"Abaddon, where in the world are you?" Alex muttered to himself, checking the Chaos intelligence for the movements of the traitors.
After the fall of Cadia, Abaddon's whereabouts became unknown.
Currently, only small-scale Chaos Battle Groups are active on various battlefields.
No one has witnessed the appearance of the Despoiler himself.
"Oh, right, Vigil."
Alex thought of a place where Abaddon might appear.
After Cadia's fall, the Great Rift tore through the entire galaxy, dividing the Imperium into the Imperium Obscurus and the Imperium Sanctus.
Currently, the only safe passage between the two sides is the Nachmund Gauntlet.
This long corridor, located near the collapsed Cadia Gate, became a focal point for all factions after the Great Rift appeared.
Before the cataclysmic fall of Cadia,
Nachmund was once a Warp turbulence zone,
which Imperial trade fleets avoided at all costs.
However, this dangerous area miraculously became a relatively stable navigation route after the Warp currents changed following the Great Rift's emergence.
Of course, the formation of this stable route was not a gift of fate.
It was primarily due to the two Blackstone planets, Vigil and Accursed Earth, located on either side of the Nachmund Gauntlet.
Should Vigil fall, or if its Blackstone magnetic field is reversed, this stable Warp route would collapse.
Recently, a continuous stream of Chaos forces has been gathering at Vigil, clearly aiming to seize this location and sever communication between the Imperium Obscurus and the Imperium Sanctus.
"I need to find a way to lure Abaddon out."
Alex stroked his chin.
Abaddon is no weakling or fool.
As the First Captain of the Luna Wolves,
and the head of Horus's Four Kings Council,
his strategic ability and martial prowess are top-tier, second only to a Primarch.
As for Primarchs, Abaddon is not qualified to compare himself to them.
During The Battle of Terra, Abaddon, full of ambition, believed he had discovered a weakness in Dorn's defenses.
He insolently sought out Perturabo for a battle, wanting to lead a group of veterans on a surprise attack to shock Dorn.
Perturabo let him do as he pleased, then watched as he led the Sons of Horus veterans to their deaths deep underground.
It's worth noting that the veterans who accompanied Abaddon's surprise attack were all battle-hardened elites of the Sons of Horus.
But these veterans met a tragic end; their tunneling troop carriers were sealed in concrete hundreds of meters underground.
Unable to do anything, they could only wait for death.
For them, this was undoubtedly the most desperate way to die: no honor, no blood, no slaughter.
They just watched themselves slowly succumb to death,
and most importantly, it was incredibly cramped.
It was because of their deaths that the Sons of Horus disintegrated and utterly collapsed after the Great Heresy.
After this battle, Abaddon almost fell into despair. From then on, he never again questioned Perturabo as he had before.
Alex opened the tactical holographic projection to check the situation on Vigil.
Vigil is located in the Imperium Obscurus and is another crucial pivot point for the Nachmund Gauntlet.
Currently, a significant number of troops are stationed there to prevent a sudden attack by Chaos forces.
"You can't catch a wolf without sacrificing a cub. If we don't risk Vigil, we can't save Sanguinius."
Vigil's appeal to Abaddon is undoubtedly great, but now that two Primarchs have returned, even if Abaddon is arrogant, he would never dare to confront two Primarchs.
The age of Primarchs is over!
Such arrogant words could be shouted before the Primarchs awoke,
but facing a Primarch, he'd be lucky not to be beaten to a pulp.
"If the temptation isn't great enough, this guy will likely hide and command the battle from the shadows."
Alex planned to give Abaddon a taste of sweetness, using the Nachmund Gauntlet as bait to lure the Despoiler.
Once the Avenger of Souls enters the battlefield, he would feign one thing while doing another, going to rescue Sanguinius's soul.
Of course, this approach could very likely lead to the fall of the Nachmund Gauntlet.
However, the Imperium is currently building the Webway and constructing Star Gates everywhere.
As long as there's a Webway connection between the Imperium Sanctus and the Imperium Obscurus, they can break their reliance on the Nachmund Gauntlet.
Even if the Nachmund Gauntlet falls, the Imperium Sanctus and Obscurus won't completely lose contact.
Instead, the demand will lead to increased resource investment in Webway repair work and accelerated technological iteration.
During this time, Fulgrim has been in the Webway, working with the Adeptus Mechanicus and the prophets of the Ark races on construction.
The Chaos Gods have also noticed this.
They dispatched their demons to harass and try to prevent the Imperium of Man from repairing the Webway.
They even wanted Alex to use the Dark Throne to escort the Webway.
But with the Emperor as a precedent, Alex completely ignored the Chaos Gods, instead having the repair teams adopt guerrilla tactics.
When a tide of demons arrived, Fulgrim would lead the Imperial forces to retreat,
allowing the Eldar to seal off the relevant Webway sections and switch to repairing another Webway.
Once the demon tide dispersed, Players would be sent to hunt down scattered demons wandering the Webway, and then technical personnel would continue repairs.
The main strategy was to advance when the enemy retreated and retreat when the enemy advanced.
Anyway, a decisive battle was impossible, never in this life.
It was just about fighting guerrilla warfare and repairing the Webway.
After all, there are so many Webway connections between the Imperium Sanctus and Imperium Obscurus; if one doesn't work, there's always another.
This infuriated the Chaos Gods, who cursed the outsider as shameless.
"I need to inquire about the progress of the Webway repairs to see if it can replace the Nachmund Gauntlet. As soon as conditions allow, we'll start fishing for the Despoiler."
"If the progress is slow, I'll take the Players back to help with the emergency repairs."
Alex summoned Cortana,
and had her establish communication with Fulgrim to inquire about the Webway repair progress.
Static-like beams of light flickered in the air, outlining a clear holographic projection.
Fulgrim appeared in the projection.
"Saint." Fulgrim respectfully saluted Alex.
"How is the Webway doing?" Alex asked.
The secret dungeon of the Rock Fortress was pitch black.
This place once held Luther, the betrayer-in-chief of the Dark Angels.
For this reason, it had numerous measures to suppress Warp energy and seal space.
The Dark Angels' Tech-Marines had enhanced this place with dimensional technology,
ensuring that even Warp demons could not break through to this location.
Azrael and a contingent of elite Dark Angels were on standby outside the dungeon.
Meanwhile, their father, the master of the Dark Angels, was inside the prison, meeting the recently captured Night Lords, Konrad Curze.
"I didn't expect to see you again, looking so old. That doesn't suit the image of the Invincible Lion."
Curze looked at his brother, his tone mocking.
"Aging makes me feel more human." Lion's tone was calm, and he was not provoked by the other party.
"But you're not. No matter how much you resemble one, you're not human. You're a monster. A monster created with genetic technology and Warp power."
Curze grinned, revealing his white teeth.
"Whether it is or isn't, it's never up to you, Curze," Lion said.
"Hahaha, is it up to our father then?" Curze tilted his head, looking at Lion, "He's been silent for ten thousand years.
Do you still expect him to jump out and pat your shoulder, praising you?"
"He will speak. Guilliman has already spoken with him, and the Saint has arrived here and will soon speak with me."
Lion's words made Curze fall silent.
After a long pause, he finally spoke.
"I don't believe such claims. He is dead, killed by Horus. What sits on the Throne now is merely a corpse."
"I hope you can maintain that belief," Lion said, "His will shall descend here then."
"The Chaos Gods thought they could defeat him with Horus, but soon, they will realize they have created an even more powerful enemy.
H
"Did you come here just to tell me this?" Curze stared at Lion, "To boast that you can speak with Father?"
Lion looked at Curze, bound by chains, and smiled.
"Sanguinius once told me that you longed for Father's forgiveness."
"You are different from Fulgrim and Magnus. You once established an orderly, egalitarian society on Nostramo. During the Great Crusade, you were in a state of extreme contradiction."
"You hoped Father would successfully complete the Great Crusade, but your precognitive abilities made you clearly aware that the Great Crusade was destined to fail, leading to fratricide and the annihilation of human civilization. The fall of the Night Lords became the final straw that broke you, making you firmly choose the fate you saw."
"You once firmly believed that fate could not be changed, but the events on Davine made you realize that fate can be shaped. Therefore, you yearned to return to Reality, to kneel before Father and admit your mistakes, just to receive his forgiveness."
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Curze raised his voice, "Sanguinius is dead, torn to pieces by Horus. He couldn't have told you anything."
Lion saw panic and unease in Curze's eyes.
He knew his words had struck a vulnerable spot in his brother.
"You received the gift Father bestowed upon you, that ability to become darkness, so you should have some understanding of the Warp."
"Death is not the end of the journey; it is merely a transit point."
"When the final battle begins, all those who have passed will return to fight the last battle for humanity, and Sanguinius will be no exception."
"What exactly do you want?" Curze struggled, his powerful body containing terrifying strength.
The thick demon-binding chains rattled.
If it were an ordinary confinement device, it would certainly not be able to hold a Primarch.
But this prison had been modified specifically to imprison Curze.
After struggling for a while, Curze felt his limbs weaken, as if all his strength had been drained.
"Your struggle is meaningless," Lion said, "These demon-binding chains will continuously drain your power. The angrier you are, the stronger they become."
Curze calmed down, his dark eyes fixed on the Lion, "What exactly do you want to do? To enlighten me? Do you want to see me on my knees, weeping and repenting?"
Lion shook his head, "No, I just want to see my brother."
"If you want to repent, or anything else, wait until you return to Reality."
"Repent? Don't even think about it, I'm not wrong!" Curze shouted.
"Go tell that to Father." Lion stepped out of the dungeon, "Our meeting time is over, Curze."
"Even if I'm cast into hell, I will never admit my mistakes, never!" Curze roared.
But as the Lion exited the dungeon and the heavy armored door fell, his voice was sealed inside.
Immediately after leaving the dungeon, Lion encountered Alex, who had just finished communicating with Fulgrim.
The Webway progress was excellent; many Webway nodes had been repaired, and numerous small Webway paths allowed Imperial forces to travel between the two sides of the Imperium.
However, there was still no large Webway capable of accommodating massive fleets.
Alex planned to take the Players to assist Fulgrim in quickly opening the Webway passage between the Imperium Obscurus and Imperium Sanctus, breaking their reliance on the Nachmund Gauntlet.
Then, he would use Vigil as bait to lure Abaddon, the clever one, and retrieve Sanguinius's soul fragments.
Before leaving, Alex decided to first fulfill his previous agreement with Lion,
to help him establish a communication channel with the Emperor, strengthen their father-son bond, and collect the rewards from previous missions.
"Saint." Lion saluted Alex, his tone respectful. In the Lion's view, Alex's status was equivalent to Malcador's, a capable assistant to Father, and respect was appropriate.
"Let's go to the Sanctum."
Alex did not waste words.
He led Lion to the Sanctum, where a statue of the Emperor was displayed.
Faith in the Emperor had long been deeply ingrained, and even Battle Groups like the Dark Angels, who disliked the Ecclesiarchy, would establish Sanctums in their warships to commemorate the Emperor and the Primarchs.
"Praise the Emperor—"
As always, Alex performed the aquila salute before the Emperor's statue and prayed.
A light hole appeared, and several plump little angels, flapping their wings, flew out, carrying a box.
The appearance of these little angels had changed dramatically from before; they were no longer so fierce, but instead had become cute and even a little adorable.
This further confirmed Alex's earlier conjecture: the better the situation of the Imperium of Man, the more positive the image of these little angels.
Conversely, they would be more terrifying.
"Father." Lion also saluted, calling out to the Emperor.
The next second, a terrifying will passed through the Warp and descended upon the Rock Fortress.
Alex's body erupted with intense light, like a sun.
And Alex's consciousness only felt a blackout, then switched to the perspective of the black sun.
Just as he was about to throw a light spear towards Khorne's domain,
he found that this time he only had vision, with no authority to use any power.
Alex:
Yellow Old Man, Yellow Old Man, you heartless old man, you're even guarding against your own people, aren't you??
Meanwhile, in the Reality, the little angels who should have returned to the sanctuary stopped and flew towards Alex, circling around him,
singing hymns.
The will that descended upon the Rock Fortress was so powerful that everyone, whether they had psychic abilities or not, could clearly perceive it.
Ezekiel and the other Librarians were trembling, overwhelmed with excitement.
As psykers, they could feel the sanctity and familiarity of this will.
And in the depths of the dungeon, the monsters sealed and imprisoned by the Dark Angels were screaming in terror.
They feared this Lord of Humanity, feared that his wrath would utterly destroy them.
Curze also felt that powerful will, so familiar, his bloodline throbbing because of it.
"Father." Curze's voice was broken, small, like a pitiful child's.
He was afraid.
He tried desperately to curl up his body.
And in the Sanctum, looking at the Saint whose eyes were gushing light, Lion's expression became incredibly excited.
The Lion knew that the will dominating the body, comparable to a Primarch, was no longer the Saint's own,
but his Father's, the Lord of Humanity's. They were one, thus sharing the body.
This couldn't help but make him feel a hint of jealousy; the Saint's relationship with the Emperor was far closer than his own father-son relationship with the Emperor.
"Father." Lion spoke, struggling to maintain his composure.
"My eldest son, my sword, my shield, my Dark Angels."
A million voices echoed in Lion's mind, rumbling like thunder.