In the days following the Ottoman Empire Navy's hasty retreat to Sinop Port, under the orders of Governor Menshikov, the Russian Empire Navy, led by Nakhimov, roamed the Black Sea with even greater impunity, hunting down the Ottoman Empire's supply fleet, thus affecting the war between the Ottoman Empire's army and the Russian Imperial Army in the Caucasus Region.

Many Ottoman Empire regular troops that had ventured deep into the Caucasus Region were forced to retreat back to their own homeland due to the inability to safely receive logistical supplies.

The tactical retreat of the Ottoman Empire's regular army left Shamil, who originally intended to carry out tactics deep within enemy lines, in a predicament. Despite having repelled the Ottoman Empire, the Caucasus Russian Army did not pursue the victory, instead consolidating their defensive positions under the orders of Caucasus Commander Menshikov, and from the existing Caucasus Russian Imperial Army, selecting an elite group of soldiers to carry out a "stone through the blade, grass through the fire, people need a change" style of encirclement against the rebels in the Caucasus Region.

In merely a week, nearly a hundred Peace Sect villages were massacred by the Russian Army, the intense smell of blood and raging flames composing the brutal symphony of the Caucasus Region.

Shamil, lurking in the Caucasus forests, knew that the Russian Imperial Army was using its cruel and harsh tactics to warn the Peace Sect people in the Caucasus Region — the only path available for aiding the guerrillas is death.

Faced with the violent measures of the Russian Empire, some of Shamil's guerrilla fighters began to waver, fearing that their involvement would lead to the Russian Empire razing their villages.

Under the dual pressures of lack of supplies and the iron-fisted Russian Imperial Army, many guerrilla fighters who followed Shamil chose to leave the ranks and surrender to the Russian Empire.

The force, initially numbering over 3,000, after enduring several anti-encirclement and psychological battles, was reduced to less than 1,000.

Shamil had no choice but to temporarily withdraw into Ottoman Empire territory to await a suitable opportunity.

Of course, with the Ottoman Empire's defeat in the Caucasus Region, both the Caucasus regional commander and Ottoman Pasha stationed at Sinop Port received criticism to varying degrees.

In a letter to the United Fleet Commander at Sinop Port, Abdul Majid I sternly reprimanded Ottoman Pasha for his cowardly behavior in the face of the Russian Imperial Navy, and ordered Ottoman Pasha to quickly break through the Russian Empire's blockade and successfully deliver supplies to the Caucasus Region.

"Break through the blockade? How is that truly easy!" Ottoman Pasha slapped the letter of reprimand from Abdul Majid I onto the table, muttering to himself.

Then, Ottoman Pasha rose and walked to the window, standing with hands clasped behind his back, gazing at the gradually setting round sun in the distance.

Since the last naval engagement, Ottoman Pasha had already understood the naval capabilities of the Russian Empire. The Russian Empire fleet today was far from the naval novice that had followed England and France back in 1828. (In 1828, the Russian Fleet, alongside the Anglo-French Fleet, destroyed the Ottoman Empire Navy, severely crippling the Ottoman Empire Navy in that war.)

In terms of warships, the Ottoman Empire lagged slightly behind the Russian Empire.

In terms of naval personnel training, the Ottoman Empire was also inferior to the Russian Empire.

At least among our United Fleet, there were no "madmen" as daring as those in the Russian Empire Fleet. In the last war, if it weren't for that steamship from the Russian Empire, our fleet's double-deck battleship could have smoothly withdrawn from the battlefield.

Thinking of this, Ottoman Pasha sighed once more. He had no choice but to summon his subordinate, ordering him to lead the fleet under the cover of night to escort the supply fleet to the Caucasus Region.

Since they couldn't navigate by day, they would choose to sail by night.

However, come midnight, the captain sent by Ottoman Pasha to the Caucasus Region returned once again to Sinop Port with the remaining fleet.

Moreover, the captain reported a despairing piece of news to Ottoman Pasha.

The surroundings of Sinop Port were now entirely covered by the Russian Empire's rapid-response fleet.

"It seems the Russian Empire intends to trap us within this port!" Ottoman Pasha said through gritted teeth to the captain beside him.

"Commander, what should we do now?" The captain turned his gaze to Ottoman Pasha, the backbone of the entire fleet.

"Wait!" Ottoman Pasha replied and then added by way of explanation: "I don't believe the Russian Empire's ships can stay outside the port non-stop 24 hours a day!"

"But..." The captain hesitated for a moment, cautiously asking, "Might His Majesty the Sultan be displeased on that side?"

"Now is not the time to worry about whether His Majesty is pleased!" Ottoman Pasha declared decisively: "I don't want to lead my soldiers into a war we know we will lose!"

Then, Ottoman Pasha reassured his captain with a comforting word: "Rest assured! If His Majesty the Sultan knew of our current predicament, he would certainly agree with our viewpoint too!"

Upon hearing Ottoman Pasha's explanation, the ship captain finally felt somewhat relieved.

Anyway, if the sky falls, the taller ones will hold it up.

"I understand!" the captain nodded and replied.

In the following days, the United Fleet remained in a "presence fleet" state, with only a few ships under Ottoman Pasha's orders attacking the Russian Empire's steamships wandering around Sinop Port. Both sides' steamships engaged in back-and-forth confrontations, suffering mutual damage.

However, so far, not a single steamship has sunk to the bottom of the sea.

Every time the Russian Empire's steamships were about to claim victory, the Ottoman Empire's ships would immediately return to Sinop Port.

Seeing this, the Russian Empire refrained from pursuing, and this situation continued for a week. A tacit understanding had formed from these small-scale naval battles.

As long as the Ottoman Empire's navy entered Sinop Port, the Russian Empire's navy would refrain from attacking again.

In a letter to Abdul Majid I in Constantinople, Ottoman Pasha also boasted exaggeratedly about his fleet, inspired by the Sultan, bravely fighting the enemy and damaging several Russian Empire fleets.

In this back-and-forth atmosphere, people became more confident in Sinop Port, and the soldiers at the Sinop Port forts began to slacken as a result.

On the early morning of October 20th, when the mist shrouding the sea of Sinop Port had yet to completely dissipate.

A massive naval squadron consisting of five sailing battleships, eight double-deck battleships, two fast three-masted ships, and all steamships was quietly approaching Sinop Port.

The commander of this fleet, which gathered the entire Russian Empire's Black Sea Fleet, was none other than Prince Menshikov. He wanted to take advantage of the opportunity before the fog had cleared, leading his fleet into Sinop Port, to completely annihilate the Ottoman Empire's main fleet, thus securing peace in the Black Sea for the Ottoman Empire.

As for why Menshikov chose this time for the assault, first was because maneuvering under foggy weather provided better cover, and second, based on intelligence from Sinop Port spies, Menshikov learned that Sinop Port was currently in a lax state, so he was determined to carry out the attack before the Ottoman Empire fully reacted.

To ensure the success of this raid, Menshikov brought along his many concealed secret weapons, confident that with them, he could send the Ottoman Empire to its grave.

The five sailing main fleet ships charged into Sinop Port in a single file, quickly transforming into a side-by-side line.

By the time the soldiers guarding the fort discovered Menshikov's main fleet, the five sailing main fleet ships had already perfectly positioned themselves between the Ottoman Empire's main fleet and the forts.

Simultaneously, the eight double-deck fast ships arriving alongside the sailing battleships quickly aimed their broadsides towards the area near the forts.

Once everything was ready, Menshikov, positioned between two Ottoman sailing battleships, swiftly gave the order: "Begin!"

At the lookout tower, the flag signal soldier, upon hearing Menshikov's command, also began waving his flags to relay orders to the surrounding Russian Empire ships.

Nearly simultaneously, the five sailing main fleet ships opened fire, the 24-pound naval muzzle-loading cannons launched Flower Shells towards the Ottoman Empire's fleet.

The Flower Shells swiftly exited the barrels, crashing heavily into the Ottoman Empire's ships, then, after expending all their kinetic energy inside the warships, they exploded rapidly.

The explosions set the wooden sailing ships ablaze, with the raging inferno quickly engulfing the entire vessel.

Just as the main sailing battleships attacked the Ottoman Empire, the double-deck fleet also fired Flower Shells at the forts.

The explosive blasts from the Flower Shells around the forts overturned the sailors operating the fort guns in retaliation. In the face of a saturated attack by eight double-deck warships, the soldiers at the Sinop Port forts lacked the ability to counterattack the Russian Empire's sailing battleships, only succumbing to passive bombardment.

Thus, within just half an hour since the battle commenced, the entire main fleet of the Ottoman Empire was buried by the Russian Empire at Sinop Port.

After the five sailing battleships wiped out all the ships docked at Sinop Port, they began advancing towards the residential area of Sinop Port and the garrison headquarters.

In an instant, the entire Sinop Port was engulfed in flames, and upon witnessing the hellish scene before them, the Major General at the Sinop Port garrison headquarters and Ottoman Pasha both collapsed to the ground.

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