boom!!!
A violent explosion ripped open the thick ice door, and the high-temperature shockwave blasted a gap in the several-meter-thick ice, wide enough for two people to pass through.
The biting wind rushed in through the gap, whipping up a blizzard that stung our faces like tiny knives scraping our cheeks.
The dim sunlight poured in through the gap in the ice field, casting a blinding band of light across the blood and shattered ice.
The light wasn't particularly bright, but to Dominic, who had been fighting for so long in the dark City of Teeth, it carried an almost alluring sense of freedom.
"Walk!"
He gave a low shout, gripped the Setting Sun Dagger in his palm, grabbed Sister Elaine's hand with his right, and rushed out of the gap first.
The icy wind and snow instantly enveloped my entire body, sweeping away the strong smell of blood and burnt flesh from my nostrils.
Beneath their feet lay a solid and vast ice field, no longer the narrow and cramped passageway of the ice cave, nor the crowds that surrounded them from all directions.
The view suddenly opened up, and the heavy snow obscured the distant horizon, providing them with the best cover.
The gates of the City of Teeth are not entirely undefended.
Hundreds of the most elite savage warriors were already guarding the outer perimeter of the ice gate.
They were dressed in snow-white camouflage animal skins and carried spears coated with ice poison, arranged in a fan shape on both sides of the exit.
The moment they heard the explosion, everyone turned around at the same time, spears held high, and roared as they charged toward the breach.
"Invisibility."
Dominic uttered two words in a low voice, and the neural interface on his helmet simultaneously issued commands.
The gray-white cloak draped over their bodies immediately rippled with a fine layer of waves, like water with pebbles thrown in, blending the two figures into the surrounding snowy backdrop.
Sister Elaine activated the device simultaneously, and the pale silver, untouchable force field contracted to its minimum range, barely protecting the two of them within half a meter.
Her breathing was so steady and even, as if the bloody battle and the sacrifice of her comrades had never happened.
The savage warrior's spear swept past the two men with a powerful gust of wind, missing their target by mere millimeters.
They searched frantically through the snowstorm, their eyes wide with fury, but the optical cloaking device's ability to mimic was beyond the reach of the naked eye.
Under the cover of the snowstorm, Dominic and his companion crouched low and slipped silently through the gap between the two groups of savages.
The density of the guards on the ice field was far lower than inside the ice cave, and the gaps between them were enough for the two people in stealth mode to pass through easily.
The snow underfoot crunched softly underfoot, only to be quickly covered by newly fallen snowflakes, leaving no trace.
After running for nearly three kilometers and confirming that there were no pursuers behind them, the two stopped behind a sheltered ice cliff.
The small airship, which had been hidden here in advance, lay quietly in the snow, its hull covered with camouflage and a layer of snow, almost blending into the surrounding ice and rocks.
Once aboard the airship, the sealed cabin doors kept out the howling, cold wind.
The temperature control system activated quickly, and warm air blew over his cold body, but Dominic felt no warmth at all.
He leaned against the cold metal bulkhead, stiffly removing his invisibility cloak to reveal the blood-stained light armor underneath.
The mechanical prosthesis on his left arm was still crackling with faint electrical sparks. Under the combined effects of low temperature and overload, the nerve interface was sending waves of dull pain, but he seemed completely oblivious to it.
A small tube of tissue sample stained with pale purple blood lay quietly in my palm.
That was something he casually scraped off the ground when he killed the divine messenger, Si.
The sample was sealed in a vacuum sampling tube, the tube wall covered with a thin layer of frost, which gleamed strangely under the cabin light.
Even without going back for genetic testing, he could guess the result.
A four-armed structure, Psychic Power properties, an aura highly similar to that of the Plague Cleansing Cult, and melee abilities far exceeding those of humans...
Everything points to the same answer.
Genestealer.
The pioneer parasitic species of the Tyranids.
Sister Elaine was already in the pilot's seat, starting the airship.
With a deep hum from its engines, the airship broke through the clouds and flew towards the starport.
Outside the porthole stretched an endless white ice field, ravaged by wind and snow, a vast and desolate landscape.
Dominic stared at the rapidly receding snowscape outside the window, remaining silent for a long time.
So much has happened lately, a rollercoaster of events like a bizarre and fantastical dream.
He still remembered the scene when they set off. The Warp route encountered rare turbulence, and the fleet deviated from its course by countless light-years.
Wave after wave of Chaos Warband and demonic invasions exhausted the soldiers, and their morale plummeted to rock bottom.
Having finally reached the Calixis System, they were met with a Dorito invasion by the Orks warlord Ragnar. Dorido fell, Carl II was in dire straits, and Brevis was in grave danger.
That was the darkest encounter he had ever experienced since joining the army.
Ragnar's bizarre ability to be immortal almost made him lose faith.
Standing on the bridge of the Gemstone, watching as those around him sacrificed themselves for him, he felt for the first time his own powerlessness and insignificance.
He even prepared for the worst, to sacrifice himself to provoke the wrath of the entire fleet and leave that terrifying Orks on the Gemstone forever.
Fortunately, the Inquisitor pulled him out of his daze, and Lynn's appearance completely turned the tide of the battle.
First, they saw through Ragnar's feigned death, and then they used their extensive experience against the Orks to devise subsequent tactics.
Then, with terrifyingly accurate intelligence and flawless tactical design, they annihilated the legendary Orks warlord Ragnar in a single, perfect saturation attack at Horseshoe Mountain Valley.
Subsequently, the area was reclaimed from the Dorito, scorched earth was used to eradicate spores, and industrial reclamation plans were implemented...
Every single item is impeccably beautiful.
He had thought this would be a perfect learning experience.
Like the heroic tales passed down from generation to generation, they rose from the ashes amidst pain and despair, defeated powerful enemies, and returned home in glory with illustrious achievements.
But now, the story has completely gone astray.
Behind the foreign enemies he defeated along the way, stands an even deeper mystery.
The core of this mystery lies in the young governor whom he admired and supported along the way.
The Plague Cleansing Cult is one thing, but that's another.
In the darker side of the Imperium, it's not uncommon for Hive City to rely on the Genestealer' efficient perception and execution to handle plagues and improve administrative efficiency.
Most of these are gray-area operations that are turned a blind eye by higher-ups. As long as they don't come to the forefront and aren't caught red-handed by the Inquisition, they usually get away with it.
After all, for the Hive World, efficiency is often more important than political correctness.
But the Dragon of Frost is different.
This isn't some shady deal hidden in the sewers of the Lower City; it's a legend deeply intertwined with Kerry Von's life story.
The Battle of the Forbidden Wall, the Clearing of the Ice Plains, the Subjugation of the Savages...
Every step of his rise to power was backed by the legend of "the acclaim of the Dragon of Frost ".
If the Dragon of Frost are all a fabrication created by the Tyranids using genetic technology...
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but tremble slightly, and his right hand involuntarily tugged at the wrinkles in his trousers.
Does this mean that those seemingly invincible Frost Soldier are essentially an Tyranids army?
So, what exactly is Kerry von?
Dominic closed his eyes and rubbed his throbbing temples.