Chapter 178: The Eleventh Legion, Comparable in Scale to the Prime

Fenris, Asaheim, the Wolf King's council chamber.

Without any spoils, Jorin, riding a Thunderwolf, returned before Sanchez.

Beside the warm hearth, the Fenrisians listened to Jorin recount what happened in the hearth-tongue—Juvik—and all remained silent.

The Wolf King slammed his large hand onto the table, causing mead to splash across the surface and drip onto the floor.

Freki and Geri, lying on the ground, had their fur stand on end as they straightened their bodies.

Leman Russ's azure eyes swept across the crowd; the Fenrisians he gazed upon felt as if they had fallen into an icy lake.

"You are men of Fenris! Fenrisian warriors will never be struck down!"

The Wolf King rose, Freki and Geri following at his side; he walked to Jorin and patted his shoulder with a large hand.

"Old friend, you have already decided to accept the transformation; I believe that once you have ascended, you will surely be able to defeat Ninglu's whelps."

Hearing Leman Russ's trust in him, the frost on Jorin's face melted slightly.

After encouraging Jorin, the Wolf King looked around at the crowd and continued.

"We will not wait; the hunters of Fenris always have a way."

Through his words, Leman Russ injected confidence into the Fenrisians; his azure eyes were deep as he leaned over to pat his wolf brothers.

"We are a pack; Fenrisian wolves are not lone wolves, and we are not brutes."

"Whoever slights the pack will become bleached bones in the snow."

The Fenrisians, with their messy and shaggy manes, rose while howling.

"Boom, boom, boom!"

A knock on the door sounded at an inopportune time; the Wolf King narrowed his eyes, already knowing that the one knocking was one of Ninglu's whelps.

"Let him in."

Leman Russ walked back to the throne and sat upon the furs.

The Reaper Lord walked into the council chamber; hundreds of Fenrisians, draped in filthy furs like a pack of wolves, stared at him fiercely.

The "Hunter" keenly sensed that even though they wore primitive leather armor and iron chainmail, and held nothing but steel swords and axes, their strong bodies and the aura they exuded proved they were formidable warriors.

They were dangerous enough alone, but as a group, they were lethal, even to creatures as large as Astartes.

Sanchez showed no fear; he did not even touch the weapon at his waist as he simply walked toward the Wolf King.

The "Provocateur's" high-held head and the provocative aura he exuded made the "Pack of Wolves" breathe heavily; they struggled to restrain themselves from charging at the Reaper Lord.

With every step the "Provocateur" took, he could feel a slight sense of melting within his body.

Leman Russ watched the approaching Reaper Lord; unlike the increasingly angry Fenrisian "Pack of Wolves," his own rage gradually subsided.

When the "Provocateur" stopped and before he could speak, the Wolf King spoke first.

"Sanchez, you have won the victory of the second hunt."

"The third hunt is a pack hunt, limited to thirteen men, with the King of the Ice Trolls as the target."

The Order Shadow sensed the Wolf King's dismissive attitude and did not ask questions, simply replying.

"As you wish."

The Reaper Lord opened a communication channel to send a message to his subordinates operating on Asaheim.

"I want the data on the King of the Ice Trolls."

Subsequently, Sanchez called the Shadow of Sovereignty to dispatch a transport ship to deliver the Withered Wing to the Gene-Father.

One Fenrisian hour later, Ninglu saw the corpse of the Withered Wing on a deck specifically partitioned to satisfy the Primarch's hobbies.

He activated his Spirit Vision and looked at the behemoth, discovering that only its pituitary gland and eyes contained the main ingredients for the Potion of the "Guanzhe's" subsequent Sequence 8, "Reader of Minds."

Thus, Ninglu severed the head of the Ice Dragon and, after sending it back to the "Kingdom of Disorder," opened his communicator to contact Sanchez.

It was time to care about his progeny and the progress of the hunting competition.

After hearing the "Provocateur's" briefing, Ninglu immediately reconstructed the scene of his conflict with the Fenrisians in his mind.

【The "Provocateur" will have a negative impact on interpersonal relationships; both passive abilities and active role-playing will cause this.

Considering that Sanchez provoked many Fenrisians, including the Wolf King, it will certainly increase the speed of digestion, but without seeing him, it is impossible to determine when digestion will be complete.】

After pondering for a moment, the Primarch said approvingly.

"Sanchez, you have done well and defended the honor of the Legion."

"Do not worry; although Leman Russ appears to be a barbarian, it is actually just a disguise; he will not lay a hand on you."

"According to what you said, I think he will treat you as a whetstone; it is fine to be even more provocative."

Receiving the Gene-Father's approval, the Reaper Lord felt as if he were being illuminated by warm sunlight, and the wind and snow battering his body turned into a warm current.

At the same time, it felt as if a star had shattered within his body, and the "Provocateur" said excitedly.

"I will surely win the victory and will not let you down."

"I know something about your third hunting target."

"Ice Trolls, also known by the Fenrisians as Ice Ogres, are giant creatures living on the Asaheim Continent; they are close relatives of Ice Demons but are larger in size, standing taller than a Dreadnought."

Ninglu recalled the data he knew about Ice Trolls; they posed a constant threat to anyone on Asaheim, including the future Space Wolves.

"Ice Trolls often use entire trees as clubs, and their jaw strength is immense, capable of crushing power armor."

"Unlike other creatures, Ice Trolls possess a certain level of intelligence."

"..."

After hanging up the communication, Ninglu remembered that in the future 892. M41, Wolf Lord Harald Deathwolf heard that the Tide Hunter tribe he originated from had been invaded by a group of Ice Trolls.

He returned to his tribe and led his clansmen to defeat the Ice Trolls.

During the battle, Harald himself severed the head of the Ice Troll leader and later fashioned its hide into his own cloak.

【Although Sanchez is not wearing power armor and his combat effectiveness is greatly reduced, he is a "Provocateur" and has twelve "Hunters" assisting him; he can crush the Ice Troll tribe.】

After making this judgment, Ninglu issued his orders.

"Send the corpse of the Withered Wing to the Void Hunter; it is the trophy of Sanchez."

Subsequently, the Primarch returned to his desk, contemplating how to distribute the five Relic-class warships that had just arrived in the Fenrisi xingxi.

【The approach of Lion El'Jonson was to use these warships as secret weapons, keeping all Relic-class warships in reserve, and using them to severely damage the fleet of the Night Lords at Saramas.

But I know the future, and I possess the Prophecy Dice; I have the opportunity to acquire Blackstone Fortresses, Gloriana-class Battleships, and even seize the Abyss-class Warships of the Word Bearers.

There is no need to treat the Relic-class as secret weapons; distributing them to each Chapter to form a fleet combination with complementary advantages is better.】

Ninglu thought of this, made his decision, and issued his orders.

"The five Relic-class warships gifted by the Emperor are to be sent to the First, Third, Fourth, Eighth, and Ninth Chapters, respectively."

These five Chapters, along with the Seventh Legion, had achieved greater combat records than the other Chapters.

The abilities of the six Lords had also been recognized by the Primarch, and the core paths and future development directions of their Chapters had already been determined.

Ninglu then looked at the reports marked with the highest priority level by the Primarch Attendant: three reports from the Teriken system.

The first report came from the Chief Apothecary, Mikel, reporting that of the thirty-three thousand five hundred and eleven Candidates who returned from the Crystal Illusion, all had undergone the Gaizao Shouhu.

Because their average age was 4.2 years older than the Candidates of the twenty-nine groups that had previously undergone the Gaizao Shouhu, the failure rate of the procedure increased from 43.36% to 45.18%.

The Primarch cast his gaze toward the number of newly born Order Shadow: eighteen thousand three hundred and seventy-one.

He nodded with satisfaction; this number was slightly higher than he had estimated.

【As an Apothecary, Mikel played a certain role.

The medicine he formulated reduced the rejection reaction when mortals underwent the Gaizao Shouhu.】

The Primarch looked at another part of the report.

【Of the ten thousand one hundred and forty who failed the Gaizao Shouhu, the number of deaths was only one hundred and four.

The survivors have all joined the Auxilia.】

The Primarch wrote his approval on the document: 【The Chief Apothecary has lived up to his mission; his work is highly effective.

Order him to return to the Legion Flagship to receive a commendation.】

The Primarch put down the Data Slate, and his superhuman brain updated the status of the number of Junluanzhanshi he commanded in an instant.

【After the new Order Shadow joined the various Chapters, the total number was approximately eighty-five thousand.

There are two reasons why the exact number cannot be determined.

On one hand, although the first batch of new recruits from the various systems controlled by the Legion had not yet joined the Chapters, Terra-born who completed their Gaizao Shouhu on the Moon were constantly joining the Legion.

On the other hand, the various Chapters were fighting on various battlefronts, and Order Shadow were killed in action every day.

With one increase and one decrease, and since the reports the Primarch received were not real-time reports, he could only estimate the approximate number of the Legion.

【I have been back with the Legion for less than ten years, and the Eleventh Legion is developing rapidly, with a number approaching the peak period of the Thousand Sons.

Of course, without considering the situation of the Second and Eleventh Legions, the Thousand Sons had the smallest number among the eighteen Legions during their peak.

Even so, this is a gratifying rate of development, and it is still one hundred and eighty-five years until the fall of Horus in 004. M31.】

The Primarch leaned back comfortably on his throne, thinking happily.

【The veterans of the Vostonia system who followed me have all undergone the Gaizao Shouhu, and the period of explosive growth has passed.

Unless a major war is encountered, the number of the Legion will grow steadily from now on.

Even if the Emperor sends the Eleventh Legion as the main force to fight the Rangdan, the number of the Legion should be close to three hundred thousand when the Great Crusade ends.】

Ninglu sat up straight, picked up the Data Slate, and looked at the second report; it came from Malena Skala.

【The first phase of construction on Teriken I has ended, and the world has reached the standard of a Garden World.

Agricultural output can support the food needs of thirteen point five billion people, satisfying the requirements for the next phase of development.

Construction of Trikon II has officially begun.】

The last report came from Wojciech Belik.

【Teriken I has completed its industrial construction, finishing the construction of industrial bases and shipyards without damaging the ecological environment.】

After thinking for a moment, Ninglu issued an order to Wojciech: 【Proceed to Sepra Mundi to accelerate the construction of shipyards and industrial bases.】

Three days later, five warships loaded with Kraken and sea dragon meat set sail to report to their respective Chapters.

At the same time, on Asaheim, the hunt for the King of the Ice Trolls began.

(End of this chapter)