Chapter Summaries

Yao En led the Soulless Ones and Sisters of Silence through the Nurgle daemon army, then discovered that a Blackstone Tower was amplifying the Warp and weakening the Blackstone Fortress’s suppression. He destroyed the tower, leaving the daemons crushed by the Fortress’s restored power.

• Skabrand and the Nurgle Greater Demons tried to flee from more than two hundred Soulless Ones as Yao En’s forces opened fire and the Sisters of Silence attacked.
• Yao En’s force advanced ten kilometers into the daemon army, killing at least twenty Greater Demons before reaching a tower covered in Nurgle’s symbols.
• Yao En realized the Blackstone Tower was amplifying the Warp after seeing its active tentacles and the unusually vigorous daemons gathered around it.
• Yao En ordered everyone behind cover and fired his Shoulder Cannon in breaching mode, destroying the tower in a massive blast.
• With the tower destroyed, the Blackstone Fortress’s suppression intensified, causing Nurgle Greater Demons to collapse and forcing Skabrand to its knees.

Yao En led his followers away from the Sisters of Silence after they disagreed over whether to target Blackstone Towers or hunt Greater Demons. Meanwhile, Heat Death’s Iron Men bombarded eight Blackstone Towers guarded by a vast force of Khorne Daemonkin, killing many but leaving the daemons able to regroup and summon reinforcements.

• Yao En argued that destroying Blackstone Towers should take priority, but Kreshna and the Sisters of Silence chose to keep hunting Greater Demons and parted ways with his group.
• A young Soulless One asked Yao En why the Sisters seemed so distant from them, and Yao En said they had their own duties and mission and were neither tragic nor worthy of sympathy.
• Heat Death learned that the Iron Man Hive Ship’s intelligence had identified Blackstone Towers as priority targets and led two million Iron Men toward eight towers defended by nearly a million Khorne Daemonkin.
• Heat Death ordered a bombardment; the first wave overloaded the towers’ Void Shields, and the second devastated the plain and killed more than half the daemons.
• The surviving Khorne Daemonkin regrouped as more daemons entered the Real Universe through the weakened Reality Membrane and Veil.

Heat Death watched the Iron Men and Khorne Daemonkin trade escalating bombardments before Skabrand led an orderly demon advance against them. The Khorne cavalry broke through heavy fire at great cost, but an agile Iron Man killed their Greater Demon commander, leaving the battle unresolved.

• The Khorne Daemonkin deployed Skull Catapults that destroyed Giant Battle-suits, while the Iron Men teleported in replacements and continued their bombardment.
• Skabrand raised Bloodletter and Murder, rallied the demons with cries for the Blood God, and led their disciplined formations forward under fire.
• The Khorne cavalry maneuvered around the Iron Men’s flanks, prompting Heat Death to deploy fire-support Iron Men against their charge.
• The cavalry endured concentrated fire and broke through the Iron Men’s ranks after sacrificing half their number.
• An agile Iron Man ambushed the cavalry’s Greater Demon commander and cut it in two after it had survived a minute of melta fire.

Heat Death studied the Khorne Daemonkin's fighting methods as Skabrand devastated the Iron Man forces, then received new anti-Khorne body and army templates from the Hive Ship Intelligence. It chose to continue gathering combat data and teleported back to attack Skabrand, dying in the exchange as it struck the daemon's neck.

• Heat Death watched a Khorne Greater Demon fall to a blade and observed the Daemonkin advance while other daemons blockaded the battlefield.
• Heat Death concentrated the Iron Men’s artillery on Skabrand, but Skabrand answered the next bombardment with an axe strike that destroyed the Giant Battle-suits and severely damaged Heat Death.
• The Hive Ship Intelligence recalled Heat Death after collecting data and sent it templates for a muscular new body and the Anti-Khorne Daemon Legionary force.
• Heat Death refused to retreat, teleported to Skabrand, and pierced his neck with a power sword before Skabrand’s axe shattered it and sent it back to the Hive Ship to be reborn.

Heat Death led a newly built melee force of Iron Men into a rematch against Skabrand’s Khorne Daemonkin. The Iron Men proved far more effective in close combat and repelled a cavalry charge, while the wider battle remained a fierce stalemate.

• The Hive Ship Intelligence sent Heat Death and more than a million melee-equipped Iron Men back to the battlefield, where Skabrand’s army awaited another fight.
• Heat Death challenged Skabrand to a duel, and Skabrand stopped a Bloodletter from firing a Skull Catapult so the armies could fight fairly.
• Skabrand and Heat Death led their forces into battle, and the Iron Men’s melee tactics let them slaughter Bloodletters far more efficiently than before.
• Skabrand ordered his cavalry to strike the Iron Men’s flank, and Heat Death sent ten thousand spear-and-shield Iron Men to intercept them.
• Centurion pierced the cavalry’s Bloodletter leader and its Brass Bull, and the Iron Men quickly slaughtered the disorganized cavalry.

Heat Death fought Skabrand in a duel and defeated him by using his Living Metal body to evade decapitation and strike back. At the Iron Man Hive Ship intelligence’s order, Heat Death displayed Skabrand’s severed head, ending the battle.

• The Iron Man Hive Ship intelligence reported that the Iron Men’s combat efficiency had increased by ninety percent, and Heat Death left the stable battle line to challenge Skabrand.
• Skabrand leaped at Heat Death and struck the ground with both axes when Heat Death flickered aside.
• Skabrand knocked Heat Death’s greatsword away and lunged to behead him, but Heat Death reassembled his body and trapped Skabrand’s neck.
• Heat Death reassembled his greatsword and drove it through Skabrand’s mouth and spine, leaving the Greater Demon unable to fight.
• Heat Death followed the Iron Man Hive Ship intelligence’s order by driving the greatsword through Skabrand’s body, tearing off his head, and raising it aloft.

Heat Death defeated Skabrand, earning Khorne’s approval, but the Iron Men’s advance was halted when Tzeentch and Nurgle’s forces reinforced the battlefield. A newly teleported force of Giant Battle-suits then devastated Vlad’s Tzeentch army.

• Heat Death killed Skabrand in a duel, and Khorne watched with satisfaction as the Iron Men gained the upper hand.
• The Khorne Daemon Army retreated after Skabrand’s death, while Tzeentch and Nurgle’s forces attacked the advancing Iron Men from the west.
• Vlad arranged cooperation between the Tzeentch and Khorne armies, following Carlos’s orders and guiding the Khorne commander toward a tactic Khorne would accept.
• The Hive Ship Intelligence ordered Heat Death to keep fighting without changing Battle-suits as another Iron Man force teleported onto the battlefield.
• The newly arrived Giant Battle-suits bombarded Vlad’s Tzeentch army, banishing sixty percent of it in their first attack.

Vlad struggled to protect Tzeentch's Demon Army from the Iron Men's bombardment without provoking Khorne, while Carlos guided him through conflicting instructions. Carlos ultimately manipulated Vlad into unleashing sorcery powerful enough to anger Khorne, leaving Vlad and his army banished to the Warp.

• Vlad raised a sorcerous shield that stopped the Iron Men's bombardment, while Tzeentch urged him to use stronger sorcery.
• Carlos sent Vlad contradictory advice, and Vlad decided to trust Carlos's warning that Tzeentch would not protect him from Khorne.
• As the Iron Men's Giant Battle-suits prepared to fire again, Carlos's communication was cut off after Tzeentch discovered his use of the Well of Eternity.
• Carlos urged Vlad to cast powerful sorcery and helped him make it take effect in the past, crippling the Giant Battle-suits' cannons and saving the Demon Army from the barrage.
• Khorne struck Vlad and his Demon Army with a gigantic sword and banished them to the Warp after the time-transcending sorcery enraged him.
• Vlad realized Carlos had engineered the entire chain of events and amplified the spell to provoke Khorne, then laughed at his own gullibility.

After defeating the Khorne Daemonkin, Heat Death witnessed Khorne create a Daemon Sword from the battle’s remains. The Hive Ship Intelligence sealed the sword and ordered the Iron Men to continue destroying Blackstone Towers, while UR025’s fate remained unknown.

• The Nurgle Demon Army withdrew, and Heat Death’s Iron Men destroyed the Void Shield protecting the Blackstone Tower and slaughtered the remaining Bloodletters.
• The Iron Men destroyed the Blackstone, releasing a Psychic Power wave that gathered the smoke, magma, and fragments into a crimson vortex, which formed a longsword before Heat Death.
• Khorne watched from the Warp and gifted Heat Death the sword, hoping the Iron Man would continue fighting and killing in future wars.
• The Hive Ship Intelligence inspected Heat Death’s thoughts and found that he had enjoyed executing Skabrand even before receiving an order to do so.
• The Hive Ship Intelligence had drones seal Khorne’s Gift in Blackstone and ordered the Iron Men to clear the next Blackstone Tower.
• Heat Death asked about UR025, but the Intelligence said he might be dead; Heat Death rejected the claim and headed for the next target.

UR025 rescued Scholar, an intelligent Iron Man captured by Word Bearers, and discovered that Scholar could wield Psychic Power. The chapter ended with Scholar helping UR025 defeat a second group of Word Bearers.

• UR025 disguised itself to scout Blackstone Towers in the southern Demon Realm and encountered Word Bearers escorting a bound Iron Man.
• UR025 killed the ten Word Bearers, repaired the Iron Man’s signal reception module, and learned its name was Scholar.
• UR025 led Scholar toward safety, but twenty more Word Bearers attacked them while escorting Mutant Slaves carrying Blackstone Plates.
• Scholar used Psychic Power lightning to destroy the Word Bearers after one of them stabbed UR025.

Qin Mo and the Emperor advanced their plan to create Iron Men that could safely wield Psychic Power, using Scholar’s success as proof of concept. The Emperor explained that the project could eventually let the Real Universe challenge the Warp, while Qin Mo remained troubled by the fate of souls after death.

• Qin Mo learned from the Hive Ship Intelligence that Scholar had survived the demon world uncorrupted and could use Psychic Power.
• Qin Mo found Vanessa weakened by repeated possession, but she used a Restoration Injection and let the Emperor possess her again.
• The Emperor learned that Scholar had used Psychic Power to destroy twenty Word Bearer Space Marines and resumed studying the Personality Matrix.
• The Emperor explained that psychic Iron Men could be protected by his will and might eventually form a Gestalt Will capable of interfering with the Warp.
• Qin Mo reflected that the Warp would continue to threaten the dead even if Chaos were driven from the Real Universe, and he accepted the plan as a possible way to change that imbalance.

Qin Mo and the Emperor researched how to combine soul matter with matrices, developing a plan for controllable Warp entities. Qin Mo also revealed a Living Metal vessel made for Sanguinius, leaving the Emperor moved by the gift.

• Qin Mo challenged the Emperor about why he had not protected human souls, and the Emperor explained that he could not draw them into the Warp or shield them all.
• The Emperor promised that part of his will would protect Iron Men from Warp erosion before their wills condensed into Warp entities.
• Qin Mo and the Emperor developed the idea of creating Psionic Matrices so Iron Men could form controllable Warp entities more efficiently.
• Qin Mo took the Emperor to a secure facility and revealed a gene-tailored Living Metal vessel that could anchor Sanguinius's Warp essence in the Real Universe.
• The other Emperor wills complained about the gift, but the Emperor gently touched Sanguinius's face and thanked Qin Mo.

Qin Mo prepared for a decisive battle on Beisu Prime as the Tyran forces and Red Corsairs concentrated their fleets and armies in the system. Mimic foresaw Qin Mo being dragged into the Warp, but Qin Mo and his allies began resupplying by preparing to absorb a star.

• Qin Mo gave the Emperor Sanguinius's shell in a portable storage vault, and Vanessa left the research facility after the Emperor's presence faded.
• Qin Mo learned that the Tyran Army and Hive Guard had deployed nearly a billion troops on Beisu Prime and committed himself to a decisive battle.
• The Tyran Navy and Red Corsairs gathered their fleets in the Beisu System, where void combat began alongside the ground campaign.
• Mimic warned that the Blackstone Fortress would amplify Warp influence and privately told Qin Mo that he had seen Qin Mo being sucked into the Warp.
• Mimic explained that the Warp would crush soulless C'tan, and Qin Mo, Burner, and Mimic prepared for battle by beginning to absorb a star.

Qin Mo and the other C'tan fed on the Beisu System's star, then descended onto Beisu Prime and struck the center of the Chaos army with devastating force. The chapter ended as the three C'tan faced a barrage of missiles and nuclear weapons.

• Qin Mo ordered Adam to halt the Lord of Tyran near the star, and he, Burner, and Mimic used the Forge to feed on its energy.
• The Blackstone Fortress attacked the C'tan, but Qin Mo survived its Vortex Cannon and destroyed fourteen Red Corsairs warships with Dimensional Lightning.
• Qin Mo, Burner, and Mimic entered Beisu Prime's atmosphere and crashed into the Chaos army, creating a vast crater and devastating the planet's eastern hemisphere.
• Qin Mo repaired the cracked ground with his scepter as Burner celebrated their strength, then long-range forces targeted the three C'tan with missiles and nuclear weapons.

Qin Mo and Huron’s armies converged in the crater for a decisive battle, while Huron sought to kill Qin Mo with help from Magnus and the Chaos forces. Qin Mo prioritized stopping Huron, and the battle began with Khaban attacking before the Burner drove him away from the fight.

• A nuclear blast devastated Beisu Prime but failed to harm Qin Mo and the others, while the Burner absorbed the released energy.
• Huron arrived through a Warp vortex with Magnus and Chaos forces, after the impact of three meteors had killed tens of millions of Imperial troops.
• Huron led his Red Corsairs in a charge against Qin Mo as Magnus shielded them from the Talon Army’s artillery.
• Qin Mo took back his Chainsword from Grey and ordered the Burner and Mimic to stay with him and focus on Huron.
• Khaban struck Magnus and tried to reach Qin Mo, but the Burner seized him and hurled him onto Beisu Prime’s moon before heading toward Beisu I.

Qin Mo and Mimic confronted Magnus and Huron, and Qin Mo defeated Huron’s body as the Four Gods tried to seize his soul. The Four Gods then mocked Qin Mo with threats and revelations about the people he had failed to protect.

• Mimic transformed Magnus’s scepter into a broom, causing Magnus’s sorcery to backfire and freeze him in psychic ice.
• Huron charged Mimic but was struck by the scepter and attacked by Qin Mo’s Dimensional Lightning, while the Four Gods whispered offers of power to him.
• Qin Mo dragged Huron close, struck him with the Aquila Scepter, and pierced his armor with a Chainsword before lightning crippled him.
• Huron asked whether he was qualified to become Warmaster, and Qin Mo told him the position was beneath him before unleashing more lightning.
• The Four Gods invaded Huron’s weakened will, threatened to revive him, and mocked Qin Mo by describing the suffering of people he had once tried to protect.

Qin Mo destroyed the Blackstone Fortress to protect Beisu, but its psychic remnants opened a Warp rift that dragged him inside. He survived his first entry into the Warp and found himself facing a vast horde of demons.

• Qin Mo crushed Huron's remains, acknowledged that he could not yet defeat the Four Gods, and sent Mimic to support the ground forces.
• Qin Mo entered the Blackstone Fortress and witnessed psychic remnants of the War in Heaven, where Eldar and an Old One drove it toward Beisu's star.
• Qin Mo became the Forger C'tan and smashed the fortress, but the impact opened a Warp rift that pulled him into the Warp.
• Qin Mo arrived on a golden plain between two armies of demons, and both sides rushed toward him.
• Qin Mo planted his Chainsword and unleashed a sea of fire that consumed the demons.

Qin Mo explored the Warp, discovered he could devour demon souls, and learned that a Golden Gate led to Slaanesh’s Domain. Believing he could not escape, he resolved to slaughter the servants of the Four Gods until his energy ran out.

• Qin Mo examined the black ash left by the demons he had burned and found that he could still use his C'tan power in the Warp.
• Qin Mo questioned a demon soul, which told him that the area was the entrance to Slaanesh's Domain and pointed toward a Golden Gate.
• Qin Mo devoured the souls of several Undivided Chaos demons and realized the C'tan consumed souls simply for the pleasure of eating them.
• Qin Mo confronted the demon that offered to help him leave the Warp, then used the Aquila Scepter to scorch its soul.
• Qin Mo recalled Slaanesh's torment of the doctor and his daughter and vowed to kill every servant of the Four Gods he encountered.

Qin Mo and Bik crossed Slaanesh’s Circle of Greed, where mortals endlessly counted gold, and reached the army guarding the gate to the next ring. As Qin Mo advanced alone to face the demons, Bik perceived that Qin Mo possessed two distinct essences: one tied to his divine power and another belonging to his soul.

• Bik led Qin Mo through the Circle of Greed and explained how Slaanesh’s temptations kept mortals trapped there.
• Qin Mo promised Bik he would spare its life after they reached the Dark Prince’s palace, and Bik agreed to guide him onward.
• Bik warned Qin Mo not to take the mutated weapons scattered among the Circle’s treasures, and Qin Mo accepted its advice.
• At the gate to the next ring, the Greater Demon gathered nearly a million Slaanesh Demons to face Qin Mo.
• Qin Mo advanced alone toward the demon army, and Bik perceived that he had two essences: a forging hammer that powered his divinity and an outsider’s essence that formed his soul.

Qin Mo slaughtered the Slaanesh cavalry and fought the Greater Demon in the Warp, using the Aquila Scepter and a Chainsword stained with the Warmaster's blood. After killing the Greater Demon, he turned on the remaining demons as they fled.

• Qin Mo charged the Slaanesh cavalry, destroying their mounts with C'tan lightning and cutting down the riders with his Chainsword as their souls were drawn into him.
• The fleeing cavalry were pulled back by Qin Mo's lightning, and he killed the serpent demon after its steed was destroyed.
• The Slaanesh Greater Demon charged Qin Mo alongside its army, but the Aquila Scepter's golden light let Qin Mo break its attack and stab it with the Chainsword.
• Qin Mo repeatedly smashed the Aquila Scepter into the Greater Demon's skull until its head burst apart and its soul was devoured.
• Qin Mo pulled out the Chainsword and charged the remaining demons, who fled in every direction.