Because Chen Xi had accelerated the flow of time, after the four of them returned to the 3K Era and rested for two days, a year had already passed on Rostov II.
Many things had happened over that year, but overall, nothing had changed too drastically.
The battle in Sector A7-012 had evolved into something like a proving ground. General Gregory discovered that dropping combat squads directly into it was no different from sending them to their deaths, so he changed tactics: using fresh flesh to lure the Flayed Ones out, then concentrating heavy firepower on them.
However, once the Sisters of Battle completed their training, the trial quickly became a direct confrontation between the Sisters and the lured-out Flayed Ones, with the Imperial Guard soldiers providing support.
General Gregory also ruthlessly selected the elite among the Guard soldiers who had passed the first trial, forming them into combat squads to accompany the Sisters of Battle into the sewers for clearing operations, preventing the Flayed Ones from multiplying excessively.
Although only five of every ten Imperial Guard squads that went down came back up, after such trials, the soldiers who had once looked like nothing more than green recruits now carried a distinct air of elite toughness and ferocity. They looked like battle-hardened veterans.
Chen Xi did not find this strange. After all, they were Flayed Ones. He and Gutierrez had personally gone down there to fight those things and knew exactly how difficult they were to deal with, with their innate fear aura and dimensional spaces.
Even an Astartes like Gutierrez would experience a momentary daze when facing Flayed Ones. Any mortal capable of enduring the fear aura and fighting the Flayed Ones could already be considered an elite among elites.
If the Departmento Munitorum came recruiting, the Imperial Guard on Rostov II would now qualify to become Astra Militarum—and elite Astra Militarum with a natural advantage against skeletons.
The performance of the first batch of Sisters of Battle to complete their training also satisfied Chen Xi. Though they still had a long way to go before becoming qualified Sisters of Battle, they were at least competent as fighting forces.
Though they were still merely novice Sisters, because they had to face the Flayed Ones, they received their Power Armor and issued equipment ahead of schedule: boltguns, Melta Weapons, and more.
Even with equipment far superior to that of the Planetary Defense Force, the Sisters of Battle had suffered considerable casualties. Losses exceeding ten percent were no small burden for an Order of Sisters that had only just been established.
But overall, both the Sisters of Battle and the Planetary Defense Force had been thoroughly tempered through their battles with the Flayed Ones. They had also come to understand the sort of monsters and horrors they would have to face in this infernal galaxy.
Those who died were naturally given proper burials. Imperial Guard soldiers were interred in the cemetery near the convent, while the Sisters of Battle were laid to rest in crypts beneath the convent—which also served as a wine cellar.
The injured and disabled Sisters were not abandoned. They received mechanical prosthetics. Though they could no longer bear the duties of Sisters of Battle, they could at least tend the vineyards.
One year was enough for the first batch of grapes to ripen and be made into wine. Ovilia's abilities as a Bio-Sage allowed the vines to bear fruit in the very first year after planting. If such technology were brought to the 3K Era, it would be epoch-making.
However, the various fields of knowledge involved were likely beyond the comprehension of scientists from the 3K Era. Unless they could come to this world, receive a full Adeptus Mechanicus education, and become qualified Genetors, they might have a chance of understanding how Ovilia had accomplished it.
This was not mere forced ripening. The grape seedlings had been corrected and adjusted on a genetic level, allowing them to grow rapidly once planted and reach the point of bearing fruit within their first year.
Ovilia had originally planned to alter the taste of the grapes as well, making them sweeter and fresher. But Chen Xi stopped her, asking her to preserve Cabernet Sauvignon's original sweetness and merely increase its flavor compounds.
When Chen Xi and Gutierrez returned to this world, they happened to taste the first batch of newly brewed wine.
"How does it taste?" Chen Xi asked Gutierrez.
Although everyone else in the governor's court had showered the new wine with praise, Chen Xi still wanted to hear Gutierrez's opinion.
After all, compared with the people of the Warhammer world, Gutierrez was better able to judge the quality of this wine.
That was not merely because he had tasted many kinds of red wine in the 3K Era and could distinguish quality better than people of the 40K Era. It was also because he was a Space Marine, and his superhuman senses allowed him to taste the wine's flavors with greater subtlety.
"It is very good. The fruit aroma is rich, with a very classic Cabernet Sauvignon profile. The tannins are firm yet delicate, and the finish is long, layered, and complex. If it can be aged, the flavor will become even more enticing." Gutierrez gave it a rather high evaluation.
"Do you think it can fetch a good price?" What Chen Xi cared more about was whether this wine could bring sufficient income to the planet.
As for taste? Chen Xi's highest praise for red wine was that it went down smoothly and did not get one drunk. Beyond that, his most common comment was that it was not as good as mixing it with Sprite.
"It should. It may not reach the absurd price of Catarina White, but selling it for one or two thousand Throne Gelt per bottle should not be a problem." Gutierrez offered a fairly satisfying estimate. "After all, it is new wine and has no reputation. If you are willing to use the Ecclesiarchy to promote it to some extent, it could probably sell for even more."
"It would be nice if it had some special properties. Looks like Sisters stomping grapes do not provide any special bonus after all!" Chen Xi remarked with slight helplessness.
If wine made by Sisters could add even one or two special effects to it, then selling it for ten thousand Throne Gelt a bottle would not be expensive.
After all, Catarina White, the most expensive wine in the Imperium, cost only ten thousand Throne Gelt per bottle—and that merely satisfied the palate.
"On that point, I think we may need to wait until it has been aged before reaching a conclusion. What we are drinking now is only new wine, lacking the changes brought by aging." Gutierrez did not seem particularly concerned about this.
After all, even in its current state, it could still sell for a high price. Just not quite that high.
"Perhaps. I think..." Chen Xi was about to say something more to Gutierrez when he suddenly noticed that a noble in the corner of the banquet hall seemed to be acting strangely.
The man's entire body had caught fire—literally. Golden flames burst from his mouth and eyes, and in only a moment, they burned his entire body to a charred husk.
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