Warhammer: Black Emperor

Chapter 686 Ruth, your armor is torn, let me help you get a new one.
Nimrod walked to Hannibal's body and slowly lifted it up, as if he did not want to disturb a sleeping man.

The Faceless Ones let out a mournful roar and charged toward Ruth.

The wolves roared in battle, brandished their weapons, and charged toward the Faceless One.

Just as the fighting was about to resume, the Shadow of Order from the 7th Chapter rode a Katachon wolf and swiftly cut between the tan and iron-gray lines.

The loudspeaker's voice echoed across the smoke-filled battlefield: "The battle is over."

"Stop!"

The wolf pack slowed their pace, but still gripped their weapons tightly, ready to charge at any moment.

Even the Faceless Ones who still retained their rationality were unwilling to stop.

Thousands of faceless beings with prominent cheekbones and teeth sharper than those of wolves roared and attacked the black-armored warriors.

"Anesthetize!" Company Commander Thibault shouted the order.

The Katachán Spikeweed, soaked in Nukelia's anesthetic, shot out.

Spit sizzle sizzle...

Countless sharp needles pierced through the power armor, releasing anesthetic agents within the Faceless One's body.

Amid a series of thuds, Mellon and Tezuka Sasebo, clad in khaki armor, led the new recruits toward Nimrod.

The grief shattered the will they had trained and cultivated, and they stared blankly at the crystal coffin, overwhelmed by sorrow.

Although the Imperial Guard had conveyed the Emperor's verdict, their genetic father lay inside.

They felt even more lost about the future, having lost their original genetic material.

The heavy smell of blood on the wolves and the burning corpses of the Faceless Ones made them feel uneasy and angry.

It wasn't until Lord Ninglu turned and walked over that they snapped out of their complicated thoughts.
The recruits' eyes lit up as they recalled Leman Ruth's challenge to Lord Nimrod.

The stories told by the Masters of Holy Communion after the meal flashed through their minds:

Under the night sky of Duran, Lord Nimrod defeated Russ in a duel.

Although each communion master gave a different account, some described Lord Nimrod's blue and white sword blade striking down Ruth's Siren's Devour with dazzling swordsmanship; others recounted how Lord Nimrod's golden fist smashed Ruth's facial bones, leaving him unconscious for three days...

They excitedly approached the Emperor Tarot's revelation, the golden light in their eyes dispelling the iron-gray gloom.

"Melon, the 'Faceless' recruit, pays his respects to Lord Nimrod!" Mellon knelt on one knee, emphasizing his words to the recruits to indicate that they had not committed any crimes.

"Sasebo Tezuka greets Lord Ninglu!"

Ning Lu's eyes flickered; he remembered the name.

During the "Second Founding of the Army" period, Tezuka Sasebo, the "Ultimate Warrior" company commander, was ordered to establish the "Ascetic" battle group.

Following the guidance of the Emperor Tarot, he found the dark world of Posur and built the "Ascetic" fortress monastery there.

[As expected, the ascetics who collect skulls and enjoy devouring corpses are not Guilliman's offspring; they must be the Faceless Men whom Guilliman has taken in.]

Their culture is completely different from other Ultramarines sub-units, and they are also unusually alienated from the parent company and other sub-units.
Ninglu recalled that when the "Ultraman" was in danger and asked the "Ascetics" for help, they not only had to abide by the warband's culture, but in the end they only received a company of reinforcements.

However, they believed in the existence of Huang Laohan and death. When they sensed the signs of death, they sent their entire company to participate in the "Third Armageddon" war, which resulted in almost the complete annihilation of the entire unit.

[It will take some effort to truly win them over and make them loyal to me.]
Ning Lu's gaze was deep, and based on this, he made another connection.

The original Hannibal likely participated in the "Randan Wars," raising and consuming aliens on a large scale. He was later discovered, and Ruth was ordered to kill him.

After approximately 15 Dark Angels perished, Guilliman acquired the Faceless Men left behind by Old Man Huang after their selection process. The Ultramarines reached 16.6 men in 899, becoming the largest army to ever form.
As Ninglu pondered, the many earthen-yellow figures saw the approaching giant and couldn't help but feel a sense of submission.

The "majestic" figure was more imposing than the iron-gray giant they hated and loathed, as if the planet beneath their feet was merely a demigod carrying them through the world. They instinctively knelt down.

Amidst a series of thuds, Jorin quickly walked to Ruth's side. He saw that the wolf priest had stepped back, and the wound on the Primarch's left rib, inflicted by Hannibal, had stopped bleeding.

The alpha wolf killed another Primarch.

Hannibal, who gained immense power by devouring aliens.

Yolin raised his head and turned toward the crystal coffin. He saw seven red arrows branded on his shoulder and Fenris the Thunder Wolf, which was even larger than a rhinoceros chariot, standing beside him.

A shadow fell over Yolin's cloudy eyes as he stroked his Frostblade Battle Axe, letting the icy chill suppress the fighting spirit surging in his chest.

All of the wolf pack's failures began with his defeat to Sanchez.

He lost the hunt, which gave Sanchez the chainsaw sword hanging at his waist. It was forged by the alpha wolf when it killed Fenris's largest Kraken, along with the Siren's Bite.

The wolf pack launched a challenge in order to reclaim it.

Enoch Rashivin, the former commander of the Sixth Legion, commissioned his private craftsmen to forge the Ruth Wolf Helmet for Alpha Wolf when he lost the Allfather's descent to Fenris in the Flame Wheel system.

Now, it's on Sanchez's face.

Even with his face covered, he was repulsive just by standing there.

Amrodi Skasen Skasenson, the wolf lord of the Fifth Great City, lost the pelt of the dead Fenris wolf and the cloak woven from it in the "Randan War".

The cloak fluttering in the wind was so dazzling.

Ruth's icy blue eyes caught sight of Jolin's bristling beard, and he couldn't help but laugh, as the ominous lifeline vanished.

He walked over to Yolin and patted him on the shoulder. "Old buddy, wanna have a match with Sanchez?"

“Yes, Alpha Wolf,” Yolin said frankly, “but I’m not entirely confident of victory. Sanchez is stronger than Suarez, the first company commander of the ‘Faceless’.”

Ruth knew that Jorin had always been resentful of losing to Sanchez in the Fenris hunt before he became a Space Wolf.

During Durant's trip, he lost interest in the challenge due to the malignant mutation of the Wild Wolves' Kenneth Spiral.

"Old buddy, I'll support you."

Yolin's cloudy eyes lit up, but he hesitated and said something.

“Ninglu will demand more bets, and I don’t want you to pay the price because of my failure.”

“I will take responsibility for you,” Ruth declared loudly. [Even if you lose, I will win.]
He walked toward Ninglu, where his father wove the thread of his destiny.

The executioner's lifeline.

He also held the key to the fates of his other brothers.

Freddie and Gerry, standing on either side of him, looked uneasily into the bright, black onyx eyes of the Brain Cat.

John's gaze drifted past the two giant wolves; as the "winners," they posed no threat despite tearing apart a dozen Faceless Ones.

Even when he was at his worst and they were at their luckiest, it was the same.

The old wolf behind Ruth is a seasoned hunter and a threat.

Nimrod overheard Ruth and Jorin's conversation, even though they were using the wolf pack's war language—Volgan vernacular—which he had learned along with Hearth language during his visit to Fenris.

I was so wise to bring Sanchez along.

A seasoned "provocative one," dressed in Ruth's gear, how could the belligerent wolves tolerate him?

Let me see which loot to choose.
His smile faded, and he turned away calmly.

“Ninlu, Jolin wants to fight your son, Sanchez.”

“I’m using them as stakes,” Ruth said, raising two explosive pistols in his left hand.

Ninglu glanced at the one who spat out the breath, then joined the two bomb guns together with the composite bomb gun.

Although both guns are meticulously crafted and clearly made by a master, they are not as seamless as the future Storm Bomb Gun.

Ning Lu's gaze shifted, drawn to the frozen armor on Russ's body.

It was identified as bearing Fenris runes, most of which were identical to those recorded in the tombs of the former kings.

The proto-genome also identified Martian technology from it, but what else?

[Ella Verrald]

I remember this armor had three blessings. Even when Magnus unleashed his full psionic attack, it only cracked, not completely destroyed.

Besides Fenris and Mars, could the other one to offer blessings be Old Man Huang himself?
Ning Lu's eyes lit up at this thought. He looked at the armor on his left side, which was mostly torn, and thought to himself.

Ruth, look, your armor is all torn, you might as well not wear it at all.

I'll help you out by taking it, so you can get a new one.

I have to admit, I was still too considerate of you.
Thinking of this, Ninglu raised his hand and pointed to the Frozen Armor on Russ's body.

"I want it."

“Okay.” Ruth readily agreed, the stakes were the same, even if Jorin lost, he would win it all back.

"I must first complete the Emperor's mission and identify the Faceless Ones." Ninglu wanted to rush to the battlefields as soon as possible to save as many Faceless Ones as possible from the wolves, and he also wanted to win their loyalty by letting them watch the battles.

Based on his memory of the future "ascetics" being distant from the "ultimate warriors," he believed that it was not simply a matter of psychological influence that could subdue the Faceless Men.

Of course, it is also possible that when Huang Laohan erased their memories, the object of loyalty implanted in their hearts was themselves, rather than Guilliman.

But he knew that his psychic abilities were far inferior to those of Old Man Huang.

If I could make them witness firsthand how I defeated Ruth, who killed their genetic father, and strengthen their deep-seated gratitude towards me during the memory cleansing, and with the aid of extraordinary abilities, I could then subdue them.

Even if one loses their memory, deep within the mind, beneath the iceberg undetectable to consciousness, there remain residual mental impressions.

"Okay." Ruth turned and left. "Don't keep me waiting too long."

Ninglu walked straight through the wolf pack toward the Faceless Ones who were being blocked, with two Imperial Guards following in his footsteps.

"I have come by the Emperor's command." His voice resounded throughout the battlefield, drowning out the cacophony of the wolves.

"Faceless Ones, lay down your weapons."

"You will be pardoned as long as you have not committed any crimes."

"You will be reborn."

The Faceless Ones gazed at the towering figure and saw the two Imperial Guards beside him drop their weapons one after the other.

(End of this chapter)