Empire Conquest
Chapter 170 - 166: The Desperate Torpedo Attack

Chapter 170: Chapter 166: The Desperate Torpedo Attack

The fierce battle continued until 12:45 AM, and it was only after the "Rixiang" caught up that the Second Main Battle Corps finally regained its full formation.

However, the situation had already turned dire.

Apparently feeling that the "Yishi" had been beaten badly enough, after 12:30 AM, the other three "Longxing" class battleships shifted their targets.

Unfortunately, this was no cause for celebration.

Because the "Rixiang" hadn’t caught up yet, within approximately fifteen minutes, the Main Force Squad’s No.2 and No.3 Ships were firing at the No.2 enemy ship, the "Fusang." Remember, at that time the "Fusang" had to relay Takatoku’s combat orders in place of the "Yishi."

Interestingly, the "Fusang" fired back at both "Longxing" class ships simultaneously!

According to combat records, after being targeted by the enemy No.2 and No.3 ships, the captain of the "Fusang" ordered the first three turrets to aim at the No.3 Enemy Ship, while the last three turrets targeted the No.2 Enemy Ship, with both forward and rear bridges commanding the counterattack at the same time.

Was this a joke?

Although within these fifteen minutes, the "Fusang" fired nearly ten salvoes, none hit the target, not even one straddling shot was formed.

The counterattack by the "Fusang" was a complete waste of shells, not even causing any disruption to the enemy ships.

One could say, the staggered salvoes from the six Main Gun turrets on the front and back caused much confusion among the officers and soldiers on the two "Longxing" class ships, not understanding what this enemy ship was trying to do.

In these fifteen minutes, the biggest gain for the Second Main Battle Corps was not hitting the enemy a few times, but successfully increasing the distance from the enemy.

In fact, this was exactly the key reason why Takatoku issued the order to turn left.

Don’t forget, Gui Boyong’s Main Force Squad was traveling in the northeast direction, whereas, after Takatoku ordered a left turn, the Second Main Battle Corps headed southwest.

Additionally, during this period, through the "Fusang," Takatoku also issued an order to Takeo on the "Myogi."

Attack the enemy’s main force squad, specifically by launching a torpedo attack after closing in.

Don’t forget, the four "Myogi" class ships each have four quadruple torpedo launchers capable of firing eight heavy oxygen torpedoes on one side at once.

After a tactical turn, another eight could be launched.

This thing was a devastating weapon.

A single hit could cripple or even sink a ten-thousand-ton warship, theoretically only three were needed to sink a battleship.

Of course, Takatoku didn’t expect to sink battleships with torpedoes, but rather hoped to gain time to make adjustments.

At 12:45 AM, "Longxing" was the first to turn.

At that time, about ten kilometers to its east, the four "Myogi" class ships of the Fifth Cruiser Corps were also turning and immediately launching an attack.

Yes, they were firing torpedoes at the main force squad!

What was Takeo thinking?

Was he trying to use "Spear" oxygen torpedoes to go to heaven?

Even though the "Spear" oxygen torpedoes had astonishing power and range, with a distance of ten kilometers, wouldn’t the targeted warships evade?

Given the situation at the time, it was either intentionally done by Takeo or there was a mistake in transmitting the message from the "Fusang."

However, the problem was immediately handed over to Gui Boyong.

Although he hadn’t exchanged fire with the Fifth Cruiser Corps, the lookout aboard the "Longxing" was constantly watching that direction, closely monitoring the movements of the four heavy cruisers. When the four "Myogi" class ships suddenly turned to the right and then returned to their original course, heading southwest about three minutes later, the lookout sounded an alarm, warning the captain that the enemy ships might have launched torpedoes.

The two consecutive opposite turns were the standard action for launching torpedoes.

Subsequently, the Heavy Cruiser Squad’s "Zizhou" also sent a telegram, stating that they observed four enemy ships launching torpedoes and admonished the Main Battle Corps to stay alert and evasive.

How to evade?

Spotting enemy ships launching torpedoes was not the same as spotting the torpedoes themselves.

Furthermore, no one knew in which direction those four heavy cruisers had launched their torpedoes.

The only certainty was that even a "Longxing" class battleship would be doomed if hit, likely needing several months of repair at a shipyard.

After all, who would want their battleship to be battered?

Gui Boyong had devoted so much effort to surprising the enemy, providing them no chance for retaliation and minimizing damage.

Therefore, Gui Boyong issued a command to turn left.

What did that mean?

To widen the gap from the Fifth Cruiser Corps!

Although some had speculated that, given the circumstances at that time, the Main Force Squad would have chosen to turn left to maintain distance from the Second Main Battle Corps and gradually leave Watcher Strait even without the Fifth Cruiser Corps’ attack, without the threat from the Fifth Cruiser Corps, the Main Force Squad’s maneuver would have been merely a tactical turn, keeping the turning radius minimal to maintain visual contact with the Second Main Battle Corps and continue exchanging fire.

Facing the threat of torpedoes, the maneuver by the Main Force Squad was not merely a tactical turn, but a turn combined with evasion.

The outcome was a turning radius of over five thousand meters.

If it had been daytime, that wouldn’t have been a concern.

But at night, five thousand meters seemed excessively far!

Setting aside any personal grievances, Takeo’s desperate attack truly saved Takatoku, providing valuable time to make tactical adjustments.

Furthermore, when Gui Boyong ordered the turn, the blaze on the "Rixiang" was about to be extinguished.

By the time the Main Force Squad had completed the turn, they had once again lost visual contact with the Second Main Battle Corps.

The clouds that had been over the Main Force Squad side had already drifted to the south, obscuring the moonlight.

At that moment, Gui Boyong regretted his decision.

At fifty-five minutes past midnight, after the torpedo impact time had passed and the torpedo attack alarm was lifted, the only enemy Gui Boyong faced was the still-advancing Fifth Cruiser Corps.

Additionally, the Heavy Cruiser Squad was approaching and continually firing at four "Myogi" class ships.

Perhaps worried about another torpedo attack or perhaps out of frustration, Gui Boyong personally adjusted his strategy and ordered to fire at the four heavy cruisers.

Takeo surely hadn’t expected that four colossal beasts like the "Longxing" class would ever regard small fish like the "Myogi" class worth their attention.

While the Saiyi Navy treated heavy cruisers as secondary main ships, in reality, cruisers were no match for battleships. Even battlecruisers, which had dominated the previous great war, were nothing before battleships.

The result was that the four "Myogi" class ships were simultaneously bombarded by four battleships and four heavy cruisers.

Could they survive?

The lookout aboard the "Longxing" meticulously recorded the subsequent events.

Just after one o’clock, the "Myogi" was hit and caught fire, followed by a violent explosion, sinking around five minutes past one. At six minutes past one, the "Nachi" was directly hit by a 400mm armor-piercing bullet, nearly leveling the bridge, and sank after more than ten minutes. At fourteen minutes past one, the "Zu" unexpectedly suffered a huge explosion and sank within less than a minute. At seventeen minutes past one, the "Yuhei," under fire from eight warships, raised a white flag and sank itself more than ten minutes later.

Among the four heavy cruisers, only the crew of "Yuhei" were relatively fortunate, with the majority surviving the ordeal.