The Strait of Gibraltar was unusually quiet under the cover of night.
Only the waves on the surface of the sea made a crashing sound. Whales and sharks leaped out of the sea from time to time, spitting out huge splashes.
On the sea, Spanish galleons rose and fell with the waves. It was a spectacular sight.
Spanish galleons were one of the most legendary galleons in history. As the epitome of Spain's maritime hegemony in the 16th and 17th centuries, they were often associated with treasures, pirates, conquerors, and invincible fleets.
The typical characteristics of a galleon were a high chord, a high stern, a low front deck, a flat stern, and a protruding bow, like the ram of a paddle boat, where there was an independent gun position.
The hull was clearly equilateral trapezoid, and this slope extended all the way to the stern.
The lines of the Spanish galleon were beautiful, and the stern was even more exquisite. The length to width ratio of the entire warship was 4: 1, which gave it an advantage in speed compared to the carrack.
The tonnage of the galleon reached 300 tons, which allowed it to provide a stable firing platform for cannons. At the same time, the towering ship also provided a fortress-like cover for the soldiers on board, giving it an advantage in close combat. Below the battery was the cargo hold, and above the ship were the passengers and soldiers.
At this stage, only the large fortress ships made by Shanhai City could compare to it.
After the tsunami, there was a disagreement within Spain as to whether or not to continue to encircle the Shanhai City fleet. Some people thought that since the port of Gibraltar had been recovered, they might as well give up. The most important thing at the moment was to find Atlantis and not let other countries beat them to it.
Some people also thought that whether or not they could defeat the Shanhai City fleet had risen to a major event that concerned the reputation of the entire Spain. If the fleet was allowed to pass through the Strait of Gibraltar, it would pose a huge impact and challenge to the dominance of the Spanish Invincible Fleet in the Mediterranean Sea.
"The lost glory can only be baptized by blood!" So said the pro-war faction.
"The hegemony of the sea must be defended to the death. We can't give in even a single step." They clamored.
It had to be said that such clamoring was very Spanish.
In the entire European continent, perhaps there was no nation more fond of splendor, extravagance, and face than the Spanish. It was as if the entire Spanish nation's character was painted with strong red and black.
It could be said that most of the extravagant and exaggerated things in European aristocratic society were added by the Spanish, including the famous hard collar, rapier, short pants, fencing jacket, lace, and so on.
All of this had something to do with the romantic knights of Spain.
Spanish literature world's greatest writer Cervantes, in his novel "Don Quixote", through the protagonist Don Quixote, to this so-called knight, carried out a thorough irony.
The magnificent chivalry of Spain had even continued into modern times. The famous Spanish bullfight was the best embodiment of such chivalry.
In Spain and the entire Spanish-speaking world, bullfighters were regarded as brave and fearless men. They were respected and worshipped by the people, and their social status was extremely high.
Gorgeous clothes, hot-blooded assassination, it was simply a copy of medieval knights.
It was precisely because of this that the Spanish, who valued their reputation, could not tolerate the players from other countries in the Mediterranean Sea humiliating them on the forum. The pro-war faction completely gained the upper hand without much of an intense debate.
The Spanish decided to go against the wind and defeat Shanhai City's ocean fleet in one fell swoop.
This time, the Spanish Coalition Fleet covered almost all the main naval fleets of the Spanish coastal lords. Just the main warships alone, the Spanish galleons, numbered more than six hundred.
In addition, there were a large number of clark galleons as escorts. There were even a variety of miscellaneous sailboats sailed by adventure players alone, dotted in the Coalition Fleet.
This time, Spain could be said to have turned out in full force.
The Coalition Fleet was divided into five battle groups, forming a huge arc on the sea, echoing each other, and slowly approaching the ocean fleet under the command of the commander-in-chief of the fleet.
If Ouyang Shuo did not come back in time, the ocean fleet might really suffer.
And everything, on this seemingly ordinary night, was completely reversed.
In the darkness of the night, with the sound of the waves hitting the warships, more than four thousand "frogmen" wearing underwater breathing devices, divided into four groups, came to the bottom of the Spanish warships, and began to cut the ships.
Because they were afraid that the sound of cutting the ships would alarm the Spanish on the ships, the "frogmen" moved very slowly, and had to accurately follow the rhythm of the waves, breaking one by one.
At this time, the Spanish warships had already adopted advanced watertight compartment technology. Therefore, the "frogmen" needed to cut at least two cabins at the bottom of the ships to ensure that the warships would sink.
As a result, their workload was greatly increased.
It was not that Ouyang Shuo did not think of simply sending ten thousand "frogmen", but it was difficult to achieve. First, the Scarlet Horse Boat's transport capacity was limited, and frequently arriving at the enemy fleet would be easily detected by the Spanish fleet.
Second, while it was easier to get things done with more people, it also greatly increased the chances of exposure and mistakes. Once the Spanish fleet noticed their actions, the effect would be greatly reduced.
Therefore, after overall consideration, Ouyang Shuo and Zheng He finally chose four thousand capable soldiers.
When the sun rose from the sea again, the thrilling night was finally over.
The four thousand "frogmen" successfully completed their mission and quietly left the bottom of the sea. And just twenty miles away from the Spanish fleet, the ocean fleet of Shanhai City slowly approached, like the emissaries of the God of Death.
The morning sun was especially red.
The red was bewitching, so red that it made people panic.
The first afterglow of the morning sun across the sky dyed the sea blood red.
After a night, the bottom of the Spanish warships was flooded with water and began to slowly sink. When the sailors entered the cabins for routine inspection, they were dumbfounded by the water that filled the cabins.
"Oh, God!" The sailors were at a loss.
Almost at the same time, the major fleets sounded the alarm.
On the flagship of the First Battle Group of the Spanish Coalition Fleet in the middle, an old general, who was bald and had a white curly beard and was wearing Spanish plate armor, walked out of the cabin.
The old general was dressed in a typical Spanish aristocratic style, with a hard collar, a thin sword, and short pants. He was not missing any of the standard Spanish aristocratic attire. Whether it was the few strands of hair on the top of his head or his thick beard, they were all carefully groomed and meticulously groomed.
Obviously, this was a typical Spanish aristocrat.
The old general's name was Alvaro de Bazan, the first Marquis of Santa Cruz. He was called the "Father of Soldiers" by the Spanish soldiers, and he was the most capable naval general in Spain.
When mentioning the Marquis of Santa Cruz, one had to mention the most glorious period in Spanish history, and the most powerful king in Spanish history — Philip II.
Philip II was the son of Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor. After Charles V announced his abdication, he inherited the Habsburg Empire, except for Austria and Germany, where the family originated.
Charles V's younger brother, the Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I, inherited the title of Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire and the highest position in Germany in name but not in reality. As for Spain and the Netherlands, the source of the Habsburg Dynasty's military and economic power, they belonged to Philip II.
This also laid a solid foundation for the rise of Philip II. It was during the reign of Philip II that Spain ushered in the most powerful era in its history.
During this period, Spain even forcibly annexed its neighbor, Portugal.
Spain's status as a maritime power was established during this period.
Under the rule of Philip II, Spain's national strength reached its peak. Historians called this period the Habsburg Dynasty, which dominated the whole of Europe.
Philip II had several naval generals under his command, including the Spanish God of War, Duke Fernando of Alva, known as the "Bloody Butcher"; Philip II's half-brother Don Juan, Alvaro, Marquis of Santa Cruz, and Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma.
The white-bearded old general, Alvaro, who appeared on the deck, was the Marquis of Santa Cruz under Philip II in history. It was he who led his troops to capture Portugal.
In 1583, in the Battle of San Miguel, Alvaro led his troops to defeat the French fleet commanded by Elma de Château and executed all the prisoners of war.
After the war, Alvaro became the commander-in-chief of the Spanish fleet.
In 1585, the Marquis of Santa Cruz suggested sending a naval expedition to invade England. Unfortunately, before the expedition was ready, the Marquis of Santa Cruz died on February 9, 1588.
The death of the Marquis of Santa Cruz marked the decline of the Spanish Invincible Fleet.
...
The Marquis of Santa Cruz was the only historical general to appear in the wilderness of Spain.
The other naval generals were either not born yet, or they followed Philip II and lived in the palace of Madrid, the capital of Spain, and were not subdued by the players.
Therefore, Alvaro was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Spanish Combined Fleet without any dispute.
"What happened?" The old general's eyes were sharp, and he was not angry.
"Commander, our warship is leaking, and it is slowly sinking." The first officer looked flustered.
"Why is it leaking? Can it be plugged? How many warships are leaking? What about the other formations? "
Alvaro's heart suddenly jumped, and he asked a series of questions. Looking at the red sun in the distant sky, Alvaro frowned, and his heart became more and more uneasy.
"Reporting to Commander, after investigation, the leak is because the bottom of the cabin was cut open. There is too much water, and the hole is too big. It is difficult to plug it again. And it is not just one warship that is leaking, almost every warship is leaking. The situation of the other formations has not been reported to the headquarters. "The first officer's face was pale.
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