Chapter 442 "Contest"

“.”

After the captain of the 2nd Company of the Luna Wolf left the cabin, Magnus’ eyes quickly “focused” on the metal cube in his left hand.

According to various reports, Magnus already knew that the metal cube, or the exclusive storage box, contained a strange book that almost bewitched an ODST reconnaissance captain.

Even though the sealing measures were extremely strict, Magnus’s psychic power could still feel the “restlessness” in the box.

Presumably, the sealed book was a chaotic device with a “soul”.

Therefore, Magnus instantly raised his vigilance at this moment. If there was any abnormality, he would not mind using psychic power to directly smash and destroy the storage box.

A moment later, the captain of the 2nd Company led more than a dozen company guards and steadily walked down the ramp of the hatch.

Their armor flashed with a cold metallic luster under the light of the stars, and heavy footsteps echoed in the area.

When they reached the two primarchs standing like mountains, the captain and the guards stopped in unison.

They raised their right hands, clenched their fists, and crossed their arms in front of their chest armors, saluting respectfully. The whole action was neat and tidy, without any superfluousness.

Then, the captain of the 2nd Company took a step forward, slightly raised his left hand holding the storage box, and said with a serious face:

"Father, the 2nd Company has fulfilled its mission and successfully collected the key evidence of the collusion between the Na'vi and the Chaos forces.

This is the strange book we found, which has been properly sealed in a special storage box. At the same time, my company promises that within six hours, all Na'vi clans on Pandora will be completely eliminated without any future troubles."

Hearing this, Horus nodded slightly with a grim expression, without saying much, and also stretched out his left hand to take the special storage box from the captain.

Although his actions seemed relaxed, the solemnity in his heart was self-evident.

"Very good." Horus's deep voice was like a torrent rolling over rocks, revealing unquestionable majesty: "Remember, no matter old or young, no one will be left alive.

The existence of these heretics is a blasphemy to the empire. In addition, there is no need to waste time extracting biological samples. The archives of the Biological Department already have complete data on the Na'vi.

Your mission is simple, that is, to purify the entire Pandora and eliminate all heretics. Do it cleanly and neatly. Do you understand?"

"Yes, father." The captain answered in a sonorous and powerful voice, without a trace of hesitation.

"Well." Horus nodded, and there was still no ripple on his cold face.

He glanced at the captain of the 2nd company and his company guards, and finally added: "Go, eradicate all heretics."

"Yes!"

The captain took the order again, then turned around and led the guards to leave in the direction of the Thunderhawk gunship.

Horus and Magnus stood in place, watching the backs of the captain of the 2nd company and his guards boarding the Thunderhawk gunship.

Three pale-painted Thunderhawks gradually closed their hatches, and the roar of their engines broke the silence. They took off one after another, rose into the sky, and finally turned into several black dots that gradually moved away, completely disappearing in the azure sky.

After seeing the other party successfully leave the base airspace, Magnus turned his head slightly, turned his eyes to Horus standing beside him, and asked with a little inquiry:

"Brother, can I check the evidence found by the 2nd Company? I want to personally check the structure and possible hidden dangers of this item."

"Of course." Horus did not hesitate at all, lowered his head and handed the exclusive storage box in his hand to Magnus.

But he immediately added: "However, brother, we'd better enter the underground defense facility before doing research.

The potential threat of this thing has not been fully grasped. I don't want it to have any accidents on the surface, especially the possible uncontrollable damage to the 2nd Company base and even the nearby city."

"You're right, brother." Magnus nodded in agreement and took the storage box.

And the moment he touched the storage box, he felt the "restless" psychic energy inside the box more intuitively.

If it was opened directly on the spot, it might cause some kind of chaos shock, causing irreversible damage to the 2nd Company Base and the nearby city.

Next, the two Primarchs led their respective Honor Guards and walked towards the underground entrance inside the base.

After everyone arrived, they knew that this was a large magnetic levitation elevator leading to the depths, surrounded by complex transportation pipelines and heavy armored partitions.

Horus was the first to press the control panel, and the elevator quickly descended with a low mechanical sound, taking them to the core area of ​​the base 100 meters below the surface.

When the elevator stopped, they stepped into a shelter with a very high defense level.

This shelter was specially designed to withstand the direct attack of the ship-borne electromagnetic main gun. The surrounding walls were made of composite armor several meters thick, and the interior was arranged as a simple but functional space. The central control panel also emitted a light blue light.

"It should be safe enough here." Horus looked around and said softly.

Magnus nodded, carefully placed the metal storage box on the operating table, and began to prepare for further inspection and analysis.

The figures of the two Primarchs looked even more majestic under the cold light of the shelter. They were focused and completely devoted to the study of the dangerous items in front of them.

As the storage box slowly unfolded like a mechanical petal, a strange book covered with nanometal gradually appeared in front of the two Primarchs.

This book exudes an indescribable presence, and the outline of the pages reflects a faint luster under the light.

Horus stared at the item in front of him, frowning slightly.

He raised his hand and summoned a hard light screen suspended in the air, which immediately displayed the control interface of the storage box and the unlocking option of the nanometal seal.

However, Horus did not operate immediately, but turned his head slightly and looked at Magnus standing beside him.

Horus did not say anything, but his calm eyes seemed to convey a clear inquiry to Magnus, asking if he was ready.

Magnus and Horus' eyes met briefly, and then nodded slightly, revealing a calm expression of great vigilance.

He used silent movements to show that he was ready and could deal with any unexpected situation at any time.

After getting his brother's confirmation, Horus no longer hesitated. He controlled the options on the hard light screen and his fingertips swiped across the unlocking command.

Seeing this, Horus no longer hesitated and immediately controlled the hard light screen to unlock the nanometal that sealed the book.

Hiss—hiss——.

Accompanied by a very slight electronic sound, the nanometal covering the surface of the book began to change.

The nanometal layer that was originally covered like armor slowly "flowed" as if it had life.

These metal substances slid along the outline of the book in a fluid state, and glowed coldly under the light. Finally, they regrouped on the right side of the book and restored to a solid metal shape the size of a ping-pong ball, quietly stopping beside the inner wall of the storage box.

And the true appearance of the book, as the nanometal faded, was completely and thoroughly presented in the eyes of the two.

The cover of the book was engraved with unrecognizable runes and patterns, and each line seemed to contain the fluctuation of spiritual energy, and there was also a subtle low resonance in the air.

All signs indicate that this book is a "living" existence.

But the two Primarchs, Horus and Magnus, did not hear any bewitching whispers like the captain of the ODST reconnaissance team.

The book in front of them was full of chaotic aura and was indeed a heretic device, but the mental barriers of the Primarchs were as impregnable as a copper wall.

The Gastalins and Sekhmets standing around were not disturbed by the book at all, and everyone remained on high alert.

This group of Honor Guards either raised the parallel bolt guns attached to the left arm armor and pointed the muzzles at the books that were the size of their palms, or extended the power claws on the right arm armor.

Buzz~buzz.

The sharp claw blades flickered in the dim light, and the plasma force field covering the claw blades also emitted a low "roar".

For the Honor Guards, as long as there was any abnormality in the book, no matter how slight, they would take action without hesitation and physically destroy it by covering it with firepower.

But the Honor Guard also knew that if the situation really got out of control, even their full-strength attack might not be able to reverse the situation.

After all, the Primarch's own ability far surpassed any Astartes.

Even the newly established Imperial Guards could not pose a substantial threat to the Primarch, unless the Imperial Guards relied on a "human wave offensive" to "wear out" the Primarch.

And the premise is that the Primarch would not retreat, but would only stand there and passively take the beating.

When Leon witnessed the "killing" of the Imperial Guards in the simulated town, he gave a very high evaluation, but Leon never worried whether the Imperial Guards would pose a threat to their Primarch.

And if even the Primarch could not stop the threat in front of him, then these elite of the elite of the Astartes, even if they were extraordinary in strength, would be nothing more than an ant trying to shake a tree.

Despite this, Gastalin and Sekhmet remained loyal to their duties, ready to use their lives as the last barrier at any time.

At this moment, Horus stared at the book.

Although he could not sense any obvious abnormality, his instinctive disgust weighed on his heart like a heavy shadow.

He clearly felt that the existence of this book itself was a provocation to order, and it was something unspeakably unclean.

In contrast, Magnus was in deep thought.

His expression with narrowed eyes seemed to be weighing whether to take further action.

"Brother, this object is extremely strange." Horus whispered, his eyes never moving away from the book.

Magnus did not answer immediately after hearing this.

He slowly raised his hand and stared at the complex and twisted runes on the book, his eyes as deep as the abyss.

His consciousness was running fast, trying to analyze the truth of the book, and weighing whether it was worth touching this unknown area directly.

Magnus's right hand stopped less than an inch above the book, and a faint psychic light emanated from his fingertips.

At this moment, Magnus looked directly at Horus and said in a low but firm voice: "Brother, I decided to take the risk of reading this heretical book.

My father's vision did not provide more clues, but this book may contain direct information about the Chaos invasion. No matter how dangerous it is, this may be an important step in cracking the Chaos conspiracy."

As soon as he finished speaking, the atmosphere around him became more solemn.

The Honor Guards remained highly alert, but their eyes shifted from the book to Magnus.

Horus frowned. He knew the danger of Chaos, but he also understood the mission his brother was carrying.

He didn't respond in a hurry, but just looked at Magnus with sharp eyes for a moment, as if to confirm his determination.

"However." Magnus continued, and his tone became more serious, with a trace of imperceptible worry in his eyes:

"If I show any abnormality, whether it is psychic rampage or being eroded by evil gods, brother, you must take action immediately.

I ask you to forcibly separate me from this book without hesitation, or - kill me directly."

His voice was extremely firm, and every word seemed to be resounding, "No matter what happens, demons or evil gods cannot be allowed to descend into the real world through my body."

Horus's eyes flickered slightly, and then he nodded in response, with a hint of cold promise in his tone:

"Don't worry, brother, I will never let you fall into the control of Chaos, no matter what the cost."

After speaking, Horus stood up straight, ready to take action at any time, and at the same time exuding a sense of oppression that was close to bursting.

Seeing this, Magnus nodded gently, then took a deep breath and refocused his attention on the book in front of him.

His finger hovered above the cover of the book, and the psychic light slowly gathered, like a barrier, fully prepared for the next adventure.

And everyone present held their breath and waited for the next moment -

Whether it was to discover the truth or to usher in an unknown disaster, it seemed that the answer was about to be revealed.

Magnus's right hand just touched the heretical book, and in an instant, a dazzling light of blue and gold intertwined burst out from the contact point, like a suddenly ignited psychic flame, reflecting the entire room with extraordinary brilliance.

As he slowly opened the book, the strange blue light seemed to have life, quickly spreading around, shrouding the entire shelter in an ominous glow.

Every corner seemed to be swallowed by the blue light, making the fully armed Gastalin and Sekhmet feel extremely cold and oppressive.

However, at the moment when the blue light dominated, the golden light representing pure spiritual energy suddenly burst out, like an unstoppable spiritual energy tide, quickly counterattacked, suppressed and dispelled the blue light.

The golden light enveloped the room again, bringing a brief tranquility and stability.

However, this contest between spiritual energy lights did not attract Magnus' attention.

At this time, his eyes became empty, but his expression did not show pain or struggle.

It seems that his consciousness has been pulled by some invisible force and entered a "different space" that no one can perceive.