"Jackie, stop them!" Valerie's calm voice rang out.
The next moment, two dark red iron guards moved.
The iron guard controlled by Valerie, moving at a speed synchronized with her neural reactions, took heavy steps, its power fist humming lowly, and precisely punched another Bloodletter attempting to outflank them.
The demon raised its burning weapon to parry, but the immense force from the iron guard sent it and its weapon flying, crashing into a distant metal wall with a dull thud.
The iron guard piloted by Jackie was slightly clumsier, but relying on the powerful performance of the machine, it successfully used its attached close-combat ram to block the third Bloodletter's lunge at the remaining Stormtroopers.
The collision of metal and brass erupted in dazzling sparks.
Iron Guard Cockpit
"Maine!" Valerie's voice came through the encrypted channel. Her iron guard was engaged in a dangerous struggle with the Bloodletter, which had gone berserk after being repelled. Each collision between the demon's burning weapon and the iron guard's power fist erupted in blinding sparks and the screech of twisting metal.
Maine instantly understood her intention—someone needed to break the deadlock.
"Rebecca, suppressive fire! Dorio, Pilar, with me, support the iron guard! Falco, Morris, keep an eye on that Sorcerer, don't let him pull any tricks!" he ordered swiftly, his voice steady, trying to maintain order amidst the chaos.
Rebecca's shoulder-mounted plasma cannon emitted a low charging hum, but the enemy was too close; she dared not risk a full volley.
"So annoying!" she spat, quickly switching to the laser gun she carried as a secondary weapon.
Blazing beams of light, like precise surgical scalpels, struck the Bloodletter's head, joints, and other critical areas.
Although unable to penetrate its tough skin blessed by Warp energy, the continuous scorching and impact effectively disrupted its balance and attack rhythm, creating valuable breathing room and counterattack opportunities for Valerie's iron guard.
On the other side, Dorio let out a low roar like a lioness, her bio-enhanced muscles tensing instantly. Pushing off the ground, she shot forward like a cannonball, charging towards the other Bloodletter that was locked in a stalemate with Jackie's iron guard.
Without any fancy moves, she delivered a straight punch, imbued with her full strength, with a faint whoosh, striking the demon's heavily muscled back!
"Bang!"
The moment her fist made contact, the internal incendiary core was triggered, and a small but lethal burst of energy erupted at the impact point.
The Bloodletter let out a shriek mixed with pain and fury, stumbling forward, leaving behind a charred patch on its back with strange, unquenchable flames clinging to it.
Just as this Bloodletter, caught between two foes, lost its balance and exposed its side neck, Maine's already raised incendiary gun barrel was steadily locked onto the target.
"Shhh—!"
That low, distinctive spraying sound rang out again, and an invisible thermal ray traversed the space, hitting precisely.
The Bloodletter's body suddenly stiffened, then erupted from within with an intense, blinding fire!
It let out a piercing, distorted shriek, frantically clawing at its burning body, as if trying to dig out the flames within, but the incineration process, starting at the molecular level, was irreversible.
In just a few seconds, this ferocious demon transformed before everyone's eyes into a violently twitching, ultimately collapsing heap of charred remains, leaving only the lingering stench of sulfur.
The first demon was successfully killed!
The death of its companion completely enraged the remaining two Bloodletters.
The malicious flames burning in their eyes almost seemed to burst forth, and their attacks became even more frenzied, more reckless.
The one entangled with the Imperial Fists astartes completely abandoned defense, its burning greatsword slashing wildly in a suicidal manner, forcing the astartes to temporarily avoid its edge, sparks flying like a waterfall as he parried with his chainsword.
The other, locked in a struggle with Jackie's iron guard, tried to simply push the iron guard over with pure brute force, its hooves digging deep gouges into the metal floor.
Inquisitor Kairas, enduring his discomfort, precisely fired his bolt pistol, attempting to alleviate pressure on the astartes, while loudly chanting ancient, powerful exorcism scriptures.
An invisible, reassuring energy field radiated from him, suppressing the suffocating Warp evil surrounding the Bloodletters to some extent, like warm sun melting snow, weakening their ferocity.
Throughout the pre-processing area, the roar of chainswords, the boom of bolters, the shrieks of demons, the clang of weapons, the holy words of exorcism, and the screech of twisting metal intertwined into a furious symphony.
And the Chaos Sorcerer, keenly seizing the tiny gap when the astartes was slightly pushed back and his attention drawn by the frenzied demon, once again dragged his half-mutated body, like a limping vulture, desperately lunging towards the torn ventilation duct opening—his last hope of escape.
Just as his fingertips were about to touch the cold metal edge of the duct!
"Bang!"
A steady boltgun shot rang out.
It didn't come from the Inquisitor, but from the Imperial Fists astartes!
While parrying a heavy slash from the Bloodletter, he fired a precise bolter round with extraordinary combat instincts and shooting skill.
The bullet did not directly hit the Sorcerer, but rather the ground mere inches in front of him!
The violent explosion and scattering shrapnel, though not directly hitting the Sorcerer, successfully pushed him back with the shockwave and fragments, blocking his last hope of escape.
Several sharp metal fragments even cut open his mutated limbs and his intact cheek, with foul blood and some disgusting tissue fluid flowing down.
His retreat was completely cut off! Ahead was the insurmountable Takayama of the astartes, and behind him were the menacing Maine's crew and the recovering Inquisitor.
The half-human face of the Chaos Sorcerer twisted with extreme rage, despair, and pain, while the other half of his writhing flesh let out a piercing shriek that was not human, filled with hatred and blasphemy for the material universe.
"You… forced me!" he roared in a tone mixed with human language and demonic whispers, his voice hoarse and broken, "Since I cannot offer this great gift to the Master, then let your souls and flesh appease my wrath! You… will all die!"
He abandoned all fantasies of escape, abruptly turned, and unleashed all his madness and accumulated psychic power, like a breached dam, towards Maine's crew and the Inquisitor who was just struggling to his feet!
He judged these "mortals" to be an easier breach point, and also capable of maximally disturbing the powerful astartes' mind.
His fully mutated, chitin-covered giant claw suddenly rose, dangerous pinkish-purple arcs of electricity dancing at its fingertips, aimed at Inquisitor Kairas!
"Heretic! Die!" The Inquisitor, bracing himself, raised his relic-studded power sword, attempting to parry and counterattack.
But the Chaos Sorcerer's psychic lightning came too fast and too fierce! A bolt of lightning as thick as an arm, imbued with destructive energy, instantly erupted, tearing through the air with a deafening crackle like a thousand birds screaming simultaneously, striking directly at the Inquisitor!
The lightning struck the power sword's blade precisely!
A blinding flash instantly enveloped the Inquisitor's figure. The immense energy overload not only instantly disintegrated the power sword's force field but also penetrated the Inquisitor's armor.
He was blasted away like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into the hard metal wall behind him with a dull thud. Arcs of electricity danced across the surface of his power armor. He struggled for a moment, then slumped powerlessly to the ground, temporarily losing consciousness.