Rendezvous

After Lin Fan crawled out of the conduit, he was immediately ambushed by the demons guarding the vicinity of the D1347 passage. A massive, rather stout green fatty grabbed Lin Fan's head with hands caked in yellow pus and maggots, then tossed him into a gaping maw that lacked teeth but was filled with even more flesh-eating maggots. Once swallowed, Lin Fan felt nothing but nausea, yet the gear on his body unexpectedly failed to melt into slag within the corrosive gastric acid capable of dissolving any mortal creature.

Lin Fan drew his chainsword and hacked wildly in the general direction of his surroundings. The high-speed rotating teeth of the chainsword shredded the demon's yellowish-white stomach. Lin Fan could even hear the agonizing wails of the demon that had consumed him. As gastric juices began to flow through a breach, bubbling and gurgling, Lin Fan realized he was close to escaping. He redoubled his efforts, stabbing and slashing until he tore a massive hole in the giant demon's abdomen, spraying gastric juices, maggots, and the putrid, deep-green plasma from its vessels across the deck.

Lin Fan climbed out of the wound and tumbled onto the floor.

Taking a closer look, he realized the fat corpse that had eaten him was actually a Great Unclean One of Nurgle, now lying on the ground, whimpering after being gutted.

The aesthetic of the Great Unclean One—this one was the Rain Father.

"Ahhh~ I ate something I shouldn't have~~ cough, cough~~ it hurts so much."

Listening to the massive pile of rotting flesh wail in that disgusting voice, Lin Fan felt waves of nausea. Although the stench radiating from the Great Unclean One—strong enough to make any mortal who approached it instantly rot and break out in pustules—only made Lin Fan feel slightly uncomfortable, much like the smell of an outhouse in winter during his childhood, he had to admit that this phlegm-filled voice was the most repulsive thing of all.

With every breath and word from the Great Unclean One, Lin Fan felt an urge to clear his own throat, which he did subconsciously. He noticed that the more numerous Nurglings swarming around the feet of the Great Unclean One were all watching him with cunning, fearful eyes.

"Scared? That's fine, I don't have time to waste on you lot."

Lin Fan ran up to the face of the Great Unclean One and pulled out the crude Aquila pendant hanging around his neck.

The previously whimpering Great Unclean One saw the Aquila statue gifted by The Emperor with his bead-like eyes and was instantly struck with terror. He struggled to push himself up with his hands, preparing to flee. But how could Lin Fan give him that chance? He hurled the Aquila directly at the Great Unclean One. The statue sank into the demon's body like a red-hot iron ball into solidified butter, rapidly evaporating and melting the creature's flesh. Carrying the devout power of billions of believers, the Aquila acted like an eraser belonging to The Emperor, wiping the horrors of the Warp clean away.

"Grandfather! Save me!" The Great Unclean One could only offer one final plea to his Grandfather before being burned into ashes. There were no green splashes or strange sparks; this Great Unclean One, having just squeezed through the rift, was purified by the power of faith, leaving no possibility of resurrection.

Seeing the Great Unclean One perish, the noisy Nurglings scattered like mice seeing a cat, squeezing into various valves and cracks in the conduits, disappearing who knows where.

Lin Fan looked at the pile of black ash left after the Great Unclean One had burned away, and his mood improved significantly. After all, such a massive lump of rotting flesh surging with maggots and pus had been quite the visual assault.

As he continued through the slime-filled corridor, the urge to fall into a deep sleep grew increasingly intense, much like the sensation he had felt after killing the two Black Legion warriors. He had to close the rift before losing consciousness completely, or Lin Fan didn't know if he would be torn to shreds by demons while he slept.

As Lin Fan pushed forward, he began to hear the continuous, rolling thunder of bolter fire and angry roars in the distance.

"So, there are still survivors putting up a fight?"

Lin Fan dared not delay, breaking into a sprint toward the sound of gunfire.

After rounding several corners, Lin Fan finally saw the Space Wolves, who had blasted through the walls, engaged in battle with the demons pouring endlessly from the rift. With alternating fire from their bolters, the Space Wolves were holding off the demonic onslaught well, but their firepower was far too thin compared to the tide of demons surging from the Great Rift, which had expanded to a height of over a dozen meters.

The Space Marines were pinned firmly in place, unable to charge forward to disrupt the ritual.

Lin Fan gripped his blade and quickly closed the distance to the Space Marines, his chainsword dancing like a high-efficiency razor, sending every demon that tried to block his path back to their home.

"My lord, a reinforcement has arrived."

"What? Reinforcements?"

Bennett Wolfclaw looked toward the other side of the wide corridor and saw an Astra Militarum soldier, soaked from head to toe in blood, approaching them. His chainsword movements were swift and powerful—even a melee master like Bennett Wolfclaw had to give credit where it was due.

"Truly impressive swordsmanship. I didn't expect such a warrior to come from the Astra Militarum. Kaiserd, provide cover for that lad."

Receiving the order, the Grey Hunter shifted the muzzle of his Heavy Bolter and laid down covering fire in Lin Fan's direction. Under the deluge of shells, a large gap appeared amidst the dense swarm of demons blocking Lin Fan's path.

Lin Fan seized this precious opportunity, accelerated, and dashed toward the clearing created by the bolter fire.

Under the extraordinary covering fire of the Space Marines, Lin Fan successfully entered the tactical formation of the squad.

"Greetings, my lords! Captain Soap of the 3rd Company, Kasare 37th Regiment, reporting for duty."

"Very good, soldier. At a time like this, every combatant is precious. Are you a survivor from the lower levels?"

"No, my lord. I am a soldier stationed at the C0 Gate. I came to seal the rift after receiving orders."

Bennett turned to look at Lin Fan, inwardly marveling at his bravery and peerless technique. Heaven only knew how an Astra Militarum soldier like this had managed to fight his way through those demons to get here.

"But we can no longer close that rift," Bennett sighed, crushing the skull of a charging demon.

Before Lin Fan arrived, Bennett and his brothers had successfully pushed into the chamber of the D1347 passage. At that time, the rift had not been so large—barely four or five meters high. Although demons were pouring out, it was manageable for Bennett and his men; after all, no matter how many surged forth, they still had to squeeze through the opening one by one.

Under the suppression of the Heavy Bolter, not a single demon could make it more than a few meters out of the rift; they were usually torn to shreds by the relentless hail of shells the moment they poked their heads out. Under this cover, Bennett and his team had quickly used their explosives and grenades to destroy the Flesh Runes throughout the room.

Those Flesh Runes, saturated with the power of the Warp, seemed to possess a life of their own, trembling and shrieking as Bennett and his men destroyed them. After the last living rune was shattered, they had expected the rift to lose its anchor and close completely, but an accident occurred.

Several bolts of blue lightning surged from the dead Flesh Runes and struck the rift that was about to close. Energized by the lightning, the rift regained its vitality, instantly expanding from four or five meters to over a dozen meters in height. The number of demons pouring out increased several-fold compared to before, to the point where even the Heavy Bolter could no longer block their charge.

Forced back step by step by the encroaching demons, the Space Marine squad was ultimately trapped in this narrow corridor, using their remaining firepower to stall the advance. Yet, they were bogged down and unable to break out. When their ammunition ran dry, it would be time for them to face the demons in close-quarters combat. Bennett had no doubt that his men would be worn down and killed by the endless waves of demons, and the Flame, which carried hundreds of thousands of souls, would become their tomb.