In the underground passage on the second basement level, the smoke mixed with the devil's unique sulfurous stench, making one's lungs ache.
The Chaos runes on the wall still flashed with an eerie blue light from time to time, and a few Pink Horror screamed as they darted out of the shadows, only to be immediately blasted into scattered smoke by the Heavy Bolter on the tank.
The Vanguard soldiers advanced along the wall, the flashes of their Boltgun echoing in the darkness, sweeping away swarms of the stubborn Chaos Cultist were putting up a last stand.
Lynn stood behind a temporary command post, analyzing the map on the tactical terminal, his gaze falling on the location of the three underground levels of the barrier.
The advance was slower than expected. Luna had set up a large number of sorcery traps and summoning nodes on the second level, and every ten meters forward required significant casualties.
"Grown ups."
A figure in a grey robe appeared silently beside him; it was a bishop who had cleansed the plague.
He bowed slightly, establishing a link with the symbiote on Lynn's body, and directly transmitted the message into Lynn's mind:
"News has arrived from the ground: Major General Dominic has sent an ultimatum, demanding that you explain the matter of the Plague Cleansing Cult and the followers of the Dragon of Frost of the Icefield within a specified period."
" Archon Carter is trying to stall, but he can't hold out for long."
"Furthermore, Divine Messenger One sent word that the temple was broken into, and Si was killed. The attackers likely took the genetic samples."
The bishop then recounted the entire analysis of the Divine Emissary One.
Upon hearing the news, Lynn paused in his actions.
He raised his head, his eyes turning cold.
Something happened on the Ice Plains, and Divine Messenger Yi's analysis seemed to make sense.
Dominic has located the ice field and obtained solid evidence; now it's finally time to lay his cards on the table.
" Luna, oh Luna..." He shook his head slightly, a hint of coldness flashing in his eyes.
"I underestimated her."
He used to think that the Lord Regent was only good at pretending to be a god or a ghost, had a narrow mind, and always acted pettily.
But this time, the planning was frighteningly precise.
He trapped Rena's main consciousness with Nine-Sided Spirit-Sealing Barrier, but deliberately slowed down the flow of time, neither killing nor releasing her, all to lure her into his trap.
If he rushes to rescue Rena and personally leads his troops deep underground, it would mean losing control of the situation in the Hive City.
Even if he doesn't come in, as long as he reveals the connection between the Dragon of Frost and the Genestealer to Dominic.
Given that major general's upright character, he would never let the matter rest.
When the Imperial Navy exerts pressure, he will still have to be distracted to deal with it.
No matter which choice you make, you'll be led by the nose.
This elaborate scheme of luring the tiger away from the mountain and using someone else to do the dirty work is something Luna couldn't possibly come up with.
"Could it be that she has finally gained some intelligence?" Lynn muttered to himself.
The Lord of Change excels at manipulating fate, leading enemies step by step into the abyss through their own choices.
Although Luna has joined forces with Tzeentch, her mind doesn't seem to have become any sharper.
It now seems that someone else must have given them guidance.
But the other party overlooked one thing.
Rena has confirmed that Luna at the core of the barrier is undoubtedly the real Luna.
Therefore, it can be argued that while the barrier could isolate the Hive Mind, it also trapped Luna herself.
She had to maintain the formation and the nine Chaos Knight, so she couldn't leave at all.
That's enough.
Dominic's accountability is certainly troublesome, but ultimately it's just a difference in stance, not a matter of life and death.
But Luna is different; as long as this woman isn't eliminated, Brevis will never have a moment's peace.
Now that we've cornered her in her lair, we absolutely cannot let her go.
As for the ultimatum from outside... Carter can stall for as long as he can, but it doesn't matter if he can't.
At worst, he can wait until he carries Luna's head out, and then settle the score with Dominic.
He knew very well which was more important, Rena or Brevis.
"Pass down the order." Lynn raised his head, his tone revealing no trace of panic.
" Sen'er led the First and Third Assault Battalions, along with two Vanguard, in a feigned retreat back to the ground."
"It was announced publicly that the Governor-General had received an ultimatum from the Navy to return to the Governor-General's residence to handle official business, and the clearing operation was temporarily suspended."
"The rest of the elite troops, follow me and continue forward, heading straight for the flank of the third underground barrier." He tapped his tactical terminal, drawing a concealed dotted line.
"Yes!" The bishop bowed and accepted the order, then silently retreated into the shadows.
A few minutes later, there was a brief personnel change at the Vanguard position on the second basement level.
A group of people hurriedly left the battlefield.
The atmosphere on the bridge of the Gemstone was heavy, completely different from the atmosphere on Lynn's side.
Dominic stood in front of the main screen with his hands behind his back; his left arm, which had been severed, had been fitted with a new prosthesis.
More than three hours had passed since the messenger delivered the ultimatum.
The Governor's Office's replies were always the same few sentences.
"Forwarding," "Governor not yet returned," "Please wait patiently."
patience?
Dominic's face showed a hint of impatience.
He had long known that Brevis's bureaucrats might play games, but he hadn't expected them to be so blatant in their delays.
What else could this be but a guilty conscience?
"Major General, the genetic matching report from the Tech-Priest is in."
Lieutenant Karen strode over, holding a freshly printed data report, his tone grave.
"The result... is pretty much what you expected."
Dominic turned around, took the report, and quickly scanned the strings of data on it.
The genetic sequence of the divine messenger tissue collected from the Ice Plains overlaps with that of the Plague-Cleansing Apostles of the Lower City by more than 99.9%.
The same human genetic base, with fragments of Tyranids genes embedded in it, and the same fourth-generation hybrid characteristics.
The only difference is that the ice field sample has a few more mutant sequences adapted to the cold environment.
In other words, the followers of the Dragon of Frost and the apostles of the Plague Cleansing Cult are essentially the same thing.
They are all Genestealer.
With a "boom," it was as if something exploded in Dominic's mind.
He had previously tried to comfort himself by saying that the Plague Cleansing Cult was merely a stopgap measure, a choice Kerry had no other option but to make in response to the plague.
But the slumbering legion of thousands on the ice plains, the systematic Dragon God worship, and the infiltration of savage tribes throughout the Arctic...
This is definitely not something that can be done on a whim.
This was a long-planned infiltration operation.
It had already begun before the Battle of the Forbidden Wall, from the time of Kerry Von Gang to Brevis.
The claims of being recognized by the Dragon of Frost and being the Lord of the Ice Plains are all just a facade.
From the very beginning, he was cooperating with the Tyranids, no, he might even have been manipulated by Tyranids, gradually eroding Brevis's human society.
Dominic's hand holding the report trembled slightly.
It wasn't fear, it was anger.
He genuinely admired Kerry von. He admired his military talent, his administrative abilities, and his sense of responsibility in stabilizing a region during a chaotic era.
He even considered personally pleading for the young governor's merits upon returning to Terra and recommending him for a more important position in a star system.
But reality slapped him hard in the face.
The talent he admired was actually inviting trouble, feeding the Tyranids ' parasitic vanguard with the entire human population of the planet.
This is no longer a gray area of "stopgap measure".
This is a betrayal of humanity, a desecration of the Imperium, and an atrocity that has crossed the line for all human warriors.
" Karen." Dominic's voice was low, yet carried the heavy weight of an impending storm.
"Your subordinate is here."
"Order the entire fleet to enter a state of first-level combat readiness." Dominic raised his head, his eyes filled with only cold decisiveness.
"All Macro-cannon are charging, Lance Battery are preheating, and all carrier-based aircraft are loading and deploying."
"Instruct the ground garrison to seal off all starport entrances and exits."
"Give Kerry von Faber one last ultimatum: come to the Gemstone in person within an hour and explain everything."
He said, enunciating each word clearly, "Otherwise, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Lieutenant Karen's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately stood at attention and saluted. "Yes, Major General!"