If I don't have money to go to college, I can only go to slay the dragon

Chapter 727 The Soul
"It is now the night of December 2010, 12. On the eve of the Chinese New Year's Day, the Beichuan ship officially entered Kuimen. There were strong winds above level 21 on the river, and there were interferences from harmful natural phenomena such as 'dragon sucking water' and 'huge waves'. The equipment was not yet ready. Normal. Tonight we will carry out the 'Bronze Project', I am Captain Manstein, this is my first captain's diary on this voyage. I hope it will not be the last."

In the bridge command room, Manstein glanced at his watch to confirm the time, and then looked at all the members in the cabin illuminated by incandescent lights, "Originally, the final instruction from the school board was needed to announce the start of the mission, but due to the storm and Due to force majeure, electronic signals cannot communicate with the outside world, so I finally officially announce that the 'Bronze Project' will enter the second stage of implementation from now on."

Why not the first step, because the first step of the 'Bronze Project' is to reach Kuimen, which should have been the least difficult step, but who knows that the strange scene of the storm and cloud gathering forcefully pushes this step to the top The difficulty of hell, but at least they have finally taken this step now.

The 3000-ton frigate named Beichuan was driving in the wind and waves, and after another half an hour of heavy rain, it was now a vast ocean, and the magnificent landscape of Kuimen was no longer there. The turbulent sea conquered the waves, and the wind force of level 12 was enough to set off a huge wave of ten meters to take a picture. Among the broken white foam, the warship with full navigation lights broke through the water and headed towards the unknown darkness ahead.

Originally, a destroyer with a displacement of 5000 tons should have been dispatched to sail safely in this storm, but due to the limitation of the Yangtze River waterway, today's 3000-ton frigate is already the limit, so the whole warship was particularly strong during this trip. Be careful and keep avoiding the vortex visible to the naked eye and the raging dragon to absorb water. Every time lightning passes by, it will illuminate the cold sweat and tense cheeks of everyone in the observation window.

Everyone came here with a mission on their shoulders. Most of the warships today are staffed by the "Zhou family". When Zhou Zhen boarded the ship, everyone saluted him. All fortitude and solemnity, this unified iron-blooded temperament really made Manstein and others look sideways.

"Different from last time, this time we don't have the home court advantage. Even the away game is in an extremely harsh environment. The host didn't plan to entertain the guests properly, so strictly speaking, we are not guests, but thugs who broke into the house." Manstein pressed his hands on the tabletop and scanned every student in combat uniform, saying, "As a thug, it is natural for a thug to have a tool for the thug to break through."

The electronic blueprints were spread out on the big screen behind him, and what appeared in front of everyone was the torpedo with the codename 'Storm' that they were familiar with.

"It was produced in Russia and modified by the equipment department. Originally, it was intended to be a weapon that won speed and obtained penetrating power with alchemy warhead torpedoes composed of dense alchemy shrapnel. However, the equipment department changed its mind after the Battle of Constantine. Although the alchemy The shrapnel is certainly effective, but the equipment department has considered the interference of the Dragon King's Word Spirit - if His Highness Norton can use the 'Candle Dragon' like Constantine, then it will be extremely difficult for the alchemy bullet to hit it." Manshi Stein said,
"So the current storm and thunder is officially changed to an explosive warhead composed of highly toxic chemicals such as the blood of the Holy Child and alchemy mercury. In order to ensure the stability of the blood of the Holy Child in the warhead, the speed of the torpedo is changed from The original 200 knots has declined to 66 knots, but the explosion range is enough to cover a radius of 1000 meters centered on the ground zero point, and the electromagnetic fuze detonation ensures the fault tolerance rate. This is one of our trump cards against the Dragon King, and it is hidden in the bilge of the warship It can be launched at any time provided that the warship's radar captures our target."

Manstein paused and said, "According to the current intelligence, Norton, the Lord of Bronze and Fire, is very likely to be hiding in the Bronze City that was explored in the 'Kuimen Project', so in order to lure the enemy to go deep, we We need to send a diving team to carry out underwater operations, and the specific task is to place alchemy bombs to lure the Dragon King out of the cave."

Everyone looked at the two people at the front. Naturally, they were Lin Nian and Lu Mingfei. They were the first seed in Group A of the diving team, and they took over the most dangerous part of the mission.

"Is Group A all right?" Manstein asked Lin Nian.

"No problem." Lin Nian has already changed into a diving suit, but this diving suit is slightly bulkier than any other diving suits, but no one will question his quality, because this is the equipment department in the third The latest work that has been pushed out like a duck within a month is a liquid-ventilated diving suit.

This kind of diving suit allows humans to breathe liquid oxygen like a fish, and can easily dive into the deep sea. The most important thing is that the compressed air is replaced by a substance called "liquid air". The oxygen carrying capacity of the entire diving suit is the previous number More times than not, you can inject a large amount of oxygen according to your personal needs.

"Where's Lu Mingfei?" Manstein looked at Lu Mingfei who was beside Lin Nian, his eyes were a little worried. The appearance of Lu Mingfei who was seasick on the landing craft before was really worrying.

"No problem." Lu Mingfei shook his head and said, but anyone could see that this kid's chest heaved much more frequently than usual, and his complexion was a little rosy, which was abnormal. It could be seen that he was excited or nervous.

If it was a normal situation, Manstein would definitely stop changing the team to dive, because Lu Mingfei's state is extremely unsafe, but as far as they know about Jiangxia's situation, they may change to any team. It's a near-death situation, only group A has a higher chance of survival.

"There is only one storm torpedo, and there is only one chance of success. The underwater group A successfully lured the Dragon King out of the Bronze City. We will launch it when it enters the sonar range. There will be close combat opportunities in the future." Manstein seems to be fully prepared, and Constantine's experience has made them no longer have brainless trust in thermal weapons. In this plan, the storm torpedo is at best only As a means to greatly weaken the Dragon King's frontal combat capability, not a lore.

Everyone in the cabin knows what the real lore and hole cards are.

"Now repeat the operation list. Captain Manstein, Chief Mate Zhou Kang is in charge of the helm; Second Officer Kaiser is in charge of sonar and torpedoes; Third Officer Zhou Zhen is in charge of the bilge; Chief Engineer Zhou Min is in charge of engines and fuel supply ;The captain of the warship, Chu Zihang, is in charge of the security command of the warship. The underwater operation group, Group A, Lin Nian and Lu Mingfei, members of Group B, Ye Sheng and Yaji, and members of Group C and D are preparing to dive. The replacement is in charge of the temporary escort work of the warship." Manstein slowly read the list, which included their people, as well as the original crew brought by the warship Zhou Zhen. This is their warship. Some hull equipment is better controlled by familiar people.

But it can be seen that the really important work, such as sonar and torpedoes and the overall security order of the warship, Manstein assigned important positions to his own people, and Caesar and Chu Zihang belonged to Group C and Group D The priority of diving is last, so other positions can be temporarily assigned to work. Zero, Susie, Nuonuo and others serve as the "sailor" branch in every corner of the warship, which can be regarded as preventing any accidents from happening.

As the captain of Manstein, Zhou Zhen had no opinion, and neither did the former captain. The 40-year-old square-faced burly man named Zhou Kang was very happy in the handover of the warship, or he absolutely obeyed orders. He handed over the command of the warship, and he put the warship into Manstein's hands without hesitation.

Because of this, Manstein asked directly in person: Do you have any opinions on letting me take over the ship?If you have any opinions, you can raise them now, so as not to cause conflicts and make the scene very troublesome. I don't want to be disturbed by my own people at critical moments.And Zhou Kang also answered him directly: I have no opinion, as long as it is for the cause of dragon slaying, to protect the rivers and mountains and the people, not to mention this warship, even if it is his life, he can put it in your hands, as long as you He is someone trusted by Senior Colonel Zhou Zhen.

After hearing this speech, Manstein did not disappoint the trust of the square man, and gave him the first officer of the warship. This means that if something happens to Manstein, then Zhou Kang will be selected. The command right to stay or leave the warship—in fact, this is trusting Zhou Zhen in disguise, because what Zhou Kang says and does will definitely be decided by Zhou Zhen.

For the time being, the entire warship is united in one mind. The people of Kassel College and the people of Zhou Zhen's side are weaving together to form a community of destiny. Everyone is holding their breath on the shaking warship and waiting for the moment of decisive battle. .

"The wind force has reached level 12, and we have reached the Kuimen Pass." The voice of the former captain and chief mate sounded from the loudspeaker in the bridge command room, calm and dignified.

Facing all the students, Manstein took a deep breath and turned his head. Behind him were three observation windows with a wide field of view. Now the Kuimen outside the observation window presents a scene that can only be seen at the end of the day.The dragon sucked water and swept across the river, the lightning broke through the clouds and hit the water directly, and the black vortex was formed and then annihilated. If there is a sea in hell that belongs to the suffering of the dead, then his cruelty cannot be more than this.

"Is this the entrance to Kuimen Pass?"

"Yes. Look at the 'islands' on both sides. They were not islands, but two mountains. The one on the left is called 'Baiyan Mountain', and the one on the right is called 'Chijia Mountain'. In normal weather, they should be towering. Entering the cloud, the wall stands like a cut, like a gate made in heaven." Zhou Zhen in the crowd said in a low voice, "But now the two mountains have disappeared. Although Kuimen has been flooded since ancient times, it has been submerged like this. It's also the first time I've met and we're about to go through this 'door'."

The warship stopped in front of Kuimen, as if it was waiting for something in the storm, and everyone in the combat command room knew what they were waiting for, and their eyes fell neatly on Manstein's back.

Manstein also felt the gaze behind him, took a deep breath looking at the scene that seemed to be going to the end, picked up the communicator and said, "This is the captain, notify all units of the ship to prepare for the impact. Advance four, enter Kui Door!"

This order sounded like a charging horn, and it turned out that a horn sounded indeed. It was the siren of the frigate Beichuan, which stretched over the raging Kuimen sky. The behemoth entered the full-speed gear and drove towards Kuimen rapidly, crossing the 'gate' formed by the two mountains.

After crossing the waterline between Baiyan Mountain and Chijia Mountain, the warship advanced all the way, and Manstein's delegation of the helm to the original captain proved to be an excellent choice at this moment.

The entire warship seemed to come alive in the hands of this man named Zhou Kang. It sailed like a god in the water with a wind force of level 12. The speed of the first battle made the Beichuan cut a white line on the water. The line, constantly and flexibly avoiding one after another waterspout, one after another vortex passed by, the warship not only did not cause the hull to become unstable due to the vortex flow, but often took advantage of the vortex turning to make the ship more stable. Further avoiding hills and windy pushers.

"A captain who has more experience at the helm than anyone he has ever known."

This was Manstein's first intuition when he watched the advancing warship in the bridge command room. He couldn't help but look back, but Zhou Zhen had already left after he gave the order, and went to the bottom line that he should be responsible for. The cabin, where the storm torpedoes and various induction bombs are loaded, there is no room for error.The rest of the students also rushed to their posts one after another, becoming one of the screws of this steel monster that cut through the waves.

Now only Lin Nian, Lu Mingfei, and Ye Shengyaji are still in the bridge command room. Group A and Group B are on standby before reaching the dive position, and they will follow Manstein at any time to wait for him. command order.

"Lin Nian." The name that Manstein called out was not surprising. It was the only name that he should instruct and repeat now.

"I'm here, Captain." Lin Nian nodded slightly.

"Don't be brave." Manstein looked at Lin Nian and said, "This is the only request I give you. Avoid unnecessary contact warfare. The storm torpedo may not kill the Dragon King, but it will definitely weaken him. It's time for you to actually make a shot. It was close enough last time, you should know what I mean."

"I understand." Lin Nian nodded.

"As for Lu Mingfei." Manstein looked at Lu Mingfei and said in a deep voice, "Follow Lin Nian, you must follow closely, as Lin Nian's eyes, you have to do the limit of what you can do, even if no one Know where your limit is. Now that you are standing here, standing beside Lin Nian, you must be the 'S' rank that Kassel Academy and everyone believes in."

Changing his normal tone and demeanor, Lu Mingfei straightened his back, and answered "yes" in a much louder voice, as if he had a sense of mission when he was the president of the literary club in high school.

At this moment, Lin Nian beside Lu Mingfei suddenly frowned, his ears trembled and he looked up at the observation window not far away.

At this time, Manstein's communicator suddenly rang, and Caesar's voice came from inside, but the content of the report was a bit unbelievable.

"Captain, the sonar directly ahead has found a 'school of fish'."

"Fish school?" Manstein picked up the communicator and subconsciously asked back to confirm, "How could there be fish schools in this weather?"

"...I don't think it's a school of fish either, but it looks a bit like a school of fish on the sonar, because they move in groups." Caesar's voice was a little low, and Manstein could even hear it from inside. Horror and solemn emotions come. "These 'fish schools' seem to have been approaching us since we crossed Kuimen."

Manstein's complexion changed and he suddenly turned his head and approached the observation window to look out, but he couldn't see anything except the surging river and lightning. The black river seemed to swallow up all the peering eyes.

"Second officer, we are moving at full speed now!" He picked up the communicator and said in a strange tone.

"I know." Caesar said calmly over the communicator.

If Manstein could see the sonar picture in front of Caesar now, he would probably be frightened by the dense light spots that surrounded the entire warship at some time.The light spots seem to be a kind of 'phenomenon', constantly revolving silently around the high-speed advancing warship.

"Caesar, there is something on the deck." The communicator rang again, and Chu Zihang's voice came from inside, as well as the noise of the strong wind and huge waves in the background.

"What's going on?" Caesar asked quickly.

"Listen." Chu Zihang on the communicator suddenly stopped talking, causing the sound of the wind and waves to fill the communication channel, and the first officer at the helm also looked sideways and listened carefully.

Soon, the complexions of Caesar and the first mate began to change, because they actually heard the singing.

It was a church hymn-like chant full of sophistication, which made people feel as if they were in an empty church, listening to the ethereal syllables reverberating in the church and shaking their skulls. And this voice like the singing of the Holy Spirit appeared in In the violent storm with the wind force of the twelfth force?

"The singing came from underwater." Chu Zihang's voice sounded again, "Many crew members found that there were many white figures under the water around the warship."

"Get ready for battle, the safety of the deck is up to you for the time being." Caesar said in a deep voice.

"Yes." There was silence on the other side of the communicator.

On the deck of the Beichuan, a big wave suddenly hit the surface of the ship. After the white water waves broke, a black-haired figure was still standing firmly on the side of the ship, with his right arm tightly wrapped around the rope to stabilize his figure from the strong wind. Walk.

The pair of eternally burning golden pupils pierced through the darkness of the storm and looked down the ship. The very penetrating ethereal chant came from the water and surrounded the entire space, as if the entire stormy night was resounding through this inhuman The high-pitched syllables of the language.

And under the water, white spirits drift past one after another, with pale and expressionless faces facing the water, reminiscent of the souls of those victims of the sea guided by the Greek god Calypso.

The black scabbard was washed by the storm, and Chu Zihang pressed his right hand on the hilt of the Yushen Knife, with blue veins protruding, white steam gushing from his body, and a dark red ring of fire quietly emerged behind him, illuminating the darkness in a corner of the deck.

"I remember that there is a kind of indigenous people called Alaan people in Mindoro Island in the Philippines. It is a primitive tribe that still maintains the habit of drinking blood."

In the captain's room, Caesar looked at the black river surface outside the observation window and said suddenly, "There is a sacrificial ceremony in the tribe of the Alaan people. They will put the prey on the altar and sacrifice the meat-eating souls to the heavens for them to eat. The minced meat that was discarded."

"We are not prey, this is a fully armed warship!" The first mate's face twitched.

"They're not Alaans, but dragon-like creatures who can use your warship as a ready-made altar!" Caesar exhaled and said the true colors of these dense light spots, "Isn't it just to enjoy after the hymn is sung?" Is it time for communion?"

The chief mate beside him waited for a long time, finally took a deep breath, picked it up and began to inform the whole ship, "Deck level one alert, all crew members are ready for boarding battle. We have guests."

(End of this chapter)