The Liaosha Islands are the closest group of islands in the South China Sea to Yan Kingdom. They consist of a chain of islands of varying sizes, located directly south of the naval port. In the past, this group of islands served as a supply station for ships sailing south. Today, Yan people also live on the islands.

Qin Ze's fleet was lying in wait here. They were anchored inside the island chain. When the fleets of the various countries sailed from the sea to the naval port, they did not pay attention to this island. After all, the goal of the various countries was the naval port and the vast land of Yan Kingdom. These islands were just embellishments of that territory. Naturally, it was not worth wasting time in Liaosha Islands at this time.

Their arrogance and contempt allowed the Yan Kingdom fleet to cut off their retreat from the rear, and at this very moment, more than 1,500 warships of the Yan Kingdom were sailing majestically toward the naval port.

This is an astonishing number, and unlike other nations, this fleet consists entirely of large warships, excluding supply ships and transport ships. After all, from the very beginning, Qin Ze had planned a large-scale naval battle.

The arrival of night diminished the fleet's imposing presence somewhat. In the daytime, anyone who saw this massive fleet on the sea would tremble at the sight of it. Yet, even so, as these warships sailed the seas with unbridled abandon, the firelight emanating from their ships was still awe-inspiring.

The sea and sky merged into one, and the moonlight did not appear bright. However, when the lights lit on the thousands of warships were connected, the sea surface turned red. From afar, it looked like stars falling onto the sea, and up close, it looked like flames swaying on the surface.

Behind the fleet, on the flagship [Yanhuang], Qin Ze, standing on the forecastle, held a telescope, his lips slightly pursed, gazing at the vast sea to the east.

It was nighttime, so vision was naturally limited, but the light appeared even more distinct.

What came into view were faint points of light in the distance, not many, at first glance only about a hundred points of light, which were the Rose Fleet that had been withdrawing long ago.

"Heh, whose fleet is this? So pragmatic." Qin Ze shook his head and chuckled.

"A bunch of brats, they really run fast!" Dian Wei shouted, hands on his hips.

“They’re the ones who slipped through the net,” Xu Zhu added in a muffled voice.

"Same idea!" Dian Wei rolled his eyes in dissatisfaction.

Qin Ze lowered the binoculars and turned to look south, where the naval port was located. Although he was there, he could still hear the rumbling of artillery fire.

"Can we catch up, my lord?" Dian Wei asked Qin Ze, pointing to the eastern sea.

“That depends on where they’re going to escape to.” Qin Ze shook his head and continued, “The commander of this fleet isn’t stupid. He knows they can’t go back to the previous sea area, nor can they continue south. He guessed that we would set sail from here.”

"However, if we continue eastward, well... we will still encounter our warships. Nowadays, every port has warships, but ours is the largest."

Upon hearing this, Dian Wei urgently asked, "What if they change direction again?"

"Then it will be harder to pursue her," Qin Ze said nonchalantly.

"Then...then does that mean we're just letting them go?" Dian Wei looked at the sea, his anger still simmering.

"They may run away, but they can't hide. This is just a small fish. It's not necessarily a bad thing that they escaped. After this battle, they will bring the reputation of my Yan Kingdom back to their continent."

"In this way, we can deter them and at least make them dare not act rashly without full preparation."

"This is a good opportunity for us to prepare for our long voyage." Qin Ze grinned, then said loudly, "They've come with great force this time, and simply leaving these people behind won't be enough."

"We have to fight our way through."

"But when we get there, these won't be the same warships we have now, ha."

Upon hearing this, Dian Wei's eyes burned with fervor, and he couldn't help but lick his lips: "I wonder what their country is like, and how many times they can clash with us..."

"No rush, we'll find out when we get to their country."

"Right now, let's deal with these fish that have already escaped the net."

"You came to plunder our territory, are you prepared to die?" Qin Ze's eyes flashed with cold light.

The fleet, with its sails fully unfurled, sped toward the naval port. Countless lights illuminated the fleet, making it appear as if it were fireworks burning on the sea surface, and now, this bright flame was rapidly spreading.

——

The fighting at the naval port continues, and the intensity remains unabated.

Faced with countless shells fired from the port, the Lieyang Fleet managed to turn around with incalculable losses and began to withdraw. However, those warships that had been hit too many times and whose hulls were damaged and powerless could only remain in place, waiting to be completely sunk.

Therefore, some crew members had no choice but to jump into the sea to survive. They swam desperately towards the intact warships and tried to grab the ropes thrown down from the ships in the water.

However, with so many people jumping ship and the shelling continuing unabated, it was impossible for everyone to board the warships. Moreover, the warships' primary objective was to evacuate as quickly as possible; they couldn't wait to rescue those at sea.

In this chaotic situation, the sea was filled with a large number of soldiers struggling to survive, but in the end most of them were exhausted and gradually sank to the bottom of the sea to become fish food.

The Sea Lion Fleet suffered the most severe damage. The flagship, the "Vene Pearl," had completely lost power. Its watertight compartments were breached and filled with seawater. The sailors in the lower decks fled in panic, jumping off the ship without taking anything with them. Augustus, the commander-in-chief, did the same.

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