Warhammer 40K in a box

Chapter 352 Heading to the Bottom Nest
5%, a seemingly insignificant percentage, appears alarming when placed on the behemoth that is Nest City.

It's important to know that the Corpse Guild collects thousands of corpses every day.

Over the course of a year, millions, even tens of millions, of corpses circulate on the processing lines.

A 5% shortfall means that tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of corpses disappear every year—a number that is enough for some unscrupulous individuals to complete an astonishingly large-scale chaotic sacrifice ritual, and may even summon some terrifying beings capable of destroying the entire hive city.

Realizing the seriousness of the problem, 32 immediately reported this anomaly to the legal department of Chaodu, requesting them to launch a full investigation immediately.

Meanwhile, she quickly reunited with Guterres and decided to personally delve into the bottom nest to investigate the truth behind the mysterious disappearance of the corpses.

The Ministry of Justice did not dare to be negligent in the slightest and immediately dispatched an elite bailiff team to the bottom of the nest to conduct an investigation.

These law enforcement officers, clad in black armor and wielding explosive pistols, quickly disappeared into the elevator platform leading to the lower stronghold, preparing to uncover the truth through violence and ironclad rules.

While the Ministry of Justice was taking action, the court's informants had already noticed this anomaly.

An inquisitor from the anti-rebellion order also quietly set out with his carefully trained squad of acolytes.

They chose a different route from the Ministry of Justice to infiltrate the underbelly, preparing to thoroughly investigate the matter in a manner unique to the courtroom.

If necessary, the entire area will be purified.

Two investigation teams, one operating openly and the other covertly, simultaneously ventured into the darkest depths of the city.

When 32 and Guterres, each with their own killing squad, stepped into the rusty transport elevator, four Kaslan intelligent machine guns and ten Primal Astartes clad in Phobos-type power armor filled the secret elevator hidden in the building's mezzanine to the brim.

The Ministry of Justice special agents nervously wiped the cold sweat from their foreheads, their fingers rapidly operating on the control panel.

The four fully armed, intelligently controlled mechs occupied most of the elevator space, and their weight far exceeded expectations.

With the addition of the heavy powered armor and weapons of ten Astartes, the elevator, originally designed to carry fifty ordinary people, was now emitting a dangerous metallic groan.

The Secret Service agent glanced uneasily at the flashing red light of the overload alarm, praying that this dangerous journey would end safely.

This is a secret passage meticulously designed by the Ministry of Justice, hidden deep within the complex structural layers of the city. Normally, this route is used to secretly escort high-ranking criminals down from the city, or to transport certain illicit "special goods."

This time, it was only because of the special status of 32 and Guterres that the Ministry of Justice opened this secret route to them.

With a piercing metallic scraping sound, the elevator began to descend rapidly.

A chilling metallic creaking sound came from outside the elevator shaft, as if the entire passageway was under immense pressure.

This steel behemoth, buried deep within the armored layer of the hive city, is hurtling downwards at an astonishing speed of eighty kilometers per hour, causing the lights inside the elevator to flicker violently.

Through the reinforced glass of the observation window, one can see that the specially treated alloy wall is covered with vicious claw marks and dense bullet holes, and in some areas there are even suspicious organic residues.

Clearly, the Ministry of Justice is using this channel to transport far more than just ordinary prisoners.

When the elevator finally stopped at the abandoned unloading area on the lowest level of the lower level, a screech of brakes followed as the gates slowly opened, propelled by the hydraulic system. This sudden noise startled the creatures dwelling in the darkness, and swarms of fluorescent bats flapped their wings and scattered in all directions.

The eerie green light emitted by these mutated creatures traced chaotic paths in the darkness before disappearing into the endless night.

This place has obviously been abandoned for many years, and the surroundings are deathly silent, with even the most basic lighting facilities no longer working.

32 immediately signaled the AI ​​engineer beside him to activate the lighting system. The searchlights on the chests of the four AI soldiers lit up simultaneously, and the blinding beams tore through the thick darkness.

Under the stark white light, the scene before my eyes was nauseating: a layer of black grease, up to fifteen centimeters thick, covered every inch of the wall like a living thing, and rotten oil pipes constantly oozed viscous liquid, accumulating in the corners of the walls into puddles that gleamed with an eerie light.

A deadly mixture of gases floated in the air, its pungent odor, somewhere between hydrogen sulfide and rotting flesh, could be faintly smelled even through the filtration system.

“The Bloodfinger Gang controls the nearest secret passage, and they have some cooperation with our Ministry of Justice.” As soon as the accompanying Ministry of Justice special agents finished speaking, six tattooed, burly men wielding homemade laser guns jumped down from the ventilation duct.

But their ambush setup collapsed instantly.

The weapon in the hand of the gang member at the front clattered to the ground. This thug, who had fought in the lower lair for many years, was now staring intently at the Astartes in front of him, his knees trembling uncontrollably.

“Half…half a god…” another gang member muttered to himself, slumped in the oil slick.

To these ants living in darkness, Astartes is a sacred being that exists only in the murals of the state religion.

For these gang members living at the bottom of the city, their daily lives consisted of nothing more than engaging in violent and aggressive activities.

They might be able to kill a mutant without batting an eye, but a fully armed Hive bailiff would scare them to death.

Not to mention Asta's Twitter, which they perceive as existing only in fairy tales.

The fact that what they were seeing now was a Primal Astartes, which was much larger than a regular Astartes, added to the sense of oppression and the feeling of a mythical descent, leaving these gang members completely disoriented.

The Ministry of Justice special agents pulled out stun guns and whipped the gang members, explaining their purpose. Thirty minutes later, the Blood Finger gang leader was summoned before them.

This is a man with a cheap prosthetic eye in his right eye, wearing clothes made from the skin of a mutated rat, but one of his arms has been replaced with a prosthetic limb.

32 only glanced at it and determined that the thing was most likely handmade by someone, and it was extremely crudely made.

“We’re going to the bottom nest, no tricks, Gross.” The Department of Justice agent naturally recognized the gang leader, briefly explained their purpose, and then tossed him a credit point voucher.

It was a currency issued by the Nest City itself, and it circulated fairly well in the capital of the Mariupol Sector, where its purchasing power remained strong.

For gangs like the Xiachao Gang, this stuff is absolute hard currency.

"Rest assured, esteemed lords, the Bloodfinger Gang controls three smuggling routes to the Underground Nest. We can ensure your safe arrival at the Underground Nest!" The gang leader, Gross, bowed obsequiously, displaying an extremely fawning demeanor.

(End of this chapter)