The Creators: From Night City

Page 541

Blackstone, this mysterious mineral, is distributed throughout the galaxy, but the Empire has not discovered many veins, and even fewer are located near the Eye of Terror.

Although thousands of 'Jiang Bing's' have ventured alone, traveled by ship, or led troops to explore mineral veins in various worlds of the Milky Way and made some gains, they are still unable to transport large quantities to the star system near Yuncadia in the short term due to the difficulty of mining and transportation capacity.

Therefore, using local materials became the most efficient option.

The world near Cardia is clearly a region rich in blackstone ore. In addition to this world, Jiang Bing also discovered blackstone veins of varying sizes in the four surrounding worlds.

Correspondingly, all the 'star torches' on the Blackstone veins are under construction.

Just as the three Black Templars were dying and coming back to life countless times, reinforcements finally arrived.

However, these reinforcements were not his familiar combat brothers from his own company, but rather groups of blue canned goods.

Dozens of assault pods crashed directly into the vicinity of the mine, and hundreds of Ultra Warriors poured out from them, immediately opening fire on the enemy upon landing.

These original Ultra Warriors were noticeably larger than the Black Templars, and their power armor was the latest model to match, making them visibly more powerful in combat.

With the addition of this fresh force, the enemy's offensive was quickly thwarted, and the increase in their own strength allowed them to even push the front line back and build an outer defensive line.

Only then can the safety of the mine be considered secure.

Upon receiving orders from 'Regent' Guilliman, and through his masterful political maneuvering, the local defense forces finally dispatched several Astral Legions to provide support.

With these troops stationed here, the defenses of this area are finally sufficient.

The silver tower continues to grow.

Under Jiang Bing's control, massive underground mineral deposits were mined and used to build a tall tower.

This clone did not inherit much of his power, but even as a signal relay station, the broadcast computing power was already capable of many extraordinary things when used to control nanomachines.

Soon, the first phase of the new 'Star Torch' was successfully completed, and its height has reached a terrifying 4,000 meters. Its size is now clearly visible from orbit.

This extraordinary building, designed by a craftsman who combined his life's learning, soon roared at the world.

As the countless tiny scale-like devices on the tower body continued to rotate, a large number of dark black blocks soon emerged from the silver-white 'Star Torch'.

The energy continued to surge, and the tower gradually filled with a mist that shimmered with purple lightning, which grew increasingly dense over time.

Finally, when the fog reached its limit, the invisible restraints seemed to suddenly collapse, and the vast fog instantly spread out, sweeping over mountains, valleys, battlefields of fierce fighting on the ground, lairs occupied by demons, and the solid fortresses of the human empire. Like a supernova, it wildly expanded its light outwards until it covered a landmass the size of the Asian continent before dissipating, transforming into a huge energy field.

Jiang Bing called it a "magic-banning stance".

Products made by 'craftsmen' are guaranteed to be of high quality.

The new 'Star Torch' unleashed an effect similar to the Black Stone Obelisk, greatly strengthening the veil between the real dimension and the warp. As a result, the demons shrouded in the anti-magic field instantly became dejected, as if they had been cursed by the heavens, looking as listless as the unlucky ghost who had been sent to the toilet planet after three days of relentless attacks on Wallace.

Demons are products of the warp. Unlike the rebellious Space Marines who turned to chaos, most demons are essentially warp entities. They have no physical anchor and, under normal circumstances, cannot appear in the real world.

Where the 'veil' is strong enough, these demons disappear from the world like figures in mythology. But in Kadia, where the 'veil' is thin enough to form the Eye of Terror, the demons can not only walk in the physical universe, but their strength is also enhanced.

One of the functions of the new 'Star Torch' is to reinforce the integrity of 'dimensions', much like the black stone obelisks of the cosmic necromancers.

With their connection to the 'Warp' weakened, the demons are like grasshoppers in autumn, flies in winter, or American traitors on the verge of death, with a death star hanging high in their heads.

The most direct impression came from the Cardia Guards fighting against the large demon army.

The demons, who were full of energy just a moment ago, suddenly panicked after this unknown field expanded.

He no longer had the strength to chop people, his gun could no longer hit its mark, his demonic engine had stopped working, and the power of his psionic spells had weakened.

The pressure on the defenders was immediately reduced.

Now that the connection to the subspace has been weakened, does Jiang Bing have a way to further increase the power of the anti-magic field, pushing it to its limit, severing the connection between the entire field and the subspace, completely eliminating the soil for the demons to survive, and creating an artificial, soulless void?

Some children, some.

In fact, Jiang Bing didn't even need to develop it; the Space Necromancer already had a complete set of mature similar technologies—the Spirit Exorcising Domain.

By utilizing the properties and power of the Blackstone Device, the connection between the real world and the subspace within the field can be directly severed, thereby completely eliminating the influence of the subspace and banishing chaos.

However, the most noteworthy aspect of this plan is that while all the demons would die, humanity would also perish.

In this world, the human soul has a reflection in the warp, and losing contact with the warp means that the human soul will wither away over time until it perishes.

This is also why the Empire named this technology 'Dead Zone of Exorcism'.

This technology can be said to have been specifically developed for the space necromancers, these mourners and soulless machines, since they have no souls and are unaffected.

Of course, Jiang Bing's painstaking research and development of the new 'Star Torch' was not simply for the purpose of using it as a shell for the 'Imperial Black Stone Obelisk'. He didn't care so much about saving face, going to great lengths just to change the shell and make himself look good.

His purpose is already written in the obvious through this device.

"Star Torch"

This device can contain the psionic flames supplied by the Emperor, or rather, the collective consciousness of the entire human empire, and project them into reality using the properties of the Black Stone.

Yes, from beginning to end, Jiang Bing's plan was to bring the blazing star torch in subspace into reality.

Chapter 1097 Usakar E. Creed

Time: M41.996, 3 years less than the projected future.

Location: Cardian system, centered on the fortress world of Cardia.

Party A: Abaddon, the true warlord of the Empire, and the Black Legion he leads, which includes the Chaos Warband, the Demon Legion, members of the Dark Mechanicus whom he has gathered for thousands of years in the Eye of Terror, as well as demonic reinforcements jointly blessed and dispatched by the four Chaos Gods.

Party B: With the Cadian Legion as its core, it also includes multiple Space Marine chapters (including the Blood Angels, the Imperial Fist, etc.), the Imperial Astral Guard, the Mechanicus (i.e., the Titan Legion), the Silent Sisters, and all forces of the Inquisition in this region.

Current situation: Under the catalysis of the power of the four gods, the Eye of Fear is expanding like a tide. Abaddon's Black Expeditionary Force has spread out and is trying to surround Kadia from all sides, cut off external assistance, and try to end the battle quickly.

The human empire has a strict hierarchy of the severity of military conflicts.

Local conflicts, planetary-level wars, galactic-level wars, holy war expeditions, and the legendary apocalyptic-level wars.

The battle for Cardia was undoubtedly a classic apocalyptic event.

Bombing, endless bombing.

At the outset of the war, when the main force of the Black Fleet leaped out of the warp, Abaddon commanded the Blackrock Fortress, captured during the Gothic War, as a mobile vanguard fortress. Despite the attacks from the surrounding defensive fortress worlds of Cadia and the counterattacks of countless Imperial warships, he managed to reach the vicinity of Cadia's orbit. Using the massive weapon arrays on board, he launched a relentless orbital bombardment of Cadia's main Void Shield generators, starports, communication hubs, orbital defense rings, and planetary defense forces, firmly pinning the tentacles of the Black Fleet to the vicinity of Cadia.

Meanwhile, the main force of the Black Fleet, relying on the Black Rock Fortress, was engaged in a protracted battle with the Imperial fleet, while also scattering a large number of auxiliary troops that were not under its control in all directions to wreak havoc on the surrounding star systems, attack planets, and attempt to establish an absolute orbital blockade to cut off the Imperial's reinforcement routes.

The planetary governor immediately declared "final martial law" and sent a high-priority distress signal to the entire galaxy via backup star-speaker arrays and physical beacons.

Unlike the nobles of other planets, this Cardian was not incompetent. Instead, he took the lead and, after doing everything he could, personally boarded the planet's defense orbit, inspiring the Empire's army to fight back.

However, the valiant governor of the planet Cardia was soon assassinated by a precise orbital attack launched by the forces of Chaos. Although the hidden Chaos traitor was exposed, it still dealt an immeasurable blow to the entire Cardia defense war.

Then, "the Lion of Cardia," "the Iron Man," Usakar E. Creed was appointed to take over global defense command in a time of crisis.

Thanks to Emperor Jiang Bing's advance notice and the joint efforts of ensuring their continued voyage in subspace, Guilliman's ships arrived much earlier than expected, but the intensity of the war had already escalated to an undeniably apocalyptic level.

The current war situation is so complicated that even Guilliman has to be fully focused and give it his all, to the point that he cannot spare the main force to meet Jiang Bing's need for reinforcements.

And this war continues to race toward an earth-shattering scale.

Guilliman's massive Ultramarines fleet slowly entered the battlefield from the flank of the Black Expeditionary Force, but encountered extremely strong resistance, so much so that Guilliman could only proceed cautiously and try to contact the high command on the planet Cadia as soon as possible.

However, Abaddon's Blackrock Fortress activated its anti-psychic communication function, and the Dark Mechanicus simultaneously activated its Void Interference Array, emitting anti-communication pulses that spread throughout the entire star system, greatly interfering with communication distance and accuracy.

Guilliman could only focus all his efforts on directing the fleet toward Cardia, constantly closing the distance between them, and continuously calling out to try to make contact with the Cardia garrison.

Cardia.

Inside "Black Rock," the main control fortress of the largest Void Shield in the Southern Hemisphere.

The planetary defense command center was in complete chaos. As the absolute core of the entire Void Shield system on the planet Cadia, it was the place that suffered the most bombings, infiltrations, raids, and destruction.

The heavy blast door slid open smoothly, and the military officer rushed in, only to find his chief lord holding a remote strategic meeting with a group of staff officers, commanders of various war zones, the tribunal, and Astartes.

Usaka E. Creed was a native Cardia soldier nearing fifty.

Resolute, strong, aloof, and covered in scars.

A cigar was held in the mouth of the High Lord of Cadia, the cigarette butt shining brightly, and thick plumes of smoke billowed from between his lips and teeth, merging into the smoky atmosphere of the room.

During the inter-departmental communication, various departments were arguing and expressing their opinions, while Creed simply listened quietly without reacting.

Upon seeing his military officer arrive, he immediately withdrew temporarily.

He knew that unless it was something important, the other party wouldn't disturb his meeting.

"Lord of the fortress!" the military officer shouted, then immediately began reporting the latest key battle report.

The main sensor array of the "Eye of Cadian" orbital fortress was destroyed by the Terminator squads and Bloodthirsty Demon cultists deployed by the Chaos Black Legion. This has severely hampered our ability to send out wide-area reinforcements. Furthermore, the commander of the "Iron Halo" space station cluster's orbital cannon platform sent a message stating that they are under heavy enemy fire and are in dire straits. Without heavy anti-ship firepower, the battlefield situation will be extremely unfavorable for us! The officer, given the urgency and the heavy workload, gave a brief report.

“Contact the orbital defense command deep underground in Kasma and have them activate the ‘Ring of Steel’ contingency plan.” Creed seemed to have anticipated this and responded immediately.

"In addition, switch the orbital platform to autonomous combat mode in the area where the most intense fighting between the orbital defense H3 zone and the enemy takes place, and immediately begin to organize the orderly evacuation of the defending troops, but remember to reserve a self-destruct procedure."

"Deploy a space-based dead mine array in the H2 area within the B3 defense zone to block all possible attack routes for the enemy fleet. We will be unable to launch an attack for the time being, thus preventing them from considering the possibility of re-entry for a short period of time."

"The Cardia Navy's 1st Fleet also ordered them to take off urgently to intercept the enemy. Their mission was to hold the B2 defense zone to the death, at least until the combat personnel in the H3 zone were withdrawn."

"Understood!" the military officer replied loudly, and immediately returned to relay the message.

Lord Creed rubbed his tired, aching eyes and continued his meeting.

"75% of the facilities at the Kasma main starport have been destroyed, and the Void Shield generator array in the Southern Hemisphere has been continuously interfered with by the anti-psychic pulses from the enemy's Black Market Fortress, causing the output power of the Void Shield in this area to drop by 43%..." In the holographic projection, the Mechanical Sage in charge of equipment maintenance reported the damage data without any emotion.

The poor data inevitably left all the attendees looking rather gloomy.

Creed unconsciously chewed the cigarette butt in his mouth, his mind racing as he considered a solution.

Just as he was starting to get a clue, the blast door behind him suddenly opened again, and the military officer returned for some unknown reason.

"What's wrong?" Creed's precious thoughts were interrupted, and his expression was somewhat displeased.

Before the military officer could even catch his breath, he excitedly reported, "Lord, there's an emergency in the communications department. The Primarch of the Ultramarines, Lord Robert Guilliman, Lord of Alteramar, has arrived to provide support and wishes to speak with you!"

Chapter 1098 Professionals Doing Professional Things

"What are you planning to do, Highlord Usakar E. Creed?" Guilliman asked through the blurry, fluctuating holographic projection.

Although it was utterly unbelievable, Creed could only believe that the person standing opposite the hologram was the legendary Emperor's son, the Imperial Demigod.

“You may call me Creed, my lord.” Although the High Lord of the Fortress looked unpleasant and unyielding, he knew when to be humble.

"The battle is raging right now, there's no need to be bogged down by the situation, High Lord. I'd like to know how Kadia is doing?" Guilliman went straight to the point, avoiding any unnecessary pleasantries.

"It's extremely critical, Lord Guilliman."

The commander of Supreme Fortress gave a brief summary of the battle.

"Not long ago, the boundary of the Eye of Fear expanded violently, and conventional navigation signals were completely interrupted. This event also caused the outpost arrays on the outer edge of the Cardia galaxy to lose contact one after another under the impact of subspace energy."

"Before we could figure all this out, Abaddon's main fleet bypassed our outer defense system and appeared directly in near-Earth orbit near Cardia, tearing through the veil of reality."

"At the start of the war, the main starport of Kasma was attacked and penetrated by the charged fire of the main cannon of Chaos Blackrock Fortress. 75% of the starport's facilities were destroyed and the communication system was completely destroyed."

"The naval forces near Cardia were not enough to match the main force of the Chaos Fleet. Nearly half of them were annihilated, and the rest are struggling to resist, relying on the orbital defense system."

“We are essentially surrounded, sir. Abaddon has dispatched a large number of fast strike cruiser groups to form the ‘Reaper’ cluster, specifically to hunt down any remaining Imperial naval vessels and any vehicles we attempt to break out of the encirclement.”

Kadia's defense system was like an onion, surrounded by one defensive line after another. But no one expected that Abaddon would not play by the rules and would not follow the conventional route. Instead, under the protection of the four gods, he temporarily tore through the veil of reality and flashed into the inner circle of the human empire's territory. He then built an external defense line and took advantage of the time difference when most of the troops returned to reinforce the area before launching a fierce attack on Kadia.

"I understand." Through the other party's few words, Guilliman grasped most of the situation.

"My fleet is trying to break through the enemy's outer defenses, but you must be prepared, High Fortress Lord. Abaddon's elaborate sneak attack will not be easily breached."

"The time you need to persevere may be longer than we anticipated."

The High Fortress Lord's voice was resolute: "Kadia stands firm. The Planetary Governor has already issued Mobilization Order No. 7. We will fight to the last man."

"No one can question Kadia's loyalty, High Lord."

"I will try my best to command the fleet to break through Abaddon's defenses and join you, while also trying my best to contact all friendly forces that are coming to our aid."

“In addition, there is a plan that requires your cooperation, High Lord, which is directly related to the success or failure of this war…” Guilliman’s voice gradually lowered.

…………

Time does not change according to human will.

Even with Guilliman commanding the Ultimate Fleet to bombard the enemy relentlessly, and various reinforcements engaging the Chaos Fleet in multi-pronged attacks, it still couldn't alleviate Cardia's decline.

The day after the communication, nearly 40% of the planetary orbital defense system was lost, 8% of the defense forces in the area were lost, and the remaining forces withdrew to the surface.

At this point, the integrity of the defensive rails has been compromised, and several holes have been torn in Cardia's first line of defense.

The remaining remnants of the navy could only regroup on the dark side of the planet, relying on the planet's gravity well and surface anti-aircraft firepower to carry out mobile defense, employing the "hedgehog tactic" to continuously contain the Chaos forces and wage orbital guerrilla warfare.

However, the remaining 18 warships were no longer able to play a decisive role.