MM Racing Chapter 7: A War General is incapable of making mistakes, but it's unlikely that a War General
Chapter 7: A War General is incapable of making mistakes, but it's unlikely that a War General
The plan is progressing as smoothly as expected.
This is the reception hall of the Lord of Vengeance, magnificent and spacious, with the surrounding walls engraved with great battles from the Great Crusade.
Once upon a time, the First Son of the Emperor, the Wolf God, Lord of the Sixteenth Legion, the Imperial Warmaster... the great Horus Lucapel accepted the surrender of conquered planets, summoned artists and scientists from all corners of the galaxy, inspired and encouraged warriors among the Sons of Horus who had rendered meritorious service, and received his Primarch brothers who also had the blood of the Emperor flowing through their veins.
It can be said that this place witnessed the glorious years of the Great Expedition, when the human empire rose again.
However, at this moment—
The once pristine marble walls were now splattered with blood and brains, and every inch of the floor was littered with human remains that were difficult to piece together. In the air filled with the smoke of explosions and the stench of blood, the screams of thousands of narrators from just minutes before seemed to still echo.
The only constant was the imposing demigod giant standing before the command throne, the Eye of Horus embedded in his power armor coldly reflecting this hellish scene.
"This is the war you wanted to witness."
Horus surveyed the scene of bloodshed with satisfaction. To him, these chroniclers, who represented the corrupt and ignorant system of the empire and were sent by the emperor to supervise and restrict them, were the most suitable sacrifices for the flag-raising ceremony of this war.
But this massacre pales in comparison to another massacre that took place at the same time.
The war commander looked up and saw the current status of Istvan III on the numerous giant screens hanging in the reception hall.
However, in stark contrast to the visually striking scene, the planet's surface appears unusually calm at this moment.
There were no screams, no wails, and not even corpses strewn across the field.
Only black fog permeated the entire surface of the planet, in both cities and wilderness.
But Horus knew very well.
This is the product of billions of people's flesh and blood, along with other organic matter on the planet, being broken down by the life-devouring virus in minutes.
A veritable "extermination order"!
Horus smiled slightly and habitually called out to his right and left arms.
"Azekael".
But he was met with only a few seconds of silence.
Zhan Shuai frowned slightly, but didn't seem to care.
"Asimande".
As soon as Horus finished speaking, a figure emerged from the shadows behind him.
It was an Astartes warrior who looked very much like Horus, except that he was smaller and had a more melancholy look in his eyes.
"The warship's scanning personnel report that the virus has been largely eliminated, and the gas concentration is outside the measurement range..."
Horus Asimand the Younger was also a member of the Council of the Four Kings. Although he had also joined the Warmaster's camp without hesitation, it was clear that this betrayal of his former comrades did not bring him any honor or joy.
"Order the artillery to fire."
Horus coldly issued the order.
"Let the galaxy burn!"
Seconds later, the churning poison cloud on the planet was ignited, and the firestorm quickly spread to the entire surface of the planet.
The scorching wind enveloped Istvan III. Unlike Asimand behind him, who bowed his head in unbearable pain, the Warmaster stared intently at the purgatory he had created.
And in his mind, he imagined the scene of a torrent of fire spreading to Terra.
dong dong dong...
The heavy footsteps interrupted Horus's thoughts; without turning his head, Horus could sense the familiar presence.
"Abaddon, you're late."
"I apologize, War General, but I have discovered some unstable factors hindering the expedition."
Abaddon walked up to Horus, who noticed that in addition to his usual power claws, Abaddon was also unusually equipped with a particularly large Terminator Mark II Storm Shield.
"For safety's sake, I've decided to resolve this trouble first before coming to apologize to Commander Zhan."
Since they had just been through a battle, Horus didn't ask any further questions.
"Hmph, fine, learn your lesson next time. Missing out on witnessing this historic moment with me in the VIP seats is already your punishment."
As can be seen on the screen, the fiery storm did not last long. After all, the planet's oxygen was quickly depleted under such intense fire, leaving only a desolate, scorched wasteland.
"Even without witnessing it firsthand here, I am well aware that the War General's plan will succeed."
Horus was quite pleased with this blatant flattery, so much so that he didn't notice the lack of usual adoration in Abaddon's eyes.
"A great war commander is absolutely infallible and cannot possibly make a mistake."
(That's right, a War General doesn't make mistakes, but it's unlikely that a War General would never make a mistake.)
Horus was completely unaware of Abaddon's inner thoughts.
"That's not something to be taken for granted, but don't be arrogant, Aizekel. We should prepare for Istvan V—"
However, another series of hurried footsteps interrupted Horus's words.
"Report, Commander! Life signals detected in Holy Song City... tens of thousands, no, over a hundred thousand Astartes survivors!"
The one who limped into the reception hall was an Astartes with a twisted body and an ugly appearance.
This was Marrogst, the Warmaster's squire nicknamed "The Twisted One," who was nearly knocked over by the Warmaster's roar the next second.
"What?! How did they survive?!"
Horus's face was contorted with rage.
"Could it be that they received advance warning and took cover...?"
Horus, Horus the Younger, and Marrogst were so shocked that they did not notice Abaddon's unusual behavior.
This son of Horus, who was usually the most irritable and easily angered, was unusually calm and composed at this moment.
It was as if he had anticipated this situation.
(Just as I expected, it's exactly the same calculation as the other War Master... no, the real War Master!)
Abaddon recalled his conversation with the "real Horus" a dozen minutes earlier on the Great Tyrant.
-
"What's on Vengeance Soul is just a Horus clone imbued with the power of the four Warp Gods, disguised as me. Of course, he's also been infused with some of my memories, so he usually makes the same decisions as me—that's why I originally planned to have him stand in the spotlight to draw the fire of Macado's assassins, while I would stay behind the scenes to recover from my injuries on Devon and research ways to control the power of the Warp."
"So, Father, your injuries haven't fully healed yet..."
"Hmph, there's a price to pay for making deals with those chaotic evil gods. The more favors you receive from them, the easier it is for them to completely control you. I'm not that foolish."
Upon hearing the words of this "Horus," Abaddon felt as if a great weight had been lifted from his heart.
In truth, he had always harbored doubts about Horus's changes after he arrived on Devon, worrying about the impact those beings he couldn't understand had on the Father of Genetics.
Now it seems that he was just worrying unnecessarily. Indeed, with the will of the Warlord Horus, it was impossible for him to be corrupted by these evil monsters.
But he soon discovered the problem.
"That war plan devised by the war commander—cough cough, that puppet..."
"Don't worry, just like I said, although he's just a puppet, he'll exhibit the same behavioral patterns as me to some extent, which is why I feel comfortable letting him be my substitute—"
Until I discovered that all of this was a despicable trap set by the Chaos God!
They don't want us to quickly flatten Terra and conquer the galaxy...
Those treacherous and vicious monsters want to weaken both us and the Empire, turning this universe into their playground!