Warhammer: Black Emperor

Chapter 206 "Monster" John

By observing Mikel's aura and questioning him, Nimrod confirmed that Mikel had gone to the "Land of Chaos" after absorbing the "Beastmaster" potion.

The auxiliary ingredients for the "Vampire" potion are the blood of spiritual creatures: 500 ml of Fenris's Ice Worm blood, 600 ml of Giant Spider blood...

Following the instructions, the space apes placed the blood of more than a dozen spiritual creatures into the furnace one by one, and finally put in the venomous snake of the Snakebite Clan.

Nimrod stared at Mikel as he tilted his head back and drank the potion, and could clearly see that his face, which had been as chiseled as a marble statue, had become even softer.

His nose bridge was still high and straight, but it had narrowed into a delicate curve.

His lips were sharp, straight lines that curved slightly upwards, forming an arc even when he wasn't smiling.

Mikel's many changes, though minor, have softened his appearance.

Compared to helping animals become extraordinary beings, Mikel found it much easier to advance his own career.

After drinking the bright red "vampire" potion, he entered a meditative state and withdrew his dissipated power three minutes later, according to the ship's standard time.

The most noticeable change after the "vampire" advancement was that his sense of smell became more acute, allowing him to detect the strange fungal smell on the ground outside the tent.

Mikel clenched his fists, feeling his body filled with power and lighter.

In addition to the increase in symptoms, he also experienced physical discomfort.

The lumens hanging inside the tent shone on him, making him feel disgusted.

He felt uncomfortable, and subconsciously frowned, his neck muscles tensing up.

“Put on your helmet,” the Primarch keenly sensed Mikel’s discomfort. “From today onwards, you will not need to remove your helmet for meetings or other occasions.”

"Thank you for your understanding, Father."

The "vampire" put on the helmet, and after blocking out the light, he felt much more comfortable.

"You have three main tasks for the next period of time."

"Soon, you and your men will travel to a deathly world covered in forests, which will become the recruitment ground for the Seventh Legion."

"It is a world rich in species. In addition to the duties of apothecaries, you must tame creatures and search for medicinal materials."

The chief pharmacist answered the call, his voice more magnetic than ever before.

"I will certainly live up to your expectations."

Ning Lu nodded slightly and continued.

"Your first task is to select more subordinates to join the royal court."

"The training of pharmacists should also be accelerated."

"Secondly, two space monkeys on the Shadow of Kings are pregnant. You and the 'pharmacist' will prepare medicine for them to help them give birth smoothly."

After Mikel acknowledged the order, Nimrod continued.

"Your final task is to cultivate the Spirit Bone Parasite."

"The technical sergeant is researching the spirit bone, but progress is slow. You join the research team to look for a possible solution from a drug perspective."

After assigning Mikel his tasks, Ninglu added.

"As a 'vampire,' your most suitable food from now on will be the blood of spiritual beings."

"The Shadow of the King contains the blood of creatures such as the Kraken. You must carry blood supplies with you at all times to avoid going mad from hunger."

Mikel was surprised that the father of genetics would pay attention to his diet, and he said gratefully.

“I will always remember my father’s care.”

After Mikel left, Ninglu picked up the Brain Cat to check on it.

Unlike Mikel, who underwent significant changes after being promoted to Sequence 7 "Vampire", the Brain Cat, a Sequence "Monster", did not show any obvious physical changes.

The only change was that the Brain Cat was in a daze, and its dark eyes were unfocused.

Through the mind link, Ninglu was able to perceive the whispers that occasionally rang in the ears of the Strong Brain Cat and the scenes that occasionally flashed before his eyes.

He definitely looks more like a "monster" now!

Being in this state for a long time won't be good for its mental health, and I don't know if it can control its mindset now.

Yes, we shouldn't use "it" anymore; we should use "he."
Ninglu realized that he should give the Brain Cat, which had become an extraordinary being, a name.

Now that he possesses intelligence, it would be disrespectful for him not to have a name. Nimrod knew that after the "monster" advanced to Sequence 8, the "machine," it gained terrifying computational abilities and the corresponding intelligence.

He will try to get along with Brainy Cat in a new way from now on.

Nostradamus?
No, his expertise lies in interpreting prophetic poems and predicting astrological destinies.

The "Wheel of Fortune" path and the "monster" are closer to instinct, making John Dee, skilled in angelic communication and mapping time-space destiny lines, a better fit.
Thinking of this, Ning Lu gently lifted the Strong Brain Cat with his left hand and spoke.

"From now on, your name will be John."

The Strongbrain Cat murmured, speaking haltingly in Vostonia.

“John…”

His vocal cords were extremely strained because it was his first time speaking.

As if some switch had been flipped, John's Vostochny language became more and more fluent.

"Green... a tall creature... your enemy is a powerful orc..."

Through the mind link, Ninglu saw more of what the Strongbrain Cat had seen: orcs encased in super-heavy armor with black backgrounds and yellow flames.

The image suddenly shattered and disappeared. The "monster" could only glimpse future scenes occasionally and could not actively predict them like the "forecaster" and other sequences.

Only after advancing to the 8th rank of "Machine" will one gain the ability to perform divination and counter-divination.

[Leo Ku, a warlord of the orcs.]
While Nimrod was pondering, he sent John the methods and experiences of the first level of Thelma's mindset in several installments.

John's mind was filled with thought impulses, which would briefly stop whenever his brain couldn't handle the strain.

His mental impulses only resumed after his discomfort subsided.

After Nimrod transmitted the first level of Thelma's mental state to John through telepathy, he spoke in Vostochny.

“Practice according to the method I tell you, and strive to master the Thelma mind.”

"Once you master this, when you are troubled by annoying whispers and complicated images, awaken your 'true will' and you will feel much better."

"Yes... Master."

John tried to understand Nimrod's words, and through a telepathic link, he understood his master's meaning after a few seconds.

Nimrod watched John lying on the ground in a comfortable position, his eyes deep, as if he had entered a meditative state.

Suddenly, the primordial gene was triggered.

He sensed John's perception, and the powerful cat, transcending physical constraints and entering a more transcendent state, was connected to him through a faint, invisible thread.

The Primarch had never sensed the existence of the invisible threads before, but the "monster" possessed extraordinary intuition.

The "Monster's" exceptionally high level of inspiration is the highest among all pathways at Sequence 9, even surpassing that of the "Sleepless One" in the darkness.

When a "Spy" activates their "Spy Eye," they don't see more than a "monster." They are simply better at observing the state of the target's astral body, etheric body, and mental body, and examining various details of the astral body.

Through John's inspiration, the Primarch sensed that John was gaining bits of spiritual power by attaching to the invisible threads of the mind link.

He couldn't help but think: [So, the reason why the Brain Cat seeks to establish a spiritual connection with someone is that they can obtain "spiritual nourishment" from their owner.]

Perhaps it is this invisible connection that brings the cats with strong brains closer and closer to their owners.
Over the next ten days, Ninglu traveled to various snakebite tribe camps, carrying the potion ingredients back to the "Land of Chaos".

At the same time, he began teaching the Honor Guard members the "war mask" techniques suitable for the shadows of order.

Using Black Wolf to bring Slough Dara into a dream, the Primarch excavated the technique of the "War Mask" from the depths of the War Primarch's mind.

The Primarch spent time refining Eldar techniques, developing "war masks" suitable for his offspring.

The Shadow Order possesses a stronger senses than the Astartes of other Legions, and is closer to the Eldar's superior sensory abilities.

Therefore, sixteen sidereal days later, two members of the Honor Guard had initially mastered the skills of the "war mask".

After Arenis restored order, Wilshire escaped and rushed over.

Per Koscielny, the most outstanding recruit in the first wave of new recruits in Vostoria, has just joined the Honor Guard due to his excellent performance in the Void Wars.

Sixteen sidereal days later, the Honor Guard and the three chapters completed their brief rest.

Ninglu ordered the Fifth Battle Group to remain on the Battle Moon, while he led the Second and Eleventh Battle Groups to launch an offensive against the second planet of the Flame Wheel.

It is the building base of the Greenskin Empire, and its capture would severely damage the Orcs' war potential.

(End of this chapter)