Sarojin slit Erebus' throat with a single sword strike, cleanly severing his head.
This completely caught Erebus by surprise.
Lucius, the Slaanesh Chosen who had fought Sarojin numerous times and narrowly escaped death by his hand on several occasions, had provided Erebus with detailed information about Sarojin.
According to Lucius, Sarojin had only defeated him twice through dishonorable sneak attacks and sniping.
Erebus believed Lucius' nonsense at the time because Lucius' swordsmanship was indeed very strong, and it was quite difficult to defeat Lucius in a frontal battle without resorting to tricks.
Furthermore, how could one person, without any divine blessings, achieve peak proficiency in sniping, stealth, and swordsmanship simultaneously, as an ordinary Astartes?
He actually could!
As his head flew into the air, Erebus cursed Lucius, the unreliable scoundrel.
Lucius had clearly concealed the truth out of vanity; it was likely that Sarojin had defeated Lucius not through sneak attacks and sniping, as he claimed, but in a frontal sword fight.
Erebus' head in mid-air shifted, his figure flickered, and in the blink of an eye, the decapitated body transformed into yet another Tzeentch Great Unclean One Wrestling Eagle Person.
One of the blue bird-shaped tattoos on Erebus' body vanished, leaving only five.
"Be'lakor! Save me!"
"Only I know how to make Saint Doraemon ascend; if I die, you'll be a servant for all eternity!"
"Save me or lick Abaddon's feet, choose for yourself!"
Erebus roared, shouting at Be'lakor, who was trying to open a door.
Be'lakor's expression subtly changed; he had to admit Erebus was right.
Sarojin's blade danced in his hand, tearing through the Wrestling Eagle Person's body, and the Raven Guard's twin swords pressed directly towards Erebus' neck.
Just then, shadows writhed, and Be'lakor instantly appeared before Erebus and Sarojin. His greatsword, as thick as Sarojin's arm, clashed with Sarojin's slender blade.
Sarojin grunted, retreating several steps to dissipate the force of Be'lakor's strike.
Although Be'lakor was a coward and often failed at critical moments, his raw strength was not weak.
Having recovered most of his peak power, he was actually the strongest person present.
Neither Khârn, Seed of Destruction, Erebus, Greater Daemon, nor Sarojin could theoretically defeat him in a frontal battle.
His caution was purely due to the numerous times he had stumbled in his long demonic life.
Even ten thousand years ago, he had made a huge mistake; intending to enslave the Tzeentch Chosen Ahriman, he was instead outmaneuvered by Ahriman, falling into his trap, and was imprisoned, restrained, and enslaved.
If Ahriman's goal hadn't solely been to save his brother's soul, Be'lakor would have completely become Ahriman's prisoner.
Since then, Be'lakor had become much more cautious, never taking unnecessary risks unless absolutely required, and had hidden in the shadows for ten thousand years, rarely appearing.
Be'lakor's Shadow Blade swung like the wind, instantly suppressing Sarojin. This Aether Blade could flicker between reality and the Warp, ignoring armor and directly damaging flesh. For a time, Sarojin could only rely on his agile movements to dodge.
Erebus seized the opportunity, pulled out his ritual dagger, and with a swift slash, instantly appeared before the door Be'lakor had just tried to unlock.
"Please answer: What was the most beloved gift given to Horus by the Emperor?"
Erebus breathed a sigh of relief; this question was too simple.
Anyone—no, not just anyone, but any daemon who had ever boarded the Vengeful Spirit and participated in the Horus Heresy—knew the answer to this question.
Because Horus, whenever he had nothing to do, would maniacally show off his old gold ring, muttering about centaurs, gold rings, thirty years, and firstborn sons.
Erebus' ears hurt from listening to him.
He took a deep breath and quickly replied, "It was the Centaur Gold Ring, forged a year before the Emperor's birth."
"Correct answer!"
The glowing door opened. Erebus was a little worried that he would be as unlucky as before, encountering enemies as soon as he opened the door.
So he subtly cast a spell. The Khorne Beast, which was entangled with Greater Daemon and being beaten to a bloody pulp, shifted its form, turning into a tide of blood that surged towards Erebus.
Be'lakor, who was suppressing Sarojin, instantly froze. Greater Daemon also didn't hesitate, directly striking Be'lakor's head with a club to relieve Sarojin.
"I'll fuck your mother, Erebus," Be'lakor cursed.
Erebus sneered. As an ally, what was wrong with Be'lakor taking on some danger for him? Wasn't that the purpose of an ally?
He didn't hesitate, taking the Khorne Beast with him, and stepped through the glowing door.
The scene before him suddenly changed, and then—
Then Erebus found himself standing in a narrow, dimly lit corridor.
In front of him were… hundreds of loyalist Astartes.
The Flesh Tearers, clad in dark red power armor and bathed in blood, pulled their blood-stained Chainswords from the bodies of the Word Bearers, exuding a chilling killing intent.
Chapter Master Gabriel Seth was leading them in slaughtering Erebus' Word Bearers, and a dark Dreadnought was even flying above them.
Also slaughtering the Word Bearers were the Ultramarines; these blue-armored warriors meticulously and sternly cut down the Emperor's enemies, led by the former Second Captain of the Ultramarines, Titus, whom the Blood God desired.
The moment Erebus emerged from the glowing door, hundreds of warriors all turned in unison, staring intently at Erebus.
"My lord! Save me!" shouted a Word Bearers Dark Apostle loyal to Erebus.
Before his voice could reach Erebus' ears, Seth's Chainsword tore through his head.
Erebus' instinctive reaction was to run, to flee, to escape them.
With Erebus' abilities, as long as the next door's question wasn't too difficult, he could escape from these Astartes and proceed to the next room.
But before that thought could fully form, it was suppressed by a surge of furious bloodlust.
"Corrupt him! Bring him to me! Fulfill your promise!"
The Blood God's voice echoed from within Erebus' body.
When Khorne bestowed the Seed of Destruction upon Erebus, he also left a burning rage within Erebus' body to compel him to fulfill his promise.
The Blood God would not allow Erebus to retreat; Erebus had to corrupt Titus and offer him to Khorne.
Erebus looked at the hundreds of Space Marines rushing towards him and suddenly felt like crying.