Chapter 255

The eldar fortress was slender and delicate, like ice cones hanging between thick clouds, resting upon a soft sea of snow, standing in stark contrast to the imperial knights beside it.

The imperial knights were forged from heavy, coarse steel, their bodies clad in dark red paint and an array of intricate, burdensome heraldry, resembling iron titans stepped out of a barbaric age.

The expeditionary force temporarily made the ancient eldar fortress, guarded by the Blood Angels, their base.

The eldar, who claimed to have come to aid humanity, complained incessantly, asserting that humans had seized what belonged to them.

But the Jester, Sheiran the Veil-Walker, and Belisarius Cawl were old acquaintances; it was she who guided Cawl to Cadia.

This Jester mediated, and both the expeditionary force and the eldar agreed to deliberate further the next day.

After all, unexpected circumstances had arisen, and both the expeditionary force and the eldar needed time to process them.

And the source of this surprise was walking through the eldar fortress, under the protection of twenty-two Doraemon-chosen guardians.

These twenty-two Doraemon-chosen guardians were the finest warriors selected from the Blood Angels, Zhou Yun's personal escort, carrying a certain number of devices.

Due to his reunion with Captain Calain, the composition of the Doraemon-chosen guardians had temporarily changed.

Captain Calain had become one of them, his shoulder armor painted metallic blue.

A relatively small number of Blood Angels patrolled the fortress—only about a company's strength was stationed there; the rest had already retreated into Zhou Yun's fourth-dimensional pocket before the expeditionary force returned to the fortress.

To the expeditionary force, Zhou Yun had brought only a company of Blood Angels—counting Captain Calain's half-company, totaling roughly one hundred and sixty to seventy men.

One hundred and sixty to seventy elite Blood Angels were more than enough to control the entire fortress.

Human voices were far louder than those of the Astartes; most of the 184th Regiment's warriors hailed from the hive slums of Asford, and despite Cadia's training, some habits remained unchanged.

On the battlefield, they fought nearly as well as the Cadia-born, but off the battlefield, their hive-slum roots showed: many gathered to smoke lho sticks, play cards, or hold shooting contests.

These warriors noticed Zhou Yun walking along the open upper walkway and waved at him.

"Boss Zhou! Want a smoke?"

"Boss! How are Old One-Eye and Old Lag doing?"

"Champion! Come down and take a few shots?"

"I don't smoke."

"I'll take a few shots and you won't have to worry—just hand over the prizes."

Zhou Yun called down to them:

"Old One-Eye lost an arm, but he got a prosthetic."

"Old Lag has ascended to the Golden Throne."

With that, Zhou Yun waved, signaling he had other matters to attend to.

Belisarius Cawl, Leina, Calestine, and Greifax were waiting for him in a room within the fortress.

"I don't know how he deceived the Blood Angels."

Greifax's voice came from within the room; Zhou Yun heard it before he even entered.

"But his blasphemy is undeniable—the Cult of the Dead God is inherently gray, and his so-called Holy Doraemon sect has never been recognized by the Ecclesiarchy—it is utterly heretical."

"I have recognized it!" Saint Calestine replied gently. "The Holy Doraemon sect is unquestionably one of the Ecclesiarchy's sects—its purity and loyalty are beyond doubt."

"I am a Living Saint. I have the right to recognize another as a Saint."

"You are all false saints!" Greifax immediately retorted.

"But don't forget—many warriors of the 184th Regiment worship the Holy Doraemon sect. Are you calling these loyal warriors, who fought the Tyranids in the Underhive and the Black Legion on Cadia, heretics?"

"They are merely deceived—just as you deceived the Battle Sisters and the Arch-Consul."

Listening to the argument inside, Zhou Yun sighed and shook his head.

Couldn't these people get along? Like himself—he never resorted to brute force.

Zhou Yun kicked open the door.

"What's all this shouting?"

He barked sharply:

"If you keep it up, get out of my house!"

With that, Zhou Yun strode in, followed by the twenty-two towering Blood Angels, each equipped with secret devices, filling the room instantly.

Captain Calain stood beside Zhou Yun, gripping the holy relic, the Hammer of Bal, with both hands, his expression grim.

The fortress was occupied by the Blood Angels, who answered to Saint Guilliman and Zhou Yun—so Zhou Yun had no problem calling it his home. At least, that's how he saw it.

And as long as Cawl's knights didn't stand against Zhou Yun, the hundred-odd Blood Angels in the fortress alone were enough to hold the ground.

But in truth, there was no need to hold the ground at all.

Leina and Zhou Yun were old comrades, no need to explain.

Calestine likely received divine inspiration from the Emperor—she wouldn't oppose Zhou Yun either.

As for the Arch-Consul Belisarius Cawl—

Since Zhou Yun entered the room, the Arch-Consul had silently shifted his massive frame to stand beside him, mechanical arms extending, holding various strange devices, doing something unknown.

Zhou Yun glanced at Belisarius Cawl, his eye twitching slightly.

He was about to speak when Cawl noticed his gaze and bowed respectfully.

"Arch-Consul," Zhou Yun carefully chose his words, "you know—I'm not some kind of god."

"Mm-hmm, whatever you say, sir." Cawl nodded vigorously, then fell silent, merely waving the devices around Zhou Yun.

"."

Zhou Yun fell silent, deciding it was better not to say more.

He turned his head toward Inquisitor Greifax.

"Heretic," Greifax growled.

"Only you think I'm a heretic," Zhou Yun said, slightly exasperated.

"They're deceived by you," Greifax insisted.

Then the Inquisitor turned to Leina: "Leina, can you guarantee his loyalty? Can't you see the taint on him?"

"I can certainly guarantee Zhou Yun's—"

Leina was about to say Zhou Yun was unquestionably loyal, but her eye twitched involuntarily—she recalled the small blasphemous remarks Zhou Yun had once made, and her voice hesitated slightly:

"Zhou Yun is absolutely loyal!"

Both Zhou Yun and Greifax noticed the faint hesitation in Leina's words.

Greifax snorted, taking it as further proof of Zhou Yun's disloyalty.

Zhou Yun frowned.

For heaven's sake, with six arms and two spaghetti noodles—how could a man as utterly loyal as him be suspected of disloyalty?

Damn it, how can the Empire ever function with these vermin?

Zhou Yun took a slow breath, then said: "I don't speak to those controlled by Necron nanomachines inside their bodies."

"." Greifax's face twitched—she had no rebuttal.

If anyone else had Necron nanomachines inside them, Greifax would suspect them too.

"Abaddon calls the figure in the linen robe from your pocket 'Father!'" Greifax threw her trump card.

Greifax expected this to have an effect.

After all, besides herself, Leina, Calestine, and Belisarius Cawl had surely heard it.

But Leina's expression was utterly calm—as if she'd seen this before—and the Arch-Consul seemed not to care at all.

To Greifax's surprise, Zhou Yun's expression was equally calm.

"Fine. Then why don't you go talk to him yourself and confirm the linen-robed figure's loyalty?"

Zhou Yun shrugged, speaking plainly:

"If you enter my pocket, you'll meet him."

Before Greifax could react, Leina's expression faltered.

In her memory, anyone who entered Zhou Yun's pocket—even high-tier Tyranids whose consciousness could theoretically return to the Hive Mind—died utterly.

He's not planning to kill the Inquisitor to silence her, is he?

Leina quickly shot Zhou Yun a glance—no need to murder anyone.

Greifax might suspect, but she couldn't act.

If she entered and never came out, it might only fuel suspicion toward Zhou Yun.

"Fine."

But to everyone's surprise, Greifax agreed without hesitation:

"I will enter to confirm the loyalty of the linen-robed figure."

"I don't mind the dangers within your pocket—if I die or am corrupted, it proves you are indeed blasphemous."

Greifax deemed it worth the risk—she couldn't let this chance slip.

After all, only one being could be called "Father" by Abaddon. No matter the danger, she had to confirm whether it was him.

"As long as you dare let me confirm," Greifax whispered, "in the name of the Inquisitor, in the name of the Hero Macordo, I will not slander you."

"If both you and the linen-robed figure are loyal, I will willingly become your servant and crown you a Saint."

"Wait." Zhou Yun raised his hand to interrupt Greifax.

"Are you afraid?" Greifax frowned.

Zhou Yun shook his head: "I just need to remove some troublesome things before you go in."

Before Greifax could react, Zhou Yun extended a finger toward her gently.

The Mindlock Scarab—a tiny Necron nanomachine capable of implanting into a victim's body and remotely controlling their flesh—the Infinite One, Tarasyn, once used such machines to control his collections.

As a Necron device, it originally had no machine spirit—but that didn't hinder Zhou Yun's manipulation.

Any mechanical device with power could be controlled by Zhou Yun; he gently awakened a simple, nascent machine soul within the Lockheart Sacred Beetle, then used it to take command of these Necron machines.

Before Grex's stunned gaze and Belisarius Cawl's reverent stare, the Lockheart Sacred Beetle carved a small wound on Grex's arm and emerged entirely from the Inquisitor's body.

(End of Chapter)