The Bizarre Adventures of the Oil Man, but Starting with Warhammer 32K

"No, as long as the orcs are not exterminated, they are immortal, but now they can basically be ignored."

Facing Leon's puzzled gaze, the Black Dragon briefly explained: "The Old Ones created a racial psychic power for the Greenskins that doesn't circulate in the Warp. This psychic power ultimately formed a force within the Warp. Like the Orcs, they are rarely affected by the Warp, but conversely, they can't draw power from any intelligent race like those four beings can. Their strength depends solely on the strength of the Orcs themselves."

Leon certainly understood the Black Dragon's implication that the Orcs' current strength didn't allow Gomao to cause trouble in the Warp, but this obviously made it harder to explain why the Beast War had broken out. If Gomao wasn't behind this, how could these Orcs show signs of reversion?

This question was beyond the scope of Heilong's question. He hesitated and couldn't answer it. Li Ang could only turn the question to the direction he was most concerned about.

"Do you think these orcs... can be exploited? Like the Old Ones did?"

"what?"

The black dragon looked at Li Ang, as if he saw some rare animal.

He shook his head in denial: "I advise you not to have such thoughts. These uncontrolled beasts are not something you can touch unless you are as powerful as the Ancient Saints."

Weak orcs are of no use, but a stronger orc tribe will awaken those who are more appealing to them. Do you want to compete with two racial gods for control of one race?

Anyone would think it is a fantasy.

However, Leon disagreed: "That is to say, between the weak and the strong, there is a space where the greenskins can be utilized..."

"Don't involve me when you get into trouble."

Black Dragon shook his head. He began to doubt whether it was the right decision to find such a madman as an ally. "That's it. I have to go back."

"Don't worry, I have my own sense of discretion."

The knowledge of the Greenskins' history did not answer Leon's doubts, but it at least gave him some clarity on the next direction. As the Eldar opened up a warp channel ahead, they arrived at the Covenant Port system much faster than expected.

"The warp gets quieter as we go further into it. We have now arrived at Mandeville Point in Covenant Harbor."

Isaga explained that he hadn't spotted any Eldar. The bean sprouts' concealment methods were indeed remarkable. "I don't know why, but I think it's a good thing."

"Increase the power of the warp drive and tear open the veil of reality! Prepare to jump out of the warp!"

Li Ang gave the order: "Restart the void shield and divination array immediately after jumping out!"

The three cruisers returned to the real universe from the subspace, but what greeted them was not the deserted outer space, but a bustling defense array.

At least several thousand orbital defense weapons locked onto the Astartes fleet simultaneously, and the warning sound of the divination system that had just been restarted on the warship suddenly roared.

All the mortal crew members became nervous. The bird fortune teller swallowed his saliva and suggested to Leon: "Sir, should we reveal our identities to them?"

Li Ang did not answer. He looked at the defensive array that was ready to go, feeling a little puzzled.

"Calibrate the time first."

he ordered.

The bridge suddenly became busy, and soon they handed the results to Leon.

Seventy-seven hours—that was the time it took them to get from Maxim to Port Covenant.

This moment caused an uproar on the bridge, and even the Astartes couldn't help but lower their heads and talk in low voices.

The journey from Maxim to Porto Santo was certainly a "short" one, but it was also a short one that took weeks.

And it only took them seventy-seven hours to get here?

Although time was chaotic and disordered in the warp, this disorder often resulted in delays rather than advances. Given that advances were themselves an anomaly, everyone on board began to wonder if this was a bad omen.

Li Ang could only press down with both hands and loudly interpret the situation.

"Lord of Mankind, have mercy on us warriors who have sacrificed our lives for the Empire! All this must be the power of the Emperor!"

This interpretation satisfied all mortals, who quickly calmed down and engaged the Imperial forces defending there in an orderly manner.

But except for the Black Templar named Lancelot, no one else, including Leon himself, believed this statement.

Arriving so quickly suggests that those bean sprouts do have some skills, but what else?

Li Ang didn't think it was a coincidence, but he had no evidence at the moment.

Kurland came closer: "What do you think?"

"I don't know what this means, but it certainly can't be all bad."

Leon looked at the intact defensive arrays. If they had arrived here at the normal time, this place would have been completely destroyed by the battle moon. "At least we will have plenty of room to intervene."

A small intra-system defense fleet was rapidly approaching the Astartes fleet. This fleet was mainly composed of Steadfast-class escort ships, which were small warships capable only of intra-system navigation and did not even have a void shield system.

This fleet is obviously too shabby for a galaxy that is a major naval base, and this shabbyness also reveals a cold fact.

——The Empire’s reinforcements may not have arrived here yet.

The navy on the escort ship asked Leon and his men to confirm their identities. When they saw Astartes, there was uncontrollable excitement on their faces.

"It's the Emperor's angel! We are saved!"

The defense array quickly lifted its lock on the fleet. Under the guidance of the escort ship, Leon and his party went to the Ramirez-class star fortress, which was the center of the defense array, and met with the highest commander there.

The highest commander in this star fortress was only a colonel of the same rank as Horner.

This officer clearly knew the Astartes Chapter better than his own soldiers. Seeing Kurland in his yellow armor, the worry and pressure on his face instantly vanished. He quickly stepped forward, gave Kurland the Eagle Salute, and then eagerly asked, "Respected Imperial Fist Brother, are you reinforcements sent by the High Lord?"

"No, this is a separate operation of the Chapter."

"Oh, then, how many do you have in total...?"

The colonel was a little hesitant. He knew that this question crossed the line, but his lack of security made him want to get a response that would reassure him as soon as possible.

Kurland did not answer, and sadness suddenly appeared on the colonel's face again.

"We are not a force coming from Terra. We are on our way back to Terra after completing our mission."

Li Ang took over the conversation and tried to start: "Excuse me, you seem to be very eager for support. What happened here?"

"Nothing has happened here yet, but a catastrophe is imminent!"

The colonel swallowed hard, as if the mere thought of such an existence filled him with fear. "Sage, do you know? We are about to face a flying fortress planet as big as the moon!"

"What do you know about this planet?"

"I don't know, but the Astropaths receive signals from countless worlds seeking advice or being destroyed every moment! The most recent news we received was a week ago. Before the destruction of another galaxy, they warned us that the orcs were driving an armed planet towards the Covenant Port. According to our predictions, those orcs should appear here in the next few days!"

It seems that the only thing these navy people know about the battle moon is its size.

Leon didn't think these defensive arrays could stop the Orcs' battle moons. The Ramirez-class star fortress was powerful, but an immobile defense system, no matter how powerful, was nothing more than a toy against the Orcs' gravity weapons.

So he began to inquire about the situation of the Covenant Harbor fleet indirectly: "Don't worry. No other system has such a complete defense as Covenant Harbor. As long as there is a naval fleet to support it, the probability of the orcs posing a threat to Covenant Harbor is almost zero."

Hearing Leon's words, the colonel just smiled sadly: "That's the problem. The entire fleet in the Covenant Port has been transferred back to Terra."

"All? When?"

"Before we received the news from the Orks, the Imperial fleet stationed at Covenant Harbor suddenly received orders to head for Terra. As soon as they jumped into the warp, we received news that the Orks' armed satellites were heading this way."

The Astartes looked at each other, and everyone could smell something unusual.

Do the High Lords want to abandon the Covenant Port system directly?

No wonder the defenders here are so eager for reinforcements. After all, reinforcements would prove that this abandonment was fake...

Leon pondered: "If I want to discuss this with the supreme commander here, who should we go to?"

"I am currently the supreme commander of the defense array. The only person left with the final say is the planetary governor. If you wish to see him, you may proceed directly to Covenant Harbor. I believe the governor will be looking forward to your visit."

"Then please help us contact the Governor and inform him that we will be visiting Covenant Port Star soon."

"Of course, my lord."

The colonel forced himself to cheer up and gave Leon and Astarte the Sky Eagle Salute. "I will report your arrival. You just need to go directly to Covenant Port."

Leon nodded, turned around and left the Star Fort with Kurland. However, before leaving, he paused and turned to the colonel, reminding him:

"This is our only chance to organize a salvo powerful enough to overload the void shields when the ork gravity weapons are at their maximum power."

The colonel didn't understand, but Leon said no more.

The way Beast Wars was going, the Battle Moon that appeared in Covenant Harbor wasn't the only one. Another Battle Moon would appear directly on Terra. If things were impossible, he wouldn't fight to the death here.

A little hint was the greatest kindness he could offer.

He returned to the ship, and the three cruisers set sail again, heading towards the Covenant Port in the galaxy.

Covenant Port was located close to the inner side of the galaxy, so the journey there took quite some time. Before reaching Covenant Port, they passed through several other planets in the galaxy that served as shipyards, but without exception, the furnaces on these planets had long since stopped.

It was only at this point that Kurland gained a new understanding of the insect-like nature of the High Lords.

Chapter 124: The situation in Covenant Port.

"The Ork battle moons have already reached the gates of Terra, and the High Lords are simply turning a blind eye?" Kurland sighed. After realizing the folly of those high-ranking figures, he no longer felt angry. "Abandon Covenant Harbor and leave the gates of Terra wide open?"

The importance of Port Covenant has always been not only because it is the gateway to Terra. As a fortress world of the navy, there are also several shipyards in this galaxy that are directly under the navy. These shipyards can even produce battleship-sized warships.

According to the Olympia Accords, the Adeptus Mechanicus nominally holds the right to manufacture, maintain, and recycle all machinery and technical equipment within the Imperium, but how this power is exercised ultimately depends on which side has the greater power. The Mechanicus can ignore the Empire, and the Empire can naturally establish industrial hives and shipyards outside of the Forge Worlds, independent of the Adeptus Mechanicus's control.

This self-production capability is the basis for the Astra Militarum and the Imperial Navy to speak with confidence to the Mechanicus. Although the production capacity of the Forge World accounts for more than 80% of the key technological equipment of the entire Empire, as long as they are not completely controlled by others, there is room for negotiation rather than direct compromise.

Therefore, the practical significance of Covenant Harbor, with its numerous naval shipyards, far outweighed the other Terran gateway worlds. Yet, even with such a crucial location, the Empire not only refused to send reinforcements, but even withdrew its existing troops?

Kurland couldn't understand what those high lords were thinking, but Leon had some guesses.

"The fact that they were able to move the fleet away only shows that a power struggle is brewing on Terra. It's not that Covenant Harbor is unimportant, but before they can secure Covenant Harbor, they must first secure their own position."

In an empire in chaos, what could better represent the right to speak in the political situation than military power?

There are no stupid people among the High Lords. Even Hayes, the Astra Militarum commander who always emphasizes that he was forced into this position, is a smart man with a quick mind.

But intelligence also depends on where it is used.

If they are more concerned about maintaining their own power and the power of the interest groups behind them than considering the empire as a whole, then the smarter they are, the more foolish they will seem to the soldiers who are truly fighting for the empire.

Kurland looked at the calm Leon with concern.

There were only about 300 Astartes and they had originally planned to take advantage of the situation in Covenant Port, but there was no situation in Covenant Port to take advantage of.

Without a fleet, how could they confront the Orks' battle moons?

Even if you want to airdrop to the surface of the battle moon, you need the fleet's artillery to lead the way!

He couldn't help but ask, "Leon, what's your idea?"

"The problem is huge, there's no point in panicking."

Li Ang waved his hand and said, "Let's go to Covenant Port first and see what's going on there."

"Too."

Kurland sighed, "I hope the planetary governor here isn't an idiot."

Compared to the halted shipyard, Covenant Harbor itself was still operating normally. However, the massive spaceport, capable of berthing several major fleets, now seemed deserted. As the three ships entered the empty spaceport, the workers responsible for receiving the ships were thrown into an unimaginable frenzy.

"It's the Emperor's angel! Great! The Emperor has not abandoned us!"

"They will definitely drive away those greenskins. We are saved!"

The crowd spontaneously gathered at the docking station of the spaceport. Although the army blocked the road, they still knelt and saluted the Astartes spontaneously outside the blockade.

Thorne shook his head. As a warrior who had fought a rebellion so arrogantly, he really didn't like the feeling of being worshipped as a demigod.

But this is what happened as faith in the Emperor spread throughout the Imperium of Man, after the Ecclesiarchy gained the permanent High Lordship.

Although the Imperial Truth has not completely lost its power yet, compared to the rigid Imperial Truth//dogma, the thought of the Human Empire has inevitably shifted towards religion.

After all, religion is something that most people can understand.

Amidel felt this even more deeply than Thorne. Compared to the Heresy, when faith was already gaining momentum, the ideology of the Great Crusade was almost entirely dominated by the Imperial Truth. He said bluntly, "I don't like these fools."

“Faith does not mean ignorance.”

Lancelot countered that the Black Templars were the backbone of the God-Emperor faction: "The unwavering will to the God-Emperor unites everyone."

After these words were spoken, most of the Astartes distanced themselves from Lancelot.

Lancelot was confused.

"We do not need faith to maintain our unity; we are born out of our dedication to human ideals."

Kurland warned Lancelot in a deep voice, "Keep quiet, we are going to meet with the authorities here."

The portly commander of the spaceport garrison came jogging. Although his epaulettes showed his status as a major general of the local planetary defense force, the way he wiped the sweat off his face with a handkerchief made it difficult to tell that he was a soldier.

"Welcome, angels of the God-Emperor."

He panted and said, "I am the garrison commander here. I will be responsible for taking you to meet the planetary governor."