Emerging Talent

Following behind Lu Jin and the others, Vengar and his troops also advanced like a hot knife through butter.

These men had been "slacking off" under Vengar's orders. Now, with Vengar leading the charge behind Lu Jin, they fought with all their might, quickly breaking through the passage and into the area where the Void Shields were located, entering the narrow network of corridors.

Fighting in confined spaces was where the Fierce Angels truly excelled.

At this moment, Lu Jin realized the name "Fierce Angels" was quite fitting, as the legion's combat style was indeed brutal.

All Fierce Angels favored close-quarters combat, with weapons like chainswords or chain axes being their favorites, followed by various explosive or large-caliber weapons.

Xenos fell into the latter category.

While others were slaughtering their way through nearby chambers and corridors using combat skill and agility, Xenos walked down the center of the corridor, retrieving two weapons he had personally modified from his back.

These weapons looked similar to bolters, but had very large magazines.

Each time they fired, a large bolter round would be ejected from the barrel. This large round would then split after being accelerated by propellant, releasing five micro-bombs from within.

It was essentially a shotgun.

Xenos held a modified bolter in each hand, roaring as he walked. The Botulism gang members were either mowed down in swathes or pinned in corners and chambers.

By the time Lu Jin and the other Fierce Angels caught up, the enemies in the corners and chambers would be completely annihilated.

"No Honor!"

Xenos reloaded his magazines using a self-developed dual-wield reload technique. A mechanical arm on his back assisted him in the reloading process.

What he was shouting was the battle cry of the Fierce Angels Legion.

(Combat itself) has no honor (to speak of) -- Cover of the Legion's Codex.

Combat was merely one path through which the Fierce Angels gained honor, and a form of medical treatment used to vent negative emotions.

Normally, the Fierce Angels appeared quite calm, but on the battlefield, they roared and bellowed like beasts, their fighting demeanor quite terrifying.

After Xenos expended all his ammunition, Lu Jin took over, carving a bloody path forward.

Even though Lu Jin had already earned the respect, and even reverence and adoration, of others before this joint operation, if everything that had happened prior were disregarded, they would still worship him upon seeing his performance now.

Lu Jin raised his heavy weapon and charged headlong into ten times his number of Chaos Space Marines, like a storm sweeping away fallen leaves, like a tiger entering a flock of sheep.

Ordinary Space Marines were so weak compared to him, so weak that being able to dodge a swinging two-handed battle axe or hammer in time was considered a sign of exceptional talent. Fragments of armor and flesh flew through the corridor.

The combat techniques the Apothecary had taught Lu Jin were applied with great skill, but often, he only needed to swing his weapon.

Someone attempted to block with a power hammer, only to be cleaved in half along with their armor and weapon.

There was one enemy clad in the heavy Terminator power armor.

The opponent wielded a scythe.

His speed was hampered by the Terminator armor, but his strength and defense were not significantly enhanced by it—at least, not significantly for Lu Jin.

With a single move, the power hammer swung horizontally, shattering the scythe. A ten-centimeter deep indentation was smashed into the Terminator's chest. Before the enemy's reinforced internal organs could shatter and he fell, his head was cleaved in two by a chain axe.

"No Honor!" Lu Jin raised his two-handed weapons, roaring to the sky.

"No Honor!" The Fierce Angels surged out from behind Lu Jin, fighting alongside the Chapter Master appointed by Ninos.

They also had allies behind them.

However, as they approached the Void Shield device, Vengar's men merely watched from a distance.

It wasn't that Vengar had ordered them to slack off, but they were afraid that if they got too close, these seemingly extremely brutal individuals might cut them down as well.

Cutting through them like vegetables, fighting and killing.

After entering the facility housing the Void Shields, Lu Jin and the Fierce Angels finally stopped, replenishing their ammunition from the logistics personnel sent by Vengar.

"Look at these cowards."

Kao looked at the Space Marines holding ammunition boxes before him.

"Dressed in gaudy colors, like rutting beasts on my homeworld, rolling in various natural pigments to attract more females. Nobles on my homeworld would raise them and protect them from their natural enemies, then pet them after killing those enemies."

Kao said this, then raised his hand and patted the shoulder of the Space Marine in front of him.

The latter held the ammunition box and remained silent.

"Brother Chapter Master," Xenos said after replenishing his ammunition, looking at Lu Jin, "If this ship is to be sold to Huron, then they absolutely don't deserve half of it. My suggestion is that we take all the gunships and tanks with us. I can pilot all ground and air vehicles, but you'll have to give me some time, as I can't be everywhere at once."

Lu Jin, who had no long-range weapons and was sitting in a corner waiting, looked up alertly upon hearing this suggestion.

Considering it and judging it to be a combat-related suggestion, he nodded in agreement.

"There's no need to trouble this Fierce Angel, as my men have already loaded the captured vehicles onto your ship."

Vengar arrived late.

The renegade walked over, a Botulism gang mortal soldier's neck held in his hand, bloodstains on his two fangs.

Lu Jin knew at a glance that Vengar had sated his bloodthirst on the mortal.

"You are braver than anyone I have ever seen, including those who like to shout 'Blood for the Blood God'."

Vengar threw the mortal's corpse aside, smacking his lips.

"The Black Heart King ordered me to monitor you. I don't know if I can stop you if you really plan to do something else."

Hearing that Huron had sent the Chapter to deal with others while also ordering Vengar to monitor them, Xenos felt rage surge within him and glared menacingly at Vengar.

Kao returned to Lu Jin's side, crossed his arms, and said coldly, "If you were going to reveal that Huron ordered you to monitor us, then Huron wouldn't have sent you to monitor us."

Vengar smiled, "You know the Black Heart King quite well... but you haven't worked with him, so you're a bit naive."

Lu Jin had already guessed what Vengar was about to say.

It was nothing more than an attempt to recruit them.

Vengar coveted Huron's position and would be Huron's rival in the future.

From the perspective of the Fierce Angels, Vengar was inferior to Huron, and this traitorous dog was utter garbage.

"Shut up."

As Vengar opened his mouth slightly, revealing two fangs, and was about to speak, Lu Jin interrupted him with a single, icy word.

The traitor paused, then realized Lu Jin had guessed his intentions and had already made a choice between him and Huron.

So he smiled and asked, "After you couldn't be a dog for the Imperium, you'll be a dog for Huron?"

"Let's not talk about dogs," Kao said. "Traitor, your brain seems to be only as big as a dog's, and the rest is filled with shit the dog left in your head. Your brain, which seems to have been stirred with dog shit, can only understand who wants to be someone's dog and who is the master, just as Huron was once your master."

"Can you provide what the Fierce Angels need?"

"You think you can kidnap us with a few words to be your pawns and cannon fodder, just like that?"

Kao said, pacing around Vengar, his Chainsword pointed directly at the traitor.

"Because you have many heads?"

"I don't see you having enough heads for us to chop to our heart's content!"

As he spoke, Kao's ferocity erupted, his muscular body trembling slightly, as if an uncontrollable killing intent and fighting spirit flowed through his blood.

This was not anger, but a physiological reaction that could appear at any moment from the Fierce Angels.

Ninos once said that the Fierce Angels' gene-seed did not affect their thoughts... but the truth proved that was his own assumption.

This barrage of reprimands was Kao's compensation for himself. After all, directly attacking Vengar in the current situation was not appropriate, and these words left Vengar with no room to retort.

"Vengar," Lu Jin stood up. "You and your forces are of no help to me, nor will you be in the future, because you are a smart but not too smart, foolish but absolutely not foolish person."

Lu Jin felt that Vengar might be disoriented from the bloodthirst.

From the macroscopic perspective of his life, he was not a particularly smart or strong person.

At first, Vengar could still play subservient, but now he dropped the pretense entirely, angered by the Fierce Angels' refusal to be his pawns.

Perhaps in his eyes, he was a more generous and charismatic leader than Huron, and it was impossible for the seventeen Fierce Angels, including Lu Jin, not to submit to him.

"You..."

"Shh--"

Lu Jin put a finger to his lips, signaling Vengar, who was about to speak, to be quiet.

After Vengar swallowed his words, Lu Jin said softly, "I've been very patient with you, out of consideration for our fighting side-by-side... If you utter another word, I'll smash your head into your chest cavity."

Vengar raised his hands, turned around with a cold expression, and ordered the others to disable the Botulism gang's Void Shields.

The Botulism gang was annihilated.

As decided beforehand, the Fierce Angels could claim half of the spoils, including the mortal crew.

However, because the mortal crew showed clear signs of Chaos corruption, Lu Jin refused.

A total of four warships remained in the Imperium system of Manros.

"The supplies Huron gave us earlier aren't even enough for one long-range Warp voyage."

"My suggestion is that we trade with the local Imperium world," Carly advised Lu Jin on the command deck.

At this moment, Onaas also arrived on the command deck from the Navigator's Sanctum; this suggestion was hers.

"This is an Imperium world. The jewelry and clothing my family gave me when I left can be sold to local nobles," Onaas added.

"But..." Lu Jin worried that Onaas, being a pampered Navigator, might feel uncomfortable after selling her jewelry and clothing.

Onaas saw his concern and smiled, "We're in this together! Chapter Master."

"Thank you," Lu Jin leaned down and whispered, "Once we escape the Maelstrom, I'll find a way to get you better things."

Onaas thought very seriously for a moment and said, "If we can leave... once we return to my family, we can have whatever we want... My family owns an entire star system."

"Is that so?" Carly glanced at Onaas. "We've already been branded as traitors. It'd be good if your family could spare us a couple of meals."

"Ahaha... I didn't think it through, I didn't think it through," Onaas smiled awkwardly.

The comms officer stood up and reported, "Vengar is urging us to leave."

"Tell them to either wait or leave first," Lu Jin said.

At this moment, Xenos entered the command deck and saluted Lu Jin, "Brother, I've checked all the armed vehicles, and Vengar didn't tamper with them. They're safe to use."

"You're not allowed to get involved when we do business with the locals later," Lu Jin said with a smile.

Recalling how he was swindled down to his last pair of pants, Xenos grumbled in agreement, "Yes... yes."