Chapter 156: The Thalassians Obsessed with Flamboyant Performance

Segmentum Pacificus, high orbit above Tanis.

Sanchez, Chapter Master of the Seventh Legion, stared at the holographic image of Tanis and spoke to the Chapter officers beside him.

"The Thalassian warships are not within the star system; we must take this opportunity to annihilate the Xenos on the surface of Tanis."

"Before we departed, the Gene-Father reminded me of the characteristics of the Thalassians."

"The Thalassians view war as a form of performance; when they plan tactics, they base them on the grandeur and dazzling level of the warfare, rather than on rational tactics."

The "Hunter" had a glint in his eyes as his large hand tapped the planet Tanis, enlarging it.

"The Thalassians' tactical actions are extremely bizarre; they will send out columns composed of glittering war machines, and in subsequent battles, they will send out infantry equipped with crude gear and weak protection."

"The two extremes of 'over-emphasis' and 'excessive disregard' often appear in a bizarre, continuous succession; they lack a continuous, holistic strategic mindset."

"Their tactical actions are so bizarre that it is difficult for us to predict them."

First Captain Szczesny, with the High Gothic letter "I" and wave patterns branded on his left shoulder, frowned and spoke.

"No," Sanchez shook his head and said, "we do not need to predict; we only need to cast bait."

"When they lunge at the flamboyant bait, we then carry out targeted strikes."

The Reaper Lord scattered fifty-two baits across Tanis, and the 33rd Regiment of the Solar Auxilia, which had been fighting alongside the Seventh Legion, was ordered to deploy.

They served as bait once again; unlike at Triken, this time no one could be certain which bait the main force of the Thalassians would bite.

On the fourth day after the bait was cast, the Thalassians moved.

Jorginho, with waves and the High Gothic letter "II" painted on his left shoulder pad, reviewed the combat reports.

"The Thalassians' line of thought is truly incomprehensible; the Seventh, Twenty-third, and Forty-ninth strategic points they targeted with their war machines have completely different characteristics."

"The Seventh strategic point is located outside the forest with weak defenses; the Twenty-third strategic point is located at the edge of the Nar Forest, surrounded by minefields; the Forty-ninth strategic point is located on a hill, where the Auxilia Legion Commander led his guard to build a fortress, and the Legion's artillery is concentrated here."

"Besides these three strategic points, the Thalassians also launched attacks on twenty-five other strategic points, but they only sent infantry equipped with crude weapons, who were easily crushed by the Auxilia."

As the Second Company Captain spoke, the First Captain pondered without result.

"It is completely illogical, not even a logic that an ordinary person would possess..."

Szczesny was silent for a second before finding a suitable description: "It is like a gambler throwing dice."

"Is there a conspiracy within this?"

The Reaper Lord pondered silently for a few seconds, then shook his head decisively; his tone was resonant and powerful.

"No!"

"This is the Thalassian that Father spoke of; their offensive is completely devoid of logic."

"Szczesny, your First Company's target is the Twenty-third strategic point; Jorginho, the Forty-ninth strategic point is yours; I will be responsible for the Seventh strategic point, using Mass Explosion Bombs for the attack."

The Chapter Master looked at the other Chapter Masters and the Lieutenant, "For the remaining strategic points, follow the previous arrangements and use Subsonic Bullets."

Sanchez issued the order, and Szczesny said nothing more; he did not believe the Monarch could be wrong, but Father had dispatched him to the Seventh Legion with the responsibility of offering counsel to the radical and bold Reaper Lord.

The Sound Array Master reported the results of the meeting to the flagship of the Twelfth Legion, and the commanders of the two Chapters quickly boarded the space capsules.

The black drop pods became increasingly charred and scorched during their journey through the atmosphere, then slammed violently into the ground, kicking up clouds of dust and scattering earth and stone; subsequently, accompanied by a rumbling roar, they opened separately, slamming their wide hatches heavily onto the ground.

The Order Shadow rushed out of the drop pods, dispersing mechanically, with each squad connecting head-to-tail to form a circular line, launching an attack from behind the Thalassians.

Sanchez looked at the glittering war machines ahead; the Thalassians showed no reaction to the enemy forces that had descended from the sky and appeared behind them; they were like beasts without intelligence, stubbornly continuing their attack on the Seventh strategic point.

The Reaper Lord was stunned for only a moment before he regained his composure, and he issued orders to the Honor Guard and the special operations squads selected from the Third to Fifth Companies.

"Attack!"

Sanchez strode forward, his left arm raised, firing a Mass Explosion Bomb at the dazzling armor, which was even brighter than the pearl-white armor of the Luna Wolves.

The Mass Explosion Bomb shot ruthlessly into the art-like Xenos armor, piercing the lower pair of the two pairs of longitudinally arranged forelimbs.

The explosion tore apart the longitudinal nerve axis wrapped in protein structures, leaving the squid-like body with only its head and tentacles similar to those of a cephalopod.

Sanchez pulled the trigger continuously, killing several Thalassians.

Sanchez pressed a Runic Rune and charged forward with long strides, appearing instantly behind the flamboyant war machine, and delivered a slash according to the 23rd article of "Osber-Vaya".

The roaring Chainsword tore through the shiny mechanical shell, striking precisely at the back of the space squid.

Amidst the roaring sound, blood mixed with protein sprayed into the air, and the squid head wearing a shiny helmet spun and fell to the ground.

The seasoned "Hunter" charged and broke through the Thalassians, utilizing his senses and "Warp Insight" to complete an analysis of the space squid-men during the battle.

He opened the command communication channel and issued the latest order.

"The Thalassians spend more effort on their appearance than on combat; their physical forms are also unsuited for battle, and they lack combat awareness."

"The Primarch is above, and he is very interested in the eyes of the Thalassians; cut off their heads whenever possible."

After hundreds of Thalassians were killed, the space squid-men seemed to finally snap out of their flamboyant combat performance; the war machines stepped in dance moves, twisting their bodies as if performing, and charged toward the black-armored warriors.

The Order Shadows keenly seized the opportunity of the Thalassians' battlefield dance, delivering crude blows without the slightest appreciation for it.

Sanchez discovered that the main force of the space squids remained obsessed with their flamboyant performance of launching heavy assaults to strike at weak defenses.

Two words could not help but surface in his mind: "Clown" and "Dressage".

At the same time, a performance he had seen at a celebration on Terra when he was seven years old flashed through his mind: the heavily made-up clowns and the dance steps taken by actors playing horses.

While the "Hunter" pondered, his movements did not stop, and he carried out efficient slaughter of the Thalassians.

At the same time, the sound of Szczesny's exclamation rang out in the headset channel.

"The space squids are much more flamboyant than the squids in the sea, and also more..."

Just as Szczesny was weighing his words, Jorginho spoke.

"This is the complexity of the species; the squid left the sea and became a flamboyant space species."

When Sanchez led his team to surround the Auxilia camp, a scene that felt even stranger to him occurred.

The Thalassian commander, wearing flamboyant armor, did not show anger or sorrow, nor did he attempt to flee.

Inside the cell, he performed a strange, upbeat dance, jumping from one side to the other, and even displayed a variety of colors.

The "Hunter" watched the flamboyant space squid for a moment, but he could not understand the bizarre neural pathways of the Thalassians.

Sanchez flashed his figure, swung his longsword, and ended the battle.

【The hunt I meticulously prepared ended up like a farce.】

After the conquest of Tanis ended, Sanchez began collecting the eyes of the Thalassians.

The Biological Sage conducted an anatomical analysis on the four visual organs of the space squids and discovered they possessed a 230-degree field of view.

After dissection, one could see the aqueous outer membrane and the spongy "retina"; the front pair of eyes had a large number of cone cells, which were conducive to seeing long-wavelength light, such as infrared; the rear pair of eyes possessed more rod cells and had extremely high photosensitivity.

The confusion caused by the Naer trees constantly pulling themselves out of the ground and settling back in had no effect on the keen-sensed Order Shadows; one by one, the Naerchong were collected, prepared to be offered to the Gene-Father.

The Twelfth Legion remained on Tanis to establish order and guard against the Thalassian fleet.

When the Seventh Legion returned with the spoils of war, aboard the Shadow of Sovereignty, Ninglu discovered that the Prophecy Dice had finished charging.

(End of this chapter)