bookbashuk Page 154
Page 154
“But,” Horus suddenly spoke up at this moment, “Dantiok, none of our chapters are skilled in stealth warfare.”
"Hmm?" Danteok asked, sounding puzzled. "I remember that the Man-Eating Shark Legion wasn't a sub-legion of the Ravenguard? My lord, you must be joking with me. I have heard of the Ravenguard's Triple Shadow Path."
Lin Qi sighed, and then revealed a somewhat absurd reality.
"They don't know the Triple Shadow Technique, but their stealth capabilities are indeed stronger than those of the average warband."
"How can it be......."
“It’s alright, I’ll find someone to carry out this plan. I know someone more suitable than the man-eating shark warrior.”
Lin Qi turned around and walked out of the tent.
Yuan Zhuzhi stood at the entrance of the camp, clearly having been waiting for some time.
"You knew already?"
“You’ll always need my help, otherwise why would I stay on the ground instead of going back to the Explorers King with Caul?”
Lin Qi nodded, looked at the calm face of the original forging leader, and chose to speak.
"I have a task that I would like to entrust to you."
－－－－－－－－
Kayan stood on a high platform, looking indifferently at everything below.
Below him was a huge empty pool, the bottom of which was covered with various scriptures carved on stone bricks. These stone bricks were all dark red, but this was not their original color; rather, it was the color that had been stained by offerings during the repeated rituals.
The staff tapped lightly on the ground beneath his feet, sending a signal through psionic energy. The Chaos Wizards on the empty pool received the signal, lowered their heads, chanted scriptures, and simultaneously drew a small knife from their warp-mutated hands, plunging it fiercely into their throats.
Blood gushed out like a fountain, falling into the pool. Several tightly closed gates were opened, and the cultists drove tens of thousands of people into the pool. These people included not only normal teenage boys, but also children, the elderly, and women, and without exception, they all shared a common characteristic.
That is, they all have a weapon in their hands.
Kayan began chanting the incantation. His voice became deep and ancient, and the ancient incantation drew upon the power of the highest heavens, transforming into a crimson torrent that enveloped the people below. A distant voice rang out, like the roar of a wild beast or the howl of a monster.
Inside the pool, everyone knelt on the ground, their eyes turned bloodshot, and they clutched their heads, emitting painful howls.
nail.
Someone is whispering.
Tear or bite.
Someone is growling.
kill.
Someone is roaring.
death.
Someone is roaring.
The Eightfold Way.
There is fighting.
The father swung his sword at his son, who then pierced his father's heart. The mother fiercely gripped her child's throat, but the child then ripped open her own throat.
Inside the pool, a bloodbath began, a slaughter that transcended gender, age, and social status. Their eyes were bloodshot, and no one felt any unease or remorse as they killed others. It was a pure act of carnage, a dance offered to please a great god.
Kayan chanted incantations continuously, holding eight gene seeds in one hand, all of which came from the sons of angels and were sacrifices he had obtained with great effort.
In the subspace, the god sitting on the bronze throne felt his call, but upon discovering that it was a thousand-child wizard, he snorted coldly and withdrew his gaze.
However, He did not completely sever the other party's hope, but instead offered a condition.
A greater war, a war of blood and fire, if this condition is met, then His wish will be fulfilled.
The sacrifice continued, and within a short time, only a few hundred people remained in the pool. The elite among these mortals roared and fought each other until finally, a burly man, two meters tall, gripped a battle axe, chopped off the head of his last opponent, raised it high, and let out a deafening roar.
Crimson energy surrounded the victor, causing his body to swell to a size larger, while grotesque bone spurs grew from his back.
"Take him away."
Kayan gave the order, turned around, and walked into the tower behind him.
Honso had been waiting in the tower for a long time. He looked at Kayan and shrugged.
"How is the ceremony going?"
"The Blood God needs a bigger war; only then will he be willing to truly send out his army and that crimson angel."
"Can't a normal sacrifice be enough? Why must we resort to such intense methods of gratification?"
“We don’t have much time left. I suspect that the Empire’s army has some forces that we can’t imagine, some forces that we don’t want to face.”
Kayan let out a long breath.
"Let the war begin, Honso. Don't worry about the lives of the Word Bearers. I'll take care of Colfaren and Eribas. As long as the ritual succeeds, our power will make the Empire bleed."
Chapter 186 Zaku Attacks
The last meal before the siege officially begins is always the best meal the soldiers eat.
Without emergency rations, dedicated cooks carried sealed metal buckets to various parts of the trenches and camp. Soldiers with their mess kits gathered around, drawn by the aroma; the simple-minded Oglins even drooled.
However, under the supervision of the political commissar, the soldiers still chose to stay obediently in their positions and did not make any unnecessary movements until the whistle signaling the start of mealtime sounded.
A political commissar walked up to the cook, his black military uniform covered in dust and bloodstains, and the chainsaw of the sword at his waist still contained bits of flesh and blood that had not been cleaned out.
"What are we eating today?"
The political commissar asked, and the cook nervously swallowed, but still stood up straight and answered loudly.
"Reporting to the political commissar! Today we're having Grox meat stew with cabbage! Also, steamed rice, eggs, and a limited-edition glass of Amasek liquor per person!"
Amasek.
The first few dishes only slightly moved the political commissar, but after hearing the last word, his eyes lit up, clearly his craving for alcohol had been whetted.
If the political commissar was like this, the soldiers below were even more agitated. After all, such food was incredibly abundant and luxurious even for veterans who had fought for many years, let alone on the battlefield.
"Cough cough......"
The political commissar coughed twice and glanced at his soldiers. The latter immediately became obedient, though their faces were still full of longing.
"Ugh."
Shaking his head slightly, the political commissar took out a whistle from his pocket, put it to his lips, and blew it.
"Whoosh—!"
The whistle, which lasted for three seconds, signaled that it was time to eat. Everyone in the trench, except for the guards on duty, sprang into action, charging towards the cookhouse, or rather, the large iron barrels behind it, with steps resembling those of a charge.
"Line up! Everyone gets some!"
The political commissar said this, but he himself chose to cut in line, took a wine bottle from his waist and handed it to the cook.
"Give according to the amount."
"Political Commissar, actually, give us a little more..."
"No, give it by the amount. So that everyone can have a drink."
In the distance, Lin Qi watched everything unfold in silence.
Yuan Zhuzhi stood beside him, fully armed, seemingly ready to complete the mission.
“Infiltrating an enemy city is an extremely dangerous job,” Lynch suddenly said after a five-minute silence. “Be careful in everything you do. If anything goes wrong, retreat immediately, otherwise I won’t be able to explain it to Caul.”
“You don’t need to explain to him,” the leader of the original forging said calmly. “My relationship with him is equal. Although I would indeed die for him, I don’t need to explain every action I take to him.”
Lin Qi shrugged slightly, offering no comment on the awkward relationship between the two "father and son".
"Speaking of which," the leader of the original forging looked at Lin Qi, hesitated for a moment, and then asked a question, "I don't really understand why you would waste transport capacity by sending over a dozen transport ships to carry Glocks meat and Amassek. Wouldn't it be better to use the same space for individual rations, ammunition, and weapons?"
Lin Qi heard the question from the original casting master and sighed helplessly.
"Are you genuinely confused, or are you testing me?"
"All."
“Alright, let me explain.” Lynch held out his hand, pointing to the Astronauts who were smiling over the delicious food. “Look at them, short and weak, their weapons can’t even penetrate our power armor. We could even slaughter hundreds of them with our bare hands without wearing power armor.”
Yuan Zhuzhi remained silent, listening to Lin Qi continue.
"But it was these people who, over ten thousand years, managed to keep this crumbling empire afloat and prevent humanity from completely plunging into darkness."
"You mean... mortals are the cornerstone of the empire?"
“No.” Lynch shook his head, his expression turning serious. “Mortals are only part of the foundation. The Mechanicus, the Knight Families, the Titan Legion, the Astartes, the Imperial Guard… so many people, together they form the foundation of the Empire.”
"...I still don't quite understand."
“Sacrifice,” Lynch said. “Sacrifice is the cornerstone of the empire.”
Lin Qi raised his head, looked at the blood-red sky, and continued speaking.
"As you know, I am not a real general, commander, or hero. In essence, I am just an unlucky guy who came into this world with some special abilities."
"But I am now the commander of the Allied Forces, and the fate of the star sectors around the Maelstrom is in my hands. I have countless such sacrifices under my command, so it is only natural that I should do what I can."
"For example, right now, let these people who are about to die have a hot meal for the last time, so that they will not be hungry when they return to the Golden Throne."
Lowering his head, Lin Qi looked at the empty space around him and sighed helplessly.
Even after such a long time, he was still not completely assimilated by the empire.
However, this is fine.
Horus appeared and watched with him the distant city that was being bombarded by orbital forces.
"Can our actions truly make the empire better?"
"Yes, I believe it's possible."
The two fell silent, and just then, Hoffman's voice rang out, bringing Lynch some information.
"My lord, the enemy's support fleet has arrived. Sage Kaul is ready to fight the enemy. Apart from the ships responsible for orbital bombardment, the Grand Fleet has also been dispatched to assist Sage Kaul in this battle."
How many enemy ships are there?
"According to calculations... the number is 538, which is almost the same as our fleet."