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

Chapter 817 The Beast Appears
Using the safe landing points opened up by the fleet's bombardment, the Empire's reinforcements were systematically deployed to the surface of the battle planet.

On the surface of this battle planet, which is nearly the size of Saturn, besides the large war fortresses and foundries, the most numerous structures are the residential cities built by the Ork people using various kinds of waste and scrap.

Never be fooled by the savage appearance and behavior of the Ork; they are not truly like savages, wandering through ruins and living an extremely primitive life.

They also have their own cities, their own huts and homes, their own transportation systems, and even some markets run by the Evil Moon Clan orcs that specialize in selling edible Skulls, craft mushroom wine, and other food.

The Orc city may look chaotic, with buildings made of stacked and nested waste, appearing even more disordered than the bottom hive of the human hive capital.

But this is looking at the problem from a human perspective.

For the Orks, this is their warm and comfortable home, and this is the order they follow and love.

Various kinds of sewage, floating with excrement and urine, were directly discharged onto the streets where the Orks walked. Any human with a cleanliness obsession would find it impossible to stand in the Ork city, and would feel utter disgust and contempt.

But don't forget, humans are humans and Ork are Ork. Half of these green-skinned creatures' genes are plant-based, and they are related to mushrooms in the traditional sense. Would any plant really complain about being surrounded by fertilizer?

There will inevitably be differences between different races that are difficult to understand and empathize with.

For example, many Orcs are extremely curious about, or even disgusted by, human sexual reproduction.

It's unbelievable that humans didn't grow directly from the ground, but rather sprang from the bellies of those aluminum people.

The thought of those little shrimp parasitizing other shrimp, only to burst open their bellies or crawl out of their genitals after they've matured makes many green-skinned creatures feel uncomfortable all over.

The encirclement set up by the Ork at the human landing point was quickly torn apart by the breakout of the elite Astartes Legion.

The scattered Ork elites hid in a vast, green city.

Under the command of the surviving Greenskin commissars and Greenskin special forces lads, these Ork continued to wage guerrilla warfare using these complex obstacles.

The Greenskin commanders were well aware that they had an absolute advantage in troop strength.

But what they lack most now is enough time to mobilize those support forces from other parts of the battle planet.

The battle planet is enormous; according to observations from human warships in space, its surface area is at least 400 billion square kilometers.

Not to mention that the planet's surface is not a flat runway; the winding and folded terrain amplifies this number to a frightening degree.

If you rely solely on your legs, even if you run for several months, you probably still won't be able to reach the battlefield.

The Ork transport planes were shot down by human air forces before they even reached the battlefield, and the Orks on board perished in the crash.

Therefore, they had no choice but to use large ground transport vehicles to send as many Orcs as possible to the battlefield where they were fighting the Shrimp.

Some enormous, green-skinned trains, some over ten kilometers long, roared along, spewing out thick, toxic smoke.

Inside and outside the cargo holds of these giant trains, green-skinned orcs with high spirits hung everywhere.

They felt no fear whatsoever; all they felt was a longing and desire for war.

Occasionally, some reckless green-skinned orcs would make a mistake and fall off the train, only to be crushed into mincemeat by the rolling wheels behind them.

No orc would mourn such a ridiculous loser, since the dead orc corpses would give birth to new orc boys anyway.

These Ork lifelines are also high-value targets in the eyes of the human air force.

Human armed gunboats and bombers roam the sky like eagles. They do not need to land to refuel, because the endurance provided by the matter annihilation reactor can fully support long-term bombing missions.

The green-skinned fighters tried their best to regain control of the skies, but the gap between the two sides in equipment and technology was too great, and the vast majority of those that crashed were green-skinned fighters.

Faced with the elite Ork forces hiding in the garbage city, Astram and other high-ranking Space Marine commanders, including Mel Ayne, quickly reached a consensus:

They could not possibly deploy their precious troops to cities with such complex environments and such a high density of enemies.

Humanity's greatest advantage right now is mobility. If we slow down and turn it into a protracted positional war, it will be a nightmare for everyone.

Even the Necromancers of the Space wouldn't be so foolish as to wage a protracted war against the Greenskinned Orcs.

Thus, the Destruction Force, composed of Iron Hand, Dark Angel's Terrorwing, and Space Wolf's Iron Wolf Dalian, was formed.

They had no intention of engaging the green-skinned orcs in a direct confrontation, but instead used their most ferocious firepower to destroy the orc city from a distance.

Streams of steel surged down onto the surface of the battle planet via teleportation beacons, and various ferocious molten metal, flamethrowers, and radiation weapons burned the orc cities to the ground.

A few beams of light occasionally fell from space to provide support, and the remaining air defense system of the Ork threatened human warships, making it difficult to carry out orbital bombardment.

Soon, reinforcements from the Titan Legion arrived on the ground.

When it comes to firepower and demolition speed, the Titan is undoubtedly the king of the ground.

With the devout prayers of the mechanical priest and the pilot, the Titan Machine awoke from its slumber.

The Warhound-class Titans moved like a pack of wolves, using their swift movement speed to help the Warlord-class and Emperor-class Titans behind them clear out hidden enemies.

"We are the judgment of Om Messiah, we are the walking Scourge!"

Three Titan legions were deployed to the surface of the battle planet, a scale of which the Imperium had not recorded for decades.

The last time I saw so many Titans fighting together was during the Horus Rebellion, in the brutal battle known as the Fall of the Titans.

The billowing smoke from the burning orc cities formed plumes of highly toxic smog on the planet's surface.

The high temperatures on the ground created violently turbulent atmospheric circulation, drawing the highly toxic fumes into the upper atmosphere to continue spreading, making it look like the legendary hell descending upon the world.

Large numbers of Orcs hiding in the corners of the city were choked to death by the scorching, poisonous smoke.

They were filled with anger and wanted to fight back, but they could only hide in their bunkers and shelters and die slowly.

The Titan machines, whose movements produced a deafening roar that shook the earth, trampled over the Ork city.

Even without using their luxurious weaponry, these Titans can cause devastating destruction with every move they make.

Heavy bombers circled overhead, these flying steel behemoths tirelessly emptying their ammunition, like vigilant guards driving away any ill-intentioned enemies.

Behind the Titan was humanity's heavy artillery barrage: the Peacekeepers, the Petrified Lizards, and the Medusa's giant siege cannons. Each shot raised clouds of dust, and the scorching muzzles were quickly cooled before continuing to unleash their firepower.

Even the Mechanicus dragged out their general's cannon.

These are the most powerful heavy weapons under the command of the Mechanicus, and their numbers are even fewer than those of the precious Titan machines.

However, their power surpasses that of the more complex Titan Cannon; every time a General Cannon fires, a large area of ​​Greenskin cities is razed to the ground.

The Titan's machine spirit also gradually entered a state of excitement amidst the roar of cannon fire.

Earthquake cannons and volcano cannons poured out from the weapon arrays on the Titan's twin arms.

When the volcano cannon is activated, the erupting sea of ​​super-hot fire can burn all living things on the ground, along with their weapons, into acrid ashes.

The earthquake cannon shook the orc city, creating massive destruction like an earthquake with its powerful shockwave.

Missiles rained down like a torrential downpour, more precisely destroying the orcs' resistance firepower.

Beside these walking Titan machines, countless Leman Rustanks, Imperial Blades, and Apocalypse Tanks advanced in an orderly fashion.

They should have been the stars of the battlefield, but they paled in comparison to the glory of the Titans.

"The Orc Titan units have also entered the battlefield, and we have located the positions of those ancient junk."

"Let our Titans deal with them, and the other war vehicles continue to advance."

Steel Father Mel Ion gave the war orders, and then a Titan cluster centered around an Emperor-class Titan confronted the ancient junk that emerged from the ruins.

No two ancient behemoths are exactly alike in the world, because these orcs' largest land combat units originated from the wildest and most outlandish imaginations of the great tech masters and tech kids.

Under the guidance of Brother Gao and Brother Mao, they pieced together a large number of metal armor plates, crazy engine motors, and countless guns and cannons of various models, creating a seemingly simple but actually devastating behemoth.

There are far more ancient junk than human Titans.

These steel creations, born from scrap, even shed small metal parts as they walk.

Thick smoke billowed from the reactor vents behind the junk, and some short, snotty creatures nimbly darted through the junk, delivering fuel and coolant to the reactor boiler.

In addition, most of the functions of the game also rely on this highly collaborative human model.

The captain and pilot personally took out a noisy megaphone and called out to his green-skinned lads and farts, ordering them to move ammunition, aim weapons, and repair engines.

The Emperor-class Titan Gorgon Ironfist slightly lowered its weapon array; the orcish ancient behemoth was much shorter than this colossal machine, which was over 160 meters tall.

She leaned against the castle, which was made of numerous spires and gorgeous colored glazed tiles, and aimed at the short, bloated fat men with plasma annihilation cannons and hellstorm cannons mounted on her arms.

The roar of the Titan weapon was like a sudden clap of thunder, and the ancient behemoth was struck fiercely the next moment.

Under the erosion of the violent energy, the metal armor on the outside of the ancient junk was easily penetrated by the ultra-high temperature of the plasma.

The ancient giants do not have the protection of a void shield; they mainly rely on metal armor to protect themselves.

In addition, its rough internal structure means it doesn't have the fatal weaknesses that the Imperial Titan's plasma reactor possesses.

This also means that the ancient giant has extremely strong vitality; even if its body is pierced by the weapon of an Emperor-level Titan, it can still continue to fight for a while.

It wasn't until the ammunition depot inside the ancient junk exploded that the orcish titan was completely destroyed from the inside out.

The Warhound-class Titans converged from all directions, tearing at the fat, bloated ancient behemoth like a pack of wolves.

The Orcs ignored the Hound-class Titans; all their attention was focused on the Emperor-class Titan, which looked the most waaagh.

After suffering heavy losses, Gu Juji finally managed to bring the Emperor-class Titan into his killing range.

The bloated giant tore open her skirt and then activated her belly cannon.

The Ork's weapon looks extremely bizarre; the belly cannon is topped with a spearhead equipped with a molten weapon, which, when fired, can precisely hit the lower limbs and abdomen of the human Titan.

Its initial velocity is too slow and its effective range is too short, so the Void Shield of Titan cannot function against this kind of attack.

But the Emperor-level Titans had already anticipated the underhanded attacks these wretched, short orc Titans would launch.

The destructive direct-fire missiles, ready to be launched, roared out, directly interrupting Gu Juji's sneak attack.

The violent explosion shook these behemoths violently, causing the Maurice Gaze and Death Ascension Cannon, which were aimed at the Emperor-class Titan, to deviate from their original targets.

The ancient giants carry an enormous number of weapons; almost their entire bodies can fire, and they carry all sorts of giant power claws, chainsaw swords, and even crushing balls wrapped in chains to attack their enemies.

The clash between the Titans and the Ancient Ones further accelerated the destruction of the Orc city.

These Orks were meant to protect their homeland, but on a battlefield where Titan-level units were attacking each other, that became a pipe dream.

This battle of the Titans did not last as long as the previous Battle of Beta-Galmont.

On the one hand, the Ork on the battle planet did not expect their powerful energy shield to be broken in an instant, and their forces were scattered all over the planet, making it difficult to provide effective support in the short term.

On the other hand, the Imperial army's blow was simply too fierce. Luther had no intention of using piecemeal tactics; he immediately deployed four elite units of the Astartes Legion to the battlefield.

Matching this were a massive number of war vehicles, Titan legions, and mortal support legions, along with occasional fire support from warships in orbit, achieving the effect of breaking through the enemy's defenses from a single point.

Although the Orcs' overall military strength far surpasses that of humans, their inability to mobilize their forces makes them no different from an army that exists only on paper.

Luther is now racing against the Ork.

He wanted to see whether humanity would be the first to breach the battle planet's defenses, destroying the planet's internal energy reactors and command center, or whether the Ork would complete a counter-encirclement and wipe them out here.

Undoubtedly, this was an extremely risky plan, but it was also the fastest way to achieve victory in the war.

Strictly speaking, this is not Luther's style of warfare, but rather closer to the strategic thinking of Lion King Ryan, who sought victory through perilous means.

Since the two reconciled on Caliban, Luther has also begun to learn to let go of his pride.

After all, even Ryan set aside his pride to apologize to him, so what else could he possibly be dissatisfied with?
In this situation, if Luther continues with his old tactics of large-scale battles and relying on superior strength to advance in a straightforward manner, he may suffer a severe setback.

With the cannons of the Great General and the Titan Legion clearing the way, the orc city that had been blocking the advance of humanity was engulfed in a sea of ​​fire.

The battle planet and the battle moon are extremely similar in structure. The Ork have dug a giant hole in the planet, through which they can unleash gravitational storms to attack their enemies.

If you look at the battle planet from the hollow side, you might even get the illusion that this behemoth is actually a giant donut floating in space.

These exposed parts are densely packed with reactors and energy systems. If these advanced creations of the Ork can be destroyed, the entire battle planet will suffer severe damage.

Of course, in return, the Orcs deployed a large number of troops to guard this key area. They knew that this was a weak point on the battle planet, so they had already made full defensive preparations.

The armored torrent led by the Steel Hands was well-versed in the essence of blitzkrieg. After breaking through the Ork defenses, they showed no hesitation in fighting and led their armored forces away.

Meanwhile, the Titan Legion and the mortal auxiliary forces that arrived from behind began to build defensive fortresses along the tracks left by the armored forces.

The Iron Father, Mel Erin, sat in the driver's seat of a specially modified Apocalypse Tank, observing the most realistic battlefield situation from the front lines.

Numerous data cables extended from his body, merging with the war vehicle's soul.

Relying on the interconnected signals between them, the Steel Father can command hundreds of tanks simultaneously, making them obey orders as if they were under the command of a single person.

The sons of Feralas are extremely well-suited to this style of warfare; in their eyes, these armored vehicles made of steel are far more reliable than human warriors made of flesh and blood.

"If Lord Felus had been more thoroughly metalized back then, perhaps he wouldn't have fallen on the battlefield of Istvaan."

Mel's consciousness flowed through the mind technology formed by the machine soul, and he suddenly remembered his deceased genetic father.

After Feralus slew the metallic dragon Asinos on Medusa, the dragon's dead metal adhered to his hands, giving the Primarch a pair of unique living metallic arms.

Even in a fight fought bare-handed, relying on his literal iron hands, Ferrus possesses extremely powerful combat abilities.

Many Astartes with the Iron Hands have fantasized that if their genetic father not only had iron hands, but also had his neck covered by that magical metal, would he not have died in battle?

Steel Father's thoughts began to wander, but the next moment, a jolt of electric shock-like pain shot through his power armor.

That's a mind detection system added to the power armor's servo system, which can monitor the owner's distraction in real time and issue an alarm when the owner is distracted.

The Steel Hand learned from Feralas's distraction during the final battle and took it as a warning to prevent a similar incident from happening again.

Mel immediately realized that his distraction must have been influenced by some unknown force, otherwise he would never have been able to lose focus in such a war situation.

The Iron Father immediately halted the high-speed advance of the armored torrent, bringing it to an emergency stop and raising a huge sandstorm on the ground covered in ruins.

The radar dome and scanning array on the tank became Mel's eyes. He switched between multiple scanning methods in a very short time to ensure close observation of the battlefield at all times.

Immediately afterwards, he discovered that a large number of Orc tanks and armored vehicles had suddenly emerged from the surrounding hills and mountains.

"This is a trap set by the Orcs. Retreat immediately."

The Iron Father did not intend to advance further and break through the trap set by the Ork, as doing so would undoubtedly lead him into an ambush.

Even if they manage to break through the blockade of these orc tanks, other orcs will inevitably appear to join the interception.

Behind them were the Titan Legion and the mortal auxiliary army that were on their way. Once they joined up with the reinforcements, they would be able to break through the enemy forces that were blocking their way.

However, Mel underestimated the Ork's desire to annihilate them, because what followed the Ork tanks were those ancient giants disguised as hills.

While the ancient giants are inferior to human Titans in terms of individual combat strength and survivability, they are extremely cheap and far more numerous.

When these ancient giants bury their lower bodies in the ground, their bloated and obese forms can completely disguise themselves as natural landforms and blend perfectly with the surrounding waste and garbage.

In the blink of an eye, those ancient giants covered with countless cannon barrels began to move, emitting strange roars as they attacked the human tank force.

The Apocalypse Tank's Void Shield withstood the first wave of attacks, but some human tanks located further away were directly destroyed by the Ancient Ones' ambush.

More orc heavy armored leaders strode heavily, wielding their massive chainsaw weapons as they charged toward the human tanks.

They didn't care at all whether Gu Juji's unpredictable attacks would blow them up as well.

The only thing the orcs cared about was whether they could destroy all the human tanks that were destroying their homes.

"Retreat in an orderly manner, providing alternating cover," Mel Ian ordered.

"Xu Jin's barrage of firepower slows their advance."

However, in the blink of an eye, the Iron Father suddenly discovered an unusual individual amidst the vast expanse of green.

It was an enormous orc; measuring instruments showed that it was over twelve meters tall. Even standing next to those ancient giants, it did not appear small.

Ordinary orcs only reach his hip bones, and even the heaviest orc only reaches the height of his abdominal armor.

A thought flashed through the mind of the Iron Father:
We've found that hidden beast-like warlord!
At this moment, neither the Orc tanks and armor nor the hordes of heavily armored leaders that appeared were of any importance to Mel Ian.

"All units cease retreat and immediately concentrate all firepower."

"I want that beast dead!"

The Iron Father knew what his decision meant: if they didn't retreat and leave the Ork encirclement, their only fate would be death.

But the beast is here; kill him and the war will be over.

No Astartes could resist the temptation of such a victory. Mel assessed the forces at his disposal: over four hundred armored tanks, half of which were super-heavy tanks.

In addition, along with the thousands of Astartes from the Dark Angels and Space Wolves, the total force has reached nearly six thousand, and these are all Space Marines with powerful firepower.

Mel believed he could take a gamble; even if he couldn't kill the beast, he could at least stall it and create an opportunity for reinforcements to strike.

Upon spotting the enemy, Mel sent a signal to the rear, and they were now rushing to the battlefield at full speed.

The armored torrent, which had already made an emergency turn and was preparing to fight and retreat, launched another charge towards the Orcs.

“The sons of Feralus are fearless, and if our father sees us, he will be proud of us!”

"Charge! Charge! Charge!"

At this moment, even the steely-willed saint who advocated extreme calm and rationality felt the raging fire within him melting his steely heart.

The Apocalypse Tank roared like a prehistoric beast as its massive form charged ahead of the steel torrent, its wide tracks carving deep ruts into the scrap-strewn ground.

This super-heavy tank, restored by Roche, is one of the few armored vehicles capable of mounting a Void Shield.

When the Apocalypse Tanks lined up in a sharp spearhead, their Void Shields merged together to form a curtain, enhancing their defense against high-speed, high-energy weapons.

They can still aim and fire even when moving at high speeds. The internal Astartes and excellent fire control system make the twin-mounted heavy guns extremely accurate.

Meanwhile, the smaller Land Raiders, Sikaran Tanks, Spartan Tanks, and the super-heavy tank Shadowblade seized the opportunity to unleash long-range firepower in the gaps between the former.

The Hercules-type accelerated automatic cannons created a metal storm, with countless scorching shell casings pouring down from these metal behemoths. Combined with the side-mounted laser cannons, they killed orcs with deadly accuracy.

The Orcs' armored tanks, billowing black smoke and making tremendous noise when they drove, exploded one by one as if they had been called out, turning into a sky full of debris and wreckage that littered the ground.

The orc infantry were torn to shreds by the barrage of cannon fire, leaving only a pool of blood mist and scattered, broken weapons and equipment where the shells struck.

The Apocalypse Tank's twin-mounted cannons fired in sequence, mitigating the enormous recoil as much as possible. Orc tanks were like easy targets, easily harvested and killed.

Its enemies are no longer orc tanks, but orc giants that are at least thirty to fifty meters tall.

"Fire!"

The twin-mounted cannons of the Apocalypse Tank unleashed blinding flashes of fire, firing continuously at the ancient behemoth that resembled a walking mountain range, like Don Quixote charging towards a windmill.

The Beast Warlord was right next to the Ancient Giant, and the Apocalypse Tank tried its best to aim at the figure, but it still couldn't get past the huge and bloated Ancient Giant.

Ripples spread across the Waaagh energy shield on the surface of the ancient junk. Although the massive tracks were inferior to the bipedal Titans of humans when traversing undulating terrain, their chassis were indeed frighteningly stable.

The Apocalypse Tank could easily destroy the Orc Tank's main gun without causing much damage. Even for a super-heavy tank, dealing with a Titan is an extremely difficult task.

The giant metal cone, made of stacked and nested scrap metal, is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom, and with its flamboyant color scheme, it looks somewhat like a comical ice cream cone.

But when its countless weapons are pointed at itself, absolutely no one will be able to laugh.

Orcs' firepower is always about brute force, not accuracy; they just focus on sheer volume and leave the rest to miracles.

The human charge was instantly engulfed by the sea of ​​fire, but the interconnected void shields of the Apocalypse stubbornly resisted the attack.

The Void Shield cannot be destroyed; it is essentially a portal that deflects high-speed attacks into the warp. Only an overloaded energy source can destroy the Void Shield.

"Now! Activate the magnetic harpoon!" The Steel Father naturally knew the difference between a super-heavy tank and a Titan.

This is the moment he has been waiting for.

The Apocalypse Tanks, advancing side by side, suddenly lowered their Void Shields, allowing the Orcs' cannons and energy beams to create blinding sparks on their metal armor.

They poured all their energy into their magnetic harpoon matrix, and immediately powerful magnetic fields anchored themselves onto the ancient giant beside the beast.

The magnetic harpoon can drag smaller metal targets into the grinder in front of the Apocalypse Tank, crushing them into metal materials to repair itself.

However, when facing enemies much larger than itself, the magnetic harpoon can also transform into an invisible chain to exert control.

A single Apocalypse Tank might not be able to shake the Ancient Titan, but when a dozen Apocalypse Tanks work together, even an Orc Titan would be shaken.

Pulled by the magnetic harpoon, this ancient junk, which was about fifty meters tall, swayed from side to side, and a large amount of scrap metal fell like raindrops.

It tried its best to maintain its balance, but its bulky body still tilted towards the side of the beast.

With a deafening roar like a mountain collapsing and a jade pillar crumbling, the ancient giant was forcefully pulled to the ground. The massive weapons covering its body exploded amidst the tremors, triggering a chain reaction within its body.

Mel Ian witnessed the Beast being buried beneath the Ancient Garbage, which then detonated, sending up a deafening roar as the Beast was engulfed in flames.

(End of this chapter)