Chapter 128: Chapter 96: Dominating the World_2
The only regret was that the Merit Points for the Drone before were 12,163, After fulfilling the upgrade requirement of 10,000 points, there was a surplus of 2,163 points. However, after the Drone upgraded to Level 4, these surplus Merit Points were reset to zero, resulting in a loss of 2,163 Merit Points.
After this upgrade, the volume of the Universal Space became 1,000 cubic meters, which was a tenfold increase compared to before. Now it looked like a square space with each side measuring 10 meters in length, width, and height. The previous Universal Space had become extremely cramped after storing spare Items, to the point where he even had to clear out space and eliminate some spare Items during the bank robbery Task. But after the upgrade, those Items only occupied a tiny corner of the Universal Space, making the entire area appear very spacious.
The expansion of the Universal Space allowed Yan Fei to carry more Items with him, offering more options for use during operations and making his life more convenient. What puzzled Yan Fei, however, was that even after this Drone Upgrade, there was still no explanation as to why the Portable Space was called Universal Space and with whom it was supposed to be universal. Nevertheless, he could only comfort himself with the thought that maybe the Drone’s next upgrade would resolve the mystery that had been troubling him all along.
The Drone, after its upgrade, had taken on the appearance of a US Air Force’s F-15 Fighter. Calling it a Drone was no longer entirely accurate. Because at the front of the Fighter, there was now a spacious Cockpit, and Yan Fei could sit inside it and fly along with the aircraft.
Of course, there were no instruments inside the Drone’s Cockpit, so there were no actual piloting controls. It still required Yan Fei’s consciousness for operation, so it was still somewhat appropriate to call it a Drone. Since the virtual control screen continued to display it as a Drone, Yan Fei also continued to refer to it by its previous name.
With this Cockpit, Yan Fei effectively had his own Private Airplane, and from now on, he could move along with the Drone instead of having to hang from its rack as before, avoiding the discomfort of rain and wind and enjoying comfortable travels. He no longer had to worry about his whereabouts being detected when flying long distances on commercial Airplanes. Sitting inside the Aircraft, there was no issue of Control Distance, and as long as there were enough Energy Points, the Drone could fly to any place in the world. If he wanted to enter Japan again, he wouldn’t need to take a ferry; flying there directly in the Drone would be very convenient.
Just by the data, the Level 4 Drone was slightly larger than the United States’ authentic F-15 Fighter. Yan Fei calculated some data and found that the Drone was about 20% larger than the F-15. Whether it was the body length, width, height, weight, payload, maximum speed, and so on, all increased by 20%, meaning the Drone was essentially an Enhanced version of the F-15. Like before, the Drone also had no paintwork, preventing Yan Fei from perfectly impersonating US Forces and blaming his actions on them seamlessly.
Among these data, what Yan Fei cared about the most was the flight speed of the Drone. The previous Predator Drone was beaten by some faster Fighter Jets because its speed was too slow, and its Missiles couldn’t shoot down those jets. If it wasn’t for its extraordinary combat capabilities, along with the enemies’ unfamiliarity with its performance, and combined with Yan Fei’s precise calculations and shameless surprise attacks, it would not have been able to shoot down so many jets and thus gain enough Upgrade Merit Points.
The top speed of the Level 4 Drone had reached 3 times the speed of sound, or 3,672 kilometers per hour. With this speed, the Drone could catch up to the majority of Fighter Jets in the world. This advantage in speed made it much more convenient whether pursuing an enemy or escaping. Coupled with its Flight Altitude reaching 30,000 meters, the Drone’s combat capabilities had greatly improved.
The original F-15 Fighter’s weapon racks were numerous, with a total of 11, giving it an exceptional weapon carrying capacity. After the Drone was upgraded and mutated based on the F-15 Fighter template, it inherited the F-15’s weapon racks, maintaining the count of 11. However, the number of weapons each rack could carry increased fourfold, making for a terrifying total weapon capacity of 44.
Following the upgrade, the model of weapons used by the Drone also advanced. While the anti-tank missile model remained the AGM-114 (Hellfire), both the missile’s power and range had doubled. Under the assault of the mutated Hellfire missile, no ground armor would escape unscathed.
Corresponding to the Hellfire anti-tank missile was the Air-to-Air Missile. After the Drone’s upgrade, the model of the Air-to-Air Missiles also changed, becoming the F-15 standard AIM-120 Air-to-Air Missile. The AIM-120 is the US Army’s most advanced Air-to-Air Missile, with immense power and a maximum attack range of 75 kilometers; its speed reaches Mach 4. Yan Fei’s Predator Drone had previously been chased and harried by such missiles. But once the upgraded Drone began to be equipped with these missiles, it was time for its enemies to experience that kind of embarrassment.
As before, there was a limit to the number of missiles the Drone could fire daily, which was 44. But at the time of launching, it could choose which type of missile to fire, whether anti-tank missiles or AIM-120 Air-to-Air Missiles.
In addition to the two types of missiles, the Drone’s 30 millimeter Vulcan Gun was still retained, and their number had even doubled, with one mounted outside of each air intake. Each Vulcan Gun had its own supply of 1800 rounds of ammunition, with types including armor-piercing rounds, high-explosive rounds, and incendiary rounds. The ammunition type could be switched as needed during an attack, but the total ammunition was controlled, limited to 3600 rounds. Each Vulcan Gun could fire a maximum of 1800 Cannon Rounds, and together, both guns could discharge a total of 3600 Cannon Rounds.
With the addition of these two powerful Vulcan Guns and the accurate targeting of Quantum Radar, the Drone still possessed formidable close-range air combat abilities, able to destroy more incoming missiles, making it an important means of missile defense for the Drone.
The Drone’s special abilities were also retained, namely vertical takeoff and landing and the ability to submerge in the sea. Upon entering the sea, the Drone would automatically transform into a more streamlined shape conducive to underwater operations. Once submerged, the Drone gained the ability to launch torpedoes shaped like AIM-120 Air-to-Air Missiles, bestowing upon it the capability for underwater combat. Although these torpedo-shaped missiles had reduced power—only 80% of the full version—their strength was still formidable underwater. With this method, upon encountering enemy submarines again, the Drone would be capable of sinking them and would no longer be helpless as it was against Japan’s Soryu-class Submarines.
The Quantum Radar, which most significantly enhanced the Drone’s combat power, had its scanning range doubled to 1000 kilometers, allowing it to detect incoming targets earlier and prepare battle plans in advance. Although powerful, activating the Quantum Radar for extensive scans also significantly raised the consumption of Energy Points. This meant Yan Fei had to be cautious and economical every time he used the Quantum Radar to avoid wasting Energy Points. However, it was precisely because of the Quantum Radar that the Drone’s combat power was greatly improved, allowing it to outclass any other third-generation fighter jet.
The only regret for Yan Fei was that the upgraded Drone still lacked stealth capabilities and could be detected by various radars, preventing him from doing as he pleased. But he soon came to terms with it, as the Drone’s specs were powerfully impressive. With this fighter jet, he would truly reign supreme over the world.