An enamel-streamlined, dark-green missile slipped from the round hand extending from the door, landing with a thud in the center of the Crimson Angels' conference room.
A stunned silence spread among the Crimson Angels' Captains and Chapter Master; none of them had registered what had happened.
They only heard a rather sweet, automated female voice emanate from the half-human-tall missile after it hit the ground:
"Thank you for purchasing the 'Earth Destruction Bomb' produced by Future Department Store. Your approval is our motivation for providing quality service."
"This item is dedicated to thorough, clean, and traceless pest extermination. It received over twenty thousand positive reviews in the 22nd century, solving rodent problems for countless families."
"A discount promotion is currently underway, with a five-credits cashback for positive reviews."
Extermination… pest extermination? Cashback… five credits?
What in the world was this?
The Crimson Angels were utterly bewildered.
"This bomb will initiate the pest extermination program after counting to five. Please take shelter in a safe location as soon as possible to avoid accidental injury."
Kuruldus Mol's crimson pupils suddenly contracted. Although he hadn't figured out what was going on, it was clear this missile was some kind of dangerous weapon and had to be prevented from exploding.
"Five."
Mol's body, blessed by the Red Angel, was much faster than an ordinary Astartes. Before the other Captains could react, Mol had already rushed in front of the Earth Destruction Bomb, reaching out towards its enamel casing.
At this moment, the Earth Destruction Bomb's countdown had only reached five,
But—
"Pest extermination emphasizes catching rodents off guard. If you are accidentally injured as a result, please purchase the Doctor's Briefcase from Future Department Store."
Huh?
Mol's hand, suspended in mid-air, froze. He watched as the enamel casing of the Earth Destruction Bomb in front of him instantly turned a glowing red, feeling the boundless power contained within.
He instantly showed a look of terror, turning to flee.
However, at this very moment, just a second before the Earth Destruction Bomb was about to explode, a crackling sound of electrical sparks suddenly rang out in mid-air.
Vashtorr, the Creator, unfurled wings composed of thousands of metallic blades, emerging from the electrical sparks. Simultaneously, everything around them seemed to lose its color, and time became difficult to turn, like a jammed gear.
And the Tuqiaocha Engine, one of the three divine artifacts of the old ones, also appeared behind Vashtorr.
The continuity of space-time was shattered in an instant. Vashtorr dragged the Earth Destruction Bomb and vanished from the Crimson Angels' conference hall in the blink of an eye.
Alexander had already used an Earth Destruction Bomb once when dealing with Erebus.
Vashtorr, knowing the power of this terrifying creation, had made preparations in advance.
The entire Corinal was filled with electrical sparks invisible to the naked eye. These sparks were extensions of Vashtorr's consciousness. Once the Earth Destruction Bomb appeared, he could instantly arrive beside it and, using the Tuqiaocha Engine's ability to tear space-time continuity, throw it to a location outside of Corinal.
The Crimson Angels' Chapter Master, Mol, stared blankly as the Earth Destruction Bomb suddenly appeared and then suddenly vanished, completely unaware of what had happened, only feeling that he had escaped a disaster.
This must be the great power of Sanguinius—huh?
Mol was astonished to find that the objects before his eyes were spinning, and his perspective was rising.
He watched in amazement as a figure, almost as tall as Sanguinius, emerged from the red-and-pink wooden door.
The figure wore dark green armor, a deep green hood, held a sword in one hand and a shield in the other, and was wreathed in forest shadows, like a beast that had just emerged from a dense forest.
The moment the hooded figure appeared, blood spurted from the necks of all the Crimson Angels' Captains, and their heads spun into the sky.
It was as if, in that fleeting moment, the hooded figure had used the greatsword in his hand, gleaming with a sharp, cold light, to sever the heads of all the Crimson Angels' Captains.
Mol's head landed on the ground with a thud, but he smiled with relief.
How could this be?
To break into the Crimson Angels' conference room alone and effortlessly sever all their heads, this was simply too fantastical, too incredible.
He thought this must be another trick of the Lord of Change, a shameless conspiracy, it was—
The hooded figure stood beside Mol's head at some point. He kicked Mol's head, turning his face towards him, and then stepped on it.
Mol saw with horror the face beneath the hood—eyes hidden beneath a thick, Lion-like beard. Although the beard obscured his facial contours, it failed to conceal his sharp, tusk-like eyes.
Just by being stared at by those Lion-like eyes, Mol felt that everything about him had been seen through, that the illusions that had been swirling before his eyes had been torn apart by those eyes.
He was horrified to discover that there were no Crimson Angels left, only a group of highly mutated humanoid bats with severed heads.
So they really had fallen long ago. Mol vaguely heard sharp, cackling laughter in his ears, and tears streamed uncontrollably from his eyes.
"I repent—"
Before Mol could finish his words, the dark green steel boot stomped on and exploded Mol's head, leaving only a splatter of brains on the ground.
"You do not know repentance; you merely fear punishment," Lion El'Jonson said with a cold voice.
Compared to the Lion's cold decisiveness, the Crimson Angels who followed the Lion into Corinal looked much worse.
These Crimson Angels were those whom Captain Finnie had, against Chapter Master Mol's orders, privately led away to support Baal before the Battle of Baal erupted.
Most of them were new recruits who had joined less than fifty years ago and had not undergone the Ritual of Remorse.
After leaving Corinal, these new recruits had consistently followed Captain Finnie and Sanguinius into battle, never returning to their homeworld.
Now, finally returning to the soil of their home planet, all they saw were twisted corpses everywhere.
Except for Finnie, all the Crimson Angels' Captains and the Chapter Master had transformed into deformed monsters resembling bats, with a degree of mutation even more severe than the Blood Knights of old.
"Captain, how could the Crimson Angels have become like this?" a Crimson Angel asked Captain Finnie, his face pale.
Finnie silently looked at his former comrades; he clenched his fists.
Sanguinius' intention in sending them as the first unit to land on Corinal was self-evident.
He wanted Finnie to lead the remaining loyalist Crimson Angels to prove their loyalty through their actions and to defend the name of the Crimson Angels.
"Crimson Angels is a noble name."
Finnie said through gritted teeth:
"This name comes from the Ninth Company of the Ninth Legion of old. This title must not be defiled."
"These monsters are not Crimson Angels; they are merely traitors. We are the true Crimson Angels."
"In the name of Sanguinius' blood, the Crimson Angels shall cleanse these monsters who defile our homeworld."
Lion El'Jonson looked at Finnie with slight satisfaction, giving a subtle, almost imperceptible nod—
Suddenly, Lion El'Jonson's keen senses caught the sudden hum of machinery starting up.
The Lion sharply turned his head, his piercing eyes looking through the blood-stained marble pillars of the Crimson Angels' fortress monastery, towards a fortress on the high mountain outside the monastery.
At the very center of that fortress stood a massive war machine, almost surpassing a Titan in size. Its prominently protruding muzzle was brewing a light as bright as a supernova, stinging the Lion's eyes.
That was an Oberon-class General Cannon, equipped with a giant plasma nova cannon, capable of destroying a hive city with a single shot, incinerating an Emperor-class Titan, or wiping out an entire armored legion.
Even among the many war machines in Perturabo's collection, it was one of the most powerful, and the origin of this General Cannon…
"Damn it!" the Lion cursed.
This General Cannon was one he had personally given to Perturabo ten thousand years ago.
At that time, Perturabo had not yet openly rebelled. He had promised to support the Lion as Warmaster, deceiving the Lion with flowery words and tricking several General Cannons from the Lion's hands, which he then used to slaughter Loyalists on Istvaan V and attack the Terra Imperial Palace.
Now, Perturabo had actually brought out the only remaining one to attack Lion El'Jonson himself. This was a silent mockery.
The roaring glow of plasma burned the atmosphere, transforming into a light arrow that tore through the clouds, striking directly towards Lion El'Jonson's location.
The howling light and heat instantly tore through the fortress monastery's walls and Void Shield, vaporizing the exquisite buildings that the Crimson Angels had spent ten thousand years constructing, along with the highly mutated Crimson Angels caught within, who were all disintegrated into macromolecules.
In the blink of an eye, the entire Crimson Angels monastery was cut down by a third by this General Cannon, turning into clumps of macromolecules, torn apart and re-aggregated into black ash, falling through the air.
The entire Crimson Angels monastery was actually a trap set by Vashtorr. He knew of the anywhere door's existence and that Imperial forces could easily enter any fortress through it.
If that were the case, then the fortress monastery itself lost its value, and it might as well be used as bait.
But,
Inside the fortress where the General Cannon was placed, leaves slowly drifted down from the forest, and the faint sound of cold stream water hitting prehistoric boulders could be heard. The surroundings seemed enveloped in forest shadows.
Lion El'Jonson, the Lion, strolled out from the forest, his gaze sharply scanning the area.
To use a weapon like the General Cannon, a large number of Tech-Priests were required to calibrate, pray, and appease the machine spirit.
However, there wasn't a single figure in this fortress, nor did the Lion detect Perturabo's presence.
Suddenly, the Lion looked up and saw one of Perturabo's Iron Circle robots suspended in mid-air.
Around this Iron Circle robot, matter was constantly annihilating, releasing howling lightning that coiled around the warhammer tightly clasped in its hand.
"I am Mag. Ladros, the Lord of the Material Universe, the being known as the Void Dragon by the Eldar, Devourer of Stars, Lord of Black Stone."
"The Void Demigod residing in a material flesh body, your brother sends his regards."
"He says: he still supports you as Warmaster."
The Lion's expression suddenly twisted.