Warhammer: Don't Call Me the God of All Machines

Chapter 809 The Cursed Legion Descends
The forced ascension ritual that Luo Jia prepared for Vulcan has almost completely suppressed the shielding power of the veil of the real universe.

The immense power of the highest heavens poured out, completely submerging the Undying Ember in an unknown, corrupting swamp.

The magnificent sculptures, exquisite murals, and sacred memorials created by the Salamander Space Marines and mortal masters of art began to stir, seemingly coming to life in this wave of psionic energy.

Countless crew members struggled in this mighty torrent, from the Salamander Space Marines to the mortal auxiliary troops, warship crew members, legion servants, and even the Iron Men controlled by the mastermind.

Although the main control AI is housed in the Blackrock Anti-Psionic Matrix, which can resist the corruption of Chaos Contamination to the greatest extent, nothing is absolute in the face of an impact of this magnitude.

The black stone's duality allows it to suppress or amplify psionic energy.

The Salamander Space Marines felt a surge of fear within them and were utterly horrified.

"Father!"

"The Primarch is in danger!"

They knew very well that the only thing that could evoke their instinctive fear was that their blood relative, Vulcan, was facing an extremely terrifying threat.

But what could possibly threaten the immortal Vulcan?

The salamanders recklessly used their warhammers to tear apart the Chaos Space Marines who stood in their way.

They have spared no effort, risking injury for injury, and using a suicidal fighting style to carve out a path as much as possible.

However, they were too far from Vulcan, and the Chaos Space Marines forcibly held back the Salamanders, creating a window of opportunity for the Luo Jia ritual.

Chief Apothecary Tassa was covered in wounds. The enchanted warriors were incredibly powerful, and after merging with the warp creatures, they also gained incredible superhuman strength.

Even the Primal Forged Salamanders still couldn't gain much advantage against these enemies.

Despair washed over them like a flood; the salamanders could not imagine the terrible consequences if their father were to meet with misfortune on the flagship.

Even if they manage to survive this war, the shame and curse of their incompetence causing the Primarch's death will forever haunt the Salamander Legion.

"No, never!"

However, just as the Salamander Space Marines and the Chaos Astartes were locked in fierce combat...

On this magnificent ship, which has become the boundary between the real universe and the subspace, a third-party force has quietly appeared on the deck at some unknown time.

They arrived as silently as other warp demons, and a chilling aura swept over them wherever they went, covering the deck with a thick layer of frost.

Tassa instinctively fired a bomb in the direction from which the chilling feeling was coming from.

The dark muzzle of the bomb gun burst forth with a cross-shaped flame, the gunshots were deafening, and the bombs, accelerated by the rocket booster, headed straight for the target.

However, the explosive shell, which was theoretically capable of tearing apart terracotta, instead pierced through the enemy's body and crashed directly into the warship's armor plating.

The Salamander Pharmacist suddenly felt a piercing, sharp electrical sound coming from his communication channel, a noise that even Lyman's Ear couldn't filter out.

All the surrounding noise seemed to dissipate, and the golden flames began to expand rapidly, covering the deck of the warship like a wildfire.

One after another, towering Space Marines strode out of the flames, and Tassa stared wide-eyed at these unfamiliar fellow warriors with a serious expression.

To be honest, by the name of Vulcan, Tassa did not consider these to be the Imperial Space Marines they knew.

They were wreathed in blinding flames, their black power armor now adorned only with crisscrossing skeletal decorations. Some of the armor was even broken, revealing empty skeletons beneath.

They were all wearing skull-face helmets, with flames surging from the tactical goggles, completely obscuring any trace of flesh and blood.

Based on Tassa's experience as an apothecary, even a Proto-Forged Space Marine would not survive such an injury.

How could Astartes, reduced to nothing but skeletons, continue fighting?

These unfamiliar Space Marines carried no melee weapons, only heavy bomb guns that were also engulfed in flames.

These ghost warriors casually targeted the Chaos Space Marines, and then explosive bombs spewing flames pierced through the warp-blessed power armor.

Even the enchanted warriors suffered heavy losses in this hail of bullets.

The thick defenses that required several heavy blows from a fire lizard to break through were as fragile as paper under the attack of these fire bombs.

Transparent ghosts rose from the bodies of some enchanted warriors, screaming and trying to escape, but they were still killed one by one by the fireballs.

The warp demons that were wandering around were terrified when they saw this scene.

The killing seemed incredibly easy at this moment, and the fire lizards' brains went blank, leaving them somewhat confused about what was happening.

Tassa gave up thinking. He didn't know where these strange Astartes came from, but for now, they seemed to be friends, not enemies.

The Salamanders' logic is simple: as long as they help fight the Chaos Space Marines, they are friends of the Eighteenth Legion.

The corrupted warp forces recoiled before these burning Space Marines.

At the heart of this ceremony, the Great Speaker also encountered his own troubles.

Just as his ritual dagger was about to pierce Vulcan's chest, completely pushing the immortal dragon lord into the warp, a phantom figure pierced through Vulcan's body from behind.

He also possessed a colossal physique far exceeding that of Astartes, wielding a long-handled metal warhammer, with the silhouette of a multi-functional backpack appearing behind him.

The unfamiliar warrior extended his right hand and gripped the ceremonial dagger in Luo Jia's hand tightly.

Immediately, raging flames spread from his body along the dagger to the body of the Great Manifestation Master.

Luo Jia screamed in terror and stumbled backward, instinctively releasing the ritual dagger as she was burned by the flames.

He recognized what this thing was.

The flames burning on these ghost warriors were the solar flames projected by their father, the Emperor of Mankind, in the Warp.

The traitorous Primarchs all knew that the Emperor's true nature in the Warp was a cold, black sun, whose existence was no less than that of the four Chaos Gods.

However, in the warp, this great being was unusually low-key, as if it were in an endless slumber, and most of the time it would not show its presence.

Unless some brain-dead warp demon dares to directly invoke the name of "The Cursed One," the flames of the cold sun will transcend the distance of time and space, burning the offender to ashes.

This extraordinary power that cannot be mentioned is also one of the irrefutable pieces of evidence that the Cold Sun is no less powerful than the Four Chaos Gods.

They have transcended the physical and reached a metaphysical conceptual state.

Luo Jia looked warily at the troublemaker who had suddenly appeared before him; he felt that the other person looked strangely familiar.

This power armor...this warhammer...this weapon backpack...

The giant before them was engulfed in raging golden flames, yet the space where his head should be was completely empty, leaving them utterly bewildered.

“Ferus?” Luo Jia exclaimed in horror.

It was him, absolutely him, and only Ferrus possessed such power and charisma.

Having narrowly escaped the brink of corruption, Vulcan barely managed to stand up. He would rather die in battle than become a tool of Chaos.

The Lord of Fire Dragons was panting heavily. He also recognized Felus's identity, but his brother's current state seemed completely different from what they remembered.

The Primarch of the Steel Hand has lost his physical body; every inch of his body is now created from pure psionic energy.

It was only then that Vulcan noticed the golden flames spreading across the Undying Embers.

"It is the army that fought in the underground palace during the Internet Wars."

"Luojia opened a stable subspace rift, which not only gave Chaos an opportunity, but also gave the Emperor an opportunity to project his power."

Vulcan was at a loss for words. Luo Jia had schemed and plotted to join forces with Angron and Forgrim to send him to the altar of the Ascended, but he hadn't expected the Emperor to interfere.

“I know that although Father sits on the Golden Throne and suppresses the will of the Dark Lord, he is not oblivious to the outside world, nor is he incapable of reacting.”

"If it weren't for the Emperor's help, I would have fallen into the abyss by now."

"It was Father who brought Felus!"

Vulcan, holding the messenger of dawn, stood beside Feralus.

At this moment, he felt no more apprehension, only immense confidence and assurance.

The Lord of Fire Dragons recalled that when he first returned to the Empire and participated in the Great Expedition, he was by Felus's side experiencing the feeling of war.

At that time, Felus was already a renowned war commander, while Vulcan was just a Primarch who had just returned and had little experience or achievements.

In that battle, Vulcan risked his life to save an enemy baby, even recklessly braving the intense firepower unleashed by Feralas's steel hand.

It was during that battle that Vulcan first realized he possessed the ability to recover rapidly and learned of his unique immortality among his Primarch brothers.

Vulcan's fearless spirit of sacrifice completely shook the enemy's will to fight, leading them to choose to surrender directly to the Imperial army.

Feralus also praised his brother's courage and kindness, and advised him to protect himself while protecting others.

At this moment, Felus, who was standing in front of his brother, remained silent, and Vulcan did not know whether his headless brother could speak again.

But none of that matters. As long as the two brothers join hands, Vulcan fears no enemy.

"Ferus, I never expected to see you here."

"I thought you were really dead."

Luo Jia patted the golden flames on his body, instantly extinguishing and dispelling them.

"Look at yourself now, do you really think you're still human?"

“Our hypocritical father deceived us, telling us that only unpredictable dangers existed in the Warp and warning us to stay away from the Sea of ​​Souls.”

"But he himself recklessly manipulated the power of the warp, and even used this power to bring you back from the brink of death and mold you into this form."

"What's the difference between you and these Astartes engulfed in flames, and the demonic army under the Four Gods?"

Vulcan gazed at the cursed legion, which was wreathed in flames and resembled Felus quite a bit. He was about to say something when he heard a familiar voice in his ear.

Whether we are human or not is not important.

"The important thing is that we remain absolutely loyal to humanity."

"The Emperor's power summoned countless human heroes back to the battlefield, for only the power of the Warp can defeat the enemies of the Warp."

Feralus's headless body seemed to bypass Luo Jia, who was blocking the way, and focused its attention on Forgrim, who had been beaten into a pulp by Vulgan.

He had already sensed that the fallen Phoenix Lord had actually recovered, but was still disguising himself, seemingly unsure how to face Feralus.

“Forgrim.” Feralus’s voice was like the clash of steel.

"Your filthy and long life, no matter what pleasures you fill it with, will never fill the void in your heart!"

"Even Jormungandr, which can devour the World Tree, will one day be consumed by thirst."

Stimulated by Feralus's voice, Fugrim's lump of flesh suddenly began to writhe violently.

It was as if an invisible hand was wantonly kneading and reshaping the body of the fallen phoenix, restoring his body to its original four-armed snake-man form.

Those present could even hear the chilling rustling of his snake scales and the low rumbling of his intestines as his bones and muscles writhed.

Fugrim's heartbeat grew louder and louder, as if his mood was rising accordingly.

“My Gorgon…”

"My dearest friend..."

"my sweetheart……"

"How long has it been? How long has it been since I heard your voice? Countless days and nights I have been longing for your voice and recalling your face..."

"I keep taking out those beautiful memories from our past and ruminating on them."

They remain so vivid in my memory; whenever I think of those scenes, tears still well up in my eyes.

"I wish I could bring you back. I would pay any price just to hear your voice again."

It seemed as if Volgrim was whimpering, which sent a chill down Vulcan's spine, and even Luo Jia was not much better off.

They had heard that Fugrim and Feralus had a rather intimate relationship, but they hadn't thought much of it before.

However, the former had already fallen into Slaanesh's arms, and no one knew what he was capable of doing.

“Shut up!” Feralus roared, “You vile filth!”

"You are no longer qualified to call me your best friend."

“My dearest friend Forgrim is a proud phoenix whose wings never touch the filthy mortal world; if they do, he would rather be reborn from the ashes.”

Look at yourself now, in what way do you deserve the name of Forgrim?

"You are a venomous snake that pretenses itself in a dark, damp, stinking ditch. You destroyed those who were pungent, but they were reborn from you. Every time you call my name, it makes me feel utterly disgusted!"

Felus swung his warhammer, and more Cursed Legion warriors surged around him.

These Astartes, wreathed in flames, frantically pulled the triggers on the Primarchs.

Explosive shells rained down on the armor of Vorgrim and Loka, not fatal, but enough to distract them. Taking advantage of this, the crazed salamanders reached the Primarch's side. Seeing Vulcan unharmed, even the most resilient salamander breathed a deep sigh of relief.

"We almost thought we were going to lose you forever, Father!"

"By the Emperor, we've made it!"

Vulcan felt a warmth in his heart, but now was not the time for such sentimental gestures.

The entire legion is now in grave danger, with the forces of Chaos causing chaos within and the green-skinned orcs eyeing them covetously from the outside.

If we're happy now, it's almost like popping champagne halfway through the event.

“Listen, Tassa, our most important task right now is to restart the engine systems of the Undying Ember and the other warships.”

"Our released star harvesters are still creating solar storms, but this process won't last forever. Once the solar storms weaken, we'll immediately break out of the Anvil Galaxy."

"I will work with Felus and his Cursed Legion to hold back these damned Chaos traitors. You will take my place in completing the task of restarting the warships."

Vulcan also grasped the true key to this war.

For the Primarchs like Loka to remain in the real universe, they would have to pay a huge price.

Even if they used the human prisoners held captive by the Orks at Gogo Anvil as sacrifices, it wouldn't last long.

While hundreds of billions of humans may sound like a lot, it's just average in the context of a battle involving three Primarchs and numerous Chaos Archdemons.

In other words, if this continues, even if they don't want to leave, they will be squeezed back into the subspace by the gradually recovering veil of reality.

The real universe is, after all, humanity's home turf, and these rebels, who have long since fallen into the warp, are constantly being suppressed.

"Mission accomplished." Tassa pounded his breastplate, then led the salamanders beside him toward the command bridge and the engine center at the stern of the warship.

Vulcan's order was partly driven by personal motives; he knew that they would soon be fighting against three Primarchs, including Loka, and the Chaos Space Marine army they had brought along.

The Salamanders have already suffered heavy losses in this Battle of the Anvil, and it remains unknown how many Salamanders were killed by the solar storm he personally ordered.

Vulcan's heart was bleeding; the legion he had painstakingly built up after the Great Rebellion was once again scarred.

Now that the Cursed Legion is providing support, these heroic warriors who can be reborn constantly in the psionic fire are clearly more suitable for dealing with traitors than the fire salamanders.

"Luojia, you've said so much, claiming you've improved a lot, but I didn't expect you to still be a good-for-nothing!"

Angron, who had been killed by Vulcan once, was finally resurrected. He stretched out his demonic body and spewed out sarcastic words against the Great Whisperer.

"If you hadn't been spouting so much nonsense, Vulcan would have already completed his ascension ritual!"

"We've come this far, and we still haven't gained anything."

The Great Manifesto was also filled with regret. He had never expected that Felus, who had been dead for so long, would still be able to interfere.

The feeling of having this perfect plan disrupted at the last step caused Luo Jia's spiritual energy to churn and roar, almost making him vomit blood in anger.

He strongly suspected that Tzeentch might be involved, otherwise why would the Cursed Legion arrive so coincidentally?

"Now is not the time for us to fight amongst ourselves. We still have a huge advantage. As long as we can drive out and destroy the Cursed Legion, Vulcan will still be fish on our chopping block!"

The Great Speaker roared, and a spellbook written from the skin of a pure believer appeared in his hand. He then began to summon other Chaos Demons to his aid.

The warp is generous; you can have any crazy wish if you pay the right price.

Under Luo Jia's promise and summons, more and more cold and violent subspace creatures emerged on the Undying Ember.

They lurk greedily, coveting those sweet souls, already itching with hunger.

"Ready, brother?"

"Let us continue to fight side by side, just like Istvan V!"

Vulcan tightened his grip on the Dawnbringer, his charcoal-black face turning to look at Felus Marus, eager for some response from his brother.

Vulcan, Feralas, and Peturabo, the three Primarchs, are the most skilled among all the brothers in forging equipment and researching technology.

However, now that the Lord of Steel has betrayed them, only the two of them remain.

Ferrus, however, gave a calm reply.

"They are not the only ones who can call for backup."

"Reinforcements? We have those too."

The next moment, Felus slammed his warhammer onto the deck of the Undying Ember, and golden flames spread wildly as if fueled by promethium.

These subspace fires do not generate superheated temperatures that melt metal armor and ignite flammable materials like physical flames; instead, the surrounding temperature is rapidly decreasing.

More and more cursed legions are descending, and many of them are not even Astartes.

Vulcan observed the warriors: he saw auxiliary troops wielding ordinary-sized laser guns and incendiary guns; knight mechs equipped with giant chainsaw swords and armed with molten cannons from head to toe; and even heavy tanks appeared on this deck.

If the Titans weren't so enormous, Vulcan would have no doubt that the Cursed Titan would appear.

Regardless of their past, they are now all uniformly dressed in deep black, with golden flames swirling around their bodies, releasing a powerful killing intent aimed at enemies in the warp.

They are as silent as iron, as immovable as a mountain. They emerge silently from the warp in waves, continuing to dedicate their power to humanity and the Emperor in the name of the Curse.

Even death is not the end of the responsibility; perhaps after all human warriors have died, the fight will continue.

As Vulcan witnessed this scene, his already kind and gentle heart was suddenly filled with a powerful emotion of shock and admiration.

Human beings’ free will and independent destiny should be defended by humanity itself. Even emperors never considered themselves to be the saviors of mankind.

Humanity's only savior is itself. Without an indomitable and unyielding spirit, even with a warp god supporting humanity, this race will eventually perish.

As always, the ordinary auxiliary troops bravely and fearlessly charged towards the enemy.

Regardless of what kind of ray ammunition they used to fire, the guns in their hands have now all become containers for spewing golden flames.

Sacred flames cleanse sin, and human wrath annihilates evil.

The warp demon army roared and launched a counterattack. They had complex forms far beyond human imagination, and when materialized, they were as bizarre as nightmares appearing from the most absurd demons.

The demon's claws tore apart the soldiers of the Cursed Legion; their bones shattered, their weapons broke, yet they were able to be reborn in flames in a very short time.

The Cursed Legion is the best way to fight warp demons, because they can do everything warp demons can do, but they have things that warp demons don't.

The surviving mortal troops and Iron Legion on this warship are also fighting back against the invasion of the great enemy in the warp.

Vulcan watched as countless mortal warriors, willing to perish together with their enemies, were determined to take down the oncoming, menacing warp demons.

The roar of molten metal bombs and plasma bombs echoed continuously on the warship.

And every time a human falls, a new warrior is added to the Cursed Legion, continuing to silently and stubbornly launch the charge.

The mortals who witnessed this scene were greatly encouraged. They felt that their fear had been completely dispelled and replaced by boundless courage and strength.

"Your Majesty, please look upon us!"

"After we die, our souls will not only return to the Golden Throne, but will also continue to fight tirelessly for humanity under the Emperor's will!"

"What is there to be afraid of? The demons of the warp can't take our souls, they can't do anything!"

The political commissar and priests in the auxiliary army immediately shouted excitedly, and then, taking the lead and with infinite piety towards the emperor, they rushed towards the hideous and terrifying demon.

Humans may seem weak and frail, but under certain circumstances, they can unleash astonishing potential.

For example, at this moment, after witnessing the heroic figures of the Cursed Legion, they were deeply inspired and moved by them.

The subspace demons summoned by Luo Jia stared dumbfounded at the mortal warriors charging towards them, completely bewildered as to how the world had become like this.

By the primordial truth, how come it is now cowardly and weak mortals chasing after and killing demons from the warp?
Subspace beings are, in essence, products created by the condensation of emotional power.

The thoughts and emotions of countless universes and countless intelligent beings flowed into the Sea of ​​Souls, and this idealistic world naturally gave birth to subspace beings.

It is precisely because of this unique life form that subspace organisms are naturally susceptible to the influence of other observers.

If you feel fear, trepidation, or awe towards warp demons, these demons will become even more powerful under the nourishment of negative emotions.

Conversely, if one feels no fear of them, or even becomes highly motivated to fight, then the warp demons will be weakened.

"Look at those humans, the god-emperor they worship comes from the Emperor's Sacred Words I wrote!"

"How ridiculous! They're using my things against me!"

The Great Man of Words was furious. He blocked Vulcan's heavy blow with his Enlightened Warhammer, still cursing under his breath.

However, just as he was struggling to parry Vulcan's monstrous strength, a golden beam of light struck Luo Jia's shoulder armor from behind.

Luo Jia turned his head in disbelief and saw a woman.

The Catholic nun he had snatched from the anvil, intending to slowly humiliate her.

The woman cursed by Fugrim to resist death.

At this moment, Olivia was engulfed in golden flames similar to those of the Cursed Legion.

Her long golden hair moved without wind, each strand standing on end, and blinding flames shot out from her pupils.

Luo Jia heard the language and words being murmured by the other party; they were the contents of the Emperor's Holy Word, which Guilliman had modified.

"No, shut up! Don't read this damned stuff!" Luo Jia screamed.

He was incredibly proud of writing the Emperor's Words, which was indeed his masterpiece that represented the pinnacle of his theology and faith.

However, after he abandoned the emperor and embraced chaos, he regarded the Book of Words as a product of lies and folly.

He declared that he had rejected this corrupt and hypocritical ideology and gained true freedom and independence.

When Luo Jia learned that Makado and Guilliman had picked up his Book of Holy Words, then modified and altered it to create this damned state religion, he felt both angry and amused.

The irony is that the empire's actions were a slap in the face to itself, proving that it was the wise and correct one that acted in the first place.

The fact that the empire would take back something that even he himself didn't want and treat it as a treasure clearly means that his skills have far surpassed those of anyone in the empire.

But what's infuriating is that even if you don't want something, you still have to own the copyright to it.

Guilliman's true colors as a shameless thief must be known and despised by everyone.

Olivia remained unmoved, as if Luo Jia was merely spewing filth, utterly repulsive.

She loudly recited the contents of the Holy Word, and those words, like tangible psionic spells, caused immense damage to the warp demons.

Beneath the nun's skin, countless golden rays flowed like blood vessels, growing ever more dazzling with her devout preaching.

"Abandon those damned, outdated old ideas and embrace the true, original truth."

"You should know what the truth is, what the revelation of the true God is. Change, bloodshed, perception, and plague are the truly wise choices!"

Luo Jia roared, demanding that Olivia, this stubborn nun, accept his new chaotic ideas.

“Absolutely not! My loyalty and faith in the Emperor are unwavering!” the nun replied.

"You false believer, you servant of power!"

Luo Jia found the oppressive feeling emanating from the other woman unbearable; this stupid woman was practically turning into a small sun, blindingly bright.

What upset and angered him even more was that the other party was using his own past writings against him, and he was powerless to stop them.

The combination of Feralus and Vulcan's hammers relentlessly repelled the combination of Angron and Forgrim.

Now that Feralus is bound by a curse, he has no fear of the deadly poison on Forgrim's stabbing sword.

When Prince Slaanesh's slashes landed on Feralas, they often only scattered golden sparks, burning him painfully.

Vulcan's ferocious attack was so overwhelming that Angron could hardly withstand it. The Blood God was generous; He not only blessed Angron but also expressed satisfaction with Vulcan's performance.

The disparity in their level of understanding further tilted the balance of the war in one direction.

How can the Primarchs, who are loyal to different Chaos Gods, trust each other without reservation and stand together as loyal Primarchs do?

While the Primarch may have gained some personal power after falling into chaos, his overall strength is far inferior to what it used to be.

Just as the situation of the encounter on the Undying Embers was becoming clearer, the enraged Anvil System Sun gradually calmed down.

Although the solar storm is still ongoing, it has weakened considerably compared to its most intense period.

The severely damaged green-skinned orcs could no longer suppress their rage for revenge.

"Kill! Kill them all!"

"Whether they're big human guys or those big, wicked shrimp guys, they all have to die!"

(End of this chapter)