Otherworld Bone Dragon Operation Guide

Chapter 328 Pursuit
When Su Ming returned to the Pansy, the capture of the Flying Sea Eagle Beast was basically completed.

The aft deck was littered with captured sea eagles. The bound raptors flapped their wings restlessly, emitting a cacophony of cries, some sharp and some low, filling the area with agitation and unease.

The Seahawk's head retains the sharp features of an eagle, but its overall shape is more rugged and ferocious. Its strong, curved beak is like a meticulously carved obsidian, with a deadly hook-like tip that gleams with a cold, hard luster.

The air was thick with the salty, fishy smell of the sea, a mixture of feather oils and the wild, slightly bloody scent unique to predators. This sea monster had a wide wingspan, allowing it to soar through the sky and also to use its powerful strength to briefly plunge into the water to hunt schools of fish near the surface.

The aft deck of the Pansy is about 100 meters long and over 20 meters wide. Even so, it is now occupied by more than half of the space by these sea eagle beasts.

Currently, many auxiliary facilities on the Pansy have not yet been installed, and a large portion of the fore and aft decks remains empty. Su Ming surveyed the area, considering building a temporary shelter to house these precious flying mounts.

On the other side of the deck, another group of "spoils of war" huddled together—dozens of clergy prisoners, soaking wet and disheveled. They were huddled together, their faces filled with fear and confusion, watching Su Ming approach with unease.

"Su Ming, the Dawn Pioneer-class cruisers are dispersing and fleeing," Beanie's voice came clearly through the headset as she reported.

"All ships, switch to pursuit mode!" Su Ming decisively gave the order.

"Yes!"

Beanie immediately instructed the bridge to adjust the course and pursue the target. At the same time, she organized the deck crew to remove the thick waterproof cover on the MK71 main gun turret, revealing the robust gun barrel with its cold metallic luster.

The young woman nimbly leaped onto the turret, landing lightly on the gun barrel. She carefully inspected the gun-laying radar, optical sights, and various velocity sensors, checking for any malfunctions caused by ice and snow. The sea breeze whistled, ruffling her short hair.

After a quick inspection confirming the equipment was in good condition, Bei Anqi picked up the tactical tablet and remotely operated the turret, conducting a series of smooth 360-degree rotation and elevation tests. She listened intently to the low hum of the motor drive and hydraulic system, a satisfied expression on her face—everything was working perfectly!
"Clear the foredeck!" Beanie shouted crisply, then nimbly leaped down from the turret and ran quickly to Su Ming's side.

The crew acted quickly and completely cleared the foredeck area.

Beianqi picked up the tablet again and skillfully pressed the triple-fire test button on the screen.

boom! boom! boom!
The MK71 naval gun fired three blank rounds in quick succession! Orange flashes of light erupted from the muzzle, causing the air to hum.

"What is this for?" Su Ming asked, puzzled, looking at the rising smoke.

“Testing the fire control system,” Beanie replied matter-of-factly, her eyes still glued to the parameters on the screen. “And it’s too cold, so we’re also warming up the barrel to prevent the steel from becoming brittle and affecting firing accuracy.”

****
The two then entered the cabin and arrived at the command center located on the third floor of the bridge.

On the central tactical radar screen, the dots representing enemy ships were relatively scattered, but roughly formed two combat groups. There were signals of three Dawn Pioneer-class cruisers on the south side, while the east side was denser, with five Dawn Pioneer-class cruisers and the particularly conspicuous magical warship "Redemption Thorn" gathered together.

"Pursue the eastern cluster!" Su Ming made a swift decision, pointing his finger at the light spot representing the "Redemption Thorn." "This magic ship must be captured!"

For Su Ming, the threat and strategic value of the magic warship far exceeded those of conventional artillery warships. Moreover, it was equipped with strategic-level magical weapons like the "Eternal Winter Veil"! With continued acceleration, the Pansy caught up with the nearest enemy ship in the eastern cluster—a Dawn Pioneer-class cruiser.

Beanie appeared confident and was in no hurry to fire. She knew that the range of these Dawnbreaker-class cannons was about 10 kilometers, and even with the use of magic-enhanced supercharge technology, the maximum range could only be barely extended to 13 kilometers.

This range is negligible compared to the MK71 203mm heavy naval gun with a range of over 30 kilometers.

However, the closer the distance, the higher the accuracy. Besides, the MK71 is not loaded with ordinary high-explosive shells now, so we should still save resources.

She habitually picked up her high-powered binoculars and looked towards the enemy ship, only to find that she couldn't see it at all at that distance. So she decisively put down the binoculars and turned to focus intently on the radar screen.

When the radar showed that the distance between the enemy and ourselves had narrowed to about 18 kilometers, Beanie gave the order to attack.

Buzz—Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three heavy shells roared out at an initial velocity exceeding Mach 2.5, tearing through the frigid air. After about forty seconds of flight, they crashed into the sea near the target ship, creating several huge white splashes that rippled briefly on the radar screen before disappearing.

Beianqi quickly adjusted the parameters on the control panel, lowered the elevation angle, and then issued the order for a three-round burst.

"This time it'll definitely hit!" she said confidently, staring at the predicted trajectory on the screen.

However, unexpectedly, the echo of the shell's impact point appeared at a much farther location, nearly a kilometer beyond the target before plunging into the sea and creating an even farther column of water.

****
"Why?!" Beianqi looked confused and puzzled, repeatedly checking the fire control data and radar information on the screen.

She clearly lowered the cannon barrel, so why did the shell fly further?

Standing on the outer deck, Zijin suddenly closed her eyes. Her powerful mental energy extended forward into the sea like invisible tentacles, carefully sensing the energy fluctuations in that area.

"There are mages casting a combined spell on the other side!" Zi Jin said. "Spell type... 'Levitation'?"

A glint flashed in Su Ming's eyes, and he suddenly realized!

"Bianchi! They've used magic to disrupt the projectile's gravitational field!" Su Ming exclaimed immediately. "The mages have joined forces to cast a 'levitation' spell along the projectile's path!"

Beanie immediately understood. If the shell were to experience the levitation effect for just 2 seconds, it would also rise 20 meters due to weightlessness! In this way, the shell would fly over the ship, just like before.

As for a more direct gravity manipulation, the opponent obviously wouldn't dare use it—that would indeed cause the shell's trajectory to drop. However, when the shell enters the water at high speed, it might be deflected by the water surface, gaining a strange angle of refraction and striking the warship's most vulnerable waterline area.

(End of this chapter)