Rather than abruptly revealing his presence and the effect of the Mirage System after its duration ended, it was better to proactively end it early and proceed in a normal manner.
The Pond, after its makeover, was no longer the former Battleaxe, a ship that had to constantly hide to avoid the Jin family's pursuit.
Wang Dong did not order the Pond to proceed at full speed.
The Pond, with its incomplete crew and insufficient supplies, did not have high combat capabilities in the real universe.
While its overall combat rating was LV7, based on Wang Dong's experience, it was questionable if it could even reach LV5.
The two Jin family fire seed warships had overall combat ratings of LV11 and LV12 respectively, while the two fire seed warships in Wu Hao Ze's trading fleet were both LV10.
All four fire seed warships were fully staffed and equipped, capable of fully utilizing their combat potential.
There was no need to rush in and become cannon fodder.
Moreover, Wu Hao Ze's fleet had just left the mining zone planet and could return anytime, making it an unsuitable time to attack.
Wang Dong would only consider approaching the battlefield after the Jin family warships took action.
He would also only approach while in stealth mode.
The LV0 Mirage System provided twenty-four hours of stealth duration, and it needed to be carefully managed.
It could not be wasted arbitrarily.
Although not traveling at full speed, the fire seed warship's speed was still far higher than that of transport ships.
As a result, the distance between the Pond and Wu Hao Ze's fleet was constantly shrinking.
Wang Dong was no novice.
Ten years of being hunted had forged his composure and honed his extensive experience in pursuit and escape.
The route of Wu Hao Ze's fleet, especially the part just after leaving the mining zone planet, was not a secret.
Wang Dong had accurately estimated factors like speed and distance.
After half a day of pursuit, he successfully spotted the light points representing warships on the sky survey radar.
Although they were just ordinary small warships, not fire seed warships.
"These should be assault ships from the Sky Shark Trading Company and several other local forces."
Based on the ship types and number, Wang Dong felt confident.
Assault ships were small warships mainly used for rapid engagements, offering a decent cost-effectiveness but limited ceiling.
He then reduced his speed again, ensuring that the few assault ships in front would not leave the maximum detection range of the Pond's sky survey radar.
Although the Pond's sky survey radar was an un-ranked shipboard module, it had reached LV2 in reinforcement level.
Compared to the ordinary warships of the Sky Shark Trading Company and other local forces, its performance was superior.
Therefore, Wang Dong could comfortably maintain a distance where "I can see you, but you can't see me."
He followed them from afar.
The Pond's detection range exceeded the assault ships of the Sky Shark Trading Company and others, but Wang Dong dared not say that it could exceed the two Jin family fire seed warships.
Therefore, Wang Dong would not risk approaching the Jin family warships and Wu Hao Ze's fleet.
Instead, he would observe the movements of the warships from the Sky Shark Trading Company and other local forces to judge the progress of the situation.
This process of trailing behind from a distance lasted for two whole days.
It was quite boring.
But it was a daily routine in the vast sea of stars.
Even though he was alone, single-handedly controlling a huge warship, Wang Dong still appeared relaxed.
Compared to his previous life, where he was constantly being hunted and had to maintain a high level of vigilance, this leisurely life, where he only needed to activate autopilot and choose to maintain a fixed distance behind those warships, was quite satisfactory.
Wang Dong was quite pleased.
July 17th, 7:35 am.
"Beep beep beep!"
The shipboard light brain emitted a series of urgent prompts, startling Wang Dong who was in the cargo bay, performing the final steps of the mineral decomposition from the previous harvest.
After two days of effort, Wang Dong had almost completely decomposed the minerals he collected at the energy crystal rich spot, leaving only some finishing work.
He obtained thirty-three units of low-grade energy crystals and five units of mid-grade energy crystals.
Currently, the Pond possessed a total of fifty-one units of low-grade energy crystals and eight units of mid-grade energy crystals.
Wang Dong put down his tools and rushed to the command cabin.
The few assault ships trailing from afar suddenly accelerated. This anomaly triggered Wang Dong's preset instructions, causing the shipboard light brain to start an alarm.
After a moment of thought, Wang Dong decisively issued an order.
An hour later, the Mirage System finished charging, and the Pond successfully entered stealth mode.
Immediately, the Pond's engine was activated at full power, chasing towards the front.
In reality, this battle, involving four fire seed warships and over ten ordinary small warships, began at 6:12 am on July 17th.
When navigating out of the mining zone star system, Wu Hao Ze had noticed the warships sent by the Sky Shark Trading Company and other local forces in the mining zone star system, trailing a distance behind.
However, he didn't pay much attention.
This was a public航道, a necessary route for entering and leaving the mining zone star system.
Moreover, the distance between the opposing force and the fleet was kept sufficiently far, not like they had malicious intent.
Instead, they seemed to be accompanying the fleet, something that had happened before.
The only difference this time was that it was on a larger scale.
The Sky Shark Trading Company had sent both its assault ships, a reconnaissance ship, and all three were present.
The Tiger Trading Company also sent nearly all its ships, with three small warships as well.
The most surprising thing was that the Kingfisher Guild, which usually focused on selling information, also sent two assault ships, showcasing their considerable strength.
The unexpected happened two days after the fleet left the mining zone star system.