Spring, 2430.

This tug-of-war battle targeting Jupiter began at the start of the year and had been going on for nearly four months by this point.

Jupiter, as a sub-brown dwarf, is a special existence in the solar system with its own system. Long before the Third Industrial Revolution, there were countless fantasies on Earth about turning Jupiter into another planet. The far-earth mineral project, which had been suspended due to the state of war readiness, was being carried out on Europa.

Considering the frequent impact issues due to Jupiter's gravitational pull, as a precaution, the Earth Alliance's fortress defenses maintained a certain distance from the Jupiter system and did not set up control fortresses in the controversial Jupiter system. However, Jupiter has always been within the Earth Alliance's defense zone and is the first line of defense for the entire Earth Allied Forces.

This time, the other star system's fleet targeted Callisto, the moon with the lowest gravity, in an attempt to forcibly insert a wedge from within the Jupiter system to disrupt Earth's far-earth defense line. This was historically known as the "Callisto Plan" or the "Jupiter Landing Operation".

The North American Air Force Commander-in-Chief, whom Fu Luo had seen at General Yang's home and narrowly escaped assassination, had slyly resigned due to illness when the American Allied Forces dispersed along with the Earth Allied Forces.

The retired old general, Mr. Robert, took on the role of U.S. Space Forces Commander-in-Chief at the critical moment, at the age of 196.

It was this man, sarcastically mocked by the acerbic Western media as "so old he could only eat with dentures", who added a brief but glorious stroke to this war and also ignited the last spark for all humanity.

At the beginning of the year, under the leadership of this veteran hawkish military and political figure, the U.S. military strictly implemented the United Nations' goal of "getting Earth out of a state of war in the shortest time possible" and took preemptive action against the other star system's enemies who intended to "land on Jupiter".

With the combined effect of excellent equipment, well-trained troops, and outstanding commanders, the long-suppressed humans finally demonstrated the combat effectiveness the Earth Allied Forces should have on the space front lines, giving the low-morale United Nations a shot in the arm.

For half a year, the previous relations between countries were as fragile as treading on thin ice, and the repeated battlefield failures almost strangled the courage of the Earth Alliance to win.

It should be known that the key to the Earth Alliance's victory is "speed" - quickly controlling the battlefield, quickly obtaining negotiation opportunities, and quickly ending this war era that caught everyone off guard. All countries are well aware of this point, and the Alliance cannot outlast the madmen of the other star system. To achieve this, the Alliance's courage to win is indispensable.

General Robert understood this point all too well.

His proactive attack on the other star system was a case of acting first and reporting later, neither obtaining approval from the U.S. government nor seeking assistance from the United Nations at the first opportunity.

When the frontline news reached Earth, it almost caused an uproar in the United States. Three rounds of protests were launched on the ground within a week, accusing Robert of being a deranged old lunatic.

General Robert, under immense pressure from Congress, almost single-handedly took the initiative in the battle for Jupiter with heavy troops. He was desperately trying to use a fierce counterattack to glue together the fragmented Alliance.

For this, the old general faced countless impeachments from his own country. It is said that the order for his removal and arrest had already been signed and passed, and just before it could be issued at the critical moment, Canada joined the battle as an ally of the American Allied Forces.

In the following days, several other allied countries provided more or less reinforcements. General Robert's years of good international reputation helped him at this crucial moment.

It also helped the Earth Allied Forces in a way.

In mid-February of the same year, the United Nations issued a Level 1 notice, requiring all countries to immediately dispatch troops for reinforcement. With the situation in good shape, countries responded actively one after another.

China dispatched its elite special forces and space division, with Major General Zhao Youxuan as the person in charge.

Even Japan, which was badly wounded and had not yet had a chance to catch its breath, took out its own trump card to support Jupiter.

It was not that the countries "rekindled their old love" selflessly after living apart, but that the Alliance desperately needed this victory.

At the end of February, the nearly glorious battle report reached the United Nations, and the world was in an uproar.

The Earth Allied Forces seemed to have turned their luck around.

In early March, the China-Russia Space Science Academy jointly published a research report on "gravitational bombs", confirming through multiple verifications that the so-called "gravitational bombs" were indeed, as speculated by civilian scientists, a kind of ultra-high frequency electromagnetic wave that decays quickly, has a limited attack range, and is indiscriminate in actual combat, only suitable for medium to long-range attacks and cannot achieve precise guidance.

The shadow of the "man-made black hole" hanging over the Alliance's head finally dissipated, like a pebble thrown into still water, instantly stirring up huge ripples.

In mid-March, the Earth Alliance re-signed the defense supplementary agreement.

The nearly disintegrated Alliance once again joined hands against the enemy amidst people's tears of joy.

In the news broadcasts of various countries, whether mainstream or non-mainstream media, for a time there was only one voice left - beat the humanoid alien monsters back to their home.

When Ye Wenlin led the special forces to reinforce the U.S. side under orders, he had close contact with Mr. Robert in private as Zhao Youxuan's entourage.

Compared to the spirited appearance on television, General Robert himself looked much older. The deep wrinkles on his face were interspersed with gloomy age spots. When he spoke, his tone was not high and his voice was a bit hoarse. He was not very warm towards people, but very polite.

His back was no longer very straight, and his lips were also dry and shriveled like ordinary old people. His eyelids were pulled down by the years, and only his slightly crooked eagle-hook nose stood out among his features, highlighting the old man's toughness and ability.

Ye Wenlin noticed that there were still needle marks left by the IV drip on the back of his withered hands, so it seemed the rumors of General Robert's poor health were not unfounded.

It was a small tea party.

Everyone present - including General Zhao Youxuan, seemed to have a special respect for Mr. Robert.

Ye Wenlin knew that with his qualifications and rank, he was too insignificant in a gathering of generals from various countries. So he only acted as General Zhao's bodyguard, silently listening on the side and serving as a tea-pouring attendant.

Later, he learned that the afternoon tea party that day was just a little short of changing the fate of Earth.

...If only the goddess of fate had not betrayed humanity at the critical moment.

When Ye Wenlin picked up the teapot to refill the red tea for the senior generals of various countries, General Robert gestured for him to take away the plate of pastries on the table.

"Give me a hand, boys." Robert said in a low voice, and with some difficulty, he instructed Ye Wenlin and another American officer to help him spread out a map of the allied forces' deployment.

"I've repeatedly pondered over these words many times, but I also know that the allies don't want to hear it." General Robert coughed a few times, his lungs making a "hissing" noise. He held onto the hand of the American officer and stood up with difficulty.

"On the surface, it seems that they want to use the Jupiter system as a base and engage in a long-term tug-of-war with us, but the deployment—here." Robert leaned over with support, circling a spot on the deployment map with his finger, "We indeed did not establish a fortress on Jupiter's moons out of safety considerations, but it does not mean that the defense here is lax. In fact, the United States and Canada form a pincer, and our European Union friends are not far away. Although the Asian countries are far, there are direct access channels. It can be said to be one of the most tightly guarded positions in the new deployment."

Robert panted for a few breaths: "The aliens are good at electromagnetic attacks. You should know that in planetary landing battles, this is not an advantage. They will not spend a long time here with us."

Ye Wenlin's heart stirred, suddenly vaguely grasping something, and couldn't help but look up at Zhao Youxuan.

But Major General Zhao Youxuan, apart from being a bit crazy on the battlefield, was usually a calm and refined person, not the type to express his opinions ostentatiously. So he shook his head slightly at him, indicating with his eyes that he should just listen.

At this time, the person in charge of the Australian Alliance reinforcements spoke up: "Perhaps the enemy's invasion of the Jupiter system is a mistake?"

General Robert's calm gaze suddenly became sharp, and he said word by word: "On the battlefield, the enemy may make mistakes, but we can never take chances."

"Then what do you mean..."

"I always feel that something doesn't seem quite right," General Robert said, "Thinking about it carefully, first taking advantage of the time when the Earth is at war and the two factions are arguing endlessly, scaring us with an electromagnetic attack, making us lose the initiative, then turning the tables and destroying the Earth Alliance in a head-on confrontation, what should be the next step?"

A flash of lightning suddenly flashed through Ye Wenlin's mind—yes, what should be the next step?

Earth people yearn for confidence and victory. The more suppressed they were before, the more intense the rebound will be once they grasp hope. For example, now even the Chinese fortress farthest from Jupiter has sent out nearly half of its elite reinforcements, so what about other countries?

As the battle for the Jupiter system intensifies, no, it should be said that as the advantage of the Earth Allied Forces becomes apparent in the battle for Jupiter, this situation has become more and more intense. Despite Robert's opposition, the allied countries continue to increase their troops, like moths flying into the fire.

Then... will Jupiter empty the entire allied fortress's defenses?

"I want to sincerely ask you all to do me a favor," General Robert said, "I hope you can persuade your respective governments to stop increasing troops to Jupiter, strengthen your own country's defenses, and even withdraw reinforcements back to your own country's fortresses when necessary."

These words were said with near selflessness—stopping the increase of troops to Jupiter was equivalent to putting all the pressure on the front lines on the US military.

Ye Wenlin subconsciously looked up at the Americans present. If one of them had a loose tongue, General Robert would very likely face charges of treason.

"General, do you know what you're saying?" The European Union official reminded in a low voice.

General Robert remained silent.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Robert, I have a question." The Russian official raised his hand and said, "Personally, I think that although the risks you are worried about do exist, the prerequisite for making a feint to the east and attacking in the west is that the other party can tie down most of the allied forces and still have enough troops to attack our rear. In other words, their military strength is overwhelming for us."

This sentence made the generals of many countries whisper to each other.

The Russian reinforcement leader was a middle-aged woman in her 80s. As long as they are not overweight, Russian women never look too bad, which made her stand out fashionably among this group of old men.

In front of generals twice her age, the Russian official showed her humble attitude as much as possible, and at the same time, she raised her objection: "Based on the current actual situation, in my judgment, I don't think the alien enemies have such strength. If their strength can really crush us, they don't need to use so many tricks and schemes."

That's right. From beginning to end, this was all just Robert's personal feeling. If there was even a little objective basis, with his qualifications and weight in the international community, he would have brought it up to the United Nations General Assembly long ago, instead of having a private tea party with leaders of various countries, full of worries.

Robert couldn't answer the Russian's question.

They had to stop discussing this topic.

The tea party ended in a harmonious atmosphere of eating and drinking.

However, after leaving General Robert's office, Zhao Youxuan called Ye Wenlin over: "Little Ye, come, draft a report for me to send to headquarters."

"Do you believe what Robert said?" Ye Wenlin asked, already knowing the answer.

"The old who do not die are thieves. When Robert was young, he was also a fierce general. Even though he is old now, something that can make him become cautious is also..." Zhao Youxuan put his hands behind his back, lowered his head, and nodded thoughtfully. After a moment, he sighed softly, "It's always good to have an extra hand of precaution."

General Robert's ability to act was astonishing. After a trial, he quickly figured out who agreed with his point of view and who still needed to be won over. The next day, he sent someone to try to meet with the Chinese General Zhao Youxuan again.

Unfortunately, at that time, the Chinese fleet was exchanging fire with a fleet of alien ships. By the time the battlefield had settled and Zhao Youxuan had a free hand, it was too late.

March 28, 2430.

Spring has arrived in Beijing, and the magnolia flowers on the streets have already blossomed into a snowy splendor.

General Robert, the commander-in-chief of the U.S. Space Forces, suddenly suffered a heart attack and died at 3 p.m. Beijing time, despite rescue efforts. He passed away on the battlefield.

His personal journey was forced to an abrupt end, but the battle for Jupiter continues.

April 1, 2430.

April Fool's Day.

Less than six months since the official start of the war between Earth and the other star system.

Fu Luo had just been reprimanded by Yesi in the simulation cabin and was feeling a bit hypoglycemic. She secretly grabbed a handful of candy from her own sugar jar and stuffed it into her pocket, planning to use it to get through the three-hour shift - this was something she had managed to save up after Ye Wenlin had left to reinforce Jupiter.

Ever since that scoundrel learned about the generous treatment of the Second Department, he had become even more greedy.

Just as she was sneaking candy into her mouth, she ran into Colonel Yang, who caught her red-handed.

Fu Luo: "..."

Our military has always had requirements for military bearing, and it is not allowed to be improperly dressed in the duty corridor, let alone sneak snacks.

Not violating regulations for 800 years, but getting caught when doing something bad, Fu Luo felt that her character card seemed to be slightly underfunded.

Yang Ning first glared at her, looking at her sticking to the wall like a weasel who had just stolen a chicken, but couldn't help but show a bit of a smile. He turned his head away, pretending not to see, and let her go.

Fu Luo hurriedly tiptoed away.

As a superior, Yang Ning was indeed the easiest to get along with. As long as there were no major mistakes, he basically turned a blind eye to minor errors and never arbitrarily escalated things.

Today it was Fu Luo's turn to be on duty in the main control room, without having to go on patrol, which was even more relaxed than usual. She completed the handover with her comrades-in-arms and sat in the chair of the main control room, surrounded by 360-degree dead-angle monitoring screens with a range of sixty units.

Recently, for some reason, the headquarters' alert level had suddenly increased, and the technical personnel had become very busy, going in and out to maintain the power systems of large, medium and small warships, as if preparing for a distant expedition at any time.

At first, everyone was quite panicked for a while, but after a few days, everyone got used to it.

Everything was normal in the main control room, with no abnormalities.

Being on duty in the main control room was self-study time for Fu Luo. She unhurriedly took out her reader and began to supplement her theoretical knowledge. Just as she had flipped through a dozen or so pages, suddenly, the left third monitor indicated an abnormal situation.

Fu Luo looked up and saw a swath of red dots indicating high speed and high energy rapidly approaching the Allied Space Fortress.