Cody, wrapped in his burial shroud, scurried panicked among the rocks.
In a faintly glowing canister, samples like Shadows of Order blood sloshed around.
Cody glanced back, the terrifying scene he had just witnessed flashing through his mind.
'How could those black-armored warriors' firepower be so ferocious?'
'What they held should be plasma guns, but only a hundred of them... how could they unleash such a...'
It took Cody several seconds to find a word in his vocabulary to describe what he'd seen.
'An attack like a falling, burning meteor!'
He gripped his necrotic scepter tightly. Clusters of worms writhed beneath his burial shroud.
'I just wanted some tissue samples to study the powerful constructs. I never expected such danger.'
'I don't yet have a truly near-unkillable body. If I suffered an attack like that, even if I didn't die, I'd be gravely wounded.'
Thinking of the Osseivore whose head had been vaporized, he thought angrily.
'Useless! They're all useless!'
'I need to create more powerful servants!'
'I won't risk coming out again until I have two, no, ten warrior constructs.'
As an infiltrator who had infiltrated hundreds of worlds, Cody forced himself to calm down and think about how to escape safely.
The terrain of the surrounding area flashed through his mind. Suddenly, the cluster of worms on his face quivered in unison.
'The ocean!'
'The Shadows of Orders are busy fighting my useless servants on land. They definitely won't notice the ocean.'
'Besides, they're riding armored vehicles. They won't be as agile as me in the water.'
Thinking this, Cody calmed down immediately. He thought smugly,
'Once I escape there, I just need to wait for them to leave, then blend in with a subsequent human colony or transport ship. I can get away safely.'
Cody knew that after the battle, human transport ships would arrive with supplies for rebuilding.
There would also be colonists to replenish the lost population.
Blending into those ships, he could leave without issue.
Decision made, Cody immediately headed for the sea.
Aboard the Firestorm-pattern Land Raiders, the Folk of Rage once again donned their Warrior Masks, accumulate the power of fury.
"Lord," the "Archaeologist" said excitedly as he channeled psychic energy into the mass of worms in his hands.
"When the battle erupted just now, they changed..."
He stated, confirming: "There is a Slaugth nearby."
Szczesny looked at the writhing mass of worms in his hands.
"They're writhing faster. Not by much, but definitely a bit faster," the "Archaeologist" explained, gently stroking the mass of worms as he addressed his Lord.
"Can you determine its exact location from their reactions?" Szczesny pressed.
The "Archaeologist's" hands rapidly and repeatedly stroked the writhing, viscous bodies, channeling psychic energy to stimulate all the worms, carefully discerning the subtle differences.
Suddenly, his hands stopped.
Szczesny stared at his hands. His right hand pointed to the two o'clock direction relative to their advance. His left pointed to the opposite eight o'clock.
The "Archaeologist" stated with conviction: "Two o'clock direction."
Szczesny immediately marked the direction. The Firestorm-pattern Land Raiders turned in unison.
Amid the roar of engines, Szczesny reviewed the tactical data ahead.
The moment he saw the Auspex Matrix scan report, a mocking smile appeared on his face.
"The worm-creature wants to flee into the sea."
The Techmarine was momentarily taken aback, then also smiled.
"The worm-creature doesn't know our Land Raiders are like fish in the sea."
Land Raiders can operate in almost any type of planetary environment, possessing broad adaptability.
The hull completely isolates the passengers from the environment and provides life support functions.
Therefore, Land Raiders can operate on uninhabitable and airless planets, and also under the pressure of the seafloor.
The Ninth Chapter, due to the large number of "Sailors" and "Folk of Rage," had further enhanced the underwater adaptability of the Firestorm-pattern.
The Firestorm-pattern could not only propel itself on the seafloor but also maneuver flexibly in the water.
Szczesny ordered on the combined channel of the Honor Guard and 4th Company:
"Adjust weapon systems. Switch to underwater mode."
Cody sprinted through the shadows. He was astonished to find the Shadows of Orders seemed able to pinpoint his location. He wondered,
'I don't sense any foolish psykers trying to lock onto me. I would definitely detect them.'
'My burial shroud blocks scanning. No psykers are foolishly attempting it. How are they pinpointing me?'
Cody pondered for a long time but couldn't figure out how the Shadows of Orders were tracking him.
He thought, somewhat relieved, 'Luckily, I chose the ocean. Once I reach the sea, they won't be able to touch me.'
'Wearing that heavy armor, they could kick their legs off and never catch me.'
With that thought, Cody took a running leap and plunged into the blue seawater.
Clusters of worms swam composedly in the sea.
After nonchalantly swimming two kilometers, Cody suddenly felt something amiss.
There seemed to be currents behind him. Struck as if by lightning, he whirled around to look.
The next instant, all the worms on his body stopped writhing. He froze.
He saw rows of propeller blades extending from the sides of dozens of black tanks. The energy jets at their rear indicated they were equipped with pump-jet propulsion systems.
Cody saw hundreds of tanks spreading out behind him, forming an encirclement like a school of bloodthirsty sharks.
Even more terrifying, between the tanks, in front and behind them, black-armored warriors swam like a school of fish.
'How is this possible?'
'What exactly are the Shadows of Orders? Wearing such heavy armor, how can they swim so fast?'
Before Cody could figure out what was happening, he suddenly felt the water around him churn rapidly. An ocean current formed abruptly.
He snapped out of his stupor. Worms thrashed madly. He turned and fled.
But it was too late. He slammed into the current, tumbling end over end.
Cody saw a figure with golden wings on its back raise a hand, pointing in his direction.
'He can control water!'
'Foolish!'
Cody, who had already mastered the ability to counter psykers, prepared to teach him a painful lesson.
'Hmm?'
'Not psychic power!'
'Then how is he manipulating the seawater, forming currents?'
As Cody wondered, the "Wind-Blessed's" hands danced. His psychic energy extended, rolling up currents one after another.
The "Wind-Blessed's" domain in the air was just beginning. His true domain was control in the ocean.
In water, the "Wind-Blessed" abilities were comprehensive and substantially enhanced.
On land, Szczesny's Spirit Vision couldn't detect the Slaugth.
But in the sea, the Slaugth was as obvious as a lantern. The moment it entered the water, he saw the writhing clusters of worms.
He hadn't used "Water Control" immediately, simply letting the Slaugth venture deeper while allowing the "Seafarers," "Folk of Rage," and "Sailors" to form the encirclement.
The "Wind-Blessed" extended his left hand. Streams of water instantly unite into hands.
The hands condensed by "Water Control" grabbed the burial shroud simultaneously.
The "Wind-Blessed" pulled his arm back. The burial shroud was ripped from the Slaugth's body.
Cody struggled in the churning waves, raising his necrotic scepter, aiming it at Szczesny.
The "Wind-Blessed" smiled mockingly. He raised his right hand. Countless streams of water converged, slamming into the Slaugth like a cannonball.
He flicked his left hand, tossing the burial shroud behind him. A "Sailor" reached out and grabbed the prize.
The "Wind-Blessed" raised his hand again. A column of water rose from nowhere, smashing into the Slaugth's wrist.
A "Folk of Rage" twisted his body and snatched the necrotic scepter.
Cody felt his body lighten. The burial shroud was stripped away.
Pain shot through his left hand. The necrotic scepter was taken.
'Damn!'
Cody shot a terrified glance at the black-armored, golden-winged warrior. His body instantly disassembled, scattering into clusters of worms.
He stretched his body to three times its length, squirming like an arrow, trying to break free of the currents.
The "Wind-Blessed" smiled confidently. On land, he indeed had few options against a worm-creature. Concentrated fire to kill it was the best he could do.
But this was the ocean. This was his home ground.
'Slaugth, you can't escape even if you want to.'
The "Wind-Blessed's" hands danced. Layers of waves transformed into nets, layer upon layer.
Cody was slapped back by the waves time and again. He constantly changed form, sometimes arrow-like, sometimes ball-like...
But no matter how he transformed his body, he was at all times confined within a hundred-meter radius.
He unite his body slower and slower. His transformations became smaller and smaller.
"You're a monster!"
Cody let out a helpless, horrified cry.
The "Wind-Blessed" firmly wrapped the ball-like Slaugth in a water net. Then, two "Folk of Rage" placed it inside a crystal sphere.
The stasis field activated, leaving Cody's bewildered thoughts frozen in place.
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
[email protected]/DaoistJinzu