94: Thousands of mines opened their eyes simultaneously! Want a buffet? Try the electronic phantom first!

The black iron ghost was like a deep-sea giant shark that had just finished its meal.

Carrying the bloody mist formed by the “Water Ghoul” sentinel, it crashed through the final curtain of murky water ahead.

The suffocating sense of oppression finally receded somewhat.

As it burst out of the narrow and cramped “Line of Sky” canyon.

The remnants of the skyscrapers on both sides, which looked like they could collapse at any moment, finally drew back.

Ahead was a relatively open plaza of collapsed buildings.

This might once have been a bustling green space or transportation hub, but now only a flat seabed remained, covered in thick silt and construction debris.

“Hoo... we finally crawled out.”

Old Chen collapsed onto his folding chair, finally getting a chance to put the flattened electronic cigarette in his mouth and take a drag.

He wiped the fine cold sweat from his forehead, looking at the huge, receding shadows on the sonar screen, his heart still pounding:

“I never want to go into that damned place again in my life.

If that 'Water Ghoul' had died one second later just now,

and managed to send the signal, we would probably be blown to shreds by the depth charges dropped from above.”

Su Qingyu also slightly loosened her grip on the handrail.

Although her expression remained cool and detached, her tense shoulders clearly relaxed:

“That sentinel was acting alone. As long as he didn't complete the signal relay, we are temporarily safe.

This is the blind spot on the back side of the sonar array. The Ark's hearing can't reach this far.”

However, Jiang Ran did not relax like them.

He was still standing in front of the command platform.

Although his hands were off the helm, his gaze remained fixed on the seemingly calm holographic nautical chart in front of him.

A veteran's intuition told him that things were not that simple.

Since the Ark had set up such a tight defense line in this “Dead Sea,”

even utilizing living sentinels, how could it possibly leave such a large safe zone behind the core of the defense line?

This open area was too clean.

So clean it was like a meticulously swept execution ground.

“Beep—”

Just then, zero's voice, which always brought bad news, sounded again without warning.

“Warning. Abnormal disturbance detected in the environmental magnetic field.”

“Disturbance source: All directions. Range: Extremely close.”

“What?!”

Old Chen hadn't finished exhaling the smoke from his lungs before he jumped up as if pricked by a needle: “Where is the magnetic field disturbance coming from?

There's not even a ghost shadow nearby!”

He rushed to the observation window, staring wide-eyed at the seemingly empty and silent muddy seabed.

The next second, the color drained instantly from his face.

In the lifeless seabed mud, which was originally piled high with gravel and construction debris,

countless black spheres, which had looked like ordinary stones, suddenly twitched slightly, like venomous insects waking from hibernation.

“Zzzzz—”

Accompanied by an extremely faint electrical sound.

The camouflage layer on the surface of those “stones” cracked open.

Revealing the smooth, cold metal casing inside, and numerous rapidly flashing crimson indicator lights.

In an instant, the entire seabed seemed to have opened thousands of blood-red eyes.

“Buzz—Buzz—Buzz—”

A dull mechanical whirring sound merged into one continuous noise in the water.

Those black spheres broke free from the constraints of the seabed.

Using their own small magnetohydrodynamic thrusters, they silently floated up.

They were densely distributed around and below the black iron.

And even above it—the sheer number was like a disturbed nest of hornets.

“Mag... Magnetic induction mines?!”

Old Chen's voice became sharp with extreme terror:

“No, wait! These are the Ark's latest 'Magnetohydrodynamic Smart Mine Swarm'!

They don't detonate by collision; they capture targets using magnetic fields!

Even if we are covered in that layer of non-conductive 'dead skin',

the reactor, engine, and cannons inside the ship... this several-thousand-ton metal mass simply can't be hidden!”

Jiang Ran looked at the red sea that instantly lit up on the screen, his eyes cold.

He finally understood why this open area was so clean.

It was because there was no need for a sonar net or patrol teams here.

The seabed itself was a living, invisible, and lethal giant net.

And now, this net was tightening.

“They... they're coming!”

Accompanied by Old Chen's panicked, altered cry, the scene on the holographic screen became hair-raising.

Those suspended black spheres did not drift with the current like traditional mines, waiting for some unlucky soul to run into them.

Instead, after locking onto the black iron's massive magnetic signature, they seemed to be instantly imbued with some kind of sinister life.

“Buzz—!!”

The micro magnetohydrodynamic thrusters at the rear of thousands of smart mines simultaneously ejected pale blue exhaust flames.

They adjusted their attitudes in the water with extreme agility, quickly moving from a scattered distribution to form tight attack formations.

Just like a school of piranhas that had smelled blood.

The countless flashing crimson indicator lights dragged streaks of afterglow through the murky green water, rushing towards the black iron in a frenzy.

“Warning: Target locked.

Range: 800 meters... 600 meters... rapidly approaching!”

“Damn it! These bastards want to chew us down to the bone!”

Old Chen's fingers were already pressing on the CIWS fire control panel; that row of red launch buttons held a fatal temptation for him:

“Commander! Open fire!

Use the CIWS and high-energy lasers to sweep them! With a formation this dense, one burst can wipe out a whole section!”

“No.”

Jiang Ran's voice was cold as ice, rejecting the proposal without the slightest hesitation.

He grabbed Old Chen's trembling wrist, the force making Old Chen cry out in pain:

“Look above you!”

Jiang Ran pointed to the dashed line above the nautical chart representing the sea surface:

“That 'ship' frigate is circling two kilometers directly above us.

Its towed sonar and anti-submarine helicopter are searching for us like mad dogs.

Open fire now?

The vibration from the CIWS, the roar of explosions, and the high heat generated by the lasers will instantly expose our coordinates completely!”

“Once exposed, we won't be greeted by just these few mines, but by a saturation bombardment of anti-submarine missiles and deep-water nuclear mines!”

Old Chen's face instantly turned ashen. He let go dejectedly, staring at the cluster of red lights rapidly approaching on the screen, muttering in despair:

“What do we do then? We can't fight, and we can't outrun them... these things track by magnetic field.

Our several-thousand-ton chunk of iron is as dazzling as the sun to them; we can't shake them off!”

“Boom! Boom! Boom!”

Several dull impacts were already coming from the stern.

The fastest mines had already caught up to the black iron.

Although cushioned by the thick layer of “dead skin” from the Biological Armor, the fuses were not immediately triggered.

But their powerful magnetic attachment devices had firmly latched onto the hull.

Immediately afterward, more impacts sounded, dense as raindrops.

At this moment, the black iron was like a giant beast caught in a swarm of army ants, facing the terror of being consumed by the horde.

“We can't withstand this.”

Su Qingyu watched the data showing that more and more objects were adhering to the hull surface.

The red alarm lights flashed outside the portholes, like Death's countdown:

“These mines use shaped charges. The single-shot power isn't huge, but if hundreds detonate simultaneously on the hull surface... even if the black iron's structure is tough, it will be torn to shreds by this metal storm.”

Jiang Ran watched the net tightening on the screen, blue light flickering wildly in his eyes—a sign that zero was running billions of tactical simulations.

“Since they like chasing magnetic fields...”

Jiang Ran suddenly let go of the helm, his hands typing a string of complex commands on the virtual keyboard:

“Then let's give them a more interesting target.”

“zero, activate the electronic warfare module!

Full-spectrum magnetic signal spoofing. Create a thousand 'black iron' phantoms for me!”

“Command confirmed. Electronic warfare module full power output.”

“Magnetic signature simulation protocol... initiating.”