Chapter 623

Chapter 623: Chaos in the Sky

The Light Mirror Technique activated!

The Electro-Optical Distributed Aperture System (EODAS) and the Light Mirror Technique simultaneously released the monitoring system, and the “monstrous” aircraft entered a combat-ready state. The AN/APG-81 active electronically scanned array radar upgraded to 3,100 gallium arsenide transmission and reception modules, reaching a peak power of 18 kilowatts.

Lin Mo immediately detected a signal source locking onto the aircraft, seemingly from the three o’clock direction, two hundred kilometers away. The electronic map instantly displayed that it was a desolate salt flat area.

The “monstrous” aircraft had not yet obtained official registration from the military and could not receive reconnaissance support from military satellites.

“Warning! Warning! This is Air Traffic Control operator 009423. ‘Dragon Knight’, your speed is incorrect, 4.5 Mach. Are you trying to break 5 Mach? That’s too fast! Are you launching missiles? Please reduce speed immediately, or you’ll activate the medium-range Surface-to-Air Missiles.”

The voice of the air traffic controller responsible for Lin Mo’s flight path crackled through the communication channel. After just assigning a temporary flight path, it was expected to be a routine flight; this was very normal for a pilot with the flight code “Dragon Knight.” However, he suddenly realized that the active signal source he was tracking was moving at an astonishing speed, far from ordinary.

Even missiles probably wouldn’t reach such speeds! China had never seen a fighter jet with such terrifying speed, over 4 Mach, close to 5 Mach, which implied the capability for global strikes. With a nuclear warhead attached, it could threaten any corner of the world.

The ground radar struggled to track the jet, as radar operators at several radar stations worked quickly to increase radar power output. They stopped comprehensive searches and switched to automatic tracking.

The sudden appearance of the “monstrous” aircraft in Chinese skies caused local air defense systems to go into chaos.

Only satellites in the sky could track Lin Mo’s active signal; if he broke through 7 Mach, satellite tracking would be extremely difficult, rendering domestic air defense systems completely ineffective.

“I haven’t launched any missiles; I’m conducting a flight experiment!”

Lin Mo immediately controlled the power output, shutting down the pulse detonation engine once again. The Void Magnetism rapidly dissipated, and the fighter jet slowed down quickly as it approached 4.9 Mach, the nose creating a conical shockwave, exiting supersonic mode.

It was a bit of a pity; the air traffic control bureau had the most power, and he could only reduce his speed. If he had just a tiny bit more speed, he might have been able to surpass 5 Mach, competing with America’s Boeing sixth-generation fighter F/A-XX.

Even though he felt a bit regretful, Lin Mo sensed that the “monstrous” aircraft, empowered by the gold giant dragon’s abilities, still had reserves of power. If paired with a magnetic plasma engine, it might even be capable of breaking through the atmosphere.

As if hearing Lin Mo’s thoughts, the cockpit was filled with the sound of gold coins. “I need to hurry and develop the magnetic plasma engine; there are infinite amounts of meteorite iron in space.”

“Good idea, but be careful not to get blown out of the solar system by solar winds! There are three types of cosmic speeds, you know.”

Lin Mo smiled. The information on the two engines he received from the aerospace training center was invaluable to the gold element dragon kin.

With a power system capable of launching into space, especially like a plasma engine that allowed for low-consumption, long-distance movement, the gold element dragon kin would no longer be trapped in space, losing the Void Magnetism abilities and facing death in the outer layers of the atmosphere.

Countless planets and asteroids held untapped mineral veins, and even legends spoke of pure metallic meteorites, or Split Metal and Liquid Magic Gold, among other metals with extraordinary properties.

No wonder this guy insisted on seeing the real thing.

“What type of aircraft is yours? How can it go so fast?”

Operator 009423 felt his heart racing in fear; this speed nearly triggered an air defense missile interception.

Only missiles could reach such amazing speeds, and radar stations mistakenly identified the “monstrous” active signal as an unauthorized missile or a strategic intercontinental missile.

Finally, the speed of the “monstrous” signal on the display decreased, changing to 0.8 Mach, entering subsonic status. The threat level dropped, and it still remained on course. He sighed in relief; if it had continued for another 1,000 kilometers, it would have surely entered a major city.

At nearly 5 Mach, 1,000 kilometers could be covered in the blink of an eye.

It seemed his assigned flight path was too short; the route given to the “Dragon Knight” had quickly reached its end.

“Your clearance is insufficient! Operator 009423!”

Lin Mo began to turn the nose of the aircraft; the flight path had reached its terminus. If he flew any further, he might trigger an air defense missile attack.

This was a military air defense rule, beyond human control.

If it weren’t for America’s Aurora moving so fast, exceeding the interception capabilities of various countries, it would have been shot down long ago while flying around up there.

“Oh, okay, I won’t ask anymore.”

Air Traffic Control operator 009423 felt a cold sweat and quickly stopped talking.

If he continued to press for information, he might violate regulations.

The “Dragon Knight” had special notes in the flight records, possessing unique flying permissions, unlike ordinary domestic pilots who could only patrol designated airspaces. He often undertook missions abroad, and the aircraft model frequently changed—today, he was flying a new fighter.

Although the aircraft model hadn’t been registered in advance, as long as he stayed within the designated flight path, it wasn’t a major issue. If it were a classified model, he had even less authority to inquire.

As the urgent warning ceased, Lin Mo also breathed a sigh of relief. The Light Mirror Technique scanned the surrounding airspace, and he hoped to catch a glimpse of the Aurora, the high-speed strategic reconnaissance aircraft. If he did, he would have enough reason to push the “monstrous” aircraft to its top speed. If he managed to bring it down from the sky, or force it down, that would be a significant achievement.

Lin Mo didn’t consider that if he actually did that, the Americans would likely go to any lengths to eliminate him.

Unfortunately, the skies were empty; they were not Lin Mo’s allies, and Lady Luck was not on his side. All he saw were one or two civilian aircraft passing through the Light Mirror Technique’s vision; the high-speed strategic reconnaissance aircraft that loved to buzz around China was nowhere to be seen.

“What a pity!”

Lin Mo muttered as he began to turn the aircraft back. If he had seen the Aurora, he would certainly have chased after it and said, “Hey, want to give me a ride?”

During a test flight, he couldn’t fly recklessly without purpose. Given that he had managed to secure a temporary flight path without an operational mission, it was a very lenient arrangement. If it were any of the stationed air force fighters, they would have been shot down by anti-aircraft fire long ago.

Controlling the “monstrous” aircraft, Lin Mo lazily executed a roll in the sky, followed by a cobra maneuver, a pendulum, a large wheel, a hook maneuver, a J-turn, inverted flight, and tail chase, among various classic tactics of this world, as well as the Hunting Sparrow Trajectory, Morning Light Storm, Bloodthirsty Strangulation, and Flash maneuvers from another world.

Just as Colonel Jiang understood, a more advanced aircraft model would better enhance Lin Mo’s tactical skills. On the return flight, it felt as if he was engaging in combat with an invisible opponent, performing 14G, 16G, and 18G maneuvers, which were nearly lethal, showcasing air combat skills that even the world’s top fighters struggled to handle.

Lin Mo was extremely satisfied with the performance of the “monstrous” aircraft. With Gold Coin’s assistance now under control and relying on the aircraft’s capabilities, he estimated its performance rivaled that of the F/A-XX.

Beep!

The radar system issued an alert; two fighter jets suddenly appeared within the scanning range.

J-10, two aircraft!

They seemed to be checking things out, perhaps a combat team was dispatched to verify whether the flying object in this airspace was a missile or a fighter jet.

“Calling ‘Dragon Knight’! Calling ‘Dragon Knight’! Is that you? Are you in a normal state?”

A voice echoed in Lin Mo’s helmet.

“It’s me, everything is normal.”

Lin Mo continued with his tactical maneuvers, the onboard computer system meticulously collected various data, anticipating further adjustments once he returned to base.

With Gold Coin’s help, he directly bypassed the ground testing phase and ascended to a high level.

At 15,000 meters, a flight height that was a bit challenging for the J-10, though usually set at 18,000 meters, the unpredictable high altitude might bring unexpected challenges—cold, lack of oxygen, insufficient lift—not all fighter jets could casually cruise at this altitude. Any sudden issue could cost the pilot his life within seconds.

On the radar screen in the “monstrous” cockpit, two J-10s rapidly approached at a speed of 2.2 Mach. They maintained subsonic status, staying at an altitude of 14,000 meters below.

No threat alarms sounded in Lin Mo’s cockpit.

The two pilots from the J-10 squad gazed wide-eyed at the strangely postured aircraft above them.

They had never seen this model before; was it the Su-47 “Golden Eagle”?

But it was clearly not!

It was a new domestic fighter model. However, they had just received intelligence indicating that it was a fighter jet approaching 5 Mach. When had China developed such technology?!

Despite their suspicions, the J-10 pilots buried their questions deep inside. Their task was merely to confirm, and without further orders, they had no authority to take action. Even though they had two PL-12 air-to-air missiles hanging under their wings.