Chapter 1349: Bloody Battle on Chengjia Star (3)

Eastern Defense Line.

Nuochaqigan stood at the edge of the trench, his Guardian Spear thrust into the Zerg corpse beside him.

Krieg soldiers lined up on both sides of him, using Laser Guns to suppress the Zerg attempting to approach.

Nuochaqigan's very presence was enough; his golden figure was the most powerful order.

A Tyranid Warrior charged from the flank with dozens of Termagants, attempting to bypass Nuochaqigan to attack the machine gun emplacement in the rear.

Nuochaqigan pulled up his spear; without any wasted movement, the spear pierced the Tyranid Warrior's chest, was pulled out, and swept across—the heads of three Termagants flew off.

As the Tyranid Warrior fell, his spear was already pointed at the next target.

From start to finish, it took less than three seconds.

Nuochaqigan did not say a single word.

The firing rhythm of the Krieg soldiers did not even change because of this raid, as if the Tyranid Warrior's charge was merely an unremarkable interlude on the battlefield.

Behind the second line of defense, the Cadian artillery position.

Akadi stood in the center of the position, staring at the firing coordinates on the holographic screen.

The area in front of the first line of defense had already been covered by artillery fire countless times, and the Zerg corpses were piled like mountains, but new Zerg continued to charge, stepping over the corpses.

The density of the Zerg fluctuated, but it never ceased.

The gun barrels had been replaced for the third time, the artillerymen had rotated twice, and the ammunition consumption had already exceeded the estimate by three hundred percent.

"Increase the firing angle, cover one thousand eight hundred meters to two thousand five hundred meters."

Akadi ordered.

The artillerymen adjusted the angle of the cannons, and the Rune Bullets traced arcs in the air, landing in more distant areas; gaps were blasted into the Zerg swarm.

Whenever the density of the Zerg increased, the artillery fire intensified; whenever the density decreased, the fire became sparser.

"Commander, the ammunition can still last for two hours."

The artillery Commander reported.

Akadi nodded.

"Notify the transport team to urge them again. The second fleet is arriving soon; they will bring supplies."

"Yes!"

Outside the orbit of Chengjia Star.

Vulkan's Salamanders Legion fleet had just arrived.

The green paint shimmered with a warm luster under the starlight, and the flagship "Dragon Breath" led the support fleet as it arrived.

On the Bridge of the "Sigh", Valuokesi received the communication.

Vulkan's face appeared in the holographic projection, his black skin gleaming under the lights.

"Valuokesi, how is the situation on the ground?"

Valuokesi said.

"Lord Mortarion is at the first line of defense. The main force of the Zerg has landed, and the offensive has never stopped. Krieg casualties exceed forty percent, the Dusk Raiders have lost over thirty men, and Lord Nuochaqigan is still fighting."

Vulkan's brow furrowed.

"My fleet is deploying; the supply fleet will go first to replenish your ammunition, and my ground troops will land afterward."

Valuokesi nodded.

"Lord Mortarion needs more men; although the first line of defense has not been lost, the number of soldiers has reached its limit."

Vulkan said.

"The Salamanders will go down to reinforce them."

The communication ended.

The Salamanders Legion's supply fleet detached from the fleet and accelerated toward Chengjia Star.

Ammunition, fuel, medical supplies... crates upon crates were transported to the ground.

Vulkan did not wait for the supplies to be unloaded and issued the landing order directly.

The drop pods plummeted into the atmosphere, trailing long tails of fire, and landed behind the first line of defense.

The Space Marines of the Salamanders wore green Power Armor, poured out of the drop pods, and quickly formed ranks.

Vulkan landed last.

His Power Armor shimmered with a deep green luster in the firelight, and he gripped a giant hammer in his hand.

He walked to Mortarion's temporary command post.

"Brother."

Mortarion looked at him. "Brother, your troops arrived very quickly."

Vulkan said.

"The Salamanders will go to the first line of defense, and your men will pull back to rest."

Mortarion shook his head.

"No withdrawal. The Krieg will not withdraw, and neither will the Dusk Raiders. Your troops will fill the gaps and expand the depth of the defense line; if we have more space, we can reduce losses."

"Good."

Vulkan ordered over the communication channel.

"Advance to the first line of defense and fill all gaps."

The green tide surged forward, merging into the gray trenches.

Outside the orbit of Chengjia Star, the third fleet was still on its way.

Lion's Dark Angels Legion fleet.

On the Bridge of the "Loyalty", Lion stood before the Holographic Star Map, looking at that dense mass of red light points.

His face was cold and stern, his long golden hair neatly tied behind his head, and there was no emotion in his eyes.

"Father, we will arrive at Chengjia Star in 35 hours," the Adjutant reported.

Lion nodded.

"Notify Mortarion and Vulkan, tell them to hold on a little longer."

The Adjutant relayed the order.

Lion looked at Chengjia Star on the star map.

That gray-blue planet had been covered beyond recognition by Zerg Spore Cysts, and the surface was everywhere covered in black Zerg biomass.

But the blue light points representing the Human defense lines still existed, not yet Devoured by the red.

The Zerg offensive did not stop.

Their numbers did not decrease, and the density of their charges did not lower.

On the Eastern Defense Line, Nuochaqigan was still standing there.

He had not moved his position, just standing there, his Spear constantly thrusting, sweeping, and hacking.

His movements remained precise, and every strike was lethal.

Krieg soldiers fired behind him, their attacks never ceasing.

The presence of the Adeptus Custodes was an order.

Hold.

On the Western Defense Line, Mortarion had just killed the fourth Hive Tyrant.

His pale Power Armor was splattered with insect blood; he stood at the edge of the trench, watching the Tyranid Warriors regrouping in the swarm.

"Where has Vulkan gone?"

The Adjutant pointed toward the further front of the Western Defense Line.

"Lord Vulkan is at the front line; he took the Salamanders to plug a gap."

Mortarion nodded and continued to fight.

Outside the orbit, on the Canaan scout ship.

Saiwei had been sitting in front of the ground monitoring screen for several hours, motionless.

He saw the Krieg soldiers firing silently in the trenches, one falling and another filling the gap, flesh and Steel constructing a defense line that would not collapse.

He saw the Dusk Raiders counterattacking in the swarm, their Chainswords cleaving open the carapaces of Tyranid Warriors, every step taken upon corpses.

He saw Nuochaqigan standing before the trench, single-handedly blocking the Zerg's charges time and time again.

He saw the entire process of Mortarion killing the Hive Tyrant alone, his Great Scythe cutting through chitinous armor as if cutting paper.

He saw the Salamanders Legion arrive, the green Space Marines filling every gap.

"Sir, do they... not rest?"

The observer's voice was somewhat dry.

Saiwei shook his head.

"Their defensive firepower has never weakened; the forces of the Xiuluo Saint are not infinite, but their will is."

He stood up.

"Transmit the surveillance records back to the rear, let the Speaker see how these Xiu Luo Saint Humans fight."

The Communications Officer relayed the message.

Saiwei walked to the window, looking at the burning Chengjia Star.

In the distant orbit, the Xiuluo Saint fleet was still locked in combat with Zerg bio-ships, artillery fire flashing in the starry sky.

Although the defense line on the ground was surrounded layer by layer by red, it never disappeared.