The Creators: From Night City

Page 486

In the vastness of space, this cargo ship doesn't seem very large against the backdrop of stars, but in reality, its size is equivalent to hollowing out Mount Tai, filling the interior with cargo holds, a cathedral, dormitories, and energy sources, then installing armor plates and engines, and propelling it into space.

Golden light swiftly spread across the entire hull, permeating every pipe, every deck, every wire, and every screw.

The 'craftsman' from another world formally demonstrated his 'power' for the first time.

Jiang Bing does indeed need a high-class ship to get around the world.

So he poured a lot of ether into it.

The entire spaceship underwent a dramatic transformation, both inside and out. Metals were melting, pipes seemed to come alive and changed positions autonomously, golden light surged through the wiring, and all components were stirring with anticipation.

Numerous useless and bloated parts were melted down, and Gothic towers and sculptures, especially those of the emperor, were reduced to nothingness. In their place rose countless macro cannons, laser arrays, torpedo tubes, close-in weapon lasers, and automatic warning cannons.

All members of the command system suddenly discovered that the frequently malfunctioning system was rapidly returning to normal, most of the offline shipboard modules were restarting and coming back online, the ship was quickly completing self-checks, and began to autonomously optimize and take emergency measures.

The artillery chief discovered that the offline weapon system had somehow reconnected and had many more powerful weapons he had never seen before; the astrolabe operator discovered that the sensor array and scanning system suddenly detected an abnormal unit in the void on the side of the fleet; the chief engineer, who was a mechanical priest, was the most surprised because he found that the completely damaged plasma reactor and conventional thrusters had miraculously returned to normal, which made him almost want to bang his head on the ground and shout 'Oh Messiah' above Jiang Bing.

The Void Shield opened on its own without human intervention, and all the weapons seemed to be controlled by a machine spirit, autonomously aiming at and locking onto targets.

The changes to the cargo ship naturally did not escape the notice of the Eldar pirate ships patrolling around it. Upon detecting the anomaly, the pirates launched an attack.

This is a void ship, its sleek hull surface covered with spikes. The ship, forged from "spirit bones," is almost like a living organism, constantly "breathing" in the void.

Unlike the Dark Eldar's main fleet of Tormentor-class cruisers, the Voidships are second-tier raiders or frigates, serving as the primary force for plundering and slave capture.

The ship's massive winches can be used to tow captured merchant ships or assist in boarding them directly, while its dismantling cannons are powerful enough to destroy most of the Empire's warship armor.

At this moment, the Void Lord of this Eldar pirate ship chose to directly use the Disintegration Cannon to provide fire support.

Unfortunately, the quietly unfolding void shield rippled outwards, swallowing up all the attacks.

The counterattack began simultaneously.

The dense barrage of 'light spears' launched automatically without any assistance, like a dense meteor shower, enveloping the void ship. The dark sea of ​​stars was instantly illuminated, but unfortunately, most of the attacks hit the phantoms projected by the enemy ship's starlight curtain.

The few stray beams were also dodged by the opponent thanks to their incredibly fast movement speed.

The battle quickly devolved into a boring 'naval warfare' exchange of fire.

A barrage of 'light spears' rained down on the enemy as if they were free, and every now and then some self-guided torpedoes were launched, heading straight for the enemy's location, but all the attacks were like using an anti-aircraft gun to kill a mosquito, with a zero hit rate.

The enemy's attacks had no effect on the cargo ship's void shield. Ever since Jiang Bing began to 'control' the cargo ship, its energy core had changed from three plasma reactors to something called an 'ether furnace'.

At first glance, the battlefield situation seemed to be at a stalemate. In reality, the cargo ship was undergoing a tremendous change. Countless new "flesh and blood" were being "forged" under Jiang Bing's leadership, and the entire cargo ship was undergoing a complete transformation.

The enemy's firepower is limited, and our army will only grow stronger as the battle progresses. The outcome of this battle is already set in stone.

Eldar warships are not known for their powerful firepower; what truly sets them apart in the galaxy is their sheer speed. Normally, when encountering such an unyielding "turtle," a swift retreat is the first choice. After all, Eldar pirates are only in it for plunder, not for war. Eliminating more enemies is meaningless to them; all they want are slaves and souls.

The awkward part is that the pirate crew that boarded the cargo ship had already jumped aboard the Reaper landing craft, and running away now would be tantamount to abandoning them.

This is an unacceptable outcome for the overlord who controls this void vessel.

So Jiang Bing left him stuck in place, unable to move forward or backward.

"Let the bullets fly for a while, then we should go catch those 'little mice'," Jiang Bing issued his first order since the start of the war.

The entire warship had been 'assimilated' by him, and whether it was on the bridge or not made no difference to him.

Rather than being worshipped on the bridge, capturing a few Dark Eldar to broaden his horizons would undoubtedly be more in line with Jiang Bing's wishes.

The Eldar pirates launched two boarding passes at the cargo ship. The intruders have regrouped and are rampaging through the ship, their trajectory indicating that their target is the bridge.

The principle of "shoot the horse before the rider" and "capture the king before the thief" was not wrong in the way these slave-catching teams practiced.

…………

In a corridor flashing red alarm lights, a dozen Eldar Chosen were surrounding a Painbringer, watching a brutal torture session unfold.

A skinned, humanoid mass of flesh writhes amidst a pile of iron filings, while several disemboweled but still alive slave laborers futilely try to stuff their organs back into their bellies.

The soldiers who chose to resist have been defeated by the enemy's separatists.

This rapid-fire weapon, which fires single-molecule discs, shatters upon impact, causing horrific lacerations and continuous bleeding within the target's body.

Unless the attack is intentionally aimed at vital organs, such attacks will only cause maximum pain and maiming to the target's body, causing the victim to die slowly in extreme agony, thereby satisfying the evil desires of these perpetrators.

The most loyal foreman was pierced in the abdomen by a barbed hook, and dragged along the cold deck, howling in pain, but never forgetting to shout "The Emperor is above."

The executioner's superb flesh-and-blood skills allowed the instruments to avoid all the vital organs inside the victim's abdomen. The seemingly serious injuries would not kill the unfortunate man for the time being, but they would undoubtedly cause him to suffer longer pain and torment.

A chosen one dragged the living instrument of torture forward, leaving a strange red 'carpet' of blood trailing behind, while fear spread rampantly around the remaining prisoners.

Destroying the psychological defenses of slaves through fear and bloodshed, and using violence and death to aid interrogation, are interrogation methods that these dark spirits have repeatedly found effective.

"Kruelage, did you get any useful information?" The speaker's tone was like the hiss of a viper, carrying an inescapable chill.

“Your Excellency Razor Lord, these ‘workers’ occupy the lowest of positions on this ship. There is nothing of value in their hot brains.” A Chosen One pulled his fingers out of the head of a slave worker and shook his hand in disgust.

“In that case, they are no longer of any use.” The leader of the Painful Messengers ruthlessly pronounced the death sentence on the group of prisoners.

"Offer their inferior souls to eternal desire, and let them sing a hymn for our upcoming joyful hunt."

But the sudden footsteps interrupted his bizarre expression, and the sudden appearance of nine large golden figures immediately stifled all the black bean sprouts.

In terms of brutality, the human empire is no less brutal than humans.

Chapter 986 'Funds Display'

Faced with the mess on the ground, Jiang Bing couldn't help but frown slightly.

With a snap of his fingers, golden flames ignited, transforming into molecular-level needles and threads that stitched up the gruesome, perforated wound.

The foreman, whose skin had been peeled off, was enveloped in light and his skin instantly healed. The iron filings that had seeped into his flesh transformed back into his original body.

The atmosphere was a bit heavy.

Both sides present were respectable individuals; the Imperial Guard and the 'Kill Squad' were all veterans with over a century of service, while the Dark Eldar were all psionic experts. Everyone knew the significance of this scene.

"A few pathetic creatures, their souls leaking out like tattered rags," Jiang Bing said, scrutinizing the alien race with a probing gaze. His strange looks sent chills down the spines of these elite warriors.

There was no negotiation, only an attack that erupted in an instant.

The Chosen Ones moved with the speed of light, their Phase Swords hidden in the shadows, making them appear exceptionally inconspicuous.

Valerius turned to the corner, and with a cunning step, the dagger under his cloak stabbed at the attacker, but stopped just before it pierced the attacker's eye.

A chain of runes forged from golden light had somehow sealed the attacker into a gilded amber. The attacker's fierce expression was so lifelike and vivid, as if he were still in the midst of a life-or-death struggle.

The former Imperial Guard's pupils almost shrank to a tiny dot. His gaze swept over the mysterious runes on the chains without leaving a trace, and he slowly withdrew his dagger before turning to examine the other 'Amber' pieces.

A dozen or so Chosen Ones lunged at the crowd in different poses, their ferocious forms frozen in mid-air, like the most lifelike sculptures.

With the second snap of his fingers, a dozen or so cracks suddenly appeared in the void, and Heiml's branches gently emerged from them, pulling these 'specimens' into the warehouse.

"Have you thought about your fate?" After doing all this, Jiang Bing asked the suffering waiter.

The other party did not reply.

The dark spear felt as heavy as a boulder at that moment. Before the dark elf could utter a single word, he was completely incinerated by the ethereal flames ignited by nothingness.

“Slaanesh will take your soul for his amusement, but I am much more merciful.”

Jiang Bing needed his 'information' as a guiding light.

In fact, not only him, but also the Void Ship, which was fighting against this transformed cargo ship, could not escape Jiang Bing's clutches.

Normally, a warship has a limited number of conventional engines, and their placement requires consideration of various factors such as layout, power supply, hull load-bearing capacity, and stress relief.

However, the warships entangled in 'ethereal fire' are clearly not 'ordinary'.

The activated metal writhed on its own, dozens of hidden interfaces opened, and a tail flame that stretched half a kilometer under the starry sky was ejected.

The simultaneous push of dozens of vector engines enabled this aging cargo ship to unleash astonishing speeds as it sped through the sea of ​​stars.

The long tail flames made the cargo ship look like a shooting star from a distance; the powerful brick-throwing action, though brutal, was effective.

The distance between the two was rapidly closed, and the laser array that had covered the entire ship poured out a light curtain like falling stars, firmly enveloping the enemy ship.

Even the long-lived Eldar had never seen such a ruthless density of firepower.

Compared to the density of firepower, the unique golden appearance of these light spears was not given much attention.

After all, laser arrays are notorious for being energy-intensive. While each laser spear possesses the power to destroy cities and fortresses, its energy consumption is equivalent to draining the energy of a plasma reactor for several minutes.

The power core of a human empire's strike ship will not exceed eight plasma reactors at most. After all, such large reactors are very fragile and are usually protected in the center of the ship. Their footprint, supporting facilities, and maintenance work need to be taken into account in the overall plan.

Therefore, there is a limit to the weapon configuration of a warship.

After all, not everyone has the 'Ether Furnace' to power them.

The numerous distorted and blurry illusions of void ships projected by the Starfall Curtain lost their concealment function. As the distance closed and the firepower became fully covering the area, this iconic illusion of the Eldar completely lost its effect.

The ship's built-in harpooners and scanning arrays were too powerful to kill the enemy fleet, but the gold technology derived from the 'Sower' was clearly capable of doing the job.

The powerful computing power ensured that even if the opponent relied on their high agility to perform many seemingly impossible sharp turns, rolls, and sudden stops, the ferocious firepower would still be focused on the opponent's 'Void Shield' like a stubborn plaster.

The Voidship's armor is extremely weak. The Eldar sacrificed its heavy protection for extreme speed, so a single blast of light would severely damage the Eldar warship.

The warship's energy comes from its "Pain Engine," a device that constantly absorbs the pain and fear of the slaves on board and converts it into energy to power the "Void Shield."

With just a few luminous spears, the opponent's void shield began to flicker wildly, reaching the edge of overload.

The unfavorable situation led the opposing decision-makers to abandon the Dark Eldar trapped on the strange warship and immediately activate the Web Jump to escape the battlefield.

This was exactly what Jiang Bing wanted.

The reason why the Dark Eldar's real-time jump technology to the Web Channel can enter the Web Channel at any time without needing a Web Channel entrance is because Dark Eldar warships are generally equipped with a short-range teleporter that can forcibly tear open a temporary micro-entrance to the Web Channel at their current location in the real universe.

This technology is somewhat similar to the warp drive jump technology of the Empire of Man, but it is more refined and accurate.

To put it simply, the Eldar can use a specialized system to find a 'blood vessel' of an existing network in the 'wall' of the real universe, and then use enormous energy to create a temporary 'needle hole' to crawl into.

This kind of jump is so precise that it allows them to enter the net from almost any location.

In the cold void, the hull of the Void Ship began to emit a sharp, piercing high-frequency vibration from a higher dimension, as if countless souls were wailing in agony.

The real space around the ship seemed to be filled with hot steam, causing severe distortion and shaking.

A massive high-dimensional portal was located, which temporarily collapsed and connected to the real world.

With the 'Pain Engine' running at full capacity, an ominous dark purple rift appeared out of nowhere, revealing strange colors and light of non-Euclidean geometry within. It was the manifestation of the scene inside the network collapsing into the real world.

The portal to the Internet has been opened.

"Lord Sabur, they're trying to jump into the net tunnel to escape!" Valerius warned anxiously from the bridge.

The Void Ship gracefully adjusted its posture, like a fish gliding into the deep sea, precisely and swiftly heading towards the rift.

However, its meticulously choreographed exit performance did not take place as scheduled.

"Crack~"

Jiang Bing snapped his fingers for the third time, and the flames mixed in with the light spears were launched. The flames that penetrated the enemy's void shield ignited instantly. Under everyone's stunned gaze, the huge rune chain, resembling a star ring, condensed in space, turning the void ship, which was only 1.2 kilometers long, into a golden space amber.

More creation runes emerged from the void, and several creation runes related to volume and weight combined with each other amidst flashes of light, modifying the 'source code' of some physical parameters of this void ship.

The massive ship was rapidly shrinking and soon disappeared from the sight of the people on the bridge.

And so, the dark Eldar ship that could silence a child's crying disappeared into the cold, desolate backdrop of space.

Just as Valerius was making a mental note of this, the familiar spatial rift opened up in front of Jiang Bing once again.

A verdant vine gently handed a miniature boat model to Jiang Bing, then retracted into the crack and disappeared.

Golden flames enveloped the palm-sized 'ship model', creating a transparent glass bottle around it, turning it into a 'ship in a bottle'.

"Thud~"

Jiang Bing casually placed this exquisite artwork in front of the former Imperial Guards.

"It would be impolite to show up empty-handed. This is a gift I'm giving to your master as a greeting."

Chapter 987 Child of the Void

Time has no meaning in the Web, but the sailing time of ships of the Human Empire is still measured in years.

Time was very meaningful to Jiang Bing. During the long voyage, he obviously could not sit and wait. He could only frequently 'jump' to other planes to keep busy, so as not to be trapped in his new vehicle.

'Jack Raven'

The new name given to the ship after it was requisitioned was 'The Hardworking One,' but apart from Jiang Bing, no one could appreciate the true meaning behind this name that contained his hopes.

Everyone thought the name was rather ordinary, including Tinplate.