"Shifting the Concept"

The landing craft landed Numinus City, and the Honor Guard disembarked from the other landing craft and assembled behind it.

Polti, who had been promoted to adjutant, was waiting there with three squads. He walked up to Nimrod.

"Father."

Nimrod glanced at Polti's team and found that there were only twenty-seven people. He thought to himself.

[With the loss of three Shadow of Order, the Gorgon Serpent can still inflict damage on Astartes.]

He nodded slightly and gave the order.

"Set off!"

Led by Polti, the group then headed towards the cave.

As soon as I stepped into the dark cave, a damp, foul odor hit me, making me want to vomit.

"The cave connects to the edge of Numinus, and the city's sewage system is linked to this place," Polti said.

"The stench comes from those serpent monsters."

"This also points us to our goal," Nimrod said, his nose twitching slightly as he inhaled the stench.

Astartes, through Neuroglottis, can track the unique odors of certain organisms.

The Shadow of Order inhales the humid air; their taste-detecting nerves are comparable only to those of Space Wolves.

The fishy, foul smell was identified and became their guiding beacon.

Following the stench, the group navigated through the spiderweb-like caves.

"Father, the petrification ability of the Gorgon Serpent poses a certain threat to the Shadow of Order," Polti reported to Nimrod en route.

"Once you make eye contact with it, it's as if some kind of force is applied to your body, slowing your movements; even the helmet Eyepiece can't block out this effect."

"We must resist the influence of the Gorgon Serpent with unwavering will; most of the time, the Shadow of Order is not as fragile as that of ordinary people."

"However, a small number of these mutated snake monsters have three pairs of eyes on their heads, and if their gaze meets yours, their brains become sluggish..."

After a moment's thought, Polti found the appropriate expression in his vocabulary.

"If the petrification ability of ordinary Gorgon Serpent is like Shadow of Order in a sand pit, we can break free with a little effort."

"When he stared at the even larger Gorgon Serpent with three pairs of eyes, it was as if he were trapped in a sea of sand."

"Those with weak wills will be swallowed by the sea of sand. One Warrior was petrified and turned into a statue because of this."

A fleeting sadness crossed Polti's eyes as he continued.

"Even the Shadow of Order, with its unwavering will, can resist. Two members of my party have even met the gaze of the Six-Eyed Serpent."

"Neither of them was petrified, either through their own will or by timely entering the first Mindset of the Thelema you created."

"It is worth noting that, in addition to petrification, the Gorgon Serpent' claws can tear through Power Armor, and their claws and fangs contain potent venom, which can also poison the Shadow of Order, causing it to temporarily become Paralysis."

Nimrod nodded. He sensed that the several basilisks were only about two kilometers apart in a straight line.

He gave Sanchez the order, "The five companies of the 7th Legion awaiting orders are temporarily given more time to hone their willpower and cultivate the Thelema Mindset."

He instructed the Honor Guard members, "Enter the Thelema Mindset."

While reviewing the Honor Guard members, Nimrod would answer their questions about various techniques.

The Thelema Mindset was developed by the Primarch specifically for the Shadow of Order. The first level of the Mindset, "True Will," requires discerning one's true nature. The threshold is not high; members of the Honor Guard can master it after a hundred days of training.

This batch of Honor Guard members has all grasped the "True Will".

The members of the Honor Guard, while running, spent varying amounts of time entering the first level of Mindset state.

Nimrod cast his gaze into the depths of the dark cave, where he saw a dozen or so humanoid creatures standing upright, most of them about two meters tall.

Among them, there was only one Gorgon Serpent with three pairs of bloody yellow eyes, about two and a half meters tall.

The Gorgon Serpent has no legs; instead, it has a long, serpentine tail that is longer than its body.

Their arms, which grow on their chests, are shorter than their bodies, and their sharp claws are covered in scales.

Nimrod noticed that their eyes did indeed shine with a Spirituality light.

[As expected, it is a potion ingredient. Judging from its luster, it is either a main ingredient of Sequence 6 or an auxiliary ingredient of Sequence 5. ]

After being promoted to "Baron of Corruption", I unlocked half of the potion recipes, which did not include the Gorgon Serpent's Eye.

Petrification... is most likely the primary material for the "Visionary" Pathway Sequence 6 "Hypnotist," or a secondary material for the "Fool" Pathway Sequence 5 "Marionettist."

As Nimrod pondered, the Gorgon Serpent sensed his gaze and looked over.

The Primarch did not avoid eye contact, meeting dozens of pairs of bloody yellow eyes.

The moment their eyes met, the Primarch sensed that his thoughts went blank for a moment.

His right leg, as if being pulled by something, slowed down a little.

After experiencing the petrification ability of the Gorgon Serpent, Nimrod instantly ascended to the first level of the Thelema Mindset, simultaneously donning the "Wild Howl" mask and letting out a terrifying howl.

After being promoted to "Baron of Corruption", the power of "Wild Howl" increased by about one-fifth, and it also became more compatible with the "Wild Howl" mask that Nimrod learned from the Aeldari's "Path of the Howling Banshee".

The Beyonder Ability amplifies the effect of the Psionic Energy scream and allows it to focus on the direction of the enemy.

A dozen or so Gorgon Serpent met the eyes of the black-armored giant.

To their astonishment, the black-armored giant did not stop. Before they could even guess why, a terrifying scream suddenly assaulted their minds and hearts.

The Gorgon Serpent hunched over, clutching their heads with their claws, emitting Affliction cries.

Apart from the mutated six-eyed serpent monster, the other Gorgon Serpent, with their eyes bulging out, collapsed amidst a continuous, terrifying howl.

The "Barbarian" drew Spear of Dionysus from behind his back and hurled it.

With a sharp whooshing sound, the Spear of Dionysus pierced through the body of the six-eyed Mutated Gorgon Serpent, pinning him to the ground.

Nimrod stepped forward, exiting his Mindset state, and looked into the eyes of the Gorgon Serpent.

The Spirituality light still shone brightly, but there was no petrification effect whatsoever.

Nimrod walked up to the six-eyed serpent monster, staring at its six pairs of eyes, but still didn't feel petrified.

He gave the order to the Honor Guard members, "Attack their bodies, kill them."

I'm very interested in their eyes.

The Honor Guard immediately dispersed and hunted down the Gorgon Serpent in the cave.

The "Baron of Corruption" drew the Sword of Vaul, thinking:

[The Sword of Vaul is a sword, and the Steel Sword is also a sword, therefore the Sword of Vaul is a Steel Sword.]

The "Baron of Corruption" felt his Spirituality being rapidly depleted, even faster than the Blood-colored Necklace wrapped around his right little finger was replenishing it.

The Sword of Vaul was forged by the Aeldari's God of Forging; using "Concept Substitution" on it consumes a significant amount of Spirituality.

Whether it's considered a boost or Weakening, it's a "Concept Substitution"; the Spirituality consumed will not differ, only the degree of change matters.

Hmm... at least we don't have to take a combat knife from our offspring or use Chainsword without its motor running.

As the "Baron of Corruption" pondered, he swung his arm and sliced off one by one the bloody yellow eyeballs.

Nimrod strode forward, leaving behind the Spear of Dionysus, before finally sending the Gorgon Serpent's eyeballs to the "Nation of Disorder."

Of the five companies in the 7th Legion, those who grasped the Shadow of Order in Thelema Mindset joined the cave clearing operation.

In the sixth Sun month of 846, the Shadow of Order steadily advanced through the Spiderweb Cave to the depths of the underground caverns.

On this day, Nimrod had just returned the Gorgon Serpent eyes collected by the Honor Guard and the 7th Legion to the "Nation of Disorder" when he received a report from Polti.

"Father, I encountered a powerful Mutated Gorgon Serpent. It was five meters tall and had six pairs of eyes."

"One of the Shadow of Order had mastered the first level of Thelema's Mindset, was petrified. His body was covered in multiple layers of scales, and even the Bolter couldn't kill him. He broke through the encirclement and escaped."