Warhammer: I don't want to become a stinky can!

Page 326

Luo Jia turned his head, looked at the obelisk, and abruptly asked a question. Unseen by him, Peturabo let out a contemptuous laugh.

I was inspecting that obelisk, but then I decided to welcome you first, brother.

The two Primarchs walked and talked, the parched earth cracking with tiny, shimmering fissures beneath their feet. They were almost at Blackrock Spire. Loka heard shouts from behind the towering structure—in Kolkis—they were calling out:

"kill him!"

Luo Jia suddenly spoke.

[Petulabor, contact your guard in Blackrock Spire immediately.]

He watched anxiously as his brother opened the channel, but all he heard was a cacophony of Korkis language. It was the first time Luo Jia had ever seen Peturabo so furious. He heard the whistle signaling the gathering of the Iron Warriors.

Let's go take a look first.

Peturabo said somberly,

We must not allow them to damage the obelisk.

Luo Jia nodded, and they began to run. In the next few moments, the two Primarchs arrived at the battlefield. Luo Jia saw the corpses of nine Iron Warriors. The natives were trying to draw blasphemous symbols on their bodies, and the undried blood was used to draw magic circles on the ground. The woman who had just been there was directing them.

Luo Jia roared. Of course he knew what was going on. Having fought against heretics for many years, he knew these bastards could use witchcraft—no, they were performing sacrifices!

Where the warp and the physical world overlap, sacrifices can truly summon those beings!

They had to be interrupted before the sacrifice was complete. Without hesitation, Luo Jia rushed over. With two Primarchs present, unless those natives could use witchcraft even more powerful than Magnus's, this was a battle with no suspense whatsoever.

Luo Jia swung his scepter, and several mortals roaring and performing blood sacrifices charged at him. Their muscles were abnormally strong, but Luo Jia simply swung his scepter, and the sound of skulls cracking rang out.

The wizards tried to distract him with insignificant witchcraft, but Luo Jia remained unmoved. He charged straight into the center of the simple altar, where the woman was dancing wildly, tearing at her skin in a frenzy.

Without the slightest hesitation, Luo Jia slammed his scepter down on the alien race, and at the same time—

hum!

The black stone obelisk suddenly began to operate, violent arcs of electricity rose up, carrying strange fluctuations of psionic energy. In a short moment, the space here distorted and trembled.

Luo Jia's vision went black for a moment. When he regained his sight, he saw the scepter piercing through the woman's body, and the dying native was smiling as she stared at him.

"Hello, Luojia."

She said softly,

“My name is Ingersoll. In the course of our destiny, we should have had a more wonderful acquaintance.”

Luo Jia tried to pull her hand away expressionlessly, but the woman's strength became immense. Her body began to hunch, her skin rapidly ulcerated, and her bones pierced through her muscles, as if some other entity was about to burst out of her body.

The distorted space whispered in Luo Jia's ear, time seemed to stretch out and then shorten. He heard another destiny, heard the gods… no, no, Luo Jia silently prayed for the God Emperor's protection, which made him feel a little better. He tried to retreat immediately, away from this place of distorted spiritual energy, but the next moment—

[Petulabo?]

Luo Jia turned her head slowly, incredulously.

He had never thought about it before. He heard Peturabo's footsteps and assumed he was coming to help him.

Luo Jia saw the expressionless face of Peturabo, whose gaze was downwards. Luo Jia then saw the crimson stain slowly seeping from his back.

I was quite busy today, and at the same time, I was thinking about finishing this part of the story, so it got even later.

The story still hasn't ended. I'll definitely finish the Peturabo Luojia side tomorrow and start the main storyline at the same time.

The Primarch issue was indeed a bit rushed with less space dedicated to it, but unfortunately, I lacked the capacity to write about it.

P.S., I think some people are confusing the Great Vortex with the Eye of Fear.

pps. 30k Cardia is the land of chaos, the place where the Speakers of Heresy "got enlightened".

Chapter 392 begins

【Cardia】

According to your point of view...

Peturabo’s calm voice rang out, as cold as a piece of steel.

So there truly are gods in this world, and they chose you long before that liar.

He watched as his former brother, Luo Jia, struggled. Luo Jia knelt on the ground in a sorry state, the sharp dagger deeply embedded in his back, dark cracks spreading from the wound like a shattered sculpture.

Black blood spilled from Luo Jia's mouth as he struggled to hold onto the scepter, which emitted a faint golden light. His eyes were filled with hatred, yearning to kill Peturabo.

A few more drops of filthy blood splattered down, the black blood dripping onto the yellow earth. Luo Jia began to struggle; he still tried to stand up, but his pupils had already begun to dilate.

Perturabo slowly squatted down, glancing at the scepter. It didn't matter at all; amplified by the Black Stone Obelisk, it was nothing more than a block of ice next to the volcano.

He stared into Luo Jia's violet eyes and spoke as if to himself.

How funny, you should have been the first, bro.

No… Luo Jia thought, no, no, no, no, he seemed to understand something. Why his father sent the Imperial Guards to monitor him, why Hades appeared in the City of Perfection… The City of Perfection was the first… It should have been him.

Luo Jia coughed up blood. He trembled as he tried to strike Perturabo with his staff, but deep down he cried out in despair that even if he were unharmed, Luo Jia was certain he could not defeat Perturabo. Among his many brothers, only Luo Jia did not call himself a general, and he had never been proud of his martial prowess.

Perturabo looked up at the dagger. It was a weapon used to target believers. The last Terra church that the emperor himself denied was now being used to stab his followers' descendants. The more ruthless he was in destroying religion back then, the greater the pain that Luo Jia would suffer now.

He could see the large beads of sweat on Luo Jia's forehead, and the bursting red blood beneath his skin.

Peturabo gently shook his head.

You didn't have to suffer like this, Luojia.

He says,

I don't want to see this happen either. You still have a chance, Luojia. You can take the initiative to convert to their faith, so you won't become an empty shell.

Luo Jia stared intently at Peturabo, his eyes trembling.

[…different…duan]

His voice shattered amidst the blood and grime. Luo Jia saw a cruel smile creep onto the expressionless face of Peturabo.

Look, Luojia Hill.

Peturabo said with great interest,

You say you believe in him because he is powerful enough to guide you and protect you—now that someone has appeared who better fits your beliefs, why don't you accept reality?

Luo Jia felt his senses fading. He struggled against the corruption, and the scepter he held gave him a faint strength. Luo Jia tried to call upon the God Emperor in his heart—grant him the power to kill the traitor!

no respond.

Luo Jia coughed up blood again.

He didn't respond to you, did he?

Peturabo's calm voice rang out.

That's why I say he's a fraud, a liar.

Peturabo's words lingered in Luo Jia's ears. The solid earth transformed into a swamp, and Luo Jia began to sink, gradually suffocating in the viscous, profane liquid...

No… God Emperor… why have you abandoned your followers?

Luo Jia's heart trembled for a moment, which made him sink even faster. No, this can't be. Luo Jia instantly steadied himself, but then, a strange white light appeared before his eyes, and countless scenes of what had not happened, what was happening, and what had happened in the past flashed before his eyes, as if in sync with Peturabo's persuasive words.

I will convert all Blackrock Obelisks near the Eye of Fear to Amplify.

Peturabo said that Luojia began to struggle in the waves of the subspace.

Then this bloated giant will be torn apart.

The Lord of Steel said unhurriedly,

Some lucky legions will be exposed to the turbulence of the warp, and they will face the shattering of a great lie—that life exists in the warp, and that it seems to like humans.

After that... I can't predict what will happen, my brother.

Peturabo smiled, looking at his reflection in Luo Jia's violet eyes.

[But you will know, won't you? After all, you were meant to be the beginning of everything. Look at the natives of Kadia; only you can decipher these powerful runes, purple eyes, the same language.]

Fall.

Countless voices swept through the soul of Luojia.

He's nothing but a liar.

In a fleeting glance, Luo Jia saw a massive golden throne, the instruments emitting a cold hum.

The empire is about to collapse.

On the battlefield, he witnessed the fall of the last black stone obelisk, the world turning upside down, the giant known as the Empire shattering into pieces amidst billowing smoke. In the final, lost sanctuary, he saw that familiar corpse—

Hades.

Luo Jia froze abruptly, and the subspace waves around him dimmed for a moment, giving him a final, precious time to think.

No, He cannot die.

Luo Jia thought of it.

His scepter still contained some power of faith, but that was not enough to allow him to escape. Peturab must have made ample preparations; to escape would mean defeating Peturab.

The Empire must be informed of this: the Iron Warriors have rebelled, and if they are not stopped, the Empire will be torn apart by an unprecedented warp storm.

Luo Jia's soul let out a groan before it shattered.

So... then there's only one choice left.

Luo Jia silently recited the names of the God Emperor and the King of the Underworld, which granted him a final control over his body. A wave of immense fatigue and powerlessness washed over him. He stared intently at Perturabo.

【you……】

Luo Jia was panting.

You don't understand believers.

No… this is all he can do. Luo Jia’s soul quickly dimmed, and he curled up in a corner of his body…

He desperately recalled those two figures, trying to preserve his soul—a believer's final wish upon God.

With his last ounce of strength, Luo Jia revealed a mocking smile. Perturabo, standing before him, hastily raised his weapon, and the scepter in Luo Jia's hand emitted a blinding light—

boom!

Luo Jia crashed onto the filthy earth, blood flowing from beneath him.

Nothing happened here.

After a brief silence, Perturabo burst into laughter. The Primarch's laughter pierced through the rolling arcs of electricity on the obelisk, and the purple-eyed people turned their heads, silently gazing at the center of the altar.

The monster that Ingsel had transformed into slowly approached, bowing gracefully and gesturing for Perturabo to help him position his brother's body in a way that would facilitate possession.

So the last thing he did was to mock Peturab? Peturab couldn't help but chuckle, his contempt for his brothers growing ever stronger.

------

Terra

It was an ordinary day, with people bustling about in the crowded city, and merchants hawking their wares incessantly.

"clang--"

As the bells rang, the first people to react looked up in confusion, and all the bells in sight were swinging.

"what happened?!"

No one rings those bells anymore; no one has been up that old clock tower for a hundred years!

"clang--"

The second bell rang out long and drawn out.

People frowned and tried to find the bell ringer, but there was no one there; no one touched the bells.

The crowd began to get noisy.

"clang--"

A third sound! The crowd erupted into complete chaos. In Terra, any strange occurrence was a sign that something big was about to happen!

"clang--"

The cold wind of the Himalayas tugged at the hem of the Imperial Regent's robe. Macardo frowned as he stood on the open-air balcony, the distant chimes carried on the biting wind.

Makado stirred slightly, and as the fifth bell rang, the old man looked up and began searching in the sea of ​​stars.