Discovering Ferrus Manus Early

The main planet of the Wheel of Fire, in the Southern Continent.

Hannibal and his Honor Guard have just captured an Ork Fortress.

The chosen prey was neatly sliced off with Bear-Hunting Knife, while the legion's cooks busied themselves with intense activity.

With an elegant smile on his face, Hannibal listened to Suarez's briefing and spoke with great interest.

"Nimrod has defeated Leman Russ once again."

"Father and Horus were right; Malcador misjudged."

After a moment's thought, he looked around, a hint of lingering affection flashing in his eyes.

Hannibal gave the order.

"Order the legion to begin storing food, select high-quality ingredients, and send them to the legion's warships for refrigeration."

On the western side of the Northern Continent, after listening to Jorin's briefing, Leman Russ fell silent.

For several seconds, the air seemed to freeze as if trapped in Fenris's icy world, and the surrounding Space Wolves remained silent.

Freki and Geri sensed the heavy atmosphere; their eyes widened as they looked at the wolf brothers.

The Wolf King suddenly laughed and spoke to the surrounding Space Wolves.

"The men of Fenris will not be defeated by defeat."

"If you lose, you lose; you'll win it back next time."

The Space Wolves burst into laughter, instantly dispelling the oppressive atmosphere.

Jorin gripped the handle of his Power Axe, the image of Sanchez's annoying face flashing through his mind.

Freki and Geri blinked their big eyes, their heads buried in their fur.

Leman Russ's voice echoed throughout the Fortress as he shouted.

"Set off immediately and continue the cleansing of the Ork."

At the same time, Nimrod ordered the Second Legion, which had suffered heavy losses, to withdraw from the battlefield, while the other Chapter continued to purge the Ork.

Upon returning to the Shadow of the Throne, Nimrod first pulled out eleven teeth from the Ork warlord, thinking to himself.

The teeth of Ork warlords are more effective as potion ingredients than ordinary Evil Sunz Boyz.

The auxiliary materials are all gathered; only the main materials are missing: one Osiris Mind-Seed and one Brain-Eaters.

The materials should be complete by the time the "First Rangdan War" is completed.

Nimrod returned the teeth and the Waaagh! Banner to the "Nation of Disorder," and then summoned Primarch's Attendants, Arsena Dunn.

"Command the Astropathic Message Choir Master to send Astropathic Message messages to the Emperor, the Sigillite, and Horus, informing them that I have slain the orc Ork who occupied the Wheel of Fire."

The Primarch's Attendants did not act immediately; he spoke first.

"My lord, there is an important Astropathic Message from the Fifteenth Legion that I believe you should be aware of."

Nimrod looked at the Primarch's Attendants: "What?"

"My lord, after the battle with the Joegall, the Fifteenth Legion, as ordered by you, departed from the Persephone system to explore the southwest direction of the Galaxy map."

"They sailed to a star system in Old Terra called Sthenelus, where they made a significant discovery."

Sthenelus was one of the sons of Perseus and Andromeda in Greece mythology.

Upon hearing the name, Nimrod felt a sense of familiarity. His thoughts raced as he tried to recall.

[Yes, Sthenelus will be renamed Medusa, Medusa IV will be the Homeworld of the 10th Legion, "Iron Hands".]

Ferrus Manus has been discovered.

But in my memory, he didn't return to the Imperium until 824, two years later.

This is because I dispatched the "Thousand Sons" to explore the southwest direction, where they discovered the Medusa System ahead of schedule.

As Nimrod pondered, the Primarch's Attendants continued to report.

"Upon arriving in the Sthenelus system, the Fifteenth Legion found it to be cold and lifeless, like a tomb."

"But the galaxy is full of wreckage and abandoned ships, silicate dust clouds, and fragmented asteroids."

"The Deduction Cadets" guessed, feeling a slight melting sensation within him.

"In this situation, the Astartes of the Fifteenth Legion should consider this the ancient battlefield of the Void of the Old Night."

"Based on my understanding of them, I think they were driven by curiosity about knowledge, trying to find Data Slate and other materials."

Nimrod slightly; this was in line with his understanding of the Thousand Sons and Azek Ahriman. The Primarch's Attendants continued.

"After the Fifteenth Legion's warships approached the planet Sthenelus IV, they discovered a massive planetary structure built in orbit, constructed in the void after the 'Dark Mechanicum Era' had frantically plundered the resources and wealth of the surface."

"The massive ring-shaped structure was severely damaged, with many parts lying on the ground."

"The Fifteenth Legion encountered a series of challenges, including sudden ion storms, randomly malfunctioning Space Mines, and a large number of ancient but still deadly automated weapon systems."

The "Deduction Cadets" then used logical reasoning to analyze the briefing.

"I suspect that, despite the significant losses, the Fifteenth Legion's fleet, lured by the knowledge hidden aboard the Sthenelus IV, continues to approach."

The Primarch's Attendants operated the Data Slate and brought up a briefing from the Fifteenth Legion.

"After the Fifteenth Legion's fleet reached near-Earth orbit, the Auger Matrix, passing through its dense atmosphere and filtering out the intense light reflected from the lower atmosphere, discovered a nearly lifeless environment accompanied by dangerous earthquakes and unstable geological structures."

"The Explorator Fleets's scan revealed abandoned mining tunnels deep beneath the ice and tundra, reaching down to the Earth's core. The frigid surface was torn apart by massive scars and impact craters."

"The Fifteenth Legion then received a signal, a ghostly signal in the communications channel, composed of Gothic- like language and distorted technological ciphers."

"Its source is dispersed, like a heartbeat, the thermal energy signals from a supermassive thermal reactor of petrified material."

The "Deduction Cadets" once again used logical reasoning to fill in the missing information.

"The Astartes of the Fifteenth Legion, naturally, would not give up exploring the ruins of the 'Dark Mechanicum Era,' and they sent expeditions to the surface."

The Primarch continued, "I'm retrieving a new report."

"The Fifteenth Legion was astonished to discover on the surface that human survivors had tenaciously survived the Catastrophe, forming different clans."

"The Astartes, using their Psionic Energy, learned from several clans, including the Avini, that the locals called their world Medusa."

"They also learned that a mythical demigod had come to the various clans, imparting knowledge and helping them to grow and prosper."

"The demigods did not rule them, but guided them to maintain clan competition and led them to excavate ruins and develop technology."

"The demigod also defeated a silver dragon named Asimos."

Upon hearing this, Nimrod was certain that this demigod Medusa IV was none other than Ferrus Manus.

The Iron Hands originated from the story of Ferrus Manus killing a silver dragon by plunging it into magma. The molten silver metal fused with his damaged arm, giving him a pair of powerful Iron Hands.

Originally, the return ceremony of Ferrus Manus and the triumphant ceremony of Leman Russ's "Wheel of Fire" were held together.

Even with my arrival, it should still be held together, but with Hannibal and me participating in the "Wheel of Fire."

As he pondered, the Primarch's Attendants continued.

"After visiting the Medusa, Azek Ahriman believed that this giant Ferrus Manus was another Primarch."

"They immediately presented this message to you; the above content is a message from Astropathic Message Choir Master, who has strived to recreate it."

"The missing part is my reasoning based on the information."

Nimrod and praised him.

"Brilliant reasoning."

Upon hearing the Primarch's praise, Arsena felt something shatter within him; he realized he was not far from becoming a true "Deduction Cadets."

"I think the Emperor will be pleased to hear this news. Order the Astropathic Message to send him the news of Medusa IV's discovery of a new Primarch and my slaying of the Ork warlord."

The Primarch's Attendants immediately obeyed.

"Yes, sir."

The Eleventh Legion continued to purge the remaining Orks from the Wheel of Fire Prime.

Ten sidereal days later, Nimrod received a report from the Primarch's Attendants.

"My lord, the Emperor is satisfied with your achievements."

He summons you to the Medusa System to accompany him in retrieving the Primarch.