Warhammer: Black Emperor

Chapter 792 The Difference Between Akahan Rand and Anacharis Scoria
After the "Shadow of Order" seized the orbital facilities of the Jingyuan Federation's homeworld, the black warships and the "Descendants of the Featherbrush" gray-rock warships of the "Word Bearers" deployed in orbit, with thousands of weapons aimed at the orange planet below.

The Shadow of Royal Power fired the first shot, the Heavenly Punishment-class reactor pumped up, the bow shone brightly, and an ice-blue beam pierced downwards.

The blinding beam of light, like the finger of a god, had just torn through the amber sky when it collided with the Jingyuan Federation's massive ice shield that covered the entire globe.

The artificial ice, with its astonishing thickness and hardness, rippled with shimmering light, reflecting iridescent rays onto the warships in orbit.

Warships joined the orbital bombardment, and hypersonic shells crashed into the clouds, creating multiple sonic booms that produced deafening roars that echoed through the towers below.

Lava bombs rained down relentlessly, striking the ice sheet and creating cracks.

The blinding energy weapons streaked across the sky, creating fiery trails and piercing holes.

A Shadow Stormbird silently took off from the Reign Shadow, carrying other passengers for the first time since Nelson became the Primarch's private pilot.

The "winner" pushed and pulled the lever, gazed at the dial, and let inspiration choose an ice cave.

He raised his left hand and quickly marked on the tactical network; the uploaded information would allow the orbital strike fleet to avoid the selected location.

Nelson's right hand simultaneously pushed the quantum domain repulsor to its maximum power, and the Shadow Stormbird silently flew into the boiling mist and disappeared into the ice hole.

Inside the crew cabin, the great sage Anacharis Scoria, commander of the Shana Machine God Guard, had his electronic familiar rise up like a snake, its green runes flashing as it rotated.

"The effect of orbital bombardment is limited; the Jingyuan Federation's artificial ice is sufficient to absorb most of the force of orbital bombardment."

"Armed forces deployed through narrow holes pose no threat to the energy tower."

"Their defenses appear impenetrable, yet they have weaknesses," Akahan Rand's assessment was sharp.

“Once we upload the code to their social networks, their entire social system will be paralyzed.”

He stared at Anacharis, a massive mech that was only missing a head and had a pair of fleshy arms, and spoke with a warning.

"The flaws of the Jingyuan Federation tell us that humanity should not be mechanized, nor is this the right path to approach the Om Messiah."

“No,” Anacharis said in a dull, mechanical voice, “you don’t know the benefits of sanctification.”

"You can't imagine how powerful the Strategist Array I invented is." As he spoke, weapons such as thermal cannons and phase plasma cannons were raised simultaneously.

"I can destroy an entire Astartes squad in eleven seconds."

"Of course, this must exclude the shadow of the order that grants power to Lord Ninglu."

Arkhan shook his head. "I don't need it. The power of the stars bestowed by Om Messiah is strong enough."

Astronomers, also known as astrologers, now possess their own combat abilities, unlike those who previously relied on creating weapons with magical powers.

He can borrow the power of celestial bodies to a certain extent and cast spells similar to those of a psionicist.

“The power bestowed by Om Messiah is certainly great, but the weapon system constructed by the Strategist Array can also unleash the wrath of the Machine God.”

“Two great sages,” Zadkiel interrupted, noting that one of the major divisions within the Martian Order was their attitude toward the degree of physical mechanization.

Most people believe that mechanization represents sanctification and is closer to the god of all machines.

However, a minority of people believe that the physical body should not be abandoned, and mechanical modifications should only be carried out when necessary.

Anacharis and Aqqani were typical representatives of two schools of thought, and their debates and disagreements began from their very first meeting.

The seasoned "lawyer," Zadekil, repeatedly mediated the conflicts between them during their collaboration.

He absolutely could not allow the two men's differences to lead to failure in this operation.

The Black Emperor trusted him, entrusting him with the planning and execution of the schemes; he would never let the Black Emperor down.

The seasoned "lawyer" steered the conversation toward the target, saying, "How far away do we need to be from the target to deploy the program code?" The electronic familiar spun, flashing a red light.

“10.6 kilometers.” A mechanical voice emanated from Anacharis’s chest.

"How long will it take to upload?" The seasoned "lawyer" once again steered the conversation in the right direction.

Akahan said, "It takes twelve seconds to break through the social network's defenses, and three minutes and forty-nine seconds to upload."

“Two great sages, the people of the Jingyuan Federation will find us in one minute and twenty-five seconds.”

"Two minutes and twenty-four seconds is the critical time for our operation, and also the most dangerous period for us."

"That's right." The mechanical voice and the sound of flesh and blood throats rang out simultaneously, confirming the key point of the plan.

The electronic loudspeaker suddenly blared, and Nelson's voice reached the ears of the three men and the two squad members of the "Corrupted Baron" Zadekiel's "corruption".

"All personnel prepare! Soft login in 15 seconds!"

"Countdown: 14 seconds, 13 seconds..."

The Shadow Stormbird swayed slightly, the roar of its engine masked by the quantum domain repeller.

Amidst the billowing cold mist, the landing stick silently slid off the fuselage, the ramp descended, and landed on the ice.

The warning light flashed from red to green, indicating, "We wish you a successful operation."

Zadkiel stepped off the deck first, simultaneously opening the communication channel to send coordinates to Wilshire, the lord of the Second Chapter of the "Shadow of Order".

After turning off the helmet's built-in communicator, he looked around.

The shadow-type stormbirds launched them near the top of the tower, which was completely encased in artificial ice.

The surrounding white buildings resemble rocks arranged on the ridges of snow-capped mountains.

The massive, lantern-shaped cannons were pointed at the sky, their interiors shimmering with an ominous, terrifying light.

Zadekiel surveyed his surroundings and quickly marked locations on the tactical network.

The twenty guards quickly dispersed and established a defensive line using the surrounding buildings.

bang bang bang...

Anacharis strode heavily off the deck, his two electronic familiars spinning.

Runes flashed, pinpointing the location of the Jingyuan Federation's main contemplative device for social networking.

The logic engine embedded in the strategist array was running at high speed, and binary code composed of 0s and 1s flowed in a torrent, transmitting along the electronic link to the electronic familiar.

The two electronic familiars projected flashing red and green light, and the silent code spread rapidly.

Second by second, the piercing alarm suddenly blared.

From all directions, tens of thousands of powerful warriors, each the size of an Astartes, surged forth.

Among them were also squads of towering blue giants, each the size of a fearless mech, with two pairs of arms.

Zadkiel immediately recognized them as the super-powered warriors the Black Emperor had mentioned.

They are the elite of the powerful warriors, as dangerous as their enormous size.

(End of this chapter)