Neos felt as though he were being repeatedly torn apart by two violent tides.
One came from the universe itself, an absolute force of repulsion seeking to violently expel him, an "anomaly," from this universe; the other came from that vast fleet. Though their devastating firepower was not focused on him, the aftershocks sweeping across the edge of the battlefield continued to batter his defenses.
His eyes were fixed on the boundless fleet and the towering dark-red gate radiating blasphemy and ill omen.
At last, his gaze settled on the tiny figure standing before the Living Tribunal.
General Pandora?
No... it could not possibly be the one he knew.
Though their appearances were nearly identical, her aura—the presence radiating from her bones, mixed with absolute destructive intent and a kind of chilling "pure madness"—was worlds apart from the great general in his memories. That Pandora had overwhelming combat power and occasionally acted unpredictably, but she generally still followed the Imperium's order and the Emperor's will.
This "Pandora's" madness was cold, as if she regarded "Destruction" itself as the only logic and aesthetic worth practicing.
The way she looked at the Living Tribunal was not the way one looked at a powerful opponent. It was more like she was assessing a piece of... garbage that needed to be "disposed of."
Neos's heart sank further and further.
When he saw the glaring crimson Crystal Cross emblem on the fleet's black hulls, the worst and most terrifying possibility wormed its way into his mind.
Could it be... that the Abyss had breached the Imperium?
Had it even... "converted" the Imperium?!
The thought nearly made him lose his composure.
But in the next instant, he forcibly suppressed it.
Impossible!
Absolutely impossible!
He had personally experienced the Imperium's power.
Emperor Hua Wei's unfathomable strength, Supreme