Chapter 259

This old bastard

Zhou Yun looked at Eldrad Ulthran, the ancient seer, and his expression twitched slightly,

No wonder he was the most infamous Aeldari seer,

Zhou Yun stared at his wrinkled face, gently pressing down on the brim of his baseball cap,

The cap-shaped artifact had greatly sharpened Zhou Yun's mind, while the portable pyramid beneath it emitted an almost imperceptible glow, reinforcing his brain,

Then Zhou Yun glanced at Grayfax, signaling her to step forward.

"Xenos."

Grayfax's voice carried contempt:

"I warn my colleagues: you are unworthy, blasphemous abominations, a pack of arrogant peacocks and fallen demons."

"You deserve nothing but death, and your souls cast into the curses of the Dark Gods."

"But your sweet words deceived us, making us believe you came for cooperation and negotiation."

"And then? What did we get? An assassin? A clown?"

Grayfax's finger pointed at Shalendra Veilwalker, bound on the ground,

Veilwalker lifted her head slightly,

"Hi." She greeted Eldrad Ulthran and Iyanna with a cheerful tone.

Both leaders of the Aeldari Death Cults twitched slightly,

They clearly hadn't expected Shalendra Veilwalker to be captured by the Human Expeditionary Force.

"I know you hate us—you have every reason to."

Eldrad Ulthran quickly gathered his words:

"Since the birth of the God of Hunger, many of my kin have fallen, forgetting their former glory, becoming bandits, pirates, and sadists."

"They committed many errors, straining relations between our two peoples."

"But just as on your million worlds there are a million different civilizations, as a fractured, displaced people, we too have diverse cultures and beliefs."

"For instance, Shalendra Veilwalker worships the Laughing God Xighor, while Lady Iyanna beside me is the Chosen of the Death God Inad."

Here, Eldrad Ulthran extended his finger toward the prone Shalendra Veilwalker,

"It must have been Xighor who ordered her!"

"I and Lady Iyanna know nothing!"

"Huh?" Shalendra Veilwalker wriggled, clearly stunned by Eldrad Ulthran's sheer audacity.

Before Shalendra Veilwalker could protest, Eldrad Ulthran rose and bowed to the Expeditionary Force with impeccable human etiquette,

"I have not yet introduced myself—perhaps you misunderstand me."

"I am Eldrad Ulthran, Aeldari Seer, the Elder, the Seer of Visions, the Supreme Seer."

"I am the enemy of the Cults, and an old acquaintance of the Human Emperor."

"I witnessed humanity's fall into the Old Night, and I witnessed the Human Emperor's rise from Terra."

"I fought against the fallen Fuegan, and I guided the Fire Dragon Vulkan back to Terra, earning his friendship."

"Unlike my arrogant peers, my long life has taught me one truth."

"Humanity is the Vanguard against the Great Enemy of Chaos; only through coexistence and mutual aid can both humans and Aeldari survive!"

As he spoke, Eldrad Ulthran turned his gaze once more upon the Expeditionary Force:

"I know your true destination—and I am willing to help you complete your pilgrimage!"

For a moment, the Expeditionary Force exchanged uneasy glances,

An Aeldari claiming close cooperation with humans, asserting friendship with the Emperor and the Primarchs—this was simply…

"It was he who unleashed a horde of clowns into the Imperial Palace during the Beast Wars, killing countless civilian guards and several Imperial Guards, nearly reaching the Golden Throne behind the Eternal Gate."

At that moment, Zhou Yun spoke calmly.

The air instantly froze.

During the Thirty-Second Millennium's Beast Wars, which engulfed all of Terra, the Imperial Palace was suddenly attacked by an unexpected enemy,

A horde of Aeldari clowns appeared out of nowhere, shouting absurdly about friendship while breaching the palace defenses and nearly reaching the Golden Throne.

Then these clowns told the Grand Master of the Assassinorum, Wan Ge:

"Though the Ork war moon has reached Terra's gates, Chaos is the true threat."

"Forget the Orks—use all your strength to fight Chaos!"

This bizarre act was orchestrated by Eldrad Ulthran.

Eldrad Ulthran was instantly speechless, muttering under his breath: "This was to make you see the true threat!" "It was a warning!" "How can the Orks compare to Chaos?!"

Hearing Eldrad Ulthran's muttering, Zhou Yun's lips curled into a cold smile:

"Eldrad Ulthran, your plan has barely changed in ten thousand years."

"You do believe humanity is essential to fight Chaos—but not for mutual cooperation and shared prosperity."

"Your goal is merely to make humanity draw the Dark Gods' attention, acting as a shield for the Aeldari."

Humans and Aeldari are like two wounded beasts, the humans' wounds lighter, the Aeldari's heavier,

Both hide in the grass, wary of each other and of the threat in the darkness,

Yet the Aeldari wish for humanity to leap out of its hiding place and draw the darkness's attention.

"Don't disguise exploitation as selfless, benevolent aid," Zhou Yun whispered.

Eldrad Ulthran fell silent, turning his gaze to Iyanna beside him.

"We will pay a price."

Iyanna spoke softly, her voice hollow and cold as death itself:

"Shall we negotiate now?"

Seeing the Aeldari concede, Zhou Yun exhaled slightly,

"No, not now," Zhou Yun smiled,

Extracting concessions from the Aeldari is an extremely complex process—it won't yield results in a moment,

Zhou Yun knew someone better suited to handle this task, and that person lay in stasis on Macragge.

Iyanna shifted her gaze slightly, returning it to Zhou Yun: "Since we have reached an agreement, could you release Shalendra Veilwalker?"

"No."

Zhou Yun tugged slightly on the nanite rope in his hand; it tightened instantly around Veilwalker's body:

"Our agreement has nothing to do with her."

"Didn't you just say Xighor ordered her actions?"

Iyanna opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out,

It was Eldrad Ulthran himself who just claimed that,

Shalendra Veilwalker was Xighor's agent—unrelated to them!

"What do you want to do?" Iyanna asked, taking a deep breath.

"Let Xighor come himself to demand her," Zhou Yun said without changing expression.

Iyanna's composure cracked slightly,

Xighor now hides deep within the Webway's Black Library, rarely stepping out,

Because the God of Hunger constantly hungers to fully consume the Aeldari Pantheon,

Should Xighor dare leave the Webway, the God of Hunger would swiftly come for him,

Then Xighor would have no more laughter.

So Xighor could never leave the Webway to come before Zhou Yun himself.

Zhou Yun knew this well,

But he also knew the Laughing God would not abandon Shalendra Veilwalker.

Though a jester-god, He was unexpectedly reliable and deeply concerned for the Aeldari.

Among the clowns, there exists a unique class known as the Unicorns,

Unicorns possess extraordinary power, for they make immense sacrifices, portraying the Dark Prince Slaanesh himself in their plays, binding their souls to Slaanesh, destined to be devoured,

Yet Xighor risks everything, using trickery and schemes to try to trick Slaanesh into returning the Unicorn's soul,

Though success is rare.

Zhou Yun did not expect Xighor to leave the Black Library,

He hoped Xighor would invite him inside,

Once inside, Zhou Yun could use the Gate of Anywhere to enter and exit the library at will.

Iyanna noticed Zhou Yun's unyielding expression,

She sighed faintly,

"I will have the clowns deliver your demand to the Laughing God."

"But we cannot linger here waiting for a reply."

Zhou Yun nodded slightly at Iyanna's words: "Then let us depart for our destined place."

These words lifted the spirits of all present,

Especially Grayfax and Leina,

They still did not know the destination of this journey,

"The cargo you escort holds hope."

Efrene spoke softly:

"He will bring back a great power that your people once possessed."

"That power will fight against the tentacles of the Devouring Might and turn back the assault of the Dark Gods."

"It will be your hope, and also our hope."

"For this, the Webway Gates shall open for you."

Here, Efrene paused slightly,

and named the destination that both the Death Guard and the Human Expeditionary Force must reach.

"The place where winds and clouds converge: Macragge."

(End of Chapter)

(End of chapter)