Chapter 400: Who Is the Heir Most Like the Emperor?

The dead blade Electric Light Ball in Doraemon's hand was generated by Zhou Yun using Scarbrand and fragments torn from Khorne as parenting materials.

It contains the power and killing techniques of the Blood God and Scarbrand; even Sanguinius cannot surpass Doraemon's swordplay in technique.

Moreover, this dead blade Electric Light Ball possesses the trait of the Mindless Killing Domain—Zhou Yun's emotional intensity directly amplifies the sword's power and damage output.

Unfortunately, Zhou Yun is not an emotionally expressive type and rarely feels anger, so this effect is largely wasted.

Had it been wielded by someone steeped in resentment, filled with rage and hatred, deeply wounded by this world and burdened by centuries of suffering, the dead blade Electric Light Ball's power would have been immense.

But without this enhancement, Doraemon is at a disadvantage in pure strength compared to Sanguinius.

Sanguinius's body is a masterful product of the Emperor's genetic engineering; his inner warp essence is extraordinarily potent, and he has fully recognized his own warp nature.

Moreover, this duel is merely a first-blood sparring match; Zhou Yun will not draw the revolver at Doraemon's waist, which channels his own and the Emperor's power, nor will he fire the bullet forged from the Old Hag's Sword—otherwise, this sparring would become a final-blood duel.

Intense psychic energy clings to Sanguinius's arm and forcibly presses toward Doraemon.

Yet Doraemon's lips curl slightly into a smile.

"Do you know which Primarch most resembles the Emperor?"

Doraemon suddenly speaks, but Zhou Yun's words elicit no reaction from Sanguinius.

After all, he is a Primarch—how could he expose a flaw so easily in battle?

"Some say it's you, because you are as flawless as the Emperor."

Zhou Yun remains calm and continues guiding Doraemon to speak:

"Others say it's Lorgar, because they look identical."

"Some say it's Guilliman, because both stubbornly claim to be true humans."

"Perturabo also qualifies—he and the Emperor both enjoy executing one in ten of their sons."

"Mortarion is very similar too, because the Emperor proposed Imperial Truth while Mortarion proposed Numerology—both are lies."

"Even Angron qualifies, because both were tormented by a machine from the Dark Age of Technology."

As Doraemon spoke these words, the expressions of the Astartes and Imperial Guards around them began to crack.

"But I believe it's Lion El'Jonson."

"Because both claimed loyalty while hiding their own secrets behind lies."

"And both lost half their sons to rebellion." Doraemon leaned close to Sanguinius and whispered, audible only to the two of them.

Seeing Zhou Yun reveal Lion's secret, Sanguinius's expression twitched involuntarily.

Doraemon seized that fleeting opening, parrying Sanguinius's Spear of Vengeance.

"What, afraid of being dragged to the Rock Fortress for interrogation?" Zhou Yun couldn't help having Doraemon taunt.

Then he swung the dead blade Electric Light Ball toward Sanguinius's exposed centerline.

But at that moment, the will Zhou Yun had infused into Doraemon sensed an alien sensation—

Like a pebble stuck in a shoe—it slowed Zhou Yun's motion by a fraction of a second.

Sanguinius swiftly drew his Sword of Blood and clashed it against the dead blade Electric Light Ball.

The ringing clash echoed across the entire Imperial Guard training ground; the speed of the blade-on-blade exchange surpassed the visual capacity of even the Astartes and Imperial Guards, and gasps of awe erupted continuously.

Tiruien, sent by Guilliman to deliver a message, sweated profusely, standing fragile and powerless among these two- to three-meter-tall giants.

As for the duel between Doraemon and Sanguinius, Tiruien could barely hear the sonic booms, making his already sensitive ears throb painfully.

After hesitating, he ventured a tentative, quiet whisper: "My Lords—"

Shhh—

The Astartes and Imperial Guards all turned sharply toward Tiruien; Sanguinius, Zhou Yun, and Doraemon in the center also looked at him.

Tiruien's voice was indeed quiet, but everyone present possessed superhuman hearing.

Facing those stares, Tiruien could only grit his teeth and say: "My Lords, Lord Guilliman requests your presence for the regular meeting."

Sanguinius's previously cheerful expression dipped slightly.

"Guilliman has one talent."

Sanguinius said in a clear voice:

"Whenever people feel joy, he interrupts them with work."

"Whenever that happens, I grow to hate him a little more."

"He should've been fed to Lorgar the moment he was born," Zhou Yun said half-jokingly, mimicking Guilliman's tone.

Sanguinius's lips curled back into a faint smile.

Though the duel was unfinished, Zhou Yun now understood Doraemon's capabilities better.

Doraemon is superior to Fat Tiger Demon in overall capability.

But in pure strength, he is weaker than Fat Tiger Demon—on raw power alone, Fat Tiger Demon can even wrestle Guilliman to a standstill, while Doraemon clearly lags behind.

Doraemon's strength lies primarily in ability and technique.

His abilities mainly consist of the dead blade Electric Light Ball, the Flower Rope, and the revolver: Electric Light Ball handles standard output, the Flower Rope controls, and the revolver—now with only two bullets left—is his ultimate weapon. His combat technique and swordsmanship are slightly superior to Sanguinius's, and his marksmanship is utterly unique.

Without the Flower Rope, using only the dead blade Electric Light Ball, Doraemon is slightly inferior to Sanguinius in first-blood duels; with the Flower Rope, he gains a slight edge.

In final-blood combat, it's uncertain—without the revolver, Sanguinius has far greater odds of victory in a deathmatch.

No wonder the Four Gods covet Primarchs—Zhou Yun covets them too, wishing he could resurrect more.

But if the revolver is used, Doraemon's chances skyrocket—his marksmanship is nearly unevadable, and the Old Hag's Sword bullet inflicts severe injury even on Khorne; Sanguinius cannot withstand it.

If Zhou Yun truly commanded Doraemon to draw the revolver, there would be no point in comparing them anymore.

Following Tiruien, Zhou Yun and Sanguinius soon arrived beside the chamber Guilliman had prepared.

This was a demand Guilliman had made when serving as Regent, when he first proposed it to Zhou Yun and Sanguinius.

At the time, in the Imperial Palace, the Emperor had first shoved the Regent's position onto Guilliman.

Then that damned corpse had tried to crown Sanguinius as Warmaster and Zhou Yun as Imperial Chancellor.

Fortunately, Zhou Yun and Sanguinius convinced the Emperor and Guilliman that the Empire could not afford another Warmaster, and Zhou Yun himself knew nothing of politics and could not serve as Chancellor.

But Guilliman seized the opportunity to demand that Zhou Yun and Sanguinius attend a tripartite meeting with him at regular intervals.

To resolve matters requiring all three to deliberate—or tasks only Zhou Yun and Sanguinius could handle.

Zhou Yun pushed open the meeting room door and felt his scalp prickle.

A massive wooden round table loomed before him and Sanguinius.

The hardest part to bear was that the round table wasn't just for Zhou Yun and Sanguinius.

Though only three chairs currently sat beside it, the table itself was finely carved into evenly spaced segments.

From left to right: Sword and Wings, Clenched Fist, Raven, Iron Hand, Wolf Head, Lightning, Dragon Head, and Eagle—each representing missing Primarchs and the Emperor himself.

Guilliman's inverted Omega sigil, Sanguinius's Blood Feather sigil, and Zhou Yun's Doraemon round face were also engraved upon it.

Zhou Yun opened his mouth slightly, recalling the Blind Assassin and Centaur pieces—he wanted to remind Guilliman to add the Bat and the Eye of Horus.

But before he could speak, Guilliman lifted his head from a mountain of documents and smiled at Zhou Yun and Sanguinius.

He spread his arms wide, as if presenting this creation to them.

"This will be the beginning of a new order," Guilliman said, voice tinged with delight.

Order is indeed a good thing; a new order is even better.

But coming from Guilliman's mouth, Zhou Yun and Sanguinius felt a chill crawl up their spines—instinctively, their bodies flooded with the fatigue of endless work.

"You've left seats for all our loyal brothers," Sanguinius said, face calm but tone strained.

"I wanted to do this even before the Heresy—I left a seat for every brother then."

Guilliman gestured for them to sit.

"We all possess extraordinary wisdom—if we share it, we can lead all of humanity."

"Just sharing wisdom with you and Lion made me feel like I was going mad," Sanguinius said, sitting calmly in his designated seat.

His words caused a flicker of embarrassment on Guilliman's face; he muttered under his breath, "It was just an experiment." "Temporary." "A mistake of the Second Empire." The room instantly filled with a cheerful atmosphere.

Guilliman deliberately used his cold, peculiar humor to break the initial tension, allowing Zhou Yun and Sanguinius to relax slightly.

Then Guilliman turned to Zhou Yun, seated in his designated chair.

"Have you heard word from my other brothers?" Guilliman asked sincerely: "I've begun to miss Dorn, Corax, Vulkan, and Khan—even a little miss Lorgar's rough laughter. Of course, if you could resurrect Fulgrim, I'd be even happier."

"I have news about Lion," Zhou Yun replied, face expressionless.

Guilliman's smile faded slightly.

(End of Chapter)