Recaps

Li Qinwu, Norn, and Father Anthony agreed to divide the Adamantium Drill and use it to make armor and weapons. After Father Anthony proposed a way to cut and forge the metal, the group obtained the needed equipment and cut the drill into movable chunks.

• Norn explained that Adamantium could strengthen Power Armor but was too difficult to process with the agri-world's equipment.
• Father Anthony accused Li Qinwu of taking the Omnissiah's property, but Li Qinwu persuaded him to keep quiet in exchange for a share.
• Li Qinwu convinced Norn to accept a share by promising the Adamantium could protect and equip Norn's battle-brothers.
• Father Anthony offered his laser cutter, Li Qinwu arranged for a Controlled Nuclear Fusion Reactor, and Norn agreed to handle the forging.
• The laser cutter sliced the Adamantium Drill into movable chunks, baking the surrounding ground into glass.

Li Qinwu, Father Anthony, and Norn divided the Adamantium and used the planet’s crust to forge Father Anthony a mechanical leg and Li Qinwu a powerful greatsword. Li Qinwu named it the Demon-Cleaving Greatsword, while Norn abandoned his brief thought of recruiting him after seeing him use its golden flames to light a cigarette.

• Father Anthony tried to skim Adamantium from Li Qinwu’s share, and Li Qinwu fought him until Norn separated them.
• Li Qinwu summoned Little Knife, who hauled away two-thirds of the Adamantium, while the three brought the remaining metal to the crustal observation station.
• Norn used the planet’s heat and pressure to forge Father Anthony an Adamantium-reinforced mechanical leg.
• Norn forged Li Qinwu a heavy two-handed greatsword reinforced with Adamantium, and Li Qinwu named it the Demon-Cleaving Greatsword.
• Norn mistook Li Qinwu’s golden psychic flames for signs of a prospective Living Saint and considered recruiting him before watching him light a cigarette with the flames.

Norn forged weapons and armor for Li Qinwu and Father Anthony, then argued over Li Qinwu’s Machine Spirit gun. Li Qinwu sought three relics to upgrade the Emperor Shrine, but found the Imperial Cult’s vault full of fakes, and the chapter ended with its relic warehouse burning down.

• Norn spent a month forging armor, weapons, and devices for himself, Father Anthony, and Li Qinwu.
• Li Qinwu asked Norn to make an Adamantium barrel for his 20mm Logging Gun, and Father Anthony tried to seize the gun because it had a Machine Spirit.
• Li Qinwu threatened to expose the Adeptus Mechanicus’ plans to dig up Necrons, forcing Father Anthony to back down.
• Li Qinwu visited the planetary bishop to find three relics for the Emperor Shrine’s upgrade, but the system identified the vault’s items as fakes or unsuitable.
• The planetary bishop suspected someone had stolen the real relics, and a few days later the Imperial Cult’s relic warehouse burned down.

Li Qinwu found two priceless relics in the vault and received a third from The Devout One, giving him the relics he needed to upgrade the Emperor Shrine. The Devout One trusted Li Qinwu but told him not to burden an old man with the secret behind his request.

• Li Qinwu selected the Flesh-Cutting Servitor, a knife tied to a planetary bishop's self-sacrifice during a famine, and the Primarch Writ from the vault.
• Li Qinwu thanked the planetary bishop for the relics and promised to remember his favor before heading to the Middle Hive Church.
• Li Qinwu asked The Devout One for another sacred relic, but hesitated when asked what he needed it for.
• The Devout One gave Li Qinwu his staff, a relic once used to carry a sacred tome and spread the Imperial Cult's teachings.
• The Devout One said he trusted Li Qinwu's purpose but did not want to hear the secret behind it.

After upgrading the Emperor Shrine to LV3, Li Qinwu gained new sanctification and soul-related functions. Four months later, as the planet’s civil war eased, he began claiming land to build a Second Hive City.

• Li Qinwu upgraded the Emperor Shrine to LV3, allowing it to sanctify objects and granting it a Soul Sanctuary and a Blood Sacrifice function.
• Li Qinwu began sanctifying the Demon-Cleaving Greatsword and Psychic Amplifier, which would take three and four months respectively.
• Black Uncle Norn repaired the synthetic starch factory and brokered trade between the PDF and the rebels, helping bring the fighting to a gradual ceasefire.
• With the war winding down, Li Qinwu began claiming his granted territory and drove a Leman Russ tank across the wilderness to establish a Second Hive City.

Li Qinwu expanded Second Hive City’s forces and welcomed Norn, who announced that he would leave the planet the next morning. The chapter ended with Norn repaying his debt and bidding Li Qinwu farewell as a friend.

• Li Qinwu held court, declared himself the ruling class, and awarded Parson the hereditary title of Yong'an Count.
• Little Joel reported that the city had ten Avirlus Shuttles, thirty-two Leman Russ tanks, and eighty Chimera Transports, then proposed organizing heavy infantry regiments as a police force.
• Li Qinwu appointed Little Joel Crown Prince and warned his officials against corruption.
• A messenger announced Norn’s arrival, and Li Qinwu invited him to tour Second Hive City.
• Norn told Li Qinwu that the captain’s ship was full and would depart the next day, then offered weapons and armor to repay his debt before saying goodbye.

Norn prepared to leave Second Hive City and return to his Chapter, while Li Qinwu tried to persuade him to stay and gave him a case of equipment. After a chaotic farewell, Norn took control of the shuttle and blasted into space.

• Norn loaded ten hammer casings, fifty Adamantium-infused armor shells, and his remaining Adamantium onto the shuttle before preparing to depart.
• Li Qinwu offered Norn a metal case and urged him to stay, but Norn remained committed to returning to the Chapter and fighting alongside his battle-brothers.
• Li Qinwu gave Norn the case as payment for his work, and Norn accepted it with thanks.
• Li Qinwu gave the captain four bottles of Holy Wine and said goodbye as the shuttle's hatch began to close.
• When Li Qinwu rushed toward the departing shuttle, Norn pulled the pilot from his seat and launched the shuttle at twenty Gs into space.

Norn examined the healing supplies and daemon-killing dagger Li Qinwu had given him, then read Li Qinwu’s proposal for a secret partnership in exchange for a warship. Back at the Hideout, Li Qinwu and Silent One prepared a controlled Warp portal to summon Daemons for entertainment and combat practice.

• Norn read that the Regeneration Needles could heal severe injuries, the Cooling Balm could counter mental and physical effects, and his dagger could kill Daemons.
• Norn read Li Qinwu’s request for a long-term partnership with the Crimson Bite Chapter and asked him to conceal the items and help acquire a warship.
• Li Qinwu, restless after Norn’s departure, recruited Silent One to summon Daemons without sacrifices.
• Silent One prepared a Warp spell that would open a portal and limit summoned Daemons’ strength to the Psychic Power in his body.
• Li Qinwu and Silent One built a sealed chamber with a magic array, and Li Qinwu aimed an automated Holy Wine flamethrower at the portal’s exit.

Li Qinwu and Silent One opened a Warp Portal and lured Daemons into an isolation chamber with blasphemous bait, burning them and collecting their material possessions. After the final Daemon demanded a chance to survive, Li Qinwu made it read a stack of terrible books, and it begged to be killed.

• Silent One opened a Portal to the Warp, but no Daemons appeared until Li Qinwu realized they needed to use bait.
• Li Qinwu and Silent One returned with People's Fragments carved with blasphemous slogans, and a Wild Lesser Daemon emerged and was burned to ashes.
• More Wild Daemons came through the Portal and were killed by the flamethrower, leaving weapons and other material objects behind as loot.
• When the flamethrower ran out of fuel, the final Wild Daemon demanded a fair challenge, and Silent One agreed that it should get a chance to escape.
• Li Qinwu offered to release the Daemon if it read several books without dying from poison, and the Daemon finished looking at their titles and begged to be killed.

Li Qinwu discovered that his sacrifice to the Emperor Shrine had earned him a priceless fragment of the True One Armor, though he could not safely use or sell it. When a succession crisis erupted in the Campela Family, General Zeppelin proposed that Li Qinwu marry Nightingale and back her bid for the inheritance.

• Li Qinwu sacrificed thirteen Daemon items to the Emperor Shrine and found a tiny fragment of the True One Armor among the ashes.
• Li Qinwu learned the fragment was a sacred relic worth a fleet or a planet, but decided it was too dangerous to use for now.
• General Zeppelin summoned Li Qinwu to the Spire and told him that the Campela Family had fallen into civil war after its patriarch named his youngest son as heir.
• General Zeppelin explained that Nightingale's Stepmother had the stronger forces and most nobles on her side, while Nightingale had fewer troops but could offer greater rewards to supporters.
• General Zeppelin showed Li Qinwu invitations from both factions and proposed that Li Qinwu marry Nightingale so he could stake his fortune on her victory.

Miss Nightingale and the Stepmother fought over the Campela Family succession at the planetary governor’s tower, with Miss Nightingale demanding a DNA test of the Stepmother’s child. When neither side would yield, the governor threatened to release nerve gas if they damaged the upper hive, then ominously urged them to finish the feast.

• The Stepmother Group and Miss Nightingale’s forces occupied the upper hive as their succession struggle threatened to become a war.
• The planetary governor invited the factions’ leaders to his tower, where the Stepmother and Miss Nightingale traded insults and accusations.
• The Stepmother claimed the late master’s will named her child as heir, while Miss Nightingale challenged the will and demanded a DNA test.
• Neither faction agreed to yield, and the governor declared that war seemed the only way to resolve their dispute.
• The governor forbade fighting in the upper hive and threatened nerve gas if either side damaged public facilities.
• The governor swore by the God-Emperor to carry out his threat and advised both factions to finish the food on the table.

The nobles agreed to settle the conflict between Miss Nightingale and the Stepmother Group with a duel, and the Pale Baron challenged thirty of Miss Nightingale’s warriors alone. He swiftly defeated her first eleven warriors, and Miss Nightingale expected the lord watching from the stands to intervene.

• The planetary governor barred a hot war, so the Pale Baron proposed settling the dispute with a duel.
• The Pale Baron challenged thirty warriors by himself, and Miss Nightingale accepted, staking her claim as Campela Family heir on the outcome.
• The next morning, the Pale Baron killed Miss Nightingale’s first warrior in half a second with a thrown dagger.
• The Pale Baron defeated the next ten warriors within three seconds each, leaving Miss Nightingale’s aides in a panic.
• Miss Nightingale stopped an aide from speaking and said the lord watching beside General Zeppelin would make a move.

Li Qinwu entered the arena to fight the Pale Baron and gradually overwhelmed him with his speed, strength, and disintegration-field greatsword. Just as Li Qinwu was about to kill him, the Pale Baron revealed that he worked for the Inquisition.

• Li Qinwu jumped into the arena and sent the Traffic Light Trio away, choosing to face the Pale Baron alone.
• The Pale Baron threw a dagger at Li Qinwu before the fight began, but Li Qinwu deflected it and charged at him.
• Li Qinwu broke the Pale Baron's dagger with his greatsword and pursued him with a series of powerful strikes.
• After three minutes of evading Li Qinwu, the Pale Baron grew exhausted and could no longer escape his attacks.
• Li Qinwu stopped his sword at the Pale Baron's chest when the Pale Baron begged for his life and said he worked for the Inquisition.

Li Qinwu discovered that the Pale Baron was an agent of Inquisitor Thraxol, then accepted his surrender in the Campela Family succession dispute. The Pale Baron promised to secure Miss Nightingale’s return as family head and revealed that Thraxol’s fleet would arrive in ten days.

• The Pale Baron showed Li Qinwu a genuine Rosette identifying him as the Pale Assassin, a subordinate of Inquisitor Thraxol.
• The Pale Baron explained that he had monitored the planet’s ruling class and fathered a child with the Stepmother to leave descendants behind.
• Li Qinwu exposed the Pale Baron’s role in the Campela inheritance dispute, and the Pale Baron surrendered and promised to withdraw the Stepmother from the contest.
• Li Qinwu deactivated his Disintegration Field and sheathed his sword, prompting the Stepmother’s faction to protest and Miss Nightingale’s supporters to cheer.
• The Pale Baron promised to resolve the Stepmother’s opposition and invited Li Qinwu to join Inquisitor Thraxol, whose fleet would arrive in ten days.

Li Qinwu weighed whether to leave Planet 496B and follow the Inquisitor as its twenty years of unpaid taxes came due. The tax fleet arrived with an overwhelming force, led by Lord Thraxol, while Miss Nightingale asked Li Qinwu to leave an heir and a future behind on the planet.

• The Pale Baron warned Li Qinwu that the planet owed the Imperium twenty years of taxes and urged him to join his master, but Li Qinwu ignored the offer and left the arena.
• The Stepmother Group collapsed, and Miss Nightingale became the Campela Family's new heir with Li Qinwu attending her succession ceremony.
• Li Qinwu considered the dangers of the coming tax collection against the chance to expand his influence by following the Inquisitor into space.
• Miss Nightingale told Li Qinwu she had agreed to a marriage alliance and would wait for his decision, asking him to leave an heir to carry on his work.
• Ten days later, a vast tax fleet arrived at Planet 496B, and Lord Thraxol landed at the governor's residence as the planetary governor came to greet him.

Inquisitor Thraxol confronted a planetary governor over twenty years of unpaid taxes and his failure to suppress a rebellion. After Thraxol warned that the governor faced White Phosphorus Execution, the governor calmly ate in silence, leaving his response unresolved.

• Inquisitor Thraxol arrived at the planetary governor’s residence and took the seat of honor at a banquet with his unusual retinue.
• Thraxol praised the natural food, then questioned how the planet could supply taxes for twenty years without exhausting its soil.
• The intelligence assassin Jiahao reported that the governor had left the rebellion unchecked to preserve the planet’s infrastructure for the tax fleet’s eventual arrival.
• Thraxol accused the governor of neglecting his duty and warned that he faced White Phosphorus Execution.
• The governor wiped his face and ate from five plates without answering, while Thraxol watched and stopped Catwoman from rushing him.

After the inquisitor arrived, the planetary governor told Li Qinwu that he had traded him as the inquisitor’s bodyguard to reduce the planet’s taxes. The governor described the planet’s coming devastation and revealed that he would soon be executed, leaving Li Qinwu facing the consequences of the governor’s decision.

• Li Qinwu hid in the Spire with General Zeppelin while the planet fell into despair after the inquisitor’s arrival.
• General Zeppelin told Li Qinwu that the planetary governor had come and asked for him by name.
• The planetary governor said he had sold Li Qinwu to serve as the inquisitor’s bodyguard in exchange for a 0.05 percent tax reduction.
• The governor outlined how the taxes would devastate the planet, forcing its people into brutal labor and driving its population and life expectancy down.
• Li Qinwu objected to having his freedom taken, and General Zeppelin slapped the governor for selling him.
• The governor knelt and revealed that Lord Thraxol had given him three days to prepare before his execution by White Phosphorus Execution in God-Emperor Square.

The planetary governor explained why he had allowed the rebellion to continue, hoping to spare his people further destruction and shorten their debt repayment. He then revealed his plan to make Li Qinwu join the inquisitor by recommending General Zeppelin as the next governor, leaving both men furious and trapped by family ties.

• The planetary governor said suppressing the rebels would destroy infrastructure and lead to repeated uprisings, while allowing the tax fleet to arrive would leave billions to die during debt repayment.
• He explained that he had avoided rewarding military victories so the PDF and nobles would not escalate the conflict, keeping a de facto ceasefire in place.
• Li Qinwu and General Zeppelin respected the governor’s willingness to protect his people, until he announced he would stop at nothing to help them.
• The planetary governor revealed that he had investigated Li Qinwu and would hand him over to the inquisitor so other planets could help reduce the tax burden.
• The governor recommended General Zeppelin as his successor, prompting Zeppelin to beat him while Li Qinwu realized the plan was meant to pressure him into helping his adopted uncle.

Li Qinwu learned the crushing century-long tax repayment plan awaiting the planet as General Zeppelin prepared to take over as governor. At the execution of Governor Leonardo, Li Qinwu ended his suffering with a thrown bayonet, leaving him to burn in silence.

• The outgoing governor urged General Zeppelin to protect the common folk and consider joining the Inquisitor before leaving the transfer of power to him.
• A technical official explained that the planet would repay its taxes through crops, blood-tithes, minerals, and chemical goods before becoming a graveyard world.
• Li Qinwu realized that the blood-tithe would require sending away one million young people each year, while Zeppelin feared the consequences of any shortfall.
• Inquisitor Thraxol sentenced Leonardo to execution by white phosphorus for years of unpaid taxes and dereliction of duty.
• As Leonardo screamed in agony on the pyre, Li Qinwu threw a guard's bayonet into his brow, killing him.

Li Qinwu accepted Inquisitor Thraxol’s offer to join him after negotiating a tax exemption, private quarters, and strict limits on his service. Thraxol agreed to every condition, and the two prepared to travel together.

• Li Qinwu killed the planetary governor, and Thraxol stopped Catwoman Nova’s guards from arresting him before inviting him to dinner.
• Li Qinwu entered the governor’s Spire with Thraxol, who explained his Ordo Hereticus duties and invited him to join his team.
• Li Qinwu agreed to go with Thraxol after demanding a one-percent tax exemption and a private five-hundred-square-meter room aboard the warship.
• Li Qinwu required that his service end after one hundred years or Thraxol’s death, and that he remain a contract worker who could resign at any time.
• Thraxol accepted every condition, while Nova protested and Thraxol saw Li Qinwu’s soul glowing like a golden sun in his psychic vision.

Li Qinwu helped Governor Zeppelin crush the remaining rebellion and establish a century-long taxation system on Planet 496B, then prepared to leave with Inquisitor Thraxol. Before departing, he entrusted The Devout One with five hundred bottles of Holy Wine and urged him to trade it for tax relief.

• Li Qinwu advised Inquisitor Thraxol to destroy the Sacred Mountain, and the fleet's bombardment shattered the rebels' resolve.
• Governor Zeppelin formed a United Government with the rebel marshals and nobles, imposing a hundred-year system of taxes and punishments.
• Li Qinwu secured a one-percent reduction in the planet's tax burden before Inquisitor Thraxol prepared to depart.
• Li Qinwu held a farewell banquet with Governor Zeppelin, Baron Reno, The Devout One, Sister Theresa, and his companions.
• Li Qinwu gave The Devout One access to five hundred bottles of Holy Wine and asked him to use it to negotiate tax relief for the planet.

Li Qinwu prepared to leave 496b Agricultural World with the Inquisitor, entrusting local affairs and giving Sister Teresa a Purity Pendant. The next day, he flew into the galaxy with his companions, while planning to keep ties to home and return in secret.

• Li Qinwu explained how Holy Wine would operate to The Devout One and gave Sister Teresa the Purity Pendant he had sanctified.
• Miss Nightingale asked Li Qinwu to take her back to bed, and he spent the night talking with her about his departure.
• Li Qinwu planned to keep the Emperor Shrine and Hideout on 496b Agricultural World, using his ability to respawn there so he could visit home secretly.
• Miss Nightingale told Li Qinwu to remember his roots after he flew into the galaxy, as her family banner and General Zeppelin's banner showed signs of merging.
• The next day, Li Qinwu boarded the Shuttle with the Silent One, Little Knife, Little Joel, Parson, and Lieutenant Rudosen and flew into the galaxy.

Li Qinwu arrived aboard the Inquisitor’s flagship, the Staff of Authority, with his staff and private troops. After Catwoman Nova showed him the cruiser, she explained that he would patrol it for anything strange before the fleet entered the Warp.

• Li Qinwu boarded the Staff of Authority with his staff and private troops, including three thousand elite soldiers and twelve Leman Russ tanks.
• Catwoman Nova met Li Qinwu and led him through the cruiser, describing its weapons, crew, and hangars.
• Li Qinwu inspected the warship and asked when the fleet would depart, where it was going, and what his duties would be.
• Nova told Li Qinwu that the Astropath would set the route by the next day and that his job was to patrol the ship for anything strange.

Li Qinwu established a Second Hideout aboard the battleship, added new facilities, and trained under increased gravity until his strength broke the one-ton bench press mark. Catwoman then reminded him that the ship had entered the Warp and that he needed to join a patrol.

• Catwoman showed Li Qinwu his private quarters and warned him to protect Lord Thraxol in emergencies without entering the captain's cabin otherwise.
• Li Qinwu built his Second Hideout, sanctified the Emperor Shrine and Eldar Scimitar, and set up a Grow Zone and other facilities.
• Li Qinwu installed gravity equipment, upgraded his Fitness Area to LV3, and found that six G gave him the best training results.
• Li Qinwu trained until his Strength, Endurance, and Energy each increased by one, then kept training under six G.
• Li Qinwu bench-pressed a one-ton barbell, celebrated by flexing for Catwoman and his staff, and Lieutenant Rudosen reminded him to patrol the ship after it entered the Warp.

Li Qinwu led a patrol through the warship after it entered the Warp and discovered a Wild Daemon that had slipped through the Geller Field. He trapped it in the steel floor and dealt with it in a grotesque way, leaving the Catwoman horrified.

• Li Qinwu put on his Heavy Power Armor and led his subordinates on patrol through the Warp-bound warship.
• Li Qinwu's team heard a scream and found a man claiming that the floor had eaten someone.
• The Silent One identified a weak Wild Daemon fused with the ship's steel, and Li Qinwu saw it with Warp Sight.
• Li Qinwu dodged the Daemon's snapping jaws and jammed a steel pipe between them.
• Li Qinwu and his aides urinated into the trapped Daemon, while the Catwoman recoiled and called him a devil.