Boom!!!!
A deafening roar, shaking the heavens and earth, pierced the murky, smoke-shrouded sky of the hive city.
The angry roars of tens of thousands of artillery pieces converged into an unprecedented thunder, like raging waves, a tsunami, a torrent.
The searing white flames spewing from the muzzles instantly incinerated the air ahead, and even the distorted, blood-red sky was torn open with cracks by this brief yet pure light. A pure, ultimate barrage of destruction almost covered the entire firmament; ten thousand streaks of light ripped through the clouds, dragging trails of scalding, scorching Hellfire, and slammed fiercely into the Chaos Legions' deep formations.
The next moment, towering Hellfire and explosions, mixed with thick smoke and air currents, like a world-ending tsunami, instantly engulfed the Chaos positions one after another.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Under the dense Impact of artillery shells, the earth surged and rolled wildly like a stormy sea, then fractured and collapsed!
Terrifying and hideous cracks, like the wails of the earth, rose continuously as mushroom clouds under the astonishing barrage of countless shells!
Is it over?!
Just as the first wave of artillery strikes ended, the surviving Chaos Legions thought the Imperium's retaliatory strike was over.
The frenzied world Eaters, wielding chain axes, and a blood-red torrent composed of Bloodletters, Daemon Knights, and Flesh Hounds, once again pressed forward.
"Don't be afraid!"
"Charge!!!"
"Khorne will protect us!"
They believed that the Imperium's strike had ended.
Now, it was their turn to counterattack, to make those damned Imperials, those lackeys of the Corpse-Emperor, taste blood and feel despair and fear!
But was that really the case?
"Commander, first wave of test firing complete, Impact points calibrated, firing data loaded, awaiting orders."
Through the comms channel, the voice of the armored regiment from the rear came through. Merlin's eyes narrowed slightly, with a hint of coldness.
"Then—what are you waiting for?
Let them taste the 'ancient' human tactics."
The Van Fleet Ammunition Load!
The pinnacle of ancient human war wisdom was now imbued with the Emperor's divine will.
Thousands of tons of steel and high explosives per second, at a speed beyond mortal comprehension, were unleashed by the three armored corps in the rear, in almost insane quantities, onto this land defiled by Chaos!
Precision strike?
No, Merlin said: We don't need precision strikes; we just need to evaporate all life, buildings, and even the atmosphere within our sight!
A saturated, terrifying number of shells would physically send these blasphemous heretics to the afterlife!
Under Galahad's direction, the Mechanicus of the Transformers world successfully reverse-engineered Imperial heavy artillery, such as the Basilisk.
Arrays of Basilisks were spread across the plain; at the Commander's command, tens of thousands of heavy artillery pieces began a volley.
Boom!!!!
Ten thousand cannons roared in unison, like Zeus, who controlled thunder in myths, casting Spears of Divine Retribution at the lowly mortals who dared to defy him!
Thick beams of light immediately tore through the sky, tracing deadly parabolas, plummeting into the deep formations of the Chaos Legions.
A deadly rain of steel indiscriminately covered the charging Chaos Legions.
The world Eater Berserkers at the forefront were instantly torn by the furious Impact, sliced by scorching shrapnel, and devoured by bursting Hellfire.
A world Eater, roaring to the sky, brandishing a chain axe stained with shredded flesh, was reduced to a bloody mist mixed with metal fragments and bone and flesh residue under a 120mm high-explosive shell.
And his position, a dozen Chaos Renegade warbands, were also impacted by the large-caliber shells along with him, instantly melting away!
The blasphemous power armor blessed by Chaos, and the protection bestowed by Khorne, completely lost their effect under the massive artillery suppression. For a time, wails, screams, and roars intertwined with the thunder of shells, like an overture from Hell.
Even the Iron Warriors, masters of defense, and their Terminators, could not withstand this terrifying artillery suppression.
Did you think this was the end?!
Merlin's answer was no!
Under the heavy artillery's relentless bombardment, Thunderhawk gunships took off, their wings tearing through the clouds, sweeping low, emitting terrifying shrieks, like the death knell ringing.
Whoosh—!
This was the shriek of air being torn apart.
Hellfire missiles, dragging fiery trails, slammed into the Chaos Legions on the ground.
And the daemons in the sky were not spared either.
They wanted to destroy the heavy armored corps within the portal, but what awaited them was a desperate anti-air fire interception system.
A searing torrent of metal, composed of heavy uranium shells, easily tore through their burning leathery wings and brass armor!
A daemon was diving down, but it could not escape the dense chain of interceptor shells behind it. It was ultimately cut in half by a string of shells, emitting a shriek mixed with pain and fury. Its twisted demonic body instantly exploded in the air into a sky full of burning sulfurous Hellfire rain!
As if it were a grand fireworks display sacrificed for the destruction of Chaos!
The loaders, stripped to the waist, drenched in sweat, mechanically and frantically shoved heavy shells into the scorching breeches.
Each action was accompanied by the sound of hot metal touching flesh, then blessed by Tech-Priests in an assembly-line fashion, and then fired, repeating the cycle.
Each tremor and roar of the gun barrel was accompanied by a violent sinking of the entire vehicle.
Rolling dust mixed with gunpowder smoke, the strong smell of sulfur and evaporating metal, combined with the continuous rapid firing of the heavy artillery, significantly raised the temperature here!
The filthy torrent of Chaos was forcibly halted in this quagmire of death composed of steel, Hellfire, and Impact.
The tank Commander of the super-heavy tank "Emrys" had clothes stained with oil and sweat. His bloodshot eyes were fixed on the aiming scope, allowing the pungent gunpowder smoke to choke his nostrils, coughing incessantly, refusing to avert his gaze for half a second.
"Hurry, load the ammunition!!"
"Coordinates unchanged! Full charge! High-explosive barrage extended coverage! Bury those heretics in their blasphemous gods!" He roared into the comms array, every word extremely hoarse.
The loader in the crew was panting like an ox, his lungs heaving like bellows, but he still carried the heavy shell and savagely shoved it into the muzzle.
"One round loaded!"
Clang!
"For the God-Emperor! Burn them all!" Another tank Commander's fanatical response rang out in the channel.
The tank Cluster began its charge.
Like an endless torrent of steel, one tank next to another, forming a wall of despair that even Chaos would sigh at.
"fire! fire! fire!!!"
The steel trembled violently under the terrifying recoil, but the muzzle never stopped, spewing forth scorching, searing Hellfire, like the Hammer of Destruction wielded by a giant god!
The Chaos Legion suffered extremely heavy casualties.
However, the Orks' casualties were even more tragic, because due to the special nature of high-explosive shells, the Orks blown to pieces didn't even have the possibility of dispersing spores; it could be said they were completely finished.
After several rounds of artillery bombardment, Bonebreaker was numb.
His clan, his tribe, his Mekboyz—they were all blown to smithereens by the artillery!
Bonebreaker was somewhat bewildered; weren't they allies with the Imperium? How could they even bomb their allies?!
"Stop! Stop!"
Bonebreaker frantically wanted to tell Emrys not to bomb his location.
But the result was even more intense bombardment, and even the Thunderhawk gunships in the sky specifically chased after him to bomb him!
Now, Bonebreaker understood.
Emrys did it on purpose!!!
"Al-ven!!!"
Suddenly, amidst the dense smoke of artillery fire, an angry roar echoed.
A giant green figure crashed through the smoke screen and entered Emrys' sight.
"You damned liar—you dared to deceive me!!!"
"?" Emrys raised an eyebrow, looking at him with a half-smile.
"Isn't this the great Bonebreaker? How is it that after such a short time, you've become so miserable? Are you alright?"
Bonebreaker looked extremely wretched; his 'magnificent' power armor was shattered, and the two giant tusks hanging around his neck were also blown off by shells.
His remaining eye was filled with intense hatred.
Bonebreaker was dizzy from the explosions, and he glared at him fiercely.
"You... didn't... keep... the... alliance!"
"Alliance?" Emrys deliberately paused for a few seconds, then looked at him with a puzzled expression.
"What alliance? What are you talking about?"
This sentence made the furious Bonebreaker freeze on the spot; his already not-so-bright mind was almost short-circuited by this shameless question.
"Oh, I remember, you're talking about that." Emrys 'suddenly realized,' then showed some 'guilt'.
"I'm so sorry, my memory isn't very good, I forgot about you just now. I swear by the God-Emperor, I absolutely didn't do it on purpose!"
Whether it was on purpose or not, you know in your own heart!
Bonebreaker gnashed his teeth in hatred; his cunning, treacherous single eye showed deep resentment, but for now, he was at Emrys' mercy. If he wanted to lead the Orks to escape, he had to rely on Emrys' portal!
"I believe you!"
Bonebreaker swallowed his anger, deciding to settle the score with him once they escaped.
"We also want to leave, we are allies!"
"That won't do."
Emrys shook his head decisively and firmly, rejecting Bonebreaker's proposal.
"?"
His refusal was so abrupt that Bonebreaker's mind went blank.
"You said—what?"
"I said, I refuse."
Emrys smiled broadly.
"Sorry, our alliance is terminated. Now we are not allies, we are enemies."
They... were abandoned?!
Bonebreaker's pupils contracted sharply, showing venomous hatred, his bloodshot eyes staring fixedly at Emrys.
"You... are untrustworthy!"
"Trust?"
Emrys tilted his head and grinned.
"Sorry, the Imperium never talks about trust with alien. If you feel dissatisfied, you are welcome to seek revenge on me. Remember my name—Merlin Emrys!"
With that, Emrys waved goodbye to him gracefully, then stepped into the portal with a smile.
"Goodbye, my dear Bonebreaker~"
"No! Come back!"
Bonebreaker's eyes widened, wanting to grab Emrys, but was stopped by distant artillery shells. He could only watch that retreating figure unwillingly, and let out a furious roar.
"Emrys—!!!"
"What are you shouting about?"
Emrys scratched his ear, completely closed the portal, then looked in the direction of the hive city.
"Now all our people have evacuated, we can call the Blood Angel Space Fleet to conduct orbital bombardment on the hive city."
"Finally—it's over."
Looking at the hive city collapsing and being destroyed under the macro-cannons, Emrys breathed a sigh of relief.
But, was it really over?
The death of Cera Grym, the defeat of the Daemon Primarch Angron, and the heavy casualties of the world Eaters and Daemon hordes were like the last spark falling into the depths of the Warp, into the heart of that terrifying figure upon the Brass Throne.
Humiliation and fury!
Caused that giant blood-red figure upon the Brass Throne to completely lose his last shred of patience.
"Ants—you think—this is the end?"
The blasphemous whispers of the Blood God, mixed with a massive Warp storm, directly exploded in the minds and souls of everyone on the battlefield.
Cold, viscous, seemingly filled with the scent of blood, every word was like a sharpened blade, cutting at their souls, making them tremble with fear!
This voice is...
Emrys' pupils constricted sharply, realizing that an invisible fear had directly struck his heart.
Here it comes again!
This time, it was even more direct!
He could even feel that the projection of his soul in the Warp was enveloped by an endless blood-red color, and a pair of evil eyes, filled with destructive desires, were coldly staring at him, pouring out his greed and possessiveness unchecked through the murky sky of Draconys!
And endless, churning malice!
As he stared, the cracking ground of Draconys also seemed to be wailing in pain, and a fierce gale swept across the plains, dispersing the smoke ignited by the artillery fire!
"Warp readings are rising rapidly!!!" the Tech-Priest warned.
Boom—!
No sooner had his voice fallen than a beam of light shot straight into the sky from the depths of the Chaos hive city's ruins!
The blood-red light instantly ignited the atmosphere!
Making the entire sky of Draconys seem to be dyed red by that viscous, vast, endless blood, the surging clouds like a rushing river of blood,
Roaring with the malice of the Empyrean!
Boom—!!!
The distant continuous mountain ranges were leveled into plains, and canyons as vast as planetary scars were also smoothed over by this power. The seawater was boiling and evaporating!
"Oh no—."
The Librarian looked at the terrifying scene of heaven and earth changing, a deep horror appearing in his eyes.
"The veil of reality—is about to be completely torn apart!"
Such a terrifying sight, the changing of heaven and earth, symbolized that the veil of the real universe was being forcibly torn open from the depths of the Warp by an irresistible, blasphemous power!
Boiling Warp energy, like a breached river of blood, gushed out from those wildly expanding chthonic rifts, carrying the screams of billions of twisted souls!
The entire world's structure trembled and wailed under this blasphemous power, as if it could disintegrate at any moment!
At this moment, almost everyone, including Emrys, could see that the clouds, like a surging river of blood, actually formed the shape of a face, accompanied by that ubiquitous, boiling, terrifying malice. A cold, viscous voice, like the death knell of the apocalypse, echoed in the mind of every conscious being!
"As you wish—"
"Draconys shall be your altar!"
"Atropos, your soul belongs to me. This ridiculous war shall be ended by me personally."
"The Apocalypse descends!"
Deep within the turbulent Warp.
Atop a hill made of trillions of skeletal remains, stood that massive brass throne.
Upon a shrine forged from blood, bones, and trophies, sat the Chaos God known as Khorne. He wore an incredibly heavy, spiky suit of Sir-crafted plate armor, engraved with swirling blasphemous runes and various souls imprisoned by torment.
A huge winged helmet covered his head, concealing the non-human, roaring, and distorted face of this 'Deity'.
"The Apocalypse has arrived."
Khorne's declaration was like a declaration of war.
His voice, like an unchangeable divine decree, caused the entire world Aeros to wail.
In the blood-red clouds churning in the sky, every syllable uttered by that huge, roaring, ferocious, and distorted 'face' contained a terrifying power capable of stirring the heavens and moving mountains and seas. Its blasphemous Chaos demonic sound required no amplification from any communication array; it forcefully permeated the souls and mental spaces of both the Imperium and the Orks on the battlefield.
The crust was like a 'peeled egg'.
Endless streams of blasphemous light were no longer gushing forth, but had transformed into a filthy ocean covering the entire world!
Blood-red energy surged and boiled like a living thing, pouring out from countless rapidly expanding fissures in the earth's veins, submerging distant mountain ranges, devouring plains, and turning former daemon forges and blasphemous nests into distorted afterimages in the energy storm.
And the sky at this moment was dyed a nauseating, blood-red curtain, churning with blasphemous runes!
This scene was as if the entire world Aeros had been forcibly dragged into the Warp, into the depths of the 'Blood God's' stomach!
The air was thick with pungent sulfur, blood, and the screams of souls, as gales swept across the land.
Pure malice and thick poisonous mist made Emrys feel as if each breath he took was like swallowing hot grit; his lungs to his throat felt as if they were being scorched. An indescribable pressure and pain transformed into burning steel needles, stimulating his consciousness.
And all of this was merely... the prelude!
Apocalypse-level wars are the most extreme and destructive scale of conflict, with destructive power far exceeding that of conventional wars!
Even for the Imperium of Man, which possesses millions of worlds and whose territory covers most of the Milky Way Galaxy, an Apocalypse-level war requires an unimaginable price and resources that can only be described as terrifying!
The vast Star Army was merely an insignificant footnote in this campaign.
Even the 'demigods' in the eyes of mortals, the Angels of the Emperor, were only slightly more expensive 'consumables' in Apocalypse-level battles. Their systematic annihilation on a Chapter scale was commonplace.
Those who were lucky enough to survive for an hour could already be considered 'veterans'.
The combined fleets of several Sector commands, and even the Imperial Navy's fleets, could be seen without even looking up, their massive steel bodies casting shadows on the surface, while macro cannons and lances would illuminate the entire sky.
Don't worry about night... because 'night' will simply not arrive.
Of course, there's no need to seek cover either; in an 'Apocalypse'-level battle, there's no such thing as cover or terrain.
A mountain you saw a second might disappear the next.
Your fortress, including the entire area where your company is stationed, could be completely obliterated by orbital bombardment the next second.
Even the 'Titans', which many people might never see in their lifetime, can be honorably witnessed here.
These great creations, praised by the Tech-Priests as 'Machines of the Gods', will be deployed in multiple numbers. This is already the immense power formed by several, or even dozens, of Titan Legions, yet even in such a war, they cannot escape the fate of destruction.
Even Emperor-class Titans will fall here.
Large numbers of Emperor Baneblade-class super-heavy vehicles are not even considered consumables.
Noble Knight Houses, and even Grey Knights and Battle sisters, sacrifice one convent after another, one family after another, yet even more Knight families, Grey Knights, and Battle sister convents join the battlefield.
Here, life is the most insignificant currency, and the only thing you can do is try to empty your clip before you die.
Don't look back, because behind you is the Commissar.
And don't look up, because above are orbital bombardments like a rainstorm, falling fighter jets, and warships colliding like dumplings being dropped!
Of course, looking down isn't an option either... because what you're stepping on could very well be a sea of corpses, mixed with enemy flesh into a muddy, viscous swamp!
Apocalypse-level war descends in such a cruel manner.
Its purpose is not conquest, nor defense, but to use every means and tactic to completely slaughter the enemies on this world and even within this Sector until either side can no longer bear the cost or consequences; this war will not end.
And now, Khorne has formally declared the arrival of the 'Apocalypse' to the Imperium, which had just won the war.
He intends to use all living beings on this world as the sacrificial cost for an extinction ritual, to obtain... Atropos!
"Emrys"
At this moment, Azrael's hoarse voice came from beside him, startling the silent Emrys.
"Don't talk, I want to be alone." Emrys knew what he wanted to say, but the problem was... he didn't know what to do either!
He was merely indulging in some verbal sparring; who knew that the damned 'Khorne' would act so out of character, turning a perfectly normal Aeros world campaign into an 'Apocalypse'? Isn't this ridiculous?!
Aeros world isn't 'Cadia', and the Iconoclast System doesn't have any resources worth fighting over for both sides.
Just because of him, a Chaos God would personally intervene, even going so far as to launch an 'Apocalypse'-level war?
Emrys felt like crying but had no tears.
He asked himself honestly, he truly didn't think he had such 'value'.
But the matter had already occurred. In an 'Apocalypse'-level war, let alone his small legion, even if he threw all the resources and legions from five entire Worlds into this meat grinder called 'Apocalypse' regardless of cost, it might not even make a ripple of water.
What to do?
Emrys' face was pale, devoid of color.
He gazed at the blood-red clouds surging like waves, silent for a long time, then slowly exhaled a breath:
"Call for reinforcements."
This matter was no longer at a level he could participate in.
Their only reliance was the Indomitus Crusade fleet in the shadow, and... the Regent, Roboute Guilliman!
As long as they held out until the Ultramarines arrived, everything would be fine.
The premise is... they must hold out until the Ultramarines and Guilliman arrive!