Torchlight Emperor's Ambition, Illumination Extinguishes Demons!

"It seems they have prepared a welcoming ceremony for us."

Although danger was closing in, Rowan showed no signs of fear, speaking only in a calm, detached tone.

Blue light flickered in Sibyl's eyes as her gaze seemed to pierce through layers of obstacles, her voice ethereal: "There are approximately five hundred attackers, mostly mortal Chaos Cultists, comprised of traitorous Navy Boarding Parties, various modified Heavy Servitors, and a few corrupted Ogryn Abhumans."

"I have confirmed there are no Chaos Space Marines among them; they are essentially fodder units."

She paused, then added.

"Hah, typical of a group of honorless heretics."

Leonardo, gripping his Guardian Spear, snorted with disdain. "These cowardly traitors are capable of nothing more. We shall crush them."

No sooner had he spoken than the sound of dense, rhythmic footsteps grew louder.

Finally, a massive swarm of Chaos Cultists—their limbs mutated and their skin carved with various profane sigils—poured around the corner and into view.

Their minds had been warped by Chaos, leaving them with no coherent thought; they charged forward in a frenzy, eyes glowing red and faces twisted in madness!

However, it was their misfortune that their opponents were not the "feeble Astra Militarum" the Chaos Space Marines claimed them to be, but rather one of the top-tier Kill Teams in the entire galaxy.

"The Emperor's light is a torch, piercing the darkness!"

Lucia shouted a famous line from the Codex Imperialis and led the charge.

She unfurled her wings, her form cutting through the air with a thunderous roar, crashing into the crowd like a golden meteor.

BOOM!

The first cultist she encountered didn't even have time to raise his hands before her chainsword slashed his throat, sending his head flying. Even as a headless corpse, the momentum of the charge carried him forward a few more steps.

Lucia did not hesitate; she swung her relic Storm Shield in a brutal, wide-reaching strike, blasting a massive swathe of the crowd away like a tide, leaving them with shattered bones and broken bodies strewn across the floor.

That was not all; following close behind was Leonardo, only a split second slower than Lucia, arriving at her side.

The four-meter-long Guardian Spear danced in his hands like a swimming dragon.

The peak martial arts of the Emperor's Custodes, which transcended human limits, were displayed to their fullest extent. Stabs, parries, slashes, and thrusts—the complex maneuvers were continuous, reaping the enemies before him like the scythe of death.

As his power blade harvested heads, the bolter mounted on the spear fired in rapid succession. Under Leonardo's precise adjustments, every cultist attempting to raise a weapon was struck in the head by a bolt the moment their hand lifted.

The two moved in tandem, wrapped in an unstoppable aura, sweeping through the enemies like wheat before a scythe; no one could block their path.

Behind them, Sibyl stood still, blue psychic light igniting in her eyes once more as massive bolts of psy-lightning crackled and swirled, whipping up a gale.

She whispered:

"Detonate."

As the word fell, the eyes of the Chaos Cultists in the crowd simultaneously lit up with the same blue light.

They immediately submitted to Sibyl's will, either turning their weapons on their allies without hesitation or simply detonating the melta bombs they carried right in the middle of the throng.

Explosions rippled through the crowd, blinding flashes of light erupting in sequence, instantly consuming the remaining enemies.

Before Rowan could even make a move, all the Chaos Cultists who had attempted to intercept their boarding action had been purged by the trio.

Though he found it strange that the leader of this war band would send such pathetic trash to their deaths, rendering the "Big Boom" he had prepared useless, Rowan did not dwell on it, simply moving forward with the Executioner Auto-Cannon—now cloaked in optical camouflage—alongside the others.

The Chaos Lord, watching this scene through a Warp ritual cast upon one of the cultists, felt his heart sink into a state of resigned despair.

What in the hells are these people?

That Battle Sister with the white wings and the halo, is she a Living Saint of the False Emperor? No, that's just a fancy title; by my reckoning, she must be a Daemon Prince of the False Emperor. Either way, I certainly can't beat her.

As for that golden thing, completely encased in heavy power armor, I can't even identify what it is, but its strength is terrifying. It's hard to gauge exactly how strong, though, since the cultists were too fragile to provide any real data.

Moreover, I have a vague suspicion that there is a psyker in this Kill Team, and their power is completely unknown.

Damn it, with this kind of strength, why aren't you boarding the Blackstone Fortress instead of coming to cause me trouble?

The Chaos Lord's mind raced, searching for any way to break the deadlock. If he wanted to continue his Daemonhood Plan, he had to survive these maniacs first.

"Well? Did you see something?"

Miriael, the Slaaneshi sister, spoke again in her languid voice. "I am actually quite interested in these followers of the False Emperor who are confident enough to board this ship. Do you know who they are?"

She paused, a hint of confusion in her tone. "Why are you looking at me with that expression?"

"That is because, among these dogs of the False Emperor attempting to board my ship, there is someone who has a connection to you."

As if grasping at a final straw, the Chaos Lord spoke with feigned calm.

He had suddenly conceived of a perfect plan that could save him from this predicament.

"Oh? Do tell."

Miriael's voice carried a hint of curiosity.

"Among the boarding party, there is a Battle Sister. Her strength is immense, and the markings on her armor indicate she belongs to the Order of the Martyred Saint."

The Chaos Lord said indifferently.

He hadn't told a single lie.

After all, a Living Saint is a Battle Sister, and her strength is undeniably immense!

"Good, this has truly piqued my interest!"

Miriael became excited at once.

Having been a member of the Order of the Martyred Saint before her fall, her favorite pastime now was hunting down her former Sisters, using every means at her disposal to try and drag them into the depths of pleasure alongside her.

Unfortunately, so many years had passed, and even now, Miriael had yet to see her wish fulfilled; it had almost become an obsession of hers!

["Plan successful!"]

The Chaos Lord felt a secret joy in his heart.

When the time came, he would use this creature as a meat shield to fight the intruder, while he himself could observe the situation to decide whether or not he needed to slip away.

In this way, his safety would be greatly guaranteed—it could be called foolproof!