Warhammer: Black Emperor

Chapter 706 Old Man Huang, what is the naked, true reflection of your soul when you shed your disguise?

Terra held a grand celebration to commemorate the return of Kovacs Corax, and at the same moment all Legions welcomed back their Primarchs, the fleet of Alkahas Far, the former commander of the Nineteenth Legion, departed from orbit.

Al-Kajas stood on the observation deck, gazing intently at his homeland.

"Issue the order, plan the route, target Narctis." A hint of melancholy still lingered in his dark eyes, haunted by the shame of being the first exiled commander of the Astartes Legion, but also mixed with hope for the future.

"Paint all the armor, vehicles, and warships according to the new paint scheme I have determined."

At the same moment, in the fourth level of the "Land of Chaos," Ning Lu stared at the black glass rotating in his palm.

It resembles molten obsidian that subsequently solidified into a crystalline rock.

This molten crystal, partially solidified into a flowing state, appears to have undergone unimaginable high-temperature ablation.

"Old Huang, thank you for still entrusting the Void Glass to Alkahas." Ninglu gently stroked the bottom of the Void Glass and expressed his gratitude.

It is incredibly cold to the touch, like polar ice, seeping into the soul.

There was only a patch of blackness in the black glass; looking directly at it was like looking directly into the endless darkness of the universe.

The void within the desolate crystal extends beyond the physical realm, containing every star and planet in the universe, every human and alien. It is the origin and convergence of all life in the real universe and the subspace.

His gaze was deep, and a vision flashed through his mind of ten thousand years later, when the priest of the "Space Shark," Tangatan Manu, was attacked by aliens and lost it.

Manu embarked on a nearly 1,500-year search journey, until the Great Rift unfolded, confirming that the Void Crystal had drifted to the Comoros.

After capturing the conspiracy leader Utak, he locked him in a windowless, unfurnished, and silent room.

Utak, having succumbed to the torment of a life devoid of any excitement, led them to the gates of the net and into Comoros.

The Space Sharks' team, after finding the Archon, was asked to enter the arena.

Manu's older brother, the curator of the "Space Shark" think tank, the Pale Nomad Te Kahulangi, exploited the Dark Eldar's fear of psychic energy to achieve a winning streak.

But when the Arena Queen Lilith Hespelaga stepped onto the battlefield, she single-handedly and utterly crushed the entire Space Shark team.

Her swiftness made the bombs seem too slow; she pierced the sharks' powered armor with a regular dagger, killing several in an instant.

The psionic flames are too slow to pose a threat to the Arena Queen.

Just as the Space Shark team was about to be wiped out, the little boy Jonah touched the Empty Glass, recited the activation spell, and activated the ancient artifact.

Everyone sees only emptiness; all their lies and self-deceptions reflect the mirror image of their souls.

Hesperag saw himself chasing the wind that could never be reached, yet unable to find any worthwhile challenges, leaving only a decadent, broken self clinging to past glories.

Kahulangi sees the sea monster that took away his mother and family, and he is tormented by resentment.

Manu saw himself transformed into a saw-toothed killing machine, realizing he was no longer human.

……

The reflection of the empty, crystal-clear glass allowed everyone to see their own subspace mirror image, causing a massive uproar.

The Dark Eldar fled in terror, even causing a stampede.

The mighty Arena Queen, having dropped her weapons, crawled in agony, returning the desolate glass to the space sharks, so that they would never return.

Subsequently, the priest Manu believed that the empty glass, reflecting his own transformation into a monstrous abomination, was too terrifying to be controlled by anyone.

He believed that the Father of the Void, by entrusting it to the Great Forgotten One, perhaps did not intend to use it at the end times, but simply wanted to forget it.

Manu then sank the empty crystal into the ocean world of Sagaraja.

He reported to Chapter Master, Crimson Tide Tiberos, that the lost artifact had not been found, and was subsequently executed.

Ning Lu collected his thoughts and sighed, "The Void Glass is truly a terrifying mirror; it reflects a person's most authentic self."

"This side is even more real than the heart."

While a person's mental reflection includes their true memories, thoughts, and ideas, as well as the aspects beneath the surface that they are unaware of, it is still based on their own cognitive domain.

The mirror image of his soul, unknown to him, could not be reflected in the depths of his heart. Ninglu thought of the only known person who had opened the Void Crystal and looked directly at his own soul mirror image—Old Man Huang.

"So, Old Man Huang, what do you see—your naked, true soul, stripped of your disguise?"

"The Lord of Darkness? The End and Death? The Destroyer of Countless Races..."

"Do you resist your destiny because you witness a terrifying reflection of your own soul?"

"..."

Ning Lu's mind was filled with a jumble of thoughts, one idea after another flashing through his mind, and one scene after another that Old Man Huang might have witnessed.

Eleven seconds later, he finally gathered his scattered thoughts and stared at the endless void once more.

The "Chaos Mentor" can see the white lines of rules swirling above, shining with the purest color, converging and coalescing into a radiant gate.

"The gateway to the Sea of ​​Souls?"

Ninglu thought of the incantation to open the Void Crystal, and the little boy Jonah uttered "Gateway!"

He then realized that only specific people could open this door; the space sharks had attempted to open it after reclaiming the Void Glass.

They chanted the activation incantation, but the empty, crystal-clear glass remained unresponsive.

They then concluded that only someone chosen by Lang, the Father of the Void, could activate this artifact.

Ning Lu stroked the icy artifact, thinking, "It might not be the person Old Man Huang chose."

"He didn't create the Empty Crystal Glass."

"That little boy Jonah may have a special soul, fulfilling some special conditions set by the person who created the Void Glass."

"However, this is not a problem for me."

As Ning Lu pondered, a thought flashed through his mind, and the empty, crystal-clear glass vanished into thin air.

In the black mist of the third layer of space, strangely shaped black glass objects appeared out of thin air.

Regardless of whether it can be opened or not, he does not intend to open it now.

On one hand, the Void Glass will affect people within a certain range, and it needs to be activated when no one is around.

On the other hand, he needs to establish a "connection" with the Void Glass in order to cope with the drastic changes that may occur after he looks directly at his own soul mirror image after the activation.

After "connecting" to the Void Glass, even if an uncontrollable upheaval occurs, it can be shut down in time.

Just as Nimrod was about to return to the real world, he suddenly heard the sound of prayer.

He stared at the ever-expanding and contracting orb of light, which was Nerat Killing, the shadow captain of the "Ash Claws" of the "Dark Raven Guard".

The “Chaos Mentor” spread spiritually, touched the spiritual sphere, and immediately saw Nerath kneeling on the altar.

He clasped his hands together, held them upside down against his chest, and prayed anxiously.

“My lord, although the Father of Genetics has not exiled us, he does not trust us either.”

With a thought, Ninglu conjured up the message he wanted to convey in his mind and transmitted it to the sphere of light through a subtle connection.

"You can stay in the 'Raven Guard' and train in shadows. This will also help you master the power I have given you."

After instructing the senior "hermits," Nimrod spread his spirituality, touching Alastor Rorschach's spiritual sphere.

He also instructed the newly ordained "hermits" to settle down and learn in the "Dark Raven Guard" to master the power of the shadows.

"If nothing changes, Horus will continue to force Corax to obey orders in order to demonstrate the authority of the Warmaster, and the remaining Terrans will likely still be exiled before the Great Birthday."

Ning Lu muttered to himself, then returned to the real world.

(End of this chapter)