Warhammer Cultivation: Cultivating the Tao Te Ching in the 40K Universe

That was no ordinary weapon. The blade was perfectly fused from an unknown black wood and white crystal, and the Tai Chi diagram inlaid with silver wire on it burst forth with a soft, pure, yet full of the charm of "Tao" the moment Hector infused it with his true essence!

Against the backdrop of that blood-red, chaotic, and raging sea of ​​stars, this pale white light was so faint, yet so "discordant"!

It is the only glimmer of civilized light belonging to order in this hell constructed by laws!

Hector neither parried nor dodged. He simply held the Yin-Yang Sword in his hand and gently drew a circle in front of him.

A seemingly slow, yet perfectly formed circle that forcibly "smoothed out" the surrounding violent and distorted laws, incorporating them into its own trajectory. It was not a defense, but a "declaration" from a higher dimension—within this circle, I am order.

Martial arts, flowing like water!

Those twelve deadly attacks, capable of dissecting the soul and tearing reality apart, were like twelve uncontrollable planets caught in a giant nebula vortex the moment they touched this "circle"!

That psionic weapon, which resembled a scalpel, had a gray force field that could directly affect the soul. However, when it touched the harmonious and balanced Daoist aura of the Yin-Yang Sword, it was as if it had encountered its natural enemy. Its inherent law structure, which was full of "negation," was instantly straightened out and turned into meaningless, pure energy dissipation!

The energy whip, as long as a viper's tongue, with its arc of electricity powerful enough to tear through terracotta armor, was unexpectedly redirected when Hector gently tugged it with the back of his sword, and lashed out at the back of another Starbuck Warrior!

Hector's figure, amidst the attack of twelve, was like a small boat in a stormy sea. He didn't retreat a step, nor did he take a direct hit. He simply spun around, manipulated, and used the force of the attack against himself within that storm of blades constructed of death and slaughter!

Beneath his feet seemed to be an invisible Tai Chi diagram constructed from Yin and Yang energies. Each step he took landed precisely on the weakest point between the deadly attacks, a point called "vitality."

The Yin-Yang Sword in his hand has become an extension of his "Tao".

Sometimes it is as continuous and inexhaustible as "flowing water," finding the most ingenious gaps in the storm-like attacks, using the "silk-entwining force" to deflect the opponent's power, which is enough to split mountains and shatter rocks, into empty space; at other times it is as fierce and unparalleled as "mountain collapse," bursting out the most concentrated and deadly destructive force in the fleeting flaws!

He spotted an opening and, like a fully drawn bow, suddenly pressed himself against a Starbucks Warrior! He didn't use the blade, but rather the end of the hilt—a white crystal polished to a smooth, jade-like finish—and slammed it hard against the most vulnerable bio-interface connecting the mechanical prosthetic limb to the flesh and blood torso!

Inch-force attack - Mountain collapse!

A surge of highly concentrated true energy, brimming with explosive power, instantly penetrated the body!

The seemingly indestructible mechanical body of the Starbound Warrior suddenly stiffened! His bio-interface, crafted with dark technology and filled with ancient runes, cracked instantly, like ceramic struck head-on by a battering ram! Countless blue arcs of electricity erupted wildly from his body! His towering frame flew backward uncontrollably, crashing heavily into another companion!

One strike! Just one strike!

A killing fortress built of steel and forbidden genes was completely destroyed from within!

However, Hector's face showed no joy. A chilling sense of emptiness was quietly spreading from the depths of his dantian; each swing of his sword felt like paying off an insurmountable debt with his very essence.

He could clearly feel that the vast ocean of true essence within his dantian was being rapidly depleted at a heart-pounding speed! It was not a simple loss of energy, but a more terrifying "withering".

He felt as if his dantian was turning into a salt lake being scorched by the blazing sun. The lake water was evaporating rapidly, revealing a cracked, pale bottom. The nourishing power that came from life itself was leaving him.

In this "Darkness Zone", every circulation of true energy and every display of martial arts skills felt like burning away his finite life that he had already stored up!

Chapter 120 An Unexpectedly Tempting Attraction

The laws here, like the most vicious curse, not only severed his connection with external energy but also actively "denied" the life force within him. The air seemed to thicken, each breath carrying a gritty texture, each swing of the sword feeling like pushing open an invisible wall.

His enemies, however, seemed endless. They felt no pain, no fear, and no fatigue. They were perfect killing machines, the purest embodiment of "death" born from dark technology and forbidden genes.

They understand neither art nor harmony; every attack they launch is driven by the coldest, most ruthless combat logic—precise, efficient, and without a single superfluous movement. Each attack that Hector deflects with his "flowing water" technique is re-aligned within a fraction of a second by their internal logic, striking again from an even more cunning and deadly angle.

Hector's sword net, though perfect, was like a fishing net being tightened ever more. His range of movement was shrinking; the Starbuck Warriors, like the most patient fishermen, were ruthlessly squeezing his living space step by step, forcing him into more head-on clashes that consumed even more of his true energy. And he was the only fish caught in that net.

"Interesting, what an interesting struggle."

In the void beyond the platform, Chief Orionus's voice, filled with mockery and greed, rang out once more. His enormous, twisted figure resembled a tyrannical monarch watching a gladiator's final performance before his death, while the representatives of the old Terran nobles beside him exclaimed in admiration, as if watching a novel drama.

"His physical body has actually been strengthened to this extent by that 'Dao'!" A noble representative exclaimed in disbelief. "Chief Orionus, our analysis has been flawed!"

Orionus's third eye gleamed with even deeper greed: "Deviance? No, this merely makes the 'relic' even more perfect. His brain is far more valuable than we imagined!"

What they had envisioned as a devastating, surgically precise encirclement had turned into a brutal and arduous struggle filled with violent aesthetics!

"It seems that his so-called 'Tao' has a far greater effect on strengthening flesh and blood than any of our models anticipated." Orionus's eyes gleamed with an even more greedy light. "How tempting!"

Orionus waved his hand, and a figure behind him turned and left, seemingly preparing to activate some "backup plans".

As the oldest noble family in Terra, he has learned countless political wisdoms passed down through his family traditions. He knows that when facing even a 1% unknown enemy, the best preparation is to be 200% prepared.

The battle continues.

Hector's figure was already moving at its fastest speed. His Yin-Yang Sword left behind afterimages in the air, as freehand as ink paintings, full of the charm of "Tao".

But each breath he took was heavier than the last. He could feel that nearly half of his true energy had been depleted. The ocean that had once been as vast as the sea had now become a shrinking lake.

He must fight quickly!

With a thought racing through his mind, he stopped passively defending. His sword stance suddenly changed!

The once smooth, flowing sword net instantly contracted! In its place came a straight, resolute advance, like a comet striking the moon, filled with a sense of desperation and carnage!

He abandoned all defenses in all directions, concentrating all his remaining true energy on the sword's edge! He wanted to use the most powerful and dazzling strike to tear a sliver of life for himself amidst this net of death!

His target was the one among the twelve Starbone Warriors who had the weakest aura and was also the closest to him!

Seeing his suicidal act, a glint of mockery flashed in the electronic eyes of one of the Starbound Warriors. His psionic scalpel, carrying a silent killing intent, like a venomous snake that had been waiting patiently, precisely pierced Hector's right rib, completely exposed and defenseless from his all-out charge!

However, just as that cold, negative gray force field was about to hit him, a smile appeared on Hector's lips.

The light of the Yin-Yang Sword in his hand, which was originally as bright as moonlight and contained all the true essence, dimmed instantly!

Instead, the other side of the sword, the "yin" semicircle made of deep, dark wood, like a long night, suddenly lit up!

A gravitational force, like a miniature black hole, filled with the meaning of "devouring" and "transformation," instantly erupted from the sword!

The unique martial art of the Yin-Yang Sword – Yin-Yang Division!

This is not a simple technique, but an application of the "Tao"! The yang side of the sword represents "life," which is outward; the yin side represents "death," which is inward. At this moment, the yin side is activated, not simply by gravity, but by creating a miniature "law vacuum," forcibly separating the "cause" and "effect" of the opponent's attack!

The Star Warrior felt his sure-fire thrust being uncontrollably drawn towards Hector's sword by an irresistible and strange force!

At the same time, Hector's left hand had already reached out like a ghost to another Starbound Warrior attacking from the flank! His five fingers, like lotus blossoms in bloom, gently touched and guided the energy whip wielded by the warrior!

The energy whip, powerful enough to tear apart terracotta armor, seemed to come alive, drawing a beautiful yet deadly arc in the air before precisely wrapping around the first Starbone Warrior's arm, which was gripping a scalpel and unable to retract due to excessive force!

In the blink of an eye, the two powerful Starbound Warriors, due to Hector's brilliant and ingenious plan, collided violently like two insects caught in a spider web!

Hector, on the other hand, had already used the force of the recoil to float backward several meters like a falling leaf, once again leaving the center of that deadly net.

His face had become even paler, but his eyes shone with an astonishing brightness.

He traded two enemies for minimal losses.

But he also knew that this style of play, which relied on meticulous calculations and instantaneous bursts of speed, could not be sustained.

His true energy cannot last long.

He must find a real way to break the deadlock.

Chapter 121 The Brink of Death

The blood-red stars, like countless imprisoned, venomous eyes, silently gazed down at the isolated, island-like circular platform made of transparent crystal above the distorted sky constructed of laws.

The battle has entered its most brutal and demanding phase, one that puts one's Dao heart to the test.

Hector Kane's figure, like a ghost shrouded in ink, flickering in the gale, moved among the remaining ten killing machines constructed of steel and forbidden genes.

The Yin-Yang Sword in his hand was no longer an ordinary weapon, but an extension of his "Dao" and a manifestation of his will.

Each stroke leaves behind a harmonious yet deadly moon-white afterimage in the air, like the most skilled calligrapher using the sharpest brush to write a silent poem about "no-birth" on this canvas filled with death and slaughter.

His sword net, seemingly gentle, is indestructible, full of the true meaning of "harmony" in Eastern wisdom.

Sometimes it is as continuous and inexhaustible as "flowing water," finding the most ingenious gaps in the storm-like attacks, using the "silk-reeling force" to deflect the opponent's power, which is enough to split mountains and shatter rocks, into empty space; at other times it is as fierce and unparalleled as "mountain collapse," bursting out the most concentrated and deadly destructive force in the fleeting flaws!

The battle has fallen into a strange, intense stalemate.

Hector's movements became increasingly elusive, like a candle flickering in the wind, seemingly about to go out at any moment, yet always managing to defuse deadly threats at the most critical juncture with minimal cost.

He brought the "flowing water" momentum to its extreme, his whole being seemingly transforming into an invisible, rotating nebula, incorporating all incoming attacks into his own rhythm, causing them to consume and restrain each other.

However, the cost is enormous.

The vast ocean of true essence within his dantian had already reached its bottom, visible to the naked eye.

Each trigger, each resolution, felt like it was squeezing the most primal energy from his soul. He could feel his thinking slowing down, and for the first time, his battle simulations, which were as precise as a logical engine, experienced a slight "stutter."

"Behold, 'Walking'!" Outside the platform, Orionus's voice, filled with greed and mockery, echoed throughout the Star Chart Hall like a divine judgment. "Your 'path' is being erased! Your flesh and blood are betraying you! This is the end of mortal life! Soon, you will become an eternal collectible of our family!"

"Activate the backup plan!" Orionus's voice, filled with greed and mockery, rang out again like a divine judgment. "Send a second batch of 'Punishers'! Their 'Law Shock Hammers' can disrupt local space, specifically countering his slippery movements! I don't care what methods you use, I want his body to completely collapse, but make sure his head remains intact!"

As soon as he finished speaking, six figures, taller and more imposing than the Starbone Warriors, slowly emerged from the shadow of that blood-red sea of ​​stars!

They are the "punishers"!

More than 80 percent of their bodies have been replaced by cold, mechanical prosthetics adorned with runes and gears. Their faces no longer bear any human features, only a huge, single-eyed monitor flashing a menacing red light.

In their hands, they wielded massive, menacingly large, two-handed vibrating warhammers! Each hammerhead seemed to contain a compressed black hole. These were no ordinary powered weapons; every swing of the hammerhead created visible, chaotic ripples in the surrounding space, like waves on water!

Law-Shaking Hammer!

A terrifying creation from the dark age of technology, capable of directly disrupting local spatial stability and specifically designed to counter high-speed units and energy shields!

As the six "Punishers" joined the battlefield with heavy steps, like mobile fortresses, the laws of the entire crystal platform began to become... "viscous"!

Hector sensed it instantly!

For the first time, his fluid and graceful movements froze due to the interference of those invisible and chaotic spatial ripples!

Every movement he made became incredibly difficult, requiring several times more true energy than usual to maintain!

A thought exploded in his mind!

It was precisely in that 0.01 second of stagnation caused by the sudden change in the laws that a fatal flaw that had been waiting for a long time was completely exposed!

A Starsoul Warrior, as if he had foreseen all of this, no longer wielded the scalpel used to dissect souls, but instead a spear that had been replaced at some unknown time, its entire body shimmering with gray energy, resembling a javelin!

"Pfft!!!"

It was a dull, teeth-grinding sound, not like metal piercing flesh, but more like reality itself being torn apart!

The spear, shimmering with gray energy, carrying a strange power of law filled with "denial" and "erasure," pierced his left shoulder fiercely!

It's not just simple physical damage!

A cold, alien force, filled with the meaning of "nothingness" and belonging to no known energy system in this universe, instantly invaded through the wound! Hector felt that the left half of his body completely lost all sensation in an instant!

He could clearly "inner vision" and see that several major meridians on his left arm—the Lung Meridian of Hand-Taiyin, the Pericardium Meridian of Hand-Jueyin, and the Heart Meridian of Hand-Shaoyin—were instantly severed and disappeared from his perfect energy network as if they had been "erased" out of thin air under the erosion of that gray power!

The flow of true energy was completely interrupted!

An uncontrollable groan of pain escaped from deep within his throat! The intense agony caused Hector's already fluid movements to falter, revealing a fatal flaw!

A massive, vibrating warhammer, carrying spatial ripples, slammed heavily into his back!

Hector could clearly hear his incredibly resilient spine, forged through countless trials by the Foundation Establishment Realm's true essence, groaning in despair as it groaned under the strain!

He was like a rag doll struck head-on by a battering ram, flying uncontrollably forward, a mouthful of blood tracing a poignant and tragic arc in the air!

Even more deadly was that the suppression of the laws of the "Darkness Realm" was like a shark smelling blood, and it began to frantically and in reverse erode his physical body, which had lost the protection of his true essence, from a macroscopic level!

He could clearly feel that his life was being "erased" from the most basic level!

His skin, which should have been full of life, began to lose its color at a visible rate, becoming like an ancient parchment that had been exposed to a vacuum for centuries, cracked and dry!

His bones, under the unseen pressure of the laws, creaked under the strain, as if they would turn to dust at any moment! Even his breath carried a chilling emptiness, as if his "existence" was dissipating!

Under the determined, greedy, and cruel gazes of the patriarchs of the Navigator families and the old nobles, Hector's consciousness, crushed by the dual agony of his body and soul, was like a candle flickering in the wind, on the verge of collapse.

Chapter 122 Daojie·Easy

The blood was warm, carrying a slightly rusty, sweet taste. It slowly slid down Hector's already cracked lips, dripping onto his black tuxedo, which was already soaked with dust and sweat, leaving a small, dark red flower that was quickly swallowed by the darkness.

A primal pain that transcends the boundaries of body and soul, stemming from the forced erasure of "existence" itself, is like millions of red-hot steel needles, frantically piercing through every inch of his meridians and every cell.

The "spear" piercing his left shoulder not only locked the flow of true energy in half of his body, but also acted like a greedy black hole, continuously eroding his flesh which was being corrupted by the laws. The deep-seated weariness and despair surged into his heart like a tide.

However, just before Hector's consciousness was about to be completely swallowed by the endless darkness, in the deepest part of his collapsing mental sea, he smiled.

That was neither the triumphant laughter of the victor nor the lament of the vanquished.

It is a kind of... life and death, after seeing through all the illusions and appearances of reality, the final and purest serenity belonging to the seeker of the Tao.

"The end of the mundane world..."

His already chapped lips opened and closed silently, as if having a final conversation with an unseen version of himself in another time and space.

"But you don't know..."

"—In this universe, the most 'extraordinary' one is me!"