Chapter 260

A passage composed of light continuously extended before the ship's deck, its flickering pale-yellow glow woven like linen—brilliant yet illusory, nearly erasing all sense of direction and distance.

Or rather, within this passage of light, distance and direction had never existed from the start.

The Aeldari warship, formed from spirit-bone, drifted within this channel of light; it did not use roaring, crude plasma engines, but unfurled solar sails to navigate the void through radiation pressure, resembling the sailing ships Lina had seen in fairy tales.

Yet Lina had never seen a real sailing ship, nor a real sea.

Asford had only endless wastelands.

Cadia had seas, but Lina had begun training and combat the moment she arrived, with no chance to see them.

The solar wind brushed against the sails, stirring faint ripples and vibrations.

Somehow, Lina felt a quiet peace on this elegant alien vessel.

Zhou Yun shook out the blanket beside her, and a pile of food appeared on the deck.

Lina had witnessed the blanket's power yesterday.

Yesterday, Zhou Yun had used it to produce vast quantities of food for the 184th Regiment.

But back then, the food had mostly been compressed biscuits, instant noodles that needed soaking, and vacuum-sealed boiled eggs.

Though Lina had never seen them before, she could roughly identify them.

Most of these foods were unknown to Lina.

Roasted meat of an unknown bird, plump clusters of purple-red grapes, apples and pears each as large as her fist.

And a bag of sunflower seeds from some crop she couldn't name.

These foods were absolutely unattainable even in the upper hive.

Zhou Yun shoved the bag of sunflower seeds into Lina's hands and chuckled: "Here, have some sunflower seeds."

"I just remembered—the big sunflower seeds we ate back in Asford." Lina took the seeds, speaking with a touch of nostalgia.

She cracked one open with her teeth; the oily seed crushed between her lips, the plant fat bringing a faint sense of satisfaction to her body.

Though smaller than the Asford variety, these seeds clearly tasted far superior.

Then, Lina suddenly remembered.

Zhou Yun had once told her that in his homeland, people gave sunflower seeds to fools.

Lina shot Zhou Yun a furious glance, accusing him of mocking her.

Zhou Yun couldn't help but smile.

His gaze slowly swept over Lina, settling on the wound on her face.

A two-to-three-centimeter gash marred her cheek, deep enough to split skin and flesh.

There, once, had been tattooed the first line of the Holy Scripture.

"What have you been through since leaving Asford?" Zhou Yun asked, curious.

Lina fell silent for a moment, gathering her thoughts, then slowly recounted her story.

General Droster's invitation, joining the 184th Cadia Regiment, the Thirteenth Black Crusade, fighting Abaddon's Black Legion and the demons of Chaos.

"The 184th was attacked by the servants of the Dark Prince."

"A great demon, dancing a bloody dance, slaughtered warriors from Cadia and Asford. I tried to resist it with my psychic power—but was crushed in an instant."

"The demon had intended to kill me outright, but perhaps the Emperor's grace—or perhaps years of touching this tattoo—left a trace of psychic energy within it."

"The holy words on the tattoo flared with light, burning the Dark Prince's demon. Enraged, it slashed my cheek with its blade, destroying the tattoo."

"Had General Droster's heavy firepower not arrived to momentarily hold it off, I would have died."

As she spoke, Lina lightly touched the scar on her face.

"But the blade carried some corrupting, profane power—it plunged me into hallucinations and fever."

"Then, the Black Fortress fell upon Cadia, the stars trembled and roared, and the Eye of Terror opened in the void."

"Amid the surging tides of the Warp, I suddenly awoke—the corruption and profanity in my wound had been burned away by my own psychic power."

"Then, guided by instinct, I wielded my psychic energy and tore the Dark Prince's demon into fragments."

Enhanced. Zhou Yun rubbed his chin, studying Lina.

"No trace of corruption. The opening of the Great Rift and the Dark Prince's corruption must have coincidentally triggered her psychic potential."

"Her psychic talent had already been subtly reshaped by the Emperor; after this stimulus, it awakened a second time, reaching Level A."

The voice of Saint Guilliman echoed in Zhou Yun's mind—he understood Zhou Yun's concern.

The Holy Scripture tattoo on Lina's face had been destroyed, and before her psychic power strengthened, she had been wounded by the Dark Prince's demon—this raised serious fears of corruption.

"That's my story," Lina said. "But you—"

Lina opened her mouth slightly, as if wanting to ask what had happened to Zhou Yun, what he had endured on Baal.

But she did not ask. She sensed profound secrets hidden within Zhou Yun.

Since he had not spoken, she would not press.

As a psychic who had awakened since childhood, Lina knew that excessive curiosity was never a good thing.

Seeing that Lina said nothing more, Zhou Yun gave a slight nod.

He was about to ask about General Droster when he saw a hand stealthily reaching toward the New Orleans-style chicken wings beside him.

Zhou Yun's portable pyramid flashed—his arm was enhanced.

The Rogue DX suit also boosted his speed, but he hadn't yet activated the acceleration spring, while the hand moved faster than any human limit.

At the same time, the Rogue DX set enhanced Zhou Yun's speed, but he had no time to wind the acceleration spring, and that hand moved faster than any human limit could allow.

The Mindlock Beetle instantly electrocuted Hilarion the Veil-Walker's neurons, causing her to shriek and slow.

Zhou Yun's hand caught up, snatching the chicken wing from Hilarion's grasp.

Caught red-handed, Hilarion let out an awkward yet polite laugh.

"Oh my, isn't this Master Zhou Yun? How are you?"

"Eating, are you?"

Hilarion clasped her hands, drew back her slender frame, and bowed to Zhou Yun.

Zhou Yun stared blankly as he shoved the chicken wing into his mouth.

Hilarion, watching his expression, scratched her head in confusion.

"Was that not proper?"

"I read it in the Black Library—your native Old Terra people speak just like this!"

"Listen to my accent—so authentic!"

As she spoke, Hilarion raised her thumb and made a one-armed windmill gesture.

Not a single error in tone, delivery, or content!

As she spoke, she silently extended her hand toward another box of chicken wings, hidden from Zhou Yun's view.

Zhou Yun glared at her, then picked up a wing and handed it to her.

"You, a foreign Aeldari, come begging food before us Old Terra folk."

Hilarion chuckled, lifted her visor slightly to reveal her lips, and devoured the wing in three bites.

Zhou Yun gave the food blanket a slight shake, and hundreds of bottles of alcohol instantly appeared upon it.

"Distribute these to the brothers of the 184th," Zhou Yun said to Lina.

The food blanket could indeed conjure food from nothing, but it consumed Zhou Yun's reserves.

The alcohol now summoned was already low-grade—each bottle cost eight hundred, and a hundred bottles drained over eighty thousand at once—a sum enough to buy a famed blade, the Lightning Saber.

In Zhou Yun's eyes, the Asford warriors of the 184th were unquestionably his own.

They had fought alongside him against hive thieves and swarms within the hive, then stood with Reina against Chaos on Cadia, and marched through the Frost of Crassus.

When they left Cadia and evacuated from the Iron Netherwraith, they carried only the barest survival rations and protein bars.

They had given so much—Zhou Yun believed they deserved better food.

Yet he felt a pang of guilt: even with the food blanket, he could only afford them compressed biscuits, instant noodles, boiled eggs, and cheap liquor.

After all, a whole regiment was too large; supplying food in bulk was too costly.

Still, the 184th's warriors enjoyed the meals.

Especially when they discovered these foods not only tasted decent, but didn't attack them upon opening.

Compared to the revolting rations, tasteless protein bars, or the ant-meat cans that sometimes killed their cooks upon opening, Zhou Yun's offerings felt almost human.

Zhou Yun considered: perhaps he should exchange for items allowing them to grow crops and raise animals—after all, some among them were Old Leitliners, whose cooking could turn even strange food into delicacies.

Lina nodded slightly, using her psychic power to lift the hundred bottles and descend to the lower decks of the spirit-bone warship.

Zhou Yun turned his gaze to Hilarion the Veil-Walker.

"When will Xigao-le come to redeem you?" Zhou Yun asked, raising an eyebrow.

"The Laughing God has read but not replied," Hilarion said, her laugh dry.

Hilarion's consciousness connected to the Black Library and could sense the Laughing God's will.

But—the Laughing God ignored her, offering no response whatsoever.

Hearing this, Zhou Yun felt something odd—the Laughing God hadn't replied?

He reached into his fourth-dimensional pocket and pulled out the Right-Wrong Diviner to check.

The Laughing God truly had not responded.

Zhou Yun rubbed his chin.

Was Hilarion alone not enough to warrant the Laughing God's attention?

There were still many Jesters aboard the nearby spirit-bone ships.

There were still quite a few clowns among the spirit-bone ships in this vicinity,

Should we tie them all up?

At that moment, the Spirit Bone ship suddenly shuddered briefly,

Ahead of the fleet, the network of light began to change,

Efrine, standing at the bow, raised the Crone's Sword in her hand; a surge of spirit flame erupted from the blade, tearing a rift in the void,

Dry, howling winds from the plateau blew forth from within,

(End of Chapter)