"Whoa, whoa, don't be like that."
Down in the main hall, the group of Ultramarines and their successors watching the battle all wore rather ugly expressions. The difference in skill was simply too obvious.
One side's battle line was already being steadily eroded, while the other had already carved out a large safe zone.
For some strange reason, everyone had the bizarre feeling that even if the fifteen hundred Shadow Moon Dire Wolves were slacking off, the Ultramarines still couldn't handle the fifteen hundred Emperor's Children alone.
In truth, the gap between the two sides wasn't that massive. If it could be quantified numerically, the difference was probably only in the teens.
But the problem was, this was a battlefield. Even a one percent difference would be instantly magnified. What's more, their coordination simply couldn't compare to Zhou Ye's forces. Thus, the scores on both sides…
Trailblaze: 436,921.
Ultramarines: 236,828.
Initially, the two sides had been neck and neck. The turning point came around the one-hundred-thousand-point mark. The Ultramarines began taking casualties. They simply weren't accustomed to this intensity of warfare.
They were being used as frontline grunts against Khorne's daemons, who even had damage reduction against ranged attacks. As their numbers started to dwindle, the battle entered a state of catastrophic collapse.
The Shadow Moon Dire Wolves were even in a state of half-slacking. One could only say that the "Protect Guilliman" weather just wasn't suitable for them.
Although Zhou Ye hadn't intentionally created any kind of conflict of interest, performance was truly dependent on the environment.
This scenario didn't allow them to play to their strengths. And seeing how much fun the Emperor's Children were having with the slaughter, they just decided to coast.
"These men are all dual-wielding swordsmen…"
In the viewing room, Guilliman fell silent. He seemed to have realized something.
"You blasphemous, ambitious Guilliman! I'll have you know you used my firstborn's gene-seed to create a legion!!!"
It was Fulgrim's face, a mask of fury mixed with a hint of madness.
Guilliman had originally thought Fulgrim's rage was because his resurrection had deprived the Daemon Primarch of a proud victory. But now, it seemed Fulgrim's reaction to that was mild in comparison. There was another reason that had truly sent him into a rage and made him seek trouble.
But he had never taken the gene-seed of the Phoenician. Yet every marine before him was of the exact same type as the Phoenician's sons.
At that moment, Guilliman finally understood. He had been made the scapegoat.
He shot a resentful look at Zhou Ye. He couldn't figure out why Fulgrim had pinned the blame on his head when it was clearly this man who had created a legion using the Phoenician's gene-seed.
He'd been so damn wronged.
---o---
Ultimately…
"Battle concluded!!!"
As the last of the Ultramarines successor marines was swallowed by the daemonic tide, the battle came to an end. Due to the avalanche effect, their forces had collapsed rapidly after they began to take casualties.
Trailblaze: 542,156.
Ultramarines: 254,236.
The entire hall fell into a dead silence. It wasn't just the Ultramarines. Even the visiting Space Wolves, Dark Angels, Iron Hands, Imperial Fists, and Black Templars were in a state of shock.
They knew there might be a gap, and that it wouldn't be small. But who could have imagined the gap would be this enormous?
The score was more than double. When the final numbers appeared, everyone felt as if they were in a dream. Of course, one person's face was even darker: Konrad Curze. This was a composite score, not just a simple kill count.
But the reality was even harsher. One only had to look at the sheer number of daemons slain by the Emperor's Children to understand.
"Are you satisfied now?"
Just then, Guilliman emerged from the VIP room. Although he had wanted to humble his sons a bit, this result had genuinely shocked him.
He also knew that Zhou Ye hadn't handicapped them; the equipment for both sides had been perfectly fair. In MOBA terms, both teams had full six-item builds. If you suck, practice more.
"And what about you?"
Zhou Ye also walked out and pointed to his Honor Guard outside. "What would this composite score mean in the Trailblaze forces?"
"A failing grade. They would be split up and assigned to various Rogue Trader vessels for a punitive service of five to ten years. During this period, they must obey the Rogue Trader's commands, clearing out potential corruption and xenos on their routes. After the service is complete, they are re-evaluated. If they fail three consecutive times, they are permanently transferred to the logistics division."
"…"
Hearing the words of Zhou Ye's Honor Guard, every Space Marine reflexively shrank back. That was beyond harsh. They were the Emperor's Angels, demigods of humanity. Being ordered around by a Rogue Trader was too miserable. And "logistics" most likely didn't mean becoming a Techmarine.
Although Techmarines were looked down upon in many Chapters, their status was actually quite high. They were responsible for maintaining vehicles and wargear—matters of life and death on the battlefield. No one would mess around with that.
"You've fought too many pacification campaigns. Many of you can no longer adapt to large-scale warfare. Guilliman, I'll leave this for you to handle. It's not my place to say anything."
Zhou Ye said coolly, looking at the assembled Chapters. At the same time, the participants from both sides began to file out. The moment they left the chamber, their equipment dissolved into dust. While they were surprised, they quickly calmed down, considering the circumstances.
However, when they came out and saw the final score, their faces changed, and they all sported sullen pouts.
For Space Marines, who placed honor above life, this was nothing short of a complete humiliation.
"Alright, everyone back inside. The meeting will continue."
Guilliman sighed, gathered his sons, and resumed the great conference.
As a politician, he was adept at handling such matters.
He knew that after ten thousand years, it was impossible to abolish the Codex Astartes. Even his own sons were this resistant; others would be even more so. More terrifyingly, the Codex had become too deeply integrated with the Imperium. Forcibly changing it would only cause a greater disaster.
It was a complex issue. How to handle it was a headache for Guilliman to solve. Zhou Ye couldn't be bothered with them. He was a faction unto himself and had no need to deal with the Imperium's internal politics. If the Imperium dared to forcibly command his armies, they could expect to eat a bolter shell.
Zhou Ye had always avoided direct conflict with the Imperium, but he would not allow them to disrupt his plan to lay the Star Rails. Especially now that his domain had grown to a size where exposure was inevitable, having the Lord Regent of the Imperium backing him would save him a lot of trouble.
After seeing this technology, anyone who dared to block him from laying his Star Rails would be personally torn apart by Guilliman. One should not underestimate the bloodlust and ferocity hidden beneath Guilliman's rational exterior.
---o---
"The plan is perfect. The Macragge operation was flawless. With Guilliman's help, I can avoid almost all trouble. Next is the Great Rift. This is not Vigilus, and it's too far from it. If Akivili could shatter the Amber King's warp barrier to pave his way, I should be able to punch through the Great Rift as well. But I'll need energy. The next step is to accumulate power and then attempt to break into Imperium Nihilus."
Staring at the Great Rift, Zhou Ye fell into thought. Imperium Nihilus was a great place. The light of the Astronomican couldn't reach it at all. That will be my priority territory. Even the Adeptus Astra Telepathica and the Navigator Houses won't have time to object.
Zhou Ye stared at the rift, deep in contemplation. The next phase of his plan was to break through the Great Rift and enter the Dark Imperium. That was the priority development area for his future plans.
The Great Rift had almost completely severed contact between Imperium Sanctus and Imperium Nihilus. As long as Zhou Ye could get inside, he could easily establish de facto control over the Dark Imperium, where they would be even more dependent on his Star Rails.
This had been Zhou Ye's development plan from the beginning. Bickering with the internal factions of the Imperium of Man was disgusting. So, after confirming the timeline, he had set his sights on Imperium Nihilus from the start.
The time was gradually ripening. And once he broke through into the Dark Imperium, the time dilation between the two halves of the galaxy would be reversed again. But before that, Zhou Ye needed to prepare.
If he remembered correctly, only a few months passed between the opening of the Great Rift, the Plague Wars, and the Devastation of Baal in Imperium Nihilus. But in Imperium Sanctus, Guilliman had completed the entire Indomitus Crusade before he could spare the forces to aid Baal.
It wasn't that he didn't care; he simply had no other choice. So, Zhou Ye planned to go to Imperium Nihilus himself. But once he entered, he knew he might have to face the most powerful enemy in history.
A tendril of the Tyranid Hive Fleet Leviathan would arrive at Baal. More terrifyingly, because he had scrambled the timeline so thoroughly, who knew if it would be a single tendril this time, or the entire main fleet.
"To be on the safe side, and since there is still plenty of time, the Imperial Fists…"
Zhou Ye closed his eyes and thought slowly. Then, an idea came to him.
The Phalanx.
The Shield of Terra.
During the Siege of Terra, the Phalanx, at roughly sixty percent power, had torn apart the Alpha Legion's grand fleet.
So, Zhou Ye was now eyeing that prize. And as luck would have it, an unintentional act of his in the past had given him the potential to command the Phalanx.
"Having the old stone and Guilliman go back is an option, but not a great one. I might have to face the main body of Hive Fleet Leviathan. A bit troublesome."
Zhou Ye muttered to himself. He currently had no clear picture of the situation in the Dark Imperium.
"What a pain…"
Zhou Ye scratched his head. The abysmal conditions made troop deployment a nightmare.
If a general in ancient warfare had to make decisions for future battles based on outdated information, the situation here was even worse. Just thinking about it gave Zhou Ye a headache.
Without the Star Rails, he would have to plan for decades into the future. Even more troublesome, the main body of Hive Fleet Leviathan was a dagger aimed directly at the heart of the Sol System.
The tendril that entered Baal was originally supposed to be part of the assault on the Sol System but had gotten trapped in Imperium Nihilus by the opening of the Great Rift.
The main fleet was heading straight for Sol. If they were allowed to bloom in the heart of the system, the thought alone gave Zhou Ye a migraine.
"Forget it. I'll take it one step at a time. Many of the timeline's key points have already been thrown off by my appearance. There's no need to force things."
By Zhou Ye's calculations, even if he wanted to mobilize the Phalanx, he would have to wait for Guilliman to return to Holy Terra and then send it over. Who knew how many years that would take?
In such a terrible galaxy, even trying to coordinate with the Imperium felt hopeless.
"It seems I need a new secret weapon to deal with the swarm. You like to eat, don't you? Stinking beggars from outside the galaxy, coming here to beg for food. Believe it or not, I can make it so you won't get a single bite of meat."
A strange light flickered in Zhou Ye's eyes. He had a brand-new grand plan.
It was common knowledge that Tyranids only cared about consumption. Therefore, he just needed to inflict an unacceptable attrition rate on them. And he happened to have a method for that: Imaginary Corruption.
It was also common knowledge that the Hive Mind would not consume Chaos-corrupted biomass. His Imaginary Corruption wasn't fundamentally different from Chaos corruption. The reason his own followers hadn't changed or mutated was because he himself was human.
Zhou Ye's level of Imaginary Corruption was not high; he always used the minimum amount necessary.
So, with a strong enough level of corruption, the Tyranids would be unable to directly consume the biomass. This theory had been confirmed by the Genestealers he had captured. If too many Genestealers were infected by Chaos, the Great Devourer in the warp would avert its gaze from that world, for it meant the world was already tainted. This was why Genestealers harbored such an immense hatred for Chaos and fought it so fearlessly.
His Imaginary Corruption worked similarly. When he infected the Genestealers with it, the Great Devourer had completely abandoned them. Therefore, Zhou Ye now planned to build something big. While it would consume a great deal of Imaginary energy, it would be highly effective against the swarm.
"This time, there shouldn't be any major problems…"
Zhou Ye muttered to himself…
---o---