Warhammer 40k: Melee Warriors

“He has even more tentacles now.” Bennett, now sober, commented on Demas’s current appearance. After the alarm lights flashed and sirens wailed a few times, the large gathering officially began.

The servo skull, equipped with a megaphone, announced the distinguished guests qualified to attend the grand gathering—a courtesy that Demas despised, but which the other warlords of the warring factions quite appreciated as formality.

Warlords laden with spoils rose to their feet. Some were commanders of several warships, hundreds of Chaos Space Marines, and hundreds of thousands of Chaos minions. They had come to the Shattered Steel Keep to purchase more powerful dark weapons in preparation for their next raid.

Some were the lucky ones who amassed cargo holds overflowing with loot during the raids; they were cunning and treacherous, trusting no one. Deeply aware that possessing valuable goods could be a crime, they desperately wanted to find a place to sell their cargo and then get as far away as possible from those powerful Chaos warbands.

Others were followers of the gods, like pious pilgrims such as Sharon, whose visits were solely aimed at gaining Demas's assistance.

When the emerging Losers' War Gang was introduced, the various warlords had different opinions about Komi.

The warmonger wanted to test his skills, while the more cunning sought to recruit this warrior to serve their cause...

Faced with warlords who harbored different intentions, Demas simply went through the motions of the large gathering; he did not answer the warlords' questions at the very beginning of the meeting.

A box sealed with chains and terracotta iron was carried up by the steel warriors. Even though no one knew what was inside, their curiosity and desire to seize it were aroused.

The power of fearlessness is terrifying. Demas used the most violent method to tear open this sealed, heavy box, proving to the warlords that the master of the Broken Steel Fortress was not yet weakened in the cold coffin of fearlessness.

The blasphemous light emanating from inside the box made Elaine instinctively close her eyes. Even Komi, looking from this distance, felt as if countless steel needles were rolling across his eyes.

A suit of iron armor, a Terminator suit of armor covered in runes of destruction and adorned with a cruel aesthetic, floated silently inside the box.

The Terminator power armor is incredibly powerful for Space Marines, with its internal array of electronic muscle fiber bundles and adamantite rods greatly enhancing the user's strength and defense.

This allows users to easily lift and use the heavy weapons that the Space Marines talk about, and its internal teleportation device makes surprise attacks and decapitation strikes possible.

Even Space Marine chapters with the support of Forge Worlds can only equip themselves with around one hundred Terminator Power Armor suits, while for some smaller and poorer chapters, the Terminator Power Armor is even a sacred piece of equipment that only the chapter leader can wear.

Resupplying in the warp is incredibly difficult, making Terminator armor even more precious and scarce. Unless one has an incredible stroke of luck and finds a sealed ancient armory, the only way for a Chaos Space Marine to obtain Terminator armor is to defeat a Chaos Terminator, kill the seasoned warrior inside, and take the armor for himself.

However, even with this capability, the Terminator power armor he obtained was only barely satisfactory.

Some people, in order to prevent the Terminator power armor from being lost, will not take it off at all. The stench inside is relatively easy to overcome, but the real fear is that due to subspace corrosion, the user's skin and armor will grow together.

Some unlucky souls even found a complete power armor belonging to the Sons of the Thousand Sins in the battlefield ruins, only to discover upon putting it on that the armor already belonged to someone else.

The user was reduced to ashes, becoming a ghost trapped inside the Terminator armor.

Looking at the brand-new and uncorroded Terminator armor in front of them, the warlords panted heavily, wishing they could rush up and put the Terminator armor on themselves the next second.

Even Koken couldn't help but take a few more glances at the Terminator power armor, and began to look down on his own old power armor, which was covered in patches.

Demas was pleased with the greed in the eyes of these people. He sat on the steel throne made specifically for the Dreadnought, connecting with all the turret traps in the Great Assembly Hall through his mechanical tentacles. He gave a detailed introduction to the parameters of the Terminator power armor and the legendary story it carried.

"The only upgrades I made to this power armor were installing psionic runes and a field shield that can draw power from the warp to restore itself... This item is not priced like any other ordinary thing. If you want to obtain it, you must prove to me that you are worthy of it on a spiritual level."

Chapter 136: Sharon's Consistent Performance

No need for mundane things? All that's needed is a soul that matches this powerful armor?

The warlords looked at each other and each felt that they were the only ones worthy of wearing this armor. They had lived in the warp for so long and had experienced horrors that no ordinary person could match in ten lifetimes.

Driven by this arrogant sentiment, a warlord from a war gang stood up, and the light shone precisely on him.

All eyes turned to him as the warlord spoke eloquently in front of Demas.

It was an old story. He and his men were wandering through a massive, wrecked spaceship, and deep within that metal tomb, they found the lair of a gene-stealer.

The warlord described the details of the battle quite clearly. The patriarch's ferocity and ugliness almost materialized in the hall. The subspace composed of souls and emotions was responding to the warlord's narration, and in a daze, everyone could see that dangerous moment.

"Nothing in the wrecked ship was functional anymore. The red alarm lights and the white-glowing arc lamps were dead! My goggles couldn't see the chieftain through the fog either. He was a huge monster with claws much longer than any of our chainswords. We emptied magazine after magazine, only managing to leave some insignificant dents in the monster... Finally, I slid under the monster's crotch and managed to tear open his abdomen with my chainsword. His purple entrails spilled all over me, and even now I can still smell the stench of that alien."

The warlord sat down, and the crowd gave him a light round of applause for his courage and strength in the face of the clan chief. It was indeed a good story, but not enough to move Demas.

The Iron Dreadnought didn't even move its position, and its dreadnought sarcophagus, decorated with steel skeletons, showed not a trace of interest.

Realizing that killing a powerful alien did not meet Demas's requirements, the next warlord rose and began to tell his story.

With an arrogant confidence, he told the crowd that he had once led a raid on a warband far stronger than himself, whose leader was a wizard whose psionic magic could instantly subdue dozens of warriors...

Demas remained silent, even showing a hint of disgust and boredom at this pointless fighting between the warring factions.

The warlord sensed Wuwei's disdain for his story, so he sat back down with a solemn expression.

The stories of the people were connected to the horrors and plundering empires in the warp, but none of them could move Demas.

Many even felt that Demas was merely using the Terminator armor as a gimmick to get him to listen to their dark pasts and then mock them.

Komi sat to the side, quite relaxed. He deeply understood what Demas and his Iron Warriors wanted, but it wasn't the right time for him to speak.

When Demas rises up in anger because he can no longer tolerate the foolishness of the other warriors, that will be the time for Komi to show his skills based on his own knowledge.

Bennett couldn't understand Komi's ease at this moment. He remained silent for a long time, unable to tell the terrifying story of being trapped in a dark space, while Sharon, standing to the side, curled his lips and put on a proud look as if he knew Demas very well.

After yet another warlord's story disappointed Demas, Sharon cleared his throat and stood up, his demeanor filled with religious solemnity.

Demas gave Sharon a deep look, clearly recognizing that he belonged to the Word Bearers, an ancient legion. The mangled body bound in the sarcophagus felt a glimmer of hope.

Sharon began with a quote from Loka, and every time he gave a formal speech, he would praise the greatness and immortality of the dark gods and satirize the weakness and powerlessness of the Corpse King.

"What exactly constitutes a powerful soul befitting this sacred object?" Sharon exclaimed. "Defeating a powerful beast only proves courage, not a powerful soul. Completing a raid and escaping unscathed, manipulating imperial lackeys only proves intelligence, not a powerful soul. There is only one true way to prove a powerful soul: unwavering faith! The proud confidence to steadily advance towards a goal!"

Sharon's words caused Demas to lean forward slightly, clearly showing his interest in what Sharon was about to say.

Bennett was startled when he saw Demas's little trick. He thought to himself, "That unreliable Sharon actually hit Demas's sore spot."

He hadn't realized that the Iron Warriors had religious leanings; in this shattered steel fortress, he hadn't seen a single church or shrine built by the Iron Warriors.

However, his worries vanished when he saw Komi. Komi didn't bother to look at Sharon, who was talking animatedly beside him, and simply wanted to lie down in the chair in a more comfortable position.

Perhaps Sharon... just needs to play it safe...

Bennett chuckled inwardly, then relaxed along with Komi. He had already regarded the Terminator power armor in the box as Komi's personal property.

As Komi had predicted, Sharon's story was only a good start; the more he told it, the more disappointed Demas, who had been eagerly anticipating it.

His debates with the State priests were so boring that even the Warp found them tedious, not to mention that Sharon failed to convince a priest with religious theories, and even, in a fit of exasperation, used the Space Marines' massive voices to literally kill the poor old man.

Sharon's rambling continued, and Demas, having reached his limit, stood up and roared at Sharon, "Is it an honorable thing to kill a mortal priest with your powerful body?"

Sharon paused for a moment, then answered matter-of-factly, “Of course it is! Why not? I can kill mortals with a single shout. Doesn’t that profoundly prove the greatness of the genes I inherited from the only apostle of the Dark Gods—Primarch Logar?”

"You damned! You self-righteous! You coward who deceived my feelings!" Demas used several adjectives to describe Sharon, indirectly revealing his anger.

“My God… I feel like I can see the shadow of Lorca’s arrogance in him…” Bennett covered his face at Sharon’s shamelessness, trying his best to hide in the darkness and pretend not to know this Word Bearer.

Komi patted Bennett on the shoulder and chimed in with a sarcastic remark, "If you knew what Lorga did during the Great Rebellion, you might be even more convinced that Sharon was a carbon copy of Lorga."

What did he do?

"He wanted to take over while the warlord Horus was seriously injured, but his plan failed before it even began."

"Haha...what a loser."

Sharon didn't hear their voices; he was already furious at Demas's interruption and insults, and he pounded on the railing, yelling, "This isn't cowardice..."

However, Demas's voice was louder and more violent than his, and it even condensed into a sonic cannon that hit him directly.

"sit down!!!!"

Sharon was forced to sit down, his face flushed with humiliation. Just as he was thinking of rushing up to fight Demas, Komi grabbed his shoulder and stood him up.

Sharon wouldn't let it go, and in his anger, he wasn't even afraid of Komi anymore.

However, Komi knew how to appease Sharon, and calmed him down with just a few words.

"After the gathering, I'll tell you about the things in the realm of the gods."

Chapter 137: Seriously Nonsense

Demas still didn't sit down; the heavy assault gun mounted under his arm was spinning rapidly. If Komi's words and actions disappointed him, this fearless man was truly going to go mad at this grand gathering.

"Demas the Demon." Komi called out Demas with the honorific title to show his seriousness.

It's rare to find a World Eater who can restrain their bloodlust and sit quietly on a stool; it's even rarer to find one who can speak clearly.

Komi's simple greeting drew countless surprised glances.

"My God...is that High Gothic?"

"He really is a Devourer... a World Eater? I suspect that beneath that tattered red armor is an imposter!"

The crowd whispered among themselves, and Komi continued, "Speaking of battle, I also know a little about it. My companions and I fought in the Empire's Void Station and killed a powerful clan leader."

Komi looked at the warlord who claimed to have killed the clan chief with a sliding tackle and said, word by word, "It's a pity I don't have your agility. I didn't crawl between a beast's legs to win. I just used my fists to kill it piece by piece and finally pulled its head off its body."

The chaotic wind condensed behind Gu Jian into this scene: the clan leader's enormous head was ripped off, and blood splattered onto Gu Jian like a fountain, a sight that shocked everyone.

"However, as this Word Bearer said, this only proves courage, not the strength of the soul."

Komi casually tore away the illusion, completely disregarding the praiseworthy achievement.

"As for raiding... I don't like raiding gangs. They're too weak for me to waste my time hunting." Komi's deep voice created a second illusion as he commanded the Blind Faith-class raider to crash into a Slaanesh palace.

The devastating collision between the ship and the spire made everyone's hearts race, and they even looked up anxiously, fearing that another warship might crash down on them just like Komi.

The story of killing countless succubi was glossed over by Komi, and the focus ultimately shifted to the moment when he used Antoine's explosive pistol to kill the illusion dancer.

He knew perfectly well that his ability to hit the dancer was merely due to the illusion of movement, but when he boasted to others, he remained unfazed, describing the battle as a display of his exceptional observation and resourcefulness, which allowed him to seize the illusion dancer's weakness in the brief exchange.

Demas was drawn to Komi's composure and disdain for his outstanding achievements. His anger gradually subsided, and he returned to his throne, eager to see how Komi would explain that he possessed a powerful soul worthy of this armor.

Koken didn't intend to mention the fierce battle with the two great demons. He glanced at Demas and knew it was time to get to the point after he sat down. So he started by talking about the broken steel fortress and praised Demas and his steel warriors for creating a great miracle in this chaotic land.

Demas was already used to such praise, but it was Komi's next question that made his heart pound.

"The reason why Motidemas built the Shattered Steel Fortress here is not for the boring but necessary work of diplomacy and trade with the Warlords. He and the Steel Warriors have a forgotten great ideal to fulfill. Do you remember what it is?"

The others didn't understand Komi's question and impatiently told him to hurry up and not waste time.

Koken threw a spear, and with this precise strike, he intimidated the impatient ones. He understood that the subsequent fabrications would require a solemn environment to support them.

"This forgotten ideal is to overthrow the empire..."

Komi's voice was soft, but it struck Demas like a hammer blow to the heart. He stood up again, losing his composure, and listened as Komi continued.

"Warmaster Horus launched the Great War, which was contemptuously called the Great Rebellion by the henchmen of the Corpse King. His ideal was to overthrow the Corpse King's false rule and establish a great system in the galaxy where Space Marines were the rulers."

We are born rulers! The blood of the Primarch flows in our veins, a gift that constantly reminds us that we must be inviolable monarchs! We burn cities! We conquer stars! Not to destroy those kingdoms! But to make them submit to us, body and soul!

But you've forgotten this point; you only remember your own desires, indulging in the pleasure of slaughtering the weak and the twisted delight of trying perverse games! You plunder the empire without any long-term plan! You don't plunder to overthrow the empire's rule! You plunder to prolong your own meaningless lives!

What about your ideals? What about your ambitions? Have you all become a bunch of spineless, unambitious worms after living in this warp for so long?