Chapter 1000: Chapter 539: Building Fortifications and Fighting a Protracted Battle_2
Why must every entire Star Sector be occupied? Why bother with those heavily defended stubborn areas?
Quickly find the enemyās main force for a decisive battle! Head straight to the Princess Star Domain! Go and stab Humphrey Paolo in the behind!
Countless people urged like this, with different words but roughly the same meaning.
But Gu Hang just ignored these remarks.
Do they really expect that with the Allianceās current power, they can reach the heart of the enemy and topple the Iron Rage Stone?
Donāt be ridiculous.
They only want Gu Hang to make the southern battles fiercer, depleting more of Iron Rage Stoneās living forces, attracting more of its massive army to relieve pressure in other directions.
And Gu Hang?
He wouldnāt use his accumulated resources over the years for othersā benefit.
No matter if it benefits others, he wouldnāt risk everything on a single reckless gamble.
After securing two Star Sectors and facing the risk of a slightly stretched frontline, Gu Hang stopped.
The previous war outcomes were enough to ease the political pressure.
The Allianceās main forces ceased advancing.
With them halting, it wouldnāt be long before the pressure resurfaces again.
But Gu Hang didnāt plan to listen to them.
Do I really care that much about the small amount of money the Eastern Cosmic Realm Government offers?
Five billion? Hundreds of billions later?
Itās indeed a large sum, but mainly itās a variety of ordinary equipment, small Starships.
If that four or five hundred billion were converted to one battleship a year, Gu Hang might consider being more aggressive.
But as is?
Forget it.
Go at my own pace.
And what is the Allianceās rhythm?
They turned to digest those twenty conquered worlds.
Among these twenty worlds, some are poor while others are wealthy and developed.
Ignoring the poor places for now, itās important for the wealthy and developed ones, especially industrially,
to deploy ground forces and suppress planetary surface resistance, supported by political means, making the entire planet useful to us, is a significant task.
Once settled, it means directly drawing resources from these twenty worlds, locally resolving some regular supply issues.
Several of these worlds have good industrial capabilities, not to mention the consumption of ammunition and conventional weapons, even the resources needed by Starships, such as certain shells and fuel for Starships, that is energy crystals.
Even, thereās a large Starport on one planet accompanied by a small shipyard.
The shipyard is not expected to produce anything new for use, but having a shipyard means that this planetās shipbuilding technology is still at a certain level, well-equipped, and the Alliance can have many of its ships damaged in previous combat well-maintained here.
Meanwhile, Alliance engineering ships, escorted by the Navy, arrived in batches at the Proudclaw Cosmos.
Along with them came transport ships carrying many orbital cannons, components for space stations, and even production lines, and also dragged along a few light and heavy Star Fortresses.
The long-range transportation deployment of Star Fortresses requires large transport ships for towing.
These Star Fortresses were placed at the Star Realm Tunnel jump points of hub paths, and in the orbit of key planets.
Simultaneously, those orbital cannons were assembled and deployed on the spot, leveraging some conquered local planets with good industrial capabilities.
Even the production lines brought were directly aimed at strengthening military production capabilities at the front lineā¦
The Alliance clearly intended to fully digest these twenty worlds and fortify the four key worlds.
Star Fortresses were dragged over, orbital cannon clusters set up, and defenses at jump points builtā¦
The Allianceās stance was obvious: set up strongholds and fight a slow battle.
First encircle these twenty worlds, then digest and fortify key areas, prudent against possible massive enemy army pressure.
If the opponents didnāt act, then after digestion, continue advancing, consume dozens more worlds, digest, and fortify againā¦
Gradually encroach in the most stable manner and with minimal cost.
For this, the Alliance even turned to handle those two ātumorsā.
No main forces were dispatched there, still guarded against the Fury Fleet.
Only the āKorolyaā and āWingedā two Holy Grail-class battlecruisers were sent.
Their mission was never to launch a strong attack.
No need.
Just keeping a distance and bombarding was enough.
This way of fighting certainly couldnāt conquer. Long-range bombardment has questionable accuracy and insufficient intensity to quickly destroy the opponentās Star Fortress. Even if a few shots hit, the Star Fortress could fly to the planetās backside and park there temporarily, allowing engineers to quickly repair damages.
Who knows if this could deplete or exhaust the opponent after decades or centuries of such warfare.
Yet the current actions of the Alliance fleet essentially put pressure on Shangdong Star.
Star Fortresses are hard to capture, but with a bit of bad luck, an ordinary Armed Space Station could be blown up instantly by a battlecruiserās Light Spear Array shot.
Meanwhile, other tactics were in play.
With the whole planet under blockade, Alliance ships continually broadcast to Shangdong Star; with Shangdong Starās external star language communication blocked, making contact with the outside impossible, wasnāt it Allianceās script then?
After over six months of siege, the Alliance attempted to dispatch diplomatic envoys and surprisingly, it was agreed.
A small ship, carrying a diplomat, arrived at the Starport, exchanging with the defenders.
No consensus was reached.
But it was already quite a positive signal.
A fortnight later, the Alliance sent emissaries again.
In the period following, nearly every week, the Alliance sent envoys to interact with the local defenders.
No major agreements were reached, but the Alliance at least sent in some luxurious goods and gifts; the other side agreed to release some civilians, reducing unnecessary sacrifices and losses of war.
Even in later stages, the defenders proposed some conditions for surrender.
Itās just that the conditions were quite harsh, and the Alliance didnāt agree.
Still, thereās room for negotiation, no hurry.
Moreover, before talks, the Alliance wasnāt without other methods.
The ship escorting the diplomatic envoy, though āsmallā, is relatively speaking. Even the smallest travel ship could carry several hundred people at once.
Diplomatic envoys naturally needed escort, which was reasonable.
A hundred-man escort arriving at once, housed by the defenders in Starport, allowing leaders from both sides to negotiate, was normal too.
So far, no particularly large conflicts had erupted between the two sides.
However, the defenders failed to notice some special existences among these escorts.
A few people were always missing on the way back and forth.
After five or six such trips, three to four dozen special warriors from the Alliance infiltrated Shangdong Starās Starport.
And during the last visit of the diplomatic envoy to the Starport, the hundred-man escort still followed.
They moved steadily inside the Starport, advancing towards the usual place for talks.
Meanwhile, the Starportās defenders inspected onboard as usual.
But, those who boarded for inspection, once inside, never made any further sound.