Origin Paradise!

But at the very center of the fleet, one of the flagships, the White Rose, suddenly waved its command flag, and the complex flag signals conveyed the message to the entire fleet.

“Enemy ships were spotted 35 quarters east of north, 30 li away.”

The lookout on the White Rose quickly reported the news to the fleet commander, Earl of Rock.

Inside the captain's cabin, the Duke's youngest son, Brownie, paced back and forth, while the family's elder swordsman watched him, his expression unreadable.

The Earl of Rock lowered his monocular telescope, his belligerent fervor replaced by calm, and said unhurriedly:

"It should be the combined fleet of nobles from the Bourbon Kingdom. The situation is simple: our intelligence has been betrayed."

According to the plan formulated by the fleet headquarters, the Northern Fleet will launch a surprise attack on Calibbe Port. The Duke of Wyatt's family has no titled knights, so their chances of winning are extremely high.

The Bourbon Kingdom has three fleets: the Kingdom Fleet, the Noble Alliance Fleet, and the Colonial Expansion Fleet. Now that our side has been caught up by the enemy fleet, the answer is self-evident.

"What is the outcome?" the elder with the sword asked.

"Hey, don't even think about a big victory unless the opposing commander is Brownie, but a slight victory is still possible. The quality of the sailors from the Chaotic Lands far surpasses that of the other side," Earl Rock said with a boastful laugh.

Brownie was speechless.

The quality of seafarers is not just about combat ability; sail handling and gun control are more crucial factors. A skilled crew can complete a simple turn in place in fifteen minutes, but a "professional" from the Royal Capital Exploration Academy once failed to turn even after taking two hours. The difference is unbelievable.

Earl Rock and his fleet staff devised tactical plans. Since the number of cannons on the sides of the ships far exceeded those at the bow and stern, naval warfare tactics of this era typically employed a single-line battle formation to maximize the advantage of artillery, also known as the battle line.

"Order the entire team to immediately adjust to a straight-line formation, advance fifteen nautical miles, and then turn back to the right rear." Count Rock finalized the plan with a wave of his hand.

The elder statesman had no objection to this. Given the current situation, with the enemy advancing in a straight line, our side would adjust to a "U" formation to meet the enemy, and the two sides would clash along their battle lines, a result that anyone could accept.

The noble allied fleet aimed to keep the enemy out of port, hoping to utilize the combat skills of its crew. On the open sea, the view was wide, and the ships moved much slower than on land. Therefore, there were basically no surprises for either side, and annihilation battles were extremely rare.

……

Half an hour after the two armies spotted the enemy.

The vanguard fleets of both sides encountered each other.

The vanguard ship of the Northern Fleet, the Tulip, turned around and sailed alongside the enemy's vanguard ship on the sea. The two third-class destroyers opened fire with unusual coordination.

Rumble!

With the captain's command, a deafening roar resounded across the sea. White powder shells burst forth like angry meteors, tracing sharp arcs across the dark ocean. The arcs intertwined, as if weaving a net in mid-air.

The shells whistled as they crashed into the sea, instantly churning the surface into a murky mess. The surging waves rose and fell like small mountains, and jets of water shot into the air, creating bursts of spray with each explosion.

"Keep loading! Sink it!"

"Adjust the mainsail to the southwest for 12 quarters of an hour; the wind is now from the northeast!"

"Quickly, transport the white gunpowder!"

The captain of the Tulip roared loudly. As the vanguard, he had the strength of an ordinary Grand Knight and held the position of Rear Admiral. At this moment, he not only had to command the entire ship, but also had to shoot down enemy shells from mid-air as much as possible.

boom!

Amidst the columns of water, a white powder shell struck the bow, its immense power tearing a large hole in the forward side, instantly killing more than a dozen soldiers loading ammunition into the gun ports.

The captain remained unmoved and continued shouting commands. He was guarding the gunpowder magazine to prevent any major accidents such as the ship blowing up. The deaths and injuries of a few soldiers were not worth leaving his post.

Rumble!

Above the dark, murky sea.

More and more warships are engaging in parallel attacks in pairs.

The second-tier battleship HMS White Rose destroyed the opposing fourth-tier frigate with a single salvo of 360 shells. Thanks to its top-notch gunners, its hit rate exceeded 70%, and it had an overwhelming advantage in both the number and caliber of its guns.

The sea breeze howled, the warships cut through the waves, and volleys of cannonballs, carrying the scent of death, tore through the air on the sea with sharp whistles.

Where the shells passed, the sea breeze was cleaved like a blade, and then they exploded on the distant sea surface. The water spray burst open like white fireworks in an instant. The huge impact caused the seawater to bulge and sag, forming ever-expanding circular waves. The two fleets engaged in a large-scale battle line bombardment.

"How long will we have to wait in line?"

On the Saint Lilith, Wuhe peered through a monocular telescope, observing that his own fleet was making a "U"-shaped turn.

Before the battle line could even "match" them, there were still more than twenty warships ahead of their bow waiting for the enemy to join the battle.

Lilith floated up to someone like a ghost.

"I have a fun idea."

"Speak your mind." Jiang He put down his monocular binoculars.

“Let’s cut in line and start turning now, heading straight in front of the enemy fleet’s vanguard. If we sink two or three ships, the wreckage will force the enemy fleet to stop,” Lilith warned. “But you might have to bear the charge of disobeying orders on the battlefield.”

Jiang He looked across the sea towards the enemy fleet ahead. The leading ships on the opposite side were all Tier 3 destroyers, which was theoretically a bit risky.

“Okay,” Jiang He agreed. Lilith wouldn’t joke about her own ship.

Lilith gave an OK sign, indicating that she could only command the evil soldiers after receiving authorization from the captain.

Ah Si led the steering team to change course.

"Adjust the three sails to the northeast for 50 quarters of an hour."

"The bow mast and the second spanner sail are to starboard."

"Fold up the stern sail..."

Micro-operation commands were issued one after another.

A group of vicious soldiers moved up and down the mast. As the sails were adjusted, the strong winds at sea quickly blew the Saint Lilith away from the fleet, making a ninety-degree turn on the spot in less than two minutes.

Jiang He watched as Lilith issued a new round of commands after completing the turn, seemingly to maximize the wind power for the ship; the instructions were quite complex.

On the high seas, the Saint Lilith broke away from its own ranks and headed straight for the enemy's vanguard ship.

This scene caught the attention of the flagship.

"Send flag signals to Baron Rhine." Count Rock's face was grim. "As a Grand Knight who leads the way in disobeying military orders, don't blame me for turning my back on you after the war."

Regardless of the outcome, this is a great provocation to his authority as commander.

"Understood." The messenger turned and ran out of the captain's cabin.

The elder with the sword spoke up: "Judging from the speed at which they turn the rudder, the navigator must be a sea expert. The Saint Lilith is probably trying to force the enemy fleet to stop. Since they have already turned, there is no point in coming back."

“I know,” Earl Rock said irritably. “Then what do you suggest I do? If they don’t listen to this person and that person, what’s the point of military orders in the end?”

Brownie hesitated, but ultimately chose to remain silent. Before being officially designated as the successor, he had no room to speak in the captain's cabin, especially since there were two peak-level knights in front of him.

……

A full quarter of an hour.

The Saint Lilith arrived at the forefront of the battle line.

On the vanguard destroyer of the noble allied fleet, Earl Green held a monocular telescope with a furrowed brow.

At this moment, the enemy ship is about to point its broadside at the bow of our ship. In a battle between a fourth-class ship and a third-class ship, the former will have the advantage in artillery fire.

However, once it turned, it exposed its stern to the Tulip, which was sailing alongside it. This brilliant move put the Vanguard destroyer in a dilemma.

In just a few seconds, Earl Green made his decision. As the vanguard captain of the noble allied fleet, he was different from the nobles who funded the ships; he had more than a decade of solid seafaring experience.

"Abandon all artillery and supplies, throw them all into the sea, and ram the entire ship into the fourth-class ship ahead at top speed."

With the order given, from the air, the Vanguard ship completely abandoned its attempt to retaliate against the Tulip. As heavy objects sank into the sea, its speed increased significantly, successfully leaving the Tulip's side bombardment range, and rushing towards the St. Lilith at the speed of an armed merchant ship.

Earl Green drew his sword. Boarding action was the only way out at this moment. Charging into the enemy's bombardment zone meant that the vanguard ship would either be destroyed or sink. He knew that he could not return. Even with the strength of an ordinary Grand Knight, he was powerless to fight against the fleet at sea.

Another quarter of an hour has passed.

At a distance of 500 meters, the Saint Lilith fired five rounds of artillery fire, totaling two hundred shells.

More than twenty shells hit the vanguard ship, their shrill cries echoing incessantly. Several jagged gashes were torn open in the hull, and seawater surged in, instantly creating a turbulent current in the passageway. Debris and debris swirled wildly with the waves, and the sailors, their faces covered in soot, staggered and fled along the sloping, slippery passageway, their shouts mercilessly drowned out by the explosions.

The two sides were less than 100 meters apart.

Earl Green's face was filled with a resolute determination to sacrifice himself for his country.

But at that moment, a brilliant flame rose from the Saint Lilith.

Jiang He stood on the side of the ship, extending one hand forward.

Perfect-level flame control activated at full power.

4000 energy points were injected.

The Long-lasting Dragon Spear increases fire resistance by 60%.

It is blessed with three energy qualities.

Compression of crystallization and solidification technology.

As the power gradually concentrated, the black "tricolor" fireball grew larger and larger, eventually reaching a diameter of ten meters.

Releasing energy at any cost left Jiang He's body riddled with holes, but he possessed an extremely effective self-healing ability and the ability to keep burning like embers. He was completely unconcerned about this devastating damage.

It took a full three minutes to build up its power.

The massive black fireball left his hand.

At the last moment, Jiang He activated the perfect-level skill, Fatal Strike, which increased the fireball's shooting power by 50%, and provided an additional 50% armor-piercing damage, 50% bullet velocity, 25% shock damage, and 20% shooting kinetic energy enhancement.

It was like a dark meteor slicing through the sea.

Count Green was at a loss for what to do.

The three-colored fireball struck the warship's foredeck precisely, and in an instant, flames burst forth like a demon appearing.

The ship's hull, with a hardness comparable to steel, twisted and groaned under extreme heat. The thick deck was torn apart instantly like fragile paper, and fragments carrying flames flew everywhere, blooming like fireworks.

The vanguard ship trembled violently under the bombardment of the fireballs. The shattered armor caused the main body to disintegrate, and billowing black smoke, carrying acrid gunpowder, rose into the sky, turning the surrounding sky black.

The third-class vanguard ship, with its 800 crew members, was almost entirely wiped out.

On the wreckage, Earl Green, his body charred black, knelt on one knee, leaning on his sword with difficulty. The fireball was not primarily aimed at him, but the aftershocks, though close at hand, were still terrifyingly powerful.

boom!

Before he could regain his senses, a silver spear pierced through the air, its cold blade blasting his lower body. Jiang He switched places with the blood shadow of the Möbius Knight covered by the spear, skillfully reaching out to draw blood from his heart, executing his soul.

[Premium Blood Poison LV6→LV7 (Deals 17% additional poison damage)]

The intense flames that burst forth between the sea and the sky drew the attention of tens of thousands of people from both fleets.

Count Rock silently put down his binoculars, then picked them up again to observe. The power of that fireball was terrifying, almost touching the edge of a titled knight, and it was clearly targeted at ships. If a few more came, the White Rose would be in danger of being paralyzed and sunk.

"He should have reported before acting on his own. If Rhine had told him he had this trick up his sleeve, this kid could have done whatever he wanted." Count Rock perked up a bit; the other side might actually be able to force the enemy fleet to stop.

The elder with the sword stood at the window, gazing silently. As a family elder, he had to consider whether Rhine's existence would bring any hidden dangers. According to the family's great wizard's analysis, the other party had hundreds of thousands of lives on his hands. Of course, such an outrageous number meant that something was wrong.

"We must win him over at all costs."

Unlike the scrutiny of the two top knights, Brownie's gaze was burning with desire. Once he successfully recruited such a force, he could greatly mitigate the age disadvantage he faced compared to his older brother in the succession struggle.

……

On the sea.

Jiang He looked at the dozens of noble warships in front of him.

A few miles away, two third-class destroyers were approaching and were exchanging fire with their "matching adversary".

“You take care of one, I’ll take care of the other. There are no Grand Knights on either of these warships.”

Lilith was on the ship, yet she transmitted her voice to someone's ear. She was not allowed to leave the vicinity of her host before, but being on the Saint Lilith made it an exception.

“Okay,” Jiang He said.

Chapter 293 Silver Armor and Silver Spear

Rumble!

Hundreds and thousands of shells crisscrossed the sea, and amidst countless towering columns of water, ships from both fleets sank.

Under the leaden-gray sky, on the vanguard's secondary ship, Viscount Druna witnessed the fall of the Tier III destroyer and the Grand Knight. His expression became urgent, after all, no one knew if there would be a second fireball like that.

"Full speed ahead! Follow that secondary ship around our sunken vessel, and don't block the path of the warships behind us!"

Viscount Deluna shouted the order, and many captains in both fleets saw the strategic objective of the Saint Lilith. However, since the warship was only a fourth-class frigate, it did not attract much attention at first.

Bang!

The messenger, who had originally left the captain's cabin, remained where he was.