Chapter Summaries

Han Mingxuan and the God of War prepared to make Abaddon ascend to godhood while protecting the Emperor and ensuring Guilliman's resurrection unfolded at the appointed moment. After Han Mingxuan left for Punishment Star, the God of War and Sinleech discussed how fate had changed them and questioned the God of War's earlier message about the Dark Prince.

• Han Mingxuan congratulated the God of War on reclaiming all his Positive Authority, while Sinleech asked when they would proceed with the plan for Abaddon.
• Sinleech revealed that he had broken the Emperor's legs, and Han Mingxuan confirmed the suspicion before joining the God of War and Sinleech in reinforcing the seal on the Golden Throne.
• Han Mingxuan decided they needed Belisarius Cawl to help persuade Calgar to let Guilliman's resurrection proceed safely, and Sinleech agreed to bring Cawl to him.
• The God of War promised to handle Abaddon's ascension, while Han Mingxuan left for Punishment Star and Sinleech reflected that the situation would become easier after the Battle of Cadia and the opening of the Great Rift.
• Sinleech asked why the God of War had once told him to have Han Mingxuan find the Dark Prince, and the God of War explained that the new god had needed to complete her authority.

Sinleech and the God of War arranged Abaddon’s path to godhood, while Abaddon followed Drach’nyen into a Warp trial ground prepared for him. In the Throne Room, Cawl met the God of War and asked whether the Imperium of Man was doomed.

• Sinleech recognized the God of War’s plan to make Mr. Han the God of Love’s anchor and agreed to help move the plan forward.
• Abaddon chased Drach’nyen to the edge of the Warp, where he found a sea of god’s blood and declared he would ascend to godhood.
• The God of War swept Abaddon and the Black Legion fleet into a secret realm, intending to grant Abaddon godhood and authority when he emerged.
• Sinleech brought Cawl to Terra, where they found the God of War in the Throne Room.
• Cawl scanned the God of War, recognized him as a god, and asked whether the Imperium of Man was doomed; the God of War said one wrong thought could doom it.

Sinleech arranged a brutal trial for Abaddon to claim the remaining divine station and negative authority, while Cawl learned that the Emperor supported Sinleech’s plan. Abaddon rapidly ascended as a Warp god, unaware that the Chaos Gods intended to claim him afterward.

• Sinleech kicked the Golden Throne and prompted the Emperor to manifest and explain the plan to Cawl.
• The God of War tricked Sinleech into taking charge of Abaddon's trial, then went to Punishment Star.
• Sinleech created a Horus with the remaining divine station and negative authority in his heart, forcing Abaddon to kill him to claim them.
• Abaddon defeated Horus and became the fastest-born God in the Warp while Sinleech watched and mocked him.
• The three Chaos Gods watched Abaddon's trial and planned to exchange their power for the Blood God's legacy.

Tzeentch, Nurgle, and Slaanesh plotted to exploit Abaddon's arrogance and seize the Blood God's legacy while he staged his coronation as a new god. Sinleech recognized that Abaddon was only temporarily empowered and turned his attention to protecting Terra and preparing for the Dark King's seal to open.

• Tzeentch proposed using Guilliman's awakening to provoke Abaddon into attacking the Imperium, while Chaos Undivided's daemons would bear the fighting.
• Abaddon unleashed crimson Warp storms and disrupted the Imperium's shipping routes as he celebrated his new power.
• Sinleech dismissed the resulting administrative burden and left it to Vashtorr, then attended Abaddon's coronation with the God of War.
• Abaddon proclaimed his rise to godhood and vowed to destroy the Imperium, while Sinleech saw that his power depended on the God of War and judged him a half-baked god.
• Sinleech reassured the God of War that the other Chaos Gods would restrain Abaddon and that the Imperium would receive forces suited to counter him.
• Concerned that Terra must remain safe until the passage opened, Sinleech decided to arrange for the Dark King's seal to open automatically at a chosen time and went to find Mr. Han.

Han Mingxuan and his allies prepared for Abaddon’s rise as a new God, prioritizing Roboute’s resurrection and the Imperium’s defense. Angron warned Vulkan about the danger, but confirmed that his Legion and the Night Haunter’s would follow Han Mingxuan rather than join the Imperium’s forces.

• Sinleech proposed limiting the Dark King's seal, and Han Mingxuan agreed to guard the Terra Throne Room while Roboute's resurrection proceeded.
• Han Mingxuan warned Sinleech to watch Xiao Ning and told Angron and the Night Haunter to keep their Legions focused on defense and recovery.
• Han Mingxuan told Angron and the Night Haunter that Abaddon had acquired the Blood God's legacy and become a new God in the Warp.
• Angron and the Night Haunter decided not to warn the other Legions, but Angron chose to inform Vulkan.
• Angron warned Vulkan about Abaddon and explained that his Legion and the Night Haunter's would follow Han Mingxuan, not serve in the Imperium's regular forces.
• Vulkan apologized for Lion El'Jonson, and Angron said Lion could settle his own affairs later.

Lion El'Jonson led the First Legion toward the Eye of Terror to test Abaddon's strength, while Abaddon vowed to destroy him and invade the Imperium. On Terra, Vashtorr and Sinleech recognized that Abaddon's power was draining away and chose to watch events unfold.

• Sanguinius defended Angron and the visitors from another world, while Lion El'Jonson insisted that the Dark Angels would not back down from Abaddon.
• Lord Cypher told Lion El'Jonson that Statham had taken the support squad back after the Angel of Red Sand arrived.
• Lion El'Jonson rejected Corvus's warning and led the First Legion toward the Eye of Terror to assess the Black Legion's strength.
• Abaddon learned that Lion El'Jonson was coming, ordered the Black Legion to invade the material world, and vowed to wipe out the First Legion.
• On Terra, Vashtorr and Sinleech discussed how Abaddon's power was draining away and decided to drink tea while watching the conflict.

Han Mingxuan prepared for a looming catastrophe as Lion led the First Legion against Abaddon, whose new godlike power trapped Lion and his guards in his Realm. Abaddon declared his intention to destroy the Imperium and struck at Lion, leaving his fate uncertain.

• Lion led the First Legion toward the Eye of Terror while Han Mingxuan asked the Silent King to watch over the war and sent Krete to protect the Blackstone Artifacts on Cadia.
• Han Mingxuan ordered Konrad and Angron to guard Punishment Star, then asked Sinleech to divine the cause of his unease; Sinleech reported that he could no longer see fate clearly.
• Han Mingxuan sent Sinleech and the God of War to Macragge to prepare Guilliman's resurrection, and ordered Sanguinius to return to the Baal System and prepare for a Warp incursion.
• Lion and his elite squad boarded the Vengeful Spirit, where Abaddon transported them to his blood-red Realm before his throne.
• Lion provoked Abaddon by mocking his power and leadership, but Abaddon struck Lion down, immobilized his guards, and declared that the Primarchs would die as he raised the Talon of Horus toward Lion's heart.

Abaddon launched a full-scale assault on the Imperium and confronted Lion El'Jonson near the Eye of Terror. Han Mingxuan agreed to let the Chaos Gods drive Abaddon's madness to its limit while he went to bring Lion to safety.

• Abaddon attacked Lion El'Jonson with the Talon of Horus and a daemon sword, but the Emperor's power shielded the Lion and then took him and his men out of the Realm.
• Lion El'Jonson returned to find daemons overrunning the Dark Angels' flagship and learned that Cadia was under attack, the Blood Angels had returned to Baal, and Abaddon was emerging from the Eye of Terror to challenge him.
• Vashtorr learned that Chaos incursions had appeared across the Imperium and coordinated its forces with Han Mingxuan, who had already ordered two Legions to set out from Punishment Star.
• The Emperor told Han Mingxuan that the Chaos Gods wanted to fan Abaddon's madness until they could kill him, despite the immense losses the Imperium would suffer.
• Han Mingxuan agreed to the plan and promised to bring Lion El'Jonson to the Throne Room while the Emperor and the other Chaos Gods worked to draw Abaddon's divine power out.

Han Mingxuan strengthened Corvus and opened a shortcut for Angron and the Night Haunter to join the fight against Abaddon. As Abaddon faced defeat, the Emperor and Han Mingxuan agreed to let the four other Chaos Gods bless him, and the Warp Gods appeared to offer him their power.

• Corvus begged for help as Abaddon tortured Lion El'Jonson inside a Realm, and Han Mingxuan empowered Corvus to break in and rescue him.
• Han Mingxuan opened a warp rift that brought Angron and the Night Haunter's forces to the battlefield, strengthening them as well.
• Angron and the Night Haunter attacked Abaddon, and the Night Haunter's Lightning Claw stripped away Abaddon's divine power.
• The Emperor told Han Mingxuan that the other four Chaos Gods would bless Abaddon, with their power withdrawn before his mortal body was overwhelmed.
• As the Night Haunter prepared to kill Abaddon, the other three Warp Gods appeared and offered him their power to destroy the Imperium of Man.

Han Mingxuan empowered Lion, who joined the other Primarchs in beating Abaddon on Cadia as the Chaos Gods strengthened him with power resembling the Emperor’s. Han withdrew his power just as Abaddon vanished, leaving Lion gravely wounded and near death.

• Han Mingxuan empowered the wounded Lion and sent him back to fight Abaddon while the God of War and Sinleech watched from Macragge.
• Lion attacked Abaddon with his fists, and the other Primarchs joined the battle as Han Mingxuan encouraged them from the Throne Room.
• Abaddon called on the Chaos Gods, whose power gathered within him alongside a force the Primarchs recognized as the Emperor’s.
• Abaddon ranted at the Primarchs as they overwhelmed him, and Lion prepared to kill him.
• Han Mingxuan withdrew his power, leaving Lion weakened; Abaddon struck, vanished, and left Lion near death as the others called for an Apothecary.

Abaddon lost his brief godhood, accepted new power from Tzeentch, and set out to destroy Cadia. As the battered Primarchs prepared to return to Terra and question the Emperor, a catastrophic event struck Cadia.

• Abaddon discovered his divine power was fading, and Tzeentch revealed that he had never truly been a god.
• Abaddon demanded power from Tzeentch, received it, and vowed to destroy Cadia and devastate the Imperium of Man.
• Vulkan learned that Lion El'Jonson was in a deep coma, while Corvus explained that the Emperor's power had appeared within Abaddon during the battle.
• Vulkan and Corvus decided to return to Terra and confront the Emperor and Mr. Han for answers.
• A spatial disturbance shook the flagship, and its communications channel carried anguished cries from Cadia.

Abaddon used the Blackstone Fortress Eternal Wish to destroy Cadia, triggering a Great Rift and a wider war. Han Mingxuan opened the passage between eras and summoned the Word Bearers and Iron Warriors, who prepared to support the Eye of Terror front aboard Excommunication.

• Abaddon used the Blackstone Fortress Eternal Wish to destroy Cadia after Vulkan's army had departed.
• Han Mingxuan told Konrad that Cadia had fallen, and Konrad sent Angron and Dawn Squad to the Eye of Terror front while Krete's team began restoring Punishment Star.
• On Macragge, the God of War left to help while Sinleech prepared to resurrect Guilliman.
• Han Mingxuan released the seal on the Black King, opened the passage between eras, and summoned the Word Bearers and Iron Warriors to aid the war.
• Angrak showed Perturabo the World Engine Excommunication, and the Fourth and Seventeenth Legions boarded it to support the Battle of Cadia.

Excommunication completed its transformation into a planet-sized weapon and set out to aid the forces at Cadia, where the Warp had devastated the world. As the Grey Knights joined the deeper battle, Han Mingxuan sought a way to wake the still-comatose Roboute and asked Lady Euten to call to him.

• Archmagos Herbert prepared Excommunication’s weapons, and Perturabo and Lorgar admired the converted planet as it entered the passage to Cadia.
• Krete’s forces struggled to hold Cadia against the Warp’s corruption, while Krete remained alert to the possibility that Xiao Ning might act.
• Draigo asked Han Mingxuan to send the Grey Knights to the most dangerous front, and Han sent them through a Warp Rift to fight the Daemons supporting the battle.
• Sinleech reported that Roboute’s body and soul had recovered but that he still would not wake, and Han Mingxuan decided he needed a strong stimulus.
• Han Mingxuan contacted Lady Euten and told her to call to Roboute as she normally would so her voice could reach his mind.

Roboute awakened after ten thousand years and was sent with the Thirteenth Legion to reinforce Cadia. As Vulkan's forces struggled to hold the line, Xinleech and Han Mingxuan prepared for the coming reinforcements while the God of War went to intercept Abaddon.

• Lady Euten's voice woke Roboute, and Xinleech explained that Abaddon had destroyed the Cadian Gate and the Imperium needed immediate reinforcements.
• Roboute ordered Calgar to mobilize the Ultramarines and Cawl to ready the Primaris Space Marines before Xinleech sent the Thirteenth Legion through a Warp Rift to Cadia.
• Xinleech told Han Mingxuan that Roboute's awakening would ease pressure on the front, while Han Mingxuan warned that the forces already there might not hold until reinforcements arrived.
• Vulkan ordered his troops and the Phalanx to hold Cadia's defenses despite catastrophic losses and the loss of contact with other planets.
• Xinleech appeared beside Vulkan and explained that the current Chaos forces were the first wave, while the God of War had gone to intercept Abaddon.

Roboute Guilliman joined Vulkan on the front at Cadia and learned that the Imperium could only hold out until reinforcements arrived. Vulkan then described the astonishing changes brought by the Father of Night, leaving Guilliman overwhelmed by news of resurrected Primarchs.

• Sinleech told Vulkan that Roboute had awakened, and Guilliman contacted the Salamanders' flagship before joining Vulkan and the arriving Ultramarines.
• Vulkan and Guilliman agreed that Cadia could not be retaken and that the Imperium had to hold the battlefield until reinforcements arrived.
• Vulkan told Guilliman that the Father of Night, Mr. Han, had appeared and was Konrad Curze's father.
• Vulkan explained that the Night Haunter had been resurrected, cured of his madness, and had rescued Corvus after purging the Eighth Legion.
• Vulkan revealed that the Father of Night and Sinleech had resurrected Sanguinius and that the Father of Night had found the sleeping Lion; Guilliman said he wanted to sleep a little longer.

Vulkan told Guilliman that Angron from another world had fought beside the loyal Primarchs in the Tyranids War, leaving Guilliman so stunned he thought he needed sleep. As the battle for Cadia intensified, Sinleech healed the wounded Lion, and Angron arrived with Khârn to turn the tide against the Daemons.

• Vulkan told Guilliman that the Angron who fought in the Tyranids War came from a world where all the Primarchs remained loyal, and Guilliman struggled to accept it.
• Vulkan and Guilliman left to join Corvus on Cadia, while Sinleech agreed to oversee matters before traveling to The Rock.
• Sinleech pushed past the Dark Angels and used the Staff Han Mingxuan had given him to heal Lion, who would recover after seven hours but remain weakened for a week.
• Angron and Khârn arrived on Cadia, and Khârn's drumming and blue flames destroyed Daemons while easing the pressure across the battlefield.
• Guilliman thanked Angron awkwardly, and Angron laughed before urging everyone to attack the forces of Chaos.

Angron’s arrival helped the Imperium’s forces, but four Chaos Daemon Princes soon appeared and drew the Primarchs into battle. The Grey Knights were left in danger after Perturabo blocked their forces, while Corvus confronted Lorgar.

• Angron fought beside Guilliman and reassured him before Sinleech warned that the battlefield was about to change.
• Fulgrim, Mortarion, and Magnus’s opponent appeared with their forces, and Nova attacked Fulgrim with the Evernight Code.
• Guilliman joined Nova against Fulgrim, took the Code, and fought his brother while Angron engaged Mortarion and Magnus fought the Lord of Drakes.
• Lorgar arrived as another Daemon Prince, and Corvus confronted him while the four Primarchs recognized the danger to the Grey Knights.
• Fulgrim revealed that Perturabo had stopped the Grey Knights’ forces, and Sinleech hoped Corvus would quickly defeat Lorgar.

Lorgar began the final ritual to sacrifice Cadia, but Sinleech evacuated the Imperial forces before Perturabo’s steel planet, Excommunication, destroyed the world. Angron, Perturabo, and another Lorgar regrouped aboard Angron’s flagship and prepared to counterattack, while Perturabo hinted that he had a secret weapon.

• Lorgar wounded by Corvus revealed that his own blood was the final step in the ritual to sacrifice Cadia, and an unseen voice challenged his certainty about fate.
• Alarms warned both sides that a massive celestial body was approaching, and Sinleech teleported the Imperial troops and Primarchs to safety.
• Perturabo directed Excommunication’s collision with Cadia, destroying the planet and killing the Daemons and Daemon Princes who had not escaped.
• Guilliman and the other 40K-era Primarchs heard Angron, Perturabo, and another Lorgar speaking over the Public Combat Network and realized that reinforcements from another spacetime had arrived.
• Angron explained that the Great Rift had left the Night Haunter isolated at Punishment Star, and Perturabo said he had brought a secret weapon for their counterattack.

Perturabo explained how he could turn Excommunication into either a mobile Dreadnought or a vast steel wall, while Sinleech warned that Chaos had to be defeated decisively to counter the effects of displaced fate. The Primarchs began coordinating their next moves, and the chapter ended with Lorgar setting aside an awkward comparison to the Emperor to discuss the battle plan.

• Perturabo told Angron and Lorgar that his Iron Statue could control Excommunication, transforming it into a Dreadnought for up to ten minutes or a Great Wall of Steel.
• Sinleech warned the Primarchs that Chaos would continue its offensive and said every Chaos force involved in the war had to be killed at least twice.
• Perturabo proposed that the IV Legion take over the battlefield while part of the Dawn Army Group joined the XII Legion to protect the Night Haunter.
• Guilliman entered the command room with the other Primarchs, and Vulkan remarked that Lorgar's hair made him resemble the Emperor.
• Lorgar accepted Vulkan's apology and turned the gathering's attention to the next stage of the battle plan.

Lorgar joined the Imperium’s forces and used his Psychic Power to cleanse the survivors of Cadia, while the Primarchs and Chaos Gods prepared for the next stage of the war. The Chaos Gods sent the Lord of Iron toward the front for one final counterattack, where he vowed to make the Imperium pay.

• Angron left the planning meeting to support the Night Haunter, while Lorgar and Perturabo stayed to coordinate the forces.
• Lorgar spread his Psychic Power across Excommunication Planet and burned away the Chaos corruption afflicting the survivors of Cadia.
• The survivors mistook Lorgar’s golden radiance for the God-Emperor, while the Ultramarines recognized him as a different, more noble version of the Lord of the Word Bearers.
• The Chaos Gods discussed their limited remaining power and agreed to send the Lord of Iron into the front lines for their final counterattack.
• The Lord of Iron found the Grey Knights had vanished and set out to make the Imperium pay.