Chapter 1228: We Are Willing to Negotiate

Guilliman walked in, followed by twenty Ultramarines Space Marines.

His Power Armor was covered in dust and blood, but none of that blood was his.

Kaste stood before the command console, gripping an energy sword in his hand.

His three eyes were filled with hatred and fear.

"Guilliman. You won. But you think this is the end? The spirit of the Fengqi will not be extinguished! More people will stand up and continue to resist you!"

Guilliman looked at him, his expression unchanged.

"Spirit?"

He repeated the word.

"You call this spirit?"

Guilliman walked up to Kaste and looked down at him.

"Three days ago, you had the chance to organize an effective defense, the chance to protect your soldiers and your people. But what did you do?"

Kaste's throat moved, but he did not speak.

"You concentrated all your forces around the capital. You pinned all your hopes on my 'mercy.' You thought I would care about civilian casualties, that I would lay siege and negotiate, that I would give you a chance to stall for time."

Guilliman shook his head.

"You were wrong. Terribly wrong."

He raised his Power Sword.

The blade flashed.

Kaste's head flew off, his three eyes wide open even in death, reflecting Guilliman's cold face.

Four hours later, the resistance in Kasadelan was completely quelled.

Guilliman stood on the ruins of the Command Center, overlooking the now-quiet city beneath his feet.

"Report casualties."

He said.

The Adjutant stepped forward.

"We have seventeen dead and twelve seriously wounded. The Alien army... confirmed dead is about ninety percent. Civilian deaths are about eighty percent."

Guilliman was silent for a second, then asked.

"What about the Human slaves?"

"About six hundred thousand were found, still alive."

"Rescue them and send them away."

"Yes."

Guilliman took one last look at the city.

"Kasadelan. Once the primary fortress. Now just a graveyard."

Aurelia Planet.

This planet was an industrial planet.

The surface was covered in massive factory buildings, and countless space stations and smelting platforms floated in orbit.

When the news of the surrender arrived, the industrial giants of Aurelia were holding an emergency meeting.

Presiding over the meeting was the president of the Aurelia Industrial Syndicate, a Three-Eyed Fengqi named Falkus Aurelian.

He controlled sixty percent of Aurelia's military industrial capacity and was the most powerful person on the entire planet.

"Surrender?"

Falkus sneered.

"Those cowards on the Capital Star, they lost the war, so they want to drag us into surrendering with them?"

He stood up and walked to the Holographic Star Map in the Meeting Room.

"Look at this. We have so many armories, producing enough weapons and equipment every day to sustain our war effort.

We have fifty million workers, who can be armed as soldiers whenever needed. We have twenty Orbital Defense Platforms and three thousand Anti-Air Cannon emplacements, enough to withstand any fleet's attack."

He turned around to face everyone present.

"We, Aurelia, are the industrial heart of the entire Fengqi Star Alliance. The Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance wants to conquer us?

They must destroy our factories first. But destroying the factories means destroying the war potential of the entire Star Alliance. Do they dare?"

A chorus of agreement rose in the Meeting Room.

"Falkus is right! They don't dare!"

"We have leverage! We have bargaining chips!"

"Aurelia independence! Let the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance come to negotiate!"

Falkus smiled with satisfaction.

"From today on, Aurelia is independent. We do not recognize the surrender of the Capital Star, and we do not accept the rule of the Alien Race.

We will let the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance know that the industrial power of the Fengqi is not something they can easily destroy."

As the news spread, all of Aurelia fell into a fanatical state of preparation for war.

Workers worked overtime to produce weapons, and the factory chimneys spewed thick smoke day and night.

The streets were filled with slogans like "Aurelia Never Yields," and hundreds of thousands of people gathered in the squares every day, shouting slogans and waving flags.

"Let them come!"

A foreman roared.

"Even if their Emperor comes, don't even think about stepping one foot into Aurelia!"

"Right! Let them come!"

Everyone echoed in unison.

Falkus stood inside his office.

"That Horus, they say he is some Warmaster, never defeated. But he has never encountered an opponent like us. Just wait, when the time comes, I will make him beg me personally, beg me to continue supplying them with weapons."

The assistant asked cautiously.

"President, what if they don't negotiate and attack directly?"

Falkus laughed loudly.

"Attack directly? Destroy our factories? Then how will the other planets they occupy be maintained? Without our weapons, how will their front lines advance? They need Aurelia, they need our industrial capacity. They dare not truly destroy us."

A confident light flickered in his eyes.

"This is our advantage. The power of industry is stronger than armies."

Two days later.

Horus's fleet arrived in the orbit of Aurelia.

The Luna Wolves' warships deployed into an attack formation in the starry sky.

The Fengqi soldiers on the Orbital Defense Platform discovered that the number of those warships far exceeded their expectations, at least two hundred.

And looking at their appearance, it was a posture prepared to begin an attack directly.

"Requesting negotiations!"

The defense platform Commander hurriedly sent a communication request via the Communication Device.

"We are willing to negotiate!"

After the communication connected, a low laugh came through.

"Negotiate? Too late."

The next second, artillery fire roared in unison.

The Orbital Defense Platform was soon completely destroyed.

Falkus stood on the top floor of the industrial building, his three eyes widened to the limit.

"No... impossible... how dare they..."

Before the words were finished, drop pods began to fall from the sky, and from time to time, bombing covered the Anti-Air Cannon emplacements.

Falkus rushed to the window, watching those drop pods descending in the distance.

Fire soared into the sky, the sound of explosions was deafening, and his factories were being destroyed one after another.

"No! My factories! My production lines!"

A flurry of chaotic screams and cries for help came from the Communication Device.

"District One factory destroyed!"

"District Three under attack! Requesting support!"

"District Seven... District Seven has fallen! Those monsters... they are monsters!"

Falkus slumped into his chair, his three eyes filled with despair.

The assistant rushed in, face deathly pale.

"President! We must evacuate! Their troops are advancing toward here!"

"Evacuate? Evacuate to where? My factories... my empire... all finished..."

The assistant grabbed his arm and dragged him up from the chair.

"Life is more important than factories! Let's go!"

The two rushed out of the office. They only ran down three floors.

The door to the stairwell was kicked open, five Luna Wolves warriors rushed in, Bolters pointed at Falkus's head.

Falkus raised his hands, his three eyes filled with fear.

"I... I surrender... I am willing to surrender..."

The leading Luna Wolves warrior looked at him and mocked.

"You are the Alien Falkus? The fool who thought he could use industrial power to threaten Father?"

Falkus nodded desperately.

"Yes... it's me... I can help you restore production... I can help you manufacture weapons... I can..."

The warrior shook his head.

"Too late."

The muzzle lifted.

A gunshot rang out.

The assistant screamed and turned to run, but the other four warriors had already blocked the way.

The roar of Bolters echoed in the stairwell, then returned to silence.