Revisit Azur Lane

Yuu-Dachi instantly perked up and sat up from under the covers, her face full of anticipation. She had actually had this idea before, but she hadn't done it because she was worried that Zhou He wouldn't like it.

"Make sure you keep warm, put your clothes on as soon as you get up."

Zhou He looked at Xi Li's thin white pajamas, which were so revealing that even describing them as unguarded wouldn't be appropriate. Lately, he felt that his dog was becoming more and more lewd, and he didn't know whether it was psychological or physiological. In any case, after pointing and gesturing at Xi Li, he left the bedroom with some annoyance.

"Ow?"

After watching him leave, Yuudachi got up and dressed. It took her a while to realize what she was talking about. She tapped her head, puzzled, and asked, "What was I about to say to the Commander?"

……

As you descend from the third floor to the living room, you'll find that quite a few people have already arrived. Tosa, Ashigara, and Zuikaku, forming the Three Musketeers, stand side by side in the passageway leading to the back door, their eyes closed and swords raised, seemingly meditating.

There were people in the sofa area as well. Bismarck was sitting there flipping through the book that Count Spee had been reading earlier. When he noticed Zhou He had come down, he naturally closed the book and put it aside.

"I contacted Hutten last night and we have arrived safely at the Sirens base. We are currently reviewing information that is useful to us."

Stepping onto the floor, Zhou He walked and talked, taking the opportunity to observe the dock. After confirming that Hu Teng and the other two were in good condition, he sat down opposite Bismarck.

"That's the best way."

Bismarck nodded slightly. She looked at the gate, but her gaze seemed to pass through it and see the storm outside: "The ominous signs continue to linger near our port. They probably sense our presence. Can these unknown life forms travel between different worlds as freely as Yukikaze?"

"I don't have much information about the ominous sign. What I can confirm is that even if it can travel through the world, it can't correctly reach the special space where our port is located."

When facing Bismarck, Zhou He speaks very seriously. This is not an acting skill, but rather his emotions are influenced by Bismarck's temperament. He feels embarrassed to face her if he doesn't speak seriously.

“The commander mentioned yesterday that we will be dealing with ominous signs frequently in the future, so I think it’s not too late to start collecting data now and compiling it into an archive.”

Bismarck hummed in agreement and, after a moment's thought, offered a proposal: "Judging from yesterday's operation, those life forms will hide when they are not under attack and will only come out when they detect a threat. Radar and other electronic equipment cannot lock onto them when they are hiding; they can only lock onto the ominous entities that actively appear."

In addition, she mentioned that ominous entities did not appear as aircraft carrier-like entities when ominous celestial phenomena were present, but it could not be confirmed that they did not have air power. When engaging ominous entities in the absence of ominous celestial phenomena, precautions should be taken.

“I understand. Among the information I received from the Purifiers, it is worth mentioning that the Ominous Entity is contaminating the surrounding creatures. The specific symptoms of the contamination are still unclear, but it is very likely to alter their cognition, causing the surrounding beings to recognize friends as enemies. This also works on purely mechanical warships, but it cannot affect you at the moment.”

Zhou He frowned slightly, memorized Bismarck's report, and also recounted what he knew. After confirming the accounts with Bismarck, he stood up and went back upstairs.

"Good morning, Commander. What's wrong? You don't look too energetic."

At this moment, almost all the lights on the second floor were on. Cleveland came out of his room and met Zhou He's gaze. After carefully observing Zhou He's expression, he smiled and said, "Is it because the ominous signs haven't left yet? It's alright! After our battle with them yesterday, we've confirmed that they are no match for us. As long as the Sirens send out a fleet to draw the storm away, we can quickly eliminate them!"

"You guys are so reliable. I feel at ease as long as you're here."

Zhou He squinted in surprise at Cleveland's sudden approach. His expression was grim because he was trying to figure out how to interpret the ominous signs. However, this did not stop him from responding to Cleveland's words of comfort. He put his hand on Cleveland's shoulder to create some distance between them and said in a serious tone, "Instead of this, Cleveland, don't you have any light and airy clothes? This outfit is so cool. I'm worried that you'll steal my thunder."

"Oh? But this is the only style I have in my room."

Cleveland paused for a moment, then looked down at his outfit: a shirt, a jacket, and jeans—wasn't that pretty normal?

After she finished speaking, she realized that Zhou He was saying she was too masculine? This hit a nerve. For some reason, Montpellier and everyone else described her as handsome and reliable. Out of ten compliments, not a single one was cute or pretty. Even she felt a little discouraged.

"Really? I'm a bit short on cash right now. How about you go and borrow a dress from someone else to try on, Cleveland?"

Zhou He was not surprised. In addition to the daily necessities for 24 people, the initial building would also automatically generate clothing suitable for the ship girls after they moved in. In this respect, the system was quite generous.

"The skirt makes my legs feel cold when I wear it, I'm not used to it."

Cleveland hesitated. She did have a dress; it was her initial outfit. But Zhou He only saw it once, and from the next day onward, that dress was retired. She usually wore casual clothes and sportswear.

"There are also very long skirts, like the ones Hermione and the others wear."

Zhou He's lips curled up slightly. In the game, there's only one skin for a ship girl, but in reality, there are so many more options.

"Maid outfit? But..."

Cleveland thought about it and decided that if it was that length, it was definitely worth a try.

"Big sister, don't be misled by the commander. He just wants to see you in a maid outfit!"

Suddenly, Montpellier's voice drifted from afar. Cleveland reacted upon hearing it, widening his eyes to look at Zhou He. The latter had somehow moved to the third-floor staircase, turned around, and strode away swiftly, disappearing from sight.

"They actually tried to seduce the boss, they really have guts."

Surprisingly, Montpellier didn't criticize Zhou He, but instead praised him. As she spoke, she came to Cleveland's side and said in a very serious and emotional tone: "So, no matter what choice the boss makes, to me the boss is the boss, and that will never change!"

"Ah ha ha…"

Cleveland inexplicably felt that Montpellier's desire to see her in a maid outfit was even stronger than Zhou He's, so he chuckled dryly and said, "It's too windy to wear a skirt today, let's talk about it next time."

"understood."

Montpellier expressed his agreement.

"..."

During a somewhat awkward conversation, the two sisters went downstairs, while Zhou He returned to his long-unused office. He took out his notebook from the drawer, wrote down the words "Cleveland Maid Outfit" in large characters, and then, feeling something was off, circled the words before turning the page with satisfaction and beginning to record the characteristics of the ominous sign.

There are three points to record: vigilance against infiltration, suspicion of air power, and attention to psychological pollution.

These three points were completely ineffective when facing Zhou He's fleet, but that doesn't mean they were weak. On the contrary, the ability to remain undetected by the enemy in naval battles is terrifying. If these ominous entities had someone in command, the course and outcome of the battle would have been completely different.

Leaving aside air power, the characteristic of mental pollution alone eliminates 99% of external threats. If the system hadn't granted the ship girls immunity, this battle would have been impossible to win.

"According to the Purifiers, the ominous signs in the Bermuda Triangle of our world have the ability to sense ominous signs in other parts of the world and help them. This means that there must be intelligent ominous accomplices there, which is very dangerous."

With this in mind, Zhou He added the word "warning" below the record, followed by the message that if encountering a well-organized and disciplined Ominous Group, retreat should be the top priority.

He then continued to ponder the Purifier's words and added another line: "Omen entities seem to be impossible to completely eliminate, but their birth requires a specific environment. Without a modified environment, the abilities of omen entities are unknown (testing and comparison are needed)."

Having finished writing this, the temporary file was now complete. In a good mood, I closed the notebook and put it back in the drawer. I glanced at the still pitch-black window and simply covered it with the curtains.

……

After breakfast, Zhou He contacted Hu Teng again. From the video, it was clear that Hu Teng was a bit tired. He didn't have dark circles under his eyes, but his eyes weren't as sharp as yesterday. He must have been staying up late or not getting enough sleep.

"Since yesterday, the number of enhanced Executors in continuous production has reached nearly fifty. Including other bases, there are about two hundred. The Purifiers are testing them and dividing them into teams."

Hu Teng wasn't in yesterday's production workshop, but in a high-tech room full of electronic devices. She reached out and pressed a button, and the electronic screen in front of her flashed a gray-colored sea monitoring view, in which a group of executors could be seen sailing, changing formation from time to time.

"Is this the mirror-like sea area inside the base?"

Zhou He found the environment in the surveillance footage very familiar; wasn't it the same as the one he had encountered Tirpitz before?

"Yes, the Purifiers said that each of their combat bases has at least one Mirror Sea as a training ground. Akashi is very interested in the technology of the Mirror Sea, but the composition of energy conversion stumped her. The equipment and building materials used in this base are not available outside; they are special materials produced and processed by the Sirens."

Hu Teng's report was very clear; he summarized what Zhou He wanted to know in just a few sentences. However, the content made him frown.

Before his transmigration, he had heard that the progress of technological development on Earth was limited by materials, but he never thought it was true. However, how exactly did the Sirens produce those so-called special materials? They stumped Akashi, so they must not be simple things.

He thought for a moment: "Have Akashi dismantle and bring back some of all the special materials she can see. Regardless of whether that base can still function properly, once this war is over, we will have nothing to do with this world."

Zhou He's idea was simple: let the system see if it could reclaim and launch a new research project; if not, let Akashi use those materials as a benchmark to conduct research and deduce their composition.

"understood."

Hu Teng covered his mouth and yawned, his fingers tapping on the keyboard. Soon, something new appeared in Zhou He's eyes. He couldn't understand the English, so Hu Teng thoughtfully translated: "This is the experimental record sheet of the world in which this base is located. It records the Siren invasion project that started with the sinking of Hood and Bismarck in 1941. Before that, the Sirens helped humanity advance the progress of technology, allowing ship girls, that is, us, to appear directly as ship girls, rather than warships."

After the Sirens began their invasion, the major factions in this world chose to unite against them. Their battle process was almost identical to the future predictions in the 'Natural Deduction System'. Soon after, the human alliance broke down and split into two opposing factions. The faction led by the White Eagle carried out independent research and development, while the Ironblood secretly colluded with the Sirens and obtained a technology that could be described as a leap to the heavens. Then the two factions became conflicted, until thirty years later, when the Ironblood suddenly betrayed the alliance with the Sirens and attempted to control its own destiny.

Failed.

It wasn't because of the Sirens, but because the experiments within the Ironblood faction inexplicably became linked to the Omen. Ultimately, the Omen materialized, and the entire world, centered around the Ironblood, was baptized by the Omen. The event happened suddenly, and the Sirens were unprepared. They could only find the core production area of ​​the Omen in this world after it had ravaged the world, which is the area where they are now, and carry out a blockade and cleanup.

Since then, ominous signs have appeared repeatedly, and the Sirens have suppressed them time and again, right up to the present day.

Chapter 137 White Wolf with Empty Gloves

What exactly is a bad omen?

Zhou Hezai carefully recalled the events in the game before his transmigration, but unfortunately, there wasn't a single related entry. He transmigrated on October 17th, 23rd year. He remembered that the most recent event was the Hurricane faction, and before that, it seemed to be the Sakura Empire's big event. He hadn't paid much attention to the plot, and he had even forgotten what kind of colorful ship appeared.

As for why he was still wearing short sleeves and flip-flops in October, he could only say the weather was unpleasant. Meanwhile, in the rest of the world, it's only almost November, and there are already signs of a significant drop in temperature; playing in the snow this winter is just around the corner!

Getting back to the point, Zhou He's understanding of the ominous signs in the game only existed in the storyline, specifically the corrupting black storm and the good guy Richard. In the storyline, these two things weren't even related to the ominous signs. It wasn't until yesterday, when the system gave him a mission, that he learned the black storm was the symbol of the ominous signs.

I thought it was just something targeting ship girls, but I never expected it to have such a deep connection with the Sirens, and that it could even bring destruction to the experimental world.

Too dangerous.

However, he was also curious about what these humans in the experimental world actually were—were they legitimate humans or fabricated data?

He raised this question, and after some searching, Hu Teng unfortunately couldn't find an answer: "This base only has panel reports like the experiment schedule, without mentioning any further information about the experimental world's setting."

"Forget it, that's not the problem we need to solve right now. According to your deduction, Hu Teng, when will the Sirens launch their attack on the Ominous?"

Zhou He didn't press the issue, instead bringing the problem back to resolving the ominous sign. Hu Teng gave an affirmative answer: "They will launch their attack when the sun is at its highest point, about 4 to 5 hours later. The Purifiers say that the Sirens' fleet will engage the ominous sign around 1 p.m., which is what we perceive as 1 p.m.."

"Um…"

Zhou He looked up at the clock in the hall; it was already 8:30. After a moment's thought, he said, "After the battle begins, you and Count Spee Akashi should both be careful. I will send Yukikaze to pick you up before the battle ends. I will also inform you to pack up and leave the Sirens' base in advance to avoid being teleported to an unknown sea area when the Mirror Sea is deactivated."

"understood."

Hu Teng's gaze sharpened, then his brows furrowed slightly. He operated the equipment in front of him, which projected a general perspective view of the complex mass-production Siren manufacturing workshop: "Commander, can you record this part of the design?"

"..."

Zhou He paused for a moment, then scratched his head: "How about this, you go find the Purifier to give you a portable hard drive, store all these things in it and bring it back."

He's fine with drawing simple maps, but when it comes to design drawings that are overwhelming at a glance, it just shows he's not up to the task.

Will she give it to me?

Hu Teng was clearly taken aback by Zhou He's answer, but Zhou He nodded firmly: "Just tell her directly. It might be a little troublesome to negotiate the price, but you can give her some information about us appropriately."

Upon hearing this, Hu Teng immediately understood: "I understand."

"Okay, then I'll cut off the connection first. I have some things to take care of here."

Seeing the other side nod, Zhou He cut off the video call and sat quietly on the corner of the stairs, watching the first-floor lobby, which was already bustling with people. Perhaps it was because being trapped here today was so novel, but everyone was in high spirits. Even the other rooms next to the lobby became their activity space. What was a bit outrageous was the small room between the reception room and the kitchen.

This place was originally intended as temporary accommodation for Haguro. Now, Haguro, along with Ayanami and Nagashima Cassin, moved tatami mats out of the warehouse and added a few quilts, turning it into a Japanese-style room perfect for an afternoon nap. The group of people gathered there to read and drink tea, which made Ms. Hood frequently glance in their direction.

"The entertainment options are still a bit monotonous."

After admiring the items for a while, Zhou He turned his attention to the Homestead Mall. He had collected his daily Homestead Coins yesterday, and after deducting 5 points for food expenses, he still had 75 Homestead Coins left. He quickly browsed through the mall and found playable items such as 'Home Game Consoles', 'Donghuang Chess, Shogi, International Chess, Ludo, etc.', 'Playing Card Sets', and 'Tennis, Soccer, Basketball Sets'.

Aside from the TV monitor required for the home game console, which costs 2 Home Coins, the other three items only cost 1 Home Coin each, totaling just 5 coins, which is very cheap. However, since people rarely spend so much time together before, he overlooked this.

After selecting to purchase and seeing his balance reach 70, Zhou He smiled, stood up, and went downstairs. He first went into the soft and warm Japanese-style room where Yu Hei and the others lived.

"commander?"