Chapter 135: Khan, Take Me Away with You, Khan!

Zhou Yun turned his head blankly, looking toward the direction from which the roar of motorcycles was approaching.

Several speeding motorcycles appeared at the end of this bizarre tubular world,

but strangely, these motorcycles were not traveling on the ground; instead, they hovered in the air, surging forward at a speed like a charging thunderstorm,

the motorcycle at the very front was even so fast that Zhou Yun's enhanced reflexes could barely keep up.

The thunderous roar of the motorcycles sounded in his ears as the motorcycle fleet swept past him like a gale,

the fleet composed of Space Marines clad in white power armor, swift as the wind, fierce as thunder,

and the leading warrior was taller, larger, stronger, and faster.

He wore a set of power armor in an Eastern style, with a power sword styled like a saber at his waist; silver-white scales and dark-golden carapace flashed dazzlingly, while a scarlet, wide cape billowed in the wind like a raging wildfire.

In that brief instant, the leading warrior turned his head; Zhou Yun shifted his gaze accordingly, and their eyes met.

It was an Eastern face, bearded and with long hair, a scarlet lightning bolt painted across his forehead in dark red pigment.

The leading warrior's eyes were sharp as a sky eagle; seeing that Zhou Yun had followed his gaze, he showed a slight hint of surprise.

Then he glanced at the Any Door behind Zhou Yun, seeming to see Asford behind the door, and the Imperium behind the door.

"Holy crap!" the leading warrior cursed in Low Gothic, heavily mixed with Mandarin Chinese.

Then he slammed the throttle, and in the blink of an eye, he and his Astartes vanished from the spot.

"Ah?" the winged figure in the Bai Guang first let out a bewildered exclamation: "What... is this situation?"

Zhou Yun's corner of the mouth twitched violently.

Looking at this bizarre tubular world before him, he couldn't help but rub the center of his brow.

This is the Webway, a road built by the Old Ones within the Warp, a method of faster-than-light travel that can isolate Warp corruption, and also the technology the Hua Di Huang has long dreamed of.

The Any Door can open a gate to any destination within a range of ten light-years,

but if a map is not input in advance and the correct destination is not specified, then the Any Door might randomly open a gate to anywhere.

For example, the one just opened was a gate leading to the Webway.

This segment of the Webway might be located in the Warp corresponding to the Hive Fleet and its surroundings within ten light-years, which the Any Door also recognized as being within the ten-light-year range.

But this was not the reason the winged figure in the Bai Guang and Zhou Yun were stunned.

The existence of a Webway near the Hive Fleet is very normal.

Long ago, the Hive Fleet was frequently attacked by the Aeldari, indicating that a Webway gate might exist near the Hive Fleet.

What truly left Zhou Yun and the winged figure in the Bai Guang stunned was that the leading warrior who had just ridden a motorcycle and vanished in an instant was...

"Chaghatai Khan," Zhou Yun said with a click of his tongue.

Chaghatai Khan, the Primarch of the Fifth Legion, the White Scars; the Warhawk of Chogoris; the Space Mongol; a 40k ghost-fire enthusiast; the most lucid Primarch; and one of the few Primarchs who could truly be called free.

It is said that at some point in the past, this Great Khan vanished into the Webway, perhaps to hunt the Dark Eldar, perhaps to seek something else.

Anyway, this most unique Primarch simply disappeared from the sight of everyone in the Imperium for no apparent reason.

But the moment Zhou Yun just opened the Any Door, he actually brushed past him.

His fingers moved rapidly to operate the Any Door, memorizing this coordinate.

"Let the Khan go," the winged figure in the Bai Guang said.

"Hmm?" Zhou Yun raised an eyebrow, looking at the winged figure in the Bai Guang with an expression of interest.

"Are you worried that the Khan will steal your status as the First Returner?" Zhou Yun couldn't help but ask.

"..." The winged figure in the Bai Guang suddenly took a sharp breath, seeming to forcibly hold back a curse: "The Imperium needs the return of a Primarch, but the first Primarch to return cannot be just anyone. Even without considering the future the Hua Di Huang once saw, or the fate I now see..."

"From a purely rational perspective, among my brothers who currently have a chance to return to the Imperium, which one do you think is most suitable to be the first?"

"Horus," Zhou Yun said almost without hesitation.

"There is no such option!"

The winged figure in the Bai Guang said through gritted teeth:

"I, Ji Li Man, Russ, the Khan, Lion, Vulkan, Dorn, Corax... which one do you choose?"

Hearing the words of the winged figure in the Bai Guang, Zhou Yun blinked his eyes.

If he were to choose, he would first choose the Lion and Russ to return together,

or choose Ji Li Man, the Lion, and Sanguinius to return together.

That would certainly be joyful, but if considering from the Imperium's perspective,

if the Lion and Russ returned first, the Imperium might not be able to adapt, and the Khan, who has long maintained an outsider status, is the same.

Corax's situation is even more complex; if he returned first, it would be hard to say how the Imperium should face him.

The remaining options are nothing but Sanguinius, Ji Li Man, Vulkan, and Dorn.

After considering everything, Zhou Yun had to admit,

the Primarch who should return first is best Ji Li Man, followed by Sanguinius.

"There is another point... the first Primarch to return will inevitably undertake a mission."

"To go to Terra, to confirm the Hua Di Huang's condition, to see clearly whether the person on the Wang Zuo is still our father, and whether we should continue to be loyal to Him."

The winged figure in the Bai Guang said:

"If the result is negative, the enemy he will face will be five; therefore, the First Returner must have the ability to gather at least enough force to defend himself."

"The White Scars of the Khan no longer possess such force; Russ and the Lion, we do not know what choices they would make; Dorn is too rigid; in the end, someone who has been suspected of being a traitor for ten thousand years is the best choice."

"To be honest, I always feel that if the Hua Di Huang really has a problem, Ji Li Man might be the one to act most decisively."

Hearing the analysis of the winged figure in the Bai Guang, the corner of Zhou Yun's mouth twitched slightly.

So the reason you think Ji Li Man is suitable to be the first to return is because... you think he is disloyal.

"Moreover, I know the Khan; his reaction speed is much faster than mine. If he wanted to leave, he would not have brushed past you."

"He must simply not want to return to the Imperium yet."

The winged figure within the white light explained.

"What do you mean?" Zhou Yun raised an eyebrow. Indeed, after seeing Zhou Yun, Khan had suddenly floored the accelerator.

"I trust Khan Chagatai."

The winged figure within the white light said:

"On the day of the Siege of Terra, Dorn hoped we would hold our ground."

"And Khan found me. He asked me: 'In your prophecy, if I go out of the city, how many can I save?'"

"Countless." The winged figure within the white light said: "That was how I answered Khan at the time."

"Then, I will go out to fight." He repeated the words Khan had spoken back then.

"I do not know what Khan's plan is, nor do I know what he is doing."

"But I know the eagle sees further than the hunter on the ground, and knows the direction of the prey better."

"He has not returned to the Empire for a reason. He couldn't possibly be truly lost, could he?"

Zhou Yun nodded lightly, seemingly agreeing with the words of the winged figure within the white light.

Then, "But I never said I wanted to drag Khan back into this cesspool of an Empire."

!. Read

"Ah?" The winged figure within the white light paused for a moment.

"I wanted to chase after him, shouting: 'Khan, take me with you! Khan, I want to learn how to ride a motorcycle!'"

"Compared to struggling to resurrect you in this cesspool of an Empire, surely racing through the Webway with Khan is more thrilling."

Zhou Yun chuckled lightly and returned to Asford through the Anywhere Door, but he still recorded the coordinates of this place.

Knowing the location of a Webway entrance would surely come in handy in the future.

The spire carrying the Governor's Palace had already begun to collapse; he had to leave immediately.

Thinking this, Zhou Yun input the map data he had obtained from General Droste into the Anywhere Door.

Then, he took out an ancient gourd from his four-dimensional pocket, pushed open the Anywhere Door, and vanished from the spot.

"Khan, what was that just now?" A White Scar rider driving a motorcycle, who was following Khan Chagatai, approached Khan and asked.

"Would I know? The Death God? The blue raccoon cat? The God of the Machine? Or perhaps another contender for the position of the Art of Malice?"

Khan Chagatai said with a look of avoidance on his face:

"I only know our exploration is not yet over."

"The Final War, the Hour of the Wolf as that fellow Russ called it, another Great Crusade has not yet arrived; not even the winds of fate have converged in the material universe."

"The day of return has not come, my child. Both the falcon and the hunter must remain patient."

"Those who were good at war in the past first made themselves invincible, then waited for the enemy to become vulnerable."

Khan Chagatai's gaze, like that of a falcon, looked into the depths of the Webway:

"Besides, we have a hunt that is not yet finished."

"Tell me, child. Where are our prey—the bloodthirsty demons on the Path to Paradise, the xenos known as the Eldar, and their leaping jesters—heading now?"

"Baal." The White Scar warrior following Khan said.

"Baal, the crimson wasteland of my brother."

Khan let out a light chuckle:

"I once received his help on Terra; now is the time for me to hunt for him."

A faint glint flashed in his eyes, seemingly reflecting the figure of Zhou Yun just now.

In his pupils, it seemed a winged figure shrouded in white light hovered behind Zhou Yun.

That figure was stained and dissolved by the blue light emanating from Zhou Yun.

"I hope you know what you are doing, 'Sanguinius'."

Khan couldn't help but laugh heartily. If things really developed as he predicted, that would be too interesting!

He decided to go to Baal to take a look and see what that divinity, born from the faith in his brother, intended to do.

"If I can lure another one of my brothers, that would be even better."

(End of this chapter)