Chapter 701

The forest belonging to Laine El. Zhaosen was being torn apart by twisted tentacles, the Hive Mind shrieking and screaming as it unleashed its power,

The genetic sequence shaping this vessel was so potent that its very genetic material was a form the Hive Mind had never encountered, and even before fully birthing, it could bear most of the Hive Mind’s power,

The Hive Mind felt the vessel’s molecular structure slowly snapping, molecular bonds vanishing, matter becoming indistinct, all things dissolving into a greater, more inconceivable whole,

Like a molt, becoming something far more transcendent,

From the knowledge embedded in those genes, the Hive Mind understood the transformation unfolding upon this vessel,

Ascension, elevation, metamorphosis—or, less accurately: like a Primarch awakening to his own Warp essence,

The Hive Mind was the Warp essence of this vessel; its continuous infusion into it was like a Primarch awakening to his Warp nature,

A god not born in the Warp had descended first into the material dimension, then turned back to become a god of the Warp,

Just as the Dark King, just as the Emperor, the Hive Mind felt Warp knowledge being born within its own will,

It sensed it had a place within the Warp, it heard its own name,

Lord of Greedy Dissolution, Eternal Dragon,

It was hunger itself, greed that covered all, like the Eternal Dragon devouring its own tail, its hunger was destined to spread to itself; after devouring all between the stars, its insatiable hunger would continue to devour itself, consuming even its own being,

This was the fate ordained in the Warp: every divinity bore dual tendencies of destruction and self-destruction,

The God of Blood and War craved war that burned the entire world, draining every drop of blood, severing every head, yet ultimately offering its own blood and head to war,

The God of Corruption and Plague craved disease to spread across the world, causing all things to decay, to be reborn, to enter the triple cycle of rebirth, corruption, and death, and to stagnate within it, until even itself sank into eternal corruption and silence,

The God of Change and Fate craved transformation in all things, turning all good to bad, all bad to good, collapsing order, plunging chaos itself into chaos, yet the inevitable end of endless change was total collapse, returning to heat death,

The God of Hunger and Pleasure craved ultimate experiences, believing the world’s purpose was to allow It to experience everything, savoring endless sensory stimulation—pain, pleasure, sorrow, joy, all must be felt—but It would eventually grow weary of all experiences, realizing only utter destruction remained unexperienced,

The God of Vengeance and Destruction harbored hatred for all things, seeking vengeance against all within sight, reducing everything to ash, forcing the entire universe to answer for the suffering It endured, until It came to hate even itself, stepping into unstoppable self-destruction,

The God of Creation and Craft sought to encompass all knowledge within its universe, squandering its creativity without limit, yet its creativity, as it climbed endlessly, would inevitably spiral out of control, birthing in Its hands creations capable of crushing stars and destroying the entire universe,

Six lunatics,

This was the Hive Mind’s judgment of the five entities swirling within the Warp,

The God of Creation and Craft neared birth but had not yet been born, its distance from the fate of destruction and self-destruction the greatest,

The God of Hunger and Pleasure was the weakest, the world still held many sensations It had never experienced, and Its distance from the fate of destruction was equally great,

The God of Corruption and Plague was the most merciful, choosing to let all things rot eternally without dying, lingering between non-birth and non-death,

The God of Change and Fate was the most contradictory, choosing to split Its self, sever Its authority, weakening Itself to reject heat death,

The God of Blood and War was closest to that fate, and thus the strongest, giving meaning to that streak of crimson to resist the void of self-destruction,

And the God of Vengeance and Destruction had already walked upon that fate,

The Hive Mind let out a piercing shriek, terrified of this fate,

It would never attain the satiety it sought, doomed to wander endless hunger until it bit its own tail and devoured itself completely,

Yet it could still feel the summons from the Warp—it had no path back,

At this moment, the Hive Mind felt only one thing: damn it, I’ve been had—I’m going to join those six lunatics and hags.

Though it tried to resist, the Warp’s gravity was too immense; it could not fight it, and even instinctively began drawing near the path of ascension, attempting to expand its domain,

Especially when it saw Laine El. Zhaosen, when it saw the Primarch and his inner self, it could no longer suppress its urge to devour,

Laine El. Zhaosen, Son of the Forest, his inner self resembled the Eternal Dragon—he was the fated Ouroboros, the beast that devours itself,

Its tentacles pierced the essence of Laine El. Zhaosen, plunged into that forest, pressing toward the Lion,

Sharp tentacles rained down, tearing open the forest’s sky, splitting the earth, wrapping hunger as they surged toward Laine El. Zhaosen,

The Hive Mind tried to use the knowledge it had just gained from the Warp to corrupt Laine El. Zhaosen, turning him into its Daemon Primarch,

Spikes rained down, pressing upon Laine El. Zhaosen’s kite shield; intense hunger began to rise within the Lion; Azriel and Zabriel collapsed weakly to the ground from the overwhelming hunger, while Haelir barely held on, helping the Lion resist the tentacles,

But the Hive Mind did not care—this forest was Laine El. Zhaosen’s mind, his will and essence reflected in the Warp; by devouring this domain directly, It could corrupt the Lion,

This was the unique trait of the domain the Hive Mind occupied: devouring alone was sufficient; within the Domain of Greedy Dissolution, there was no temptation, no rage, no infection, no corruption—only eating and being eaten,

To eat It or be eaten by It was both a corruption.

But as it devoured, the Hive Mind sensed a vast anomaly within Laine El. Zhaosen’s mental forest,

The Hive Mind’s gaze turned toward the old man in the lake,

The old man was ancient, decayed, near death; within the Hive Mind’s perception, his body held almost no nourishment, yet he was like a hard, shriveled grain of sand, lodged before the Hive Mind’s teeth,

The Hive Mind let out a piercing shriek; countless shadowy tentacles converged, forming a mouth-like organ that stabbed toward the decaying old man,

The grotesque mouth drew nearer, yet the old man still hung his head, gripping his fishing rod, swaying the hook in the water,

Until the mouth neared the old man, his wrinkled lips finally curled into a faint smile; his submerged hook jerked violently,

“Bitten.”

The old man smiled, then slowly lifted his head, gazing at the Hive Mind’s grotesque mouth, at the shadows enveloping the Hive Mind,

Light,

Light blinding as a supernova erupted from the old man’s eyes,

The Hive Mind’s mouth, tentacles, and blades ignited instantly, turning to scorching ash that scattered,

The Hive Mind screamed in terror, its vision entirely consumed by searing light; it could only feel its tentacles invading Laine’s will being ignited one by one, destroyed one by one,

Yet in the brilliant light, It saw nothing but the lake, the small boat, the fisherman,

The lake rippled, yet the small boat cut through the waves; the old fisherman’s figure grew taller, the thorns piercing his scalp transformed into a crown carved with an eagle, his coarse robe became golden armor, the slender fishing rod raised high turned into a blazing blade larger than a star,

The blade slashed down; the Hive Mind howled and shrieked, its body igniting, and even the Tyranids far beyond the galaxy, still unentered, were engulfed in flame,

Trap! Trap! Trap!

The Hive Mind writhed in agony, recognizing the fisherman’s true identity,