Warhammer: Black Emperor

Chapter 478 The "Catastrophe Priest" Foresees Lava Eruption

Ninglu leaned back on the throne, his eyes slightly narrowed, stroking the ginger-yellow fur of the Strongbrain Cat, lost in thought.

The Second Randan War affected a vast area in the northern part of the Milky Way. First, we need to exclude the worlds in these areas. Although not all of them will be engulfed in the war, I do not know all the worlds that were affected.

The resources invested in these worlds may be destroyed by war or occupied by my legions, wasting divination opportunities.

Furthermore, we must exclude worlds requiring a large military presence and long-term conquest; in such cases, a new front should not be opened.
After considering the criteria for exclusion, Nimrod then thought of the Legion's needs.

[After the war with Randan, the number of legions will inevitably be affected, and this should be a suitable world for recruitment.]

Ideally, it shouldn't take too long to conquer and integrate into the world.
Suddenly, a name popped into Ninglu's mind: Wen Cuilian.

Ventrilian is located in the southeastern part of the galaxy and is unlikely to be affected by the war.

Like Tannis, the Ventrilians have a proud military culture, with a long history of duels dating back to before the founding of the Empire.

Few Ventrilian nobles would risk their honor by forgoing their military service. In Nimrod's memory, those who passed the underground coming-of-age ceremony of the "Lava Lake Test" had enough wealth to bribe their way out of the Star Guardian Army a dozen times over.

However, they carried sophisticated weapons and voluntarily joined the army.

Nimrod thought about this and made a decision.

After leaving the Spear of Dionysus on the weapon rack, he returned to his residence. Then, with a thought, he arrived at the third level of the "Land of Chaos".

Ninglu's mind raced through the information he knew about Wen Cuilian.

[Limited Starfield, Gem World, Ventrilian.]

Ventrilian produces a large quantity of rare gemstones, which are of great value for both manufacturing and research.

...]

After quickly reviewing all the information Ning Lu knew about Wen Cuilian, he silently recited it in his mind.

[The star map leading from the Cariham Gate to Ventrilian.]

The star map leading from the Caligum Gate to Ventrilian.

[…]
After reciting it silently eleven times, he stretched out his hand and threw the prophecy dice in his hand.

After Ninglu recorded the star map into the data crystal, he returned to the real world.

He shared Ventrilian's information with John through a telepathic connection.

The "Cataclysmic Priest's" home in Shadow Keep was much more spacious than the cramped cabins of the Shadow of the Throne.

Two of the five bookshelves are filled with divination books, and the other three are filled with data boards.

On his divination table, crystal balls, pendulums, and tarot cards were neatly arranged.

John grabbed a quill and scribbled on the fine parchment, then quickly glanced through it before comfortably settling into the leather sofa.

An image immediately flashed through John's mind;
The lava lake erupted, and dozens of nobles were swallowed by the towering lava.

Thousands of nobles fled in terror upwards, trying to escape the spreading lava.

The "Calamity Priest" does not have a fundamentally improved ability to divine compared to the "Machine," but his spirituality has been enhanced in both the "Lucky One" and the current stage.

The "Catastrophe Priest's" superior inspiration compared to other methods allowed him to accurately grasp Ventrilian's situation.

Through the telepathic link, Ninglu immediately learned that the "Cataclysm Priest" had accurately foreseen that Ventrilian would encounter a lava eruption during his coming-of-age ceremony two months later.

He immediately realized that this was an opportunity to quickly win over Ventrilians.

"Well done, you successfully foresaw the disaster."

John immediately felt as if something inside his body was melting.

Nimrod arrived at the fourth level of space. Considering the dueling culture of the Ventrilians and the situation of each chapter, he decided to grant this world to the Eighth Chapter.

He spread his spirituality, and after confirming that Thierry Vieira was alone, he pulled the knight lord into the "Land of Chaos".

"How is your warband doing right now?"

Thierry quickly recovered from the momentary daze of being suddenly pulled into the mysterious realm and began to speak.

"My lord, in accordance with your command, half of the chapter's forces, 15,800 men, are assembled at Kassayi."

"A Ramirez-class star fortress has been deployed in Kassadin to guard the portals to Vostoria and the Caligum Gate."

Ning Lu Nian, carrying the data crystal, delivered it to Thierry. "Lead five thousand men to Ventrilian, as recorded in the data crystal. He will be your warband, a new world of recruitment."

“Ventrilian is located in a remote area; you must hide this world.”

Thierry accepted the data crystal and said gratefully.

"Thank you my Lord."

“I will obey your will and hide Ventrilian.”

Compared to his achievements and reputation in the empire, Thierry valued his position at the royal court and the Black Emperor's thoughts more.

"Two months from now, the coming-of-age ceremony for nobles held by Ventrilian will be met with a lava eruption. If you issue a warning in advance, you will win their support."

After speaking, Ninglu sent Thierry back to the Blade.

Upon returning to his flagship, Thierry immediately ordered the fleet to set sail.

The Eighth Fleet, after a five-week voyage via the portal, arrived at Caligum Gate.

Subsequently, the fleet was deployed through the repaired Caligum Gate of the fifth pair of space stations, and in just four weeks, it traveled from the northeastern part of the Misty Starfield to the eastern edge of the Extreme Starfield.

No Imperial fleet has set foot in this star system yet.

After the broadcast across all channels, Thierry received a reply from Ventrilians, who ruled the local noble alliance and invited them to the surface.

Thierry left Company Commander Bouuca in Casale to command the fleet, while he left Company Commander Gül Gül to command the fleet, and boarded the Skyhawk shuttle with Company Commander Pierre Wright.

The black Skyhawk shuttle has the Legion insignia painted on the right and the Warband's blade painted on the left.

Pierre carried a meticulously forged psionic longsword, crafted by a Cassell-born technical sergeant, at his waist.

Even relative to Astartes' superhuman physique, it was a longsword, one-fifth of its blade above the waist, the rest hanging down past Pierre's knees.

Pierre walked slightly behind his lord, his gaze sweeping over the Ventrilians, when his eyes suddenly lit up.

He noticed that, like in his homeland, every Ventrilian nobleman carried a dueling sword or a heavy two-handed sword.

A nobleman wearing an emerald headdress, a sapphire necklace, and adorned with two rows of gemstones, with a ruby ​​sword hanging from his gemstone belt, walked up to Thierry and opened his arms.

Thierry and Pierre understood the meaning of each other's words through the think tank's translation.

"Justin Vatara, the Ventrilian governor, on behalf of the Ventrilian noble council, welcomes the arrival of the shadow of order."

After exchanging greetings, Pierre boarded the car.

As the vehicle moved forward, Pierre noticed that, unlike the Casals who all carried swords, not everyone in Ventrilian carried one.

Ordinary people walking in the city all wore one or two small gemstones as decorations, but did not carry weapons.

Only nobles carried swords.

The vehicle stopped in front of the magnificent palace, and Pierre and his entourage entered the palace to the accompaniment of music. He discovered that the palace had fourteen floors, where tens of thousands of nobles were seated.

He couldn't help but think to himself, "[Ventrilian is richer than Kassayi, possessing a vast collection of gems, and can support a large number of nobles.]"

The nobles within the palace were likely only a portion of this group.
Pierre ascended the magnificent steps and took his seat in the center of the palace, where food and wine were served to him by waiters.

The banquet lasted for two days, and in a harmonious atmosphere, the knight lord answered every question raised by the Ventrilian nobles through his think tank.

The nobles understood Lord Nimrod's ideals and requirements and decided to accept the jurisdiction of the "Shadow of Order".

As the celebration banquet drew to a close, Justin, who had just learned a few everyday phrases, smiled and slowly addressed the knight lord.

"Lord...in four days...we will be holding an underground coming-of-age ceremony...we would like to invite you and the Shadows of Order to participate..."

"Justin, the coming-of-age ceremony cannot be held this year; the lava lake will erupt."

After consulting with the think tank and understanding Thierry's meaning, Justin frowned.

The coming-of-age ceremony was a tradition of the Ventrilian nobility and an important event for him, the consul, to win the support of the new nobility.

Especially at this moment, Ventrilian is undergoing an unprecedented transformation, from an independent nation to the territory of a king.

Justin's smile vanished, and he spoke seriously.

"Are you sure this is important to Ventrilian?"

(End of this chapter)