Chapter 284: Ultramar Has Its First Ruling of Multiple Primarchs

Zhou Yun suddenly clenched his hand around Lei Na's head, slamming it hard into the fourth-dimensional pocket.

Lei Na seemed to sense the danger within the pocket; she let out a piercing scream, like a banshee's wail, its frequency sharp as a blade, stabbing directly into Zhou Yun's mind.

Zhou Yun let out a low grunt, instantly feeling his head swell, his vision blurring with dizziness.

The entity pretending to be Lei Na writhed its body, trying to escape from between Zhou Yun's fingers.

Its twisting motion exceeded all limits of mortal flesh, yet—

A massive black Dreadnought power claw erupted violently from Zhou Yun's abdominal fourth-dimensional pocket.

The "Lei Na" had not anticipated this move; her body was instantly seized by the power claw.

The claw gripped her tightly, yet she wriggled like a serpent, her entire form supple as if boneless, striving to slip free.

But Zhou Yun gave her no chance; overcoming the dizziness from her scream, he slammed his finger hard against the mechanical device at his waist.

A one-meter-wide stasis field instantly formed at his fingertip; "Lei Na's" speed plummeted, freezing her in place like a grotesque statue.

Seizing the moment she was held by the stasis field, Zhou Yun shoved her into the fourth-dimensional pocket.

【Item: The Keeper of Secrets】

【Origin: The Warp — Slaanesh's Sixth Ring】

【Evaluation: A Greater Daemon of the Dark Prince Slaanesh, the most devout, blasphemous, and beautiful servant of the Lord of Excess. This Keeper once fought Lei Na on Cadia, leaving a scar upon her face and acquiring her blood and fragments of her memories. By order of the Daemon Primarch Fulgrim, it was summoned by Slaanesh's followers on Macragge through sixty-six love sacrifices accumulated over six years, and its physical form was sculpted from Lei Na's blood to be indistinguishable from her. Its power is limited by the strength of this vessel.】

【Production Time:???】

【Value: 66, 66, 66】

【Suitable for use as supplementary material in juvenile behavioral correction and re-education programs】

It was a Slaanesh Greater Daemon dispatched by Fulgrim, disguised as Lei Na.

It seemed Zhou Yun had been targeted by Fulgrim, who deliberately sent this Greater Daemon to corrupt him.

But Zhou Yun knew Lei Na too well—he sensed something off from the start, and after hearing her flowery words atop the platform, his suspicions deepened. Mostly because this Greater Daemon, though striving to mimic Lei Na, was simply too intelligent, too unlike her nature.

Of course, Zhou Yun had only suspected.

But shoving her into the pocket carried no risk—if she was genuine, he could always pull her out again.

The real question now was: what had happened to Lei Na? Zhou Yun still felt a flicker of concern.

Lei Na was strong—an Alpha-level psyker—even in danger wouldn't vanish without a trace.

Zhou Yun guessed this Keeper had merely exploited a moment when Lei Na was absent to corrupt him; Lei Na herself was likely unharmed.

Still, deep down, Zhou Yun couldn't help fearing the worst—after all, Lei Na was an old friend.

Boom——————

As Zhou Yun frowned slightly, a grand bell tolled from the distant Guilliman Sanctum.

The great bell rang thirteen times, symbolizing the Emperor's thirteenth son, Roboute Guilliman.

After a brief pause, nine more rings followed—naturally, representing the ninth Primarch, Sanguinius.

Together, twenty-two tolls in total.

This signaled the beginning of the ceremony.

Zhou Yun calmed himself, pulled out his Door of Anywhere from his pocket, and activated it.

The Guilliman Sanctum, once destroyed in war, had been repaired; marble columns quarried from Macragge's mountains now supported its grand dome once more.

But the carvings chronicling Roboute Guilliman's deeds had not been restored; the Sanctum now appeared simpler, more austere than before.

Yet no one cared—because the Sanctum no longer needed stone to record glory.

Glory itself stood within the Sanctum.

Seraphim flew through the air, their incense burners swaying as sacred hymns resonated within their bodies.

Representatives of the Macraggian Auxiliary wept openly; Imperial Navy captains wore faces of awe; invited Macraggian nobles dared not even look directly at the two radiant figures at the Sanctum's end.

New chroniclers recorded this sacred moment in every possible way—they had been chosen by Guilliman to preserve, record, and uncover history.

Most chroniclers thrilled at this mission, though a few lamented that the Ptolemaic Library was under repair, denying them the use of its historical records to validate this moment's worth.

Imperial Cult priests prayed devoutly; Astartes company commanders stood at the front of the ranks, alongside representatives of the Inquisition: Lady Greyfax, Grand Master Voldus of the Grey Knights, the Archmagos Belisarius Cawl, and Lei Na as Cadia's representative.

Lei Na slowly scanned the surroundings—everything appeared newly forged: magnificent, sacred, and grand.

Astartes power armor gleamed with metallic luster; noble and naval uniforms shimmered brilliantly; Macraggian Auxiliary uniforms stood rigid and straight.

Each person here was once someone Lei Na had to look up to—even the former Viceroy of Asford held no weight here.

Yet Lei Na tightened her spirit, forcing herself not to show fear before these people.

She was not here for herself—she represented the 184th Regiment, Cadia, General Drostron, Lord Kryd, and every fallen and ready-to-fall Cadian warrior.

At that moment, Lei Na's gaze caught a wooden door, red tinged with pink, appearing from a corner of the Sanctum.

Not just Lei Na—many in the Sanctum noticed the door.

Nobles held their breath, as if witnessing a mythic scene; clearly, they had all heard of the faith in Saint Doraemon.

Zhou Yun pushed open the door and stepped out; Sanguinius on the dais smiled and nodded to him; Zhou Yun nodded in return, then ignored the stares of nobles, captains, and auxiliary officers, walking straight toward the front row where Lei Na stood.

He slipped silently beside her, studying her as if observing something.

"W-what's wrong?" Lei Na felt uneasy under his gaze.

Zhou Yun said nothing, his eyes fixed on her attire—the worn, faded Cadia uniform, its left chest bearing the words "Cadia Stands Forever." It had been washed countless times, bleached pale, stitched repeatedly—bearing the marks of countless battles.

Yet she still wore it to this ceremony symbolizing the Primarchs' return.

Zhou Yun's expression softened slightly—at least the Lei Na before him seemed genuine.

"What happened?" Lei Na noticed his gaze and remembered he had arrived late.

"I ran into something."

Zhou Yun's lips curled into a faint smile—he recalled the data board recorded in his fourth-dimensional pocket:

"I'll tell you after the ceremony."

Lei Na nodded, half-understanding.

Then Zhou Yun turned his gaze toward the Sanctum's end, where the ceremony would take place.

The wall behind the throne was one of the few intact sections, its grand carvings preserved.

But these carvings had nothing to do with Guilliman's glory—pale marble had been carved into countless human bones: children, elders, women, warriors—all human forms stacked layer upon layer, each set of bones reaching upward toward the sky.

Above their outstretched arms stood a throne carved from the same marble—a pale throne upon which sat the skeletal remains symbolizing the Emperor of Mankind.

Macragge's scorching sunlight poured through the dome, forming a perfect beam of light that illuminated the throne and the Emperor, gilding them in radiant gold.

Roboute Guilliman stood beneath this wall, gazing up at the Emperor on the throne; his blue-and-gold power armor shimmered in the reflected sunlight, appearing from afar like a storm of blue and gold light.

His face bore the noble, stern beauty of a Macraggian military aristocrat, pale as marble, set off by short, brilliant golden hair.

Yet even he could not eclipse the glory of the figure beside him.

Mortals who saw Guilliman felt their spirits shaken, barely able to stand straight.

But when they saw the sacred figure beside him, clad in red-and-gold armor, they nearly fell to their knees.

Sanguinius gently trembled his white wings; silver chains shimmered in the sunlight, their crisp chimes echoing through the hall.

The two Primarchs sat upon two newly constructed marble thrones.

Behind Roboute Guilliman loomed the inverted Omega symbol of the Ultramarines; behind Sanguinius, the tear-drop wing emblem of the Blood Angels.

As the sacred bells rang and the Seraphim's hymns filled the air, Captain Calgar of the Ultramarines' 1st Company ascended the steps, holding two laurel crowns.

At the third step, he knelt on one knee: "My Lord. In the Emperor's name, all power of the Ultramarines and Macragge belongs to you. May you forever accept our loyalty."

The living saint, Saint Celestine, fluttered her wings gently and landed beside Calgar, lifting one of the crowns.

"Rejoice, mortals."

Her white wings swept lightly as she hovered midair, placing the crown upon Roboute Guilliman's head, her voice trembling with emotion:

"For the Emperor's son has returned—he shall guide humanity's path."

But Roboute Guilliman rose to his feet, his towering three-meter frame radiating authority. He descended the steps, took the second crown from Calgar's hands,

"And I shall share all power with my most perfect and sacred brother."

The Ultramarine Primarch, using the broad gauntlet of his Fate Armor, gently lowered the crown and placed it upon Sanguinius's golden hair:

"Sanguinius, heir of our Father, sharer of our power—you shall share with me the loyalty and authority of Macragge and Ultramar."

Cheers erupted throughout the Sanctum; the scene was broadcast across the entire Hera Fortress, Macragge, and all of Greater Ultramar—cheers never ceased.

Chroniclers scribbled furiously, recording this unprecedented moment: the Primarchs had returned to the Imperium, and for the first time, one had shared his authority over Macragge and Ultramar with his brother.

"This is the most moving moment of my life."

Lei Na whispered to Zhou Yun beside her:

"I never imagined I'd see such a day—I'll remember this for the rest of my life."

Zhou Yun merely smiled faintly.

After the ceremony, in a secret meeting chamber within the Hera Fortress:

"You always laugh at me for being a fool—I really don't understand much."

"But… but I just love you."

"J-just today, will you come with me to see the sea?"

Zhou Yun held the data board, playing the audio for the sixth time.

Lei Na let out a sob—she would never forget this day.

(End of Chapter)