After a successful surprise attack by the British destroyers, the distance between the main patrols of the two sides was reopened to more than 18 kilometers. The roaring ensemble between the large-caliber guns gradually subsided, and only the small fighting between the cannon fodder ships of the two sides was still going on. Not far from the main battlefield, the scarred light cruisers also returned to their own teams; The flames that still crackled and burned on the deck, and the long smoke that dragged up behind them, were testament to the fact that they had also experienced a fierce struggle before.

On the De Fringel, the adjutant was constantly compiling various reports in front of Hipper. So far, the German reconnaissance fleet has achieved brilliant results: 2 British battlecruisers and 5 light cruisers have been sunk, while they have not lost a single battleship of torpedo boat rank or higher. The Sedlitz, the heaviest wounded, suffered a torpedo and five 343-mm shells, one main turret was unusable, and the battleship had a total of 1,200 tons of water and a 7-degree tilt to the left. The two ships, Balfos and Moritz, which had been fighting one against two before, were only hit by 6 and 5 305-mm shells respectively; Their core bays are intact, and it is possible that the turrets of the stuck shells can be repaired and restored in the following battles. Compared with the scum British battle cruisers, which excessively pursued the two paper indicators of speed and firepower, and did their best to compress tonnage and cost, the German battle cruisers, which were essentially all high-speed battleships, gained an overwhelming advantage in the performance of a single ship, not to mention the huge gap between the two sides in the quality of shells and safe operating procedures!

On the sea, the V27 torpedo boat, which was completely destroyed by steam, was withdrawing from the battlefield under the tow of another cannon fodder; The Cali life raft, full of the surviving crew of the V29 torpedo boat, floated and sank with the waves, and a friendly ship dropped a cable on it a short time later. Look at your own ship rescuing people who have fallen into the water. Hippert lit a cigar. Swallow the clouds and spit out the fog. I was already beginning to think about it quickly.

At present, there are two very different paths in front of Hipper. One is to choose to turn left and accelerate, rush forward to fight to the death with the British War Patrol again; Another option was to take advantage of the situation to open up contact with the British War Patrol, turn right two compass points, and go to the northwest to reconnoiter the British Grand Fleet, which had not yet appeared. Although Ingnorr's purpose in placing him at the southern end of the main force of the High Seas Fleet, rather than to the west, was to detect and control the movements of the British Rapid Fleet, this did not prevent him from making changes within his purview. Now the location of the British War Patrol has been discovered. Your main fleet will be ready to go to the battlefield in less than an hour, and your mission has been completed. Compared to the British fast fleet, the large fleet with 25 dreadnoughts is clearly the most noteworthy enemy of the high seas fleet. If you can get an early start in reconnaissance and let the High Seas Fleet take the lead in the battle with the Grand Fleet, it will undoubtedly be much more effective than sinking the British Battle Cruiser!

"The British fleet began to turn to the right, speed 21, distance 18500!" Hippert was weighing himself when the voice of the lookout in the microphone instantly pulled his thoughts back. Hearing this, his eyes widened in surprise and said, "What is Betty thinking?" He was at a 9-7 advantage. However, in twenty minutes, 2 main battle cruisers were lost; Now that the number of the two sides has been equal, how did he get the courage not to wait for the 18 old ships to come fearlessly. Just come and challenge yourself again? ”

The sea breeze howled, the waves were undulating, and the bilge was filled with subtle vibrations from the boilers and turbines as they operated. After a while, the lookout on the mainmast gave a closer distance number. Looking at the British war cruisers in the distance who rushed towards them like big beetles, the doubt in Hipper's eyes gradually faded, replaced by a fierce color, and said: "Since you are so eager to fight like Nelson, I have granted your wish." The order was given, the fleet turned a compass point to the right, and the ships distributed their firepower in turn, ready for battle! ”

The thunder roared, the air waves exploded, and in the purple light and flames that danced at the muzzle, the fleets of the two sides once again began a new round of confrontation. Due to losses in previous battles, the number of large-caliber shells flying through the air has decreased, but the sound of their crashing into the sea is still as staggering as before. To Hipper's surprise, this time the accuracy of the British's artillery fire was much improved compared to the previous battle. With the change in the direction of the wind at sea, the British rangefinders were no longer afflicted by soot and muzzle smoke, and with a full salvo every 40 to 50 seconds, their firepower was no more sparse than that of German ships with a half-salvo; As long as a straddle is formed, the threat it poses to the target is equally staggering!

"Boom!" A 305-millimeter shell pierced the sky like a comet, and slammed into the stern of the Blucher like thunder, and the fire burst into the sky; The cascading waves of air carried a huge piece of shrapnel that had been trapped in the vessel's steering rudder after traveling some distance through the water. The Blucher lost its direction and struck out of the German battle patrol array to the left, and despite the mechanics and damage management team desperately trying to repair it in the oil and soot, it was still like a stubborn donkey and refused to return to the queue. Seeing this, Dan Royth, the gunnery officer on the Invincible, couldn't believe that he would have such good luck; The German battleship's unexpected out-of-control turn just gave the amidships P turret of their own ships an almost extravagant opportunity to fire!

With a standing displacement of 17,373 tons, a maximum speed of 25 knots, and four twin 305mm L45 guns, the Fisher-class battlecruiser was the core weapon that Fisher was ready to make big news for the world's navies and highlight the invincibility of the Royal Navy. In recent years, the Royal Navy has also been claiming the strength of the Invincible class, claiming that its eight 305 mm guns have obvious firepower advantages over the eight 283 mm guns of the German Blücher class; However, anyone with a little common sense will see that if the battle of the Royal Navy really comes, then the fierce firepower that the invincible class is proud of will remain completely on paper.

Due to the turret layout, the two main turrets of the Invincible class are arranged diagonally across the amidships, each with a reverse firing range of less than 40 degrees; Unless it is an extremely special circumstance, the main gun on the other side can only stay in place and watch the show and cannot do anything. In the previous naval battle of the Gulf of Helgoland, which broke out in early June, the two invincible-class ships in the high-speed pursuit could only exert the firepower of six main guns; In the battle just now, these three scum ships at the bottom could only use 6 main guns against 8 of the German battle cruisers, and the firepower superiority claimed by the British Admiralty was not reflected at all in actual combat.

However, this time, the Blücher, whose steering gear was damaged, gave the Invincible a perfect opportunity to use its full firepower for the first time. In the slightly trembling voice of Lieutenant Colonel Dan Royth, the 457-ton P turret began to rotate slowly, and the thick barrel could avoid the back of the Q turret, aiming at a distant target through a narrow gap. With a thunderous roar, 8 armor-piercing shells weighing 386kg burst out at a speed of 831 m/s, and soon flew above the head of the Blucher!

"Boom!" The Bertha turret seat on the Blücher's amidships suddenly exploded into a huge wave of red fire, and shrapnel flew and shot at it. Although the shell failed to penetrate the 280 mm thick turret armor, the huge impact kinetic energy and explosive air wave caused a piece of the armor plate to loosen and fall off, blocking the normal operation of a bomb picker, and the deformed turret also hindered the rotation of the turret. Less than a minute later, another shell whistled in, smashing a large hole in the aft deck; Members of Dora's turret emerged from the turret and helped the damage team level the twisted and rolled deck with hammers and welding torches so as not to interfere with the turret steering. However, while they were trying to repair it, a 305-mm shell let out a terrible scream, roaring and crashing into the side less than 10 meters away, surging flames and angry fire; The poisonous smoke from the burning and the shrapnel from the explosion raged on the back deck, killing more than 30 people instantly, and more than 10 others were also seriously injured and lost their combat effectiveness!

Perhaps it was because of the successive battles between Tireless and Queen Mary that ignited the anger in the hearts of the British, and the British sailors in the four turrets of the Invincible were desperately shooting and reloading as if they were in madness; Over the course of 8 minutes, they observed a total of 8 direct hits. The Blucher was in flames, and the battleship was completely horizontal. Rear Admiral Hood, commander of the 3rd Battle Cruiser Fleet, who was sitting on the Invincible, could not contain the ecstasy in his heart, and shouted in the intercom microphone: "Well done, just keep firing and fire quickly, and you will send blood to avenge the British warriors!" ”

Smoke billowed and fire was in full swing. In the midst of the ruins, the turrets of the Anna and Catherine, which were still fighting on the Blucher, began to rotate slightly. In Doug's roar, four brilliant purple-red flames suddenly erupted! A 330kg 283-mm armor-piercing bullet thundered through the 180mm armor of the Q gun mount of the Invincible Amidships, and then exploded violently. The burst of fire cascaded like a waterfall into the open blast door leading to the ammunition depot below; In the case of being hit in the same part, the British and German warships suffered two completely different results!

"After the Indefatigable and the Royal Princess, we had the privilege of seeing this spectacular sight. Blazing pillars of fire smoke poured out from every part of its hull, and the triangular masts collapsed like sawn-down trees; Debris danced in the air, and the battleship was soon enveloped in an endless sea of fire. The bastard who tortured us finally got the end it deserved. I shouted into the intercom: Enemy ship exploded! Cheers and applause rang out from every corner of the deck. The gunners of the Blucher recorded what was happening. (To be continued......)

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