Never Mind the Tactics, Just Tell Me If They Work

Quan Tiehua didn't continue to flee, even as the enemy began to surround him.

The damage to his jump pack had now put him in a difficult situation. He could only risk breaking through the enemies pursuing him from behind.

Through the Chapter's communications, he learned that the Chapter Master and the remaining Battle-Brothers had found the rallying point.

They had already begun constructing fortifications at the rallying point, to intercept the pursuing enemies while covering the retreating brothers.

But because Quan Tiehua had drawn most of the pursuing enemies here, the pressure on the Chapter Master had significantly lessened.

Furthermore, the Genestealers they were initially defending against were also tying up a large number of Khorne's demons at this moment.

Therefore, for the time being, there likely wouldn't be too many enemies here.

After all, just a glance at the sheer number of Genestealers made Quan Tiehua's scalp tingle.

The few hundred Genestealers he'd encountered on the ship previously had seemed like an endless swarm.

Of course, that was only because they were crammed together in the ship's narrow corridors, making them appear numerous.

But now, how large was a hive city? It was something even the Planetary Governor might not know. Thus, the number of these Genestealers likely exceeded ten thousand.

Perhaps even hundreds of thousands.

They might have even sent a signal to the Tyranid swarm.

The heavy footsteps of the World Eaters grew louder. Quan Tiehua, recalling the path he'd taken, could pinpoint their location.

They hadn't reached the traps yet, but he needed to expose himself now.

The Flesh Hounds were incredibly fast.

If the Flesh Hounds weren't dealt with first, his traps could be revealed.

With a nimble movement, he leaned to the side, exposing only the top half of his head and his weapon's sights. The moment a Flesh Hound's head appeared, a bolter round turned its skull into pulp.

After several more bolter rounds turned the remaining Flesh Hounds into shredded meat, the muzzles of the World Eaters' weapons appeared, aimed at his position.

After firing the last bolter round, ensuring the complete destruction of the Flesh Hounds, Quan Tiehua decisively pulled back, simultaneously throwing a flashbang smoke grenade that completely obscured the corridor.

Immediately after, he dropped to the ground and crawled rapidly out of the bend, heading towards the other side.

During this time, the World Eaters had all advanced to the center of the bent corridor. Terrifying firepower instantly pierced the smoke, whizzing past Quan Tiehua's body.

The first World Eater to show itself, blinded by the flashbang smoke grenade, momentarily paused, shielding its eyes and retreating behind the other World Eaters for cover.

The barrage continued relentlessly, the World Eaters advancing steadily in a neat line, firing like the Iron Warriors.

Once they passed through the smoke, the World Eaters near the walls immediately turned their weapons to scan the side passages for any enemies.

The World Eater who had been blinded earlier had recovered. He roughly shoved aside the World Eaters blocking his path and angrily scanned the empty corridors.

"Find him. Tear him apart."

"The Blood God demands we bring him back whole."

Bang!

Power Armour slammed against the metal wall. The previously blinded World Eater roughly slammed the defiant World Eater against the wall.

"Are you challenging me?"

The cold question was accompanied by the activation of his Chainaxe. Its sharp blade pressed close to the other World Eater's neck.

"Hey." Suddenly, a flippant, provocative voice interrupted the increasingly tense atmosphere.

All the World Eaters looked in unison. They saw the target they were searching for standing in the distance.

Quan Tiehua stood there, holding a Bolter, his helmet removed. His arrogant and defiant expression was clear for all to see.

Then, with all his might, his body even contorting with the effort, he declared, "You bunch of... the most lowly, inferior, cowardly slaves."

This statement was like a meteor hitting the ocean. It stirred up a thousand waves.

In the legion of the World Eaters, their Primarch, Angron, was designed by the four Chaos Gods in his youth and cast adrift into space, ending up as a slave in a gladiatorial arena.

He was fitted with the Butcher's Nails. The Nails constantly stimulated his brain, and only through slaughter could he find peace.

It wasn't until later that he was found by the Emperor and led his own legion, the World Eaters. All the Astartes of the World Eaters legion emulated their great father, fitting themselves with the so-called Butcher's Nails.

The result was that they became extremely aggressive and offensive. Furthermore, Angron established strict rules.

A day on his original planet lasted 31 hours. Therefore, after accepting the legion, he decreed that battles must be won within 31 hours. If victory was achieved only in the 32nd hour, that unit would face severe punishment.

This punishment was to have his sons fight each other to the death. Coupled with Angron's occasional neurological breakdowns caused by the Butcher's Nails, when the pain reached its peak, he would even slaughter his own sons to alleviate it.

Consequently, the number and scale of the entire 12th Legion were quite small. To maintain the legion's numbers, they began capturing slaves they fancied and subjecting them to forced modification and brainwashing. During this process, whether the modification surgery was successful or not, a large number of slaves would die from the Butcher's Nails or the surgical procedures.

Therefore, it could be said that the 12th Legion, the World Eaters, was a complete slave legion.

"Ahhhhhh!" In an instant, these World Eaters' eyes turned crimson, their Chainaxes and Chainswords roaring to life.

Khorne, watching from the warp, felt a surge of excitement. But he forcefully suppressed his emotions.

After all, he wanted the target alive.

As he was about to personally issue an order, he saw a confident smile on Quan Tiehua's face. The Bolter in his hand roared with flame. A single bolter round, precisely fired through a gap between the World Eaters, struck a grenade on a nearby pipe.

Boom!

Violent explosions ripped open the pipes, and a massive amount of high-pressure toxic gas caused the charging World Eaters to stumble.

The shockwave from the explosion even sent some of the nearby World Eaters flying backward.

Just as he got back up, preparing to charge forward with his companions who had also recovered, a series of intense explosions erupted around them. Several Melt Bombs directly melted half of their bodies.

Quan Tiehua walked up to them, looking at the single World Eater who had his lower body melted away but was somehow still alive.

"Just as I thought, your Butcher's Nails are truly for the weak. You bunch of slaves born of inferiority, Astartes who will never understand true courage. You only rely on external means to stimulate that false bravery. Truly the cowardly. A cowardly Legion. And your cowardly Primarch—Angron."

The World Eater, with his lower body blown off, felt the intense pain suppressed by the nerves stimulated by the Butcher's Nails.

Especially after hearing these words, he roared even louder. He wanted to curse them out, but Quan Tiehua gave him no chance. His Chainsword swept out, cleanly severing his head.