I summoned the Fourth Scourge in Warhammer

Chapter 193 Isn't this a bit too extreme?

Company Commander Agman's words echoed in [EGO's] ears, stirring up a storm in his mind.

Varo Digglis… the chief think tank of the Extreme Warband, actually specifically named these players to lead the battle? What's going on behind the scenes?
EGO's thoughts raced. Could it be that Old Man Huang, from his Golden Throne, used his far-reaching psionic power to secretly pave the way for these "calamities" through Digglis's prophecy?
After pondering for a long time and finding that she couldn't come up with any results, [EGO] decisively put these chaotic thoughts aside and refocused her attention on the reality before her. Whatever the reason, the opportunity was already in front of her.

“In that case, I shall respectfully comply.” [EGO] nodded slightly to the two Space Marines, his tone devoid of any humility, but rather brimming with self-assured confidence.

He bluntly issued his first order: "First, I want all mortals except those going to their deaths to evacuate Plantim."

“The evacuation of non-combatants is already underway…” Huron answered instinctively, but then he realized his mistake halfway through his sentence, “Wait, you mean… the Astronaut Corps and the Altramar Auxiliary Forces should also be evacuated?”

“Yes,” [EGO] replied affirmatively. “There are two reasons. First, most of those who are going to their deaths do not want others to compete with us for merit; second, our methods of combat are difficult for other mortals to withstand.”

“Quite honest…” Agman said, neither confirming nor denying the first reason, “What are your methods of warfare?”

[EGO] took out a data panel, brought up the pre-prepared plan, and showed it to the two Astartes.

"First, we will massively spray our specially made corrosive gas into the planet's atmosphere. This gas will immediately produce a violent deflagration reaction upon contact with any organic matter or moisture, and will produce more of the same gas during the reaction."

"Secondly, we will establish a robust defensive perimeter using several large cities on Plantim as the core of our defenses. Inside this perimeter, we will install modified nuclear reactors that will continuously release lethal radiation of up to tens of thousands of roentgens, enough to cover the entire city."

"Finally, we will use strong acid solutions on a large scale. The main purpose of these acids is to quickly dissolve the corpses of our fallen warriors in battle, temporarily suppressing the Tyranids and ensuring that they have difficulty recovering the biomass of our fallen soldiers in the heat of battle."

During EGO's calm explanation, even Argeman and Huron, two battle-hardened Space Marines accustomed to bloodshed and death, had their expressions change several times.

After [EGO] put away the data panel, Huron was the first to break the silence: "Isn't this... a bit too extreme? If this action is really implemented, I'm afraid Plantim won't be able to hope to restore agricultural production for the next hundred years."

"This is the only way to unleash the full potential of our fallen warriors." [EGO] simply said this calmly, then fell silent, waiting for their decision.

Huron looked at Agman. Plantim was one of the five hundred worlds of Ultramar under the jurisdiction of the Ultramarines. Whether to defend it in such a self-destructive manner was ultimately a decision made by the Ultramarines. Agman, the Ultramarines' second company commander, was visibly trembling. He took a deep breath, seemingly trying to suppress the heavy pain in his chest, and said in a barely perceptible tremor, "I...I trust the Curator's instructions. He's made many decisions before that were too advanced for his comrades to understand, but in the end, he always proved to be right."

Indeed, the assessment of think tank director Varo Digglis was correct. After the scorched-earth tactics employed by the suicide bombers, Plantim still had at least a century to recover. However, if it had followed the original historical trajectory and been completely conquered and devoured by the Tyranids, the planet would have remained a lifeless dead star for the next millennium.

Despite his immense heartache, Agman still chose to support the plan for two main reasons. Besides the unquestionable authority of Curator Varo within the Chapter—respected and trusted by almost all the Ultramarines—there was a more practical reason: the loss of an agricultural planet was still within the Ultramarines' acceptable range. Trading a century of planetary decay for the opportunity to halt the Terran advance and preserve Macragge was clearly worthwhile.

Now that Agman had expressed his support, Huron naturally had no further objections. As a pragmatic chapter commander, he quickly put aside his concerns about the planet's future and refocused his attention on strategic and tactical matters.

"Could you explain the principles behind these tactics?" he asked, looking at [EGO].

“Our core objective is to turn the entire Prandim battlefield into a biomass-consuming fire pit,” the other party said. “The Tyranids are a race that evolves at an extremely fast rate. If we primarily use fire, they will quickly evolve fire-resistant shells; if we use radiation, they will find ways to resist it and even turn it into their own. Therefore, no single extreme environment is enough to be lethal; all the lethal factors must be combined.”

He paused, allowing the two Space Marines to process the concept, before continuing, "When the atmosphere is filled with explosive toxic gases, the surface is covered with intense radiation capable of killing everything, and we have our conventional firepower, any Tyranid creature that sets foot on this planet would need to evolve multiple properties simultaneously, such as high-temperature resistance, corrosion resistance, radiation resistance, and kinetic energy resistance, in order to maintain even the most basic combat capability."

“Each additional adaptive evolution means an extra consumption of biomass and energy. When these consumptions are added together, their biomass requirements increase exponentially. As a result, every step they take forward and every attack they launch is a losing proposition.”

【EGO】 silently added in his mind: Moreover, killing Tyrannosaurus Rex, who has all kinds of resistances, will give a lot more merit points. This is truly a monster-farming paradise.

Huron's eyes lit up; he fully understood the logic behind this tactic. Rather than pure defense, it was more like a proactive war of attrition, an attack on the very foundation of the Terran race—biological matter. By creating an extremely complex and multifaceted impasse, it forced the Terran hive's will to invest far more in "evolution" than normal, thereby strategically crippling the entire invasion fleet's biological reserves.

“I understand,” Huron nodded, his tone even carrying a hint of approval. “You’re not just killing them, you’re starving them. Every combat unit that dies here will be an irrecoverable net loss for the Hive Fleet. I’m starting to like you guys.”

Agman listened in silence. He too understood the brilliance of the tactics, but this did little to ease the heaviness in his heart. He could almost see the future of Plantim—a dead planet that had been emitting deadly toxins and radiation for centuries, a barren wasteland.

“Do as you say.” Finally, the Ultramarines’ second company commander made up his mind. He issued the order through his helmet, “Pass on my order to coordinate all auxiliary legions to immediately begin assembling at the starport and prepare for a full evacuation. Transfer the defense of Plantim… entirely to the Deathbringer Legion.”

(End of this chapter)