39: Hunting the "behemoth"! The silent strangulation of the deep sea!

The jarring "woo—woo—" sound of the Level One battle alarm, like the whisper of death, echoed within the massive hull of the Deep Blue Blade, instantly dispelling the brief exhilaration brought by the successful first shot of the electromagnetic cannon. The cold metal bulkheads seemed to tremble with the urgent sound.

On the bridge, the atmosphere was so heavy it could drip water. On the main screen, the red triangular marker representing the Sea Abyss Giant Beast-class submarine "abyssal echoes" was approaching a weak point in the outer defense perimeter of the base at an alarming speed. The distance was 180 nautical miles and still shortening.

"'Sea Wolf' anti-submarine patrol aircraft group has taken off! Expected to arrive over the target sea area in fifteen minutes!" The communications officer spoke rapidly.

"Panshi and Raging Waves frigates have turned, heading XXX, activating active sonar search!"

"'Falcon' anti-submarine helicopter squadron is lifting off from the ship!"

Captain Chen Hai stood in front of the command seat, his face as stern as iron, issuing clear and swift orders: "Sonar room, report status!"

"Reporting, Captain! Passive sonar array fully powered on! Deep sea background noise level is relatively low... No clear target features captured! Repeat, abyssal echoes not detected!" The sonar chief's voice carried a hint of anxiety and disbelief. The opponent seemed to have melted into the deep sea.

"Sea Abyss Giant Beast-class... truly lives up to its name." Lin Feng's voice sounded behind Chen Hai, calm but with a chilling pressure. He stared at the sea chart; the marked area seemed like a huge, sound-devouring black hole. The Ark had sent their underwater ace, and its purpose was self-evident—retaliation, deterrence, and possibly even a fatal reconnaissance or sabotage operation against the core base of the Deep Blue Fleet. The submarine's stealth performance far exceeded any opponent they had previously encountered.

"Its pump-jet propulsion system and special anechoic tiles allow it to generate noise lower than the ocean background noise during low-speed cruising, making it very difficult for our passive sonar to lock onto it at long distances," Professor Zhao, the base's chief sonar expert who had just been urgently connected to the communication channel, analyzed with a grave voice. "It is very likely in a 'silent dive' state right now, with a clear target, heading straight for our soft underbelly."

"We can't let it get any closer!" Chen Hai clenched his fist. "One hundred fifty nautical miles, it has already entered the effective range of its submarine-launched heavy torpedoes! Once it locks onto our port facilities or anchored ships..."

"Active sonar!" Lin Feng ordered decisively. "Order Panshi and Raging Waves to conduct high-intensity active sonar pulse scans in the XXX sea area using a zigzag search pattern! Fifteen-second intervals! Deep Blue Blade to maintain passive listening, ready to fill in at any time!"

"Yes, Commander!"

The order was given. Soon, the slightly tense voice of the Panshi's captain came through the communication channel: "Panshi understands! Active sonar on! Pulse transmitted!"

Buzz—buzz—buzz—

Invisible, powerful sound wave pulses, like deep-sea searchlights, swept violently through the dark seawater around Panshi and Raging Waves. This was a declaration breaking the deep-sea silence, and also a helpless act of revealing their own position. Active sonar was like lighting a torch in a dark forest; while it could illuminate the surroundings, it also immediately made itself the most conspicuous target!

On the bridge, everyone held their breath, passive sonar headphones pressed tightly against their ears, trying to discern any abnormality from the noisy background echoes.

Five seconds... ten seconds... fifteen seconds...

"Panshi reports! Target not detected!"

"Raging Waves reports! Target not detected!"

Pressure, as if tangible, weighed on everyone's hearts. The active sonar pulses were like stones sinking into the sea, failing to stir up any valuable echoes. abyssal echoes seemed to have truly vanished, or it had cleverly evaded the sonar beam's sweep area.

"It's more cunning than we imagined..." Chen Hai's brows furrowed.

"It's waiting." A cold glint flashed in Lin Feng's eyes. "Waiting for our anti-submarine aircraft group to arrive, or waiting for us to expose a greater flaw. It's wearing down our patience and vigilance."

Time passed minute by minute, each second feeling like an eternity in a boiling oil pan. The signal of the 'Sea Wolf' anti-submarine patrol aircraft appeared on the edge of the radar, approaching at high speed.

Suddenly!

"Report! Passive sonar detected a faint transient noise! Bearing XXX, distance... distance vague! Signature... signature matches high-precision torpedo tube flooding sound! Very brief!" The sonar chief practically roared, his voice filled with the excitement of finding prey and a hint of fear.

"Torpedo tube flooding?!" Chen Hai's pupils contracted sharply. "It's going to attack?! Who is the target?!"

"Unable to determine specific target! Noise source at extreme depth, signal extremely faint and transient, unable to pinpoint!" Cold sweat beaded on the sonar chief's forehead.

"All ships! Emergency maneuver! Deploy towed acoustic decoys! Anti-torpedo systems on standby!" Lin Feng's voice was decisive, without the slightest hesitation. No matter which ship was the target, they had to react immediately!

The massive hull of the Deep Blue Blade suddenly turned and accelerated on the sea surface, its towed acoustic decoy, like a nimble metal fish, quickly released into the water. At the same time, the ship's anti-torpedo rocket depth charge launchers adjusted their angles, ready to intercept.

Almost at the instant the decoy hit the water!

Chhh—chhh—chhh—

In the passive sonar headphones, three sharp noises of high-speed objects propelling through the water were clearly captured! The sound moved from far to near, extremely fast!

"Torpedoes! Three of them! Bearing XXX, rapidly approaching! Target... the target is us! It's the Deep Blue Blade!" The sonar chief shrieked at the top of his lungs.

The target of abyssal echoes was this flagship all along! It used the active sonar pulses as cover to achieve a deadly lock and attack! Three heavy torpedoes, like three venomous snakes from the abyss, were tearing through the seawater at over 50 knots, heading straight for the Deep Blue Blade!

"Anti-torpedo depth charges! Fire!" Chen Hai roared.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

On both sides of the ship, multi-barreled rocket depth charge launchers spewed fire, and a dozen anti-torpedo depth charges were launched to the predetermined depth ahead of the torpedo's incoming path.

"Full speed! Maximum evasive maneuver! Hard to port!" Chen Hai personally steered, attempting to make the massive hull perform the most extreme evasive action.

The Deep Blue Blade let out a muffled roar, making an almost right-angle sharp turn on the sea surface, the ship listing to a heart-stopping degree.

Boom! Boom! Rumble!!!

Muffled but violent explosions came from the deep water! Shockwaves transmitted through the seawater to the hull, causing a violent shaking. Huge water columns shot skyward several hundred meters behind the ship!

"Two torpedoes hit! Interception successful!" The weapons officer's voice trembled with the relief of surviving a close call. "The third one... the third one evaded successfully! It grazed past the stern!"

That was close!

However, the crisis was not over! abyssal echoes, after launching the torpedoes, must have revealed its position!

"Sonar! Get it!" Lin Feng barked.

"Report! Target high-speed maneuvering noise captured! Bearing XXX, depth XXX! It's diving to evade! Very fast!" The sonar chief finally seized this fleeting opportunity!

"It won't escape!" Lin Feng's eyes flashed with murderous intent. "'Sea Wolf' aircraft group! Target bearing XXX, depth XXX! Deploy active sonar buoy array! Pin it down for me! 'Falcon' squadron, chase it down, deploy depth charges! Cover its possible evasion routes!"

The Deep Blue Blade also adjusted its course, active sonar on, powerful sound wave pulses like an invisible giant net, covering the target sea area.

In the sky, the 'Sea Wolf' anti-submarine aircraft, like raptors discovering prey, arrived over the target airspace. Bomb bay doors opened, and strings of cylindrical active sonar buoys were precisely dropped. Plop! Plop! The sounds of them hitting the water merged into one. Soon, dozens of sonar buoys were activated, like searchlights illuminating the deep sea, weaving a dense acoustic detection net.

Buzz—buzz—buzz—!

Dense active sonar pulses instantly filled the entire sea area!

"Locked! Target locked! Bearing stable! Depth stable! Target is performing an extreme deep dive, attempting to escape!" The data chain transmitted by the sonar buoys clearly outlined the figure of abyssal echoes on the screen.

The 'Falcon' anti-submarine helicopter group, like sharks smelling blood, circled at high speed over the target sea area. The dipping sonar beneath their bellies quickly sank into the water, further pinpointing the location. The pilots' eyes were sharp, their fingers hovering over the weapon release buttons.

"Target within optimal depth charge killing range!" The helicopter squadron leader reported.

"Drop bombs!" Lin Feng and Chen Hai ordered almost simultaneously.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

From beneath the bellies of several 'Falcon' helicopters, heavy depth charges, like black eggs of death, were dropped one after another. They trailed slender parachutes, sinking steadily into the dark abyss, plummeting towards the high-speed moving steel behemoth locked by sonar.

In the deep sea, abyssal echoes also seemed to realize the arrival of doomsday. It maneuvered wildly, released acoustic decoys, trying to interfere. But deadly sound wave detection was on all sides, and destructive bombs were constantly approaching from above!

Rumble!!! Rumble!!! Rumble!!!

Muffled and terrifying roars came from the deep sea; even on the surface, the destructive vibration could be felt! Huge water columns, like an underwater volcanic eruption, violently erupted in the target sea area! Shockwaves churned the seawater thousands of meters deep!

On the sonar screen, the light spot representing abyssal echoes flickered violently, distorted, and finally... the signal strength plummeted, becoming extremely faint and unstable!

"Report! Target heavily damaged! Power signal significantly attenuated! Hull structure possibly compromised! Speed sharply decreased! Depth... depth is rising uncontrollably!" The sonar chief's voice was filled with the excitement of victory.

"It's finished!" Chen Hai slammed his fist hard on the control panel.

"Order!" Lin Feng's voice echoed through the communication channel, carrying an unquestionable authority. "Anti-submarine formation tighten the encirclement! 'Falcon' squadron maintain surveillance! Deep Blue Blade close in! I want to see if this ace of the Ark can still 'echo' now! Prepare... to capture it!"

The Deep Blue Fleet's hunting net, after paying a thrilling price, finally firmly ensnared this steel beast from the abyss! A hunt and capture operation against an enemy's top-tier submarine was about to enter its climax!