Emperor's Bane

Chapter 82 The Son of the Forest ([-])

The fighting and clearing in the Bilivan system lasted about sixty Tara standard days, but it would be another sixty days before the last sound of the alien gunshot ended.

The Armada belonging to the Randan Empire did not completely collapse until the last moment of this battle, and those distorted and dark void engines entangled with the warships of the Human Empire for a long time, until one of the two was completely destroyed. The earth was reduced to dust and dissipated in the heat of the stars.

And just like most of the time in the past, in this fight, the one who fell was still Ran Dan, the alien, and the enemy of the human empire.

After all, the Imperium of Man will fail, but their defeat will not be a sudden end: no loss, however grievous, will prevent the Emperor's followers from reorganizing a greater, more determined, and more brutal vengeance. The army knocked down the lucky opponents to the ground again and again, until they were bleeding, until they were crushed to ashes.

The titans of the empire are falling, the fleets of the empire are disintegrating, and the warriors of the empire are bleeding, shedding blood like the vastest ocean, soaking countless worlds and galaxies.

But despite this, the empire is still winning, the empire is still advancing, and the empire is still completely erasing one after another once glorious alien country from the galaxy, declaring all the past glory of its ancient race on their numerous corpses The Territory: The people of Holy Terra will not rest until the great rise of humanity is realized once again.

And the remains of the 400 million Randan warriors floating between the stars and planets of Bilivan are just another roar and demonstration of this awakened revivalist of the ancient hegemony against the myriad minions who usurped their own territory in the galaxy.

The emperor's will, through the countless battleships and legions, finally converged into the dragon-slaying sword that was even bigger in the most extensive star area, and the Primarch of the First Legion was wielding this sharp sword. On the Randan Empire's never-ending ambition for hegemony, another unhealed wound was drawn.

Four million warriors who have fought for thousands of years, as well as several huge fleets, a vast sea of ​​slaves and logistics supplies, and permanent fortresses built on sixteen worlds...

Compared to these living losses, Bilivan's illusory value as a [traffic gateway] is insignificant.

As an alien hegemony that is slightly superior in technology, but obviously inferior in size to the human empire, such a huge loss is enough to make Ran Dan feel the pain in his heart: these blasphemous aliens sacrificed their lives for the burning ambition in their hearts. The entire race has been tempered into an extremely bloodthirsty army, coupled with thousands of years of dormancy and accumulation, and has attracted and controlled countless equally huge alien races, only then has the entire galaxy as the front, the chess game, and the human empire. It is the background of the Asura Field of Fighting.

But now, this foundation is being consumed at a rapid rate, countless fronts are full of loopholes, countless occupied areas are ready to move because of the scarcity of defenders, and countless so-called [allies] are greedily spying on their rich land, planning One tacit conspiracy after another.

And more importantly, even though they have paid such a huge price and gained so many victories, the emperor's kingdom is still like a silent war temple, and more legions and fleets continue to come out, time and time again Before Ran Dan thought he was sure of winning, he returned to the gambling table with a more powerful posture.

This is not even the full strength of the Empire of Man, maybe even half of it: the northern part of the galaxy is ravaged by war, but in the west, east and south of the galaxy, armies headed by Luna Wolves and Ultramarines are fighting Harvesting a large amount of territory leisurely, subjugating rich pocket empires one after another, the blood shed by Holy Terra in the war with Ran Dan is not even comparable to the energy brought by it's continuous gnawing and devouring.

After realizing this, a shadow that hadn't appeared for a long time began to condense on the head of this magnificent alien hegemony.

fear.

Fear of Man, of the Emperor, of His Empire.

It is a fear that cannot be shaken, cannot be overcome, cannot be resisted, and cannot be struggled even more.

This most desperate emotion was accumulated along with repeated failures, repeated destructions, and the deaths of famous kings and commanders again and again, until the Bilivan galaxy became Ran Dan's core front-line military powerhouse. One, after finally succumbing to the onslaught of the First Legion, even the slowest general of the Human Empire can feel that in the boundless void in the northeastern region of the Milky Way, Ran Dan's Legion has gradually disappeared into the shadows In the book, a mentality of evasion and retreat is vividly reflected on the paper.

Countless fortresses were abandoned, countless galaxies were emptied, and countless worlds and people were bloody slaughtered because they could not be transferred in time, leaving only a large area of ​​barren areas for the vanguard fleet of the empire.

The blood-drinking blade of the Alien Hegemony sucked up the fat and life of countless galaxies, creating a pale and barren isolation zone, which temporarily hindered the footsteps of the First Legion, and boldly crossed these uninhabited areas and penetrated into the It is undoubtedly an extremely dangerous and reckless act to go on an expedition to the core of the Randan Empire.

Thus, under the direction of Holy Terra, in the sixth year of the ignited war, the Dark Angels Legion finally got its first real rest, although its brother legions have been openly or privately. has been withdrawn from the war for some time.

The No.14 Legion had already left, and Mortarion led his heirs back to Barbarus, recruiting new blood in the only place he admired in the entire galaxy.

The No.19 Legion was ordered to go to Riobia to destroy a threatening treasure house of knowledge in that world.

And the Fifth Legion has reunited with their mysterious genetic father, so they have a new name: White Scars, and now, this fast-moving Legion with high morale is gathering a huge force, ready to respond to a holy battle. Call: The Lord of Men issued a father's call to several of his offspring, including Jaghatai Khan, Fulgrim, Horus, and Jonson.

The emperor decided to conquer a world of lost knights named "Moro", obviously, that world held a huge secret enough to attract the attention of the emperor.

In addition, there is also the Sixth Legion, the barbarian army that came out of Fenris. Led by their Primarch Leman Russ, they unknowingly broke away from the confrontation with Ran Dan , without a trace.

Naturally, many people are dissatisfied with this, but when the critics collect the battle reports of the Sixth Army, they have to admit that the Wolf King and his sons have completed every combat mission, despite their bad attitude and procrastination. , and even reckless means, but the Sixth Army did not dereliction of duty.

So, in a burst of anger that was almost ashamed, another task was thrown in the face of Leman Russ. The King of Fenris laughed and led his sons to disappear into the waves of the subspace again. among.

In this way, in the sixth year of the flames of war, after hundreds of millions of soldiers of the empire shed blood on the battlefield, when Ran Dan's nails were lifted from the land of the empire, the silence of both sides , the rhythm of the war seems to have entered a slow rest stage, only the No.11 Legion's northern front occasionally heard news of pursuit and annihilation.

This alien hegemony that intends to compete with the empire seems to have been hit hard. They kept shrinking their sphere of influence and clustered more and more fleets together. They never took the initiative to attack, but used a kind of forbearance And retreat to face the temptation of the empire.

Ran Dan seemed to be retreating.

Even Jonson thought so.

------

But retreating and giving up do not seem to be the same thing.

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【How long has she been down? 】

"One Terra standard, my lord."

【…】

[Prepare the airdrop pod for me. 】

"My lord, what you ordered is to let Ms. Morgan spend at least two Terra standard hours to prepare, and then you go to [research]."

[Caught off guard is an inescapable part of any war, Kos. 】

Coswayne witnessed the pure black airdrop pod belonging only to Jonson streaking across the atmosphere of the dead world with a bright red meteor, and he could only sigh in his heart.

After the victory in Bilivan's battle, everything seemed to be happy, and the legion finally ushered in a long-lost rest. Even the rigid face of the father of genes eased a little, and a relaxed atmosphere began to surround the "Indomitable Truth".

Until the fifth day after the battle, Zhuang Sen summoned the most trusted heir.

Coswayne stayed in the Lion King's office for 10 minutes. After he came out, he held the Lion King's secret order and went to the most secret corner of the "Indomitable Truth". When he came out again, his hand was already Clutching a weapon powerful enough to kill nearly any psyker, deadly anti-psionic devices like this one began to creep into the hands of more Dark Angels.

In this case, they ended up on Sisyphus III, a dead world located in the far eastern star field, north of the Maelstrom region, without oceans, deserts or frozen soil, the whole world was completely darkened. Shrouded in the savage deep forest and the sky-cloaking mist, carnivorous plants several stories high and cunning poisonous beasts rule everything, and even the Catachans have to proceed cautiously here.

And this is the place Zhuang Sen chose.

------

The airdrop capsule of the Primarch fell into the deep forest, like a bursting meteor, the rumbling sound spread among the endless trees and vines, even dispelling the thick fog.

The bolts loosened, the hatch peeled off, and the Primarch stalked out without even waiting for the quivering shell to fall completely to the ground.

He is fully armed, but helmetless, with the prestigious [Lion Sword] clutched in his right hand, and the Plasma Pistol [Achthinus Fusiliers] that was not always used by the Primarch. It hangs from the waist on the other side, next to several stasis grenades.

The emerald green pupils, which are more vibrant than the endless deep forest, are ruthlessly scanning everything in front of him, but he only sees unprecedented silence and silence: no birdsong, no running water, no rustling of tall trees rubbing against each other in the sound of wind No sound, not even the wind.

Zhuang Sen took a deep breath, and the air with extremely high oxygen content was poured into his throat and lungs. The richness in this air nourished the strange and huge life here, and also made this lush world an ideal place for human beings. Said world of death.

The Primarch took a step forward. He didn't deliberately cover up the sound of his progress. His huge steel boots stepped on the ground, crushing the stones and rotten logs blocking the road, making a sound like a giant forest patrolling beast, walking in the forest for a long time reverberate.

He left the small plain made by the drop pod when it landed, and walked into the shadows of the deep forest, where the light from the stars was completely blocked, and the Primarch's shining green pupils were darkness The brightest color of all.

He walked and moved forward, until the last light behind him was also thrown out of sight that he could no longer see.

Zhuang Sen raised his head and listened to the voice of the deep forest.

The forest was very quiet, almost eerily quiet.

But he still hears it when he survives in the cannibal forest of Caliban; when he joins the Knights and returns there as a Slayer; These were the sounds he could hear, the sounds of the forest, as he harvested the primeval forests of Caliban.

It was howling, a silent howling, a howling that could only be uttered by a sad beast that had lost itself and was manipulated wantonly by countless wires and steel cables.

The Primarch's pupils glowed dangerously.

Zhuang Sen raised his sword and stood on the ground, making an ear-piercing sound.

[To this day, no human has ever dared to challenge me in the forest. 】

His voice was like the judgment of the gods, echoing among millions of towering giant trees, wandering on countless mountain peaks, until it disappeared at the end of the horizon and spread to the farthest place.

In the next instant, much later, at the second the Primarch's two hearts beat together, Jonson finally waited for a response.

That's laughter.

Cold, empty, chaotic, and meaningless light laughter, they seemed to come from the sky, and seemed to come from a certain expressionless face.

[Then may I ask, those of your kind, do they often do this? 】

The air was quiet for a moment.

Zhuang Sen rolled his Adam's apple and let out a muffled sound.

He pulled out the sword and listened to the smiles coming from all directions. They were like hungry poisonous snakes, greedily surrounding him, unwilling to leave.

The Primarch's eyes shone with a gleam strong enough to kill a hundred Astartes.

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[I once fought in the forest. 】

[Fight with the beast. 】

[Fight against hunger. 】

【Fight with the most primitive desire. 】

[Fight with those huge monsters that are insidious and cunning, even better than humans. 】

【Fight against the incomparably dark abandonment, compromise, evasion and madness in my heart. 】

[Even fighting the forest itself.... 】

[To this day, all battles will only have one result. 】

[And you. 】

【…】

【No exception. 】

(End of this chapter)