to prevent such an occurrence.

What incident?

Saiyi soldiers swimming to Nagiu Port and even landing there.

Even if they were merely a scattering of stray soldiers, hardly qualifying as a landing, at most being washed up on the beach by the waves.

But the question is, would those looking for trouble care about these details?

Having spent several months in the Third Aviation Mixed Fleet and worked with Liu Xiangbin previously, Du Kang was well aware of how much Liu Xiangbin detested Bai Zhizhan. If Du Kang hadn’t come from the Army and relied on the connections of Li Yunxiang, Liu Xiangbin would have probably kicked him out long ago.

Even so, he didn’t avoid the minor displeasures Liu Xiangbin sent his way.

Not to mention, in these last few months at the Third Aviation Mixed Fleet, Du Kang’s tolerance for alcohol had noticeably increased; he felt uncomfortable if he didn’t drink a few glasses daily.

If, because a few defeated remnants made their way to Nagiu Port, Bai Zhizhan lost his position, it would indeed be a grave injustice.

This is why Du Kang suspected it was the fighter jets dispatched by Bai Zhizhan who came over. The mission they were briefed on was to stop the enemy’s defeated remnants from reaching Nagiu Port. As for the method, well, it was quite simple: sink the lifeboats and incidentally cause some casualties among the enemy.

With no lifeboats and wounded besides, the chances of surviving a drift to Nagiu Port were virtually zero.

These thoughts filled Du Kang with emotion.

If only he had known earlier, he would have climbed into a fighter jet at that time, no way would he have picked a bomber.

In fact, Du Kang realized after piloting the "Wasp" into the air that the aviation ground crew were too busy to load bullets into the aircraft machine guns.

Don’t forget, the "Wasp" has two 8mm forward-facing machine guns mounted on top of the engine cowling.

While they might be somewhat weak against enemy aircraft, they were certainly more than sufficient for targeting lifeboats.

As for the self-defense machine gun, it’s mounted behind the cockpit, only capable of firing rearward, unable to strafe targets on the sea surface, and besides, it’s operated by a machine gunner.

Thinking over these things, Du Kang took out his flask and took another fierce swig.

Liking to drink must certainly be genetic; Du Kang’s father and grandfather were both heavy drinkers, and his name was given to him after they were intoxicated.

Perhaps, upon returning, he should have a serious talk with Li Yunxiang to see if there was a possibility of going back to the Army.

Even if he was too old to be on the front lines, he could still serve as an instructor at the rear.

In the Flying Academy, no one would care about an instructor’s daily life; as long as you show up for work on time, how you drink the rest of the time wouldn’t be a problem.

On a battleship, you can’t freely indulge in drink; even taking a break to sip you have to hide, doing it sneakily as if committing a theft.

If one were to choose, the Army is better. At least the Army’s liquor is stronger.

The Navy’s liquor seems to have been influenced too heavily by the West – it’s too smooth, no matter how much you drink, it doesn’t give that kick.

Of course, Du Kang wasn’t the only one with this view; many others shared his sentiment.

Li Yunxiang had more than once brought up at Navy functions the hope that the Navy could adopt the Army’s taste in spirituous liquors and introduce stronger drinks like "Erguotou."

However, Li Yunxiang also acknowledged that the Navy’s liquor has a substantial delayed effect.

After another gulp, Du Kang suddenly remembered something important that he had forgotten.

He had to report the results of their attack to the flagship.

The battle had ended; a little delay wasn’t a big deal, as what followed was just to turn around and head back to base, without any other tasks.

At this moment, in the skies above the "Imperial Capital."

The first Shipborne Air Force Wing’s plane group had already arrived; the fighters had landed, and now it was the turn of the bombers, followed lastly by the slowest torpedo bombers.

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