I'm a magnetic field madman

Angron arrogantly and mockingly teased Leon about his current appearance... but would Leon, the leader of the Dark Angels and the invincible lion, fall for it?

"When you kneel before me and repent, I will let you know."

Leon said coldly, then gripped his weapon tightly. The next moment, a cloud of mist engulfed him and Angron...

112. The mighty lion has grown old.

The essence of each Primarch is both a reflection of their soul and the posture they possess in the Warp.

Strip away humanity's disguise, and each Primarch has a distinct form in the Warp.

Corax is a giant black raven, Chagatai is a white lightning bolt, Saint Gilles is perhaps a white dove with shimmering wings, and Russ may be a silver-white giant wolf howling at the moon.

However, the Primarchs do not possess such a form; their essence has been corrupted, and other forces in the Chaos have altered their shape.

On one hand, they used the destructive power of the warp to alter the form of their souls; on the other hand, they also lost their original forms.

Their original nature has been obscured by the power of the Chaos Empowerment.

Angron didn't really care about that.

Angron had long since realized the true nature of his Primarch.

He was actually the first Primarch to comprehend and perceive his own nature... until the Butcher's Nail destroyed everything, at which point he no longer cared.

After he regained his original body, the essence he had abandoned gradually returned, but Angron loathed it!

He hated that essence, even though it was the essence of Angron's soul, he still loathed it immensely.

The self of the mind and the essence of the soul are two different things; at least in Anglon's view, it was something he had already discarded, something unnecessary. Not to mention that it was a gift from the Emperor, which made them even more disgusted with it.

So what is the essence of Leon's Primarch?

He is a mist, a forest, an embodiment of reality.

When the mist swallowed Leon and Angron, they passed through the reality of Macurag and arrived in a psychedelic realm.

Angron arrived at a forest. Through the branches overhead and the thick fog, he could not see any sunlight, but there was still enough light for him to see his surroundings.

These trees are tall and strong, with thick trunks that cannot be encircled by the outstretched arms of one, two, or even half a dozen people.

Their rough, cracked bark casts many shadows, as if the trees themselves were disguised.

The ground beneath their branches is contested by tenacious shrubs: thick, twisted, thorny things jostle against each other for space and light, like children neglected under an adult's feet.

The land where they grow is dark and fertile, and when Angron puts his fingers in, it smells of life, death, and other things.

"Caliban? Leon, has your ten years of survival in that forest become the deepest part of your memory, even sublimated into your very essence?"

Angron stood up, smiling disdainfully at the omnipresent mist in the forest... but despite this, he did not underestimate Leon's ability.

Because with just this "inherent barrier," Leon can lead people across the boundaries of the subspace... and this place is equivalent to a chaotic realm that belongs exclusively to Leon.

But there's nothing to be afraid of.

Angron doesn't care about overly complicated settings; he only needs to know one thing clearly—just chop your opponent to pieces!

The mist that permeated countless corners of the forest suddenly and gently condensed... Then, a long sword flashing with lightning suddenly pierced out from the dark gap in the forest!

But Angron didn't turn his head, and simply used the broad back of his black sword to block the sword that was aimed at his heart. When he suddenly swung his hand, he only dispersed an invisible mist.

"Hmph, Leon, when did you start learning from that guy Koz?"

Angron looked at the incredibly thick and concentrated fog and sneered...

"Could it be that the time he beat you up left you with enough psychological trauma?"

In many situations, trash talk has indeed proven to be an effective and cheap tactic, but it was meaningless to Leon, whose mental fortitude was strong enough.

Countless thick white mists were gathering in the Caliban Forest, seemingly forming an illusion that suppressed Angron's existence and breath... and within that mist, Angron seemed to glimpse some shadowy, enormous beasts.

Angron realized that Leon's awakened Primarch nature might be far more troublesome than Corax or Chagatai; he wasn't meant for direct combat, but rather to cause even greater trouble.

Angron hates trouble the most.

He also tends to use the most brutal methods to solve all problems; either he solves the trouble, or the trouble solves him.

"Not coming out? Fine, then I'll tear down your woods. I want to see if you're planning to bury yourself in the ground to hide from me!"

Angron grinned maliciously as he raised his black sword high, and then three hearts began to pound wildly! A violent surge of energy converged on the sword, unleashing a burst of antimatter power that had been condensed three times!

"750,000 horsepower of power - Thunderous Severance X3!!"

It gathered three waves of antimatter force!

A ferocious attack, totaling 4.5 million horses, instantly slammed into the illusory land of Caliban, instantly...

The burst of violent light and the spread of antimatter power instantly dispelled all the fog and the dark forest that had obscured the view!

Amidst the ferocious destructive force, a muffled groan rang out, and Leon, who had been forced out of his position by Angron in the most brutal way, held the Emperor's Shield and looked at Angron with vigilance and horror!

He never imagined that Angron would possess such destructive power...

He even felt that Angron's attack just now would have been enough to turn any planet into stardust in the physical universe!

Chagatai never showed Leon that such a qualitative leap could be achieved with just an increase of 100,000 horses!

They're not even in the same league!

"What are you looking at, old man? Your version is outdated!"

Angron grinned maliciously as he slung the black sword over his shoulder, his gaze falling on the golden light emanating from Leon's shield. He immediately became displeased and said...

"Damn it, that old man is taking sides again. That salted meat really spoils you guys."

Leon remained silent, but he understood that it was the Emperor's Shield that had preserved Leon's integrity under Angron's ferocious attack. However, even the Emperor's power was not inexhaustible.

Moreover, Leon's pride wouldn't allow him to rely on his father like that.

He carried the shield on his back and held his already damaged "Lion King Sword" in one hand. Just as Chagatai Khan had said, a tempting whisper reached his ear.

"To defeat Angron, you must confront yourself; otherwise, your magnetic field power will not truly be at your disposal..."

"Or let your thoughts wander, and let me deliver to you the life and techniques of a strongman."

"Shut up."

Leon coldly rejected the temptation of the unfinished god in the void, and clearly, just as Chagatai had said, he didn't care. He fell silent, waiting to see Leon make a fool of himself.

"Old man, you didn't agree to his request, did you? But how could you possibly be a match for me?"

Angron grinned maliciously, but then he instantly suppressed his magnetic field power—650,000 horsepower—maintaining a state exactly the same as Leon's.

Don't get me wrong, Angron just wants to use the same strength as Leon to beat him to his knees and then humiliate him severely!

kill!!

Leon, wielding the Lion King's Sword with both hands, began his thrust at Angron using the ancient Caliban swordsmanship... but in terms of speed, Angron was undoubtedly faster than he had imagined!

In Angron's hands, the broad black sword transformed into a massive blackboard brick. He swung it fiercely at Leon by the back of the blade...

The violent power and speed forced Leon to use his magnetic field to switch from defense to offense!

But at the moment of impact, the force transmitted through the Lion King's Sword still shattered Leon's armor. Leon was knocked back and staggered, the sudden, sharp pain telling him that it wasn't just his armor that was damaged. If it hadn't completely broken, some of his ribs would certainly have been fractured.

The intense pain washed away the anger that had been raging within him, and he continued to confront the traitor with cold rationality.

Angron's single swing turned the vast forest behind Leon into ashes. The mountains and the earth were blown into the sky by the gale and then shattered into countless tiny fragments by an invisible force!

Regardless of how the Emperor created the Primarchs, he made them resilient and indomitable.

The lion used his willpower to dispel the pain in his body and threw himself back into the battle.

He didn't know any fancy magnetic field techniques; all he had learned was how to imbue his weapons with this violent and destructive power.

The Lion King's Sword shone with a light that almost turned the sword into pure light, and its sharpness was both razor-sharp and deadly.

He stopped dodging attacks and relentlessly thrust towards Angron's vitals. He had realized his own weakness and intended to end the fight in the most lethal and dangerous way.

However, Angron's response was unexpected. He threw the black sword at Leon like a javelin. Faced with the greatsword full of violent destructive power, Leon could only choose between dodging and taking the hit head-on!

He chose the former because it would deprive Angron of his weapon, giving him the upper hand in the battle.

But he didn't expect that Angron would be even more dangerous without the Black Sword!

Like a humanoid beast, Angron's figure suddenly rose several meters in height the moment he threw the black sword!

Along with its expanding size, the volume of online traffic has also exploded!

Although still suppressed to 650,000 horsepower, Angron's speed and power have surged dramatically! A net increase! A massive increase!

The moment Leon dodged, he seized the opportunity. In the instant Leon shifted his body, Angron had already grinned and arrived at the point where Leon's body would land.

Before anyone could react or defend, Angron had already unleashed the decisive blow!

"Tianwu Duanshengdao!!"

With his right hand forming a claw, Angron slammed the blow into Leon's chest!

His armor, along with his skin, muscles, bones, and even his heart, were completely pierced and torn apart... But what was even more terrifying was that the life-stealing power was spreading throughout Leon's body!

Leon was unable to withstand it. His strength and spirit were shattered, or even destroyed, by this terrifying blow that directly tore apart the essence of life!

His eyes widened, and then he felt that familiar feeling of weakness envelop him, dragging his consciousness and fighting spirit into deeper darkness.

He lost.

The once invincible lion, the Primarch of the First Legion, the Lord of the Dark Angels, and the Warmaster of the Second Empire, has been utterly defeated.

It's like a joke: a pathetic joke of someone who arrives with great fanfare to eliminate a traitor, only to be defeated by the opponent in a few moves.

Leon felt the weakness, and even more so, the helplessness, bitterness, and humiliation.

Angron, however, did not mock his elder brother whom he disliked. Uncharacteristically, he refrained from any verbal abuse, simply looking at Leon's aged face and softly saying…

"Leon, what do you think I'm better at than you? Technique, power, strength? No, you know the answer in your heart."

"You're getting old, Leon."

“But it is not your body that is aging, it is your heart that is aging, Leon.”

"What are you afraid of? What are you trying to escape from? The once mighty lion is now nothing more than a little kitten."

Having said that, Angron withdrew his hand, as if he were utterly disappointed in his elder brother, and left so easily. Feeling the weakness that was consuming his body, Leon's consciousness gradually sank.

Finally, darkness descended.

113. Leon's Trial

Leon returned to his dream once again.

"I failed."

The weary lion sat down on the bank, watching the gaunt king fishing in the lake. He sighed bitterly, helplessly…

“Father, I am no match for Angron. He is right, I am old…”

It wasn't physical aging, but the aging of the heart. Upon waking, facing this damned universe, facing his descendants who had been hunted for millennia because of him, facing his missing brothers and a skeleton on a throne, Leon's heart had grown old.

He had lost all his self-confidence, the confidence he had during the Great Expedition.

Leon is actually a very responsible person... but strangely, this tough lion doesn't have the confidence to match his willingness to take responsibility.

He kept criticizing Guilliman, but Leon knew perfectly well that he didn't have Guilliman's strength.

If it were Guilliman, he would still have the confidence to rebuild everything in the face of decay, but Leon does not have that confidence.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have given up his chance to become the War General.

He is willing to take responsibility and make sacrifices for humanity or for other greater purposes.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have allowed his legion to be decimated in the Battle of Randan, ultimately losing his position as the vanguard of the Great Expedition.

This wasn't like Peturabo, putting on a show of bravado. Leon knew how things would turn out, but he wouldn't complain. Because that's the responsibility; someone always has to take it.

Loyalty is the greatest reward—these were his words after Horus became the War Master…

Perhaps there's a part of it in his envy of Horus taking the position of Warmaster, but Lion King, if that's really how you think...

But a lack of self-confidence was another problem for the Lion King.

Even though only one in ten Dark Angels survived the Battle of Randan, the Lion King still had the qualifications and ability to run for War Commander.

But he chose to withdraw voluntarily because he did not have the confidence to defeat Horus, his brother whom he also admired.