Chaos Protector

Red Corsairs Flagship.

Nearly ten thousand living souls from the Fierce Angels Chapter's strike cruiser had all been delivered into the flagship.

Red Corsairs mortal soldiers, armed with Laser Rifles, harshly maintained order, gathering the crowd and ensuring they caused no trouble on the hangar deck.

Lu Jin stepped off the last transport as it entered the hangar deck, emerging from the cabin.

His weapons were completely destroyed, and the Legion Relic Sceptre had been taken away by the warband's mortal slaves for maintenance.

The Red Corsairs Apothecary carried the vegetative "Lone Wolf" on his back, leading the way ahead of Lu Jin.

As he passed through the crowd, everyone turned to look at Lu Jin, gradually parting to make a path.

Lu Jin saw his servant Carly push through the crowd and kneel on one knee before him.

The others were kneeling too.

Amid the shouts of the Red Corsairs mortal soldiers, the people knelt on one knee, silently expressing gratitude and reverence.

Lu Jin nodded to them. After leaving the crowd, he followed the Apothecary into a corridor.

His heart was heavy.

The strike cruiser had been close to the Red Corsairs flagship; the journey had taken only two days.

The Fierce Angels Chapter Master had already become ritual material.

But Lu Jin estimated the ritual wouldn't proceed quickly—likely the Chapter Master would only be transformed into a puppet on the final day of the ceremony.

Lu Jin's plan was this: not only to keep everyone safe as he'd promised that Chapter Master, but also to find a way to rescue the Fierce Angels.

If he could learn today who had raided the Fierce Angels and set out to rescue them, he would still have four days left.

Only four days.

If he couldn't depart and succeed within those four days, the Chapter Master would become a puppet.

The rest would all be turned into puppets over the remaining dozen or so solar weeks.

Lu Jin's urgency grew, and he unconsciously quickened his pace.

Finally, the Apothecary led him into a chamber.

"Respond to Abaddon."

"Before he prepares for the Thirteenth Black Crusade, I can supply him with some materiel, but I won't directly intervene to help him in the crusade."

"The reason is simple: I don't think he'll win."

"When the Fourteenth Black Crusade or later comes around, he can send someone to beg me again."

A towering warrior stood with his back to Lu Jin, speaking to another Red Corsairs Astartes beside him.

When the mortal slaves inside the chamber sealed the hatch, the warrior turned around.

Lu Jin saw a hideous face, a body modified by machinery until only scraps of flesh remained.

That was Luft Huron.

The Maelstrom Lord, the Red Corsairs Lord.

Lu Jin also recalled some of his titles: Chaos Protector, Maelstrom's Timely Rain.

Yet in Lu Jin's view, Huron was no Song Jiang—not only would Huron never be amnestied by the Imperium, but his way of doing things also lacked the "benevolence and generosity" Song Jiang had shown before his amnesty.

Still, favors and interests could move this man who hadn't fully fallen into Chaos's embrace.

Huron first stared at his vegetative right-hand man, then strode over quickly.

The Apothecary set the Lone Wolf down, cradling him in his arms.

After checking his breathing, Huron ordered the Apothecary: "Send Aels to the Medicae. I've already made a deal with the Botulism Gang's leader—one ship in exchange for him staying here to treat Aels."

"A Nurgle Clan?" The Apothecary frowned. "Chapter Master, you can't..."

"I promise I won't." Huron pressed a hand on the Apothecary's shoulder, speaking gently. "Now take him to the Medicae."

The Apothecary nodded and left with the "Lone Wolf."

Huron then looked at Lu Jin, chin raised, eyes scanning him from bottom to top before speaking: "For saving Aels, I'll allow the mortals who came with you to have a place. They'll serve aboard my ship and won't become slaves."

Lu Jin asked, "Which warband attacked my Chapter?"

"The Cunning Hounds," Huron replied. "Someone told me the Astartes corpse on your ship had a multi-headed hound emblem on its pauldron—that matches the Cunning Hounds Clan perfectly."

Lu Jin nodded, then said, "I want you to send me to where that warband is. I need to rescue my Chapter Master and battle-brothers."

At this, Huron's gaze showed both appreciation and scrutiny.

An unsettling silence lasted two minutes before Huron spoke again: "Why didn't they take you too, as puppet material?"

"I was unconscious at the time. The others in my Chapter..."

"Unconscious from what?" Huron raised a hand to cut him off.

Lu Jin noticed Huron was staring at his body.

Huron had clearly noticed that Lu Jin lacked certain features common to all Space Marines.

After a moment's thought, Lu Jin replied, "I was undergoing the implantation process at the time, but it didn't fully succeed. The others thought I was dead."

"No wonder you don't have a Black Carapace." Huron smiled.

The Black Carapace was an essential component for a Space Marine, wrapping beneath the skin to interface with Power Armor, transmitting sensory data—its functions were numerous.

Beneath his battered armor fragments, Lu Jin's body bore no subcutaneous connection ports or other structures typical of the Black Carapace, not a single trace of modification.

"I couldn't take the Black Carapace. No way around it," Lu Jin said.

Huron nodded, recalling a poor soul from the Astral Claws' days in his Chapter.

That unlucky bastard had made it to the final step of the surgical procedure but couldn't accept the Black Carapace and ended up dead.

So close to becoming an angel, yet so far—a pity.

Huron then thought of the Apothecary's report: when this surviving Fierce Angel was found, he'd been wounded protecting a Lone Wolf, one arm severed by a Greenskin, only to regenerate later.

Huron figured only the blessings of Chaos could explain that, yet the Fierce Angels resisted Chaos corruption.

"Two hundred years ago, your Chapter Master fought alongside me. I was weak back then, and he saved my life."

"But two centuries have passed, and I've forgotten even his name..."

"What was it?"

Huron sneered.

Lu Jin froze.

He'd never actually asked the other Fierce Angels what their names were.

But ordinary men like him, when discussing Space Marines, would mention the Chapter Master's name.

"Ninos," Lu Jin answered.

"Wrong. That's a fake name." Huron's smile vanished. "That fool thought he was clever, never telling anyone his real name easily—only his battle-brothers and I knew it."

Lu Jin was puzzled but suspected Huron was bluffing, so he tried not to show any unease.

"You're just a rookie who's never seen real combat, and your surgery failed. Not knowing the Chapter Master's real name is normal."

Huron's tone softened, no longer aggressive, but he stopped asking questions and lowered his head in thought.

Whatever he was pondering, his expression gradually turned cold. When he looked up again, his gaze was vicious.

The cabin's atmosphere suddenly grew heavy.

As Huron pressed a button on his desk behind him, the hatch opened, and a squad of Astartes in Terminator Tactical Dreadnought armor entered, surrounding Lu Jin.

"You can't prove you're really a member of the Fierce Angels."

"Someone's been spying on the Red Corsairs lately. Even if you came bearing the Chapter's Sceptre, how do I know the one who sent you didn't just hand it over?"

"There's a lot you can't explain."

Huron walked toward Lu Jin.

Lu Jin clenched his fists, ready to fight.

Huron raised two fingers. "I'll give you two choices. One: go fight to the death in the Arena. Two: resist, and the mortals you brought will be killed."

Hearing this, Lu Jin slowly unclenched his fists.

Seeing this, Huron glanced away, thought for a moment, then suddenly asked, "I can tell you're not afraid at all, but you're a bit naive and kind-hearted, letting people who have nothing to do with you become your weakness. Why do you care about those mortals? Is it just your nature?"

"If it were only because I care about them, I'd have had your men send them somewhere else when I arrived, just settle them down."

Lu Jin said.

"But these people are crew. If all the Space Marines die, as long as there's Gene-seed, the Chapter can be rebuilt. If the ship is lost, a desperate boarding action might still snatch victory. But if the crew who can pilot the ship are gone, it's over."

"Without losing them, I still have many options and possibilities. If I lose them, I'll be trapped on your ship with no way out."

Huron showed no reaction to this answer, but inwardly thought that no matter where Lu Jin came from, at least he wasn't a brute.

"You're a born Fierce Angel," Huron said suddenly. "Also, I suspected you were a Chaos worshipper earlier, but now I think you've got a clear head—not like those red-armored brutes who are only good as cannon fodder."

Hearing this, Lu Jin saw Huron extend a hand toward him.

The surrounding Space Marines stopped preparing to seize Lu Jin, and seeing the Black Heart King offer goodwill, they stepped back against the walls.

Lu Jin hesitated, then shook Huron's hand.

"Ninos was a warrior worthy of respect. He and I were both enemies and friends, and when he fell into trouble, I was the first he thought of."

"The Hound Clan isn't just an enemy of the Fierce Angels—they're my enemy too."

Hearing these two sentences, Lu Jin realized he might actually be able to save the Fierce Angels.

He didn't ask Huron to send troops, only to at least get him to the Hound Clan, by whatever means.

"So you'll help me," Lu Jin said.

"Of course not."

Lu Jin froze.

"The Hound Clan is useful to me... and I've helped Ninos more than once before. Now I'm helping him shelter all the survivors, including you, according to your Chapter's traditions."

"Get into the Arena, or I'll mow down those ten thousand people with the Avenger Gatling Cannon."

Two days passed in a flash.

For those two days, Lu Jin was locked in a warehouse with nearly ten thousand crew members.

Space Marines delivered food at set times, but no one came to inform them of what was coming next.

Lu Jin kept trying to find a way out of the warehouse, so he observed and studied the movement patterns of everyone who entered, as well as any way to crack that extremely heavy gate.

Carly and Onaas spent their days calming the crowd.

Lu Jin wondered why Onaas, a Navigator, had been locked up with them.

Navigators had value—that was why the Star-Claw Veteran nicknamed Lone Wolf had initially demanded that the Navigator and Lu Jin go with him.

"That door can't be opened from the inside," Onaas said to Lu Jin, who was studying the gate.

Lu Jin didn't reply and kept examining it.

He knew the door couldn't be opened too, but he still wanted to do something.

It had been a month and four days since the Fierce Angels were taken.

By the best estimate, their Chapter Master would be turned into a puppet in another two days... He was the fifth; four had already been made into puppets before him.

Two things burned in Lu Jin's heart, filling him with anxiety.

One of them was the matter of the Fierce Angels Chapter Master and the others.

"I used my psychic powers to observe Lone Wolf. He's still receiving treatment. I directly damaged his nerves before, so he won't recover easily," Onaas said.

That was the second thing burning in Lu Jin's heart.

Lone Wolf could wake up at any moment, and when he did, he'd tell Huron the truth. Then everyone would die.

It was a ticking time bomb.

"Huron said the Chapter Master was too clever for his own good. I am too," Lu Jin muttered. "I shouldn't have used..."

Carly walked over. "Then we'll either be blown up by the Red Corsairs or slowly killed by the evolving Xenos."

Lu Jin was silent.

"You protected us. You extended our lives," Carly continued.

Lu Jin said nothing, turned around, and sat down against the wall.

"If someone had started navigating right away, we could have left," Carly said, glancing sideways at Onaas.

Onaas was taken aback. "By the Throne! Do you think a ship can just take off in an instant? Given the state of that Strike Cruiser at the time, it would've been lucky to launch within a solar week!"

Carly sat down helplessly and handed Lu Jin a cup of water.

Lu Jin took it, holding it in his hands, and pondered his current strength.

He sensed that his strength was now at 11. Slightly above the average for a Space Marine.

Just then, the gate suddenly opened.

Heavy footsteps echoed as a warrior, armored into nearly a half-sphere by thick Power Armor, lumbered in, looking around clumsily and slowly.

"Lu Jin, go fight."

"As for you mortals, a hundred of you step out to go with him."

With that, the warrior raised a cannon capable of blasting everyone into chunks, aimed it at the mortals, and turned his head to look at Lu Jin.

Lu Jin stepped forward, and a hundred people voluntarily followed.

They lined up and walked through the passage connecting the Arena and the warehouse.

But before entering that vast, blood-soaked Arena, only two weapons were thrown down in front of Lu Jin.

A Two-handed Chainaxe and a Two-handed Power Hammer.

Both were heavy melee weapons used by Space Marines.

Lu Jin gripped the Power Hammer in one hand, while his other hand and the mechanical arm on his shoulder took hold of the Chainaxe. He weighed them in his grip and figured they were usable.

The gate before him slowly opened.