Contact with the Sotharan

Fu Qinghai went to great lengths to bring the fat merchant back to the frigate Dagger.

Even an Astartes could not be exposed to the vacuum of space for long, let alone an ordinary human. Fu Qinghai's helmet had been damaged by a Paper Bomb, causing the visor to malfunction, and the area where the Teleport Homer was located had a breached hull with no air or gravity.

Temporarily modifying a spacesuit helmet from the merchant ship to fit his own size before going back to retrieve the Teleport Homer turned out to be the most troublesome and time-consuming part of Fu Qinghai's mission to sweep the pirates.

A thick beam of white light flashed, and Fu Qinghai, holding his helmet in one hand, teleported back to the deck of the Dagger while carrying the gorgeously dressed fat man.

Talal came up to meet them with several crew members. He looked at Fu Qinghai's soot-covered, blood-stained armor and the damaged helmet, then asked:

"How did it go?"

"Done."

Although he looked disheveled, Fu Qinghai's expression was calm, as if he had just performed a trivial task.

"What is the situation with that ship?"

Fu Qinghai handed the fat merchant to the crew members and said:

"Ask him."

Returning to his rest cabin, this was a personal chamber built to Astartes specifications. Next to it, just like Ogedei, there was an armory. Fu Qinghai rarely used this armory because his weapon maintenance and modifications could be completed in Master Kunto's laboratory, which had better instruments and equipment.

Fu Qinghai entered the armory, closed the door, and began to take stock of his gains from this trip.

First, he opened the attribute panel in his mind.

Name: Fu Qinghai (True Name)
Reincarnation ID: 60731920
Race: Astartes (Bio-engineered Human)
Height: 249cm
Weight: 301kg
Ability: Tony Stark Electronic Backup (Completion 17%) Bound to Brain Region
Reincarnation Equipment: None
Assimilation Points: 1944
World Anchor: X1
Reincarnation Life: X2

His Assimilation Points had increased significantly, mainly from killing reincarnators from the hostile faction.

Fu Qinghai looked at himself. He was currently wearing his MK4 Power Armor, equipped with a Power Glaive and a Combi-Bolter, and holding two Superpower Capsules in his hand.

However, the Reincarnation Equipment displayed on the attribute panel was still "None."

It seemed that he would have to spend Assimilation Points to make this equipment truly his own.

Reincarnation World, I want to assimilate this Superpower Capsule... Fu Qinghai thought to himself.

No response.

Main God, Main God, I want to assimilate this Superpower Capsule... Fu Qinghai continued to chant silently.

No response.

System, System, fuck, forget it... Fu Qinghai gave up. The Reincarnation World never responded to the summons of reincarnators; it only appeared when it was supposed to.

Fu Qinghai guessed that only when the plot line concluded could items still under his control be assimilated.

Two Superpower Capsules.

One prepared Paper Bomb.

Three Smoke Grenades.

A scroll, which, when opened, was covered in tadpole-like scribbles that Fu Qinghai could not recognize.

These were all the spoils Fu Qinghai had gathered from looting the corpses.

"Truly poor..." Fu Qinghai complained.

He dared not eat the Superpower Capsules, he didn't know how to use the Paper Bomb, he couldn't read the scroll, and the Smoke Grenades were useless.

There were also some cold weapons like Shuriken and Kunai, but Fu Qinghai hadn't bothered to pick them up at all.

The material strength and manufacturing precision of weapons from the Naruto world simply could not compare to those of the Warhammer 40K universe.

At this moment, on the bridge.

The fat merchant was weeping and wailing to the White Scars warriors.

"What did you say? Qingshan killed five Psykers all by himself?"

Ogedei's surprised, booming voice echoed throughout the entire bridge.

The fat man nodded and said: "I was afraid of being caught in the crossfire, so I hid in the wall cavity. I heard the battle erupting outside, and I heard the Astartes lord interrogating the pirates. By the time I came out, there was nothing left outside but a pile of corpses."

My goodness, he really did it all by himself... Talal couldn't help but click his tongue in secret after hearing this.

Fu Qinghai heard this exclamation from Ogedei just as he arrived on the bridge.

He knew why Ogedei and Talal were so surprised.

Spitting fireballs, mastering lightning... in the Warhammer 40K universe, humans who displayed such abilities were defined as standard Psykers.

But they were not true Psykers; they were ninjas who utilized their own Chakra. Ninjutsu flames were simply more powerful than ordinary fire, whereas the psychic fire created by true Psykers in the Warhammer 40K universe using the Aether could completely ignore physical armor.

It burned the soul of the target directly.

It was equivalent to calculating only magic resistance while ignoring armor entirely.

No matter how many layers of Plasteel and Ceremite plating you stacked on the outside, it ignored them all.

Of course, Psykers were categorized by type and strength. Navigators and Astropaths had almost no combat capability, and those weak Psykers were not necessarily stronger than the ninjas; they might even have their souls devoured by the Warp before their psychic abilities could be developed.

But after all, Psykers were one in a hundred million, and those who gathered in groups to cause trouble were usually quite thorny. If Fu Qinghai had not returned, Ogedei had been planning to send Terminators to perform a boarding action. In Ogedei's estimation, he had only assigned Fu Qinghai an early reconnaissance mission, not an extermination mission.

Because Fu Qinghai was a complete greenhorn with less than two years of service; normally, he wouldn't even have finished his Ascension Surgery.

Seeing Fu Qinghai walk over, Ogedei beckoned to him:

"Qingshan, come here."

Fu Qinghai walked quickly toward Ogedei.

He didn't feel any pride or complacency. If the Kotohira-gumi were placed in the Naruto world, at best they would have the strength of one Chunin and a few Genin. It had taken him immense effort to pull off an S-rank Ninjutsu like the Lightning Blade, which was merely grassroots-level power and incomparable to the top-tier combatants of the Naruto world.

Ogedei patted his shoulder and said with satisfaction: "Well done, Qingshan, you far exceeded my expectations."

Then Ogedei said: "It just so happens that I have a mission I want to entrust to you."

"Some good news: that Lunar-class cruiser, the Sotharan, belongs to the XIII Legion, the Ultramarines. They are a loyal Legion."

Fu Qinghai nodded. The Smurfs had remained loyal to their Primarch and The Emperor throughout the Horus Heresy, and the Battle of Calth had only further ignited their fury for vengeance; there was no need to worry about any double-dealers among them.

"After entering the Lesser Sector, I deeply felt that the Dagger's firepower was insufficient. It is a ship positioned as an auxiliary vessel in the fleet and is ill-suited for independent combat. I fear we cannot complete the mission The Khan entrusted to us while piloting this frigate, so I requested to travel with the Sotharan, and their commander agreed."

Fu Qinghai saw Ogedei looking nonchalant, but he didn't know that a battle of wits had just taken place.

Sotharan Commander: "Why have you separated from your Primarch's fleet to act alone?"

Ogedei: "We have other missions entrusted to us by The Khan."

Sotharan Commander: "What mission?"

Ogedei: "You have no right to know."

Sotharan Commander: "I heard that on Prospero, some White Scars launched a rebellion against their Primarch."

Ogedei: "Hmph, I also heard that there is an Imperium Sec..."

Hearing that sensitive keyword, the Sotharan commander's eyes sharpened in the projection, and he hurriedly interrupted:

"Watch your tongue, Captain Ogedei!"

That was the verbal clash between Ogedei and the Sotharan commander.

With Warp storms obscuring the Astronomican on Terra and the entire galaxy unaware of whether Earth had fallen, Roboute Guilliman, in the distant Ultima Segmentum, along with the IX Legion Blood Angels Primarch Sanguinius and the I Legion Dark Angels Primarch Lion El'Jonson, established the Imperium Secundus to preserve the spark of human hope. Sanguinius, who resembled The Emperor in every aspect, served as the "Regent," with a status equivalent to The Emperor; Lion El'Jonson served as "Lord Protector," similar to Horus's "Warmaster"; and Roboute Guilliman himself served as the "Warden."

After contact with Terra was re-established, the "Imperium Secundus" was immediately dissolved, and the three Legions—especially the initiators, the Ultramarines—were extremely avoidant of discussing this "empire that should not have existed."

In the end, the Sotharan commander agreed to Ogedei's request.

"But they are still wary of us, I can feel it. The Sotharan's commander stated that their mission is to cut off the rebels' supply lines and purge all forces in the Lesser Sector colluding with the rebels. Escorting us is fine, but they are short-staffed and hope we can provide a few warriors for them to use."

Ogedei said: "This is both a request and a test; traitors cannot disguise themselves while fighting side-by-side. This Ultramarine commander is a cautious and shrewd fellow."

"You all know my current situation; I do not wish to appear before those proud Ultramarines as a broken man representing the V Legion."

"Qingshan, you displayed immense combat power during the pirate ship purge, and you have fought everyone in the company to a standstill in the training cages. I believe you will not bring shame to the great Warhawk and the White Scars Legion, whether on the battlefield or in the arena."

"Therefore, I have decided to send you as our representative to the Sotharan to liaise with them, and you will remain there afterward. During our escort, you will follow the commands of the Ultramarines."

Ogedei looked at Fu Qinghai with burning eyes and asked: "Can you complete this mission?"

"Of course!" Fu Qinghai stood tall and answered without hesitation.

"Very well, you will depart for the Sotharan by Stormbird immediately. You have no experience with these ceremonial occasions, so I will send Talal to assist you."

This was a glorious mission; Fu Qinghai was now representing the image of the entire White Scars Legion.

All the Space Marines and mortal officers present cast respectful gazes and gave warm applause to Fu Qinghai.

Fu Qinghai's thoughts, however, drifted to a secret conversation he had with Ogedei in the lounge not long ago.

Fu Qinghai: "Khan, our goal is to escort Master Kunto to Mars? What for? To help him seize power?"

Ogedei: "I don't know. Master Kunto's status on Mars is not low; I suspect that is the case."

Fu Qinghai: "We cannot go to Mars. This is absolutely a suicide mission!"

Why was Fu Qinghai so certain? He judged it from two aspects.

Having read the official novels, he knew that Mars fell shortly after the rebellion. The reason was that Warmaster Horus had used forbidden technology from the Dark Age as bait and leverage to bribe the head of the Adeptus Mechanicus—the Fabricator-General. With the Fabricator-General defecting, the loyalist Mechanicus on Mars were utterly defenseless and soon retreated to Terra.

Furthermore, Fu Qinghai could deduce it from the result: the novel did not mention the story of this escort fleet, which meant they didn't make any waves on Mars; they might not have even reached Mars at all.

Ogedei: "Why do you say that?"

Fu Qinghai: "Boss, use your brain. With just the seven of us, what kind of waves can we make on a Mars crawling with Skitarii and Titan Legions?"

Ogedei: "We could seek the assistance of Master Kunto..."

Fu Qinghai interrupted, "Fabricator-General Kelbor-Hal has turned traitor."

Ogedei was startled and asked, "How do you know that?"

Fu Qinghai: "I dreamt it. I saw fragments of what happened in the past."

I'm done pretending. I'm laying my cards on the table: I am a Psyker, a seer.

"This..." Ogedei hesitated. The unconventional prophetic abilities Fu Qinghai had displayed from time to time had proven reliable so far, and Ogedei was forced to consider the implications.

The betrayal of the Fabricator-General was no small matter. With their formidable firepower and fearlessness toward pain, the mechanical automatons, along with the mountain-sized Imperator-class Titans, were not a force to be trifled with. This meant a dagger had been plunged into the very heart of the Imperium.

No matter how influential Master Kunto might be, he simply could not compare to the head of the Adeptus Mechanicus.

There was no comparison at all.

At this point, some readers might ask: Aren't you a Reincarnator? Can't you change the course of the war on your own?

I cannot. Having experienced so many battles, Fu Qinghai knew deep down how insignificant he was compared to the Primarchs and their Legions. At his current stage, it was difficult for him to participate in the grand, sweeping plotline of the Horus Heresy. Joining the Siege of Terra would only make him cannon fodder, let alone going to Mars.

Ogedei stroked his chin in contemplation. Slowly, he raised his head, looked at Fu Qinghai, and said:

"Qingshan, we are Astartes loyal to The Khan and the Imperium. We are the sons of Jaghatai Khan, and obeying the orders of our Primarch is our sacred duty."

Fu Qinghai understood. Even if it meant a nine-in-ten chance of death—or even certain death—Ogedei was determined to go to Mars.

Recalling that conversation now, and seeing Ogedei's grand efforts to send him to the Ultramarines, Fu Qinghai felt a complex mix of emotions. He could not fathom what was truly going through Ogedei's mind.